Driftnet Modernization and Bycatch Reduction Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 1979 To improve the management of driftnet fishing. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MARCH 28, 2019 Mr. TED LIEU of California (for himself and Mr. FITZPATRICK) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources A BILL To improve the management of driftnet fishing. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Driftnet Modernization 4 and Bycatch Reduction Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. DEFINITION. 6 Section 3(25) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Con- 7 servation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1802(25)) is 8 amended by inserting ‘‘, or with a mesh size of 14 inches 9 or greater,’’ after ‘‘more’’. 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:35 Apr 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1979.IH H1979 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 1979 IH SEC. 3. FINDINGS AND POLICY. 1 (a) FINDINGS.—Section 206(b) of the Magnuson-Ste- 2 vens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 3 U.S.C. 1826(b)) is amended— 4 (1) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 5 end; 6 (2) in paragraph (7), by striking the period and 7 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 8 (3) by adding at the end the following: 9 ‘‘(8) within the exclusive economic zone, large- 10 scale driftnet fishing that deploys nets with large 11 mesh sizes causes significant entanglement and mor- 12 tality of living marine resources, including myriad 13 protected species, despite limitations on the lengths 14 of such nets.’’. 15 (b) POLICY.—Section 206(c) of the Magnuson-Ste- 16 vens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 17 U.S.C. 1826(c)) is amended— 18 (1) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 19 end; 20 (2) in paragraph (3), by striking the period and 21 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 22 (3) by adding at the end the following— 23 ‘‘(4) prioritize the phase out of large-scale 24 driftnet fishing in the exclusive economic zone and 25 promote the development and adoption of alternative 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:35 Apr 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1979.IH H1979 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 1979 IH fishing methods and gear types that minimize the in- 1 cidental catch of living marine resources.’’. 2 SEC. 4. TRANSITION PROGRAM. 3 Section 206 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Con- 4 servation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1826) is 5 amended by adding at the end the following— 6 ‘‘(i) FISHING GEAR TRANSITION PROGRAM.— 7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—During the 5-year period 8 beginning on the date of enactment of the Driftnet 9 Modernization and Bycatch Reduction Act, the Sec- 10 retary shall conduct a transition program to facili- 11 tate the phase-out of large-scale driftnet fishing and 12 adoption of alternative fishing practices that mini- 13 mize the incidental catch of living marine resources, 14 and shall award grants to eligible permit holders 15 who participate in the program. 16 ‘‘(2) PERMISSIBLE USES.—Any permit holder 17 receiving a grant under paragraph (1) may use such 18 funds only for the purpose of covering— 19 ‘‘(A) any fee originally associated with a 20 permit authorizing participation in a large-scale 21 driftnet fishery, if such permit is surrendered 22 for permanent revocation, and such permit 23 holder relinquishes any claim associated with 24 the permit; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:35 Apr 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1979.IH H1979 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 1979 IH ‘‘(B) a forfeiture of fishing gear associated 1 with a permit described in subparagraph (A); or 2 ‘‘(C) the purchase of alternative gear with 3 minimal incidental catch of living marine re- 4 sources, if the fishery participant is authorized 5 to continue fishing using such alternative gears. 6 ‘‘(3) CERTIFICATION.—The Secretary shall cer- 7 tify that, with respect to each participant in the pro- 8 gram under this subsection, any permit authorizing 9 participation in a large-scale driftnet fishery has 10 been permanently revoked and that no new permits 11 will be issued to authorize such fishing.’’. 12 SEC. 5. EXCEPTION. 13 Section 307(1)(M) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 14 Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 15 1857(1)(M)) is amended by inserting before the semicolon 16 the following: ‘‘, unless such large-scale driftnet fishing— 17 ‘‘(i) deploys, within the exclusive eco- 18 nomic zone, a net with a total length of 19 less than two and one-half kilometers and 20 a mesh size of 14 inches or greater; and 21 ‘‘(ii) is conducted within 5 years of 22 the date of enactment of the Driftnet Mod- 23 ernization and Bycatch Reduction Act’’. 24 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:35 Apr 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H1979.IH H1979 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS