§1861a. Transition to sustainable fisheries

(a) Fisheries disaster relief

(1) At the discretion of the Secretary or at the request of the Governor of an affected State or a fishing community, the Secretary shall determine whether there is a commercial fishery failure due to a fishery resource disaster as a result of-

(A) natural causes;

(B) man-made causes beyond the control of fishery managers to mitigate through conservation and management measures; or

(C) undetermined causes.

(2) Upon the determination under paragraph (1) that there is a commercial fishery failure, the Secretary is authorized to make sums available to be used by the affected State, fishing community, or by the Secretary in cooperation with the affected State or fishing community for assessing the economic and social effects of the commercial fishery failure, or any activity that the Secretary determines is appropriate to restore the fishery or prevent a similar failure in the future and to assist a fishing community affected by such failure. Before making funds available for an activity authorized under this section, the Secretary shall make a determination that such activity will not expand the size or scope of the commercial fishery failure in that fishery or into other fisheries or other geographic regions.

(3) The Federal share of the cost of any activity carried out under the authority of this subsection shall not exceed 75 percent of the cost of that activity.

(4) There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary such sums as are necessary for each of the fiscal years 1996, 1997, 1998, and 1999.

(b) Fishing capacity reduction program

(1) The Secretary, at the request of the appropriate Council for fisheries under the authority of such Council, or the Governor of a State for fisheries under State authority, may conduct a fishing capacity reduction program (referred to in this section as the "program") in a fishery if the Secretary determines that the program-

(A) is necessary to prevent or end overfishing, rebuild stocks of fish, or achieve measurable and significant improvements in the conservation and management of the fishery;

(B) is consistent with the Federal or State fishery management plan or program in effect for such fishery, as appropriate, and that the fishery management plan-

(i) will prevent the replacement of fishing capacity removed by the program through a moratorium on new entrants, restrictions on vessel upgrades, and other effort control measures, taking into account the full potential fishing capacity of the fleet; and

(ii) establishes a specified or target total allowable catch or other measures that trigger closure of the fishery or adjustments to reduce catch; and

(C) is cost-effective and capable of repaying any debt obligation incurred under section 1279f ¹ of title 46, Appendix.

(2) The objective of the program shall be to obtain the maximum sustained reduction in fishing capacity at the least cost and in a minimum period of time. To achieve that objective, the Secretary is authorized to pay-

(A) the owner of a fishing vessel, if such vessel is (i) scrapped, or (ii) through the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating, subjected to title restrictions that permanently prohibit and effectively prevent its use in fishing, and if the permit authorizing the participation of the vessel in the fishery is surrendered for permanent revocation and the owner relinquishes any claim associated with the vessel and permit that could qualify such owner for any present or future limited access system permit in the fishery for which the program is established; or

(B) the holder of a permit authorizing participation in the fishery, if such permit is surrendered for permanent revocation, and such holder relinquishes any claim associated with the permit and vessel used to harvest fishery resources under the permit that could qualify such holder for any present or future limited access system permit in the fishery for which the program was established.

(3) Participation in the program shall be voluntary, but the Secretary shall ensure compliance by all who do participate.

(4) The Secretary shall consult, as appropriate, with Councils, Federal agencies, State and regional authorities, affected fishing communities, participants in the fishery, conservation organizations, and other interested parties throughout the development and implementation of any program under this section.

(c) Program funding

(1) The program may be funded by any combination of amounts-

(A) available under clause (iv) of section 713c–3(b)(1)(A) of title 15;

(B) appropriated for the purposes of this section;

(C) provided by an industry fee system established under subsection (d) of this section and in accordance with section 1279f ¹ of title 46, Appendix; or

(D) provided from any State or other public sources or private or non-profit organizations.

(2) All funds for the program, including any fees established under subsection (d) of this section, shall be paid into the fishing capacity reduction fund established under section 1279f ¹ of title 46, Appendix.

(d) Industry fee system

(1)(A) If an industry fee system is necessary to fund the program, the Secretary, at the request of the appropriate Council, may conduct a referendum on such system. Prior to the referendum, the Secretary, in consultation with the Council, shall-

(i) identify, to the extent practicable, and notify all permit or vessel owners who would be affected by the program; and

(ii) make available to such owners information about the industry fee system describing the schedule, procedures, and eligibility requirements for the referendum, the proposed program, and the amount and duration and any other terms and conditions of the proposed fee system.

(B) The industry fee system shall be considered approved if the referendum votes which are cast in favor of the proposed system constitute a two-thirds majority of the participants voting.

(2) Notwithstanding section 1854(d) of this title and consistent with an approved industry fee system, the Secretary is authorized to establish such a system to fund the program and repay debt obligations incurred pursuant to section 1279f ¹ of title 46, Appendix. The fees for a program established under this section shall-

(A) be determined by the Secretary and adjusted from time to time as the Secretary considers necessary to ensure the availability of sufficient funds to repay such debt obligations;

(B) not exceed 5 percent of the ex-vessel value of all fish harvested from the fishery for which the program is established;

(C) be deducted by the first ex-vessel fish purchaser from the proceeds otherwise payable to the seller and accounted for and forwarded by such fish purchasers to the Secretary in such manner as the Secretary may establish; and

(D) be in effect only until such time as the debt obligation has been fully paid.

(e) Implementation plan

(1) The Secretary, in consultation with the appropriate Council or State and other interested parties, shall prepare and publish in the Federal Register for a 60-day public comment period an implementation plan, including proposed regulations, for each program. The implementation plan shall-

(A) define criteria for determining types and numbers of vessels which are eligible for participation in the program taking into account characteristics of the fishery, the requirements of applicable fishery management plans, the needs of fishing communities, and the need to minimize program costs; and

(B) establish procedures for program participation (such as submission of owner bid under an auction system or fair market-value assessment) including any terms and conditions for participation which the Secretary deems to be reasonably necessary to meet the goals of the program.

(2) During the 60-day public comment period-

(A) the Secretary shall conduct a public hearing in each State affected by the program; and

(B) the appropriate Council or State shall submit its comments and recommendations, if any, regarding the plan and regulations.

(3) Within 45 days after the close of the public comment period, the Secretary, in consultation with the appropriate Council or State, shall analyze the public comment received and publish in the Federal Register a final implementation plan for the program and regulations for its implementation. The Secretary may not adopt a final implementation plan involving industry fees or debt obligation unless an industry fee system has been approved by a referendum under this section.

(Pub. L. 94–265, title III, §312, as added Pub. L. 104–297, title I, §116(a), Oct. 11, 1996, 110 Stat. 3600 .)

References in Text

Section 1279f of title 46, Appendix, referred to in subsecs. (b)(1)(C), (c)(1)(C), (2), and (d)(2), was in the original a reference to section 1111 of title XI of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936, and was translated as meaning the section 1111 of that Act added by Pub. L. 104–297, §303(a), to reflect the probable intent of Congress. Another section 1111 of title XI of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936, relating to loan guarantees for eligible vessels, is classified to section 1279d of Title 46, Appendix, Shipping.

Prior Provisions

A prior section 312 of Pub. L. 94–265, title III, Apr. 13, 1976, 90 Stat. 359 , was set out as an Effective Date note under section 1857 of this title, prior to being amended generally by Pub. L. 104–297.

Study of Federal Investment in Fisheries

Section 116(b) of Pub. L. 104–297, as amended by Pub. L. 104–208, div. A, title I, §101(a) [title II, §211(b)], Sept. 30, 1996, 110 Stat. 3009 , 3009-41, provided that: "The Secretary of Commerce shall establish a task force comprised of interested parties to study and report to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Resources of the House of Representatives within 2 years of the date of enactment of this Act [Oct. 11, 1996] on the role of the Federal Government in-

"(1) subsidizing the expansion and contraction of fishing capacity in fishing fleets managed under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.); and

"(2) otherwise influencing the aggregate capital investments in fisheries."

Section Referred to in Other Sections

This section is referred to in title 15 section 713c–3; title 42 section 3149; title 46 App. section 1279f.

¹ See References in Text note below.