Sec. 7. Enforcement provisions

317 words·~1 min read·/bill/119/s/688/is/section-7

A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.

The Commandant of the Coast Guard shall strive, in accordance with the UN Fish Stocks Agreement, to increase, from year to year, its observation of vessels on the high seas that are suspected of IUU fishing and related harmful practices, and is encouraged to consider boarding these vessels to the greatest extent practicable. The Administrator shall, in consultation with the Commandant of the Coast Guard and the Secretary of State, coordinate regularly with regional fisheries management organizations to determine what corrective measures each country has taken after vessels that are registered or documented by the country have been boarded for suspected IUU fishing.

Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of this Act and in accordance with information management rules of the relevant regional fisheries management organizations, the Commandant of the Coast Guard shall submit a report to Congress on— the total number of bilateral agreements utilized or enacted during Coast Guard counter-IUU patrols and future patrol plans for operations with partner nations where bilateral agreements are required to effectively execute the counter-IUU mission and any changes to IUU provisions in bilateral agreements; incidents of IUU fishing observed while conducting High Seas Boarding and Inspections (HSBI), how the conduct is tracked after referral to the respective country where the vessel is registered or documented, and what actions are taken to document or otherwise act on the enforcement, or lack thereof, taken by the country; the country where the vessel is registered or documented, the country where the vessel was previously registered and documented if known, and status of a vessel interdicted or observed to be engaged in IUU fishing on the high seas by the Coast Guard; incident details on vessels observed to be engaged in IUU fishing on the high seas, boarding refusals, and what action was taken; and any other potential enforcement actions that could decrease IUU fishing on the high seas.