A bill to amend the Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976 to provide for representation of the Northern Mariana Islands, and for other purposes.
Latest action. Referred to House Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries.
Amends the Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976 to include the Northern Mariana Islands within the fishery management program of the United States. Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to issue a recreational tournament permit for each recreational fishing vessel of a foreign nation which wishes to engage in fishing in a recreational fishing tournament conducted in the fishery conservation zone. Requires the owner or operator of the vessel for which such permit is issued to prominently display such permit and show it, upon request, to any officer authorized to enforce the provisions of such Act. Authorizes the Secretary to establish, require the payment of, and collect fees for such permits. Includes the Northern Mariana Islands within the Western Pacific Fishery Management Council. Increases the membership of such Council to 13. Changes to May 1 the date by which each fishery management council must submit to the Secretary a report on the council's activities during the immediately preceding calendar year. Authorizes the Secretary to require persons to submit data which would be pertinent to a fishery and which the Secretary determines are necessary and appropriate for the preparation of a preliminary fishery management plan or a fishery management plan for that fishery. Declares that any such statistics submitted to the Secretary shall be confidential and shall not be disclosed except when required under court order. Extends to 90 days the length of time any emergency regulation promulgated by the Secretary which changes any existing fishery management plan may remain in effect. Changes to July 1 the date by which the Secretary shall report to the Congress and the President concerning all activities of the councils and the Secretary with respect to fishery management. Eliminates imprisonment as a punishment for a person guilty of fishing without a valid permit in a foreign vessel. Permits the Secretary, in the case of any perishable seized fish, to dispose of such fish in a manner prescribed by regulations of the Secretary or the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating. Requires the Secretary and the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating to report, annually rather than semiannually, to specified congressional committees on the degree and extent of known and estimated compliance with the provisions of such Act. Authorizes such Secretaries to seize the proceeds of the sale of any fish taken or retained in violation of any provisions of such Act. Directs the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating to cause the vessel M/V OLWOL, owned by the government of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands and in the custody of the government of the Northern Mariana Islands, to be documented as a vessel of the United States upon compliance with the usual requirements.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on July 23, 1980. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on July 23, 1980: Referred to House Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 96th Congress (1979-80), 613 of the 12,581 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 4.9 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
THOMAS ASHLEY (D-OH) introduced it on July 23, 1980, and 2 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 1 Democrat, 1 Republican.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on July 23, 1980, 16850 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 16850 days ago, on July 23, 1980.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 96th Congress has not finished by January 3, 1981 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers