Collapse to view only § 8002. Purposes
§ 8001. DefinitionsIn this chapter:
(1) AIS
(2) Combined Maritime Forces
(3) Exclusive economic zone
(A) In generalUnless otherwise specified by the President as being in the public interest in a writing published in the Federal Register, the term “exclusive economic zone” means—
(i) the area within a zone established by a maritime boundary that has been established by a treaty in force or a treaty that is being provisionally applied by the United States; or
(ii) in the absence of a treaty described in clause (i)—(I) a zone, the outer boundary of which is 200 nautical miles from the baseline from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured; or(II) if the distance between the United States and another country is less than 400 nautical miles, a zone, the outer boundary of which is represented by a line equidistant between the United States and the other country.
(B) Inner boundaryWithout affecting any Presidential Proclamation with regard to the establishment of the United States territorial sea or exclusive economic zone, the inner boundary of the exclusive economic zone is—
(i) in the case of coastal States, a line coterminous with the seaward boundary of each such State (as described in section 1312 of title 43);
(ii) in the case of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, a line that is 3 marine leagues from the coastline of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico;
(iii) in the case of American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands, a line that is 3 geographic miles from the coastlines of American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, or the Northern Mariana Islands, respectively; or
(iv) for any possession of the United States not referred to in clause (ii) or (iii), the coastline of such possession.
(C) Rule of construction
(4) Food security
(5) Global record of fishing vessels, refrigerated transport vessels, and supply vessels
(6) IUU fishing
(7) Port State Measures Agreement
(8) Priority flag stateThe term “priority flag state” means a country selected in accordance with section 8032(b)(3) of this title—
(A) whereby the flagged vessels of which actively engage in, knowingly profit from, or are complicit in IUU fishing; and
(B) that is willing, but lacks the capacity, to monitor or take effective enforcement action against its fleet.
(9) Priority regionThe term “priority region” means a region selected in accordance with section 8032(b)(2) of this title—
(A) that is at high risk for IUU fishing activity or the entry of illegally caught seafood into the markets of countries in the region; and
(B) in which countries lack the capacity to fully address the illegal activity described in subparagraph (A).
(10) Regional Fisheries Management Organization
(11) SeafoodThe term “seafood”—
(A) means marine finfish, mollusks, crustaceans, and all other forms of marine animal and plant life, including those grown, produced, or reared through marine aquaculture operations or techniques; and
(B) does not include marine mammals, turtles, or birds.
(12) Transnational organized illegal activity
(13) TransshipmentThe term “transshipment” means the use of refrigerated vessels that—
(A) collect catch from multiple fishing boats;
(B) carry the accumulated catches back to port; and
(C) deliver supplies to fishing boats, which allows fishing vessels to remain at sea for extended periods without coming into port.
(Pub. L. 116–92, div. C, title XXXV, § 3532, Dec. 20, 2019, 133 Stat. 1997.)
§ 8002. PurposesThe purposes of this chapter are—
(1) to support a whole-of-government approach across the Federal Government to counter IUU fishing and related threats to maritime security;
(2) to improve data sharing that enhances surveillance, enforcement, and prosecution against IUU fishing and related activities at a global level;
(3) to support coordination and collaboration to counter IUU fishing within priority regions;
(4) to increase and improve global transparency and traceability across the seafood supply chain as—
(A) a deterrent to IUU fishing; and
(B) a tool for strengthening fisheries management and food security;
(5) to improve global enforcement operations against IUU fishing through a whole-of-government approach by the United States; and
(6) to prevent the use of IUU fishing as a financing source for transnational organized groups that undermine United States and global security interests.
(Pub. L. 116–92, div. C, title XXXV, § 3533, Dec. 20, 2019, 133 Stat. 1999.)
§ 8003. Statement of policyIt is the policy of the United States_1
1 So in original. Probably should be “States—”.
(1) to take action to curtail the global trade in seafood and seafood products derived from IUU fishing, including its links to forced labor and transnational organized illegal activity;
(2) to develop holistic diplomatic, military, law enforcement, economic, and capacity-building tools to counter IUU fishing;
(3) to provide technical assistance to countries in priority regions and priority flag states to combat IUU fishing, including assistance—
(A) to increase local, national, and regional level capacities to counter IUU fishing through the engagement of law enforcement and security forces;
(B) to enhance port capacity and security, including by supporting other countries in working toward the adoption and implementation of the Port State Measures Agreement;
(C) to combat corruption and increase transparency and traceability in fisheries management and trade;
(D) to enhance information sharing within and across governments and multilateral organizations through the development and use of agreed standards for information sharing; and
(E) to support effective, science-based fisheries management regimes that promote legal and safe fisheries and act as a deterrent to IUU fishing;
(4) to promote global maritime security through improved capacity and technological assistance to support improved maritime domain awareness;
(5) to engage with priority flag states to encourage the use of high quality vessel tracking technologies where existing enforcement tools are lacking;
(6) to engage with multilateral organizations working on fisheries issues, including Regional Fisheries Management Organizations and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, to combat and deter IUU fishing;
(7) to advance information sharing across governments and multilateral organizations in areas that cross multiple jurisdictions, through the development and use of an agreed standard for information sharing;
(8) to continue to use existing and future trade agreements to combat IUU fishing;
(9) to employ appropriate assets and resources of the United States Government in a coordinated manner to disrupt the illicit networks involved in IUU fishing;
(10) to continue to declassify and make available, as appropriate and practicable, technologies developed by the United States Government that can be used to help counter IUU fishing;
(11) to recognize the ties of IUU fishing to transnational organized illegal activity, including human trafficking and illegal trade in narcotics and arms, and as applicable, to focus on illicit activity in a coordinated, cross-cutting manner;
(12) to recognize and respond to poor working conditions, labor abuses, and other violent crimes in the fishing industry;
(13) to increase and improve global transparency and traceability along the seafood supply chain as—
(A) a deterrent to IUU fishing; and
(B) an approach for strengthening fisheries management and food security; and
(14) to promote technological investment and innovation to combat IUU fishing.
(Pub. L. 116–92, div. C, title XXXV, § 3534, Dec. 20, 2019, 133 Stat. 2000.)