16 U.S.C 1853 MSA 303(b)

16 U.S.C. 1853
MSA § 303

(12) assess the type and amount of fish caught and released alive during recreational
fishing under catch and release fishery management programs and the mortality of such fish,
and include conservation and management measures that, to the extent practicable, minimize
mortality and ensure the extended survival of such fish;
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(13) include a description of the commercial, recreational, and charter fishing sectors
which participate in the fishery, including its economic impact, and, to the extent practicable,
quantify trends in landings of the managed fishery resource by the commercial, recreational,
and charter fishing sectors;
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(14) to the extent that rebuilding plans or other conservation and management measures
which reduce the overall harvest in a fishery are necessary, allocate, taking into
consideration the economic impact of the harvest restrictions or recovery benefits on the
fishery participants in each sector, any harvest restrictions or recovery benefits fairly and
equitably among the commercial, recreational, and charter fishing sectors in the fishery and;
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(15) establish a mechanism for specifying annual catch limits in the plan (including a
multiyear plan), implementing regulations, or annual specifications, at a level such that
overfishing does not occur in the fishery, including measures to ensure accountability.
97-453, 99-659, 101-627, 102-251, 104-297
(b) DISCRETIONARY PROVISIONS.—Any fishery management plan which is prepared
by any Council, or by the Secretary, with respect to any fishery, may—
(1) require a permit to be obtained from, and fees to be paid to, the Secretary, with

respect to—

(A) any fishing vessel of the United States fishing, or wishing to fish, in the exclusive
economic zone [or special areas,]* or for anadromous species or Continental Shelf fishery
resources beyond such zone [or areas]*;
(B) the operator of any such vessel; or
(C) any United States fish processor who first receives fish that are subject to the plan;
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(2)(A) designate zones where, and periods when, fishing shall be limited, or shall not be
permitted, or shall be permitted only by specified types of fishing vessels or with
specified types and quantities of fishing gear;
(B) designate such zones in areas where deep sea corals are identified under section
408, to protect deep sea corals from physical damage from fishing gear or to prevent loss
or damage to such fishing gear from interactions with deep sea corals, after considering
long-term sustainable uses of fishery resources in such areas; and

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16 U.S.C. 1853
MSA § 303

(C) with respect to any closure of an area under this Act that prohibits all fishing,
ensure that such closure—
(i) is based on the best scientific information available;
(ii) includes criteria to assess the conservation benefit of the closed area;
(iii) establishes a timetable for review of the closed area’s performance that is
consistent with the purposes of the closed area; and
(iv) is based on an assessment of the benefits and impacts of the closure, including
its size, in relation to other management measures (either alone or in combination with
such measures), including the benefits and impacts of limiting access to: users of the
area, overall fishing activity, fishery science, and fishery and marine conservation;
(3) establish specified limitations which are necessary and appropriate for the

conservation and management of the fishery on the—

(A) catch of fish (based on area, species, size, number, weight, sex, bycatch, total
biomass, or other factors);
(B) sale of fish caught during commercial, recreational, or charter fishing, consistent
with any applicable Federal and State safety and quality requirements; and
(C) transshipment or transportation of fish or fish products under permits issued
pursuant to section 204;
(4) prohibit, limit, condition, or require the use of specified types and quantities of fishing
gear, fishing vessels, or equipment for such vessels, including devices which may be
required to facilitate enforcement of the provisions of this Act;
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(5) incorporate (consistent with the national standards, the other provisions of this Act,
and any other applicable law) the relevant fishery conservation and management measures of
the coastal States nearest to the fishery and take into account the different circumstances
affecting fisheries from different States and ports, including distances to fishing grounds and
proximity to time and area closures;
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(6) establish a limited access system for the fishery in order to achieve optimum yield if,
in developing such system, the Council and the Secretary take into account—
(A) present participation in the fishery;
(B) historical fishing practices in, and dependence on, the fishery;
(C) the economics of the fishery;
(D) the capability of fishing vessels used in the fishery to engage in other fisheries;
(E) the cultural and social framework relevant to the fishery and any affected fishing
communities;
(F) the fair and equitable distribution of access privileges in the fishery; and
(G) any other relevant considerations;

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16 U.S.C. 1853
MSA § 303

(7) require fish processors who first receive fish that are subject to the plan to submit data
which are necessary for the conservation and management of the fishery;
(8) require that one or more observers be carried on board a vessel of the United States
engaged in fishing for species that are subject to the plan, for the purpose of collecting data
necessary for the conservation and management of the fishery; except that such a vessel shall
not be required to carry an observer on board if the facilities of the vessel for the quartering
of an observer, or for carrying out observer functions, are so inadequate or unsafe that the
health or safety of the observer or the safe operation of the vessel would be jeopardized;
(9) assess and specify the effect which the conservation and management measures of the
plan will have on the stocks of naturally spawning anadromous fish in the region;
(10) include, consistent with the other provisions of this Act, conservation and
management measures that provide harvest incentives for participants within each gear
group to employ fishing practices that result in lower levels of bycatch or in lower levels of
the mortality of bycatch;
(11) reserve a portion of the allowable biological catch of the fishery for use in scientific
research;
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(12) include management measures in the plan to conserve target and non-target species
and habitats, considering the variety of ecological factors affecting fishery populations; and
(14)[sic]15 prescribe such other measures, requirements, or conditions and restrictions as
are determined to be necessary and appropriate for the conservation and management of the
fishery.
97-453, 104-297
(c) PROPOSED REGULATIONS.—Proposed regulations which the Council deems
necessary or appropriate for the purposes of—
(1) implementing a fishery management plan or plan amendment shall be submitted to the
Secretary simultaneously with the plan or amendment under section 304; and
(2) making modifications to regulations implementing a fishery management plan or plan
amendment may be submitted to the Secretary at any time after the plan or amendment is
approved under section 304.

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So in original.

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