Billfish Conservation Act of 2012

Mr. Speaker, thank you for the recognition.

I thank the gentleman from Washington, the chairman of the committee, for his recognition and his leadership on this effort, as well as Dr. John Fleming, the subcommittee chairman, and all the members of the House Natural Resources Committee for their support of this particular piece of legislation.

I also have to thank members of the sportsmen's community, members of the Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus, and in particular, Congressmen Duncan from South Carolina and Wittman, Boren, Michaud, and Bonner, and my counterparts in the Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus leadership-- that would be Congressmen Ross, Latta,

and Shuler--for all their efforts to help advance this legislation in a bipartisan effort.

Today, I join my colleagues in support of H.R. 2706, which is the Billfish Conservation Act of 2012.

As the chairman has already said, the United States is the largest importer of billfish products in the world. Our populations continue to be affected by foreign commercial overfishing, and the importing of billfish only exacerbates the problem that exists today.

Without passage of this bill and strengthening of the current ban of the Atlantic-caught billfish to include the sale and harvest of all billfish--excluding, as has been already said on the floor today, those fisheries in the State of Hawaii and Pacific insular area--the current ban will continue to be undermined through loopholes that have hurt our anglers and the economy.

By eliminating the sale in the continental U.S., passage of this bill will support the billfish population growth, a healthy ocean ecosystem, and improve recreational fishing opportunities. As a result of the increased recreational fishing opportunities, this bill provides a huge economic boost to generate billions of dollars through direct expenditures and marine-related jobs and sales without placing a burden on the U.S. seafood market and its consumers.

I want to urge all my colleagues to support this very important piece of legislation to help conserve a very depleted fish population, preserving our Nation's fishing heritage, and provide for economic growth during a time when our country needs it most.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2706) to prohibit the sale of billfish, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2706, the Billfish Conservation Act, authored by our colleague from Florida (Mr. Miller).

Under current law, it is illegal to import or sell Atlantic billfish. Despite this, the U.S. is one of the major importers of billfish in the world. While Pacific billfish populations in general are in better shape than Atlantic billfish, threats to both oceans' billfish from foreign fishing fleets remain.

As long as the U.S. allows a market for these fish, their population levels are likely to worsen. To add more protection for both the Atlantic and Pacific billfish, the legislation would make it illegal to sell specific billfish species or possess those billfish for sale, whether they are Atlantic or Pacific.

Now, I note, Mr. Speaker, that concern had been raised at the June hearing that U.S. fishermen in Hawaii and the Pacific insular areas might be disadvantaged by these new rules and that the local consumption of billfish products might be made illegal. The bill was amended during committee consideration to address this concern; and the legislation, as amended, now protects these U.S. fishermen and the existing limited, traditional local consumption of billfish products while still providing additional and increased protection for billfish populations in the United States.

This is good legislation. I support it. And I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Miller), the author of this legislation.

I have no more requests for time. If the gentleman yields back, I'm prepared to yield back.

I yield back the balance of my time and urge adoption of the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

(Mr. HOLT asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2706, the Billfish Conservation Act, seeks to ban imports of foreign-caught marlin, sailfish, and spearfish into the United States. Now, these fish, as we know from prized photographs of our friends and many of our past experiences, are highly valued as recreational game-fish and serve as the top predators in ocean ecosystems--the so-called lions and tigers of the sea.

While this bill is a small step forward and has the support of recreational fishing and commercial interests, we can and should do much more for the conservation of billfish. Specifically, developing and using more selective commercial fishing gear, cracking down on illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing, and passing legislation, such as the bill recently introduced by our colleague from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey), to combat seafood fraud would provide even more protections for these iconic species. However, I and most of my colleagues, I believe, support passage of H.R. 2706; and we hope that it is a precursor to further action on this important issue.

I reserve the balance of my time.

May I ask the chairman if he has additional speakers?

I yield back the balance of my time.

I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 2706, which was received from the House.

I know of no further debate on this measure and urge its passage.