A bill to make technical amendments to certain marine fish conservation statutes, and for other purposes.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of my bill, H.R. 4528, a bill to make technical changes to certain marine fish conservation statutes.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Bishop--and, Mr. Speaker, I did ask my third cousin; he is in support, too--as well as Ranking Member Grijalva for all of their collaboration and support on this important bill.

H.R. 4528 makes technical amendments to two marine fish conservation statutes, the Billfish Conservation Act of 2012 and the Shark Conservation Act of 2010.

First, the bill amends the Billfish Conservation Act of 2012. It clarifies that the exemption from marlin and billfish fishing in Hawaii and Pacific insular areas, as is tradition, can only be sold locally. More specifically, it clarifies these fish cannot be sold to the other 49 States. This strikes a balance between preserving traditional cultural fishing in these areas and the overall intent to prevent large-scale commercial fishing of these billfish.

Second, it clarifies that, under the Shark Conservation Act of 2010, there is no language in the Shark Conservation Act that alters existing authority of the Secretary of Commerce to manage Atlantic highly migratory species under the Magnuson-Stevens Act. It also cleans up language in the Shark Conservation Act by removing an expired offset.

The main goal of this is to ensure protection against shark finning. H.R. 4528 will fix confusion within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to allow rulemaking to go forward for the Atlantic smooth dogfish, a type of shark.

This bill has support from both the sportsmen-anglers communities and conservation groups.

Again, I thank the Natural Resources Committee Chairman Bishop and Ranking Member Grijalva for working with me on this. Without their support, this legislation would not be on the floor today.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues in the Chamber to support H.R. 4528, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4528) to make technical amendments to certain marine fish conservation statutes, and for other purposes.

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.

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

Today, we are considering an amendment to the Billfish Conservation Act that was passed in 2012. Unfortunately, when it was passed, there was a loophole in the bill. What this bill today does is close that loophole, preserving the original congressional intent, while also preserving traditional markups in Hawaii, as well as in our Pacific territories. It is supported by everybody and their third cousin.

Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a 2-page letter of support from a broad coalition of sportsmen's groups, manufacturing associations, and conservation groups, plus a full list of the supporting organizations for this bill.

December 19, 2017.

The Hon. Rob Bishop

Chairman, House Committee on Natural Resources, Washington,

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, it is a good bill. I urge its support, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of calendar No. 224, S. 396.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time.

Mr. President, I know of no further debate on the bill.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.