H.R. 3189 — Albatross and Petrel Conservation Act of 2025

This section authorizes the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce as appropriate, to carry out activities based on the best available scientific information to reestablish covered albatrosses and petrels within the range.

This section authorizes the Secretary or the Secretary of Commerce, as appropriate, in consultation with each other and other relevant federal agencies, to prevent the introduction of, eradicate, or control invasive and nonnative species that adversely affect covered albatrosses and petrels. Authorized activities include (1) implementing management plans; (2) research and development of eradication or control techniques; (3) regional assessments of invasive species populations; (4) decision-support tools to prevent introductions; (5) rapid response approaches; (6) documentation of human-coexisting species and optimal eradication areas; (7) eradication or control of established populations; and (8) outreach and education on species impacts and control techniques.

This section authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to use existing authorities—including under the Migratory Bird Conservation Act, Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act, and Fish and Wildlife Act of 1956—to conserve, protect, and restore breeding sites of covered albatrosses and petrels and, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce, to develop and implement management plans and conservation measures for such habitat. The section further authorizes the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior, to develop and implement management plans and conservation measures in marine habitats to sustain living marine resources that provide food for covered albatrosses and petrels and to use existing authorities—including under the National Marine Sanctuaries Act and Magnuson-Stevens Act—to protect relevant marine habitat.

This section directs the Secretaries of the Interior and Commerce to conduct research on the effects of pollutants and marine debris on covered albatrosses and petrels and to implement conservation measures to minimize marine debris threats. It further authorizes those Secretaries, consistent with the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, to develop and implement measures—including regulations—to prevent, minimize, or mitigate the take and disturbance of such birds in U.S. jurisdiction and by U.S. vessels and nationals abroad, with required notification to the Coast Guard and requests for additional action as needed. Additionally, it directs the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with regional fishery management councils under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, to (1) develop measures to minimize bycatch of covered albatrosses and petrels; (2) conduct regional assessments, bycatch data collection through observer programs, and research on mitigation; and (3) disclose relevant information to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations or regional/international fishery organizations with confidentiality safeguards.

This section authorizes the Secretary and the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with relevant Regional Fishery Management Councils and others, to (1) disseminate information on the conservation status of, threats to, and actions taken for covered albatrosses and petrels under the Agreement to the scientific, fishing, and seabird conservation communities; the public; relevant local authorities; other decisionmakers; other Parties; and other countries; (2) cooperate with other Parties, the Secretariat, and others to develop training programs, general information products, and resource materials on such conservation; and (3) provide training to personnel responsible for implementing the Act. (Covered albatrosses and petrels are seabird species protected under the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, primarily threatened by fisheries bycatch.)

This section prohibits, except as authorized by permit, authorization, or exemption, (1) taking any covered albatross or petrel; (2) committing any act with respect to such birds that would violate section 703(a) of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA, 16 U.S.C. 703(a)) if they were treated as migratory birds under that section (i.e., pursuing, hunting, killing, possessing, transporting, or selling them or their parts, nests, or eggs); or (3) attempting such acts. The prohibitions apply on lands and waters subject to U.S. jurisdiction and to U.S. vessels and nationals abroad but exclude covered albatrosses or petrels lawfully taken before the Act's effective date. The section also prohibits violating the Act or its regulations or permits; refusing to permit authorized searches, inspections, or boarding of applicable vessels; assaulting, resisting, or interfering with enforcement officers; resisting lawful arrest or detention for Act violations; and interfering with the apprehension of violators.

This section authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce as appropriate, to issue permits or regulations for the deliberate taking of covered albatrosses and petrels (1) to enhance their propagation, reestablishment, or survival; (2) on a selective basis and to a limited extent for scientific, educational, or similar purposes; (3) to accommodate indigenous traditional needs and practices; (4) for assistance or salvage under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act; or (5) in other exceptional circumstances. It further authorizes permits or regulations for incidental take from otherwise lawful activities; limits such authorizations by area and duration, prohibition on eliminating favorable conservation status or violating other laws, and requirements to minimize breeding-site disturbance; and excepts from prohibition any taking necessary to relieve imminent suffering, injury, or death to birds hooked or entangled in fishing gear or debris, if reasonable care is taken for safe release and the taking is timely reported to the Secretary of Commerce.

This section establishes exemptions from the Act's prohibitions on taking covered albatrosses and petrels for (1) Department of Defense personnel incidental to military activities, including vessels and aircraft entitled to sovereign immunity under international law; and (2) Coast Guard personnel incidental to emergency response or search and rescue activities (while preserving Coast Guard authority to enforce the Act or other federal laws). The section further exempts (1) take by authorized federal or state enforcement officers performing official duties; and (2) bycatch incidental to otherwise lawful fishing activities carried out in accordance with seabird bycatch minimization measures under section 104(c). It also directs the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretaries of Commerce and Defense, to issue guidance to minimize, to the extent practicable, military-related incidental take.

This section establishes enforcement responsibility for this Act with the Secretary, the Secretary of Commerce, and the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating, including authority for interagency cooperation and use of personnel, services, equipment, and facilities on a reimbursable basis. It authorizes those secretaries and heads of federal or state agencies with agreements to designate officers with enforcement powers under this Act equivalent to those provided in (1) section 311 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act (16 U.S.C. 1861) for the Secretaries of Commerce and the department in which the Coast Guard is operating or (2) section 5 of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (16 U.S.C. 706) for the Secretary of the Interior. It applies civil and criminal penalties, privileges, and immunities for violations of this Act or related permits or regulations by (1) incorporating sections 308-311 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act (16 U.S.C. 1858-1861)—including civil penalties up to $100,000 per violation (with each day of continuing violation a separate offense)—for persons and vessels under Commerce jurisdiction and (2) incorporating section 6 of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (16 U.S.C. 707) for those under Interior jurisdiction.

This section directs the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce to designate an office or program within the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service, respectively, to jointly (1) function as the United States Authority under Article VII of the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, responsible for undertaking, monitoring, and controlling implementation and enforcement activities within their jurisdictions, and (2) designate a United States Representative under Article IX and a contact point under Article VII. The designated Authority must monitor activities affecting the conservation status of covered albatrosses and petrels for which the United States is a range state and designate a contact point for communication with the Agreement Secretariat.

This section directs the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the Secretaries of Commerce and State and other relevant federal agencies, to submit to Congress, not later than one year after the effective date of this Act and every four years thereafter, a report on (1) all covered albatrosses and petrels subject to this Act, (2) their status in the United States and U.S. waters, and (3) actions taken and conservation measures needed to achieve and maintain their favorable conservation status. The section further authorizes the Secretaries of the Interior and Commerce to jointly provide the Advisory Committee, through the Secretariat, a report on U.S. implementation of the Agreement.

This section directs the Secretary and the Secretary of Commerce, in carrying out this Act, to (1) work together and request actions from other federal agencies to achieve or maintain a favorable conservation status for covered albatrosses and petrels; and (2) consult with heads of other federal agencies when taking actions on lands or waters owned by the United States and under those agencies' jurisdiction.

This section authorizes the Secretary, the Secretary of Commerce, and the Secretary of State to cooperate with other countries to achieve and maintain a favorable conservation status for covered albatrosses and petrels, including by (1) developing systems for collecting, analyzing, and exchanging data and information; (2) exchanging information on legislative and management approaches; (3) implementing education and awareness programs; (4) designing public information programs; (5) developing and implementing training programs on conservation techniques; (6) exchanging expertise, techniques, and knowledge; and (7) entering cooperative arrangements, including international agreements. It further authorizes the Secretary and the Secretary of Commerce, in cooperation with the Secretary of State, to provide training, technical, and financial assistance to the Agreement's Secretariat, other international organizations, and countries to implement the Agreement's objectives.

This section revises the definition of "protected living marine resources" in the High Seas Driftnet Fishing Moratorium Protection Act (16 U.S.C. 1826k(e)) to mean nontarget fish, sea turtles, seabirds, or marine mammals protected under U.S. law or international agreement—including the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), Shark Finning Prohibition Act (16 U.S.C. 1822 note), Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, and Albatross and Petrel Conservation Act of 2025—except as provided in paragraph (2). (As background, the Act directs the Secretary of Commerce to identify nations engaging in high seas fishing that incidentally kills such resources and pursue sanctions against noncooperating nations.)

This section establishes regulatory authority to implement the Agreement and specified sections of the Act as follows: (1) authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to issue regulations for sections 103(b), 104(c), 203(d), and 601; (2) authorizes the Secretary and Secretary of Commerce jointly to issue regulations for sections 102, 105, 401, and 403; and (3) authorizes the Secretary and Secretary of Commerce each to issue regulations for sections 104(a)(2), 104(b), and 201. It requires the Secretary and Secretary of Commerce to consult each other when issuing regulations under the Act and to consult the Director of the National Science Foundation (or designee) on Antarctica-related implementation.

This section provides that, except as specified in section 601, nothing in the Act repeals, supersedes, overrides, or modifies any provision of federal law. It requires the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce to concur before either may conduct activities under the Act on lands or waters under the area-based management jurisdiction of the other and requires the two secretaries to consult in areas where neither has explicit area-based management jurisdiction.