H.R. 3756 — FISH Act of 2025

This section establishes definitions for purposes of the Act, including (1) Administrator as the NOAA Administrator; (2) beneficial owner as a person exercising substantial control over a vessel or owning at least 50% of its ownership interests; (3) fish as finfish, crustaceans, and mollusks; (4) forced labor as defined in section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1307); (5) IUU fishing as activities described in paragraph 3 of the FAO's 2001 International Plan of Action to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing; (6) RFMO as defined in section 303 of the Port State Measures Agreement Act of 2015 (16 U.S.C. 7402); (7) seafood as fish, shellfish, processed fish, fish meal, shellfish products, and all other marine animal and plant life other than marine mammals and birds; and (8) Secretary as the Secretary of Commerce acting through the NOAA Administrator.

This section establishes a U.S. policy to partner, consult, and coordinate with foreign governments (national and subnational levels), civil society, international organizations, international financial institutions, subnational coastal communities, commercial and recreational fishing industry leaders, artisanal or subsistence fishing communities, fishers, and the private sector to counter illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing—including potential links to forced labor, human trafficking, and other maritime security threats, as outlined in current law (16 U.S.C. 8002, 8003). The policy further prioritizes preventing IUU fishing at its sources and supporting implementation of the Central Arctic Ocean Fisheries Agreement, as well as joint research and follow-on actions to ensure sustainability of fish stocks in Arctic international waters.

This section establishes an IUU vessel list (i.e., black list) of foreign vessels, fleets, and beneficial owners engaged in illegal, unreported, or unregulated (IUU) fishing or fishing-related activities that support such fishing, replacing previous subsections (c) and (d) of Section 608 of the High Seas Driftnet Fishing Moratorium Protection Act (16 U.S.C. 1826i). The Secretary of Commerce, in coordination with the Secretary of State, the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and the Secretary of Labor, must develop, maintain, and publicize the list, which includes vessels meeting criteria such as (1) being listed by an international fishery management organization; (2) undermining the organization's measures (e.g., exceeding catch limits); (3) engaging in IUU fishing not addressed by its flag nation; (4) involving forced labor (e.g., subject to CBP withhold release orders or Treasury sanctions); (5) providing services to listed vessels; (6) fishing without a U.S. permit in the U.S. exclusive economic zone; (7) sharing beneficial owners with listed vessels; or (8) subject to Treasury sanctions for IUU-related transnational crime. The Secretary may receive nominations from specified executive agencies, Combined Maritime Forces members, or civil organizations with data-sharing agreements; must notify owners and allow 90 days for response before listing; and must publish procedures, the annual list in the Federal Register, and an updated website with vessel details (e.g., names, IMO numbers, owner addresses).

This section authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to impose sanctions on specified foreign persons, entities, or vessels determined to have knowingly participated in (1) the sale, supply, purchase, or transfer (including transportation) of a fish species that is an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1532); (2) illegal, unreported, or unregulated (IUU) fishing; (3) ownership, operation, chartering, or control of a vessel engaged in such activities; (4) actions warranting placement on the IUU vessel list under the High Seas Driftnet Fishing Moratorium Protection Act (16 U.S.C. 1826i); or (5) material assistance to such persons or vessels. The sanctions include (1) blocking all property and interests in property within U.S. jurisdiction under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA, 50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), including vessels where the person is the beneficial owner; and (2) rendering the person inadmissible to the United States, ineligible for visas or parole, and subject to visa revocation with immediate effect under the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.). The President may implement the sanctions using IEEPA authorities (50 U.S.C. 1702, 1704, 1705), waive them in the national interest, and promulgate regulations. Exceptions apply to authorized U.S. intelligence, law enforcement, or national security activities; admissions necessary to comply with U.S. international obligations (e.g., UN Headquarters Agreement or Vienna Convention on Consular Relations); provisions for vessel crew safety or maintenance to prevent environmental damage; and humanitarian transactions involving agricultural commodities, food, medicine, medical devices, or assistance.

This section encourages the President, when negotiating relevant agreements with foreign nations after enactment, to consider impacts on illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and fishing involving forced labor and to ensure such agreements strengthen efforts against them. The section further encourages the federal government to promote ratification by other nations of U.S.-party treaties addressing IUU fishing—such as the UN Fish Stocks Agreement, High Seas Fishing Compliance Agreement, and Port State Measures Agreement—and to pursue bilateral and multilateral initiatives (e.g., in the G7, G20, United Nations, International Labor Organization, and International Maritime Organization) targeting IUU fishing drivers including transshipment, flags of convenience, and distant-water fishing subsidies. Finally, the section designates any memorandum of understanding or other non-binding instrument furthering these objectives as a qualifying non-binding instrument under 1 U.S.C. 112b (i.e., subject to the existing monthly reporting requirements to congressional leaders, including provision of texts and cited legal authorities).

This section directs the Coast Guard Commandant, in accordance with the UN Fish Stocks Agreement, to increase year-to-year observation of high seas vessels suspected of illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and related practices and to consider boarding them to the greatest extent practicable. The section requires the Administrator, in consultation with the Coast Guard Commandant and Secretary of State, to coordinate regularly with regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs) on corrective measures taken by countries whose registered or documented vessels have been boarded for suspected IUU fishing. The section further requires the Coast Guard Commandant to submit a report to Congress not later than three years after enactment on (1) bilateral agreements used in counter-IUU patrols, future plans, and changes to IUU provisions; (2) observed IUU incidents during high seas boarding and inspections, post-referral tracking, and flag state enforcement actions; (3) registration details and status of interdicted or observed IUU vessels; (4) details on IUU observations, boarding refusals, and responses; and (5) other potential enforcement actions.

This section expands the duties of the Interagency Working Group on illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing under the Maritime SAFE Act by requiring it to (1) develop a strategy for leveraging enforcement capacity against IUU fishing, focusing on nations identified under section 609(a) of the High Seas Driftnet Fishing Moratorium Protection Act (16 U.S.C. 1826j(a))—which identifies nations whose vessels have engaged in such fishing that undermines international fishery management measures or occurs outside such organizations; and (2) develop a strategy for leveraging enforcement against associated abuses, such as forced labor and illegal labor practices in fishing, and to increase enforcement across import control programs using the List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor, the Trafficking in Persons Report, Customs and Border Protection forced labor enforcement under the Tariff Act of 1930, and reports under the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2020. This section further directs the Secretary of State, in coordination with the Coast Guard Commandant and NOAA Administrator, to (1) identify regional fisheries management organizations to which the United States is a party that lack high seas boarding and inspection programs; and (2) identify obstacles, needed authorities, or existing efforts to increase implementation of such programs and take appropriate action.

This section directs the Interagency Working Group on Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing and Related Threats to Maritime Security (Working Group), established under the Maritime SAFE Act to coordinate U.S. efforts against IUU fishing, to submit a report not later than 3 years after enactment identifying information and resources to prevent fish and fish products from IUU fishing or fishing involving forced labor from entering U.S. commerce, without increasing burdens or trade barriers on non-IUU seafood. The report must include (1) relevant data streams collected by Working Group members; (2) legal, jurisdictional, or other barriers to data sharing; (3) in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, recommendations for joint enforcement protocols, collaboration, and information sharing between federal agencies and states; (4) recommendations for sharing and developing forensic resources between federal agencies and states; (5) recommendations for enhancing capacity of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for field investigations and enforcement with state officials; (6) recommendations for improving data collection and automated risk-targeting of seafood imports in the United States International Trade Data System and Automated Commercial Environment; (7) recommendations for disseminating IUU fishing and forced labor analysis to governmental and nongovernmental entities to establish an IUU fishing information sharing center; (8) recommendations for an implementation strategy ensuring unimpeded trade in non-IUU, non-forced-labor seafood; and (9) analysis of other countries' IUU fishing policies and regulatory regimes to develop U.S. alternatives.

This section (1) encourages the Secretary of State, the USAID Administrator, and the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with relevant agencies, the Millennium Challenge Corporation, and multilateral institutions such as the World Bank, to increase support for programs providing technical assistance, institutional capacity building, and investment in foreign nations' fisheries sectors to promote sustainable fisheries management and combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and forced labor, with a focus on priority regions and flag states identified under section 3552(b) of the Maritime SAFE Act (16 U.S.C. 8032(b)); and (2) directs the Interagency Working Group on IUU Fishing (established under 16 U.S.C. 8031) to analyze U.S. capacity-building expertise and resources for such support, including potential public-private and multilateral collaborations to develop local fisheries science, management, maritime enforcement, and judicial capabilities.

This section directs the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), in coordination with the Secretary, to (1) develop a strategy for utilizing relevant U.S. government data to identify imports of seafood harvested on foreign vessels using forced labor; and (2) publish information regarding the strategy on CBP's website.

This section requires (1) the Secretary of Homeland Security, with support from the NOAA Administrator and the interagency Working Group on maritime security and IUU fishing, to complete by one year after enactment a study assessing the impact of new technologies (e.g., remote observing, drones, risk assessment tools, data-sharing software, immediate containerization of fish, and satellite Wi-Fi) on IUU fishing and associated crimes (e.g., trafficking, forced labor) and proposing their integration into global fisheries enforcement; (2) the Secretary of State, with support from the Secretary of Commerce and USTR, to complete by two years after enactment a study and report (with classified and unclassified portions as needed) on collaboration between the Russian and Chinese fishing industries, including Chinese reprocessing of Russian-sourced seafood and its effects on U.S. importers, processors, and consumers; and (3) amends the Working Group statute (16 U.S.C. 8031) to add a new subsection (d) directing the NOAA Administrator, in consultation with the Working Group, to commission a National Academies study quantifying IUU fishing and forced labor fishing by flag state, evaluating associated costs to the U.S. and global economies, and assessing response strategies' effectiveness, authorizes $4 million for the study, and requires the Administrator to report its findings and recommended research gaps to Congress by 24 months after enactment.