H.R. 531 — South Pacific Tuna Treaty Act of 2025

This section designates the Act as the “South Pacific Tuna Treaty Act of 2025” and sets forth the table of contents.

This section specifies that, except as otherwise expressly provided, all amendments and repeals in this Act refer to provisions of the South Pacific Tuna Act of 1988 (16 U.S.C. 973 et seq.).

This section revises definitions under the South Pacific Tuna Act of 1988 (16 U.S.C. 973), which implements the Treaty on Fisheries with Pacific Island Parties authorizing U.S. purse seine vessels to fish for tuna in their exclusive economic zones upon obtaining licenses from a regional administrator, as follows: (1) revises "applicable national law" to mean any provision of law of a Pacific Island Party noticed and in effect in accordance with the Treaty (from those described in paragraph 1(a) of Annex I of the Treaty); (2) revises "Closed Area" to mean any area within the jurisdiction of a Pacific Island Party closed to vessels pursuant to that Party's national law and noticed in accordance with the Treaty (from closed areas identified in Schedule 2 of Annex I of the Treaty); (3) in the definition of "fishing," inserts "for any purpose" after "harvesting of fish" in subparagraph (C), and revises subparagraph (F) to prohibit use of any other vessel, vehicle, aircraft, or hovercraft for fishing activities except in emergencies involving crew health or safety or vessel safety (from aircraft use relating to fishing activities except in such flight emergencies); (4) narrows "fishing vessel" to any boat, ship, or other craft used for, equipped to be used for, or normally used for commercial purse seine fishing for tuna (from commercial fishing); (5) revises "Licensing Area" to mean all waters under the jurisdiction of a Pacific Island Party except internal waters, territorial seas, archipelagic waters, and Closed Areas (from all waters in the Treaty Area except U.S. jurisdictional waters, Closed Areas, and Limited Areas closed to fishing); and (6) strikes definitions of "Limited Area," "Party," and "Treaty Area," makes conforming redesignations, and adds a definition of "regional terms and conditions" as terms or conditions attached by the Administrator to a license, as notified by the Secretary.

This section revises prohibited acts applicable to persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction under the chapter implementing the Treaty on Fisheries in the Central and Western Pacific Ocean (16 U.S.C. 973c) by— (1) in subsection (a), striking the introductory exception for acts permitted under section 973d, eliminating paragraphs (3) and (4) prohibiting violations of certain Treaty fishing arrangements (if applicable under Treaty Articles 4 and 5) and fishing in Limited Areas contrary to Annex I Schedule 3 requirements, modifying the prohibition on Closed Area fishing to permit such fishing pursuant to a Treaty agreement, redesignating paragraphs (5) through (13) as paragraphs (3) through (11), and adding new paragraphs (12) prohibiting violations of regional terms and conditions and (13) prohibiting violations of limits on authorized fishing effort or catch; and (2) in subsection (b), striking the introductory exception for acts permitted under section 973d, striking paragraph (5), and redesignating paragraphs (6) and (7) as paragraphs (5) and (6).

This section modifies civil penalty provisions under the South Pacific Tuna Act as follows: (1) applies the $250,000 per violation cap to all prohibited acts under section 973c (previously, the cap did not apply to acts prohibited by section 973c(a)(4), (5), (7), (8), (10), (11), or (12) or section 973c(b)(1), (2), (3), or (7)); and (2) in the waiver of referral to the Attorney General, revises eligible violations of section 973c(a) from paragraphs (1) through (9) or (13) to paragraphs (1) through (7), (11), (12), or (13), and strikes the condition ", all Limited Areas closed to fishing" after "outside of the Licensing Area."

This section revises vessel licensing procedures under the South Pacific Tuna Act of 1988 (i.e., implementing the U.S. multilateral treaty authorizing licensed U.S. purse seine vessels to fish for tuna in the exclusive economic zones of participating Pacific Island States). Specifically, it (1) requires the Secretary of Commerce to forward complete license applications directly to the Treaty Administrator (bypassing transmittal via the Secretary of State); (2) eliminates the initial implementation year fee tiers of $50,000 for the first 40 licenses and $60,000 for the next 10 (with a $1,750,000 minimum total fee collection required before forwarding any applications), requiring fees instead to be paid in accordance with the Treaty; (3) establishes grounds for the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of State, to deny forwarding an application if it is incomplete, the owner or charterer is in U.S. bankruptcy proceedings without financial assurances, the vessel lacks full maritime liability insurance, or any Secretary-assessed penalty remains unpaid; and (4) modifies the grandfathering provision for U.S.-documented vessels as of the Fisheries Act of 1995 enactment to authorize tuna fishing in the Licensing Area, on the high seas, and in U.S. waters west of 146° west longitude and east of 129.5° east longitude, subject to the Treaty, the Act, other applicable law, and a prohibition on intentionally deploying purse seine nets to encircle dolphins or other marine mammals.

This section revises enforcement provisions of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Convention Implementation Act by (1) generalizing notice requirements to a Pacific Island Party, prior to instituting legal proceedings for an alleged Treaty infringement in that party's waters, to conform to the Treaty generally (from paragraph 8 of Article 4 and Article 10 specifically); and (2) making technical punctuation changes to clauses specifying limitations on authorized officers' search and seizure powers.

This section revises the procedures under the South Pacific Tuna Act for the Secretary of Commerce—with State Department concurrence and at a Pacific Island Party's request—to order a fishing vessel that fails to submit to the party's jurisdiction to leave the Licensing Area and Closed Areas (excluding Limited Areas) upon specified findings. It (1) simplifies certain Treaty citations; (2) revises the scope of unpaid judgments triggering such orders to violations in waters under the jurisdiction of a Pacific Island Party (from within the Treaty Area of such party); (3) updates probable cause violations to Treaty section 5(a)(3), 5(b)(2), or 5(b)(3) (from prior law section 973c(a)(4), (a)(5), (b)(2), or (b)(3)), aircraft use under section 5(b)(6) (from 973c(b)(7)), and specified incidents under section 973c(a)(5) (from (a)(7)); and (4) simplifies the Treaty reference applicable to orders requiring vessels to leave waters during a Pacific Island Party's infringement investigation.

This section revises the confidentiality and disclosure requirements for information related to the U.S.-Pacific Island States fisheries Treaty (16 U.S.C. 973j), replacing prior requirements for license holder reporting compliance and confidentiality of Schedules 5 and 6 data (disclosable only for court order or enforcement). As revised, except as permitted under subsection (b), the Secretary must keep confidential—and exempt from FOIA disclosure under 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(3)—(1) information provided by the Treaty Administrator and designated confidential, (2) observer-collected information, and (3) information submitted by any person to comply with the Act. Subsection (b) authorizes disclosure if ordered by a court; used by federal employees for enforcement or Coast Guard homeland/national security missions (as defined in 6 U.S.C. 468); used by federal or Fishery Management Council employees for Treaty administration, fishery management, or monitoring; shared with the Administrator per the Treaty and Act; provided to international fisheries organization secretariats per their rules and identity-protection agreements; authorized in writing by the submitter without violating the Act; or released in aggregate/summary form that does not identify submitters. The section adds a savings clause preserving Congress's (including committees' and members') authority to obtain such information, with no negative implication for other laws.

This section revises Closed Area stowage requirements for licensed fishing vessels under the South Pacific Tuna Act of 1988 by striking specific mechanical instructions—lowering the boom as far as possible (while keeping the skiff accessible for emergencies), tying down any helicopter, and securing launches—and instead requiring that gear be stowed in a manner not readily available for fishing and in accordance with any requirements established by the Secretary. (Thus, the Secretary of Commerce, through the National Marine Fisheries Service, gains authority to specify stowage protocols tailored to enforcement needs or vessel types.)

This section replaces the requirement for the U.S. tuna industry to provide $250,000 annually in technical assistance (coordinated through the Administrator and an entity designated by the Secretary of State) with discretionary authority for the Secretary of Commerce and the Secretary of State to provide assistance to Pacific Island Parties to support development of fisheries resources and operation of fishing vessels licensed under the South Pacific Tuna Treaty. (Thus, the U.S. tuna industry is relieved of its mandatory $250,000 annual obligation.) Such assistance may include (1) technical assistance, (2) training and capacity building opportunities, (3) facilitation of private sector activities or partnerships, and (4) other activities determined appropriate by the Secretaries.

This section modifies U.S. procedures for establishing arbitral tribunals in disputes under the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Treaty by (1) striking specific references to "Article 6 of" the Treaty and "paragraph 3 of that Article"; and (2) inserting a requirement that the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce, determine the location of the arbitration. (As background, the Treaty, implemented by the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Convention Implementation Act, governs U.S. tuna fisheries in the region and provides for binding arbitration of certain disputes among parties.)

This section replaces the requirement for the Secretary of State to consult with the Secretary within 30 days of receiving notice from a Pacific Island Party of a fishing access arrangement under the Treaty on Fisheries Between the Government of Certain Pacific Island States and the Government of the United States of America (i.e., the South Pacific Tuna Treaty)—with subsequent notification of the decision—with authority for the Secretary to establish procedures for reviewing any such agreements for additional fishing access.