Improving rebuilding outcomes

Section 304(e) (16 U.S.C. 1854(e)) is amended to read as follows: (e) Rebuilding overfished fisheries and ending overfishing (1) Determination of status (A) In general The Secretary shall determine, at any time based on the best scientific information available, for each stock of fish within the geographic area of authority of each Council (or the Secretary, for stocks of fish managed under section 302(a)(3)), whether each such stock of fish is— (i) subject to overfishing; (ii) overfished; or (iii) approaching a condition of being overfished. (B) Criteria for determination (i) Criteria provided by managing document In making a determination under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall, with respect to a stock of fish managed under a stock of fish management plan or international agreement, use the criteria specified in such plan or agreement. (ii) Approaching a condition of being overfished In making a determination under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall classify a stock of fish as approaching a condition of being overfished if, based on trends in fishing effort, fishery resource size, and other appropriate factors, the Secretary estimates that the stock of fish will become overfished within 2 years. (iii) Stocks of fish lacking criteria For stocks of fish that lack criteria as required under section 303(a)(10), the Secretary shall determine whether the stock of fish is subject to overfishing or overfished using the best available scientific information. (2) Publication (A) In general The Secretary shall publish each determination made under paragraph (1) in the Federal Register. (B) Notification of Council If the Secretary determines that a stock of fish is subject to overfishing, overfished, or approaching a condition of being overfished under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall immediately notify the appropriate Council and request that action be taken— (i) to end overfishing with respect to the stock of fish immediately; (ii) for a stock of fish that is overfished, to end overfishing immediately and to implement conservation and management measures to rebuild the affected stock of fish; or (iii) for a stock of fish that is approaching a condition of being overfished, to end overfishing immediately and prevent the stock of fish from reaching a overfished condition. (C) Annual report The Secretary shall annually submit to Congress and each Council a report regarding the status of each stock of fish, including— (i) a list of each determination made with respect to a stock of fish under paragraph (1) during the preceding year; (ii) an identification of each stock of fish managed under this Act that is under a rebuilding plan or in need of a rebuilding plan (as specified by this section), including— (I) specifying the number of years the stock of fish has been in a rebuilding plan; (II) the anticipated length in years of the current rebuilding plan of the stock of fish; (III) the number of rebuilding plans that have been implemented for the stock of fish; and (IV) whether a lack of adequate progress toward ending overfishing and rebuilding has been found for the stock of fish; and (iii) the use, as appropriate, of the term depleted to further describe an overfished stock of fish that has been significantly impacted by environmental factors in addition to (or in the absence of) fishing pressure. (3) Required action by Council (A) Determination that requires action Not later than 2 years after date on which the Secretary makes any of the following determinations, the appropriate Council (or the Secretary, for a fishery managed under section 302(a)(3)) shall take an action described in subparagraph (B): (i) A determination that a stock of fish is subject to overfishing, overfished, or approaching a condition of being overfished. (ii) A determination that a rebuilding plan has failed under paragraph (7)(C). (iii) A determination that a stock of fish has reached the end of the time period for a rebuilding plan under paragraph (8). (B) Actions The actions described in this subparagraph are— (i) with respect to a stock of fish that is subject to overfishing, to end overfishing immediately and prevent overfishing of the stock; (ii) with respect to a stock of fish that is overfished, to end overfishing immediately and to rebuild the stock of fish; or (iii) with respect to a stock of fish that is approaching a condition of being overfished, to end overfishing immediately and prevent the stock of fish from reaching such condition. (4) Rebuilding plan required For a stock of fish that is overfished, any management document prepared pursuant to paragraph (3) or (5) for such fishery shall— (A) specify a time period for rebuilding the stock of fish that shall— (i) be as short as possible, taking into account the status and biology of overfished stocks of fish, the needs of fishing communities, recommendations by international organizations in which the United States participates, and the interaction of the overfished stock of fish within the marine ecosystem; and (ii) not exceed the time the stock of fish would be rebuilt in the absence of any fishing mortality plus 1 mean generation; (B) allocate both overfishing restrictions and recovery benefits fairly and equitably among sectors of the fishery; (C) for a stock of fish managed under an international agreement, reflect traditional participation in the stock of fish, relative to other nations, by fishermen of the United States; and (D) contain objective and measurable criteria for evaluating rebuilding progress. (5) Secretarial plan If a Council does not meet the deadline described in paragraph (3)(A) to submit a management document the Secretary shall, not later than 9 months after the date on which such deadline expires, prepare such management document for the affected stock of fish under subsection (c). (6) Interim measures (A) In general During the development of a management document for a stock of fish required by this subsection, a Council may request that the Secretary implement interim measures to reduce overfishing under section 305(c) until such measures can be replaced by such management document. (B) Measures allowed Interim measures described in subparagraph (A), if otherwise in compliance with the provisions of this Act, may be implemented even if such measures are not sufficient to stop overfishing of a fishery. (7) Assessment of rebuilding plan (A) Secretarial review (i) In general The Secretary shall review each management document relating to a stock of fish required by this subsection not less often than once every 2 years to determine whether such management document has resulted in adequate progress toward rebuilding affected stocks of fish. (ii) Lack of adequate progress In carrying out a review under clause (i), the Secretary shall find a lack of adequate progress toward rebuilding an affected stock of fish if— (I) the status of the stock of fish is not improving sufficiently such that it becomes unlikely that the stock of fish will be rebuilt within the rebuilding time period; (II) the applicable fishing mortality rate or annual catch limits are exceeded, and the causes and rebuilding consequences of such exceedances have not been corrected; (III) new scientific information demonstrates that assumptions regarding the biology of the stock of fish that formed the basis for the rebuilding plan, such as the productivity of the stock of fish, were fundamentally inaccurate, and such inaccuracies render the current rebuilding plan unable to address the rebuilding needs of the stock of fish; or (IV) for such other reasons as the Secretary determines appropriate. (B) Finding of inadequate progress (i) In general Except as provided in subparagraph (C), if the Secretary finds after a review under subparagraph (A) that a management document has not resulted in adequate progress toward rebuilding affected stocks of fish, the Secretary shall— (I) in the case of a stock of fish to which section 302(a)(3) applies, immediately make revisions necessary to achieve adequate progress toward rebuilding the stock of fish by the deadline established under paragraph (4); or (II) for all other stocks of fish, immediately notify the appropriate Council, which shall make revisions necessary to achieve adequate progress toward rebuilding the stock of fish by not later than the deadline established under paragraph (4). (ii) Council inaction If a Council fails to complete the action required under subclause (II) by the date that is 9 months after the date of the Council receives a notification from the Secretary under that subclause, the Secretary shall, not later than 18 months after the date of such notification, make such revisions as are needed to ensure adequate progress toward rebuilding the stock of fish by not later than the rebuilding deadline established under paragraph (4). (C) Failed rebuilding plan If the Secretary finds that revisions pursuant to subparagraph (B) cannot achieve adequate progress within the time period set under paragraph (4), the Secretary may find that the rebuilding plan for the stock of fish has failed. (D) Publication The Secretary shall publish the results of a review performed under this paragraph in the Federal Register, including a determination of adequate progress or inadequate progress, and the basis for such determination. (8) Subsequent rebuilding plan (A) In general If a rebuilding time period established under paragraph (4) expires and the relevant stock of fish has not been rebuilt, or the Secretary determines that an existing rebuilding plan for a stock of fish has failed under paragraph (7)(C), the Council (or Secretary in the case of a stock of fish to which section 302(a)(3) applies) shall prepare a new rebuilding plan pursuant to paragraphs (3) through (6), except that such plan shall have not less than a 75-percent chance of rebuilding the stock of fish by the end of the new rebuilding time period set under paragraph (4). (B) Management measures in effect Management measures intended to rebuild the stock of fish shall remain in effect during the preparation of a rebuilding plan under subparagraph (A). (9) Management document In this subsection, the term management document means a management plan, management plan amendment, or proposed regulations for a stock of fish..