Co-Chairs

The Honorable William Ruckelshaus Via electronic mail The Honorable Norman Mineta April 14, 2015

Members The Honorable Rob Bishop Frances Beinecke Chairman Donald Boesch, Ph.D. Committee on Natural Resources 123 Cannon House Office Building Lillian Borrone Washington, DC 20515 The Honorable Norman Dicks The Honorable Raul Grijalva Quenton Dokken, Ph.D. Ranking Member Vice Admiral Committee on Natural Resources Paul Gaffney, U.S. Navy 1511 Longworth House Office Building (Retired) Washington, DC 20515 Robert Gagosian, Ph.D.

Sherri Goodman Dear Chairman Bishop and Ranking Member Grijalva:

Scott Gudes On behalf of the Joint Ocean Commission Initiative, a collaborative, bipartisan Vice Admiral effort to catalyze ocean policy reform, we strongly encourage the Committee Conrad Lautenbacher, Ph.D. U.S. Navy (Retired) to consider and advance H.R. 774, the Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing Enforcement Act of 2015. Margaret Leinen, Ph.D.

Christopher Lischewski In furthering recommendations from the Pew Oceans Commission and the The Honorable U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy, the Joint Ocean Commission Initiative has Jane Lubchenco, Ph.D. long supported policies for the conservation, sustainable use, and ecosystem- Julie Packard based management of living marine resources.

The Honorable Leon Panetta The U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy’s landmark report, An Ocean Blueprint for the 21st Century noted that “the effective management and conservation of John Pappalardo global marine species, and the enforcement of international treaties, require a The Honorable combination of domestic, bilateral, regional and international approaches. Pietro Parravano Although regulation of fisheries on the high seas is conducted within broad Diane Regas regions of the seas, the existing regional fishery organizations are generally Randy Repass weak. They lack adequate resources or enforcement capabilities.”

Andrew Rosenberg, Ph.D. Last year, the Senate made important progress toward addressing IUU by The Honorable ratifying the Port State Measures Agreement, which would require party Christine Todd Whitman nations to take a number of steps to combat IUU activity. In order to fulfill

U.S. obligations, it is now essential to enact legislation to fully implement the

Agreement, which is why we strongly support H.R. 774.

April 14, 2015 Page 2 of 2

Successful passage of H.R. 774 would help combat IUU fishing by granting the Secretary of Commerce the authority to deny U.S. port entry and access to port services to foreign fishing and transport vessels that have harvested fish illegally. The legislation also allows vessel inspections and enables enforcement action to be taken if IUU-related activity is detected. These authorities effectively bar illegal seafood from entering the U.S. market, eliminating the economic benefits of IUU fishing and helping dismantle the IUU trade. The bill also allows the U.S. to help developing nations meet their obligations under the Agreement, granting the U.S. further agency to combat IUU fishing on the international stage.

Passage of H.R.774 would also complement the action plan announced earlier this month by the Task Force on Combating IUU Fishing and Seafood Fraud. The plan pinpoints critical steps that federal agencies should take to implement recommendations of the Task Force, both at home and abroad, in the areas of enforcement, partnerships, traceability, and international cooperation.

Sustainable management of our ocean resources for current and future generations requires an international framework and a consistently applied rule of law across nations. We appreciate the Committee’s timely consideration of legislation to implement the Port State Measures Agreement, which helps affirm the role of the United States as a leader in protecting our global commons for the benefit and use of our citizens.

Sincerely,

William Ruckelshaus Co-Chair, Joint Ocean Commission Initiative

Norman Y. Mineta Co-Chair, Joint Ocean Commission Initiative