,i #aafth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #abah ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,february #ac1 #bjai,mr4 ,young 7for himself and ,mrs4 ,radewagen7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,natural ,resources ,a ,,bill ,to establish the ,american ,fisheries ,advisory ,committee to assist in the awarding of fisheries research and development grants1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,american ,fisheries ,advisory ,committee ,act4 #b4 ,american ,fisheries ,advisory ,committee 7a7 ,establishment ,section #b of the ,act of ,august #aa1 #aici 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #gac;c-#c71 is amended by adding at the end the following3 7f7 ,american ,fisheries ,advisory ,committee 7#a7 ,definitions ,in this subsection3 7,a7 ,committee ,the term ,committee means the ,american ,fisheries ,advisory ,committee established under paragraph 7#b74 7,b7 ,marketing and promotion ,the term marketing and promotion means an activity aimed at encouraging the consumption of seafood or expanding or maintaining commercial markets for seafood4 7,c7 ,processor ,the term processor means any person in the business of preparing or packaging seafood 7including seafood of the processor's own harvesting7 for sale4 7,d7 ,seafood ,the term seafood means farm-raised and wild-caught fish or shellfish harvested in the ,united ,states or by a ,united ,states flagged vessel for human consumption4 7,e7 ,seafood industry ,the term seafood industry means harvesters1 marketers1 growers1 processors1 and persons providing them with goods and services4 7#b7 ,establishment ,not later than #ij days after the date of the enactment of the ,american ,fisheries ,advisory ,committee ,act1 the ,secretary shall establish five regions within the ,american ,fisheries ,advisory ,committee as follows3 7,a7 ,region #a shall consist of ,alaska1 ,hawaii1 the ,commonwealth of the ,northern ,mariana ,islands1 and the territories of ,guam and ,american ,samoa4 7,b7 ,region #b shall consist of ,maine1 ,new ,hampshire1 ,massachusetts1 ,rhode ,island1 ,connecticut1 ,new ,york1 ,michigan1 ,minnesota1 ,wisconsin1 ,illinois1 ,indiana1 ,ohio1 and ,pennsylvania4 7,c7 ,region #c shall consist of ,texas1 ,alabama1 ,louisiana1 ,mississippi1 ,florida1 ,puerto ,rico1 and the territory of the ,virgin ,islands4 7,d7 ,region #d shall consist of ,california1 ,washington1 ,oregon1 and ,idaho4 7,e7 ,region #e shall consist of ,new ,jersey1 ,delaware1 ,maryland1 ,virginia1 ,north ,carolina1 ,south ,carolina1 and ,georgia4 7#c7 ,membership ,the ,committee shall be composed of the following members3 7,a7 ,regional representation ,each of the regions listed in subparagraphs 7,a7 through 7,e7 of paragraph 7#b7 shall be represented on the ,committee by two members-- 7i7 who are appointed by the ,secretary2 7ii7 who reside in a ,state or territory in the region that the member will represent2 7iii7 of which-- 7,i7 one shall have experience as a seafood harvester2 and 7,,ii7 one shall have experience as a processor2 and 7iv7 that are selected so that the members of the ,committee have experience or expertise with as many seafood species as practicable4 7,b7 ,at-large members ,the ,secretary shall appoint to the ,committee at-large members to ensure that the ,committee fairly reflects the expertise and interest of the seafood industry located in each region1 as follows3 7i7 ,one individual with experience in mass market food distribution4 7ii7 ,one individual with experience in mass market food retail or food service4 7iii7 ,one individual with experience in the marketing of seafood4 7iv7 ,one individual with experience in growing seafood4 7v7 ,one individual who is an employee of the ,national ,marine ,fisheries ,service with expertise in fisheries research4 7#d7 ,member terms ,the term for a member of the ,committee shall be three years1 except that the ,secretary shall designate staggered terms for the members initially appointed to the ,committee4 7#e7 ,responsibilities ,the ,committee shall be responsible for-- 7,a7 identifying needs of the seafood industry that may be addressed by a project funded with a grant under subsection 7c72 7,b7 developing the request for proposals for such grants2 7,c7 reviewing applications for such grants2 and 7,d7 selecting applications for approval under subsection 7c77#b77;,b74 7#f7 ,chair ,the ,committee shall elect a chair by a majority of those voting1 if a quorum is present4 7#g7 ,quorum ,a simple majority of members of the ,committee shall constitute a quorum1 but a lesser number may hold hearings4 7#h7 ,meetings 7,a7 ,frequency ,the ,committee shall meet not more than two times each year4 7,b7 ,location ,the meetings of the ,committee shall rotate between the geographic regions described under paragraph 7#b74 7,c7 ,federal ,advisory ,committee ,act ,the ,federal ,advisory ,committee ,act 7#e ,u4,s4,c4 ,app47 shall not apply to the ,committee4 7#i7 ,staff ,the ,committee may employ staff as necessary without regard to the provisions of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code4 7#aj7 ,per diem and expenses and funding 7,a7 ,in general ,a member of the ,committee shall serve without compensation1 but shall be reimbursed in accordance with section #egjc of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 for reasonable travel costs and expenses incurred in performing duties as a member of the ,committee4 7,b7 ,funding ,the reimbursements made under subparagraph 7,a7 shall be paid with the funds made available for grants under subsection 7c74 7#aa7 ,conflict of interest ,the conflict of interest and recusal provisions set out in section #cjb7;j7 of the ,magnuson-,stevens ,fishery ,conservation and ,management ,act 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #aheb7;j77 shall apply to any decision by the ,committee and to all members of the ,committee as if each member of the ,committee is an affected individual within the meaning of such section #cjb7;j71 except that in addition to the disclosure requirements of section #cjb7;j77#b77;,c7 of such ,act 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #aheb7;j77#b77;,c771 each member of the ,committee shall disclose any financial interest or relationship in an organization or with an individual that is applying for a grant under subsection 7c7 held by the member of the ,committee1 including an interest as an officer1 director1 trustee1 partner1 employee1 contractor1 agent1 or other representative4 4 7b7 ,role in approval of grants ,section #b7;c77#c7 of the ,act of ,august #aa1 #aici 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #gac;c-#c7;c77#c771 is amended to read as follows3 7#c7 ,no application for a grant under this subsection may be approved unless-- 7,a7 the ,secretary is satisfied that the applicant has the requisite technical and financial capability to carry out the project2 and 7,b7 the application is selected for funding by the ,american ,fisheries ,advisory ,committee under subsection 7f74 4