,,ii #aafth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #did ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,february #ad1 #bjai ,mr4 ,sullivan 7for himself1 ,ms4 ,murkowski1 ,ms4 ,warren1 ,ms4 ,cantwell1 and ,mr4 ,markey7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,commerce1 ,science1 and ,transportation ,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-- 7#a7 by redesignating subsection 7e7 as subsection 7f72 and 7#b7 by inserting after subsection 7d7 the following3 7e7 ,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 ,fishing community ,the term fishing community means harvesters1 marketers1 growers1 processors1 recreational fishermen1 charter fishermen1 and persons providing them with goods and services4 7,c7 ,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,d7 ,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,e7 ,seafood ,the term seafood means farm-raised and wild-caught fish1 shellfish1 or marine algae harvested in the ,united ,states or by a ,united ,states flagged vessel for human consumption4 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 #f 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 and ,connecticut4 7,c7 ,region #c shall consist of ,texas1 ,alabama1 ,louisiana1 ,mississippi1 ,florida1 ,arkansas1 ,puerto ,rico1 and the ,territory of the ,virgin ,islands of the ,united ,states4 7,d7 ,region #d shall consist of ,california1 ,washington1 ,oregon1 and ,idaho4 7,e7 ,region #e shall consist of ,new ,jersey1 ,new ,york1 ,delaware1 ,maryland1 ,virginia1 ,north ,carolina1 ,south ,carolina1 and ,georgia4 7,f7 ,region #f shall consist of ,michigan1 ,minnesota1 ,wisconsin1 ,illinois1 ,indiana1 ,ohio1 and ,pennsylvania4 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,f7 of paragraph 7#b7 shall be represented on the ,committee by #c 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 harvester or processor2 7,,ii7 one shall have experience as recreational or commercial fisher or have experience growing seafood2 and 7,,iii7 one shall be an individual who represents the fisheries science community or the relevant ,regional ,fishery ,management ,council2 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 as follows3 7i7 ,one individual with experience in food distribution1 marketing1 retail1 or food service4 7ii7 ,one individual with experience in the recreational fishing industry supply chain1 such as fishermen1 manufacturers1 retailers1 and distributors4 7iii7 ,one individual with experience in the commercial fishing industry supply chain1 such as fishermen1 manufacturers1 retailers1 and distributors4 7iv7 ,one individual who is an employee of the ,national ,marine ,fisheries ,service with expertise in fisheries research4 7,c7 ,balanced representation ,in selecting the members described in subparagraphs 7,a7 and 7,b71 the ,secretary shall seek to maximize on the ,committee1 to the extent practicable1 a balanced representation of expertise in ,united ,states fisheries1 seafood production1 and science4 7#d7 ,member terms ,the term for a member of the ,committee shall be #c 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 fishing community 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 #b times each year4 7,b7 ,location ,the meetings of the ,committee shall rotate between the geographic regions described under paragraph 7#b74 7,c7 ,minimizing costs ,the ,committee shall seek to minimize the operational costs associated with meetings1 hearings1 or other business of the ,committee1 including through the use of video or teleconference4 7#i7 ,designation of staff member ,the ,secretary shall designate a staff member to coordinate the activities of the ,committee and to assist with administrative and other functions as requested by the ,committee4 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 costs of reimbursements under subparagraph 7,a7 and the other costs associated with the ,committee shall be paid from funds made available to carry out this section 7which may include funds described in subsection 7f77#a77;,b771 except that no funds allocated for grants under subsection 7f77#a77;,a7 shall be expended for any purpose under this subsection4 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 7#ab7 ,technical review of applications 7,a7 ,in general ,prior to review of an application for a grant under subsection 7c7 by the ,committee1 the ,secretary shall obtain an independent written technical evaluation from #c or more appropriate ,federal1 private1 or public sector experts 7such as industry1 academia1 or governmental experts7 who-- 7i7 have subject matter expertise to determine the technical merit of the proposal in the application2 7ii7 shall independently evaluate each such proposal2 and 7iii7 shall certify that the expert does not have a conflict of interest concerning the application that the expert is reviewing4 7,b7 ,guidance ,not later than #ahj days after the date of enactment of the ,american ,fisheries ,advisory ,committee ,act1 the ,secretary shall issue guidance related to carrying out the technical evaluations under subparagraph 7,a74 ,such guidance shall include criteria for the elimination by the ,national ,oceanic and ,atmospheric ,administration of applications that fail to meet a minimum level of technical merit as determined by the review described in subparagraph 7,a74 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 7,a7 ,no application for a grant under this subsection may be approved unless the ,secretary-- 7i7 is satisfied that the applicant has the requisite technical and financial capability to carry out the project2 and 7ii7 based on the recommendations of the ,american ,fisheries ,advisory ,committee established in subsection 7e71 evaluates the proposed project as to-- 7,i7 soundness of design2 7,,ii7 the possibilities of securing productive results2 7,,iii7 minimization of duplication with other fisheries research and development projects2 7,,iv7 the organization and management of the project2 7,v7 methods proposed for monitoring and evaluating the success or failure of the project2 and 7,,vi7 such other criteria as the ,secretary may require4 7,b7 ,if the ,secretary fails to provide funds to a grant selected by the ,american ,fisheries ,advisory ,committee1 the ,secretary shall provide a written document to the ,committee justifying the decision4 4 #c4 ,expansion of specified purposes of fisheries research and development projects grants program to include fisheries research and development projects ,section #b7;c77#a7 of the ,act of ,august #aa1 #aici 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #gac;c-#c7;c77#a77 is amended by inserting fisheries science1 recreational fishing1 before harvesting14 #d4 ,public availability of grants proposals ,section #b7;c7 of the ,act of ,august #aa1 #aici 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #gac;c-#c7;c771 is amended by adding at the end the following3 7#f7 ,any person awarded a grant under this subsection shall make publicly available a title and abstract of the project to be carried out by the grant funds that serves as the public justification for funding the project that includes a statement describing how the project serves to enhance ,united ,states fisheries1 including harvesting1 processing1 marketing1 and associated infrastructures1 if applicable4 4