#aaith ,,congress  #ast ,session  ,h4   
,r4 #bjg  ,,an ,,act  ,to direct the    
,secretary of ,commerce to establish a  
task force regarding shark depredation1 
and for other purposes4  #a4 ,short     
title ,this ,act may be cited as the    
,supporting the ,health of ,aquatic     
systems through ,research ,knowledge and
 ,enhanced ,dialogue ,act of #bjbe or   
the ,,sharked ,act of #bjbe4  #b4 ,shark
 depredation task force and research    
projects  7a7 ,shark depredation task   
force  7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary 
of ,commerce shall establish a task     
force 7referred to in this subsection as
 the task force7 to identify and address
 critical needs with respect to shark   
depredation4  7#b7 ,membership ,the     
,secretary of ,commerce shall appoint   
individuals to the task force1          
including-- 7,a7 #a representative      
from--  7i7 each ,regional ,fishery     
,management ,council established under  
section #cjb7;a77#a7 of the             
,magnuson-,stevens ,fishery             

,conservation and ,management ,act 7#af 
,u4,s4,c4 #aheb7;a77#a772  7ii7 each    
,marine ,fisheries ,commission1 as such 
term is defined in section #c of the    
,magnuson-,stevens ,fishery             
,conservation and ,management ,act 7#af 
,u4,s4,c4 #ahjb72  7iii7 the fish and   
wildlife agency of a coastal ,state from
 each ,regional ,fishery ,management    
,council established under section      
#cjb7;a77#a7 of the ,magnuson-,stevens  
,fishery ,conservation and ,management  
,act 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #aheb7;a77#a772 and 
7iv7 the ,national ,marine ,fisheries   
,service2  7,b7 an individual with      
expertise in the management of highly   
migratory species2  7,c7 a researcher   
with expertise in shark management and  
behavior2 and  7,d7 a researcher with   
expertise in shark ecology4  7#c7       
,responsibilities ,the task force       
shall--  7,a7 develop ways to improve   
coordination and communication across   
the fisheries management community and  
shark research community to address     

shark depredation2  7,b7 identify       
research priorities and funding         
opportunities for such priorities1      
including--  7i7 identifying shark      
species involved in interactions2  7ii7 
shark stock assessments2  7iii7 how     
sharks become habituated to humans and  
thus lead to more interactions between  
sharks and humans2  7iv7 how angler     
behavior and fishery regulatory         
frameworks may influence shark          
interactions2  7v7 techniques and       
strategies to reduce harmful            
interactions between sharks and humans1 
including the development and use of    
non-lethal deterrents2  7vi7 the role of
 healthy shark populations in the ocean 
food web2 and  7vii7 climate change     
impacts on shifting shark populations1  
prey1 and shark behavior2  7,c7 develop 
recommended management strategies to    
address shark depredation2 and  7,d7    
coordinate the development and          
distribution of educational materials to
 help the fishing community minimize    

shark interactions including through    
changed angler behavior and             
expectations4  7#d7 ,report ,not later  
than #b years after the date of the     
enactment of this section1 and every #b 
years thereafter until the termination  
of the task force in accordance with    
paragraph 7#e71 the task force shall    
submit to ,congress a report regarding  
the findings of the task force4  7#e7   
,sunset ,the task force shall terminate 
not later than #g years after the date  
on which the ,secretary of ,commerce    
establishes the task force4  7#f7       
,coastal state defined ,in this         
subsection1 the term coastal ,state--   
7,a7 means a ,state of the ,united      
,states in1 or bordering on1 the        
,atlantic ,ocean1 ,pacific ,ocean1      
,arctic ,ocean1 ,gulf of ,mexico1 or    
,long ,island ,sound2 and  7,b7 includes
 ,puerto ,rico1 the ,virgin ,islands of 
the ,united ,states1 ,guam1 the         
,commonwealth of the ,northern ,mariana 
,islands1 and ,american ,samoa4  7b7    

,shark depredation research projects    
,section #cah7;c7 of the                
,magnuson-,stevens ,fishery             
,conservation and ,management ,act 7#af 
,u4,s4,c4 #ahfg7;c77 is amended by      
adding at the end the following3  7#f7  
,projects to better understand shark    
depredation1 including identifying what 
causes increases in shark depredation   
and determining how to best address     
shark depredation4  4  7c7 ,effect      
,nothing in this section shall be       
construed to affect the authority and   
responsibility of the ,secretary of     
,commerce in carrying out the           
,endangered ,species ,act of #aigc 7#af 
,u4,s4,c4 #acea et seq47 or the         
,magnuson-,stevens ,fishery             
,conservation and ,management ,act 7#af 
,u4,s4,c4 #ahja et seq474  ,passed the  
,house of ,representatives ,january #ba1
 #bjbe4;,clerk4