[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2243 Placed on Calendar Senate (PCS)]
Calendar No. 497
103d CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 2243
To amend the Fishermen's Protective Act of 1967 to permit reimbursement
of fishermen for fees required by a foreign government to be paid in
advance in order to navigate in the waters of that foreign country
whenever the United States considers that fee to be inconsistent with
international law, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
June 24 (legislative day, June 7), 1994
Mr. Stevens (for himself, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Gorton, Mr. Murkowski, and
Mr. Packwood) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
ordered held at the desk until the close of business on June 27, 1994.
June 27 (legislative day, June 7), 1994
Ordered to be placed on the calendar
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Fishermen's Protective Act of 1967 to permit reimbursement
of fishermen for fees required by a foreign government to be paid in
advance in order to navigate in the waters of that foreign country
whenever the United States considers that fee to be inconsistent with
international law, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds that--
(1) customary international law and the United Nations
Convention on the Law of the Sea guarantee the right of
passage, including innocent passage, to vessels through the
waters commonly referred to as the ``Inside Passage'' off the
Pacific Coast of Canada;
(2) Canada has recently announced that it will require all
commercial fishing vessels of the United States to pay 1,500
Canadian dollars to obtain a ``license which authorizes
transit'' through the Inside Passage off the Pacific Coast of
Canada;
(3) this action is inconsistent with international law,
including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea,
and in particular Article 26 of that Convention, which
specifically prohibits such fees, and threatens the safety of
United States commercial fishermen who may seek to avoid the
fee by traveling in less protected waters;
(4) the Fishermen's Protective Act of 1967 provides for the
reimbursement of vessel owners who are forced to pay a license
fee to secure the release of a vessel which has been seized,
but does not permit reimbursement of a fee paid by the owner in
advance in order to prevent a seizure;
(5) Canada has announced that the license fee may only be
paid in two ports on the Pacific Coast of Canada, and must be
paid in person or in advance by mail;
(6) significant expense and delay would be incurred by a
commercial fishing vessel of the United States that had to
travel from the point of seizure back to one of those ports in
order to pay the license fee required by Canada, and the costs
of that travel and delay cannot be reimbursed under the
Fishermen's Protective Act as presently enacted;
(7) the Fishermen's Protective Act of 1967 should be
amended to permit vessel owners to be reimbursed for fees
required by a foreign government to be paid in advance in order
to navigate in the waters of that foreign country, provided the
United States considers that fee to be inconsistent with
international law;
(8) the Secretary of State should seek to recover from
Canada any amounts paid by the United States to reimburse
vessel owners who paid the transit license fee;
(9) the United States should review its current policy with
respect to anchorage by commercial fishing vessels of Canada in
waters of the United States off Alaska, including waters in and
near the Dixon Entrance, and should accord such vessels the
same treatment that commercial fishing vessels of the United
States are accorded for anchorage in the waters of Canada off
British Columbia;
(10) the President should ensure that, consistent with
international law, the United States Coast Guard has available
adequate resources in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska to
provide for the safety of United States citizens, the
enforcement of United States law, and to protect the rights of
the United States and keep the peace among vessels operating in
disputed waters;
(11) the President should continue to review all agreements
between the United States and Canada to identify other actions
that may be taken to convince Canada that continuation of the
transit license fee would be against Canada's long-term
interests, and should immediately implement any actions which
the President deems appropriate until Canada rescinds the fee;
(12) the President should immediately convey to Canada in
the strongest terms that the United States will not now, nor at
any time in the future, tolerate any action by Canada which
would impede or otherwise restrict the right of passage of
vessels of the United States vessels in a manner inconsistent
with international law; and
(13) the United States should redouble its efforts to seek
expeditious agreement with Canada on appropriate fishery
conservation and management measures that can be implemented
through the Pacific Salmon Treaty to address issues of mutual
concern.
SEC. 2. AMENDMENT TO THE FISHERMEN'S PROTECTIVE ACT.
The Fishermen's Protective Act of 1967 (Public Law 90-482), as
amended, is further amended by adding at the end the following new
section:
``Sec. 11. (a) In any case on or after June 15, 1994 in which a
vessel of the United States exercising its right of passage is charged
a fee by the government of a foreign country to navigate in waters of
that foreign country, and such fee is regarded by the United States as
being inconsistent with international law, the Secretary of State shall
reimburse the vessel owner for the amount of any such fee paid under
protest.
``(b) In seeking such reimbursement, the vessel owner shall
provide, together with such other information as the Secretary of State
may require--
``(1) a copy of the receipt for payment;
``(2) an affidavit attesting that the owner or the owner's
agent paid the fee under protest; and
``(3) a copy of the vessel's certificate of documentation.
``(c) Requests for reimbursement shall be made to the Secretary of
State within 120 days of the date of payment of the fee, or within 90
days of the date of enactment of this section, whichever is later.
``(d) Such funds as may be necessary to meet the requirements of
this section shall be made available from the unexpended balances
remaining in the Fishermen's Guaranty Fund established under section 7
and the Fishermen's Protective Fund established under section 9. To the
extent that requests for reimbursement under this section exceed the
unexpended funds available, payments shall be made under this section
only to the extent and in such amounts as are provided in advance in
appropriations Acts.
``(e) The Secretary of State shall take such action as the
Secretary deems appropriate to make and collect claims against the
foreign country imposing such fee for any amounts reimbursed under this
section.
``(f) For purposes of this section, the term `owner' includes any
charterer of a vessel of the United States.''.
SEC. 3. REAUTHORIZATION.
(a) Section 7(c) of the Fishermen's Protective Act of 1967 (22
U.S.C. 1977(c)) is amended by striking ``The amount fixed by the
Secretary shall be predicated upon at least 33\1/3\ per centum of the
contribution by the Government.''.
(b) Section 7(e) of the Fishermen's Protective Act of 1967 (22
U.S.C. 1977(e)) is amended by striking ``October 1, 1993'' and
inserting in lieu thereof ``October 1, 2000''.
Calendar No. 497
103d CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 2243
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Fishermen's Protective Act of 1967 to permit reimbursement
of fishermen for fees required by a foreign government to be paid in
advance in order to navigate in the waters of that foreign country
whenever the United States considers that fee to be inconsistent with
international law, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
June 27 (legislative day, June 7), 1994
Ordered to be placed on the calendar