The U.S. House of Representatives has once again passed legislation that would bring U.S. law into alignment with changes made to the South Pacific Tuna Treaty in 2016.
Originally signed in 1987, the South Pacific Tuna Treaty grants American purse-seine vessels the ability to fish for tuna in the exclusive economic zones (EEZs) of 16 Pacific Island states. The most recent round of negotiations between the U.S. and those states resulted in an update to the treaty in 2016; however, U.S. Congress has never updated the nation’s laws to reflect that update. In the interim, American fishers in the South Pacific have been able to continue operating around the Pacific Island states under a memorandum of understanding.
Lawmakers still say it’s necessary to update U.S. law to ensure American fishers can fully benefit from the terms of the 2016 negotiation.
“These changes are important to support the American fishing fleet in the South Pacific, of which many boats call American Samoa home,” U.S. Delegate Aumua Amata Coleman Radewagen (R-American Samoa) said on the House floor prior to the vote. “These changes improve the operational conditions and flexibility for the fleet, which is America's last true distant-water fishing fleet.”
“The amendments enacted in 2016 provided much-needed updates, including clearer access terms and more flexible mechanisms for engagement with Pacific Island countries. But nearly a decade later, these improvements are still not reflected in U.S. law,” U.S. Representative Ed Case (D-Hawaii) added. “This legal disconnect has left the American fleet, including vessels operating out of Hawaii, in a state of regulatory limbo. Operators are forced to navigate conflicting rules between what the treaty allows and what our domestic regulations enforce. It's a situation that adds unnecessary risk, uncertainty and cost to an industry that is already facing tight margins and fierce international competition.”
The House passed the legislation by voice vote 13 May, but it still needs to be passed by the U.S. Senate to become law. The House passed similar legislation in April 2024 that would have brought U.S. law into compliance, but it was not taken up by the U.S. Senate before the end of the last Congress.
