S. 850: Shark Conservation Act of 2009

111th Congress · introduced 2009-04-22 · Public Lands and Natural Resources · Latest: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 270.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2009-04-22 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Kerry, John F. [D-MA] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 270. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Shark Conservation Act of 2009

Plain summary

Shark Conservation Act of 2009 - Amends the High Seas Driftnet Fishing Moratorium Protection Act to direct the Secretary of Commerce to urge international fishery management organizations to which the United States is a member to adopt shark conservation measures, including measures to prohibit removal any of the fins of a shark (including the tail) and discarding the shark carcass at sea. Requires the Secretary to seek to enter into international shark conservation agreements, including measures prohibiting fin removal and carcass disposal, that are comparable to those of the United States, taking into account different conditions. Directs the Secretary to include shark conservation measures when defining fishing activities that violate international fishery conservation and management agreements. Requires the Secretary to list a nation in the biennial report on international compliance if the nation's fishing vessels are or have been engaged in fishing activities that target or incidentally catch sharks in waters beyond their jurisdiction, and such nation has not adopted a regulatory program providing for shark conservation, including the fin removal and carcass disposal prohibitions. Requires such listing within one year after the enactment of this Act. Amends the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to revise provisions prohibiting the removal of shark fins to make it a prohibited act to: (1) remove any shark fin (including the tail) at sea; (2) have a fin aboard a fishing vessel unless the fin is naturally attached to the carcass; (3) transfer a fin from one vessel to another or receive a fin unless it is naturally attached; or (4) land a fin that is not naturally attached to a carcass or land a carcass without fins naturally attached. Revises the current rebuttable presumption provision concerning shark fins on fishing vessels to create a rebuttable presumption that, if any shark fin (including the tail) is aboard a non-fishing vessel without being naturally attached, the fin was transferred from a fishing vessel in violation.

Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to Senate with amendment(s)), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

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What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Shark Conservation Act of 2009

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to Senate with amendment(s))

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Kerry, John F. [D-MA] · 33 cosponsors

Cost estimate: CBO cost estimate: S. 850, Shark Conservation Act of 2009 (2009-12-01); CBO cost estimate: S. 850, Shark Conservation Act of 2009 (2009-12-01)

Cosponsors on this site

Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Bernard Sanders (I-VT), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Jack Reed (D-RI), Kirsten E. Gillibrand (D-NY), Susan M. Collins (R-ME), Patty Murray (D-WA), Richard J. Durbin (D-IL), Charles E. Schumer (D-NY)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (1)

Jurisdiction: The area or the matters a government or court has authority over.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to Senate with amendment(s))
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-111s850.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/111/s>

Record fed-us-cong111-s850 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong111 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong111