(a) Regulations

The Secretary may, as needed, promulgate such regulations—

(1) in accordance with section 553 of title 5;

(2) consistent with provisions of this chapter; 1 and

(3) with respect to enforcement measures, in consultation with the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating;


as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this chapter, to the extent that such regulations are not already promulgated.

(b) Ports of entry

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Terms Used In 16 USC 7403

  • Agreement: means the Agreement on Port State Measures to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing, done at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, in Rome, Italy, November 22, 2009, and signed by the United States November 22, 2009. See 16 USC 7402
  • fish: means finfish, mollusks, crustaceans, and all other forms of marine animal and plant life other than marine mammals and birds. See 16 USC 7402
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Secretary: means the Secretary of Commerce or his or her designee. See 16 USC 7402
  • State: means a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any other territory or possession of the United States. See 1 USC 7
  • vessel: means any vessel, ship of another type, or boat used for, equipped to be used for, or intended to be used for, fishing or fishing-related activities, including container vessels that are carrying fish that have not been previously landed. See 16 USC 7402

The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating, may designate and publicize the ports to which vessels may seek entry. No port may be designated under this section that has not also been designated as a port of entry for customs reporting purposes pursuant to section 1433 of title 19 1 or that is not specified under an existing international fisheries agreement.

(c) Notification

The Secretary shall provide notification of the denial of port entry or the use of port services for a vessel under section 7404 of this title, the withdrawal of the denial of port services for a foreign vessel, the taking of enforcement action pursuant to section 7405 of this title with respect to a foreign vessel, or the results of any inspection of a foreign vessel conducted pursuant to this chapter to the flag nation of the vessel and, as appropriate, to the nation of which the vessel’s master is a national, relevant coastal nations, RFMOs, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, and other relevant international organizations.

(d) Confirmation that fish were taken in accordance with conservation and management measures

The Secretary may request confirmation from the flag state of a foreign vessel that the fish on board a foreign vessel in a port subject to the jurisdiction of the United States were taken in accordance with applicable RFMO conservation and management measures.