Stop Illegal Fishing Act
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
In CommitteeMr. Meeks (for himself and Mrs. Kim) introduced the following …
Summary
What This Bill Does
The Stop Illegal Fishing Act creates a new U.S. sanctions program targeting illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing worldwide. It requires the President to impose economic sanctions and travel bans on foreign individuals and companies engaged in IUU fishing, with the bill explicitly naming China as the primary perpetrator of this practice.
Who Benefits and How
U.S. commercial fishing companies and seafood processors benefit from reduced competition from illegally caught foreign fish. American fishers gain a more level playing field as foreign IUU operators face property seizures, frozen assets, and exclusion from U.S. markets. Coastal communities in developing nations also benefit as the sanctions aim to deter foreign fleets from illegally exploiting their waters.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Foreign fishing vessel owners, captains, and company executives engaged in IUU fishing face severe consequences: their U.S. assets can be frozen, they become ineligible for U.S. visas, and they are barred from U.S. financial systems. Chinese distant-water fishing operations are the primary target. U.S. financial institutions and businesses that deal with foreign fishing companies face new compliance requirements to screen for sanctioned entities. Executive agencies (State, DHS, Treasury) must implement and administer the new sanctions program.
Key Provisions
- Mandates sanctions on any foreign person who owns IUU fishing vessels, operates IUU fishing companies, or serves as captain/senior crew on such vessels
- Blocks property and financial transactions of sanctioned individuals and vessels
- Revokes visas and bars entry to the U.S. for sanctioned foreign nationals
- Creates humanitarian exceptions for food, medicine, and aid transactions
- Requires annual Congressional reporting for five years on sanctioned persons and vessels
Evidence Chain:
This summary is derived from the structured analysis below. See "Detailed Analysis" for per-title beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
Primary Purpose
To require the imposition of sanctions against foreign persons and foreign vessels engaged in illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, with a particular focus on deterring Chinese fishing operations.
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Use economic sanctions and immigration restrictions to deter foreign actors from engaging in illegal fishing, leveraging existing IEEPA authorities"
Likely Beneficiaries
- U.S. domestic fishing industry (reduced competition from illegal foreign fishing)
- U.S. seafood processors and distributors (level playing field)
- Coastal communities in developing nations (protection from resource exploitation)
- Marine conservation organizations (reduced overfishing)
- U.S. national security apparatus (new enforcement tools)
Likely Burden Bearers
- Foreign fishing companies engaged in IUU fishing (especially Chinese operators)
- Foreign vessel owners and operators in IUU fishing
- Foreign captains and senior crew members on IUU vessels
- U.S. businesses with ties to sanctioned foreign fishing entities
- Executive branch agencies (implementation and reporting requirements)
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_president"
- → President of the United States
- "secretary_of_state"
- → Secretary of State
- "secretary_of_homeland_security"
- → Secretary of Homeland Security
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
The Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate
An individual or entity that is not a United States person
A vessel of foreign registry or operated under the authority of a foreign country
Illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing
A United States citizen; a permanent resident alien; an entity organized under U.S. laws (including foreign branches); or a person in the United States
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology