House takes up bill to prohibit the sale of billfish

The House on Monday afternoon will consider the Billfish Conservation Act, which would prohibit the sale of most billfish and imposes a stiff penalty for any violation.

If the bill passes and becomes law it would be illegal to sell billfish including types of marlin, sailfish and spearfish. Swordfish are excluded from the list of billfish that would be prohibited. A $100,000 fine would be imposed on anyone found violating the law.

Rep. Jeff Miller (R-Fla.) introduced the bill, which exempts the Hawaiian Islands and Pacific Insular area. According to the bill, billfish are not commonly sold as seafood in the United States, but the billfish population is dangerously low. Because the legislation only prohibits the sale of billfish, it won’t affect the recreational angling of billfish as long as they are caught and released.

H.R. 2706 has a companion measure in the Senate, S. 3422, introduced by Sen. David Vitter (R-La.). He said the legislation is necessary to satisfy both sport-fishermen and fishing conservation communities.

"My billfish Conservation Act has strong bipartisan support, and our efforts — three years in the making — also have significant support from the sport-fishing and conservation communities,” Vitter said after introducing his bill before the August recess. “Louisiana is known as the sportsman’s paradise and we understand that it’s important to protect this majestic species, a real prize of recreational fishing.”

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