Sustaining America’s Fisheries for the Future Act of 2025

# Summary of Proposed Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act Amendments This comprehensive legislative proposal contains numerous amendments to the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, with the following key provisions: ## Fisheries Science and Data Modernization - Establishes a national strategic plan for fisheries data with user-centric systems - Mandates electronic monitoring and reporting in fisheries (replacing or complementing human observers) - Creates an electronic technologies innovation prize competition to accelerate data collection technology development - Requires standardized bycatch reporting program to assess bycatch across fisheries - Establishes a recreational data improvement program to improve timeliness, accuracy, and validation of recreational catch data ## Essential Fish Habitat and Ecosystem Management - Redefines "adverse effect" on essential fish habitat - Creates "habitat areas of particular concern" with specific criteria - Requires Councils to develop habitat protection plans with quantitative targets - Requires consideration of both fishing and non-fishing impacts on habitat ## Forage Fish Conservation - Defines "forage fish" (species that function as a main pathway for energy transfer in marine ecosystems) - Requires Councils to develop lists of unmanaged forage fish and recommend prohibitions on new directed fisheries - Mandates that annual catch limits for forage fish consider diet needs of higher trophic level species ## Bycatch Reduction - Requires conservation and management measures to minimize bycatch - Establishes a national standardized bycatch reporting program - Creates a bycatch reduction engineering program with technical assistance and outreach ## Fishery Management Improvements - Requires objective and measurable criteria for identifying overfished stocks - Mandates development of rebuilding plans with specific timeframes and measurable criteria - Requires consideration of climate change impacts in management decisions - Establishes a "Zeke Grader Fisheries Conservation and Management Fund" for research and adaptation ## International Fisheries Management - Proposes changes to U.S. representation on international fisheries commissions (Atlantic Tunas Convention, Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Convention, Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission) ## Funding - Authorizes specific funding amounts for 2026-2030 ($698 million to $765 million annually) This legislation represents a significant modernization of U.S. fisheries management, with strong emphasis on data-driven decision making, ecosystem-based management, climate resilience, and technological innovation in fisheries monitoring and management.