SEC. 3. That the violation of any provision of this Act or of any regulation made thereunder may be prosecuted in any United States district court of Alaska, California, Oregon, or Washington.

SEC. 4. That the collector of customs of the district of Alaska is hereby authorized to search and seize every foreign vessel and arrest every person violating any provision of this Act or any regulation made thereunder, and the Secretary of the Interior shall have power to authorize officers of the Navy and of the Revenue Cutter Service and agents of the Department of the Interior to likewise make such searches, seizures, and arrests. If any foreign vessel shall be found within the waters to which this Act applies, having on board fresh or cured fish and apparatus or implements suitable for killing or taking fish, it shall be presumed that the vessel and apparatus were used in violation of this Act until it is otherwise sufficiently proved. And every vessel, its tackle, apparatus, or implements so seized shall be given into the custody of the United States marshal of either of the districts mentioned in section three of this Act, and shall be held by him subject to the proceedings provided for in section two of this Act. The facts in connection with such seizures shall be at once reported to the United States district attorney for the district to which the vessel so seized shall be taken, whose duty it shall be to institute the proper proceedings.

SEC. 5. That the Secretary of the Interior shall have power to make rules and regulations not inconsistent with law to carry into effect the provisions of this Act. And it shall be the duty of the Secretary of the Interior to enforce the provisions of this Act and the rules and regulations made thereunder and for that purpose he may employ, through the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of the Navy the vessels of the United States Revenue Cutter Service and of the Navy: Provided, however, That nothing contained in this Act shall be construed as affecting any existing treaty or convention between the United States and any foreign power.

Approved June 14, 1906.

HALIBUT FISHING

[Act of June 28, 1937, 50 Stat. 325; 16 U. S. C., Sup. IV, 772–772i]

An Act for the Protection of the Northern Pacific Halibut Fishery!

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That this Act may be cited as the "Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 1937”.

SEC. 2. When used in this Act

(a) Convention: The word "Convention" means the Convention between the United States and Canada for the Preservation of the Halibut Fishery of the Northern Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea signed at Ottawa on the 29th day of January, 1937, and shall include the regulations of the International Fisheries Commission promulgated thereunder.

(b) Commission: The word "Commission" means the International Fisheries Commission provided for by article III of the Convention.

(c) Person: The word "person" includes partnerships, associations and corporations.

(d) Territorial waters of the United States: The term "Territorial waters of the United States" means the territorial waters contiguous to the western coast of the United States and the territorial waters contiguous to the southern and western coasts of Alaska.

(e) Territorial waters of Canada: The term "territorial waters of Canada" means the territorial waters contiguous to the western coast of Canada.

(f) Convention waters: The term "Convention waters" means the territorial waters of the United States, the territorial waters of Canada, and the high seas of the Northern Pacific Ocean and the Bering Sea, extending westerly from the limits of the territorial waters of the United States and of Canada.

(g) Halibut: The word "halibut" means the species of Hippoglossus inhabiting Convention waters.

(h) Vessel: The word "vessel" includes every description of water craft or other contrivance used or capable of being used, as a means of transportation in water. SEC. 3. It shall be unlawful for

(a) any person other than a national or inhabitant of the United States to catch or attempt to catch any halibut in the territorial waters of the United States; (b) any person to transfer to or to receive upon any vessel of the United States or to bring to any place within the jurisdiction of the United States any halibut

1 Regulations under the authority of this act are issued by the International Fisheries Commission, Fisheries Hall No. 2, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington.

caught in Convention waters by the use of any vessel of a nation not a party to the Convention or caught in Convention waters by any national or inhabitant of the United States or Canada in violation of the Convention or of this Act;

(c) any national or inhabitant of the United States to catch, attempt to catch, or to possess any halibut in the territorial waters of the United States or in Convention waters in violation of any provision of the Convention or of this Act; (d) any person within the territory or jurisdiction of the United States to furnish, prepare, outfit, or provision any vessel, other than a vessel of the United States or Canada, in connection with any voyage during which such vessel is intended to be, is being or has been employed in catching, attempting to catch, or possessing any halibut in Convention waters or the territorial waters of the United States or Canada;

(e) any person within the territory or jurisdiction of the United States to furnish, prepare, outfit, or provision any vessel of the United States or Canada in connection with any voyage during which such vessel is intended to be, is being, or has been employed in catching, attempting to catch, or possessing any halibut in violation of any provision of the Convention or of this Act;

(f) any person within the territory or jurisdiction of the United States or any national or inhabitant of the United States within Convention waters knowingly to have or have had in his possession any halibut taken, transferred, received, or brought in in violation of any provision of the Convention or of this Act;

(g) any person to depart from any place within the jurisdiction of the United States in any vessel which departs from such place in violation of the Convention or of this Act;

(h) any person in the territorial waters of the United States or any national or inhabitant of the United States in Convention waters to catch or attempt to catch any halibut, or to possess any halibut caught incidentally to fishing for other species of fish by the use of or in any vessel required by the Convention to have on board any license or permit unless such vessel shall have on board a license or permit which shall comply with all applicable requirements of the Convention, and which shall be available for inspection at any time by any officer authorized to enforce the Convention or by any representative of the Commission;

(i) any person to take, retain, land, or possess any halibut caught incidentally to fishing for other species of fish, in violation of any provision of the Convention or of this Act.

SEC. 4. It shall be unlawful for the master or owner or person in charge of any vessel or any other person required by the Convention to make, keep, or furnish any record or report, to fail to do so, or to refuse to permit any officer authorized to enforce the Convention or any representative of the Commission to examine and inspect any such record or report at any time.

SEC. 5. (a) The provisions of the Convention and of this Act and any regulations issued under this Act shall be enforced by the Coast Guard, the Customs Service, and the Fish and Wildlife Service. For such purposes any officer of the Coast Guard, Customs, or Fish and Wildlife Service may at any time go on board of any vessel in territorial waters of the United States, or any vessel of the United States or Canada in Convention waters, except in the territorial waters of Canada, to address inquiries to those on board and to examine, inspect, and search the vessel and every part thereof and any person, trunk, package, or cargo on board, and to this end may hail and stop such vessel, and use all necessary force to compel compliance.

(b) Whenever it appears to any such officer that any person, other than a national or inhabitant of Canada, on any vessel of the United States is violating or has violated any provision of the Convention or of this Act, he shall arrest such person and seize any such vessel employed in such violation. If any such person on any such vessel of the United States is a national or inhabitant of Canada, such person shall be detained and shall be delivered as soon as practicable to an authorized officer of Canada at the Canadian port or place nearest to the place of detention or at such other port or place as such officers of the United States and of Canada may agree upon.

(c) Whenever it appears to any such officer of the United States that any person, other than a national or inhabitant of the United States, on any vessel of Canada in Convention waters, except in the territorial waters of Canada, is violating or has violated any provision of the Convention, such person, and any such vessel employed in such violation, shall be detained and such person and such vessel shall be delivered as soon as practicable to an authorized officer of Canada at the Canadian port or place nearest to the place of detention, or at such other port or place as such officers of the United States and of Canada may agree upon. 246925-53-2

If any such person on any such vessel of Canada is a national or inhabitant of the United States, such person shall be arrested as provided for in subsection (b) of this section.

(d) Officers or employees of the Coast Guard, Customs, and Fish and Wildlife Service may be directed to attend as witnesses and to produce such available records and files or certified copies thereof as may be produced compatibly with the public interest and as may be considered essential to the prosecution in Canada of any violation of the provisions of the Convention or any Canadian law for the enforcement thereof when requested by the appropriate Canadian authorities in the manner prescribed in article V of the Convention to suppress smuggling concluded between the United States and Canada on June 6, 1924 (44 Stat. (pt. 3), 2097).

SEC. 6. (a) Any person violating any provision of section 3 of this Act upon conviction shall be fined not more than $1,000 nor less than $100 or be imprisoned for not more than one year, or both.

(b) The cargo of halibut of every vessel employed in any manner in connection with the violation of any provision of section 3 of this Act shall be forfeited; upon a second violation of the provisions of section 3 of this Act, every such vessel, including its tackle, apparel, furniture, and stores may be forfeited and the cargo of halibut of every such vessel shall be forfeited; and, upon a third or subsequent violation of the provisions of section 3 of this Act, every such vessel, including its tackle, apparel, furniture, cargo, and stores shall be forfeited

(c) All provisions of law relating to the seizure, judicial forfeiture, and condemnation of a vessel for violation of the customs laws, the disposition of such vessel or the proceeds from the sale thereof, and the remission or mitigation of such forfeitures shall apply to seizures and forfeitures incurred, or alleged to have been incurred, under the provisions of this Act, insofar as such provisions of law are applicable and not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act: Provided, That except as provided in section 5 hereof all rights, powers, and duties conferred or imposed by this Act upon any officer or employee of the Treasury Department shall, for the purposes of this Act, be exercised or performed by the Secretary of the Interior or by such persons as he may designate. SEC. 7. Any person violating section 4 of this Act shall be subject to a penalty of $50 for each such violation. The Secretary of the Interior is authorized and empowered to mitigate or remit any such penalty in the manner prescribed by law for the mitigation or remission of penalties for violation of the navigation laws.

SEC. 8. None of the prohibitions contained in this Act shall apply to the Commission or its agents when engaged in any scientific investigation.

SEC. 9. The Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of the Interior are authorized to make such joint rules and regulations as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act.

SEC. 10. This Act shall take effect on the date of exchange of ratifications of the Convention signed by the United States of America and Canada, on January 29, 1937, for the Preservation of the Halibut Fishery of the Northern Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea, unless such date shall be prior to the date of approval of this Act in which case it shall take effect immediately. Approved, June 28, 1937.

PRESIDENTIAL

PROCLAMATION

REGARDING THE CONVENTION BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND GREAT BRITAIN FOR THE PRESERVATION OF THE HALIBUT FISHERY OF THE NORTHERN PACIFIC OCEAN AND BERING SEA

WHEREAS & Convention between the United States of America and Canada, revising the Convention for the preservation of the halibut fishery of the northern Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea, signed at Ottawa May 9, 1930, was concluded and signed by their respective Plenipotentiaries at Ottawa, on the twenty-ninth day of January, one thousand nine hundred and thirty-seven, the original of which Convention is word for word as follows:

The President of the United States of America,

And His Majesty the King of Great Britain, Ireland, and the British dominions beyond the Seas, Emperor of India, in respect of the Dominion of Canada,

Desiring to provide more effectively for the preservation of the halibut fishery of the northern Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea, have resolved to conclude a convention revising the convention for the preservation of that fishery, signed on their behalf at Ottawa on May 9, 1930, and have named as their plenipotentiaries for that purpose,

The President of the United States of America: Norman Armour, Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to Canada; and

His Majesty, for the Dominion of Canada,

The Right Honourable William Lyon Mackenzie King, Prime Minister and Secretary of State for External Affairs;

Who, after having communicated to each other their respective full powers, found in good and due form, have agreed upon the following articles:

ARTICLE I

The nationals and inhabitants and fishing vessels and boats of the United States of America and of Canada, respectively, are hereby prohibited from fishing for halibut (Hippoglossus) both in the territorial waters and in the high seas off the western coasts of the United States of America, including the southern as well as the western coasts of Alaska, and of Canada, from the first day of November next after the date of the exchange of ratifications of this Convention to the fifteenth day of the following February, both days inclusive, and within the same period yearly thereafter.

The International Fisheries Commission provided for by Article III is hereby empowered, subject to the approval of the President of the United States of America and of the Governor General of Canada, to suspend or change the closed season provided for by this Article, as to part or all of the convention waters, when it finds after investigation such suspensions or changes are necessary, and to permit, limit, regulate and prohibit in any area or at any time when fishing for halibut is prohibited, the taking, retention and landing of halibut caught incidentally to fishing for other species of fish, and the possession during such fishing of halibut of any origin.

It is understood that nothing contained in this Convention shall prohibit the nationals or inhabitants or the fishing vessels or boats of the United States of America or of Canada, from fishing in the waters herein before specified for other species of fish during the season when fishing for halibut in such waters is prohibited by this Convention or by any regulations adopted in pursuance of its provisions.

It is further understood that nothing contained in this Convention shall prohibit the International Fisheries Commission from conducting fishing operations for investigation purposes at any time.

ARTICLE II

Every national or inhabitant, vessel or boat of the United States of America or of Canada engaged in halibut fishing on the high seas in violation of this Convention or of any regulation adopted under the provisions thereof may be seized by the duly authorized officers of either High Contracting Party and detained by the officers making such seizure and delivered as soon as practicable to an authorized official of the country to which such person, vessel or boat belongs, at the nearest point to the place of seizure, or elsewhere, as may be agreed upon. The authorities of the nation to which such person, vessel or boat belongs alone shall have jurisdiction to conduct prosecutions for the violation of the provisions of this Convention, or any regulations which may be adopted in pursuance of its provisions, and to impose penalties for such violations; and the witnesses and proofs necessary for such prosecutions, so far as such witnesses or proofs are under the control of the other High Contracting Party, shall be furnished with all reasonable promptitude to the authorities having jurisdiction to conduct the prosecutions.

Each High Contracting Party shall be responsible for the proper observance of this Convention, or of any regulation adopted under the provisions thereof, in the portion of its waters covered thereby.

ARTICLE III

The High Contracting Parties agree to continue under this Convention the Commission as at present constituted and known as the International Fisheries Commission, established by the Convention for the preservation of the halibut fishery, signed at Washington, March 2, 1923, and continued under the Convention signed at Ottawa, May 9, 1930, consisting of four members, two appointed

by each Party, which Commission shall make such investigations as are necessary into the life history of the halibut in the convention waters and shall publish a report of its activities from time to time. Each of the High Contracting Parties shall have power to fill, and shall fill from time to time, vacancies which may occur in its representation on the Commission. Each of the High Contracting Parties shall pay the salaries and expenses of its own members, and joint expenses incurred by the Commission shall be paid by the two High Contracting Parties in equal moieties.

The High Contracting Parties agree that for the purposes of protecting and conserving the halibut fishery of the Northern Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea, the International Fisheries Commission, with the approval of the President of the United States of America and of the Governor General of Canada, may, in respect of the nationals and inhabitants and fishing vessels and boats of the United States of America and of Canada, from time to time

(a) divide the convention waters into areas;

(b) limit the catch of halibut to be taken from each area within the season during which fishing for halibut is allowed;

(c) prohibit departure of vessels from any port or place, or from any receiving vessel or station, to any area for halibut fishing, after any date when in the judgment of the International Fisheries Commission the vessels which have departed for that area prior to that date or which are known to be fishing in that area shall suffice to catch the limit which shall have been set for that area under section (b) of this paragraph;

(d) fix the size and character of halibut fishing appliances to be used in any area;

(e) make such regulations for the licensing and departure of vessels and for the collection of statistics of the catch of halibut as it shall find necessary to determine the condition and trend of the halibut fishery and to carry out the other provisions of this Convention;

(f) close to all halibut fishing such portion or portions of an area or areas as the International Fisheries Commission find to be populated by small, immature halibut.

ARTICLE IV

The High Contracting Parties agree to enact and enforce such legislation as may be necessary to make effective the provisions of this Convention and any regulations adopted thereunder, with appropriate penalties for violations thereof.

ARTICLE V

The present Convention shall remain in force for a period of five years and thereafter until two years from the date when either of the High Contracting Parties shall give notice to the other of its desire to terminate it.

This Convention shall, from the date of the exchange of ratifications, be deemed to supplant the Convention for the preservation of the halibut fishery signed at Ottawa, May 9, 1930.

ARTICLE VI

This Convention shall be ratified in accordance with the constitutional methods of the High Contracting Parties. The ratifications shall be exchanged at Ottawa as soon as practicable, and the Convention shall come into force on the day of the exchange of ratifications.

In faith whereof, the respective plenipotentiaries have signed the present Convention in duplicate, and have hereunto affixed their seals.

Done at Ottawa on the twenty-ninth day of January, in the year one thousand nine hundred and thirty-seven.

[SEAL] [SEAL]

NORMAN ARMOUR.

W. L. MACKENZIE KING.

AND WHEREAS the said Convention has been duly ratified on both parts, and the ratifications of the two Governments were exchanged in the city of Ottawa, on the twenty-eighth day of July, one thousand nine hundred and thirty-seven; Now, THEREFORE, be it known that I, Franklin D. Roosevelt, President of the United States of America, have caused the said Convention to be made public, to the end that the same and every article and clause thereof may be observed and fulfilled with good faith by the United States of America and the citizens thereof.