Florida Senate - 2014 SB 540
By Senator Simmons
10-00441-14 2014540__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to sharks; creating s. 379.2427, F.S.;
3 providing definitions; prohibiting the possession,
4 sale, trade, purchase, shipping, barter, exchange, or
5 distribution of shark fins; providing criminal
6 penalties and the assessment of specified fees and
7 costs by the Fish and Wildlife Conservation
8 Commission; requiring the destruction of seized shark
9 fins; providing for applicability; authorizing the
10 commission to adopt rules; providing an effective
11 date.
12
13 WHEREAS, species of finfish in the class Chondrichthyes,
14 subclass Elasmobranchii, and superorder Selachii are given the
15 common name “sharks,” and
16 WHEREAS, sharks occupy the top of the aquatic food chain
17 and play a critical role in the maintenance of a healthy and
18 functioning marine ecosystem, and
19 WHEREAS, data from state, federal, and international
20 agencies show a decline in shark populations both locally and
21 worldwide, and
22 WHEREAS, the decline in shark populations is an urgent
23 problem that upsets the balance of species in marine ecosystems
24 and constitutes a serious threat to biodiversity, and
25 WHEREAS, sharks have particular characteristics that make
26 them more vulnerable to overfishing, as sharks are slow to reach
27 reproductive maturity, birth small litters, and cannot rebuild
28 their populations quickly once overfished, and
29 WHEREAS, the practice of shark finning, whereby a shark is
30 caught, the fin is cut off, and the shark is returned to the
31 water experiencing physical distress and difficulty in
32 maintaining adequate oxygenation, causes millions of sharks to
33 die a slow death by starvation, predation, suffocation, and
34 drowning each year, and
35 WHEREAS, estimates indicate that 73 million sharks are
36 killed annually as a result of shark finning, that more than a
37 third of shark species are threatened by extinction, and that
38 certain shark species have been depleted by as much as 90
39 percent, and
40 WHEREAS, the market for shark fins, a principal ingredient
41 in certain culinary delicacies, is on the rise, and
42 WHEREAS, fishers continue the practice of shark finning on
43 a massive scale despite state and federal laws that ban the
44 practice, NOW, THEREFORE,
45
46 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
47
48 Section 1. Section 379.2427, Florida Statutes, is created
49 to read:
50 379.2427 Shark finning prohibited.—
51 (1) As used in this section, the term:
52 (a) “Shark” means a species of finfish in the class
53 Chondrichthyes, subclass Elasmobranchii, and superorder
54 Selachii.
55 (b) “Shark fin” means the raw or dried or otherwise
56 processed detached fin or tail of a shark.
57 (2) A person may not possess, sell, offer for sale, trade,
58 purchase, offer to purchase, ship for the purpose of sale,
59 barter, exchange, or otherwise distribute a shark fin in this
60 state or within the territorial waters of this state.
61 (3) A person who violates this section or any rule adopted
62 pursuant to this section:
63 (a) Commits a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable
64 as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083; and
65 (b) Is subject to:
66 1. Seizure and forfeiture of the shark fin; and
67 2. An administrative fine of at least $5,000, but not more
68 than $15,000, which shall be imposed by the Fish and Wildlife
69 Conservation Commission.
70 (c) May be assessed administrative fees and attorney fees
71 and costs.
72 (4) Shark fins seized by the Fish and Wildlife Conservation
73 Commission under this section must be destroyed and may not be
74 sold or transferred.
75 (5) This section does not apply to any of the following:
76 (a) A restaurant that possesses, sells, or offers for sale
77 a shark fin for the purpose of consumption on the premises if
78 the restaurant possessed the shark fin before July 1, 2014.
79 (b) A person who detaches a shark fin or tail from a
80 lawfully landed shark during the ordinary course of preparing
81 the shark’s body or body parts other than the fin or tail for
82 consumption, sale, trade, or distribution if the shark fin is
83 disposed of immediately and not sold, exchanged, or distributed.
84 (c) A person or entity that has a valid scientific permit
85 for the possession of a shark fin for bona fide research or
86 educational purposes.
87 (d) The possession or transportation in this state of a
88 shark fin for a purpose other than sale taken or caught outside
89 this state and transported from a point outside this state by
90 common carrier, without being unloaded in this state, to a point
91 of delivery outside this state.
92 (6) The Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission may adopt
93 rules to administer this section.
94 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2014.