SHARKED Act of 2025
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The bill would direct the Secretary of Commerce to create a task force of fishery managers, state agencies, and researchers to study shark depredation — sharks stealing hooked fish off fishing lines — and recommend ways to reduce it.
It would also add shark depredation research as an authorized category of federally funded fishery research projects, aiming to give anglers, regulators, and scientists better coordinated tools to address a growing conflict between sharks and fishing communities.
What this bill would do
What it would do
The bill would require the Secretary of Commerce to establish a task force to identify and address critical needs related to shark depredation, the loss of hooked fish to sharks before a line is reeled in. The task force would include representatives from each Regional Fishery Management Council, each Marine Fisheries Commission, coastal state fish and wildlife agencies, the National Marine Fisheries Service, and researchers with relevant expertise. Its duties would include improving coordination between fisheries managers and shark researchers, identifying research and funding priorities, developing management strategies, and distributing educational materials to anglers. The bill would also amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to add shark depredation research as an authorized project category. The task force would report to Congress every two years starting within two years of enactment and would terminate no later than seven years after it is established. The bill states it would not affect existing authority under the Endangered Species Act or the Magnuson-Stevens Act.
Key provisions
- 1Would require the Secretary of Commerce to establish a shark depredation task force with representatives from fishery councils, commissions, states, and researchers
- 2Would assign the task force duties including improving coordination, identifying research priorities, developing management strategies, and producing educational materials
- 3Would require the task force to report findings to Congress every two years, starting within two years of enactment
- 4Would sunset the task force no later than seven years after its establishment
- 5Would amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to authorize research projects on shark depredation
Who would be affected
Recreational and commercial anglers who experience shark depredation, Regional Fishery Management Councils, Marine Fisheries Commissions, coastal state fish and wildlife agencies, the National Marine Fisheries Service, and researchers studying shark behavior and ecology who would be appointed to or work with the new task force.
Why it matters
Fishing communities dealing with sharks stripping their catch could gain a coordinated federal effort producing research priorities, management recommendations, and educational materials. Regulators and scientists would get a formal structure and funding pathway for shark depredation research, potentially shaping future fishery management rules and angler practices.
What would change
Changes to existing law
Amends Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, Section 318(c) (16 U.S.C. 1867(c)) (Sec. 2(b))
Adds shark depredation research, including its causes and solutions, as an authorized fishery research project category.
Agencies directed to act
Effective dates
- First task force report to Congress on shark depredation findings
- Task force sunset/termination
How implementation would work
The Secretary of Commerce would appoint task force members from named fishery councils, marine commissions, coastal state agencies, the National Marine Fisheries Service, and outside experts. The task force would carry out its coordination, research-priority, and educational duties on an ongoing basis, submit a report to Congress within two years of enactment and every two years afterward, and automatically terminate within seven years of its formation unless separately reauthorized.
Legislative status & sources
Latest action
Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Official CRS summary
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This bill requires the Department of Commerce to establish a task force to address and report to Congress about critical needs with respect to shark depredation. (Shark depredation is the partial or complete removal of a hooked fish by a shark directly from a fishing line before the line is retrieved.)
The duties of the task force are, among other responsibilities, to (1) develop ways to improve coordination and communication across the fisheries management and shark research communities; (2) identify research priorities and funding opportunities; (3) develop recommended management strategies to address shark depredation; and (4) coordinate the development and distribution of educational materials.
The bill specifies that the task force must include representatives of each Regional Fishery Management Council, each Marine Fisheries Commission, the fish and wildlife agencies of coastal states, and the National Marine Fisheries Service. The task force must also include researchers and others with relevant expertise.
The task force must report its findings to Congress within two years after the bill's enactment and every two years thereafter until the task force is terminated. The task force sunsets within seven years after the date of its establishment.
Legislative subjects
Advisory bodies; Aquatic ecology; Congressional oversight; Environmental assessment, monitoring, research; Fishes; Marine and coastal resources, fisheries; Public Lands and Natural Resources