fleet by issuing a discussion paper on possible alternative 

 types of performance standards. These performance standards, 

 which would have been set forth as regulations, were intended 

 to address the problem that arose in 1986 when certain vessels 

 and/or captains experienced exceptionally high kill rates. 

 The standards would have been implemented along with increased 

 observer coverage to provide a more effective method for 

 monitoring the operations of the U.S. fleet, reducing kill 

 rates, and imposing appropriate sanctions, such as the revo- 

 cation of certificates of inclusion, on captains and/or vessels 

 with poor performance records. 



The American Tunaboat Association voiced strong opposition 

 to implementation of the regulations, stating that "there is 

 no significant, widespread skipper performance problem in the 

 U.S. fleet that supports the complicated and financially 

 burdensome regulatory process instituted by the draft proposed 

 rules" and, on 8 April 1987, submitted an alternative proposal, 

 setting forth the criteria and procedures that it believes 

 should be used to evaluate the porpoise mortality performance 

 of vessel operators. Under the American Tunaboat Association 

 proposal, the Expert Skippers Panel would review the circum- 

 stances surrounding the trip in which a disaster set occurred, 

 would consider other relevant factors such as the operator's 

 experience, and would work with the operator to improve perfor- 

 mance. If performance problems recur, the Service could 

 sanction the operator by suspending his Certificate of 

 Inclusion. 



The 1988 amendments to the Marine Mammal Protection Act 

 direct the National Marine Fisheries Service to develop and 

 implement, not later than the beginning of the 1990 fishing 

 season, a system of performance standards to maintain the 

 diligence and proficiency of U.S. tuna fishermen. The system 

 must include a mechanism for identifying and providing 

 supplemental training to certificate holders whose incidental 

 marine mammal mortality is consistently and substantially 

 higher than the fleet average. It must also provide for 

 suspension or revocation of certificates for those fishermen 

 whose unacceptably high rate of incidental take reflects a 

 lack of diligence or proficiency in the use of required fishing 

 techniques and gear. The Service is expected to begin 

 development of performance standards early in 1989, using its 

 earlier proposal as a starting point. 



At the Senate reauthorization hearing held on 13 April 

 1988, representatives of Earth Island Institute asserted that 

 there was a systematic underestimation of marine mammal mor- 

 tality in the U.S. and foreign tuna fisheries. To support 

 its claim with respect to the reliability of mortality data 

 for the U.S. fleet, Earth Island Institute, on 15 May 1988, 

 provided the Commission with affidavits from three former 



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