16 U.S.C. § 460ss–2 — Klamath Fishery Management Council

(a) Establishment: The law creates a Klamath Fishery Management Council (called "the Council"). (b) Functions: (1) The Council must: (A) create a long-term plan and policy for managing in-river and ocean fish harvests that affect Klamath and Trinity River fish, matching the restoration program's goals; (B) make recommendations that match that plan and the standards in paragraph (2), sending them to: (i) the California Fish and Game Commission about in-river and offshore recreational harvest rules; (ii) the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife about offshore recreational harvest rules; (iii) the Pacific Fishery Management Council about ocean harvest rules; (iv) the Bureau of Indian Affairs about rules for non-Hoopa Indians fishing in the Area; and (v) the Hoopa Valley Business Council about rules for Hoopa Tribe members fishing in the Area; and (C) hold public hearings on any of the harvest rules listed in (B). (2) Any harvest recommendation the Council makes under (1)(B) must: (A) rest on the best available science; (B) keep costs down where practical, and avoid unnecessary duplicate rules; (C) account for differences and uncertainties among fisheries, fish resources, and catches; and (D) aim to let enough fish escape to preserve and strengthen the Area's natural fish populations. (c) Membership and appointment: The Council has 11 members: (1) One representative each, appointed by California's Governor, from: (A) the commercial salmon fishing industry; (B) the in-river sportfishing community; (C) the offshore recreational fishing industry; and (D) the California Department of Fish and Game. (2) One representative of the Hoopa Indian Tribe, appointed by the Hoopa Valley Business Council. (3) One representative each, appointed by the Secretary, from: (A) non-Hoopa Indians living in the Area; and (B) the Department of the Interior. (4) One representative each, appointed by the Secretary of Commerce, from: (A) the National Marine Fisheries Service; and (B) the Pacific Fishery Management Council. (5) One representative each, appointed by Oregon's Governor, from: (A) the commercial salmon fishing industry; and (B) the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. (d) Consultation requirement: Whoever makes these appointments must consult with the appropriate people who use the Area's fish resources first. (e) Qualifications: Council members must know and have experience in managing, conserving, or harvesting (recreationally or commercially) fish resources in Northern California. (f) Terms: (1) A member serves a 4-year term. (2) Members serve as long as whoever appointed them wants them to. (3) Vacancies are filled the same way the original appointment was made. Someone appointed to fill a vacancy only serves the rest of that term. A member may keep serving past the end of the term until a successor takes office. (g) Transaction of business: (1) The Council must set its own procedures for doing its job under (b). These procedures must require: (A) a quorum before any business happens; and (B) no comprehensive plan or recommendation under (b)(1)(A) or (B) passes unless every present, voting member votes for it -- unanimously. (2) The Council elects a Chairman from among its own members. (3) The Council meets when the Chairman calls a meeting, or when a majority of members ask for one. (h) Staff and administration: (1) The Secretary and the Director of the California Department of Fish and Game must give the Council whatever administrative and technical support it needs to work effectively. (2) They must also give the Council relevant information about the Area. (3) The Council decides its own organization and sets its own practices and procedures for its work under (b). (i) Federal or State employees: If a Council member is a U.S., California, or Oregon government employee when appointed, that member must leave the Council within 14 days of leaving that job. (j) Expenses: (1) Travel expenses: While traveling away from home for Council business, members get travel expenses -- including a daily allowance for living costs -- the same way as people occasionally hired by the government. But a member who already gets travel expenses from their own employer for Council work cannot also claim these expenses. (2) Limitation on spending authority: Money appropriated under section 460ss–5 cannot be used to repay an agency or government unit for time its employee spent on Council work, if that employee is a Council member.