§ 773c — General Responsibility

(a) The Secretary shall have general responsibility to carry out the Convention and this subchapter. (b) In fulfilling this responsibility, the Secretary— (1) shall, in consultation with the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating, adopt such regulations as may be necessary to carry out the purposes and objectives of the Convention and this subchapter; and (2) may, with the concurrence of the Secretary of State, cooperate with the duly authorized officials of the Government of Canada. (c) The Regional Fishery Management Council having authority for the geographic area concerned may develop regulations governing the United States portion of Convention waters, including limited access regulations, applicable to nationals or vessels of the United States, or both, which are in addition to, and not in conflict with regulations adopted by the Commission. Such regulations shall only be implemented with the approval of the Secretary, shall not discriminate between residents of different States, and shall be consistent with the limited entry criteria set forth in section 1853(b)(6) of this title. If it becomes necessary to allocate or assign halibut fishing privileges among various United States fishermen, such allocation shall be fair and equitable to all such fishermen, based upon the rights and obligations in existing Federal law, reasonably calculated to promote conservation, and carried out in such manner that no particular individual, corporation, or other entity acquires an excessive share of the halibut fishing privileges: Provided, That the Regional Council may provide for the rural coastal villages of Alaska the opportunity to establish a commercial halibut fishery in areas in the Bering Sea to the north of 56 degrees north latitude during a 3 year development period.