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R48469 — The Seafood Import Monitoring Program (SIMP)

Reports · published 2026-04-21 · v3 · Active · crsreports.congress.gov ↗

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Authors
Anthony R. Marshak
Report id
R48469
Summary

The Seafood Import Monitoring Program (SIMP) is a federal risk-based seafood traceability program that sets reporting and recordkeeping requirements from the point of harvest to entry into U.S. commerce. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) monitor U.S. seafood imports through SIMP with the goal of preventing species most associated with illegal, unregulated, and unreported (IUU) fishing from entering U.S. commerce. SIMP requires seafood importers to exercise increased control over their supply chains, particularly for 13 seafood species groups (i.e., a complex of related species with certain physical similarities), by complying with permitting and chain-of-custody information requirements. Congress has prescribed requirements for SIMP in legislation, including directives to NMFS and CBP regarding the program’s administration, reporting, and enforcement. Stakeholders and some Members of Congress also have expressed concerns about the amount of seafood audited through SIMP, the scope of the program, and SIMP’s overall effectiveness in relation to these factors. The Secretary of Commerce established SIMP in 2016, and the program became fully operational in 2018 in accordance with directives in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018 (P.L. 115-141). As of FY2023, the program covered approximately one-third of all U.S. seafood imports (i.e., covering approximately 1.7 billion pounds of seafood). Since 2023, Congress has required NMFS to submit annual reports regarding SIMP’s efforts to prevent IUU-associated seafood from entering the United States. In 2024, NMFS reported it had undertaken over 3,900 audits of seafood imports from January 2018 through September 2023, which comprised 0.5% of all SIMP imports since implementation. The majority of SIMP imports include shrimp, tunas, and cods (each is a distinct SIMP species group). NMFS reports that proportions of total audits by species group generally align with these percentages. Congress increased appropriated funds to NOAA in support of SIMP from FY2017 to FY2023 and appropriated $6.2 million to NOAA in each of FY2024 to FY2026 for SIMP. In December 2022, NMFS issued a proposed rule to expand SIMP to include several additional species groups. NMFS later withdrew this proposed rule in light of public comments and announced it would instead conduct a “comprehensive program review” of SIMP. In summer 2024, NMFS completed its program review, during which it received feedback and recommendations from stakeholders and federal agencies. In November 2024, NMFS released an action plan for SIMP that incorporated elements of these recommendations, including with respect to (1) enhancing SIMP traceability and risk detection; (2) addressing forced labor in the global seafood supply chain through government-wide efforts; (3) promoting fair global seafood trade practices to strengthen global seafood supply chains; and (4) improving SIMP implementation, including capacity building to maintain and grow the program. In January 2026, Congress provided funding to NMFS for SIMP. Congress directed the agency “to move forward with implementation of the Action Plan to Improve [SIMP]” in FY2026, as contained in the explanatory statement accompanying the Commerce, Justice, Science; Energy and Water Development; and Interior and Environment Appropriations Act, 2026 (P.L. 119-74). Since SIMP’s implementation, Congress and stakeholders have continued to raise concerns regarding IUU fishing and its impacts on seafood trade. They also have raised concerns about the effectiveness of programs such as SIMP in preventing IUU-fished products from entering U.S. commerce. Among the options that Congress may consider are whether to act or build on actions identified in the November 2024 NMFS action plan for SIMP, amend statutory language and requirements regarding SIMP, and/or align SIMP more closely with mandates in IUU fishing legislation (e.g., the High Seas Driftnet Moratorium Protection Act [Title VI of P.L. 104-43]). Congress could direct a third party to conduct an evaluation of SIMP, and/or assess whether additional resources or approaches beyond SIMP may assist in accounting for the entry of IUU-fished seafood into U.S. commerce. Congress also may consider options of whether to enhance, retain, revise, or dismantle SIMP, or certain elements of the program, including in light of an April 2025 presidential directive for the Secretary of Commerce to consider “revising or rescinding recent expansions” of SIMP and to evaluate and “further improve” SIMP.

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