Florida Safe Seas Act of 2025
Latest action · Jun 3, 2026 Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedJun 6, 2025
- Passed HouseJun 2, 2026
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Florida Safe Seas Act of 2025
This bill prohibits shark feeding in the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) seaward of Florida for any purpose other than to harvest sharks, subject to limited exceptions. (Florida state waters generally extend 3 miles from the shore in the Atlantic Ocean and 9 miles from the shore in the Gulf of America. The EEZ is seaward of and adjacent to state waters and generally extends to 200 miles from the U.S. coastline.)
Specifically, the bill makes it unlawful to introduce, or attempt to introduce, food or any other substance into these waters to attract sharks for any purpose other than to harvest sharks. Exceptions allow shark feeding (1) for research programs funded by federal appropriations, or (2) to the extent that the feeding presents no public health hazard or safety risk (as determined by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration or under state law).
Cosponsors 5
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Jun 6, 2025 to Aug 1, 2025; 1 is an original cosponsor, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-FL | Darren Soto | Original | Jun 6, 2025 |
| R-FL | John H. Rutherford | Jun 24, 2025 | |
| R-FL | Mike Haridopolos | Jul 14, 2025 | |
| R-FL | Gus M. Bilirakis | Jul 16, 2025 | |
| R-FL | W. Gregory Steube | Aug 1, 2025 |
Committees 2
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Natural Resources Committee | Referred Jun 6, 2025Markup Mar 5, 2026Reported May 20, 2026 |
| Water, Wildlife and Fisheries Subcommittee | Referred Jul 16, 2025Hearings Jul 22, 2025Discharged Mar 5, 2026 | |
| Senate | Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee | Referred Jun 3, 2026 |
Actions 15
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Jun 3, 2026Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
- Jun 2, 2026Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H3751)
- Jun 2, 2026Mr. Westerman moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
- Jun 2, 2026Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H3751)
- Jun 2, 2026DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 3831.
- Jun 2, 2026Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- May 20, 2026Reported by the Committee on Natural Resources. H. Rept. 119-658.
- May 20, 2026Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 572.
- Mar 5, 2026Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries Discharged
- Mar 5, 2026Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held
- Mar 5, 2026Ordered to be Reported by Unanimous Consent.
- Jul 22, 2025Subcommittee Hearings Held
- Jul 16, 2025Referred to the Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries.
- Jun 6, 2025Introduced in House
- Jun 6, 2025Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
In the Congressional Record 1
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| House | Debate and remarks H3751 | Bruce Westerman R-AR, Melanie A. Stansbury D-NM | Jun 2, 2026 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Committee report
Congressional Budget Office cost estimate
- May 27, 2026H.R. 3831, Florida Safe Seas Act of 2025As reported by the House Committee on Natural Resources on May 20, 2026
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 171, no. 97, June 6, 2025, page H2535.
CRS reports 2
Congressional Research Service work that CRS links to this bill or the law it became, newest first.
Cite it 2
Products on other subjects that cite it, usually among other measures.
| Product | Title | Kind | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| R48951 | Shark Conservation and Management in the United States | Report | Jul 15, 2026 |
| IF13210 | The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA): Issues for the 119th Congress | Resource | May 7, 2026 |
Titles 6
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to prohibit feeding sharks in the exclusive economic zone off the State of Florida.
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- Florida Safe Seas Act of 2025
- Short Title(s) as Reported to House
- Florida Safe Seas Act of 2025
- Short Title(s) as Passed House
- Florida Safe Seas Act of 2025
- Short Titles from RFS (Referred to Senate) bill text
- Florida Safe Seas Act of 2025
- Official Title from EH (Engrossed in House) bill text
- To amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to prohibit feeding sharks in the exclusive economic zone off the State of Florida.
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources.
Text 4
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Jun 3, 2026Referred in Senate
- Jun 2, 2026Engrossed in House
- May 20, 2026Reported in House
- Jun 6, 2025Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
