DESCEND Act of 2020
Public Law 116-340 · H.R. 5126 · 116th Congress · began in the House
Signed by Donald Trump (R) on Jan 13, 2021 · Public Lands and Natural Resources
Sponsor: Rep. Garret Graves (R-LA-6)
Cosponsors (6): Rep. Jared Huffman, Rep. Steven Palazzo,
Passage votes
- HouseVoice vote
- SenateVoice vote
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
Direct Enhancement of Snapper Conservation and the Economy through Novel Devices Act of 2020 or the DESCEND Act of 2020
This bill addresses the use of descending devices to release reef fish in the Gulf of Mexico. (A descending device is an instrument that will release fish at a depth sufficient for the fish to be able to recover from the effects of barotrauma.)
Specifically, the bill requires
• commercial and recreational fishermen to possess a venting tool or descending device that is rigged and ready for use when fishing for reef fish in the Gulf of Mexico Exclusive Economic Zone,
• the Department of Commerce to contract with the National Academy of Sciences to conduct a study and produce a report on discard mortality in the Gulf reef fish fisheries, and
• Commerce and the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council to develop guidance for reporting discards and associated mortality and develop a plan to assess the effectiveness and usage of barotrauma-reducing devices.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Natural Resources Committee · House · markup by, referred to, reported bySubcommittee: Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries Subcommittee
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Related bills
1 bill the Library of Congress relates to this one.
S. 2960Related bill
DESCEND Act of 2019
Data notes
Related bills are identified by the Congressional Research Service, the House and the Senate: companion and identical bills, bills with similar text, bills that were folded into this law, and rules that brought it to the floor. A bill that is itself a public law in this site’s data links here; the others link to Congress.gov.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 22 actions.
- Jan 13, 2021Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 116-340.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- Jan 1, 2021FloorFloor · Presented to President.
- Dec 21, 2020FloorFloor · Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- FloorFloor · Passed Senate without amendment by Voice Vote.
- CommitteeCommittee · Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation discharged by Unanimous Consent.
- Oct 19, 2020CommitteeCommittee · Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
- Oct 1, 2020FloorFloor · Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- FloorFloor · On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote.
- FloorFloor · DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 5126.
- FloorFloor · Considered under suspension of the rules.
- FloorFloor · Mrs. Dingell moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.
- Sep 24, 2020CalendarCalendar · Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 431.
- CommitteeCommittee · Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Natural Resources. H. Rept. 116-531.
- Mar 11, 2020CommitteeCommittee · Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by Unanimous Consent.
- CommitteeCommittee · Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
- CommitteeCommittee · Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife Discharged.
- Jan 14, 2020CommitteeCommittee · Subcommittee Hearings Held.
- CommitteeCommittee · Hearings by Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries Subcommittee of the House Natural Resources Committee
- Dec 4, 2019CommitteeCommittee · Referred to the Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife.
- Nov 15, 2019CommitteeCommittee · Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in House
Data notes
Every action the Library of Congress lists for the bill, from introduction to signing, plus the dated committee hearings. The source lists many steps twice (the chamber’s own entry and the Library of Congress copy, or a presidential and a became-law entry with the same words); those are shown once. Amendments are listed in their own section.
Amendments
No amendments to this bill are on record.
Data notes
Amendments offered to this bill in either chamber, as the Library of Congress records them: each with a status read from its last recorded step: agreed to, rejected, withdrawn, ruled out of order, fell with another amendment, or offered with no vote recorded (most Senate amendments are only ever offered). The wording of each amendment is the source’s. Amendments to amendments and amendments to other bills are not listed.
Official record
The bill’s full text is on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.