Florida joins Hawaii in federal shark-feeding ban for public safety
H.R. 3831 — Florida Safe Seas Act of 2025 · Filed by Daniel Webster (R-FL) · 5 cosponsors · Introduced Jun 6, 2025 · Passed chamber
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What it does
This bill amends federal fishery law to prohibit feeding sharks in the exclusive economic zone (federal waters) off Florida's coast. It extends an existing prohibition that already applied to Hawaii to also cover Florida, making it illegal to chum or feed sharks in those waters to protect public safety and marine ecosystems.
Why we flagged it
The bill is a straightforward extension of an existing marine-safety prohibition to a new geographic area. It protects public safety by preventing shark-feeding activities that could increase human-shark conflict in federal waters off Florida.
What the text implies
- The bill does not specify enforcement mechanisms or penalties, relying on existing Magnuson-Stevens enforcement infrastructure; effectiveness depends on NOAA/Coast Guard capacity to patrol and enforce in Florida's EEZ.
- The prohibition applies only to federal waters (3–200 nautical miles offshore); state waters and private property remain unregulated, creating a potential enforcement gap for near-shore shark feeding.
The full analysis lists 3 implications of this text.
Who it affects
The bill extends a public-safety protection (shark-feeding prohibition) to Florida waters, reducing the risk of human-shark conflict in a high-tourism, high-recreation coastal state. The restriction applies only to feeding sharks in federal waters, not to private property or state waters, and aligns with established marine-safety practice already in place for Hawaii.