H.R. 4800: Fisheries Modernization Act of 2025
Sponsor
Clay Higgins
Republican · LA-3
Bill Progress
Latest Action · Jul 29, 2025
Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
When the spillway opens, crawfish losses should count
Why it matters
When the Army Corps opens a spillway to spare cities from flooding, the river water it pushes downstream can wreck Louisiana's crawfish ponds — but because that damage is manmade rather than a natural disaster, it has been a hard fit for federal fishery relief. H.R. 4800 adds the operation or failure of levees, spillways, flood control systems, and diversions as a qualifying cause, and names the state's two main crawfish species as eligible.
Federal fishery disaster relief was written mostly around natural events and one-off pollution accidents. H.R. 4800 adds a third trigger: damage from what it calls an "infrastructure-related cause" — when the operation or failure of federal or state water infrastructure measurably disrupts a fishery, its habitat, or water quality.
The bill spells out four kinds of infrastructure that count: flood control systems, spillways, levees, and diversions. It also names two species directly — red swamp crawfish and white river crawfish — so there's no argument about whether these freshwater fisheries qualify.
Decision-makers get more flexibility too. Instead of forcing a loss into a single bucket, they could base a disaster ruling on any combination of natural, manmade, and infrastructure causes — closer to how real damage usually happens.
The bill adds no new funding, sets no deadlines, and includes a clause saying it can't be read to shrink relief for existing saltwater or migratory fisheries. It's an expansion of who qualifies, not a tradeoff.
H.R. 4800 Bill Summary
What H.R. 4800 actually does.
Manmade water damage becomes a qualifying disaster
H.R. 4800 adds "infrastructure-related cause" to the list of events that can trigger federal fishery disaster relief — defined as damage from the operation or failure of federal or state infrastructure that measurably disrupts commercial or subsistence fishing, aquatic habitat, or water quality.
Four kinds of infrastructure named
The bill spells out exactly what counts: flood control systems, spillways, levees, and diversions. That removes the guesswork about whether a managed water structure failing or operating can be the source of a recognized fishery disaster.
Two crawfish species written into the law
Red swamp crawfish (Procambarus clarkii) and white river crawfish (Procambarus zonangulus) are named directly as eligible, settling whether these freshwater fisheries fit within the existing federal relief rules.
Crawfish applicants document the water conditions
For the two named crawfish fisheries, applicants would have to provide information on hydrological conditions, water quality degradation, extreme flooding or drought, and other environmental disruptions that directly affect viability.
Rulings can combine causes
Disaster determinations could be based on any combination of natural causes, manmade causes, and infrastructure-related causes, rather than forcing a loss to be attributed to only one of them.
Saltwater fisheries keep their eligibility
The bill includes a rule of construction stating that nothing in it may be read to limit, reduce, or affect the existing eligibility of any marine or migratory fishery for disaster assistance.
Who benefits from H.R. 4800?
Louisiana crawfish farmers
Operators of red swamp and white river crawfish fisheries get explicit eligibility for federal disaster relief when their losses trace to infrastructure-related causes, hydrological swings, water quality damage, or extreme flooding and drought.
Subsistence fishing communities
The definition of infrastructure-related cause covers measurable disruption to subsistence fishing, not just commercial harvests, so households that fish to feed themselves are recognized in disaster determinations.
Fisheries downstream of managed water systems
Any fishery harmed by the operation or failure of a levee, spillway, flood control system, or diversion gains a clearer path to relief, since the bill recognizes those structures as a source of disaster losses.
Who is affected by H.R. 4800?
Federal fishery disaster decision-makers
NOAA and other officials reviewing relief requests would weigh a new category — infrastructure-related cause — and judge whether the disruption to fishing, habitat, or water quality is measurable.
States that run water infrastructure
Because the bill covers events caused by state infrastructure, decisions about operating levees, spillways, flood control systems, and diversions could become part of federal fishery disaster claims.
Crawfish relief applicants
Operators seeking relief for the two named species would face specific documentation requirements covering hydrological conditions, water quality, extreme flooding or drought, and other direct environmental disruptions.
HR4800 Legislative Journey
House: Committee Action
Jul 29, 2025
Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
About the Sponsor
Clay Higgins
Republican, Louisiana's 3rd congressional district · 9 years in Congress
Committees: House Select Subcommittee to Investigate the Remaining Questions Surrounding January 6, 2021, Oversight and Government Reform, Armed Services
View full profile →
Cosponsors (2)
All 2 cosponsors are Democrats. Cosponsors represent 1 state: Louisiana.
Committee Sponsors
Natural Resources Committee
0 of 45 committee members cosponsored
No committee members have cosponsored this bill
25 Republicans across this committee haven't cosponsored yet. Mobilize their constituents
H.R. 4800 Quick Facts
- Committee
- Natural Resources
- Chamber
- House
- Policy
- Public Lands and Natural Resources
- Introduced
- Jul 29, 2025
Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
Jul 29, 2025
Official Sources
Official bill page with text, actions, cosponsors, and committee status for the Fisheries Modernization Act of 2025.
Current codified text for 16 U.S.C. 1861a, the fishery resource disaster relief section amended by HR 4800.
NOAA overview of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, the statute HR 4800 would amend.
NOAA's record of fishery disaster requests and rulings under Section 312 of Magnuson-Stevens, the determination process HR 4800 would expand.
Official NOAA Fisheries homepage for the federal agency that administers fishery disaster relief determinations and related fishery policy.
Official federal species profile for red swamp crawfish, one of the two species explicitly named in HR 4800.
Official federal species profile for white river crawfish, the second species explicitly named in the bill.
H.R. 4800 Common Questions
Can crawfish farmers get federal disaster relief under H.R. 4800?
Yes. The bill names red swamp crawfish and white river crawfish fisheries directly as eligible for federal fishery disaster relief, settling whether these freshwater operations qualify under the existing rules.
What counts as an "infrastructure-related cause" under H.R. 4800?
Damage from the operation or failure of four kinds of federal or state water infrastructure: flood control systems, spillways, levees, and diversions — when it measurably disrupts fishing, habitat, or water quality.
Why does Louisiana need this — isn't fishery disaster relief already available?
Relief was built mainly around natural events and pollution accidents. When a spillway or levee operation wrecks a crawfish harvest, that manmade damage has been a hard fit. H.R. 4800 adds it as a recognized cause.
Does H.R. 4800 cover subsistence fishing or only commercial operations?
Both. The bill defines an infrastructure-related cause as one that measurably disrupts commercial or subsistence fishing activity, so households that fish to feed themselves are covered alongside commercial operators.
What do crawfish applicants have to document under H.R. 4800?
For the two named crawfish fisheries, applicants must provide information on hydrological conditions, water quality degradation, extreme flooding or drought, and other environmental disruptions that directly affect the fishery's viability.
Can NOAA combine causes like flooding plus a levee failure in a disaster ruling?
Yes. H.R. 4800 lets disaster determinations be based on any combination of natural causes, manmade causes, and infrastructure-related causes, instead of forcing a loss into a single category.
Does H.R. 4800 take anything away from saltwater fisheries?
No. The bill includes a clause stating that nothing in it may be read to limit, reduce, or affect the existing disaster relief eligibility of any marine or migratory fishery. It's an expansion, not a tradeoff.
Does H.R. 4800 include funding or a deadline?
No. The bill changes who qualifies for relief and how disasters are determined, but it sets no dollar authorization, appropriation, or implementation deadline. It currently sits in the House Natural Resources Committee.
Based on H.R. 4800 bill text
H.R. 4800 Bill Text
“To amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to make certain freshwater fisheries eligible for fishery resource disaster relief.”
Source: U.S. Government Publishing Office
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