establishment of the fishermen’s contingency fund; fee collection

establishment of the fishermen’s contingency fund; fee collection Sec. 402. (a) There is hereby established in the Treasury of the United States a Fishermen’s Contingency Fund. The Fund shall be available to the Secretary without fiscal year limitation as a revolving fund for the purpose of making payments pursuant to this section. The total amount in the Fund shall at no time exceed $1,000,000. Amounts paid pursuant to the provisions of subsections (c) and (d) of this section shall be deposited in the Fund. The Fund may sue or be sued in its own name. (b) The Secretary is authorized to establish and maintain an area account within the Fund for any area of the Outer Continental Shelf for purposes of providing reasonable compensation for damages to, or loss of, fishing gear and any resulting economic loss to commercial fishermen due to activities related to oil and gas exploration, development, and production in such area. (c) Upon establishment of an area account for any area of the Outer Continental Shelf pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, any holder of a lease issued or maintained under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act for any tract in such area and any holder of an exploration permit, or of an easement or right-of-way for the con-92 STAT. 687struction of a pipeline in such area, shall pay an amount specified by the Secretary for the purpose of the establishment and maintenance of an area account for such area. The Secretary of the Interior shall collect such amount and deposit it to the credit of such area account within the Fund. In any calendar year, no holder of a lease, permit, easement, or right-of-way shall be required to pay an amount in excess of $5,000 per lease, permit, easement, or right-of-way. (d) Subject to subsection (a) of this section, each area account established pursuant to this section shall be maintained at a level not to exceed $100,000 and, if depleted, shall be replenished by assessments of holders of leases, permits, easements, and rights-of-way in such area. (e) Amounts in each such area account shall be available for disbursement and shall be disbursed, subject to such amounts as are provided in appropriations Acts, for only the following purposes: (1) Administrative and personnel expenses of such area account and administrative and personnel expenses of the Fund which relate to such area account, except that amounts disbursed for such expenses in any fiscal year shall not exceed 15 per centum of the amounts deposited in such revolving account in such fiscal year. (2) The payment of any claim in accordance with procedures established under this section for damages suffered as a result of activities in the area for which such area account was established. (3) Reasonable attorney’s fees awarded pursuant to section 405(e) of this title.