State v. F/V Baranof
| Decision Date | 10 February 1984 |
| Docket Number | Nos. 7287,7324,s. 7287 |
| Citation | 677 P.2d 1245 |
| Parties | STATE of Alaska, Appellant, v. F/V BARANOF, its gear, paraphernalia, etc.; Baranof Fisheries, a Washington Limited Partnership; Rainier National Bank; Rainier National Bank, as Trustee for Universal Seafoods, Inc., Appellees. F/V BARANOF, its gear, paraphernalia, etc.; Baranof Fisheries, a Washington Limited Partnership, Rainier National Bank; Rainier National Bank, as Trustee for Universal Seafoods, Inc., Cross-Appellants, v. STATE of Alaska, Cross-Appellee. |
| Court | Alaska Supreme Court |
Kathleen I. McGuire, Asst. Atty. Gen., Anchorage, Robert M. Maynard, Asst. Atty. Gen., Norman C. Gorsuch, Atty. Gen., Juneau, for appellant/cross-appellee.
Terence P. Lukens, Karr, Tuttle, Koch, Campbell, Mawer & Morrow, Seattle, Wash., and James M. Gorski, Hughes, Thorsness, Gantz, Powell, Brundin, Anchorage, for appellees/cross-appellants.
Carol E. Dinkins, Asst. Atty. Gen., J. Vance Hughes, Donald A. Carr, and Leslie M. Madden, Attys., U.S. Dept. of Justice, and Margaret Frailey, Nat. Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin., Washington, D.C., for Secretary of Commerce as amicus curiae.
R.H. Connett, Asst. Atty. Gen., Mary E. Hackenbracht, Deputy Atty. Gen., John K. Van de Kamp, Atty. Gen., San Francisco, Cal., for state of Cal. as amicus curiae.
Before BURKE, C.J., and RABINOWITZ, MATTHEWS and COMPTON, JJ.
This appeal is from an in rem forfeiture proceeding instituted by the State of Alaska against the F/V Baranof, a vessel used for the harvesting of king crab off the the Alaska coast. The State alleged that the Baranof exceeded its authorized catch limit under Alaska law, and was hence subject to forfeiture under AS 16.05.195.
The trial court, Judge Moore presiding, dismissed the State's suit, ruling that the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Management Act (hereafter FCMA) pre-empted state regulation of king crab harvesting and provided for exclusive jurisdiction in the federal courts. The trial court ruled in favor of the State that: (1) federal admiralty jurisdiction was not exclusive for an in rem forfeiture action brought by the State for violation of state law; (2) federal jurisdiction was not exclusive based on the fact that a maritime lien created under federal law was attached to the Baranof; and (3) the Baranof's due process rights were not violated by the seizure of the vessel without a prior hearing. We reverse the trial court on the issue of pre-emption and jurisdiction under the FCMA, and affirm on the remaining issues.
The defendant, F/V Baranof, is a vessel owned by Baranof Fisheries, a Washington state limited partnership. The F/V Baranof is registered with the Coast Guard and has its home port in Seattle, Washington. The vessel is also registered in Alaska and has been issued an Alaska Department of Fish and Game vessel number. On May 9, 1981, officers of the Alaska State Division of Fish & Wildlife Protection seized the F/V Baranof in Dutch Harbor, Alaska under authority of a search and seizure warrant issued on May 7, 1981. On May 11, 1981, the State of Alaska filed a civil complaint in rem (the vessel itself being the only named defendant) in superior court for the forfeiture of the F/V Baranof pursuant to AS 16.05.195, alleging unlawful harvest, transportation, and possession of king crab in 1979 and 1980. On May 12, 1981, the State filed a motion for publication of notice to owners and other interested parties, which was granted on May 14, 1981. Negotiations for release of the vessel were commenced immediately, and on May 27, 1981, the ship was released under a Special Release Agreement. It is undisputed that the alleged violations occurred in waters outside the three-mile limit of the Alaskan territorial sea.
On June 8, 1981, the F/V Baranof filed a petition to remove the case to the United States District Court for the District of Alaska. Baranof Fisheries appeared and claimed ownership through its general partner. Rainier National Bank also appeared and filed claims to the F/V Baranof as a preferred ship mortgage holder. The defendant and claimants thereto (hereafter referred to jointly as the Baranof) raised the following arguments to support federal subject matter jurisdiction: diversity jurisdiction; the Fishery Conservation and Management Act (FCMA), 16 U.S.C. §§ 1801-1882, pre-empts coastal state regulation of fishing seaward of the three-mile territorial boundary of the state; the federal courts have exclusive admiralty jurisdiction of all in rem proceedings over documented United States vessels under the United States Constitution, Art. III, § 2, and under 28 U.S.C. § 1333; the Ship Mortgage Act, 46 U.S.C. §§ 911-984, creates exclusive federal jurisdiction over vessel forfeitures; and seizure of the defendant without a prior hearing violated the owners' fourteenth amendment due process rights.
The district court held on the merits that this case was not within the general admiralty jurisdiction of the federal courts, and that there was no diversity. The court further held that none of the other bases of federal subject matter jurisdiction asserted by the Baranof was sufficient. The Baranof's arguments in regard to the fourteenth amendment, FCMA pre-emption of state regulation and enforcement, and the Ship Mortgage Act were not evident from the face of the State's well-pleaded complaint, rather they were interposed as defenses to state law claims. These arguments, therefore, were to be addressed in the state courts. The district court remanded the case to superior court on October 27, 1981.
On January 29, 1983, the Baranof filed a pre-answer motion to dismiss. The Baranof stated alternative arguments identical to those raised in its petition to remove (except for dropping the claim of diversity jurisdiction), and also asserted that federal jurisdiction was exclusive under the FCMA. The trial court granted the motion to dismiss on the issues of pre-emption and jurisdiction under the FCMA, 1 but rejected the Baranof's other grounds. The State appealed and the Baranof cross-appealed.
The Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Management Act (FCMA) was enacted in 1976 to protect the United States fishing industry and dependent coastal economies from the stresses caused by overfishing in the seas adjacent to territorial waters, particularly by foreign fishing fleets. 16 U.S.C. § 1801. 2 Consistent with this purpose, the FCMA established a fishery conservation zone 3 (FCZ) beyond the territorial sea, within which zone the United States would exercise fishery management authority and limit the access of foreign boats. 16 U.S.C. §§ 1811, 1812. Within the federal zone, Congress envisioned "[a] national program for the conservation and management of the fishery resources of the United States ... to prevent overfishing, to rebuild overfished stocks, to insure conservation, and to realize the full potential of the Nation's fishery resources." 16 U.S.C. § 1801(a)(6).
The framework established by the Act to accomplish these purposes called first for the establishment, through cooperative action of the states and the federal government, of Regional Fishery Management Councils. 16 U.S.C. § 1852. Following their organization, the Councils were to develop fishery management plans with respect to those stocks of fish requiring conservation and management. Id. Approved plans were to be implemented and enforced by the Secretary of Commerce. 16 U.S.C. §§ 1854, 1855, 1861.
When Congress passes legislation authorized by its constitutional powers, 4 conflicting state legislation may be pre-empted by the supremacy clause of the United State Constitution. 5 J. Nowak, R. Rotunda & J. Young, Constitutional Law 267 (1978). Pre-emption of state law will occur when Congress evidences an intent to occupy an entire field, Ray v. Atlantic Richfield Co., 435 U.S. 151, 157-58, 98 S.Ct. 988, 994-95, 55 L.Ed.2d 179, 188 (1978); Alaska Board of Fish and Game v. Thomas, 635 P.2d 1191, 1192 (Alaska 1981), or when state and federal laws are in actual conflict. Lockheed Air Terminal, Inc. v. City of Burbank, 457 F.2d 667 (9th Cir.1972), aff'd 411 U.S. 624, 93 S.Ct. 1854, 36 L.Ed.2d 547 (1973); F/V American Eagle v. State, 620 P.2d 657, 662 n. 10 (Alaska 1980), appeal dismissed 454 U.S. 1130, 102 S.Ct. 985, 71 L.Ed.2d 284 (1982).
Since no federal king crab regulations have been promulgated under the FCMA, our inquiry is restricted to the question of whether Congress occupied the field of regulation of king crab fishing. In deciding this question, we must ascertain Congress' intent in passing the FCMA. "Pre-emption may be either express or implied, and is compelled whether Congress' command is explicitly stated in the statute's language or implicitly contained in its structure and purpose." Shaw v. Delta Airlines, Inc., --- U.S. ----, ----, 103 S.Ct. 2890, 2899, 77 L.Ed.2d 490, 500 (1983). Further, pre-emption will be found only when the "clear and manifest purpose" of Congress was to occupy the field. Philadelphia v. New Jersey, 437 U.S. 617, 621 n. 4, 98 S.Ct. 2531, 2534 n. 4, 57 L.Ed.2d 475, 479-80 n. 4 (1978); Webster v. Bechtel, 621 P.2d 890, 898 (Alaska 1980).
Prior to passage of the FCMA, it is clear that states could regulate fishing beyond their three mile territorial sea in the absence of conflicting federal law or undue impediment to interstate commerce. See Skiriotes v. Florida, 313 U.S. 69, 61 S.Ct. 924, 85 L.Ed. 1193 (1941) (). See also Bayside Fish Flour Co. v. Gentry, 297 U.S. 422, 56 S.Ct. 513, 80 L.Ed. 772 (1936) (...
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