Shark Fin Law
Fong introduced Assembly Bill 376 (AB 376) which was passed by the legislature and signed into law. This law bans the possession, sale, and distribution of shark fins, with some exceptions. The intent of the law is to discourage shark finning, a practice which involves cutting off the tails and fins of living sharks, which are then thrown back into the ocean to die.
The primary use of shark fins is in shark fin soup, an expensive delicacy which because of its high cost was in former times restricted to being consumed by the Chinese aristocracy. With increasing availability of shark fin in modern times, shark fin soup is now often served on special occasions such as weddings and banquets, and is available in many Chinese restaurants. Fong, who was born in China, says, "Anything that is unhealthy, that the culture is practicing, we should stop doing it. We used to bind women's feet and that was unhealthy for the woman". Hawaii's former first lady Vicky Cayetano drew a similar comparison: "shark fin soup is about as cultural as bound feet." However, State Senator Leland Yee argued that the bill constituted "the wrong approach and an unfair attack on Asian culture and cuisine... rather than launch just another attack on Asian American culture, the proponents of the ban on shark fin soup should work with us to strengthen conservation efforts."
AB 376 was approved by the California Assembly on 5/23/11 by a vote of 65 to 8. It was approved by the California Senate on 9/6/11 by a vote of 25 to 9. It was signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown on 10/07/11.
Similar laws have been enacted in the states of Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, and Illinois, and in Venezuela, Guam, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
A member of China's National People's Congress has submitted a formal written proposal to that Congress that shark fin be banned in the People's Republic of China. Also, the Chinese government has announced that it will prohibit official banquets from serving shark fin soup by the end of 2015.
A poll commissioned by the Monterey Bay Aquarium found that 70 percent of the Chinese-American voters surveyed favored making it illegal to sell or distribute shark fins.
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