March 10, 2020 — The House passed the Senate version of a bill (SB 680), which outlaws the import and export of fins to or from Florida.
However, one amendment was added, meaning the Senate will have to vote anew on the reconfigured bill.
Rep. Kristin Jacobs, in what may be some of her final remarks on the House floor, noted that a lot of traffic has moved through Miami due to that and other illicit trades.
“There’s no end to finding a black market for all kinds of things,” Jacobs noted, adding that shark carcasses have been used to traffic cocaine.
Shark finning is the process of catching a shark, removing its fins and discarding the shark. Shark finners usually drop the body back into the ocean, where it bleeds to death or drowns because it can no longer swim properly. The fins fetch a hefty price on the black market where they are most often sold to Asian countries.