The initial purpose of the bill, called The Access for Sportfishing Act of 2016, was to prevent national parks from trying to protect fish in waters within state jurisdiction, and in June, Senator Bill Nelson, from Florida, added the ban on shark feeding diving in federal waters. The bill specifies that it is all right to feed sharks for the purpose of killing them, but not if you want to watch the shark. Thus it is the motive for the act of shark feeding, rather than the act itself, that is at issue.

The Twelfth Session of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention of the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS CoP12) was held in Manila, Philippines, between October 23 and 28. It resulted in added international protection for sharks and rays and several other migratory species, and the decisions were endorsed by the 90 governments attending.