Coastal and Great Lakes Communities Enhancement Act

IIB 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 729 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES DECEMBER 12, 2019 Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation AN ACT To amend the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 to authorize grants to Indian Tribes to further achievement of Tribal coastal zone objectives, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:16 Dec 12, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H729.RFS H729 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 HR 729 RFS SECTION 1. FRONT MATTER. 1 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 2 ‘‘Coastal and Great Lakes Communities Enhancement 3 Act’’. 4 (b) DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS.— 5 The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of com- 6 plying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, 7 shall be determined by reference to the latest statement 8 titled ‘‘Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation’’ for this 9 Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record 10 by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, pro- 11 vided that such statement has been submitted prior to the 12 vote on passage. 13 (c) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 14 this Act is as follows: 15 Sec. 1. Front matter. TITLE I—COASTAL RESILIENCE AND ECONOMIC ENHANCEMENT Sec. 101. Grants to further achievement of Tribal coastal zone objectives. Sec. 102. Living Shoreline Grant Program. Sec. 103. Working Waterfronts Grant Program. Sec. 104. Working Waterfronts Preservation Fund; grants. Sec. 105. Eligibility of District of Columbia for Federal funding under the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972. Sec. 106. Climate change preparedness in the coastal zone. Sec. 107. Update to environmental sensitivity index products of National Oce- anic and Atmospheric Administration for Great Lakes. Sec. 108. Prize competitions. Sec. 109. Catalog of research on applicable coastal risk reduction and resilience measures. TITLE II—FISHERY RESEARCH AND CONSERVATION Subtitle A—National Fish Habitat Conservation Through Partnerships Sec. 201. Purpose. Sec. 202. Definitions. Sec. 203. National Fish Habitat Board. VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:16 Dec 12, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H729.RFS H729 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 HR 729 RFS Sec. 204. Fish Habitat Partnerships. Sec. 205. Fish Habitat Conservation Projects. Sec. 206. Technical and scientific assistance. Sec. 207. Coordination with States and Indian Tribes. Sec. 208. Interagency Operational Plan. Sec. 209. Accountability and reporting. Sec. 210. Effect of this subtitle. Sec. 211. Nonapplicability of Federal Advisory Committee Act. Sec. 212. Funding. Sec. 213. Prohibition against implementation of regulatory authority by Fed- eral agencies through Partnerships. Subtitle B—Great Lakes Fishery Research Authorization Sec. 221. Definitions. Sec. 222. Findings. Sec. 223. Great Lakes monitoring, assessment, science, and research. Sec. 224. Authorization of appropriations. Subtitle C—Chesapeake Bay Oyster Research Sec. 231. Sense of Congress. Sec. 232. Grants for researching oysters in the Chesapeake Bay. TITLE III—MEETING 21ST CENTURY OCEAN AND COASTAL DATA NEEDS Subtitle A—Digital Coast Sec. 301. Findings. Sec. 302. Definitions. Sec. 303. Establishment of the Digital Coast. Subtitle B—Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observation System Sec. 311. Staggered terms for National Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observa- tion System Advisory Committee. Sec. 312. Integrated coastal and ocean observation system cooperative agree- ments. Sec. 313. Reauthorization of Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observation System Act of 2009. Sec. 314. Advanced Research Projects Agency–Oceans. TITLE IV—NATIONAL SEA GRANT COLLEGE PROGRAM AMENDMENTS Sec. 401. References to the National Sea Grant College Program Act. Sec. 402. Modification of Dean John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship. Sec. 403. Modification of authority of Secretary of Commerce to accept dona- tions for National Sea Grant College Program. Sec. 404. Repeal of requirement for report on coordination of oceans and coast- al research activities. Sec. 405. Reduction in frequency required for National Sea Grant Advisory Board report. Sec. 406. Modification of elements of National Sea Grant College Program. Sec. 407. Direct hire authority; Dean John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellow- ship. VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:16 Dec 12, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H729.RFS H729 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 HR 729 RFS Sec. 408. Authorization of appropriations for National Sea Grant College Pro- gram. Sec. 409. Technical corrections. TITLE I—COASTAL RESILIENCE 1 AND ECONOMIC ENHANCEMENT 2 SEC. 101. GRANTS TO FURTHER ACHIEVEMENT OF TRIBAL 3 COASTAL ZONE OBJECTIVES. 4 (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—The Coastal Zone Man- 5 agement Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.) is amended 6 by adding at the end the following: 7 ‘‘SEC. 320. GRANTS TO FURTHER ACHIEVEMENT OF TRIBAL 8 COASTAL ZONE OBJECTIVES. 9 ‘‘(a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary may 10 award competitive grants to Indian Tribes to further 11 achievement of the objectives of such a Tribe for its Tribal 12 coastal zone. 13 ‘‘(b) COST SHARE.— 14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Federal share of the 15 cost of any activity carried out with a grant under 16 this section shall be— 17 ‘‘(A) in the case of a grant of less than 18 $200,000, 100 percent of such cost; and 19 ‘‘(B) in the case of a grant of $200,000 or 20 more, 95 percent of such cost, except as pro- 21 vided in paragraph (2). 22 ‘‘(2) WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive the 23 application of paragraph (1)(B) with respect to a 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:16 Dec 12, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H729.RFS H729 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 HR 729 RFS grant to an Indian Tribe, or otherwise reduce the 1 portion of the share of the cost of an activity re- 2 quired to be paid by an Indian Tribe under such 3 paragraph, if the Secretary determines that the 4 Tribe does not have sufficient funds to pay such por- 5 tion. 6 ‘‘(c) COMPATIBILITY.—The Secretary may not award 7 a grant under this section unless the Secretary determines 8 that the activities to be carried out with the grant are 9 compatible with this title and that the grantee has con- 10 sulted with the affected coastal state regarding the grant 11 objectives and purposes. 12 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZED OBJECTIVES AND PURPOSES.— 13 Amounts awarded as a grant under this section shall be 14 used for one or more of the objectives and purposes au- 15 thorized under subsections (b) and (c), respectively, of sec- 16 tion 306A. 17 ‘‘(e) FUNDING.—Of amounts appropriated to carry 18 out this Act, $5,000,000 is authorized to carry out this 19 section for each fiscal year. 20 ‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 21 ‘‘(1) INDIAN LAND.—The term ‘Indian land’ 22 has the meaning that term has under section 2601 23 of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (25 U.S.C. 3501). 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:16 Dec 12, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H729.RFS H729 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 HR 729 RFS ‘‘(2) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian Tribe’ 1 means an Indian tribe, as that term is defined in 2 section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Edu- 3 cation Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 4 ‘‘(3) TRIBAL COASTAL ZONE.—The term ‘Tribal 5 coastal zone’ means any Indian land of an Indian 6 Tribe that is within the coastal zone. 7 ‘‘(4) TRIBAL COASTAL ZONE OBJECTIVE.—The 8 term ‘Tribal coastal zone objective’ means, with re- 9 spect to an Indian Tribe, any of the following objec- 10 tives: 11 ‘‘(A) Protection, restoration, or preserva- 12 tion of areas in the Tribal coastal zone of such 13 Tribe that hold— 14 ‘‘(i) important ecological, cultural, or 15 sacred significance for such Tribe; or 16 ‘‘(ii) traditional, historic, and esthetic 17 values essential to such Tribe. 18 ‘‘(B) Preparing and implementing a special 19 area management plan and technical planning 20 for important coastal areas. 21 ‘‘(C) Any coastal or shoreline stabilization 22 measure, including any mitigation measure, for 23 the purpose of public safety, public access, or 24 cultural or historical preservation.’’. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:16 Dec 12, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H729.RFS H729 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 HR 729 RFS (b) GUIDANCE.—Not later than 180 days after the 1 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Com- 2 merce shall issue guidance for the program established 3 under the amendment made by subsection (a), including 4 the criteria for awarding grants under such program based 5 on consultation with Indian Tribes (as that term is defined 6 in that amendment). 7 (c) USE OF STATE GRANTS TO FULFILL TRIBAL OB- 8 JECTIVES.—Section 306A(c)(2) of the Coastal Zone Man- 9 agement Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1455a(c)(2)) is amended 10 by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon at the end of sub- 11 paragraph (D), by striking the period at the end of sub- 12 paragraph (E) and inserting ‘‘; and’’, and by adding at 13 the end the following: 14 ‘‘(F) fulfilling any Tribal coastal zone ob- 15 jective (as that term is defined in section 16 320).’’. 17 (d) OTHER PROGRAMS NOT AFFECTED.—Nothing in 18 this section shall be construed to affect the ability of an 19 Indian Tribe to apply for, receive assistance under, or par- 20 ticipate in any program authorized by the Coastal Zone 21 Management Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.) or 22 other related Federal laws. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:16 Dec 12, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H729.RFS H729 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 HR 729 RFS SEC. 102. LIVING SHORELINE GRANT PROGRAM. 1 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator shall 2 make grants to eligible entities for purposes of— 3 (1) designing and implementing large- and 4 small-scale, climate-resilient living shoreline projects; 5 and 6 (2) applying innovative uses of natural mate- 7 rials and systems to protect coastal communities, 8 habitats, and natural system functions. 9 (b) PROJECT PROPOSALS.—To be eligible to receive 10 a grant under this section, an eligible entity shall— 11 (1) submit to the Administrator a proposal for 12 a living shoreline project, including monitoring, data 13 collection, and measurable performance criteria with 14 respect to the project; 15 (2) demonstrate to the Administrator that the 16 entity has any permits or other authorizations from 17 local, State, and Federal government agencies nec- 18 essary to carry out the living shoreline project or 19 provide evidence demonstrating general support from 20 such agencies; and 21 (3) include an outreach or education component 22 that seeks and solicits feedback from the local or re- 23 gional community most directly affected by the pro- 24 posal. 25 (c) PROJECT SELECTION.— 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:16 Dec 12, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H729.RFS H729 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 HR 729 RFS (1) DEVELOPMENT OF CRITERIA.—The Admin- 1 istrator shall select eligible entities to receive grants 2 under this section based on criteria developed by the 3 Administrator, in consultation with relevant offices 4 of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis- 5 tration, such as the Office of Habitat Conservation, 6 the Office for Coastal Management, and the Res- 7 toration Center. 8 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In developing criteria 9 under paragraph (1) to evaluate a proposed living 10 shoreline project, the Administrator shall take into 11 account— 12 (A) the potential of the project to protect 13 the community and maintain the viability of the 14 environment, such as through protection of eco- 15 system functions, environmental benefits, or 16 habitat types, in the area where the project is 17 to be carried out; 18 (B) the historic and future environmental 19 conditions of the project site, particularly those 20 environmental conditions affected by climate 21 change; 22 (C) the ecological benefits of the project; 23 (D) the ability of the entity proposing the 24 project to demonstrate the potential of the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:16 Dec 12, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H729.RFS H729 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 HR 729 RFS project to protect the coastal community where 1 the project is to be carried out, including 2 through— 3 (i) mitigating the effects of erosion; 4 (ii) attenuating the impact of coastal 5 storms and storm surge; 6 (iii) mitigating shoreline flooding; 7 (iv) mitigating the effects of sea level 8 rise, accelerated land loss, and extreme 9 tides; 10 (v) sustaining, protecting, or restoring 11 the functions and habitats of coastal eco- 12 systems; or 13 (vi) such other forms of coastal pro- 14 tection as the Administrator considers ap- 15 propriate; and 16 (E) the potential of the project to support 17 resiliency at a military installation or commu- 18 nity infrastructure supportive of a military in- 19 stallation (as such terms are defined in section 20 2391 of title 10, United States Code). 21 (3) PRIORITY.—In selecting living shoreline 22 projects to receive grants under this section, the Ad- 23 ministrator shall give priority consideration to a pro- 24 posed project to be conducted in an area— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:16 Dec 12, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H729.RFS H729 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 HR 729 RFS (A) for which the President has declared, 1 during the 10-year period preceding the submis- 2 sion of the proposal for the project under sub- 3 section (b), that a major disaster exists pursu- 4 ant to section 401 of the Robert T. Stafford 5 Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act 6 (42 U.S.C. 5170) because of a hurricane, trop- 7 ical storm, coastal storm, or flooding; 8 (B) that has a documented history of 9 coastal erosion or frequent coastal inundation 10 during that 10-year period; or 11 (C) which include communities that may 12 not have adequate resources to prepare for or 13 respond to coastal hazards, including low in- 14 come communities, communities of color, Tribal 15 communities, and rural communities. 16 (4) MINIMUM STANDARDS.— 17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 18 shall develop minimum standards to be used in 19 selecting eligible entities to receive grants under 20 this section, taking into account— 21 (i) the considerations described in 22 paragraph (2); 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:16 Dec 12, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H729.RFS H729 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]