SAVE Right Whales Act

II Calendar No. 519 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. 2453 [Report No. 116–258] To assist in the conservation of the North Atlantic right whale by supporting and providing financial resources for North Atlantic right whale conserva- tion programs and projects of persons with expertise required for the conservation of North Atlantic right whales, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES SEPTEMBER 10, 2019 Mr. BOOKER (for himself, Mr. ISAKSON, Mr. CARPER, Mr. ROBERTS, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, and Mr. MARKEY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation AUGUST 13, 2020 Reported by Mr. WICKER, with an amendment [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] A BILL To assist in the conservation of the North Atlantic right whale by supporting and providing financial resources for North Atlantic right whale conservation programs and projects of persons with expertise required for the conservation of North Atlantic right whales, and for other purposes. VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\S2453.RS S2453 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 2453 RS Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Scientific Assistance 4 for Very Endangered North Atlantic Right Whales Act of 5 2019’’ or the ‘‘SAVE Right Whales Act’’. 6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS. 7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 8 (1) North Atlantic right whales (Eubalaena 9 glacialis) are critically endangered, with approxi- 10 mately 400 whales remaining at the time of the in- 11 troduction of this Act; 12 (2) historically, the North Atlantic right whale 13 population was decimated by the whaling industry, 14 although the whale population received protections 15 from such industry in the 1930s; 16 (3) despite a modest recovery prior to 2010, the 17 North Atlantic right whale is one of the most endan- 18 gered whales in the world and has experienced a sig- 19 nificant decline since 2010; 20 (4) the North Atlantic right whale has been 21 listed as an endangered species under the Endan- 22 gered Species Conservation Act of 1969 (Public Law 23 89–669; 80 Stat. 926) and its successor the Endan- 24 gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2453.RS S2453 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 2453 RS since 1970 and is designated as depleted under the 1 Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 2 1361 et seq.); 3 (5) because North Atlantic right whales are 4 long-lived and highly migratory, and at present rates 5 females give birth to a single calf only once every 4 6 to 10 years, they are highly vulnerable to the im- 7 pacts of human activity and habitat degradation; 8 (6) North Atlantic right whales frequently cross 9 paths with major shipping lanes and fishing 10 grounds, leaving the whales particularly vulnerable 11 to vessel collisions and fishing gear entanglements, 12 the 2 leading causes of injury and death to the spe- 13 cies; 14 (7) even when North Atlantic right whales do 15 not die as a result of fishing gear entanglement, 16 those whales can still experience significant sub-le- 17 thal effects such as chronic stress and reproductive 18 failure; 19 (8) in August 2017, the National Marine Fish- 20 eries Service announced an unusual mortality event 21 involving North Atlantic right whales in 2017, with 22 17 known whale deaths that year alone; 23 (9) as of August 2019, such ongoing unusual 24 mortality event includes the loss of at least 28 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2453.RS S2453 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 2453 RS whales, a significant die-off of a population and, 1 under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 2 (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), demands an immediate re- 3 sponse; 4 (10) based on the current rate of mortality of 5 North Atlantic right whales, and because of the 6 small number of breeding females in the population 7 and low birth rates, recent analysis suggests the spe- 8 cies will lose its ability to recover in merely a few 9 decades if human-caused mortality is not reduced 10 immediately; 11 (11) under the Marine Mammal Protection Act 12 of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), United States 13 fishermen in certain locations have been required to 14 modify their fishing gear and behavior to minimize 15 the likelihood of entanglements, including by using 16 sinking groundlines, having weak links in buoy lines, 17 using multiple traps per buoy, appropriately mark- 18 ing fishing gear, and complying with seasonal area- 19 specific closures in North Atlantic right whale habi- 20 tats; 21 (12) vessels in United States waters that are 65 22 feet or more in length have been required to comply 23 with a seasonal 10-knot speed limit in certain loca- 24 tions to reduce the threat of vessel collisions; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2453.RS S2453 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 2453 RS (13) North Atlantic right whales are now mi- 1 grating farther north into Canadian waters and 2 there have been at least 20 North Atlantic right 3 whale deaths in Canada’s Gulf of St. Lawrence be- 4 tween 2017 and 2019, as well as 8 documented 5 deaths of such whales in the United States waters 6 in 2017 and 2018. 7 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con- 8 gress that— 9 (1) the Governments of the United States and 10 Canada must work together to reduce lethal and 11 sub-lethal effects of human activities on North At- 12 lantic right whales; and 13 (2) effectively addressing the threats to the 14 long-term viability of the North Atlantic right 15 whales will require a joint commitment and effort 16 from government entities, local communities, marine 17 scientists and conservationists, fishermen, owners 18 and operators of passenger vessels and others in the 19 shipping industry, and other stakeholders. 20 SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 21 The purposes of this Act are the following: 22 (1) To rebuild healthy populations of the North 23 Atlantic right whale. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2453.RS S2453 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 2453 RS (2) To assist in the conservation and protection 1 of North Atlantic right whales by supporting North 2 Atlantic right whale conservation programs that 3 minimize conflicts between North Atlantic right 4 whales and human activities. 5 (3) To provide financial resources for those pro- 6 grams. 7 TITLE I—NORTH ATLANTIC 8 RIGHT WHALE CONSERVATION 9 SEC. 101. NORTH ATLANTIC RIGHT WHALE CONSERVATION 10 ASSISTANCE. 11 (a) ASSISTANCE.— 12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the availability of 13 funds and in consultation with other Federal offi- 14 cials, the Secretary of Commerce (in this title re- 15 ferred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall provide competi- 16 tive financial assistance, including multiyear grants, 17 for projects for the conservation of North Atlantic 18 right whales for which project proposals are ap- 19 proved by the Secretary in accordance with this sec- 20 tion. 21 (2) USE OF EXISTING AUTHORITIES.—Assist- 22 ance provided under this section shall be carried out 23 in a manner consistent with authorities available to 24 the Secretary under the Endangered Species Act of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2453.RS S2453 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 2453 RS 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and the Marine 1 Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1361 et 2 seq.). 3 (b) PROJECT PROPOSALS.— 4 (1) ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.—A project proposal 5 may be submitted to the Secretary under this section 6 by— 7 (A) relevant State and tribal agencies, re- 8 search institutions, and nonprofit organizations 9 with expertise required for the conservation of 10 North Atlantic right whales; and 11 (B) any other individual or entity, as de- 12 termined appropriate by the Secretary, with the 13 expertise required for the conservation of North 14 Atlantic right whales, including large whale 15 disentanglement teams approved by the Na- 16 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 17 and members in good standing of the National 18 Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Re- 19 sponse Program, sectors of the shipping and 20 fishing industries, fishing gear manufacturers, 21 and rope manufacturers. 22 (2) FEDERAL PARTNERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES.— 23 A Federal agency may not be a lead entity or receive 24 funding for a project under this section, but may be 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2453.RS S2453 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 2453 RS included as a partner or collaborator on a project 1 that receives such funding. 2 (3) REQUIRED ELEMENTS.—A project proposal 3 shall include— 4 (A) a statement of the purposes of the 5 project; 6 (B) the name of the entity or individual 7 with overall responsibility for the project; 8 (C) a description of the qualifications of 9 the entity or individuals that will conduct the 10 project; 11 (D) a description of— 12 (i) methods for project implementa- 13 tion and outcome assessment; 14 (ii) staffing and stakeholder engage- 15 ment for the project; 16 (iii) the logistics of the project; 17 (iv) an estimated timeline for the 18 project; and 19 (v) anticipated outcomes of the 20 project; 21 (E) a proposed budget for the funds and 22 time required to complete the project; 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2453.RS S2453 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 2453 RS (F) information regarding the source and 1 amount of matching funding available for the 2 project; 3 (G) information that demonstrates the 4 clear potential of the project to contribute to 5 the conservation of North Atlantic right whales; 6 and 7 (H) any other information that the Sec- 8 retary considers to be necessary for evaluating 9 the eligibility of the project for funding under 10 this Act. 11 (c) ANNUAL GRANT PROJECT PROPOSAL SOLICITA- 12 TION, REVIEW, AND APPROVAL.— 13 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall annu- 14 ally— 15 (A) solicit project proposals for grants 16 under this section; 17 (B) provide to other Federal officials, as 18 appropriate, copies of each proposal submitted 19 in response to the solicitation; and 20 (C) review each such proposal on a time- 21 line that recognizes the urgency of the declining 22 North Atlantic right whale population to deter- 23 mine whether the proposal meets the criteria 24 specified in subsection (d). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2453.RS S2453 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 2453 RS (2) CONSULTATION; APPROVAL OR DIS- 1 APPROVAL.—Subject to the availability of funds, the 2 Secretary shall, with respect to each project proposal 3 submitted under this section, and after consulting 4 with other Federal officials, as appropriate— 5 (A) consult with respect to the proposal 6 with the government of each State and foreign 7 country in which the project is to be conducted; 8 (B) after taking into consideration any 9 comments resulting from the consultation and 10 any potential losses that could be incurred to 11 the fishing industry as a result of the proposal, 12 approve or disapprove the proposal; and 13 (C) provide written notification of the ap- 14 proval or disapproval to the individual or entity 15 that submitted the proposal, other Federal offi- 16 cials, and each State and foreign country de- 17 scribed in subparagraph (A). 18 (d) CRITERIA FOR APPROVAL.—The Secretary may 19 approve a project proposal under this section if the project 20 shows promise for contributing to recovering and sus- 21 taining a viable population of North Atlantic right whales 22 in the wild by assisting efforts to— 23 (1) implement conservation programs; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2453.RS S2453 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 2453 RS (2) address the unintentional conflicts between 1 humans and North Atlantic right whales through de- 2 velopment, testing, and use of innovative technology 3 or other methods to reduce the lethal and sub-lethal 4 effects on North Atlantic right whales from vessel 5 collisions and fishing gear entanglements; 6 (3) promote cooperative projects on such topics 7 with foreign governments; or 8 (4) promote cooperative projects on such topics 9 with affected local communities, small businesses 10 such as fishermen, others in the private sector, or 11 nongovernmental organizations. 12 (e) PRIORITY.—To the extent practicable, in deter- 13 mining whether to approve project proposals under this 14 section, the Secretary shall prioritize projects that are de- 15 signed to reduce the lethal and sub-lethal effects of human 16 activities on North Atlantic right whales. In prioritizing 17 such projects, the Secretary shall prioritize, among such 18 projects, projects that are cooperative in nature and in- 19 clude fishing or shipping sector participants. 20 (f) MATCHING REQUIREMENT.— 21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para- 22 graph (3), the non-Federal share of the costs of an 23 activity conducted with financial assistance under 24 this section shall be 25 percent of such costs. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:02 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2453.RS S2453 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 2453 RS (2) IN-KIND CONTRIBUTIONS.—The Secretary 1 may apply to the non-Federal share of an activity 2 conducted with financial assistance under this sec- 3 tion the amount of funds, and the fair market value 4 of property and services, provided by non-Federal 5 sources and used for the activity. 6 (3) WAIVER OF REQUIREMENTS.—The Sec- 7 retary may waive the application of paragraph (1) if 8 the Secretary finds that such waiver is necessary to 9 support a conservation project that the Secretary 10 has identified as of high priority. 11 (g) PROJECT REPORTING.— 12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each individual or entity 13 that receives assistance under this section for a 14 project shall submit to the Secretary periodic reports 15 (at such intervals as the Secretary may require) that 16 include all information that the [Text truncated for display. 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