[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1390 Referred in House (RFH)]
109th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1390
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 15, 2005
Referred to the Committee on Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
AN ACT
To reauthorize the Coral Reef Conservation Act of 2000, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Coral Reef Conservation Amendments
Act of 2005''.
SEC. 2. EXPANSION OF CORAL REEF CONSERVATION PROGRAM.
(a) Project Diversity.--Section 204(d) of the Coral Reef
Conservation Act of 2000 (16 U.S.C. 6403(d)) is amended--
(1) by striking ``Geographic and Biological'' in the
heading and inserting ``Project''; and
(2) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the following:
``(3) Remaining funds shall be awarded for--
``(A) projects (with priority given to community-
based local action strategies) that address emerging
priorities or threats, including international and
territorial priorities, or threats identified by the
Administrator in consultation with the Coral Reef Task
Force; and
``(B) other appropriate projects, as determined by
the Administrator, including monitoring and assessment,
research, pollution reduction, education, and technical
support.''.
(b) Approval Criteria.--Section 204(g) of that Act (16 U.S.C.
6403(g)) is amended--
(1) by striking ``or'' after the semicolon in paragraph
(9);
(2) by striking paragraph (10); and
(3) by inserting after paragraph (9) the following:
``(10) promoting activities designed to minimize the
likelihood of vessel impacts on coral reefs, particularly those
activities described in section 210(b), including the promotion
of ecologically sound navigation and anchorages near coral
reefs; or
``(11) promoting and assisting entities to work with local
communities, and all appropriate governmental and
nongovernmental organizations, to support community-based
planning and management initiatives for the protection of coral
reef systems.''.
SEC. 3. EMERGENCY RESPONSE.
Section 206 of the Coral Reef Conservation Act of 2000 (16 U.S.C.
6405) is amended to read as follows:
``SEC. 206. EMERGENCY RESPONSE ACTIONS.
``(a) In General.--The Administrator may undertake or authorize
action necessary to prevent or minimize the destruction or loss of, or
injury to, coral reefs or coral reef ecosystems from vessel impacts,
derelict fishing gear, vessel anchors and anchor chains, or damage from
unforeseen or disaster-related circumstances.
``(b) Actions Authorized.--Action authorized by subsection (a)
includes vessel removal and emergency restabilization of the vessel and
any impacted coral reef.
``(c) Partnering With Other Federal Agencies.--When possible,
action by the Administrator under this section should--
``(1) be conducted in partnership with other Federal
agencies, including the United States Coast Guard, the Federal
Emergency Management Agency, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,
and the Department of the Interior; and
``(2) leverage resources of other agencies.''.
SEC. 4. NATIONAL PROGRAM.
Section 207(b) of the Coral Reef Conservation Act of 2000 (16
U.S.C. 6406) is amended--
(1) by striking ``and'' after the semicolon in paragraph
(3);
(2) by striking ``partners.'' in paragraph (4) and
inserting ``partners; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(5) activities designed to minimize the likelihood of
vessel impacts or other physical damage to coral reefs,
including those activities identified in section 210(b).''.
SEC. 5. REPORT TO CONGRESS.
(a) In General.--Section 208 of the Coral Reef Conservation Act of
2000 (16 U.S.C. 6407) is amended to read as follows:
``SEC. 208. REPORT TO CONGRESS.
``Not later than March 1, 2007, and every 3 years thereafter, the
Administrator shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Resources of the
House of Representatives a report describing all activities undertaken
to implement the strategy, including--
``(1) a description of the funds obligated by each
participating Federal agency to advance coral reef conservation
during each of the 3 fiscal years next preceding the fiscal
year in which the report is submitted;
``(2) a description of Federal interagency and cooperative
efforts with States and United States territories to prevent or
address overharvesting, coastal runoff, or other anthropogenic
impacts on coral reefs, including projects undertaken with the
Department of Interior, Department of Agriculture, the
Environmental Protection Agency, and the United States Army
Corps of Engineers;
``(3) a summary of the information contained in the vessel
grounding inventory established under section 210, including
additional authorization or funding, needed for response and
removal of such vessels;''
``(4) a description of Federal disaster response actions
taken pursuant to the National Response Plan to address damage
to coral reefs and coral reef ecosystems; and
``(5) an assessment of the condition of United States coral
reefs, accomplishments under this Act, and the effectiveness of
management actions to address threats to coral reefs.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents for the Coral Reef
Conservation Act of 2000 (16 U.S.C. 6401 et seq.) is amended by
striking the item relating to section 208 and inserting the following:
``208. Report to Congress.''.
SEC. 6. FUND; GRANTS; GROUNDING INVENTORY; COORDINATION.
(a) In General.--The Coral Reef Conservation Act of 2000 (16 U.S.C.
6401 et seq.) is amended--
(1) by striking ``organization solely'' and all that
follows in section 205(a) (16 U.S.C. 6404(a)) and inserting
``organization--
``(1) to support partnerships between the public and
private sectors that further the purposes of this Act and are
consistent with the national coral reef strategy under section
203; and
``(2) to address emergency response actions under section
206.'';
(2) by adding at the end of section 205(b) 16 U.S.C.
6404(b)) ``The organization is encouraged to solicit funding
and in-kind services from the private sector, including
nongovernmental organizations, for emergency response actions
under section 206 and for activities to prevent damage to coral
reefs, including activities described in section 210(b)(2).'';
(3) by striking ``the grant program'' in section 205(c) (16
U.S.C. 6404(c)) and inserting ``any grant program or emergency
response action'';
(4) by redesignating sections 209 and 210 as sections 212
and 213, respectively; and
(5) by inserting after section 208 the following:
``SEC. 209. COMMUNITY-BASED PLANNING GRANTS.
``(a) In General.--The Administrator may make grants to entities
who have received grants under section 204(c) to provide additional
funds to such entities to work with local communities and through
appropriate Federal and State entities to prepare and implement plans
for the increased protection of coral reef areas identified by the
community and scientific experts as high priorities for focused
attention. The plans shall--
``(1) support attainment of 1 or more of the criteria
described in section 204(g);
``(2) be developed at the community level;
``(3) utilize watershed-based approaches;
``(4) provide for coordination with Federal and State
experts and managers; and
``(5) build upon local approaches or models, including
traditional or island-based resource management concepts.
``(b) Terms and Conditions.--The provisions of subsections (b),
(d), (f), and (h) of section 204 apply to grants under subsection (a),
except that, for the purpose of applying section 204(b)(1) to grants
under this section, `75 percent' shall be substituted for `50 percent'.
``SEC. 210. VESSEL GROUNDING INVENTORY.
``(a) In General.--The Administrator may maintain an inventory of
all vessel grounding incidents involving coral reef resources,
including a description of--
``(1) the impacts to such resources;
``(2) vessel and ownership information, if available;
``(3) the estimated cost of removal, mitigation, or
restoration;
``(4) the response action taken by the owner, the
Administrator, the Commandant of the Coast Guard, or other
Federal or State agency representatives;
``(5) the status of the response action, including the
dates of vessel removal and mitigation or restoration and any
actions taken to prevent future grounding incidents; and
``(6) recommendations for additional navigational aids or
other mechanisms for preventing future grounding incidents.
``(b) Identification of At-Risk Reefs.--The Administrator may--
``(1) use information from any inventory maintained under
subsection (a) or any other available information source to
identify coral reef areas outside designated National Marine
Sanctuaries that have a high incidence of vessel impacts,
including groundings and anchor damage; and
``(2) identify appropriate measures, including action by
other agencies, to reduce the likelihood of such impacts.
``SEC. 211. REGIONAL COORDINATION.
``The Administrator shall work in coordination and collaboration
with other Federal agencies, States, and United States territorial
governments to implement the strategies developed under section 203,
including regional and local strategies, to address multiple threats to
coral reefs and coral reef ecosystems such as coastal runoff, vessel
impacts, and overharvesting.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents for the Coral Reef
Conservation Act of 2000 (16 U.S.C. 6401 et seq.) is amended--
(1) by redesignating the items relating to sections 208
through 211 as relating to sections 211 through 214; and
(2) by inserting the following after the item relating to
section 207:
``209. Community-based planning grants.
``210. Vessel grounding inventory.
``211. Regional coordination.''.
SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
Section 212 of the Coral Reef Conservation Act of 2000 (formerly 16
U.S.C. 6408), as redesignated by section 6, is amended--
(1) by striking ``$16,000,000 for each of fiscal years
2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004,'' in subsection (a) and inserting
``$30,000,000 for fiscal year 2006, $32,000,000 for fiscal year
2007, $34,000,000 for fiscal year 2008, and $35,000,000 for
each of fiscal years 2009 through 2012, of which no less than
30 percent per year (for each of fiscal years 2006 through
2012) shall be used for the grant program under section 204 and
up to 10 percent per year shall be used for the Fund
established under section 205,'';
(2) by striking ``$1,000,000'' in subsection (b) and
inserting ``$2,000,000''; and
(3) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the following:
``(c) Community-Based Planning Grants.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to the Administrator to carry out section 209 the sum of
$8,000,000 for fiscal years 2007 through 2012, such sum to remain
available until expended.''; and
(4) by striking subsection (d).
Passed the Senate December 15, 2005.
Attest:
EMILY J. REYNOLDS,
Secretary.