Ocean Policy Roundup
June 24 - July 8, 2024
We’re back! Our team hopes you had a fun and safe 4th of July.
The House and Senate are both in session this week after returning from the Independence Day recess.
Appropriations
The House Appropriations Committee will mark up the final six appropriations bills this week, including the bills that fund NOAA, NSF, NASA, EPA, BOEM, DOI, and the Army Corps of Engineers tomorrow, July 9. The bill report language, which gives most of the important details and direction, was released publicly this morning – more analysis to come in our Diving Deeper later this week.
The House Appropriations Committee will also revise its subcommittee allocations, which direct how much money is allocated to each spending bill, on Wednesday this week.
The House plans to pass its Legislative Branch appropriations bill on the floor this week. This will be the fifth bill to make it all the way through the chamber – a much smoother start than last year.
The Senate Appropriations Committee is formally starting its process to consider the Senate versions of the federal funding bills. The full committee will hold a meeting on July 11 to consider the first three of 12 spending bills and to approve subcommittee allocations. We expect these subcommittee allocations to be higher than the House numbers – the Senate will likely stick to the agreement to allow a one percent increase across the board, while the House is proposing a six percent cut to nondefense spending.
In Other News
Fallout from the presidential debate continues as lawmakers return to Capitol Hill today, with some Democrats publicly calling for President Biden to step down. Many are giving Biden until the end of the week to prove he’s up for the job before the calls for him to step aside get louder.
The U.S. is hosting the NATO Summit starting tomorrow, July 9, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. If you’re in DC, expect high security and closed roads as leaders from around the world meet to discuss global security.
ICYMI, check out our blog post on the recent Supreme Court decision overturning the “Chevron doctrine”.
News Highlights
The House Appropriations Committee will mark up its final six appropriations bills this week, including the bills that fund NOAA, NSF, NASA, EPA, BOEM, DOI, and the Army Corps of Engineers tomorrow, July 9.
The Senate Appropriations Committee is formally starting its process to consider the Senate versions of the federal funding bills this week when they meet to consider three spending bills and approve the subcommittee allocations (spending limits) for all 12 bills.
Reps. Jared Huffman (D-CA-02), James Moylan (R-Guam-At Large), Ed Case (D-HI-01), and Mary Peltola (D-AK-At Large) introduced the bipartisan Sustaining America’s Fisheries for the Future Act to update and reauthorize the Magnuson-Stevens Act.
Important Dates and Deadlines
August 5 - September 6: August recess
September 30, 2024: end of fiscal year 2024
Check out our public Google calendar and printable PDF to keep track of the 2024 congressional schedule.
Upcoming Relevant Congressional Budget Hearings
Stay on top of appropriations markups and other key steps using our FY25 Appropriations Activity Tracker.
Tuesday, July 9, 2024
9:00AM — Full Committee Markup of Fiscal Year 2025 Commerce, Justice, and Science, Interior and Environment, and Energy and Water Development Bills; House Appropriations Committee
Wednesday, July 10, 2024
9:00AM — Full Committee Markup of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Agriculture, Rural Development, and Food and Drug Administration Bills and Revised Subcommittee Allocations; House Appropriations Committee
Thursday, July 11, 2024
9:30AM — Full Committee Markup of the MilCon-VA, Agriculture-FDA, and Legislative Branch Appropriations Acts and Fiscal Year 2025 Subcommittee Allocations; Senate Appropriations Committee
Upcoming Relevant Congressional Hearings
Tuesday, July 9, 2024
2:00PM — Legislative Hearing on H.R. 7544, H.R. 8308 & H.R. 8811; House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries
H.R. 7544 (Rep. Maloy), Water Rights Protection Act of 2024
H.R. 8308 (Rep. Harder), Nutria Eradication and Control Reauthorization Act of 2024
H.R. 8811 (Rep. Wittman), America’s Conservation Enhancement Reauthorization Act of 2024
Discussion Draft of H.R. ___ (Rep. Westerman), ESA Amendments Act of 2024
Hearing Recaps
On Thursday, June 27, 2024, the House Natural Resources Committee’s Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries held a legislative hearing on four ocean bills. The bills discussed were H.R. 6841, the Resilient Coasts and Estuaries Act; H.R. 7925, the Modernizing Access to Our Public Oceans (MAPOceans) Act; H.R. 8704, To require the Secretary of Commerce to establish a grant program to foster enhanced coexistence between ocean users and North Atlantic right whales and other large cetacean species; and H.R. 8705, the Fisheries Data Modernization and Accuracy Act of 2024.
The subcommittee heard from five witnesses:
Dr. Evan Howell, Director of NOAA Fisheries' Office of Science and Technology (Administration witness)
Dr. Jessica Redfern, Associate Vice President for Ocean Conservation Science, Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life at the New England Aquarium (H.R. 8704) (minority-invited witness)
Ms. Martha Guyas, Southeast Fisheries Policy Director for the American Sportfishing Association (H.R. 8705)
Mr. Jeff Strong, Owner, Strong's Marine; Chair of Marine Retailers Association of the Americas (H.R. 7925, H.R. 8704)
Mr. James McCurry Jr., Chief Operating Officer, Georgia Ports Authority (H.R. 8704)
The vast majority of Q&A focused on H.R.8704 and NOAA’s work to reduce vessel strikes to North Atlantic right whales through vessel speed rules. Republicans brought up potential economic impacts and human safety implications of reducing vessel speed, and Democrats argued for immediate action to protect the highly endangered species. Some Q&A focused on H.R.8705 and NOAA’s efforts to reform the Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP). Republicans pointed out MRIP’s shortcomings and argued that NOAA should be using higher-quality state recreational catch data. Democrats voiced support for the work NOAA is currently doing to improve MRIP and cautioned Congress against undermining scientific rigor.
Introductions
Reps. Jared Huffman (D-CA-02), James Moylan (R-Guam-At Large), Ed Case (D-HI-01), and Mary Peltola (D-AK-At Large) introduced the bipartisan Sustaining America’s Fisheries for the Future Act (H.R.8862) to update and reauthorize the Magnuson-Stevens Act (MSA), the primary law governing federal fisheries management and conservation in the U.S. The bill was informed by eight listening sessions Reps. Huffman and Case held over the past year.
Reps. Derek Kilmer (D-WA-06) and Darrell Issa (R-CA-48) introduced a bipartisan bill to improve the distribution of tsunami alerts to the public (H.R.8894).
Updates
The Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved the Water Resources Development Act of 2024 (WRDA), legislation that authorizes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) Civil Works Program for projects to improve the nation’s ports and harbors, inland waterway navigation, flood and storm protection, and other aspects of water resources infrastructure. The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee approved the Senate version of the bill at the end of May.
Fisheries and Ecosystems
EPA announced $22.4 million in grants to 13 selectees through the Innovative Nutrient & Sediment Reduction grant program to protect and restore the Chesapeake Bay.
The Department of Commerce announced the appointment of 22 new and returning members to six of the regional fishery management councils. Council members represent diverse groups, including commercial and recreational fishing industries, environmental organizations, and academia, along with state and federal agencies.
NOAA announced $10 million in funding through the BIL to support social science research related to flooding services and products to better understand how the public uses communication products and reacts to emergency announcements during floods and other weather events.
CEQ announced more than 50 new state, local, non-profit, and business organization additions to the America the Beautiful Freshwater Challenge, which sets goals to protect, restore, and reconnect 8 million acres of wetlands and 100,000 miles of our nation’s rivers and streams by 2030.
BLM released a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) analyzing the proposed revocation of existing withdrawals on 28 million acres of BLM-managed public lands across Alaska. The Final EIS identifies “no action” as the preferred alternative, which would retain current protections for these lands and avoid potential impacts to natural and cultural resources from future potential development.
USFWS announced $48.4 million in grants to 19 states and Guam to support land acquisition and conservation planning projects on over 23,000 acres of habitat for 80 listed and at-risk species through the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund (CESCF).
The International Scientific Committee for Tuna and Tuna-Like Species in the North Pacific Ocean (ISC), including NOAA Fisheries researchers, finalized the new stock assessment for Pacific bluefin tuna confirming that the stock reached its second rebuilding target in 2021 representing the largest recorded biomass since assessments began.
Ocean Data and Technology
NOAA announced $16.7 million in funding through the IRA across 12 awards to support the development of innovative new technologies and public-private partnerships focused on sustainability, equity, biodiversity and climate adaptation. These awards are part of the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System’s Marine Life and Ocean Technology Transition programs.
The administration announced $504 million in funding for 12 Regional Technology and Innovation Hubs (Tech Hubs) to accelerate the growth of innovative industries and position American workers, businesses, and communities to lead the industries of the future, such as semiconductors, clean energy, biotechnology, artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and more, strengthening national and economic security.
Offshore Wind and Energy
A new study from the DOE and academic partners finds significant increase in employment rates and income within 20 miles of operating wind projects. The benefits appear during project construction and persist into the operational period of a wind farm. Employment benefits are more pronounced for black workers, men, and both low-skilled and high-skilled workers.
DOE’s Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO) announced a $5 million funding opportunity to support programs that accelerate the commercialization and adoption of water power systems and solutions, including hydropower and marine energy.
DOI announced it will hold an offshore wind energy lease sale in the Central Atlantic. The areas are to be auctioned on August 14, 2024 by BOEM.
BOEM announced the approval of the New England Wind Construction and Operations Plan (COP), which authorizes construction and operation of two wind energy projects, New England Wind 1 and New England Wind 2.
DOI announced the approval of the Atlantic Shores South offshore wind energy project – the nation’s ninth commercial-scale, offshore wind energy project approved under the Biden Administration.
DOI released the Record of Decision (ROD) for the proposed Ambler Road project in Alaska, selecting the No Action Alternative from the April 2024 Ambler Road Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The decision means that the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) will not have a right-of-way across BLM-managed lands.
It’s Shark Week 2024! Did you know that sharks appear in the fossil record before trees? They have survived 5 mass extinction events but still face imminent threats due to bycatch and shark finning activities. Check out this page from NOAA for more fun facts about sharks.
Tagging smalltooth sawfish, Florida Everglades – NOAA