IB 

Union Calendar No. 264 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 1856 

[Report No. 108–326, Part I] 

To reauthorize the Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research and Control 

Act of 1998, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 29, 2003 

Mr. EHLERS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science, and in addition to the Committee on Resources, for 

a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 

consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

OCTOBER 24, 2003 

Reported from the Committee on Science with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

OCTOBER 24, 2003 

Referral to the Committee on Resources extended for a period ending not later 

than October 31, 2003 

OCTOBER 31, 2003 

Referral to the Committee on Resources extended for a period ending not later 

than November 7, 2003 

NOVEMBER 7, 2003 

Referral to the Committee on Resources extended for a period ending not later 

than November 21, 2003 

NOVEMBER 7, 2003 

Referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure for a period 

ending not later than November 21, 2003, for consideration of such provisions of the bill and amendment as fall within the jurisdiction of that 

committee pursuant to clause 1(q), rule X 
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NOVEMBER 21, 2003 

Referral to the Committees on Resources and Transportation and 

Infrastructure extended for a period ending not later than January 31, 2004 

JANUARY 31, 2004 

Referral to the Committees on Resources, and Transportation and 

Infrastructure extended for a period ending not later than April 2, 2004 

APRIL 2, 2004 

Additional sponsors: Mr. ENGLISH, Ms. KAPTUR, Mr. BONNER, Mr. UPTON, 

Mr. GREENWOOD, Mr. MCHUGH, Mr. BROWN of Ohio, Mr. HOLT, Ms. 

LEE, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. PUTNAM, Ms. HARRIS, Mr. LIPINSKI, 

Mr. BURR, Mr. DELAHUNT, Mr. KLINE, Mrs. DAVIS of California, Mr. 

HONDA, Mr. KIND, Mrs. JONES of Ohio, and Mr. DAVIS of Florida 

APRIL 2, 2004 

Committees on Resources, and Transportation and Infrastructure discharged; 

committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the 

Union and ordered to be printed 

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on April 29, 2003] 

A BILL 

To reauthorize the Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia 

Research and Control Act of 1998, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Harmful Algal Bloom 

5 and Hypoxia Research Amendments Act of 2003’’. 

6 SEC. 2. RETENTION OF TASK FORCE. 

7 Section 603 of the Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia 

8 Research and Control Act of 1998 (16 U.S.C. 1451 note) 

9 is amended by striking subsection (e). 
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1 SEC. 3. SCIENTIFIC ASSESSMENTS AND RESEARCH PLANS. 

2 Such section 603 is further amended— 

3 (1) in subsection (a) by adding at the end the 

4 following: 

5 ‘‘In developing the assessments and research plans described 

6 in subsections (b), (c), (d), (e), and (f), the Task Force shall 

7 work with appropriate State, Indian tribe, and local gov8 ernments to ensure that the assessments and research plans 

9 fulfill the requirements of subsections (b)(2), (c)(2), (d)(2), 

10 (e)(2), and (f)(2). Additionally, the Task Force shall consult 

11 with appropriate industry, academic institutions, and non12 governmental organizations throughout the development of 

13 the assessments and research plans.’’; and 

14 (2) by striking subsections (b) and (c) and in15 serting the following: 

16 ‘‘(b) SCIENTIFIC ASSESSMENTS OF HARMFUL ALGAL

17 BLOOMS.—(1) Not less than once every 5 years the Task 

18 Force shall complete and submit to the Committee on 

19 Science of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

20 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 

21 a scientific assessment of harmful algal blooms in United 

22 States coastal waters. The first such assessment shall be 

23 completed not later than 24 months after the date of enact24 ment of the Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research 

25 Amendments Act of 2003 and should consider only marine 

26 harmful algal blooms. All subsequent assessments shall ex-
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1 amine both marine and freshwater harmful algal blooms, 

2 including those in the Great Lakes and upper reaches of 

3 estuaries. 

4 ‘‘(2) The assessments under this subsection shall— 

5 ‘‘(A) examine the causes and ecological con6 sequences, and economic costs, of harmful algal 

7 blooms; 

8 ‘‘(B) describe the potential ecological and eco9 nomic costs and benefits of possible policy and man10 agement actions for preventing, controlling, and miti11 gating harmful algal blooms; 

12 ‘‘(C) evaluate progress made by, and the needs 

13 of, Federal research programs on the causes, charac14 teristics, and impacts of harmful algal blooms; and 

15 ‘‘(D) identify ways to improve coordination and 

16 to prevent unnecessary duplication of effort among 

17 Federal agencies and departments with respect to re18 search on harmful algal blooms. 

19 ‘‘(c) SCIENTIFIC ASSESSMENT OF FRESHWATER

20 HARMFUL ALGAL BLOOMS.—(1) Not later than 24 months 

21 after the date of enactment of the Harmful Algal Bloom and 

22 Hypoxia Research Amendments Act of 2003 the Task Force 

23 shall complete and submit to the Committee on Science of 

24 the House of Representatives and the Committee on Com25 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a sci-
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1 entific assessment of current knowledge about harmful algal 

2 blooms in freshwater locations such as the Great Lakes and 

3 upper reaches of estuaries, including a research plan for 

4 coordinating Federal efforts to better understand freshwater 

5 harmful algal blooms. 

6 ‘‘(2) The freshwater harmful algal bloom scientific as7 sessment shall— 

8 ‘‘(A) examine the causes and ecological con9 sequences, and the economic costs, of harmful algal 

10 blooms with significant effects on freshwater locations, 

11 including estimations of the frequency and occurrence 

12 of significant events; 

13 ‘‘(B) establish priorities and guidelines for a 

14 competitive, peer-reviewed, merit-based interagency 

15 research program, as part of the Ecology and Ocean16 ography of Harmful Algal Blooms (ECOHAB) 

17 project, to better understand the causes, characteris18 tics, and impacts of harmful algal blooms in fresh19 water locations; and 

20 ‘‘(C) identify ways to improve coordination and 

21 to prevent unnecessary duplication of effort among 

22 Federal agencies and departments with respect to re23 search on harmful algal blooms in freshwater locations. 

24 ‘‘(d) NATIONAL SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH PLAN INTO

25 REDUCING IMPACTS FROM HARMFUL ALGAL BLOOMS.—(1) 
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1 Not later than 12 months after the date of enactment of 

2 the Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research Amend3 ments Act of 2003, the Task Force shall develop and submit 

4 to the Committee on Science of the House of Representatives 

5 and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor6 tation of the Senate a research plan providing for a com7 prehensive and coordinated national research program to 

8 develop prevention, control, and mitigation methods to re9 duce the impacts of harmful algal blooms on coastal eco10 systems (including the Great Lakes), public health, and the 

11 economy. 

12 ‘‘(2) The research plan shall— 

13 ‘‘(A) establish priorities and guidelines for a 

14 competitive, peer-reviewed, merit-based interagency 

15 research program on methods for the prevention, con16 trol, and mitigation of harmful algal blooms; 

17 ‘‘(B) identify ways to improve coordination and 

18 to prevent unnecessary duplication of effort among 

19 Federal agencies and departments with respect to the 

20 actions described in paragraph (1); and 

21 ‘‘(C) include to the maximum extent practicable 

22 diverse institutions, including Historically Black Col23 leges and Universities and those serving large propor24 tions of Hispanics, Native Americans, Asian-Pacific 

25 Americans, and other underrepresented populations. 
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1 ‘‘(3) The Secretary of Commerce, under the Coastal 

2 Ocean Science Program established under section 201(c) of 

3 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Au4 thorization Act of 1992, and in conjunction with other ap5 propriate Federal agencies, shall establish a research pro6 gram that meets the priorities and guidelines established 

7 under paragraph (2)(A). The Secretary shall ensure, 

8 through consultation with Sea Grant Programs, that the 

9 results and findings of the research program are commu10 nicated to State, Indian tribe, and local governments, and 

11 to the general public. 

12 ‘‘(e) SCIENTIFIC ASSESSMENTS OF HYPOXIA.—(1) Not 

13 less than once every 5 years the Task Force shall complete 

14 and submit to the Committee on Science of the House of 

15 Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

16 and Transportation of the Senate a scientific assessment 

17 of hypoxia in United States coastal waters including the 

18 Great Lakes. The first such assessment shall be completed 

19 not less than 12 months after the date of enactment of the 

20 Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research Amendments 

21 Act of 2003. 

22 ‘‘(2) The assessments under this subsection shall— 

23 ‘‘(A) examine the causes and ecological con24 sequences, and the economic costs, of hypoxia; 
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1 ‘‘(B) describe the potential ecological and eco2 nomic costs and benefits of possible policy and man3 agement actions for preventing, controlling, and miti4 gating hypoxia; 

5 ‘‘(C) evaluate progress made by, and the needs 

6 of, Federal research programs on the causes, charac7 teristics, and impacts of hypoxia, including rec8 ommendations of how to eliminate significant gaps in 

9 hypoxia modeling and monitoring data; and 

10 ‘‘(D) identify ways to improve coordination and 

11 to prevent unnecessary duplication of effort among 

12 Federal agencies and departments with respect to re13 search on hypoxia. 

14 ‘‘(f) LOCAL AND REGIONAL SCIENTIFIC ASSESS15 MENTS.—(1) The Secretary of Commerce, in coordination 

16 with the Task Force and appropriate State, Indian tribe, 

17 and local governments, shall provide for local and regional 

18 scientific assessments of hypoxia or harmful algal blooms, 

19 as requested by State, Indian tribe, or local governments, 

20 or for affected areas as identified by the Secretary. If the 

21 Secretary receives multiple requests, the Secretary shall en22 sure, to the extent practicable, that assessments under this 

23 subsection cover geographically and ecologically diverse lo24 cations with significant ecological and economic impacts 

25 from hypoxia or harmful algal blooms. The Secretary shall 
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1 establish a procedure for reviewing requests for local and 

2 regional assessments. The Secretary shall ensure, through 

3 consultation with Sea Grant Programs, that the findings 

4 of the assessments are communicated to the appropriate 

5 State, Indian tribe, and local governments, and to the gen6 eral public. 

7 ‘‘(2) The scientific assessments under this subsection 

8 shall examine— 

9 ‘‘(A) the causes and ecological consequences, and 

10 the economic costs, of hypoxia or harmful algal 

11 blooms in that area; 

12 ‘‘(B) methods to prevent, control, and mitigate 

13 hypoxia or harmful algal blooms in that area and the 

14 potential ecological and economic costs and benefits of 

15 such methods; and 

16 ‘‘(C) other topics the Task Force considers appro17 priate.’’. 

18 SEC. 4. PREDICTION AND RESPONSE PLAN. 

19 Section 603 of such Act is further amended by adding 

20 at the end the following new subsection: 

21 ‘‘(g) PREDICTION AND RESPONSE PLAN.— 

22 ‘‘(1) DEVELOPMENT OF PLAN.—Not later than 12 

23 months after the date of enactment of the Harmful 

24 Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research Amendments Act 

25 of 2003, the President, in conjunction with the chief 
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1 executive officers of the States, shall develop and sub2 mit to the Congress a plan to protect the environment 

3 and public health from impacts of harmful algal 

4 blooms. In developing the plan, the President shall 

5 consult with the Task Force, the coastal States, In6 dian tribes, local governments, industry, academic in7 stitutions, and nongovernmental organizations with 

8 appropriate expertise. 

9 ‘‘(2) PLAN REQUIREMENTS.—The plan shall— 

10 ‘‘(A) review techniques for prediction of the 

11 onset, course, and impacts of harmful algal 

12 blooms, including an evaluation of their accu13 racy and utility in protecting the environment 

14 and public health and an assessment of the re15 sources required for their implementation; and 

16 ‘‘(B) identify innovative response measures 

17 for the prevention, control, and mitigation of 

18 harmful algal blooms and identify steps needed 

19 for their development and implementation. 

20 ‘‘(3) PUBLICATION AND OPPORTUNITY FOR COM21 MENT.—At least 90 days before submitting the plan 

22 to Congress, the President shall publish a summary of 

23 the proposed plan in the Federal Register for a public 

24 comment period of not less than 60 days.’’. 
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1 SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

2 Section 605 of such Act is amended to read as follows: 

3 ‘‘SEC. 605. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

4 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec5 retary of Commerce for research, education, and monitoring 

6 activities related to the prevention, reduction, and control 

7 of harmful algal blooms and hypoxia, $29,200,000 for fiscal 

8 year 2004, $30,700,000 for fiscal year 2005, and 

9 $31,200,000 for fiscal year 2006, to remain available until 

10 expended. The Secretary shall consult with the States on 

11 a regular basis regarding the development and implementa12 tion of the activities authorized under this title. Of such 

13 amounts for each fiscal year— 

14 ‘‘(1) $3,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2004, 

15 2005, and 2006 shall be used to enable the National 

16 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to carry 

17 out research and assessment activities, including pro18 curement of necessary research equipment, at research 

19 laboratories of the National Ocean Service and the 

20 National Marine Fisheries Service; 

21 ‘‘(2) $10,200,000 for each of fiscal years 2004, 

22 2005, and 2006 shall be used to carry out the Ecology 

23 and Oceanography of Harmful Algal Blooms 

24 (ECOHAB) project under the Coastal Ocean Science 

25 Program established under section 201(c) of the Na26 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Au-
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1 thorization Act of 1992, with $2,000,000 of such 

2 amount used to carry out research on freshwater 

3 harmful algal blooms; 

4 ‘‘(3) $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2004, $3,000,000 

5 for fiscal year 2005, and $3,000,000 for fiscal year 

6 2006 shall be used to carry out the research program 

7 described in section 603(d)(3); 

8 ‘‘(4) $6,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2004, 

9 2005, and 2006 shall be used to carry out the Moni10 toring and Event Response for Harmful Algal Blooms 

11 (MERHAB) project under the Coastal Ocean Science 

12 Program established under section 201(c) of the Na13 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Au14 thorization Act of 1992; 

15 ‘‘(5) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2004, $5,500,000 

16 for fiscal year 2005, and $6,000,000 for fiscal year 

17 2006 shall be used for activities related to research 

18 and monitoring on hypoxia through the Coastal 

19 Ocean Science Program established under section 

20 201(c) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad21 ministration Authorization Act of 1992; and 

22 ‘‘(6) $3,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2004, 

23 2005, and 2006 shall be used to carry out the activi24 ties described in section 603(f).’’. 
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1 SEC. 6. COASTAL OCEAN SCIENCE PROGRAM. 

2 Section 201(c) of the National Oceanic and Atmos3 pheric Administration Authorization Act of 1992 is amend4 ed to read as follows: 

5 ‘‘(c) COASTAL OCEAN SCIENCE PROGRAM.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There shall be in the Na7 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration a 

8 Coastal Ocean Science Program that supports Great 

9 Lakes, estuarine, and coastal ocean research and as10 sessment through competitive, peer-reviewed, and 

11 merit-based research programs. 

12 ‘‘(2) PROGRAM ELEMENTS.—The Coastal Ocean 

13 Science Program shall augment and integrate existing 

14 research capabilities of the National Oceanic and At15 mospheric Administration, other Federal agencies, 

16 and the academic community. Research shall be con17 ducted to improve predictions of ecosystem trends in 

18 Great Lakes, estuarine, and coastal ocean resources; 

19 to better conserve and manage living marine re20 sources; to improve predictions of effects of coastal 

21 and Great Lakes pollution to help correct and prevent 

22 environmental degradation; to improve understanding 

23 and characterization of the role oceans play in global 

24 climate and environmental analysis; and to improve 

25 predictions of coastal hazards to protect human life, 

26 personal property, and ecosystem function. 
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1 ‘‘(3) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

2 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec3 retary of Commerce for implementing the Coastal 

4 Ocean Science Program $34,000,000 for fiscal year 

5 2004, $36,000,000 for fiscal year 2005, and 

6 $38,000,000 for fiscal year 2006.’’. 

Union Calendar No. 264 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 1856 

[Report No. 108–326, Part I] 

A BILL 

To reauthorize the Harmful Algal Bloom and Hyother purposes. poxia Research and Control Act of 1998, and for 

APRIL 2, 2004 

Committees on Resources, and Transportation and Infradered to be printed the Whole House on the State of the Union and or- structure discharged; committed to the Committee of