I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 10508 

To amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to support the responsible 

development of offshore renewable energy projects, establish the Offshore 

Power Administration, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 18, 2024 

Mr. TONKO introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Natural Resources, and in addition to the Committees on Energy and 

Commerce, and Science, Space, and Technology, 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 

A BILL 

To amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to support 

the responsible development of offshore renewable energy 

projects, establish the Offshore Power Administration, 

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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Offshore Energy Modernization Act of 2024’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 


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Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. National offshore wind permitting goals. 

Sec. 3. Responsible development of offshore renewable energy projects. 

Sec. 4. Offshore renewable energy compensation fund. 

Sec. 5. Improving environmental and cultural reviews to ensure timely permitting decisions. 

Sec. 6. Report on decommissioning of offshore renewable energy projects. 

Sec. 7. Offshore Power Administration. 

Sec. 8. Offshore transmission infrastructure studies and recommendations. 

Sec. 9. Interoperability of offshore electric transmission infrastructure. 

Sec. 10. Offshore wind shipbuilding. 

Sec. 11. Access to offshore renewable energy areas. 

Sec. 12. Definitions. 

1 SEC. 2. NATIONAL OFFSHORE WIND PERMITTING GOALS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior 

3 shall, in consultation with the Secretary of Energy and 

4 other relevant Federal agencies and State governments, 

5 establish and periodically update national goals for off6 shore wind energy production on the outer Continental 

7 Shelf. 

8 (b) MINIMUM PRODUCTION REQUIREMENTS FOR

9 2030 AND 2035.—Through management of the outer Con10 tinental Shelf and administration of the Outer Continental 

11 Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.), the Secretary 

12 of the Interior shall seek to issue permits that, in total, 

13 authorize production of electricity from offshore wind en14 ergy projects of not less than— 

15 (1) 30 gigawatts of electricity by not later than 

16 2030; and 

17 (2) 50 gigawatts of electricity by not later than 

18 2035. 


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1 SEC. 3. RESPONSIBLE DEVELOPMENT OF OFFSHORE RE2 NEWABLE ENERGY PROJECTS. 

3 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 2 of the Outer Conti4 nental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331) is amended— 

5 (1) in the definition for the term ‘‘State’’, as 

6 added by section 50251(b)(1)(A)(iv) of Public Law 

7 117–169— 

8 (A) by redesignating such definition as 

9 subsection (t); and 

10 (B) by inserting after the enumerator 

11 ‘‘STATE.—’’; and 

12 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(u) OFFSHORE RENEWABLE ENERGY PROJECT.— 

14 The term ‘offshore renewable energy project’ means a 

15 project to carry out an activity described in section 

16 8(p)(1)(C) related to wind, solar, wave, or tidal energy.’’. 

17 (b) NATIONAL POLICY FOR THE OUTER CONTI18 NENTAL SHELF.—Section 3 of the Outer Continental 

19 Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1332) is amended— 

20 (1) by amending paragraph (3) to read as fol21 lows: 

22 ‘‘(3) the outer Continental Shelf is a vital na23 tional resource reserve held by the Federal Govern24 ment for the public, which should be made available 

25 for expeditious and orderly development, subject to 


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1 environmental safeguards and coexistence with other 

2 ocean users, in a manner which includes— 

3 ‘‘(A) supporting the generation, trans4 mission, and storage of zero-emission electricity; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(B) the maintenance of competition and 

7 other national needs, including the need to 

8 achieve State, Tribal, and Federal zero-emission 

9 electricity or renewable energy mandates, tar10 gets, and goals;’’; 

11 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (5) and (6) as 

12 paragraphs (6) and (7), respectively; and 

13 (3) by inserting after paragraph (4) the fol14 lowing: 

15 ‘‘(5) the identification, development, and pro16 duction of lease areas for offshore renewable energy 

17 projects should be determined by a robust and trans18 parent stakeholder process that incorporates engage19 ment and input from a diverse group of ocean users 

20 and other impacted stakeholders, as well as Federal, 

21 State, Tribal, and local governments;’’. 

22 (c) LEASES, EASEMENTS, AND RIGHTS-OF-WAY ON

23 THE OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF.—Section 8(p) of the 

24 Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1337(p)) 

25 is amended— 


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1 (1) in paragraph (2)— 

2 (A) in subparagraph (B)— 

3 (i) by striking ‘‘27’’ and inserting 

4 ‘‘17’’; 

5 (ii) by striking ‘‘three’’ and inserting 

6 ‘‘100’’; and 

7 (iii) by striking ‘‘15’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘100’’; and 

9 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(C) PAYMENTS FOR CONSERVATION AND MITI11 GATION ACTIVITIES.— 

12 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding sec13 tion 9, the Secretary shall, without appropria14 tion or fiscal year limitation, use 10 percent of 

15 the revenue received by the Federal Govern16 ment from royalties, fees, rents, bonuses, and 

17 other payments from any lease, easement, or 

18 right-of-way granted under this subsection to 

19 provide grants to— 

20 ‘‘(I) State, local, and Tribal govern21 ments, and regional partnerships thereof, 

22 including regional ocean partnerships, re23 gional wildlife science collaboratives, and 

24 similar organizations; and 

25 ‘‘(II) nonprofit organizations. 


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1 ‘‘(ii) USE OF GRANTS.—Grants provided 

2 under clause (i) shall be used for carrying out 

3 activities related to marine and coastal habitat 

4 protection and restoration, mitigation of dam5 age to natural and cultural resources and ma6 rine life resulting from activities authorized by 

7 this subsection, relevant research and data 

8 sharing initiatives, or increasing the organiza9 tional capacity of an entity described in sub10 clause (I) or (II) of clause (i) to increase the 

11 effectiveness of entities that carry out such ac12 tivities. 

13 ‘‘(D) OFFSHORE RENEWABLE ENERGY COM14 PENSATION FUND.—Notwithstanding section 9, the 

15 Secretary shall, without appropriation or fiscal year 

16 limitation, deposit 10 percent of the revenue received 

17 by the Federal Government from royalties, fees, 

18 rents, bonuses, and other payments from any lease, 

19 easement, or right-of-way granted under this sub20 section into the Offshore Renewable Energy Com21 pensation Fund established under section 34.’’; 

22 (2) by amending paragraph (3) to read as fol23 lows: 

24 ‘‘(3) LEASING.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) COMPETITIVE OR NONCOMPETITIVE

2 BASIS.—The Secretary shall issue a lease, ease3 ment, or right-of-way under paragraph (1) on a 

4 competitive basis unless the Secretary deter5 mines after public notice of a proposed lease, 

6 easement, or right-of-way that there is no com7 petitive interest. 

8 ‘‘(B) SCHEDULE OF OFFSHORE RENEW9 ABLE ENERGY LEASE SALES.—The Secretary 

10 shall, after providing an opportunity for public 

11 notice and comment, publish and periodically 

12 update a schedule of areas that may be avail13 able for leasing in the future for offshore re14 newable energy projects, indicating, to the ex15 tent possible, the timing of site identification 

16 activities, the timing of designation of any area 

17 to be leased, the anticipated size of such areas, 

18 the timing of lease sales, and the location of 

19 leasing activities. 

20 ‘‘(C) MULTI-FACTOR BIDDING.— 

21 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary 

22 may consider non-monetary factors when 

23 competitively awarding leases under para24 graph (1), which may include commitments 

25 made by the bidder to— 


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1 ‘‘(I) support educational, train2 ing, and skills development, including 

3 supporting or increasing access to reg4 istered apprenticeship programs, pre5 apprenticeship programs, and Tribal 

6 apprenticeships programs that have 

7 an articulation agreement with a reg8 istered apprenticeship program for 

9 offshore renewable energy projects; 

10 ‘‘(II) support development of do11 mestic supply chains for offshore re12 newable energy projects, including de13 velopment of ports and other energy 

14 infrastructure necessary to facilitate 

15 offshore renewable energy projects; 

16 ‘‘(III) establish a community 

17 benefit agreement with one or more 

18 community or stakeholder groups that 

19 may be impacted by the development 

20 and operation of an offshore renew21 able project, which may include cov22 ered entities; 

23 ‘‘(IV) make investments to evalu24 ate, monitor, improve, and mitigate 

25 impacts to the health and biodiversity 


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1 of ecosystems and wildlife from the 

2 development and operation of an off3 shore renewable energy project; 

4 ‘‘(V) support the development 

5 and use of shared transmission infra6 structure connecting to offshore re7 newable energy projects; 

8 ‘‘(VI) make investments in the 

9 preservation of Tribal cultural re10 sources and mitigate any impacts 

11 from the development and operation 

12 of an offshore renewable energy 

13 project on such resources; and 

14 ‘‘(VII) make other investments 

15 determined appropriate by the Sec16 retary. 

17 ‘‘(ii) CONTRACTUAL COMMITMENTS.— 

18 When considering non-monetary factors 

19 under this subparagraph, the Secretary 

20 may— 

21 ‘‘(I) evaluate the quality of com22 mitments made by the bidder; and 

23 ‘‘(II) reward finalized binding 

24 agreements above assurances for fu25 ture commitments. 


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1 ‘‘(iii) DEFINITIONS.—In this subpara2 graph: 

3 ‘‘(I) COVERED ENTITY.—The 

4 term ‘covered entity’ has the meaning 

5 given such term in section 34(k). 

6 ‘‘(II) REGISTERED APPRENTICE7 SHIP PROGRAM.—The term ‘registered 

8 apprenticeship program’ means an ap9 prenticeship program registered under 

10 the Act of August 16, 1937 (com11 monly known as the National Appren12 ticeship Act; 50 Stat. 664, chapter 

13 663; 29 U.S.C. 50 et seq.).’’; 

14 (3) by amending paragraph (4) to read as fol15 lows: 

16 ‘‘(4) REQUIREMENTS.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

18 ensure that any activity under this subsection is 

19 carried out in a manner that provides for— 

20 ‘‘(i) safety; 

21 ‘‘(ii) protection of the environment, 

22 which includes facilitation of the genera23 tion, transmission, and storage of zero24 emission electricity; 

25 ‘‘(iii) prevention of waste; 


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1 ‘‘(iv) conservation of the natural re2 sources of the outer Continental Shelf; 

3 ‘‘(v) conservation of Tribal cultural 

4 resources of the outer Continental Shelf; 

5 ‘‘(vi) coordination with relevant Fed6 eral agencies and State, Tribal, and local 

7 governments; 

8 ‘‘(vii) protection of national security 

9 interests of the United States; 

10 ‘‘(viii) protection of correlative rights 

11 in the outer Continental Shelf; 

12 ‘‘(ix) a fair return to the United 

13 States for any lease, easement, or right-of14 way under this subsection; 

15 ‘‘(x) accommodation of reasonable 

16 uses (as determined by the Secretary) of 

17 the exclusive economic zone, the high seas, 

18 and the territorial seas; 

19 ‘‘(xi) consideration of— 

20 ‘‘(I) the location of, and any 

21 schedule relating to, a lease, ease22 ment, or right-of-way for an area of 

23 the outer Continental Shelf; and 

24 ‘‘(II) any other use of the sea or 

25 seabed, including use for a fishery, a 


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1 sealane, a potential site of a deep2 water port, or navigation; 

3 ‘‘(xii) public notice and comment, and 

4 Tribal consultation in accordance with 

5 paragraph (7), on any proposal submitted 

6 for a lease, easement, or right-of-way 

7 under this subsection; 

8 ‘‘(xiii) oversight, inspection, research, 

9 monitoring, and enforcement relating to a 

10 lease, easement, or right-of-way under this 

11 subsection; and 

12 ‘‘(xiv) satisfaction or partial satisfac13 tion of any applicable State and Federal 

14 renewable and clean energy mandates, tar15 gets, and goals. 

16 ‘‘(B) PROJECT LABOR AGREEMENTS.— 

17 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Beginning not 

18 later than January 1, 2026, the Secretary 

19 shall require, as a term or condition of 

20 each lease, right-of-way, and easement, as 

21 applicable, for an offshore renewable en22 ergy project, that the holder of the lease, 

23 right-of-way, or easement, (and any suc24 cessor or assignee) and its agents, contrac25 tors, and subcontractors engaged in the 


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1 construction of any facilities for such off2 shore renewable energy project agree, for 

3 purposes of such construction, to negotiate 

4 and become a party to a project labor 

5 agreement with one or more labor organi6 zations. A project labor agreement shall 

7 bind all contractors and subcontractors on 

8 the project through the inclusion of appro9 priate specifications in all relevant solicita10 tion provisions and contract documents. 

11 The Secretary shall not approve a con12 struction and operations plan with respect 

13 to any offshore renewable energy project 

14 until being assured by the lessee that such 

15 project labor agreement will be maintained 

16 for the duration of the project. 

17 ‘‘(ii) DEFINITIONS.—In this subpara18 graph: 

19 ‘‘(I) CONSTRUCTION.—The term 

20 ‘construction’ includes reconstruction, 

21 rehabilitation, modernization, alter22 ation, conversion, extension, repair, or 

23 improvement of any facility, structure, 

24 or other real property (including any 


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1 onshore facilities) for an offshore re2 newable energy project. 

3 ‘‘(II) LABOR ORGANIZATION.— 

4 The term ‘labor organization’ means a 

5 labor organization as defined in sec6 tion 2(5) of the National Labor Rela7 tions Act (29 U.S.C. 152(5))— 

8 ‘‘(aa) of which building and 

9 construction employees are mem10 bers; and 

11 ‘‘(bb) that directly, or 

12 through its affiliates, sponsors a 

13 registered apprenticeship pro14 gram. 

15 ‘‘(III) PROJECT LABOR AGREE16 MENT.—The term ‘project labor 

17 agreement’ means a pre-hire collective 

18 bargaining agreement with one or 

19 more labor organizations that estab20 lishes the terms and conditions of em21 ployment for a specific construction 

22 project and is an agreement described 

23 in section 8(e) and (f) of the National 

24 Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 

25 158(f)). 


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1 ‘‘(IV) REGISTERED APPRENTICE2 SHIP PROGRAM.—The term ‘registered 

3 apprenticeship program’ means an ap4 prenticeship program registered under 

5 the Act of August 16, 1937 (com6 monly known as the National Appren7 ticeship Act; 50 Stat. 664, chapter 

8 663; 29 U.S.C. 50 et seq.). 

9 ‘‘(C) DOMESTIC CONTENT.— 

10 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—With respect to 

11 the construction of facilities for an offshore 

12 renewable energy project that begins after 

13 January 1, 2032, the Secretary shall re14 quire that— 

15 ‘‘(I) all structural iron and steel 

16 products that are (upon completion of 

17 construction) components of such fa18 cilities shall be; and 

19 ‘‘(II) not less than 65 percent of 

20 the total costs of all manufactured 

21 products that are (upon completion of 

22 construction) components of such fa23 cilities shall be attributable to manu24 factured products which are mined, 


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1 produced, or manufactured in the 

2 United States. 

3 ‘‘(ii) WAIVER.—The Secretary may 

4 waive the requirements of clause (i) in any 

5 case or category of cases in which the Sec6 retary finds that— 

7 ‘‘(I) applying clause (i) would be 

8 inconsistent with the public interest; 

9 ‘‘(II) such products are not pro10 duced in the United States in suffi11 cient and reasonably available quan12 tities and of a satisfactory quality; or 

13 ‘‘(III) the use of such products 

14 will increase the cost of the overall 

15 project by more than 25 percent. 

16 ‘‘(iii) PUBLIC NOTIFICATION.—If the 

17 Secretary receives a request for a waiver 

18 under this subparagraph, the Secretary 

19 shall make available to the public a copy of 

20 the request and information available to 

21 the Secretary concerning the request, and 

22 shall allow for informal public input on the 

23 request for at least 15 business days prior 

24 to making a finding based on the request. 

25 The Secretary shall make the request and 


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1 accompanying information available to the 

2 public by electronic means, including on 

3 the official public Internet site of the De4 partment of the Interior. 

5 ‘‘(iv) INTERNATIONAL AGREE6 MENTS.—This paragraph shall be applied 

7 in a manner consistent with United States 

8 obligations under international agreements. 

9 ‘‘(v) DEFINITION OF PRODUCED IN

10 THE UNITED STATES.—In this subpara11 graph, the term ‘produced in the United 

12 States’ means, in the case of iron or steel 

13 products, that all manufacturing processes, 

14 from the initial melting stage through the 

15 application of coatings, occurred in the 

16 United States.’’; 

17 (4) by amending paragraph (7) to read as fol18 lows: 

19 ‘‘(7) COORDINATION AND CONSULTATION.— 

20 ‘‘(A) STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS.— 

21 The Secretary shall provide for coordination 

22 and consultation with the Governor of any 

23 State or the executive of any local government 

24 that may be affected by a lease, easement, or 

25 right-of-way under this subsection. 


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1 ‘‘(B) TRIBAL CONSULTATION.— 

2 ‘‘(i) REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary 

3 shall conduct meaningful and timely con4 sultation with Indian Tribes (following the 

5 procedures of Executive Order 13175 (25 

6 U.S.C. 5301 note), the President’s Memo7 randum of Uniform Standards for Tribal 

8 Consultation, issued on November 30, 

9 2022, or any subsequent order) before un10 dertaking any activities under this sub11 section, including holding a lease sale, that 

12 may have a direct, indirect, or cumulative 

13 impact on— 

14 ‘‘(I) the land, including allotted, 

15 ceded, or traditional land, or interests 

16 in such land of an Indian Tribe or 

17 member of an Indian Tribe; 

18 ‘‘(II) Tribal land, cultural prac19 tices, resources, or access to tradi20 tional areas of cultural or religious 

21 importance; 

22 ‘‘(III) any part of any Federal 

23 land that shares a border with Indian 

24 country, as such term is defined in 


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1 section 1151 of title 18, United States 

2 Code; 

3 ‘‘(IV) the protected rights of an 

4 Indian Tribe, whether or not such 

5 rights are enumerated in a treaty, in6 cluding water, hunting, gathering, and 

7 fishing rights; 

8 ‘‘(V) the ability of an Indian 

9 Tribe to govern or provide services to 

10 members of the Indian Tribe; 

11 ‘‘(VI) the relationship between 

12 the Federal Government and an In13 dian Tribe; or 

14 ‘‘(VII) the trust responsibility of 

15 the Federal Government to an Indian 

16 Tribe. 

17 ‘‘(ii) CONFIDENTIAL AND SENSITIVE

18 INFORMATION.— 

19 ‘‘(I) CLOSED MEETING.—Not20 withstanding any other provision of 

21 law, at the request of the applicable 

22 Indian Tribe or Tribal government, 

23 any Tribal consultation process con24 ducted for the purpose of carrying out 


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1 this subparagraph shall be closed to 

2 the public. 

3 ‘‘(II) TREATMENT OF DES4 IGNATED INFORMATION.—Notwith5 standing any other provision of law, 

6 during a Tribal consultation process 

7 conducted for the purpose of carrying 

8 out this subparagraph, if the applica9 ble Indian Tribe or Tribal government 

10 designates any information, such as 

11 the location of a sacred site or other 

12 detail of a cultural or religious prac13 tice, as sensitive, that information 

14 shall be protected by law as confiden15 tial and withheld from any public dis16 closure or publication made as part of 

17 such Tribal consultation process or in 

18 any other process of carrying out this 

19 Act. 

20 ‘‘(III) ACCESS TO DESIGNATED

21 INFORMATION.—If information has 

22 been designated as sensitive under 

23 subclause (II), the Secretary shall de24 termine, in consultation with the ap25 plicable Indian Tribe or Tribal govVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:48 Jan 27, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H10508.IH H10508

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1 ernment, who may have access to the 

2 information for the purposes of car3 rying out this Act.’’; 

4 (5) by amending paragraph (10) to read as fol5 lows: 

6 ‘‘(10) APPLICABILITY.— 

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—This subsection does 

8 not apply to any area on the outer Continental 

9 Shelf within the exterior boundaries of any unit 

10 of the National Park System, National Wildlife 

11 Refuge System, or National Marine Sanctuary 

12 System, or any National Monument. 

13 ‘‘(B) CERTAIN TRANSMISSION INFRA14 STRUCTURE.— 

15 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding 

16 subparagraph (A), if otherwise authorized 

17 pursuant to the National Marine Sanc18 tuaries Act (16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.), the 

19 Secretary may issue a lease, easement, or 

20 right-of-way to enable the transmission of 

21 electricity generated by an offshore renew22 able energy project. 

23 ‘‘(ii) TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—In 

24 issuing a lease, easement, or right-of-way 

25 under clause (i), the Secretary may apVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:48 Jan 27, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H10508.IH H10508

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1 prove and regulate, as necessary, the con2 struction and operation of transmission fa3 cilities and related infrastructure for the 

4 transmission of electricity generated by an 

5 offshore renewable energy project in a 

6 manner that minimizes environmental im7 pacts and harm to Tribal cultural re8 sources. 

9 ‘‘(iii) COORDINATION.—In approving 

10 and regulating the construction and oper11 ation of facilities under clause (ii), the Sec12 retary shall coordinate with the Secretary 

13 of Commerce to ensure the duration of any 

14 necessary authorizations of such facilities 

15 under the National Marine Sanctuaries Act 

16 aligns with the duration of the relevant 

17 leases, easements, or rights-of-way issued 

18 under clause (i).’’; and 

19 (6) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(11) PLANNING AREA IMPACT STUDIES.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Beginning three years 

22 after the date of enactment of this paragraph, 

23 before holding any lease sale pursuant to para24 graph (1) for an area, the Secretary shall con25 duct a study of such area, or the wider planVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:48 Jan 27, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H10508.IH H10508

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1 ning area that includes such area, in order to 

2 establish information needed for assessment 

3 and management of the environmental impacts 

4 on the human, marine, and coastal environ5 ments, and the Tribal cultural resources, of the 

6 outer Continental Shelf and the coastal areas 

7 which may be affected by offshore renewable 

8 energy projects in such area or planning area. 

9 ‘‘(B) INCLUSIONS.—A study conducted 

10 under subparagraph (A) shall— 

11 ‘‘(i) incorporate the best available ex12 isting science and data, including Tribal 

13 Traditional Ecological Knowledge; 

14 ‘‘(ii) identify areas for which there is 

15 insufficient science and data; and 

16 ‘‘(iii) include consideration of the cu17 mulative impacts (including potential navi18 gational impacts) of offshore renewable en19 ergy projects on human, marine, and 

20 coastal environments. 

21 ‘‘(C) USE OF DATA AND ASSESSMENTS.— 

22 The Secretary shall use the data and assess23 ments from studies conducted under this para24 graph, as appropriate, when deciding— 


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1 ‘‘(i) which portions of an area or re2 gion are most appropriate to make avail3 able for leasing; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) whether to issue any permit or 

5 other authorization that is necessary to 

6 carry out an offshore renewable energy 

7 project. 

8 ‘‘(D) NEPA APPLICABILITY.—The Sec9 retary shall not consider a study conducted 

10 under subparagraph (A) to be a major Federal 

11 action under section 102(2)(C) of the National 

12 Environmental Policy Act of 1969. 

13 ‘‘(12) CAPACITY BUILDING AND COMMUNITY

14 ENGAGEMENT.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in con16 sultation with the Secretary of Commerce, may 

17 award grants to entities to build organizational 

18 capacity and enhance engagement opportunities 

19 related to offshore renewable energy project de20 velopment, including environmental and cultural 

21 reviews and permitting activities of such 

22 projects. 

23 ‘‘(B) PURPOSES.—Grants awarded under 

24 subparagraph (A) shall be for— 


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1 ‘‘(i) enabling States, Indian Tribes, 

2 affected ocean users, and nonprofit asso3 ciations that represent affected ocean users 

4 to compile data, conduct analyses, educate 

5 stakeholders, and complete other activities 

6 relating to offshore renewable energy 

7 project development; 

8 ‘‘(ii) engaging in planning activities 

9 related to the development of offshore re10 newable energy projects to— 

11 ‘‘(I) determine potential eco12 nomic, social, public health, environ13 mental, and cultural benefits and im14 pacts resulting from offshore renew15 able energy projects; and 

16 ‘‘(II) identify opportunities to 

17 mitigate such impacts; 

18 ‘‘(iii) facilitating siting of offshore re19 newable energy projects and associated 

20 electric transmission infrastructure; and 

21 ‘‘(iv) hiring and training of personnel, 

22 and other activities designed to increase 

23 the capacity of States, Indian Tribes, and 

24 nonprofit associations, as applicable, to 


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1 carry out activities described in clauses (i) 

2 through (iii). 

3 ‘‘(C) PRIORITIZATION.—When awarding 

4 grants under subparagraph (A), the Secretary 

5 shall prioritize awarding grants that will be 

6 used to build organizational capacity and en7 hance community engagement opportunities of 

8 Indian Tribes. 

9 ‘‘(D) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIA10 TIONS.—There are authorized to be appro11 priated to the Secretary to carry out this para12 graph $25,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

13 2025 through 2029.’’. 

14 (d) RESERVATIONS.—Section 12(a) of the Outer 

15 Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1341(a)) is 

16 amended to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘(a) WITHDRAWAL OF UNLEASED LANDS BY THE

18 PRESIDENT.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The President of the 

20 United States may, from time to time, withdraw 

21 from disposition any of the unleased lands of the 

22 outer Continental Shelf. 

23 ‘‘(2) MODIFICATION FOR CERTAIN OFFSHORE

24 RENEWABLE ENERGY PROJECTS.—With respect to a 

25 withdrawal under paragraph (1) of unleased lands 


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1 from disposition, the President may modify such a 

2 withdrawal only to allow for leasing under section 

3 8(p)(1)(C) and only if the President determines that 

4 environmental, Tribal, national security, or national 

5 or regional energy conditions or demands have 

6 changed such that a modification would be in the 

7 public interest.’’. 

8 (e) CITIZEN SUITS, COURT JURISDICTION, AND JU9 DICIAL REVIEW.—Section 23(c)(2) of the Outer Conti10 nental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1349(c)(2)) is amend11 ed to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘(2) Any action of the Secretary to approve, require 

13 modification of, or disapprove any exploration plan or de14 velopment and production plan under this Act, or any 

15 plan, final lease, easement, or right-of-way granted pursu16 ant to section (8)(p)(1) (and any related final Federal 

17 agency actions), shall be subject to judicial review only in 

18 a United States court of appeals for a circuit in which 

19 an affected State or Indian Tribe is located.’’. 

20 SEC. 4. OFFSHORE RENEWABLE ENERGY COMPENSATION 

21 FUND. 

22 The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 

23 1331) is amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 34. OFFSHORE RENEWABLE ENERGY COMPENSATION 

2 FUND. 

3 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

4 Treasury of the United States the Offshore Renewable 

5 Energy Compensation Fund, which shall be used by the 

6 Secretary, or a third-party the Secretary enters into a con7 tract with, to provide to covered entities— 

8 ‘‘(1) payments for claims— 

9 ‘‘(A) described under subsection (f)(1); and 

10 ‘‘(B) verified pursuant to subsection 

11 (d)(1); and 

12 ‘‘(2) grants to carry out mitigation activities de13 scribed in subsection (f)(2). 

14 ‘‘(b) AVAILABILITY OF FUND.—The Fund shall be 

15 available to the Secretary without fiscal year limitations 

16 for the purpose of providing payments and grants under 

17 subsection (a). 

18 ‘‘(c) ACCOUNTS.—The Fund shall— 

19 ‘‘(1) consist of the royalties, fees, rents, bo20 nuses, and other payments deposited under section 

21 8(p)(2)(D); and 

22 ‘‘(2) be divided into separate area accounts 

23 from which payments and grants shall be provided 

24 based on the area in which damages occur. 

25 ‘‘(d) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall establish, 

26 by regulation, a process to— 


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1 ‘‘(1) file, process, and verify claims for purposes 

2 of providing payments under subsection (a)(1); and 

3 ‘‘(2) apply for a grant provided under sub4 section (a)(2). 

5 ‘‘(e) PAYMENT AMOUNT.—Payments provided under 

6 subsection (a)(1) shall— 

7 ‘‘(1) be based on the scope of the verified claim; 

8 ‘‘(2) be fair and provided efficiently and in a 

9 transparent manner; and 

10 ‘‘(3) if the covered entity receiving the payment 

11 has or will receive direct compensation for the 

12 verified claim pursuant to a community benefit 

13 agreement or other agreement between such covered 

14 entity and a holder of a lease, easement, or right15 of-way, be reduced by an amount that is equal to the 

16 amount of such direct compensation. 

17 ‘‘(f) CLAIMS; MITIGATION GRANTS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) CLAIMS.—A payment may be provided 

19 under subsection (a)(1) for a verified claim to— 

20 ‘‘(A) replace or repair gear that was lost or 

21 damaged by the development, construction, op22 eration, or decommissioning of an offshore re23 newable energy project; or 

24 ‘‘(B) replace income that was lost from the 

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1 missioning of an offshore renewable energy 

2 project. 

3 ‘‘(2) MITIGATION GRANTS.—If the Secretary 

4 determines that there are sufficient amounts in an 

5 area account of the Fund to provide payments for 

6 all verified claims at any given time, the Secretary 

7 may use amounts in the Fund to provide grants to 

8 covered entities, and other entities determined ap9 propriate by the Secretary, to mitigate the potential 

10 effects of development, construction, operation, and 

11 decommissioning of an offshore renewable energy 

12 project, including by paying for gear changes, navi13 gation technology improvements, and other measures 

14 to enhance the safety and resiliency of the covered 

15 entities and such other entities. 

16 ‘‘(g) ADVISORY GROUP.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall estab18 lish and regularly convene an advisory group that 

19 shall provide recommendations on the development 

20 and administration of this section. 

21 ‘‘(2) MEMBERSHIP.—The advisory group 

22 shall— 

23 ‘‘(A) be comprised of individuals— 

24 ‘‘(i) appointed by the Secretary; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) representing the geographic di2 versity of areas impacted by the develop3 ment, construction, operation, or decom4 missioning of offshore renewable energy 

5 projects; and 

6 ‘‘(B) include representatives from— 

7 ‘‘(i) recreational fishing interests; 

8 ‘‘(ii) commercial fishing interests; 

9 ‘‘(iii) Tribal interest; 

10 ‘‘(iv) the National Marine Fisheries 

11 Services; 

12 ‘‘(v) the fisheries science community; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(vi) other fields of expertise nec15 essary to effectively develop and administer 

16 this section, as determined by the Sec17 retary. 

18 ‘‘(3) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—The Secretary may 

19 provide amounts to any member of the advisory 

20 group to pay for travel expenses, including per diem 

21 in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for an em22 ployee of an agency under section 5703 of title 5, 

23 United States Code, while away from the home or 

24 regular place of business of the member in the per25 formance of the duties of the advisory group. 


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1 ‘‘(h) INSUFFICIENT FUNDS.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary determines 

3 that an area account does not contain a sufficient 

4 amount to provide payments under subsection 

5 (a)(1), the Secretary may, not more than once each 

6 calendar year, require any holder of an offshore re7 newable energy lease located within the area covered 

8 by the area account to pay an amount specified by 

9 the Secretary, which shall be deposited into such 

10 area account. 

11 ‘‘(2) AMOUNT.—No holder of an offshore re12 newable energy lease shall be required to pay an 

13 amount under paragraph (1) in excess of $3 per 

14 acre of the leased land described in paragraph (1). 

15 ‘‘(i) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—The Secretary 

16 may use up to 15 percent of the amount deposited into 

17 the Fund under section 8(p)(2)(D) during a fiscal year 

18 for administrative expenses to carry out this section. 

19 ‘‘(j) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Secretary shall submit 

20 to Congress, and make publicly available, an annual report 

21 on activities carried out under this section, including a de22 scription of claims filed and the amount of payments and 

23 grants provided. 

24 ‘‘(k) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 ‘‘(1) COVERED ENTITY.—The term ‘covered en2 tity’ means— 

3 ‘‘(A) a community, stakeholder, or Tribal 

4 interest— 

5 ‘‘(i) that uses a geographic space of a 

6 lease area, including for Tribal cultural 

7 and religious uses, or uses resources har8 vested from a geographic space of a lease 

9 area; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) for which such use is directly and 

11 adversely impacted by the development, 

12 construction, operation, or decommis13 sioning of an offshore renewable energy 

14 project located in such leased area; or 

15 ‘‘(B) a regional association, cooperative, 

16 non-profit organization, commission, or corpora17 tion that— 

18 ‘‘(i) serves a community, stakeholder, 

19 or Tribal interest described in subpara20 graph (A); and 

21 ‘‘(ii) acts on behalf of such a commu22 nity, stakeholder, or Tribal interest for 

23 purposes of this section, including by sub24 mitting a claim for a covered entity under 

25 this section. 


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1 ‘‘(2) FUND.—The term ‘Fund’ means the Off2 shore Renewable Energy Compensation Fund estab3 lished under subsection (a). 

4 ‘‘(3) LEASE AREA.—The term ‘lease area’ 

5 means an area covered by an offshore renewable en6 ergy lease. 

7 ‘‘(4) OFFSHORE RENEWABLE ENERGY LEASE.— 

8 The term ‘offshore renewable energy lease’ means a 

9 lease, easement, or right-of-way granted under sec10 tion 8(p)(1)(C).’’. 

11 SEC. 5. IMPROVING ENVIRONMENTAL AND CULTURAL RE12 VIEWS TO ENSURE TIMELY PERMITTING DE13 CISIONS. 

14 (a) BUREAU OF OCEAN ENERGY MANAGEMENT.—In 

15 addition to amounts otherwise available, there is appro16 priated to the Secretary of the Interior for fiscal year 

17 2024, out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise ap18 propriated, $50,000,000 to remain available until ex19 pended, to provide for the hiring and training of personnel, 

20 the development of programmatic environmental docu21 ments, the procurement of technical or scientific services 

22 for environmental and cultural reviews, the development 

23 of cultural competency for Tribal consultations, support 

24 of regional ocean data portals, the development of environ25 mental data or information systems (including efforts to 


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1 standardize, establish a baseline for, publish, or otherwise 

2 improve the consistency of environmental data), the devel3 opment of pre-application components, stakeholder and 

4 community engagement, updates to the Marine Cadastre 

5 for advancements in spatial data analysis and 

6 deconfliction, the purchase of new equipment for environ7 mental analysis, and coordination (including through the 

8 public tracking of Federal authorizations and reviews) to 

9 facilitate timely, efficient, and responsible permitting and 

10 review of offshore renewable energy projects. 

11 (b) NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMIN12 ISTRATION.—In addition to amounts otherwise available, 

13 there is appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce for 

14 fiscal year 2024, out of any money in the Treasury not 

15 otherwise appropriated, $45,000,000 to remain available 

16 until expended, to provide for the hiring and training of 

17 personnel, the development of programmatic environ18 mental documents, the procurement of technical or sci19 entific services for environmental and cultural reviews, the 

20 development of cultural competency for Tribal consulta21 tions, support of regional ocean data portals, the develop22 ment of environmental data or information systems (in23 cluding efforts to standardize, baseline, publish, or other24 wise improve the consistency of environmental data), 

25 stakeholder and community engagement, updates to the 


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1 Marine Cadastre for advancements in spatial data analysis 

2 and deconfliction, adaptation of scientific and fisheries 

3 surveys, and the purchase of new equipment for environ4 mental analysis to facilitate timely, efficient, and respon5 sible environmental reviews for the permitting of offshore 

6 renewable energy projects. 

7 SEC. 6. REPORT ON DECOMMISSIONING OF OFFSHORE RE8 NEWABLE ENERGY PROJECTS. 

9 Not later than 10 years after the date of enactment 

10 of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall submit to 

11 Congress, and make publicly available, a report evaluating 

12 decommissioning options for offshore renewable energy 

13 projects (and associated electric transmission infrastruc14 ture), including an assessment of the potential for the 

15 holder of a lease, easement, or right-of-way to keep facili16 ties in place or otherwise convert such facilities to artificial 

17 reefs to support marine habitats, provided that such facili18 ties will not adversely impact navigation, national security, 

19 the marine environment, Tribal uses, or other competing 

20 uses of the outer Continental Shelf. 

21 SEC. 7. OFFSHORE POWER ADMINISTRATION. 

22 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 1 year after 

23 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Energy 

24 shall establish the Offshore Power Administration. 

25 (b) AUTHORITIES.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Offshore Power Admin2 istration may, subject to paragraphs (2) and (3)— 

3 (A) construct, finance, facilitate, plan, op4 erate, maintain, acquire, and study covered 

5 transmission infrastructure; and 

6 (B) support construction, financing, facili7 tation, planning, operation, maintenance, acqui8 sition, and study of covered transmission infra9 structure. 

10 (2) LIMITATION ON CONSTRUCTION.— 

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Offshore Power 

12 Administration may not construct covered 

13 transmission infrastructure in any region until 

14 the Secretary of Energy has made a determina15 tion (in consultation with the Secretary of the 

16 Interior) that the relevant State governments, 

17 regional transmission organizations, offshore re18 newable energy project developers, and other 

19 stakeholders in such region have failed to ade20 quately coordinate and cooperate on the devel21 opment and use of shared covered transmission 

22 infrastructure. 

23 (B) INITIAL DELAY.—The Secretary of 

24 Energy may not make a determination under 


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1 this paragraph sooner than 3 years after the 

2 date of enactment of this Act. 

3 (3) LEASES, EASEMENTS, AND RIGHTS-OF

4 WAY.—In carrying out any activity under paragraph 

5 (1), the Offshore Power Administration shall be sub6 ject to the requirements to obtain a lease, easement, 

7 or right-of-way under section 8(p) of the Outer Con8 tinental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1337). 

9 (c) GOVERNANCE.— 

10 (1) ORGANIZATION.—The Offshore Power Ad11 ministration shall be preserved as a separate and 

12 distinct organizational entity within the Department 

13 of Energy and shall be headed by an Administrator 

14 appointed by the Secretary of Energy. 

15 (2) REGIONAL OFFICES.—The Administrator 

16 shall establish and maintain such regional offices as 

17 necessary to facilitate the performance of the Off18 shore Power Administration. 

19 (d) LOANS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

21 provision of law, the Secretary of the Treasury shall, 

22 without appropriation and without fiscal year limita23 tion, make loans to the Offshore Power Administra24 tion that, in the judgment of the Administrator, are 


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1 required to carry out the activities listed in sub2 section (b)(1). 

3 (2) TERMS AND CONDITIONS.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara5 graphs (B) and (C), loans made by the Sec6 retary of the Treasury under paragraph (1) 

7 shall include such terms and conditions that the 

8 Administrator and Secretary of the Treasury 

9 may agree to. 

10 (B) INTEREST.—The rate of interest to be 

11 charged in connection with any loan made 

12 under paragraph (1) shall be fixed by the Sec13 retary of the Treasury, taking into consider14 ation market yields on outstanding marketable 

15 obligations of the United States of comparable 

16 maturities as of the date on which the loan is 

17 made. 

18 (C) LIMITATION.—Loans made by the Sec19 retary of the Treasury under paragraph (1) 

20 may not result in, in the aggregate (including 

21 deferred interest), $10,000,000,000 in out22 standing repayable balances at any one time. 

23 (3) REFINANCING.—The Administrator may re24 finance loans made pursuant to this section with the 


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1 Secretary of the Treasury in accordance with para2 graph (2). 

3 (e) AGREEMENTS AND PARTNERSHIPS.—The Admin4 istrator may enter into agreements and partnerships with 

5 other entities to carry out any of the activities listed in 

6 subsection (b)(1). 

7 (f) DISPOSITION OF REVENUE.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to covered 

9 transmission infrastructure owned and operated by 

10 the Offshore Power Administration pursuant to this 

11 section, the Administrator shall use qualified rev12 enue to pay the principal and interest of the loan 

13 made by Secretary of the Treasury with respect to 

14 such covered transmission infrastructure. 

15 (2) QUALIFIED REVENUE.—In this subsection, 

16 the term ‘‘qualified revenue’’ means— 

17 (A) all revenue received by the Offshore 

18 Power Administration from the operation of the 

19 covered transmission infrastructure; less 

20 (B) the amount the Administrator deter21 mines necessary to— 

22 (i) pay the costs of operating and 

23 maintaining the covered transmission in24 frastructure, including expenses described 

25 in subsection (g)(2); and 


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1 (ii) pay for any ancillary services that 

2 are used by the Offshore Power Adminis3 tration. 

4 (g) FORGIVENESS OF BALANCES.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—If, at the end of the useful 

6 life of any covered transmission infrastructure ac7 quired, constructed, maintained, or operated by the 

8 Offshore Power Administration pursuant to this sec9 tion there is a remaining balance owed to the Treas10 ury for a loan made under this section for any such 

11 purpose, such balance shall be forgiven. 

12 (2) STUDIES.—A loan made under this section 

13 for purposes of studying covered transmission infra14 structure that is not constructed shall be forgiven 

15 upon notification under paragraph (3). 

16 (3) NOTIFICATION.—The Administrator shall 

17 notify the Secretary of the Treasury of such 

18 amounts as are to be forgiven under this subsection. 

19 (h) ADMINISTRATION.— 

20 (1) ACCOUNTS AND AUDITS.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

22 shall keep complete and accurate accounts of 

23 the operation of covered transmission infra24 structure owned and operated by the Offshore 

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1 pended and received in connection with trans2 mission of electric energy by the Offshore 

3 Power Administration. 

4 (B) AUDITS.—The Administrator shall, 

5 after the close of each fiscal year, obtain an 

6 independent commercial-type audit of such ac7 counts. 

8 (2) EXPENSES.—The Administrator may make 

9 such expenditures for offices, vehicles, furnishings, 

10 equipment, supplies, books, travel for attendance at 

11 meetings, and for such other facilities and services 

12 as the Administrator determines necessary to carry 

13 out this section. 

14 (i) PREVAILING WAGE.—All laborers and mechanics 

15 employed by contractors and subcontractors in the per16 formance of construction work carried out or funded by 

17 in whole or in part by the Offshore Power Administration 

18 shall be paid wages at rates not less than those prevailing 

19 on projects of a character similar in the locality as deter20 mined by the Secretary of Labor in accordance with sub21 chapter IV of chapter 31 of title 40, United States Code. 

22 With respect to the labor standards in this subsection, the 

23 Secretary of Labor shall have the authority and functions 

24 set forth in Reorganization Plan Numbered 14 of 1950 


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1 (64 Stat. 1267; 5 U.S.C. App.) and section 3145 of title 

2 40, United States Code. 

3 (j) COORDINATION AND CONSULTATION.— 

4 (1) STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS.—The 

5 Administrator shall provide for coordination and 

6 consultation with the Governor of any State or the 

7 executive of any local government that may be af8 fected by activities under this section. 

9 (2) TRIBAL CONSULTATION.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

11 shall conduct meaningful and timely consulta12 tion with Indian Tribes (following the proce13 dures of Executive Order 13175 (25 U.S.C. 

14 5301 note), the President’s Memorandum of 

15 Uniform Standards for Tribal Consultation, 

16 issued on November 30, 2022, or any subse17 quent order) before undertaking any activities 

18 under this section that may have a direct, indi19 rect, or cumulative impact on— 

20 (i) the land, including allotted, ceded, 

21 or traditional land, or interests in such 

22 land of an Indian Tribe or member of an 

23 Indian Tribe; 


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1 (ii) Tribal land, cultural practices, re2 sources, or access to traditional areas of 

3 cultural or religious importance; 

4 (iii) any part of any Federal land that 

5 shares a border with Indian country, as 

6 such term is defined in section 1151 of 

7 title 18, United States Code; 

8 (iv) the protected rights of an Indian 

9 Tribe, whether or not such rights are enu10 merated in a treaty, including water, hunt11 ing, gathering, and fishing rights; 

12 (v) the ability of an Indian Tribe to 

13 govern or provide services to members of 

14 the Indian Tribe; 

15 (vi) the relationship between the Fed16 eral Government and an Indian Tribe; or 

17 (vii) the trust responsibility of the 

18 Federal Government to an Indian Tribe. 

19 (B) CONFIDENTIAL AND SENSITIVE INFOR20 MATION.— 

21 (i) CLOSED MEETING.—Notwith22 standing any other provision of law, at the 

23 request of the applicable Indian Tribe or 

24 Tribal government, any Tribal consultation 

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1 rying out this subsection shall be closed to 

2 the public. 

3 (ii) TREATMENT OF DESIGNATED IN4 FORMATION.—Notwithstanding any other 

5 provision of law, during a Tribal consulta6 tion process conducted for the purpose of 

7 carrying out this subsection, if the applica8 ble Indian Tribe or Tribal government des9 ignates any information, such as the loca10 tion of a sacred site or other detail of a 

11 cultural or religious practice, as sensitive, 

12 that information shall be protected by law 

13 as confidential and withheld from any pub14 lic disclosure or publication made as part 

15 of such Tribal consultation process or in 

16 any other process of carrying out this sec17 tion. 

18 (iii) ACCESS TO DESIGNATED INFOR19 MATION.—If information has been des20 ignated as sensitive under clause (ii), the 

21 Secretary shall determine, in consultation 

22 with the applicable Indian Tribe or Tribal 

23 government, who may have access to the 

24 information for the purposes of carrying 

25 out this section. 


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1 (k) ANNUAL REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Beginning 

2 January 1, 2026, and each year thereafter, not later than 

3 180 days after the end of each year, the Administrator 

4 shall submit to Congress a report for the previous year 

5 that includes— 

6 (1) a description of the activities of the Off7 shore Power Administration; 

8 (2) an accounting of the use of loans made 

9 under this section; and 

10 (3) an assessment of the coordination and co11 operation by relevant State and Tribal governments, 

12 regional transmission organizations, offshore renew13 able energy project developers, and other stake14 holders the Secretary of Energy determines are rel15 evant in each region to develop and use shared cov16 ered transmission infrastructure. 

17 (l) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

18 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis19 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Offshore 

20 Power Administration. 

21 (2) COVERED TRANSMISSION INFRASTRUC22 TURE.—The term ‘‘covered transmission infrastruc23 ture’’— 

24 (A) means electric power transmission in25 frastructure, and any related facilities thereof, 


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1 that serves at least one offshore renewable en2 ergy project; and 

3 (B) includes onshore facilities that enable 

4 the interconnection of offshore renewable en5 ergy projects. 

6 SEC. 8. OFFSHORE TRANSMISSION INFRASTRUCTURE 

7 STUDIES AND RECOMMENDATIONS. 

8 (a) STUDIES AND RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Sec9 retary of Energy, in consultation with the Secretary of the 

10 Interior, the interagency comprehensive digital mapping 

11 initiative established under section 388(b) of the Energy 

12 Policy Act of 2005, and other relevant Federal, State, 

13 Tribal, and local agencies, shall periodically conduct stud14 ies and make recommendations available to the public on 

15 the potential siting of offshore transmission infrastructure 

16 in a manner that— 

17 (1) achieves sufficient transmission capacity to 

18 support offshore energy development to meet State, 

19 Tribal, or Federal renewable or clean electricity 

20 mandates, targets, or goals; 

21 (2) promotes safety, national security, Tribal 

22 sovereignty, and environmental protection while 

23 minimizing impacts to cultural and living marine re24 sources, including Tribal cultural resources; and 


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1 (3) leads to efficient development of onshore 

2 points of interconnection. 

3 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

4 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of En5 ergy to carry out this section $10,000,000, to remain 

6 available until expended. 

7 SEC. 9. INTEROPERABILITY OF OFFSHORE ELECTRIC 

8 TRANSMISSION INFRASTRUCTURE. 

9 (a) STUDY.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

10 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Energy shall 

11 complete and publish on the website of the Department 

12 of Energy a study that assesses the need to, and chal13 lenges of, developing and standardizing interoperable elec14 tric grid components, systems, and technologies in support 

15 of shared offshore transmission networks. Such study 

16 shall include recommendations for Congress, State, Tribal, 

17 and local governments, manufacturers of electric grid com18 ponents, systems, and technologies, regional transmission 

19 organizations, offshore electricity generation project devel20 opers, and appropriate standards organizations to help en21 sure interoperability of electric grid components, systems, 

22 and technologies across seams between offshore electricity 

23 generation projects and shared offshore infrastructure 

24 connecting to onshore transmission systems. 


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1 (b) INTEROPERABILITY STANDARD DEVELOPMENT

2 PROGRAM.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Energy 

4 shall establish and implement a program to identify, 

5 develop, support, document, and encourage the 

6 adoption of a set of standards necessary to maximize 

7 the interoperability of electric grid components, sys8 tems, and technologies to accelerate the implementa9 tion and delivery of electricity generated by offshore 

10 electricity generation projects through shared trans11 mission infrastructure. 

12 (2) GOALS.—The goals of establishing and im13 plementing the program under paragraph (1) shall 

14 be— 

15 (A) to harmonize and standardize func16 tional specifications of electric grid components, 

17 systems, and technologies to maximize the 

18 interoperability of electric grid components, sys19 tems, and technologies across technologies and 

20 manufacturers; 

21 (B) to hasten adoption of shared trans22 mission infrastructure for offshore electricity 

23 generation by encouraging cooperation among 

24 manufacturers of electric grid components, sys25 tems, or technologies in order to— 


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1 (i) maximize interoperability of such 

2 manufacturers’ electric grid components, 

3 systems, and technologies; 

4 (ii) reduce offshore electricity genera5 tion project delays and cost overruns; 

6 (iii) manage power grid complexity; 

7 and 

8 (iv) enhance electric grid resilience, 

9 reliability, and cybersecurity; and 

10 (C) to identify common technical specifica11 tions to effectively and securely measure, mon12 itor, control, and protect offshore electricity 

13 generation and transmission infrastructure 

14 from the point of generation to load centers. 

15 (3) GRANTS.—Under the program established 

16 and implemented under paragraph (1), the Secretary 

17 may provide grants to entities to— 

18 (A) engage equipment manufacturers and 

19 industry stakeholders in collaborative platforms, 

20 including workshops and forums; 

21 (B) identify current challenges and propose 

22 solutions to improve interoperability of electric 

23 grid components, systems, and technologies; 

24 and 


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1 (C) develop a set of voluntary industry 

2 standards to maximize interoperability of elec3 tric grid components, systems, and technologies 

4 that meet the goals described in paragraph (2). 

5 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

6 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of En7 ergy to carry out this section $5,000,000, to remain avail8 able until expended. 

9 SEC. 10. OFFSHORE WIND SHIPBUILDING. 

10 (a) OFFSHORE WIND SHIPYARD GRANT PROGRAM.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Energy 

12 shall establish a program to support the refurbish13 ment, retooling, expansion, modernization, and es14 tablishment of shipyards and other manufacturing 

15 facilities by providing grants for the fabrication, re16 pair, and conversion of vessels needed for the pre17 construction assessment, construction, operation, 

18 and maintenance of offshore wind energy projects. 

19 (2) RECIPIENTS.—Under the program estab20 lished under paragraph (1), the Secretary of Energy 

21 may provide grants to shipyard owners and opera22 tors, fabricators of the vessels described in para23 graph (1), and relevant component suppliers. 

24 (3) PREVAILING WAGE.—The Secretary of En25 ergy shall take such action as may be necessary to 


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1 ensure all laborers and mechanics employed by con2 tractors or subcontractors during construction, alter3 ation, or repair that is supported, in whole or in 

4 part, by grants provided under this section shall be 

5 paid wages at rates not less than those prevailing on 

6 similar construction in the locality, as determined by 

7 the Secretary of Labor in accordance with sub8 chapter IV of chapter 31 of title 40, United States 

9 Code. With respect to the labor standards in this 

10 subsection, the Secretary of Labor shall have the au11 thority and functions set forth in Reorganization 

12 Plan Numbered 14 of 1950 (64 Stat. 1267; 5 

13 U.S.C. App.) and section 3145 of title 40, United 

14 States Code. 

15 (4) COST SHARE.—Section 988(c) of the En16 ergy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16352(c)) shall 

17 apply to a grant provided under this section as if 

18 such grant were a demonstration or commercial ap19 plication activity described in section 988(a) of such 

20 Act. 

21 (5) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

22 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec23 retary of Energy to carry out this section 

24 $100,000,000, to remain available until expended. 


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1 (b) LOAN GUARANTEES FOR WIND TURBINE IN2 STALLATION VESSELS.—Section 1703(b) of the Energy 

3 Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16513(b)) is amended by 

4 adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(14) Notwithstanding subsection (a)(1), 

6 projects that increase the supply of domestically pro7 duced vessels needed for the pre-construction assess8 ment, construction, operation, and maintenance of 

9 offshore wind energy projects, including wind tur10 bine installation vessels.’’. 

11 SEC. 11. ACCESS TO OFFSHORE RENEWABLE ENERGY 

12 AREAS. 

13 It is the sense of Congress that fishing and boating 

14 access, and Tribal cultural activities and lifeways, in and 

15 around offshore renewable energy projects will be main16 tained with narrow exceptions for construction and main17 tenance activities. 

18 SEC. 12. DEFINITIONS. 

19 In this Act, the terms ‘‘offshore renewable energy 

20 project’’ and ‘‘outer Continental Shelf’’ have the meanings 

21 given such terms in section 2 of the Outer Continental 

22 Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331). 

Æ 


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