I

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 5046

To authorize appropriations for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration for fiscal years 1994 and 1995, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

SEPTEMBER 16, 1994

Mr. ORTIZ (for himself, Mr. STUDDS and Mr. WELDON) introduced the following bill; which was referred jointly to the Committees on Merchant Marine and Fisheries and Science, Space, and Technology

A BILL

To authorize appropriations for the National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration for fiscal years 1994 and

1995, 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 ‘‘National Oceanic and

5 Atmospheric Administration Authorization Act of 1994’’.

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

7 For the purposes of this Act, the term—

8 (1) ‘‘Act of 1890’’ means the Act entitled ‘‘An

9 Act to increase the efficiency and reduce the ex-
2

•HR 5046 IH

1 penses of the Signal Corps of the Army, and to

2 transfer the Weather Bureau to the Department of

3 Agriculture’’, approved October 1, 1890 (26 Stat.

4 653);

5 (2) ‘‘Act of 1947’’ means the Act entitled ‘‘An

6 Act to define the functions and duties of the Coast

7 and Geodetic Survey, and for other purposes’’, ap8 proved August 6, 1947 (33 U.S.C. 883a et seq.);

9 and

10 (3) ‘‘Act of 1970’’ means the Act entitled ‘‘An

11 Act to clarify the status and benefits of commis12 sioned officers of the National Oceanic and Atmos13 pheric Administration, and for other purposes’’, ap14 proved December 31, 1970 (33 U.S.C. 857–1 et

15 seq.).

16 TITLE I—NOAA OCEAN AND

17 COASTAL PROGRAMS

18 SEC. 101. NATIONAL OCEAN SERVICE.

19 (a) MAPPING AND CHARTING.—

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be

21 appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce, to en22 able the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis23 tration to carry out mapping and charting activities

24 under the Act of 1947 and any other law involving
3

•HR 5046 IH

1 those activities, $29,005,000 for fiscal year 1995

2 and $30,049,000 for fiscal year 1996.

3 (2) AUTOMATED NAUTICAL CHARTING.—In ad4 dition to amounts authorized under paragraph (1),

5 there are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec6 retary of Commerce, to enable the National Oceanic

7 and Atmospheric Administration to develop and im8 plement an automated nautical charting system,

9 $1,300,000 for fiscal year 1995 and $1,347,000 for

10 fiscal year 1996.

11 (b) GEODESY.—There are authorized to be appro12 priated to the Secretary of Commerce, to enable the Na13 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to carry

14 out geodesy activities under the Act of 1947 and any other

15 law involving those activities, $19,332,000 for fiscal year

16 1995 and $20,028,000 for fiscal year 1996.

17 (c) OBSERVATION AND PREDICTION.—

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be

19 appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce, to en20 able the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis21 tration to carry out observation and prediction ac22 tivities under the Act of 1947 and any other law in23 volving those activities, $12,429,000 for fiscal year

24 1995 and $12,876,000 for fiscal year 1996.
4

•HR 5046 IH

1 (2) CIRCULATORY SURVEY PROGRAM.—In addi2 tion to amounts authorized under paragraph (1),

3 there are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec4 retary of Commerce, to enable the National Oceanic

5 and Atmospheric Administration to carry out the

6 Circulatory Survey Program, $700,000 for fiscal

7 year 1995 and $725,000 for fiscal year 1996.

8 (3) OCEAN AND EARTH SCIENCES.—In addition

9 to amounts authorized under paragraph (1), there

10 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary

11 of Commerce, to enable the National Oceanic and

12 Atmospheric Administration to carry out ocean and

13 earth science activities, $4,442,000 for fiscal year

14 1995 and $4,602,000 for fiscal year 1996.

15 (4) CENTER FOR OCEAN ANALYSIS AND PRE16 DICTION.—In addition to amounts authorized under

17 paragraph (1), there are authorized to be appro18 priated to the Secretary of Commerce, to enable the

19 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

20 to continue the activities of the Center for Ocean

21 Analysis and Prediction, $400,000 for fiscal year

22 1995 and $414,000 for fiscal year 1996.

23 (5) OBSERVATION BUOYS.—In addition to

24 amounts authorized under paragraph (1), there are

25 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of
5

•HR 5046 IH

1 Commerce, to enable the National Oceanic and At2 mospheric Administration to operate and maintain

3 observation buoys in the Chesapeake Bay, $400,000

4 for fiscal year 1995 and $414,000 for fiscal year

5 1996.

6 (d) ESTUARINE AND COASTAL ASSESSMENT.—

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be

8 appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce, to en9 able the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis10 tration to support estuarine and coastal assessment

11 activities under the Act of 1947 and any other law

12 involving those activities, $2,420,000 for fiscal year

13 1995 and $2,507,000 for fiscal year 1996.

14 (2) OCEAN ASSESSMENT.—In addition to

15 amounts authorized under paragraph (1), there are

16 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of

17 Commerce, to enable the National Oceanic and At18 mospheric Administration to carry out the National

19 Status and Trends Program, the Strategic Environ20 mental Assessment Program, and the Hazardous

21 Materials Response Program, $18,945,000 for fiscal

22 year 1995 and $19,627,000 for fiscal year 1996.

23 (3) DAMAGE ASSESSMENT PROGRAM.—In addi24 tion to amounts authorized under paragraph (1),

25 there are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
6

•HR 5046 IH

1 retary of Commerce, to enable the National Oceanic

2 and Atmospheric Administration to carry out the

3 Damage Assessment Program, $1,500,000 for fiscal

4 year 1995 and $1,554,000 for fiscal year 1996.

5 (4) COASTAL OCEAN PROGRAM.—In addition to

6 amounts authorized under paragraph (1), there are

7 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of

8 Commerce, to enable the National Oceanic and At9 mospheric Administration to carry out the Coastal

10 Ocean Program, $11,433,000 for fiscal year 1995

11 and $11,845,000 for fiscal year 1996. Of the

12 amounts authorized under this paragraph for fiscal

13 years 1995 and 1996, a total of $120,000 is avail14 able until expended to study the use of oceano15 graphic data obtained from satellite imagery and

16 other sources to determine and predict the presence

17 of endangered sea turtles in the Gulf of Mexico.

18 (e) OCEAN MANAGEMENT.—There are authorized to

19 be appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce, to enable

20 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to

21 carry out deep ocean mineral and ocean energy activities,

22 $500,000 for each of fiscal years 1995 and 1996.

23 SEC. 102. OCEAN AND GREAT LAKES RESEARCH.

24 (a) MARINE PREDICTION RESEARCH.—
7

•HR 5046 IH

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be

2 appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce, to en3 able the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis4 tration to carry out marine prediction research ac5 tivities under the Act of 1947, the Act of 1890, and

6 any other law involving those activities, $10,000,000

7 for fiscal year 1995 and $10,360,000 for fiscal year

8 1996.

9 (2) GREAT LAKES ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH

10 LABORATORY.—

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to

12 be appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce,

13 for the operation and maintenance of the Great

14 Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory,

15 $4,558,000 for fiscal year 1995 and $4,722,000

16 for fiscal year 1996.

17 (B) GREAT LAKES NEARSHORE RE18 SEARCH.—There are authorized to be appro19 priated to the Secretary of Commerce, to enable

20 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin21 istration to carry out nearshore research activi22 ties of the Great Lakes Environmental Re23 search Laboratory, $500,000 for each of fiscal

24 years 1995 and 1996.
8

•HR 5046 IH

1 (C) ZEBRA MUSSEL RESEARCH.—In addi2 tion to amounts authorized under subparagraph

3 (A), there are authorized to be appropriated to

4 the Secretary of Commerce, to enable the Na5 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

6 to carry out zebra mussel research activities of

7 the Great Lakes Environmental Research Lab8 oratory under the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nui9 sance Prevention and Control Act of 1990 (16

10 U.S.C. 4701 et seq.), $911,000 for fiscal year

11 1995 and $1,125,000 for fiscal year 1996.

12 (3) SOUTHEAST FLORIDA AND CARIBBEAN RE13 CRUITMENT PROGRAM.—In addition to amounts au14 thorized under paragraph (1), there are authorized

15 to be appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce a

16 total of $2,000,000 for fiscal years 1995 and 1996

17 to enable the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad18 ministration to carry out, through the Cooperative

19 Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies, col20 laborative investigations to examine the physical and

21 biological processes which—

22 (A) occur in tropical marine environments

23 in coastal waters of the United States, Florida,

24 and the Caribbean; and
9

•HR 5046 IH

1 (B) impact variability and development of

2 fisheries resources.

3 (b) CLIMATE AND GLOBAL CHANGE RESEARCH.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be

5 appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce, to en6 able the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis7 tration to carry out climate and global change re8 search activities, $71,000,000 for fiscal year 1995

9 and $84,012,000 for fiscal year 1996. Of sums ap10 propriated under this subsection, sufficient funds

11 should be made available by the Secretary of Com12 merce to initiate and support research on the effects

13 of climate and global change on the Nation’s major

14 freshwater systems, including the Great Lakes and

15 the Mississippi River.

16 (2) ENVIRONMENTAL OBSERVATIONS.—In addi17 tion to the amounts authorized to be appropriated

18 under paragraph (1), there is authorized to be ap19 propriated to the Secretary of Commerce $7,000,000

20 for each of fiscal years 1995 and 1996 for a pro21 gram to increase scientific understanding of the

22 earth by using a network of schools to collect envi23 ronmental observations. Beginning in fiscal year

24 1996, amounts appropriated for such program may

25 be obligated only to the extent that an equal or
10

•HR 5046 IH

1 greater amount of non-Federal funding is provided

2 for such program.

3 (3) IMPLEMENTATION OF LANDSAT AGREE4 MENT.—Section 103 of the Land Remote Sensing

5 Policy Act of 1992 is amended by adding at the end

6 the following new subsection:

7 ‘‘(c) IMPLEMENTATION OF AGREEMENT.—If negotia8 tions under subsection (a) result in an agreement that the

9 Landsat Program Management determines generally

10 achieves the goals stated in subsection (a) (1) through (8),

11 the Landsat Program Management shall award an exten12 sion, until the practical demise of Landsat 4 or Landsat

13 5, whichever occurs later, of the existing contract with the

14 Landsat 6 contractor incorporating the terms of such

15 agreement.’’.

16 TITLE II—NOAA MARINE

17 FISHERY PROGRAMS

18 SEC. 201. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

19 The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra20 tion Marine Fisheries Program Authorization Act (Public

21 Law 98–210; 97 Stat. 1409) is amended—

22 (1) in section 2(a) by—

23 (A) striking ‘‘1992 and’’ and inserting

24 ‘‘1992,’’; and
11

•HR 5046 IH

1 (B) inserting after ‘‘1993’’ the following:

2 ‘‘, $51,092,000 for fiscal year 1995, and

3 $52,931,000 for fiscal year 1996’’;

4 (2) in section 3(a) by—

5 (A) striking ‘‘1992 and’’ and inserting

6 ‘‘1992,’’; and

7 (B) inserting after ‘‘1993’’ the following:

8 ‘‘, $14,198,000 for fiscal year 1995, and

9 $14,709,000 for fiscal year 1996’’; and

10 (3) in section 4(a) by—

11 (A) striking ‘‘1992 and’’ and inserting

12 ‘‘1992,’’; and

13 (B) inserting after ‘‘1993’’ the following:

14 ‘‘, $17,089,000 for fiscal year 1995, and

15 $17,704,000 for fiscal year 1996’’.

16 SEC. 202. AMENDMENTS TO THE MERCHANT MARINE ACT,

17 1936.

18 Section 1104A(b)(2) of the Merchant Marine Act,

19 1936 (46 App. U.S.C. 1274(b)(2)), is amended in the

20 third proviso by striking ‘‘, except that no debt may be

21 placed under this proviso through the Federal Financing

22 Bank’’.

23 SEC. 203. SCALLOP RESTORATION PROGRAM.

24 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec25 retary of Commerce $200,000 for each of fiscal years
12

•HR 5046 IH

1 1995 and 1996, for the establishment and maintenance

2 of a scallop restoration program for Long Island Sound.

3 SEC. 204. SALTONSTALL-KENNEDY PROGRAM AMEND4 MENTS.

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 2 of the Act of August

6 11, 1939 (15 U.S.C. 713c–3), popularly known as the

7 ‘‘Saltonstall-Kennedy Act’’, is amended—

8 (1) by striking ‘‘SEC. 2.’’ the second place it

9 appears;

10 (2) in subsection (b)(1) by—

11 (A) striking subparagraph (B);

12 (B) striking ‘‘only for—’’ and all that fol13 lows through ‘‘the Secretary—’’ and inserting

14 ‘‘only for use by the Secretary—’’;

15 (C) redesignating clauses (i), (ii), and (iii)

16 in order as subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C);

17 and

18 (D) moving subparagraphs (A), (B), and

19 (C), as redesignated by subparagraph (C) of

20 this paragraph, 2 ems to the left so that the

21 left margin of those subparagraphs is aligned

22 with the left margin of section 2(a)(5) of that

23 Act (15 U.S.C. 713c–3(a)(5)); and

24 (3) by striking the designation and heading for

25 subsection (c) and all that follows through para-
13

•HR 5046 IH

1 graph (4) of that subsection, and inserting the

2 following:

3 ‘‘(c) FISHERIES RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

4 PROJECTS.—

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make

6 grants from the fund established under subsection

7 (b) for the purpose of assisting persons in carrying

8 out research and development projects to promote

9 the sustainable use and development of United

10 States fisheries, including harvesting, processing,

11 aquaculture, marketing, and associated infrastruc12 tures.

13 ‘‘(2) SECRETARY’S DUTIES.—The Secretary

14 shall each fiscal year—

15 ‘‘(A) receive at least once, during a 60-day

16 period specified by the Secretary, applications

17 for grants under this subsection pursuant to a

18 Request for Proposals published in the Federal

19 Register;

20 ‘‘(B) prescribe in that Request for Propos21 als the form and manner in which applications

22 for grants under this subsection must be made,

23 including the specification of the information

24 which must accompany applications to ensure

25 that the proposed projects comply with Federal
14

•HR 5046 IH

1 law and can be properly evaluated under para2 graph (3);

3 ‘‘(C) include in that Request for Proposals

4 a list of priorities for grants under this sub5 section that is based on the priorities rec6 ommended for the fiscal year under paragraph

7 (3)(F); and

8 ‘‘(D) approve or disapprove each such

9 application—

10 ‘‘(i) based primarily on the rec11 ommendations of the grants review panel

12 established under paragraph (3) for the

13 fiscal year; and

14 ‘‘(ii) before the end of the 90-day pe15 riod beginning on the day after the last

16 day of the application period specified in

17 the Request for Proposals under subpara18 graph (A); and

19 ‘‘(E) to the extent amounts are available,

20 obligate funds for grants for approved applica21 tions before the end of the fiscal year for which

22 the funds are available, except that up to 10

23 percent of funds available for a fiscal year may

24 be obligated in the next fiscal year.
15

•HR 5046 IH

1 ‘‘(3) EVALUATION AND APPROVAL OF PROPOS2 ALS.—

3 ‘‘(A) SUITABILITY FOR EVALUATION.—For

4 each application received under paragraph (2)

5 in a fiscal year, the Secretary shall—

6 ‘‘(i) make a determination whether

7 the project proposed in the application

8 meets the requirements of this subsection

9 and is consistent with the priorities rec10 ommended for the fiscal year under sub11 paragraph (F); and

12 ‘‘(ii) if so, forward the proposal to the

13 grants review panel established for the fis14 cal year under subparagraph (B).

15 ‘‘(B) GRANTS REVIEW PANEL.—Each fis16 cal year, the Secretary shall establish a grants

17 review panel that consists of individuals with

18 expertise in fisheries research, development, or

19 management, that represents a balance among

20 those disciplines, that is balanced in the rep21 resentation of those disciplines, and that is bal22 anced in the representation of the geographic

23 regions of the United States. Each grants re24 view panel shall review each proposal forwarded

25 by the Secretary under subparagraph (A)(ii)
16

•HR 5046 IH

1 and make recommendations to the Secretary for

2 awarding grants under this subsection among

3 those proposals for the fiscal year, subject to

4 the criteria described in subparagraph (C) and

5 consistent with the funding available for the

6 fiscal year.

7 ‘‘(C) CRITERIA FOR EVALUATION OF PRO8 POSALS.—Each grants review panel shall evalu9 ate each proposal as to—

10 ‘‘(i) the value of the proposal in pro11 moting the purpose described in paragraph

12 (1) in general and in fulfilling the applica13 ble regional priorities recommended under

14 subparagraph (F);

15 ‘‘(ii) the soundness of its design (in16 cluding the likelihood of securing useful re17 sults, and the organization and manage18 ment of the proposal);

19 ‘‘(iii) the minimization of duplication

20 within fisheries research and development

21 activities; and

22 ‘‘(iv) based on the criteria in clauses

23 (i), (ii) and (iii), the overall quality and

24 rank of the proposal relative to the other

25 proposals under review.
17

•HR 5046 IH

1 ‘‘(D) INDUSTRIAL PARTNERS.—In evaluat2 ing and ranking proposals under this subsection

3 that are of equivalent overall quality and rank

4 based on the criteria set forth in subparagraph

5 (C), a grants review panel and the Secretary

6 shall give preference to proposals in which at

7 least 1 of the persons that would be a principal

8 grantee under the proposal receives a substan9 tial portion of income from seafood harvesting,

10 processing, marketing, or propagation.

11 ‘‘(E) NOTICE OF DECISION BY THE SEC12 RETARY.—If the Secretary approves or dis13 approves an application for a proposal contrary

14 to the recommendations of a grants review

15 panel, the Secretary shall notify the panel, the

16 Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries

17 of the House of Representatives and the Com18 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor19 tation of the Senate in writing of that decision,

20 including the reasons for that decision.

21 ‘‘(F) RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE

22 FUNDING PRIORITIES.—Each grants review

23 panel shall, after evaluating proposals and mak24 ing grants recommendations, and after consult25 ing with interested parties, recommend to the
18

•HR 5046 IH

1 Secretary for the next fiscal year national and

2 regional priorities for grants under this sub3 section.

4 ‘‘(4) TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—Each grant

5 made under this subsection shall be subject to such

6 terms and conditions as the Secretary may require

7 to protect the interests of the United States, includ8 ing the following:

9 ‘‘(A) RECORDS.—The recipient of the

10 grant—

11 ‘‘(i) must keep such records as the

12 Secretary shall require as being necessary

13 and appropriate for disclosing the use

14 made of grant funds; and

15 ‘‘(ii) shall allow the Secretary and the

16 Comptroller General of the United States,

17 or any of their authorized representatives,

18 access to such records for purposes of

19 audit and examination.

20 ‘‘(B) AMOUNT OF GRANT.—The amount of

21 a grant may not be less than 50 percent of the

22 estimated cost of the project.

23 ‘‘(C) PERIOD OF GRANT.—A grant may

24 not provide funding for more than 2 years from
19

•HR 5046 IH

1 the date of the release of the funds to the

2 grantee.

3 ‘‘(D) STATUS REPORT.—The recipient of a

4 grant shall submit annually to the Secretary a

5 project status report. The Secretary may not

6 release funds to the recipient for any subse7 quent period of funding for that grant or for

8 any other grant to that recipient made by the

9 Secretary under this subsection until the Sec10 retary receives that report.’’.

11 (b) APPLICATION.—

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para13 graph (2), the amendments made by this section

14 apply to fiscal years beginning after the date of the

15 enactment of this Act.

16 (2) LIST OF REGIONAL PRIORITIES.—Notwith17 standing section 2(c)(2)(C) of the Act of August 11,

18 1939, as amended by subsection (a)(2) of this sec19 tion, the list of priorities referred to in that section

20 for the first fiscal year beginning after the date of

21 the enactment of this Act is not required to be based

22 on priorities recommended under paragraph (3)(F)

23 of that section.
20

•HR 5046 IH

1 TITLE III—ADMINISTRATION

2 AND OTHER ACCOUNTS

3 SEC. 301. PROGRAM SUPPORT.

4 (a) EXECUTIVE DIRECTION AND ADMINISTRATIVE

5 ACTIVITIES.—There are authorized to be appropriated to

6 the Secretary of Commerce, to enable the National Oce7 anic and Atmospheric Administration to carry out execu8 tive direction and administrative activities under the Act

9 of 1970 and any other law involving those activities,

10 $25,000,000 for fiscal year 1995 and $25,900,000 for

11 fiscal year 1996.

12 (b) SYSTEMS ACQUISITION OFFICE.—There are au13 thorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce,

14 to enable the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis15 tration to operate and maintain the Systems Acquisition

16 Office under the Act of 1970, $1,100,000 for fiscal year

17 1995 and $1,140,000 for fiscal year 1996.

18 (c) CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT.—There

19 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Com20 merce, to enable the National Oceanic and Atmospheric

21 Administration to carry out central administrative support

22 activities under the Act of 1970 and any other law involv23 ing those activities, $38,000,000 for fiscal year 1995 and

24 $39,368,000 for fiscal year 1996.
21

•HR 5046 IH

1 (d) RETIRED PAY.—There are authorized to be ap2 propriated to the Secretary of Commerce, for retired pay

3 for retired commissioned officers of the National Oceanic

4 and Atmospheric Administration under the Act of 1970,

5 $7,706,000 for fiscal year 1995 and $7,983,000 for fiscal

6 year 1996.

7 (e) MARINE SERVICES.—There are authorized to be

8 appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce, to enable the

9 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to

10 carry out marine services activities (including ship oper11 ations, maintenance, and support) under the Act of 1947

12 and any other law involving those activities, $63,508,000

13 for fiscal year 1995 and $65,794,000 for fiscal year 1996.

14 TITLE IV—MISCELLANEOUS

15 NOAA PROGRAMS

16 SEC. 401. NAUTICAL PRODUCTS.

17 (a) DEPOSIT AND USE OF RECEIPTS FROM NAU18 TICAL PRODUCTS.—Notwithstanding section 1307(b) of

19 title 44, United States Code, one-sixth of the fees collected

20 each fiscal year from the sale of nautical products by the

21 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and

22 from any licensing of those products by the National Oce23 anic and Atmospheric Administration which is authorized

24 by law—
22

•HR 5046 IH

1 (1) shall be deposited into the Operations, Re2 search, and Facilities account of the National Oce3 anic and Atmospheric Administration; and

4 (2) shall be available to the Secretary of Com5 merce, in the manner provided for under section

6 312(d) of the National Marine Sanctuaries Act, only

7 for the acquisition and installation of Physical Ocean

8 Real-Time Systems, the acquisition and maintenance

9 of upgraded hydrographic survey equipment, and

10 other National Ocean Service activities directly relat11 ed to the modernization and improvement of mari12 time safety.

13 (b) BUDGETARY TREATMENT OF RECEIPTS FROM

14 NAUTICAL PRODUCTS.—Amounts deposited and available

15 to the Secretary of Commerce under subsection (a)(1) and

16 (2)—

17 (1) shall not be considered to be offsetting re18 ceipts of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad19 ministration or the Department of Commerce; and

20 (2) shall not be available for administrative

21 costs of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad22 ministration or the Department of Commerce.

23 (c) DEPLOYMENT OF PHYSICAL OCEAN REAL TIME

24 SYSTEM.—No later than 270 days after the date of enact25 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce shall deploy,
23

•HR 5046 IH

1 in Galveston Bay and the Houston Ship Channel a Phys2 ical Ocean Real Time System consisting, at a minimum,

3 of current, wind, tide, salinity, and water level measuring

4 devices and necessary computer links.

5 SEC. 402. USE OF OCEAN RESEARCH RESOURCES OF OTHER

6 FEDERAL AGENCIES.

7 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following:

8 (1) Changes in the defense needs of the United

9 States have redefined the status of many defense10 related assets.

11 (2) Observing, monitoring, and predicting the

12 ocean environment has been a high priority for the

13 defense community to support ocean operations.

14 (3) Many advances in ocean research have been

15 made by the defense community which could be

16 shared with civilian researchers.

17 (4) The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad18 ministration’s missions to describe and predict the

19 ocean environment, manage the Nation’s ocean and

20 coastal resources, and promote stewardship of the

21 world’s oceans would benefit from increased coopera22 tion with defense agencies.

23 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of the

24 Congress that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad25 ministration should expand its efforts to develop inter-
24

•HR 5046 IH

1 agency agreements to further the use of defense-related

2 technologies, data, and other resources to support its oce3 anic missions.

4 (c) REPORT.—

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120 days

6 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec7 retary of Commerce shall submit to the Committee

8 on Merchant Marine and Fisheries of the House of

9 Representatives and the Committee on Commerce,

10 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report

11 on the feasibility of expanding the use of defense-re12 lated technologies, data, and other resources to sup13 port and enhance the oceanic missions of the Na14 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

15 (2) CONTENTS.—The report required under

16 paragraph (1) shall include—

17 (A) a detailed listing of defense-related re18 sources currently available to the National Oce19 anic and Atmospheric Administration and the

20 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra21 tion missions which utilize those resources;

22 (B) detailed findings and recommenda23 tions, including funding requirements, on the

24 potential for expanding the use of available de25 fense-related resources;
25

•HR 5046 IH

1 (C) a detailed listing and funding history

2 of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad3 ministration resources, including data and tech4 nology, which could be supplemented by de5 fense-related resources;

6 (D) a listing of currently unavailable de7 fense-related resources, including data and

8 technology, which if made available would en9 hance the National Oceanic and Atmospheric

10 Administration mission performance;

11 (E) recommendations on the regulatory

12 and legislative structures needed to maximize

13 the use of defense-related resources;

14 (F) an assessment of the respective roles

15 in the use of defense-related resources of the

16 Corps, data centers, operational centers, and re17 search facilities of the National Oceanic and At18 mospheric Administration; and

19 (G) recommendations on how to provide

20 access to relevant defense-related data for non21 Federal scientific users.

22 SEC. 403. NAUTICAL CHARTING MODERNIZATION AND IM23 PROVEMENT.

24 (a) STUDY.—Not later than 270 days after the date

25 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce
26

•HR 5046 IH

1 shall submit to the Committee on Merchant Marine and

2 Fisheries of the House of Representatives and the Com3 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the

4 Senate a report on the status of National Oceanic and At5 mospheric Administration programs related to marine

6 navigation safety.

7 (b) CONTENTS.—The study under subsection (a)

8 shall include the funding history of navigation-related pro9 grams of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis10 tration, adjusted for inflation, over at least the last 10

11 fiscal years, and detailed findings and recommendations

12 on the following:

13 (1) The missions and objectives of National

14 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s naviga15 tion-related programs, including regarding the statu16 tory or other authorities that enable or require the

17 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

18 to conduct those programs.

19 (2) The technological, financial, or other factors

20 that limit the National Oceanic and Atmospheric

21 Administration’s ability to modernize its navigation22 related programs.

23 (3) Near-term actions, without regard to finan24 cial constraints, that are required to enable National

25 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to address
27

•HR 5046 IH

1 critical deficiencies in its navigation-related pro2 grams.

3 (4) Actions that need to be taken to allow the

4 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

5 to fulfill its navigation-related responsibilities into

6 the 21st century.

7 (5) A comparison of the resources and activities

8 of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra9 tion’s navigation-related programs with those of

10 other Federal agencies supporting the United States

11 maritime infrastructure.

12 (6) Past organizational changes within the Na13 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and

14 foreseeable future organizational changes that have

15 affected, or would affect, the ability of the National

16 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to provide

17 navigation-related services.

18 SEC. 404. WEST COAST GROUNDFISH LABORATORY.

19 In selecting a site for placement of a replacement for

20 the National Marine Fisheries Service Lab at Tiburon,

21 California, the Secretary of Commerce shall take into ac22 count the following factors:

23 (1) The proximity of sites considered to—

24 (A) groundfish fisheries, salmon fisheries,

25 and other unique marine study areas;
28

•HR 5046 IH

1 (B) academic and private research institu2 tions which conduct relevant marine habitat

3 and environmental research;

4 (C) other National Oceanic and Atmos5 pheric Administration research and manage6 ment elements; and

7 (D) other Federal, State, and private ma8 rine related research facilities.

9 (2) The ability of the National Oceanic and At10 mospheric Administration to retain current staff.

11 (3) The relative construction and operation

12 costs, including the potential for collocation with

13 other Federal facilities.

14 SEC. 405. MARINE SANCTUARIES FACILITIES.

15 Not later than 120 days after the date of the enact16 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce shall report

17 to the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries of

18 the House of Representatives and the Committee on Com19 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate on needs

20 of the Department of Commerce for facilities (including

21 real property for facilities) for the National Marine Sanc22 tuary Program established under the National Marine

23 Sanctuaries Act (16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.).
29

•HR 5046 IH

1 SEC. 406. SAN FRANCISCO BAY PORT SYSTEM.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Commerce

3 (hereinafter in this section referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’)

4 shall establish for San Francisco Bay in accordance with

5 this section the safe navigation system known as the Phys6 ical Ocean Real Time System (known, and hereinafter in

7 this section referred to, as the ‘‘PORT System’’), after

8 completion of implementation of section 401(c).

9 (b) STUDY.—After completion of implementation of

10 section 401(c), and not later than 1 year after the date

11 of that completion, the Secretary shall conduct a

12 hydrodynamics modeling study of San Francisco Bay to

13 determine the appropriate technology and equipment and

14 the effective placement of instruments for the establish15 ment of the PORT System for San Francisco Bay.

16 (c) IMPLEMENTATION.—

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after

18 the completion of the study under subsection (b), the

19 Secretary, in consultation with the State of Califor20 nia Office of Oil Spill Prevention and Response and

21 subject to paragraph (2), shall acquire, install, and

22 activate appropriate equipment to establish an oper23 ational PORT System for the San Francisco Bay.

24 (2) CONDITION.—The Secretary may not take

25 any action under paragraph (1) unless the State of

26 California Office has provided to the Secretary ade-
30

•HR 5046 IH

1 quate assurances that the State will fund the oper2 ation and maintenance of the PORT System for San

3 Francisco Bay after its installation.

4 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

5 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry

6 out this section $4,200,000 for fiscal years 1995 and

7 1996.

8 SEC. 407. CONVEYANCE OF NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES

9 SERVICE LABORATORY AT GLOUCESTER,

10 MASSACHUSETTS.

11 (a) CONVEYANCE REQUIRED.—

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Commerce

13 shall convey to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts,

14 all right, title, and interest of the United States in

15 and to the property comprising the National Marine

16 Fisheries Service laboratory located on Emerson Av17 enue in Gloucester, Massachusetts.

18 (2) TERMS.—A conveyance of property under

19 paragraph (1) shall be made—

20 (A) without payment of consideration; and

21 (B) subject to the terms and conditions

22 specified under subsections (b) and (c).

23 (b) CONDITIONS FOR TRANSFER.—

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—As a condition of any con25 veyance of property under this section, the Common-
31

•HR 5046 IH

1 wealth of Massachusetts shall assume full respon2 sibility for maintenance of the property for as long

3 as the Commonwealth retains the right and title to

4 that property.

5 (2) CONTINUED USE OF PROPERTY BY NMFS.—

6 The Secretary may enter into a memorandum of un7 derstanding with the Commonwealth of Massachu8 setts under which the National Marine Fisheries

9 Service is authorized to occupy existing laboratory

10 space on the property conveyed under this section,

11 if—

12 (A) the term of the memorandum of un13 derstanding is for a period of not longer than

14 5 years beginning on the date of enactment of

15 this Act; and

16 (B) the square footage of the space to be

17 occupied by the National Marine Fisheries

18 Service does not conflict with the needs of, and

19 is agreeable to, the Commonwealth of Massa20 chusetts.

21 (c) REVERSIONARY INTEREST.—All right, title, and

22 interest in and to all property conveyed under this section

23 shall revert to the United States on the date on which

24 the Commonwealth of Massachusetts uses any of the prop25 erty for any purpose other than the Commonwealth of
32

•HR 5046 IH

1 Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries resource man2 agement program.

3 SEC. 408. REIMBURSEMENT OF EXPENSES.

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 3302 (b)

5 and (c) of title 31, United States Code, and subject to

6 subsection (b) of this section, all amounts received by the

7 United States in settlement of, or judgment for, damage

8 claims arising from the October 9, 1992, allision of the

9 vessel ZACHERY into the National Oceanic and Atmos10 pheric Administration research vessel DISCOVERER—

11 (1) shall be retained as an offsetting collection

12 in the Fleet Modernization, Shipbuilding, and Con13 version account of the National Oceanic and Atmos14 pheric Administration;

15 (2) shall be deposited in that account upon re16 ceipt by the United States Government; and

17 (3) shall be available only for obligation for Na18 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ves19 sel repairs.

20 (b) LIMITATION.—Not more than $518,757.09 of the

21 amounts referred to in subsection (a) may be deposited

22 into the Fleet Modernization, Shipbuilding, and Conver23 sion account pursuant to subsection (a).

24 SEC. 409. NOAA FLEET MODERNIZATION.

25 (a) AUTHORITY TO CONTRACT.—
33

•HR 5046 IH

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may enter

2 into only the following contracts in fiscal years 1995

3 and 1996 to implement the Plan:

4 (A) Repairs to extend the service life of the

5 R/V DISCOVERER.

6 (B) Construction of a medium endurance

7 oceanographic research vessel.

8 (C) A service life extension of the R/V

9 DELAWARE II.

10 (D) Conversion of a T–AGOS vessel for

11 oceanographic research.

12 (E) Construction of a coastal/low endur13 ance vessel for living marine research.

14 (F) Leasing to fulfill any NOAA mission

15 requirements.

16 (G) Necessary repairs to and maintenance

17 of any vessel in the NOAA fleet, subject to sub18 section (b).

19 (H) Necessary requirements, designs, and

20 specifications for future vessel repair, conver21 sion, construction, or lease.

22 (2) CONTRACT DEFINED.—Section 602 of the

23 NOAA Fleet Modernization Act (33 U.S.C. 891) is

24 amended by adding at the end the following:
34

•HR 5046 IH

1 ‘‘(6) ‘contract’ means any contract or other

2 agreement for the construction, conversion, lease,

3 chartering, service life extension, or repair or main4 tenance of any vessel of the NOAA fleet, and provi5 sion of related equipment, including the development

6 of any necessary requirement, design, or specifica7 tion. The term includes contracts entered into on be8 half of the Secretary by another Federal depart9 ment, agency, or instrumentality, if the vessel which

10 is the subject of the contract will be operated by or

11 for the benefit of the Department of Commerce.’’.

12 (b) LIMITATION ON EXPENDITURES FOR REPAIRS

13 AND MAINTENANCE.—Notwithstanding any other law, of

14 the total amount appropriated for fiscal years 1991

15 through 1996 to the Fleet Modernization, Shipbuilding,

16 and Conversion account of the National Oceanic and At17 mospheric Administration, not more than 20 percent may

18 be expended by the Secretary for repairs and maintenance

19 of vessels in the NOAA fleet.

20 (c) LEASING AND CONTRACTS.—

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall for each

22 of fiscal years 1995 and 1996, enter into contracts

23 or service contracts under the NOAA Fleet Mod24 ernization Act (33 U.S.C. 891 et seq.) to use Uni-
35

•HR 5046 IH

1 versity-National Oceanographic Laboratory System

2 or non-Federal vessels.

3 (2) AMOUNT SUBJECT TO OBLIGATION.—

4 Amounts subject to obligation under paragraph (1)

5 shall be, for each fiscal year, the greater of

6 $6,000,000 or 10 percent of the amounts appro7 priated to the Fleet Modernization, Shipbuilding,

8 and Conversion account for fiscal years 1995 and

9 1996.

10 (d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section each of the terms

11 ‘‘contract’’, ‘‘NOAA’’, ‘‘NOAA fleet’’, ‘‘Plan’’, and ‘‘Sec12 retary’’ has the meaning given to that term in section 602

13 of the NOAA Fleet Modernization Act (33 U.S.C. 891),

14 as amended by this section.

15 SEC. 410. STUDY OF NOAA CORPS.

16 (a) STUDY.—The Secretary of Commerce shall, sub17 ject to the availability of appropriations, contract with the

18 Marine Board of the National Research Council to exam19 ine and report to the Secretary on the appropriate role

20 of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

21 Corps in supporting NOAA missions. In particular, the

22 Marine Board shall—

23 (1) examine whether there is a continued need

24 for a uniformed service to operate the NOAA fleet,

25 fly weather observations, conduct hydrographic sur-
36

•HR 5046 IH

1 veys, manage national marine sanctuaries, conduct

2 NOAA research, and participate in other NOAA

3 activities;

4 (2) examine the role of the NOAA Corps in

5 modernizing the NOAA fleet and the involvement of

6 the NOAA Corps in obtaining efficient, effective,

7 low-cost ship support of NOAA missions;

8 (3) compare the full costs of utilizing the serv9 ices of the NOAA Corps compared to civilian em10 ployees in similar positions; and

11 (4) determine whether adequately trained civil12 ian employees are available to fill NOAA Corps posi13 tions.

14 (b) DEADLINE.—No later than 1 year after the date

15 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce shall

16 submit the report of the Marine Board under subsection

17 (a) to the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries

18 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on

19 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate.

20 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the definitions in

21 section 409(d) apply.

22 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is

23 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Com24 merce to carry out this section a total of $100,000 for
37

•HR 5046 IH

1 fiscal years 1995 and 1996, to remain available until

2 expended.

3 SEC. 411. REPORT ON RESEARCH AND EFFECTS OF CLI4 MATE AND GLOBAL CHANGE ON FRESH5 WATER SYSTEMS.

6 Within 60 days after the date of submission of the

7 President’s budget request for each of fiscal years 1996

8 and 1997, the Secretary of Commerce shall submit a re9 port to the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries

10 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on

11 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate,

12 on—

13 (1) the amount of funds allocated and the ac14 tivities supported for research on the effects of cli15 mate and global change on the Nation’s major fresh16 water systems, including international commitments;

17 (2) the criteria used in determining those allo18 cations and in selecting those activities; and

19 (3) specific proposed agency plans for imple20 menting research programs and activities to evaluate

21 the effects of climate and global change on the Na22 tion’s major freshwater systems.
38

•HR 5046 IH

1 SEC. 412. PROMOTION AND COORDINATION OF NATIONAL

2 ESTUARINE RESEARCH RESERVES.

3 The Secretary of Commerce shall take such action as

4 is necessary and reasonable to promote and coordinate the

5 use of National Estuarine Research Reserves for research,

6 monitoring, and education purposes. Such action may in7 clude consulting with Federal agencies, States, local gov8 ernments, regional agencies, interstate agencies, or other

9 persons to promote use of one or more such reserves for

10 research, monitoring, and education, including coordina11 tion with the National Marine Sanctuaries Program.

12 SEC. 413. STUDY ON EFFECTS OF DOLPHIN FEEDING.

13 (a) STUDY.—The Secretary of Commerce shall con14 duct a study on the effects of feeding noncaptive dolphins

15 in the Gulf of Mexico and Southern Atlantic Ocean. The

16 study shall consider the potential impacts on the behavior

17 or general health of wild populations of dolphins resulting

18 from this feeding.

19 (b) USE OF THE STUDY.—The Secretary of Com20 merce shall use the results of the study required under

21 subsection (a) in determining whether and under what

22 conditions feeding noncaptive dolphins may be authorized.

23 (c) REPORT.—Within 1 year after the date of enact24 ment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Com25 mittee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries of the House

26 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce,
39

•HR 5046 IH

1 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report on the

2 results of the study.

3 SEC. 414. FLOWER GARDEN BANKS BOUNDARY MODIFICA4 TION.

5 (a) MODIFICATION.—Notwithstanding section 304 of

6 the National Marine Sanctuaries Act (16 U.S.C. 1434),

7 the boundaries of the Flower Garden Banks National Ma8 rine Sanctuary, as designated by Public Law 102–251, are

9 amended to include the area described in subsection (d),

10 popularly known as Stetson Bank. This area shall be part

11 of the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary

12 and shall be managed and regulated as though it had been

13 designated by the Secretary of Commerce under the

14 National Marine Sanctuaries Act.

15 (b) DEPICTION OF SANCTUARY BOUNDARIES.—The

16 Secretary of Commerce shall—

17 (1) prepare a chart depicting the boundaries of

18 the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanc19 tuary, as modified by this section; and

20 (2) submit copies of this chart to the Commit21 tee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries of the House

22 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce,

23 Science, and Transportation of the Senate.

24 (c) APPLICATION OF REGULATIONS.—Regulations is25 sued by the Secretary of Commerce to implement the des-
40

•HR 5046 IH

1 ignation of the Flower Garden Banks National Marine

2 Sanctuary shall apply to the area described in subsection

3 (d), unless modified by the Secretary. This subsection

4 shall take effect 45 days after the date of enactment of

5 this Act.

6 (d) AREA DESCRIBED.—

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para8 graph (2), the area referred to in subsections (a),

9 (b), and (c) is the area that is—

10 (A) generally depicted on the Department

11 of the Interior, Minerals Management Service

12 map titled ‘‘Western Gulf of Mexico, Lease Sale

13 143, September 1993, Biologically Sensitive

14 Areas, Map 3 of 3, Final’’;

15 (B) labeled ‘‘Stetson’’ on the High Island

16 Area South Addition diagram on that map; and

17 (C) within the 52 meter isobath.

18 (2) MINOR BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENTS.—The

19 Secretary of Commerce may make minor adjust20 ments to the boundaries of the area described in

21 paragraph (1) as necessary to protect the living

22 coral resources of Stetson Bank or to simplify ad23 ministration of the Flower Garden Banks National

24 Marine Sanctuary.

25 (e) PUBLICATION OF NOTICE.—
41

•HR 5046 IH

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Commerce

2 shall, as soon as practicable after the date of the en3 actment of this Act, publish in the Federal Register

4 a notice describing—

5 (A) the boundaries of the Flower Garden

6 Banks National Marine Sanctuary, as modified

7 by this section, and

8 (B) any modification of regulations appli9 cable to that Sanctuary that are necessary to

10 implement that modification of the boundaries

11 of the Sanctuary.

12 (2) TREATMENT AS NOTICE REQUIRED UNDER

13 NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARIES ACT.—A notice

14 published under paragraph (1) shall be considered to

15 be the notice required to be published under section

16 304(b)(1) of the National Marine Sanctuaries Act

17 (16 U.S.C. 1434).

18 SEC. 415. AMENDMENTS RELATING TO NATIONAL COASTAL

19 RESOURCES RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

20 INSTITUTE.

21 (a) ADMINISTRATION OF INSTITUTE.—Section

22 201(a) of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize appropria23 tions to carry out the Marine Mammal Protection Act of

24 1972, for fiscal years 1985 through 1988, and for other

25 purposes’’ (16 U.S.C. 1463b(a)) is amended by striking
42

•HR 5046 IH

1 ‘‘by the Oregon State Marine Science Center’’ and insert2 ing ‘‘by the Oregon State System of Higher Education’’.

3 (b) FUNCTIONS OF INSTITUTE.—Section 201(b) of

4 such Act (16 U.S.C. 1463b(b)) is amended to read as

5 follows:

6 ‘‘(b) The Institute shall promote the economic growth

7 and prosperity of the United States by transferring re8 search and technology into applications to improve the

9 economic, environmental, and social well-being of the

10 Nation’s coastal communities and the competitiveness of

11 coastal businesses.’’.

12 (c) MEMBERSHIP OF BOARD OF GOVERNORS.—Sec13 tion 201(c)(1) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 1463b(c)(1)) is

14 amended to read as follows:

15 ‘‘(c)(1) The policies of the Institute shall be deter16 mined by a Board of Governors composed of—

17 ‘‘(A) 1 representative appointed by the Chan18 cellor of the Oregon State System of Higher Edu19 cation; and

20 ‘‘(B) 1 representative of each of the following

21 regions, appointed jointly by Governors of the States

22 comprising that region:

23 ‘‘(i) The Alaska region, consisting of

24 Alaska.
43

•HR 5046 IH

1 ‘‘(ii) The Northwest Pacific Coast region,

2 consisting of Oregon and Washington.

3 ‘‘(iii) The Southwest Pacific Coast region,

4 consisting of California.

5 ‘‘(iv) The Pacific Islands region, consisting

6 of Hawaii, American Samoa, and Guam.

7 ‘‘(v) The Great Lakes region, consisting of

8 Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois,

9 Wisconsin, and Minnesota.

10 ‘‘(vi) The Gulf Coast region, consisting of

11 Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama.

12 ‘‘(vii) The South Atlantic and Caribbean

13 region, consisting of South Carolina, Georgia,

14 Florida, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Is15 lands.

16 ‘‘(viii) The Mid-Atlantic region, consisting

17 of Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and North

18 Carolina.

19 ‘‘(ix) The North Atlantic region, consisting

20 of New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Rhode

21 Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and

22 Maine.’’.

23 (d) ADVISORY COUNCIL.—Section 201(d)(1) of such

24 Act (16 U.S.C. 1463b(d)(1)) is amended by inserting
44

•HR 5046 IH

1 ‘‘and leaders in coastal communities and businesses’’ after

2 ‘‘community’’.

3 (e) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 201(e) of

4 such Act (16 U.S.C. 1463b(e)) is amended by striking

5 ‘‘Oregon Board of Higher Education’’ and inserting ‘‘Or6 egon State System of Higher Education’’.

7 (f) REPORTS.—Section 201(g) of such Act (16

8 U.S.C. 1463b(g)) is amended to read as follows:

9 ‘‘(g) The Institute shall report to the Congress on

10 its activities annually, and shall report to the Secretary

11 of Commerce in a like manner biennially.’’.

12 SEC. 416. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING PROMOTION

13 OF MINORITIES AND WOMEN IN COASTAL

14 AND OCEAN PROGRAMS.

15 It is the sense of the Congress that the National Oce16 anic and Atmospheric Administration should develop and

17 promote programs that reach out to and recruit minorities

18 and women for education in the sciences and take actions

19 to increase the direct involvement of underrepresented mi20 norities in coastal and ocean resource stewardship pro21 grams carried out directly by the National Oceanic and

22 Atmospheric Administration and in partnership with State

23 and local governments, universities, and other entities. To

24 this end, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis25 tration should create minority internship programs to de-
45

•HR 5046 IH

1 velop a pool of professionals in coastal and ocean science

2 and management, and to make these programs an eligible

3 use of grant and program funds distributed by the Na4 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to States,

5 universities, and other entities.

6 SEC. 417. CHESAPEAKE BAY.

7 (a) REPEAL.—If by December 1, 1994, the Secretary

8 of Commerce fails to obligate all funds appropriated to

9 the Secretary of Commerce by Public Law 103–121 for

10 oyster disease research, section 307 of the National Oce11 anic and Atmospheric Administration Act of 1992 (15

12 U.S.C. 1511d), requiring the establishment of a National

13 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Chesapeake Bay

14 Estuarine Resources Office, is repealed.

15 (b) ASSIGNMENT OF FUNCTIONS.—If section 307 of

16 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Act

17 of 1992 (15 U.S.C. 1511d) is repealed by subsection (a),

18 the Secretary of Commerce shall immediately—

19 (1) enter into a cooperative agreement with the

20 directors of the Maryland and Virginia Sea Grant

21 colleges to administer all funds appropriated to the

22 Secretary of Commerce under any law for oyster dis23 ease research and Chesapeake Bay studies; and

24 (2) transfer the functions of the former Na25 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
46

•HR 5046 IH

1 Chesapeake Bay Estuarine Resources Office to the

2 Director of the Coastal Ocean Program.

3 The Director may delegate any of the functions trans4 ferred under paragraph (2) to the directors of the Mary5 land and Virginia Sea Grant colleges under the coopera6 tive agreement required under paragraph (1).

7 (c) REPEAL AND AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIA8 TIONS.—

9 (1) REPEAL.—Section 2(e) of the National Oce10 anic and Atmospheric Administration Marine Fish11 eries Program Authorization Act (Public Law 98–

12 210, 97 Stat. 1409) is repealed.

13 (2) AUTHORIZATION.—There is authorized to

14 be appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce to im15 plement section 307 of the National Oceanic and At16 mospheric Administration Act of 1992 (15 U.S.C.

17 1511d) and this section, $2,500,000 for each of fis18 cal years 1995 and 1996, to remain available until

19 expended.

20 SEC. 418. WEATHER REPORTING STATIONS FOR PRINCE

21 WILLIAM SOUND.

22 (a) INSTALLATION.—To provide more comprehensive

23 weather information to ensure the safety of fishermen and

24 tank vessels and to protect the resources of Prince William

25 Sound from potential oil spills, the Secretary of Commerce
47

•HR 5046 IH

1 may expend $340,000 to acquire, construct, and install

2 weather reporting stations in Prince William Sound, Alas3 ka, as follows:

4 (1) In the vicinity of Seal Rocks, to acquire and

5 install a weather buoy capable of measuring and re6 porting wind speed and direction, barometric pres7 sure, wave height and period, and air temperature.

8 (2) On the existing tower at Bligh Reef, to ac9 quire and install a weather instrument capable of

10 measuring and reporting wind speed and direction.

11 (3) At Potato Point, to relocate the existing an12 emometer to a more exposed location in order to

13 provide more accurate information.

14 (4) At the Hinchinbrook Lighthouse site, to ac15 quire and install an anemometer.

16 (b) MAINTENANCE.—The Secretary of Commerce

17 may expend $160,000 in each of fiscal years 1995 and

18 1996 to maintain the equipment identified in subsection

19 (a).

20 SEC. 419. PURCHASE OF REMOTELY SENSED SCIENCE

21 DATA.

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—To the maximum extent possible,

23 the Secretary of Commerce shall purchase from the pri24 vate sector remotely sensed science data. Examples of such

25 data include scientific data concerning the impact of
48

•HR 5046 IH

1 oceans worldwide on global climate change and concerning

2 the condition of the oceans.

3 (b) COMPETITIVE BIDDING.—(1) Contracts for the

4 purchase of remotely sensed data under this section shall

5 be awarded in a process of full, fair, and open competitive

6 bidding.

7 (2) Submission of cost data, either for the purposes

8 of supporting the bid or fulfillment of the contract, shall

9 not be required of bidders.

10 (3) Conformance with military specifications

11 (Milspec) or Department of Commerce specifications sys12 tems with respect to the design, construction, or operation

13 of equipment used in obtaining remotely sensed data

14 under contracts entered into under this section shall not

15 be a requirement for a commercial provider bidding to pro16 vide such services.

17 (4) Contracts under this section shall not provide for

18 the Federal Government to obtain ownership of data not

19 specifically sought by the Federal Government.

20 SEC. 420. PURCHASE OF AMERICAN-MADE EQUIPMENT AND

21 PRODUCTS.

22 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con23 gress that, to the greatest extent practicable, all equip24 ment and products purchased with funds made available

25 in this Act should be American-made.
49

•HR 5046 IH

1 (b) NOTICE REQUIREMENT.—In providing financial

2 assistance to, or entering into any contract with, any en3 tity using funds made available in this Act, the head of

4 each Federal agency, to the greatest extent practicable,

5 shall provide to such entity a notice describing the state6 ment made in subsection (a) by the Congress.

7 TITLE V—GREAT LAKES

8 IMPROVEMENTS

9 SEC. 501. SHORT TITLE.

10 This title may be cited as the ‘‘National Oceanic and

11 Atmospheric Administration Great Lakes Improvements

12 Act’’.

13 SEC. 502. GREAT LAKES OFFICE.

14 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Under Secretary may es15 tablish and maintain within the Administration a Great

16 Lakes Office in the Washington, District of Columbia

17 area.

18 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the Great Lakes Of19 fice shall be to promote and coordinate Administration re20 search, monitoring, and assessment work in the Great

21 Lakes region consistent with the goals of the Great Lakes

22 Water Quality Agreement.

23 (c) DIRECTOR.—The Director of the Great Lakes Of24 fice shall be an individual with extensive knowledge and
50

•HR 5046 IH

1 expertise in the Great Lakes ecosystem, and with appro2 priate administrative experience.

3 SEC. 503. GREAT LAKES REPORT.

4 (a) CONTENTS.—Subject to the availability of appro5 priations under section 505, the Under Secretary, in con6 sultation with the Director of the Great Lakes Office if

7 established, shall prepare and submit to Congress an an8 nual Great Lakes Report in accordance with this section.

9 The Report shall provide information relating to Great

10 Lakes ecosystem research, monitoring, and assessment,

11 including—

12 (1) the individual activities, projects, or propos13 als conducted by the Administration in the previous

14 fiscal year, including a summary of funds expended

15 in support of these activities, projects, or proposals;

16 (2) the amount of funds received from the Ad17 ministration by each State or local government unit

18 bordering the Great Lakes;

19 (3) the amount of funds received by individuals

20 or institutions residing or located within a State bor21 dering the Great Lakes;

22 (4) an inventory of Administration facilities and

23 personnel located in a State bordering the Great

24 Lakes or in the Great Lakes used to conduct or sup-
51

•HR 5046 IH

1 port Administration-funded activities, projects, or

2 proposals in the Great Lakes, including vessels;

3 (5) the proposed Administration activities,

4 projects, and proposals to benefit the Great Lakes

5 ecosystem for the current fiscal year, including re6 quested funds; and

7 (6) a proposal for increasing the presence of the

8 Administration in the Great Lakes, and improving

9 the coordination of research within the Administra10 tion and with other entities, including the Govern11 ment of Canada.

12 (b) DEADLINE.—Subject to the availability of appro13 priations under section 505, the Under Secretary shall

14 submit the Great Lakes Report to the Congress by Octo15 ber 1 of 1995, 1996, 1997, and 1998.

16 SEC. 504. DEFINITIONS.

17 In this title—

18 (1) the term ‘‘Administration’’ means the Na19 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration;

20 (2) the term ‘‘Great Lakes’’ means—

21 (A) Lake Erie, Lake Huron, Lake Michi22 gan, Lake Ontario, and Lake Superior;

23 (B) their connecting waters, including the

24 St. Marys River, the St. Clair River, Lake St.
52

•HR 5046 IH

1 Clair, the Detroit River, and the Niagara River;

2 and

3 (C) the St. Lawrence River;

4 (3) the term ‘‘Great Lakes Water Quality

5 Agreement’’ means the bilateral agreement between

6 the United States and Canada which was signed in

7 1978 and amended by the Protocol of 1987; and

8 (4) the term ‘‘Under Secretary’’ means the

9 Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and At10 mosphere.

11 SEC. 505. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

12 There is authorized to be appropriated to the Under

13 Secretary to carry out this title $100,000 for each of fiscal

14 years 1995, 1996, 1997, and 1998.

15 TITLE VI—NATIONAL UNDERSEA

16 RESEARCH PROGRAM

17 SEC. 601. SHORT TITLE.

18 This title may be cited as the ‘‘National Undersea

19 Research Program Act of 1994’’.

20 SEC. 602. DEFINITIONS.

21 For the purposes of this title, the term—

22 (1) ‘‘Administration’’ means the National Oce23 anic and Atmospheric Administration;

24 (2) ‘‘Center’’ means any National Undersea Re25 search Center in existence on the day before the
53

•HR 5046 IH

1 date of enactment of this Act or established under

2 section 605;

3 (3) ‘‘Center Director’’ means the Director of

4 any National Undersea Research Center;

5 (4) ‘‘Committee’’ means the National Undersea

6 Research Advisory Committee established under sec7 tion 604;

8 (5) ‘‘Office’’ means the Office of Undersea Re9 search established by section 603(d)(1);

10 (6) ‘‘priority research area’’ means any of the

11 priority research areas set forth in section 603(f)(1),

12 as those areas may be revised by the Under Sec13 retary under section 603(f)(2);

14 (7) ‘‘Program’’ means the National Undersea

15 Research Program established under section 603;

16 (8) ‘‘Program Director’’ means the Director of

17 the National Undersea Research Program appointed

18 pursuant to section 603(d)(2);

19 (9) ‘‘undersea region’’ means each of—

20 (A) the United States Northern Atlantic

21 region, comprised of the coastal and oceanic

22 waters and seabed north of Montauk, New

23 York, and off Maine, New Hampshire, Massa24 chusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut;
54

•HR 5046 IH

1 (B) the Mid-Atlantic Bight region, com2 prised of the coastal and oceanic waters and

3 seabed south of Montauk, New York, and off

4 New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Dela5 ware, Maryland, and Virginia;

6 (C) the United States Southern Atlantic

7 region, comprised of the coastal and oceanic

8 waters and seabed off North Carolina, South

9 Carolina, Georgia, and the Atlantic coast of

10 Florida (including the Florida Keys);

11 (D) the Gulf of Mexico region, comprised

12 of the coastal and oceanic waters and seabed of

13 the Gulf of Mexico off Florida, Alabama, Mis14 sissippi, Louisiana, and Texas;

15 (E) the Great Lakes region, comprised of

16 the waters and lake beds of the Great Lakes;

17 (F) the California region, comprised of the

18 coastal and oceanic waters and seabed off

19 California;

20 (G) the United States Northeast Pacific

21 region, comprised of the coastal and oceanic

22 waters and seabed off Oregon, Washington, and

23 Alaska;

24 (H) the Western Pacific region, comprised

25 of the coastal and oceanic waters and seabed off
55

•HR 5046 IH

1 Hawaii, Johnston Island, Guam, American

2 Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands, and

3 other Western Pacific waters and seabed rel4 evant to the purpose of the Program;

5 (I) the Caribbean region, comprised of the

6 coastal and oceanic waters and seabed off Puer7 to Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, and

8 other tropical and subtropical waters and sea9 bed relevant to the purposes of the Program;

10 and

11 (J) any other undersea region resulting

12 from a modification under section 603(e)(5);

13 (10) ‘‘undersea research’’ means scientific re14 search carried out in the oceans or large lakes of the

15 world, using advanced underwater technology includ16 ing diving, underwater observatories and labora17 tories, research submersibles, remotely operated ve18 hicles, autonomous vehicles, and any other research

19 techniques necessary to carry out the provisions of

20 this title; and

21 (11) ‘‘Under Secretary’’ means the Under Sec22 retary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere.
56

•HR 5046 IH

1 SEC. 603. ESTABLISHMENT AND ADMINISTRATION OF NA2 TIONAL UNDERSEA RESEARCH PROGRAM.

3 (a) PROGRAM ESTABLISHMENT AND MAINTE4 NANCE.—The Under Secretary shall establish and main5 tain in the Administration a program to be known as the

6 ‘‘National Undersea Research Program’’.

7 (b) PROGRAM PURPOSE.—The purpose of the Pro8 gram shall be to enhance scientific understanding of proc9 esses in the oceans and large lakes of the world, by—

10 (1) developing, maintaining, and carrying out

11 undersea research programs;

12 (2) investigating, developing, and applying tech13 nology for undersea research; and

14 (3) developing new approaches to undersea

15 technology transfer and marine science education.

16 (c) NATIONAL UNDERSEA RESEARCH CENTERS.—

17 The Program shall be conducted by the National Undersea

18 Research Centers established pursuant to section 605(a).

19 (d) OFFICE OF UNDERSEA RESEARCH.—

20 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in

21 the Administration the Office of Undersea Research.

22 (2) PROGRAM DIRECTOR.—The head of the Of23 fice and Program Officer of the National Undersea

24 Research Program is the Director of the National

25 Undersea Research Program, who shall be appointed

26 by the Under Secretary from among individuals with
57

•HR 5046 IH

1 extensive knowledge and expertise in undersea re2 search and having appropriate administrative experi3 ence.

4 (e) DUTIES OF PROGRAM DIRECTOR.—Subject to the

5 supervision of the Under Secretary, the Program Director

6 shall carry out the following duties:

7 (1) Facilitate and support the activities of

8 Centers.

9 (2) Establish guidelines for the submission and

10 review of proposals from the Centers and proposals

11 from individual researchers that are submitted to

12 the Centers for research under the Program.

13 (3) Make grants and enter into contracts and

14 cooperative agreements under section 608 to ad15 vance knowledge in the priority research areas

16 through the Centers.

17 (4) Support the Memorandum of Agreement

18 Concerning Support of a National Academic Deep

19 Submergence Facility for Scientific Use.

20 (5) Modify undersea regions as necessary and

21 appropriate.

22 (6) Carry out any other duty assigned to the

23 Program Director by this title.

24 (f) PRIORITY RESEARCH AREAS.—
58

•HR 5046 IH

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary may

2 use amounts appropriated for the Program to fund

3 research, including long-term studies, within the fol4 lowing priority research areas:

5 (A) Oceanic, coastal, estuarine, and

6 limnological processes.

7 (B) Pathways and fates of materials in the

8 oceans and large lakes.

9 (C) Diversity, distribution, productivity,

10 and recruitment of organisms, including com11 mercially valuable species, with respect to habi12 tat characteristics in the oceans and large

13 lakes.

14 (D) Global change processes.

15 (E) Ocean lithosphere processes and min16 eral resources.

17 (F) Undersea research platform and in18 strument technology.

19 (G) Diving safety, physiology, and tech20 nology.

21 (H) Studies under section 21(e) of the

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

23 1347(e)).

24 (2) REVISION OF PRIORITY AREAS.—Upon the

25 recommendation of the Committee, the Under Sec-
59

•HR 5046 IH

1 retary may, after public comment, revise the priority

2 research areas under paragraph (1).

3 SEC. 604. ADVISORY COMMITTEE.

4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMITTEE.—The Under

5 Secretary shall establish an independent advisory commit6 tee to be known as the ‘‘National Undersea Research

7 Advisory Committee’’.

8 (b) COMPOSITION.—

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Committee shall consist

10 of 9 members appointed by the Under Secretary

11 from individuals who are eminent professional sci12 entists or engineers and active in at least one prior13 ity research area, of whom 2 members shall be ap14 pointed from individuals nominated by Center Direc15 tors. The Under Secretary shall complete appoint16 ments under this paragraph by not later than 6

17 months after the date of the enactment of this Act.

18 (2) BALANCE.—In appointing members of the

19 Committee, the Under Secretary shall seek to ensure

20 balanced representation of—

21 (A) priority research areas,

22 (B) disciplines related to priority research

23 areas, and

24 (C) geographic regions of the United

25 States.
60

•HR 5046 IH

1 (3) PROHIBITION ON APPOINTMENTS.—Except

2 as provided in paragraph (4), no member of the

3 Committee may be an employee of a Center or of the

4 Administration.

5 (4) EX OFFICIO MEMBERS OF THE COMMIT6 TEE.—The Chief Scientist of the Administration

7 shall be a nonvoting ex officio member of the Com8 mittee.

9 (c) DUTIES.—The Committee shall—

10 (1) advise the Under Secretary and the Pro11 gram Director concerning—

12 (A) the quality of research performed with

13 grants awarded under this title, the applicabil14 ity of such research to the priority research

15 areas;

16 (B) the designation, establishment, and op17 eration of Centers;

18 (C) the modification of undersea regions;

19 (D) the need to revise the priority research

20 areas; and

21 (E) any other matters that the Under Sec22 retary refers to the Committee for review and

23 advice, or that the Committee considers appro24 priate; and
61

•HR 5046 IH

1 (2) carry out any other duty specifically as2 signed to the Committee by this title.

3 (d) TERM OF MEMBERSHIP.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2),

5 the term of membership on the Committee shall be

6 3 years.

7 (2) INITIAL APPOINTMENTS.—Of the members

8 first appointed to the Committee—

9 (A) 3 members shall serve a term of 1

10 year;

11 (B) 3 members shall serve a term of 2

12 years; and

13 (C) 3 members shall serve a term of 3

14 years;

15 as specified by the Under Secretary at the time of

16 appointment.

17 (3) TERM LIMITATION.—No individual may

18 serve consecutive terms as a member of the Commit19 tee.

20 (e) COMPENSATION.—Members of the Committee,

21 while performing official duties as members of the Com22 mittee, are entitled to receive compensation for travel and

23 transportation expenses under section 5703 of title 5,

24 United States Code.
62

•HR 5046 IH

1 (f) CHAIRPERSON.—The members of the Committee

2 shall select annually from among the voting members of

3 the Committee an individual who shall serve as Chair4 person of the Committee. No member of the Committee

5 may serve more than 2 annual terms as Chairperson.

6 (g) CONDUCT OF BUSINESS.—The Committee shall

7 conduct its business according to the majority vote of

8 those members present at a meeting of the Committee.

9 (h) PUBLIC PARTICIPATION.—The following guide10 lines apply to the conduct of business by the Committee:

11 (1) Each meeting shall be open to the public,

12 and interested persons shall be permitted an oppor13 tunity to present oral or written statements on items

14 on the agenda.

15 (2) Timely notice of each meeting, including the

16 time, place, and agenda, shall be published in the

17 Federal Register and copies sent to all Center Direc18 tors.

19 (i) EXEMPTION.—The Federal Advisory Committee

20 Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the Committee.

21 SEC. 605. ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL UNDERSEA RE22 SEARCH CENTERS.

23 (a) ASSIGNMENT OF EXISTING REGIONS AND ESTAB24 LISHMENT OF NEW CENTERS.—
63

•HR 5046 IH

1 (1) ASSIGNMENT OF REGIONS TO EXISTING

2 CENTERS.—There are assigned to the Centers in ex3 istence on the day before the date of the enactment

4 of this Act undersea regions, as follows:

5 (A) The Western Pacific region is assigned

6 to the Hawaii Undersea Research Laboratory.

7 (B) The United States Northeast Pacific

8 and Californian regions are assigned to the

9 West Coast National Undersea Research Center

10 at the University of Alaska-Fairbanks.

11 (C) The United States Northern Atlantic

12 and Great Lakes regions are assigned to the

13 National Undersea Research Center at the Uni14 versity of Connecticut at Avery Point.

15 (D) The Mid-Atlantic Bight region is as16 signed to the New York Bight National Under17 sea Research Center.

18 (E) The United States Southern Atlantic

19 region is assigned to the National Undersea Re20 search Center at the University of North Caro21 lina at Wilmington.

22 (F) The Caribbean region is assigned to

23 the National Undersea Research Center at the

24 Caribbean Marine Research Center.
64

•HR 5046 IH

1 (G) The Gulf of Mexico region is assigned

2 to a new center to be established pursuant to

3 subsection (f).

4 (2) ESTABLISHMENT OF NEW CENTERS.—The

5 Under Secretary may establish a new Center to im6 plement the Program for any undersea region at an

7 institution of higher education or oceanographic re8 search located in a State bordering the region—

9 (A) if there is a clearly demonstrated, sci10 entific need for such a Center;

11 (B) if there are adequate funds available

12 for the establishment of the Center;

13 (C) after reviewing each proposal submit14 ted under subsection (b) with respect to that re15 gion; and

16 (D) if the Committee concurs in the selec17 tion of that institution.

18 (3) LIMITATION.—The Under Secretary may

19 not establish a new Center for an undersea region

20 if the expenditure of amounts for that Center would

21 result in any reduction of amounts available for ex22 penditure for any other Center.

23 (b) SOLICITATION OF PROPOSALS FOR NEW CEN24 TERS.—
65

•HR 5046 IH

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary may

2 solicit proposals for the establishment of a new Cen3 ter under subsection (a)(2) from institutions of high4 er education or oceanographic research.

5 (2) PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS.—A proposal

6 under this subsection shall consist of—

7 (A) a proposed science program;

8 (B) a program management plan;

9 (C) a description of the facilities of the in10 stitution at which the new Center is proposed to

11 be established;

12 (D) a description of relevant capabilities of

13 that institution;

14 (E) an operational safety plan;

15 (F) mechanisms for information transfer;

16 (G) a budget for the proposed Center; and

17 (H) any other information the Under Sec18 retary considers necessary.

19 (c) REVIEW OF PROPOSALS.—The Under Secretary

20 and the Committee shall review each proposal submitted

21 under subsection (b) on the basis of—

22 (1) relevance of the proposal to priority re23 search areas; and

24 (2) the capability of the applicant institution to

25 administer and direct research in those areas.
66

•HR 5046 IH

1 (d) CENTER DIRECTOR.—Each institution at which

2 a Center is established under this section may select, in

3 consultation with the Office, an individual who shall be

4 the Center Director of that Center.

5 (e) 6-YEAR REVIEW OF CENTERS AND REGIONS.—

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Every 6 years the Under

7 Secretary and the Committee shall jointly review—

8 (A) the operation of each Center, except

9 that in the case of a Center in existence on the

10 day before the date of the enactment of this

11 Act, the first review of the Center shall be com12 pleted by not later than the date which is 5

13 years after that date of enactment; and

14 (B) the configuration of undersea regions

15 to determine whether those regions meet sci16 entific needs for research in priority research

17 areas.

18 (2) CONTENT OF REVIEW.—A review under this

19 subsection shall consist of—

20 (A) an evaluation of the quality of the re21 search conducted at the Center under the Pro22 gram and the applicability of the research to

23 the priority research areas, including consider24 ation of the reviews conducted under section

25 606(c);
67

•HR 5046 IH

1 (B) recommendations for changes in the

2 scientific research program and the operation of

3 the Center, that are considered beneficial by the

4 Committee and the Under Secretary;

5 (C) a determination of whether the contin6 ued operation of the Center will increase knowl7 edge in the priority research areas; and

8 (D) recommendations for the modification

9 of the undersea regions of the Center.

10 (3) ESTABLISHMENT OF NEW CENTER AT DIF11 FERENT INSTITUTION.—If the Under Secretary and

12 the Committee determine as a result of a review

13 under this subsection that continued operation of a

14 Center is not warranted, the Under Secretary—

15 (A) shall provide notification of that deter16 mination to the Center, including a description

17 of any changes in the operations of the Center

18 the Under Secretary considers necessary for

19 continued operation of the Center;

20 (B) shall after 18 months after providing

21 that notice, and not later than 2 years after

22 providing that notice, review the implementa23 tion of those changes by the Center; and

24 (C) may establish, at a different institution

25 of higher education or oceanographic research,
68

•HR 5046 IH

1 a new Center for the same undersea region in

2 accordance with this section, if the Under Sec3 retary determines as a result of the review

4 under subparagraph (B) that those changes are

5 not implemented.

6 (f) NEW CENTER.—

7 (1) GULF OF MEXICO.—

8 (A) ESTABLISHMENT.—Notwithstanding

9 subsection (a)(2) and (a)(3), the Under Sec10 retary shall establish at a qualified public insti11 tution a Center to conduct the Program for the

12 Gulf of Mexico undersea region, which shall be

13 known as the ‘‘Gulf of Mexico National Under14 sea Research Center’’. The Under Secretary

15 shall establish that Center no later than 60

16 days after the date of enactment of this Act.

17 (B) DEFINITION.—For the purposes of

18 this paragraph, the term ‘‘qualified public insti19 tution’’ means a public institution or consor20 tium of public institutions of higher edu21 cation—

22 (i) located directly on the coastline of,

23 or having direct access to, the Gulf of

24 Mexico;
69

•HR 5046 IH

1 (ii) with strong undergraduate and

2 graduate programs in engineering, science,

3 and technology as they may apply to un4 dersea research;

5 (iii) with nationally recognized pro6 grams in marine science and maritime

7 studies, with strong consideration given to

8 any institution with a degree granting

9 maritime academy;

10 (iv) with facilities for maintaining and

11 operating research and other vessels appro12 priate for deployment of equipment nec13 essary to conduct undersea research;

14 (v) with faculty and other personnel

15 with expertise in undersea research;

16 (vi) capable of fully utilizing and

17 working closely with the National Marine

18 Sanctuary System in the Gulf of Mexico;

19 and

20 (vii) capable of developing and main21 taining cooperative undersea research pro22 grams with Mexico.

23 (2) LIMITATION.—In carrying out this sub24 section, the Under Secretary shall not reduce

25 amounts available for carrying out the Memorandum
70

•HR 5046 IH

1 of Agreement Concerning Support of a National

2 Academic Deep Submergence Facility for Scientific

3 Use.

4 SEC. 606. NATIONAL UNDERSEA RESEARCH CENTER RE5 SEARCH PROGRAMS.

6 (a) INDIVIDUAL RESEARCH PROPOSALS.—

7 (1) SOLICITATION.—Each Center Director shall

8 annually solicit individual proposals from the sci9 entific community for research to advance the prior10 ity research areas of the Program. Research under

11 each proposal shall be primarily conducted within

12 the undersea region of the Center, but may be con13 ducted in another undersea region in cooperation

14 with the Center for that region, or other geographic

15 areas with the approval of the Program Director. In16 dividual proposals shall adhere to guidelines estab17 lished by the Program Director pursuant to section

18 603(e)(2). Proposals under this paragraph may be

19 for multiyear research.

20 (2) INDIVIDUAL PROPOSAL REVIEW PROCESS.—

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—Each individual pro22 posal shall be reviewed by an independent re23 view panel and by not less than 3 anonymous

24 mail reviewers. Each independent review panel

25 shall be composed of not less than 4 individuals
71

•HR 5046 IH

1 with experience in undersea research appointed

2 by the Program Director, at least one of whom

3 shall be a member of the Committee.

4 (B) PANEL REVIEW.—Each review by an

5 independent review panel shall—

6 (i) assess the scientific merit of the

7 individual research proposal;

8 (ii) assess the ability of the Center to

9 carry out the proposed research; and

10 (iii) the applicability of the proposal

11 to the priority research areas.

12 (C) MAIL REVIEWS.—Each mail review

13 shall consider—

14 (i) the scientific merit of the proposal;

15 and

16 (ii) the capability of the principal in17 vestigator to carry out or support the pro18 posed research.

19 (3) ALLOWANCE FOR RESPONSE.—

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to any regula21 tion that is issued by the Program Director, a

22 Center Director shall—

23 (i) provide to each person who sub24 mits to the Center a proposal under this

25 section blinded copies of all mail reviews of
72

•HR 5046 IH

1 the proposal conducted under paragraph

2 (2), and

3 (ii) give the person not more than 14

4 days to respond to those reviews before

5 rendering any final decision regarding

6 funding for the proposal.

7 (B) REVIEW OF PROCESS BY COMMIT8 TEE.—Not later than 3 years after the date of

9 the enactment of this Act, the Committee

10 shall—

11 (i) whether all Centers are implement12 ing subparagraph (A);

13 (ii) determine whether the opportunity

14 of persons who submit proposals to re15 spond to reviews pursuant to subparagraph

16 (A) has been utilized by those persons;

17 (iii) determine whether those re18 sponses have been effective in ensuring full

19 and fair consideration of those proposals;

20 and

21 (iv) recommend to the Program Direc22 tor that the procedures established by sub23 paragraph (A) be continued, terminated, or

24 modified (including the specific modifica25 tions which should be made).
73

•HR 5046 IH

1 (C) REGULATIONS IMPLEMENTING REC2 OMMENDATIONS.—The Program Director may

3 issue regulations implementing any rec4 ommendation made by the Committee under

5 subparagraph (B)(iv).

6 (b) PROPOSED CENTER PROGRAM.—Each fiscal year

7 each Center Director shall submit to the Program Direc8 tor—

9 (1) a proposed program for the Center for the

10 upcoming fiscal year, which shall adhere to guide11 lines established by the Program Director pursuant

12 to section 603(e)(2) and shall include—

13 (A) a description of the activities per14 formed and research funded by the Center in

15 the previous fiscal year;

16 (B) those individual research proposals

17 submitted under subsection (a) that the Center

18 Director determines to be meritorious based on

19 reviews conducted under that subsection;

20 (C) a proposed budget for the operation of

21 the Center for the current fiscal year;

22 (D) any other materials requested by the

23 Program Director to clarify the proposed pro24 gram; and
74

•HR 5046 IH

1 (E) an annually revised long-range re2 search and operations plan; and

3 (2) reviews, and responses thereto, of all indi4 vidual research proposals submitted to the Center

5 Director for the upcoming fiscal year.

6 (c) REVIEW OF PROPOSED CENTER PROGRAMS.—

7 The Program Director shall review the proposed programs

8 submitted by each Center Director under subsection (b)

9 and make recommendations to the Under Secretary for

10 funding allocations under section 608(b).

11 (d) GIFTS, DEVISES, AND BEQUESTS.—Each Center

12 may accept, solicit, and use the services of volunteers, and

13 may accept, receive, hold, administer, and use gifts, de14 vises, and bequests, to carry out the research program of

15 the Center.

16 SEC. 607. PROCEDURES FOR JOINT REVIEW OF RESEARCH

17 PROPOSALS.

18 The Under Secretary, in consultation with the Pro19 gram Director and the Committee and jointly with the Di20 rector of the National Science Foundation and the Sec21 retary of the Navy, shall—

22 (1) develop procedures for the submittal and

23 joint review of proposals for research in priority re24 search areas to be carried out with assistance from

25 2 or more agencies within the Department of Com-
75

•HR 5046 IH

1 merce, the National Science Foundation, or the De2 partment of Defense; and

3 (2) issue final rules establishing those proce4 dures by not later than 1 year after the date of the

5 enactment of this Act.

6 SEC. 608. GRANTS AND CONTRACTS FOR NATIONAL UNDER7 SEA RESEARCH CENTERS.

8 (a) AUTHORIZATION.—The Under Secretary may

9 make grants and enter into contracts and cooperative

10 agreements under this section to fund any Center program

11 if the Under Secretary finds that the program will advance

12 knowledge in the priority research areas.

13 (b) ALLOCATION OF FUNDING.—

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Based on the reviews under

15 section 606(c) of proposed Center programs, the

16 Under Secretary shall—

17 (A) allocate among the Centers, in such

18 manner as will best advance knowledge in the

19 priority research areas, all amounts available

20 for the current fiscal year for research to be

21 conducted by the Centers and administration of

22 the Centers, consistent with each Center’s long23 term responsibilities to conduct priority re24 search; and
76

•HR 5046 IH

1 (B) notify each Center Director of the

2 amount allocated to that Center under subpara3 graph (A).

4 (c) TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any grant made or contract

6 entered into under this section shall be subject to

7 paragraphs (2) and (3) and to any other terms, con8 ditions, and requirements the Under Secretary con9 siders necessary.

10 (2) LIMITATIONS ON USE FOR LAND AND

11 BUILDINGS.—Amounts provided under any grant or

12 contract under this section may not be used for—

13 (A) the purchase of any land; or

14 (B) the purchase or construction of any

15 building.

16 (3) MAINTENANCE OF RECORDS.—Any person

17 who receives or utilizes any proceeds of any grant of

18 contract under this section shall keep any records

19 the Under Secretary prescribes as necessary to fa20 cilitate effective audit and evaluation, including re21 ports which full disclose the amount and disposition

22 of funds received under this title, the total cost of

23 activities for which those funds were used, and the

24 amount, if any, of costs which were provided

25 through other sources. The records shall be main-
77

•HR 5046 IH

1 tained for 6 years after the completion of the activ2 ity. The Under Secretary and the Comptroller Gen3 eral of the United States, or any of their duly au4 thorized representatives, shall have access, for the

5 purpose of audit and evaluation, to any books, docu6 ments, papers, and records of receipts, which in the

7 opinion of the Under Secretary or of the Comptroller

8 General may be related or pertinent to the grants

9 and contracts.

10 SEC. 609. FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE REVIEW BOARD.

11 After the date of the enactment of this Act, grants

12 and contracts under the Program shall not be subject to

13 review by the board in the Department of Commerce

14 known as the Financial Assistance Review Board.

15 SEC. 610. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

16 (a) CENTER PROGRAM FUNDING.—There is author17 ized to be appropriated to the Under Secretary for use

18 for grants and contracts under section 608, to remain

19 available until expended, $18,000,000 for fiscal year 1995,

20 $18,540,000 for fiscal year 1996, $19,100,000 for fiscal

21 year 1997, $19,670,000 for fiscal year 1998, and

22 $20,260,000 for fiscal year 1999.

23 (b) OFFICE OF UNDERSEA RESEARCH.—There is au24 thorized to be appropriated to the Under Secretary for the

25 administration of the Office of Undersea Research and
78

•HR 5046 IH

1 support of the Memorandum of Agreement Concerning

2 Support of a National Academic Deep Submergence Facil3 ity for Scientific Use, to remain available until expended,

4 $2,100,000 for fiscal year 1995, $2,200,000 for fiscal year

5 1996, $2,300,000 for fiscal year 1997, $2,400,000 for fis6 cal year 1998, and $2,500,000 for fiscal year 1999.

7 (c) REVERSION OF UNOBLIGATED AMOUNTS.—The

8 amount of any grant, contract, or portion of a grant or

9 contract, made under section 603 or 608 that is not obli10 gated before the end of the third fiscal year in which it

11 is authorized to be obligated—

12 (1) shall revert to the Under Secretary; and

13 (2) shall remain available for grants or con14 tracts under that section.

15 (d) LIMITATIONS ON USE.—Amounts appropriated

16 under the authority of subsection (a) shall not be available

17 for administration of this title by the Office, or for pro18 gram or administrative expenses of the Administration or

19 the Department of Commerce.

Æ

HR 5046 IH——2

HR 5046 IH——3

HR 5046 IH——4

HR 5046 IH——5