II 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 5597 

To amend the Deepwater Port Act of 1974 to improve community outreach, 

public participation, and the consideration of community and environmental impacts with respect to the issuance of a license under that 

Act, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 18 (legislative day, DECEMBER 16), 2024 

Mr. MARKEY (for himself and Mr. MERKLEY) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, 

Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To amend the Deepwater Port Act of 1974 to improve community outreach, public participation, and the consideration of community and environmental impacts with respect to the issuance of a license under that Act, 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 ‘‘Nautical Oversight, 

5 Safety, and Protection of Inflammable Liquids by Law in 

6 the Sea Act of 2024’’ or the ‘‘NO SPILLS Act of 2024’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 Section 3 of the Deepwater Port Act of 1974 (33 

3 U.S.C. 1502) is amended— 

4 (1) in paragraph (5), in the first sentence, by 

5 striking ‘‘including waters’’ and inserting ‘‘(includ6 ing waters’’; 

7 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (10), (11), and 

8 (12) through (19) as paragraphs (13), (16), and 

9 (18) through (25), respectively; 

10 (3) by inserting after paragraph (9) the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(10) ENVIRONMENT.—The term ‘environment’ 

13 includes— 

14 ‘‘(A) water, air, and land; and 

15 ‘‘(B) the interrelationship that exists 

16 among and between water, air, and land and all 

17 present and future generations of living beings. 

18 ‘‘(11) ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE COMMU19 NITY.—The term ‘environmental justice community’ 

20 means a community with significant representation 

21 of communities of color, low-income communities, or 

22 Tribal and Indigenous communities, that experi23 ences, or is at risk of experiencing, higher or more 

24 adverse human health or environmental effects. 

25 ‘‘(12) ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION; PROTEC26 TION OF THE ENVIRONMENT.—The terms ‘environVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:21 Jan 26, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5597.IS S5597

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1 mental protection’ and ‘protection of the environ2 ment’ mean wide-ranging measures to prevent or 

3 mitigate negative impacts to the environment, in4 cluding the preservation of ocean ecosystems and the 

5 mitigation of air pollutants.’’; 

6 (4) by inserting after paragraph (13) (as so re7 designated) the following: 

8 ‘‘(14) IMPACTED COMMUNITY.—The term ‘im9 pacted community’ means— 

10 ‘‘(A) residents of an adjacent coastal State 

11 who may be impacted, including through eco12 logical harm, economic disruption, or social dis13 placement, by— 

14 ‘‘(i) the permitting of a deepwater 

15 port; or 

16 ‘‘(ii) a spill, leak, or other disaster at 

17 a deepwater port; and 

18 ‘‘(B) workers who may be impacted, and 

19 labor organizations and worker advocacy orga20 nizations representing workers who may be im21 pacted, by— 

22 ‘‘(i) the permitting of a deepwater 

23 port; or 

24 ‘‘(ii) a spill, leak, or other disaster at 

25 a deepwater port. 


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1 ‘‘(15) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian Tribe’ 

2 has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the 

3 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

4 Act (25 U.S.C. 5304).’’; and 

5 (5) by inserting after paragraph (16) (as so re6 designated) the following: 

7 ‘‘(17) LOW-INCOME COMMUNITY.—The term 

8 ‘low-income community’ means a census block group 

9 in which 30 percent or more of the population are 

10 individuals with an annual household income equal 

11 to, or less than, the greater of— 

12 ‘‘(A) an amount equal to 80 percent of the 

13 median income of the area in which the house14 hold is located, as reported by the Department 

15 of Housing and Urban Development; and 

16 ‘‘(B) 200 percent of the Federal poverty 

17 line.’’. 

18 SEC. 3. CONDITIONS FOR ISSUANCE OF A LICENSE FOR 

19 THE OWNERSHIP, CONSTRUCTION, AND OP20 ERATION OF A DEEPWATER PORT. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 4(c) of the Deepwater 

22 Port Act of 1974 (33 U.S.C. 1503(c)) is amended— 

23 (1) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘and environ24 mental quality’’ and inserting ‘‘, protection of the 


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1 environment, and protection of environmental justice 

2 communities and impacted communities’’; and 

3 (2) in paragraph (8), by striking ‘‘State’’ and 

4 all that follows through ‘‘approves’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘State, and the governing body of each Indian 

6 Tribe, within which there are impacted communities, 

7 approves’’. 

8 (b) LIMITS ON LIABILITY.—Section 1004(a) of the 

9 Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2704(a)) is amend10 ed— 

11 (1) in paragraph (1)(C)— 

12 (A) in clause (i)— 

13 (i) in subclause (I), by striking 

14 ‘‘$22,000,000’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘$70,000,000’’; and 

16 (ii) in subclause (II), by striking 

17 ‘‘$16,000,000’’ and inserting 

18 ‘‘$60,000,000’’; and 

19 (B) in clause (ii)— 

20 (i) in subclause (I), by striking 

21 ‘‘$6,000,000’’ and inserting 

22 ‘‘$32,000,000’’; and 

23 (ii) in subclause (II), by striking 

24 ‘‘$4,000,000’’ and inserting 

25 ‘‘$26,000,000’’; and 


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1 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

2 (A) by striking ‘‘$950’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘$4,000’’; and 

4 (B) by striking ‘‘$800,000’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘$2,000,000’’. 

6 (c) FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.— 

7 Section 1016(c)(1) of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 

8 U.S.C. 2716(c)(1)) is amended— 

9 (1) in subparagraph (B)— 

10 (A) in clause (i), by striking 

11 ‘‘$35,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$105,000,000’’; 

12 and 

13 (B) in clause (ii), by striking 

14 ‘‘$10,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$70,000,000’’; 

15 and 

16 (2) in subparagraph (C), by striking 

17 ‘‘$150,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$300,000,000’’. 

18 SEC. 4. OUTREACH TO IMPACTED COMMUNITIES, PUBLIC 

19 COMMENT, AND PUBLIC HEARINGS. 

20 Section 5(g) of the Deepwater Port Act of 1974 (33 

21 U.S.C. 1504(g)) is amended— 

22 (1) by striking ‘‘(g) A license’’ and inserting the 

23 following: 

24 ‘‘(g) OUTREACH, PUBLIC NOTICE, PUBLIC COM25 MENT, AND PUBLIC HEARINGS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A license’’; 

2 (2) in paragraph (1) (as so designated)— 

3 (A) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘pub4 lic notice and public hearings’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘public notice, comment, and hearings’’; and 

6 (B) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘At 

7 least’’ and inserting the following: 

8 ‘‘(2) OUTREACH.—The Secretary shall conduct 

9 active and ongoing outreach to impacted commu10 nities, especially those that are also environmental 

11 justice communities, including through representa12 tive civil, business, environmental, neighborhood, 

13 health, education, labor, and other organizations. 

14 ‘‘(3) PUBLIC NOTICE, COMMENT, AND HEAR15 INGS.— 

16 ‘‘(A) NOTICE.—Notice of a public com17 ment period or public hearing shall be provided 

18 through multiple communication methods acces19 sible to an impacted community, which may in20 clude— 

21 ‘‘(i) electronic media; 

22 ‘‘(ii) newspapers; 

23 ‘‘(iii) radio; 

24 ‘‘(iv) direct mailings; 

25 ‘‘(v) canvassing; and 


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1 ‘‘(vi) other outreach methods particu2 larly targeted at environmental justice 

3 communities. 

4 ‘‘(B) PUBLIC COMMENT PERIODS.—All 

5 public comment periods associated with a pro6 posed deepwater port project shall be 90 days 

7 or longer. 

8 ‘‘(C) PUBLIC HEARINGS.— 

9 ‘‘(i) NOTICE.—Notice of a public 

10 hearing shall be provided at least 30 days 

11 before the date of the hearing. 

12 ‘‘(ii) REQUIREMENT.—At least’’; and 

13 (3) in paragraph (3) (as so designated)— 

14 (A) in subparagraph (C) (as so des15 ignated)— 

16 (i) in clause (ii) (as so designated), in 

17 the second sentence, by striking ‘‘Any in18 terested’’ and inserting the following: 

19 ‘‘(iii) PARTICIPATION.—Any inter20 ested’’; 

21 (ii) in clause (iii) (as so designated), 

22 in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘After 

23 hearings in each adjacent coastal State’’ 

24 and inserting the following: 

25 ‘‘(iv) ADJUDICATORY HEARING.— 


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1 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—After all 

2 hearings under clause (ii)’’; 

3 (iii) in clause (iv) (as so designated)— 

4 (I) in subclause (I) (as so des5 ignated), in the second sentence, by 

6 striking ‘‘The record’’ and inserting 

7 the following: 

8 ‘‘(II) USE OF RECORD.—The 

9 record’’; and 

10 (II) in subclause (II) (as so des11 ignated), in the second sentence, by 

12 striking ‘‘Hearings held’’ and insert13 ing the following: 

14 ‘‘(v) CONSOLIDATION OF HEARINGS.— 

15 ‘‘(I) INTERAGENCY CONSOLIDA16 TION.—Hearings held’’; and 

17 (iv) in clause (v)(I) (as so designated), 

18 in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘All 

19 public’’ and inserting the following: 

20 ‘‘(II) CONSOLIDATION WITHIN

21 APPLICATION AREAS.—All public’’; 

22 and 

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

24 ‘‘(D) DOCUMENTS.—All documents made 

25 available for public review shall be translated 


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1 into each language spoken by impacted popu2 lations.’’. 

3 SEC. 5. NATIONAL INTEREST DETERMINATION. 

4 Section 5(i)(3) of the Deepwater Port Act of 1974 

5 (33 U.S.C. 1504(i)(3)) is amended— 

6 (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (C) and 

7 (D) as subparagraphs (D) and (E), respectively; and 

8 (2) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the fol9 lowing: 

10 ‘‘(C) Public opinion and the impact of the 

11 proposed deepwater port on impacted commu12 nities and, especially, environmental justice 

13 communities, as determined through public 

14 comment and hearings under subsection (g).’’. 

15 SEC. 6. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW CRITERIA. 

16 Section 6 of the Deepwater Port Act of 1974 (33 

17 U.S.C. 1505) is amended— 

18 (1) in subsection (a)— 

19 (A) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘recre20 ation,’’ after ‘‘fishing,’’; 

21 (B) in paragraph (6)— 

22 (i) by inserting ‘‘, safety,’’ after 

23 ‘‘health’’; and 

24 (ii) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 


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1 (C) by redesignating paragraphs (1) 

2 through (5), (6), and (7) as subparagraphs (A) 

3 through (E), (G), and (N), respectively, and in4 denting appropriately; 

5 (D) by inserting after subparagraph (E) 

6 (as so redesignated) the following: 

7 ‘‘(F) the effect on air qualify from all ac8 tivities related to operation and construction of 

9 the deepwater port;’’; 

10 (E) by inserting after subparagraph (G) 

11 (as so redesignated) the following: 

12 ‘‘(H) the health and climate impact on— 

13 ‘‘(i) impacted communities; and 

14 ‘‘(ii) environmental justice commu15 nities nationwide; 

16 ‘‘(I) the effect on— 

17 ‘‘(i) national policy goals; and 

18 ‘‘(ii) the commitment of the United 

19 States to transition away from fossil fuels 

20 to clean renewable energy; 

21 ‘‘(J) the effect on threatened and endan22 gered species, their critical habitat, and their 

23 ability to adapt to a changing environment; 

24 ‘‘(K) compliance with the National Envi25 ronmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 


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1 et seq.), the Endangered Species Act of 1973 

2 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), the Federal Water 

3 Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.), 

4 the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.), and 

5 the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 

6 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.); 

7 ‘‘(L) the effect of all upstream and down8 stream activities on all outcomes described in 

9 subparagraphs (A) through (K); 

10 ‘‘(M) the cumulative effect, on all outcomes 

11 described in subparagraphs (A) through (K), of 

12 all activities relating to the deepwater port com13 bined with the cumulative effect of all activities 

14 relating to all deepwater ports proposed, under 

15 construction, or operating in the same geo16 graphic region; and’’; and 

17 (F) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

18 (A) (as so redesignated), by striking ‘‘Act. Such 

19 criteria’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘Act of 

20 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). 

21 ‘‘(2) USE OF CRITERIA.—The criteria estab22 lished pursuant to paragraph (1)’’; and 

23 (G) in the matter preceding paragraph (2) 

24 (as so designated), by striking ‘‘The Secretary’’ 

25 and inserting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary’’; and 

2 (2) in subsection (b)— 

3 (A) by striking ‘‘The Secretary’’ and in4 serting the following: 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary’’; and 

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

7 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENT.—Not later than 1 year 

8 after the date of enactment of the NO SPILLS Act 

9 of 2024, the Secretary, in consultation with the Ad10 ministrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, 

11 the Administrator of the National Oceanic and At12 mospheric Administration, and any other Federal 

13 departments or agencies having jurisdiction over any 

14 aspect of the construction or operation of a deep15 water port, shall update the criteria established pur16 suant to subsection (a).’’. 

17 SEC. 7. PROGRAMMATIC ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATE18 MENT. 

19 The Deepwater Port Act of 1974 (33 U.S.C. 1501 

20 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 6 the fol21 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 7. PROGRAMMATIC ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATE2 MENT FOR PROJECTS IN THE GULF OF MEX3 ICO. 

4 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION OF PROGRAMMATIC ENVIRON5 MENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT.—The term ‘programmatic 

6 environmental impact statement’ means an environmental 

7 impact statement (as defined in section 111 of the Na8 tional Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 

9 4336e)) that is a programmatic environmental document 

10 (as defined in that section). 

11 ‘‘(b) PROGRAMMATIC EIS FOR THE GULF OF MEX12 ICO.—Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

13 of the NO SPILLS Act of 2024, the Secretary shall pre14 pare, in accordance with the National Environmental Pol15 icy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and this Act, 

16 a programmatic environmental impact statement to assess 

17 the impacts, including with respect to climate change, of 

18 all deepwater port projects in the Gulf of Mexico proposed, 

19 pending, or approved on or after the date of enactment 

20 of the NO SPILLS Act of 2024. 

21 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITION.—Notwithstanding any other pro22 vision of law, beginning on the date of enactment of this 

23 Act, the Secretary may not issue a license or permit for 

24 a new deepwater port under this or any other Act until 

25 the date on which the programmatic environmental impact 

26 statement required under subsection (b) is completed. 


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1 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are nec3 essary to carry out this section.’’. 

4 SEC. 8. PROHIBITION OF LIQUEFIED NATURAL GAS RE5 SEARCH IN MARITIME ENVIRONMENTAL AND 

6 TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 

7 Section 50307 of title 46, United States Code, is 

8 amended by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(f) PROHIBITION OF LIQUEFIED NATURAL GAS RE10 SEARCH.—No funds made available under this section 

11 may be used for liquefied natural gas research.’’. 

Æ 


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