II 

Calendar No. 26 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 129 

[Report No. 115–15] 

To reauthorize and amend the National Sea Grant College Program Act, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 12, 2017 

Mr. WICKER (for himself, Mr. SCHATZ, Ms. CANTWELL, Mr. SULLIVAN, Ms. 

MURKOWSKI, and Mr. NELSON) introduced the following bill; which was 

read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

Transportation 

MARCH 30, 2017 

Reported by Mr. THUNE, without amendment 

A BILL 

To reauthorize and amend the National Sea Grant College 

Program 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 ‘‘National Sea Grant 

5 College Program Amendments Act of 2017’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. REFERENCES TO THE NATIONAL SEA GRANT COL2 LEGE PROGRAM ACT. 

3 Except as otherwise expressly provided, wherever in 

4 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 

5 of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provi6 sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a 

7 section or other provision of the National Sea Grant Col8 lege Program Act (33 U.S.C. 1121 et seq.). 

9 SEC. 3. MODIFICATION OF DEAN JOHN A. KNAUSS MARINE 

10 POLICY FELLOWSHIP. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 208(b) (33 U.S.C. 

12 1127(b)) is amended by striking ‘‘may’’ and inserting 

13 ‘‘shall’’. 

14 (b) PLACEMENTS IN CONGRESS.—Such section is 

15 further amended— 

16 (1) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘The Sec17 retary’’ and inserting the following: 

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

19 (2) in paragraph (1), as designated by para20 graph (1), in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘A fel21 lowship’’ and inserting the following: 

22 ‘‘(2) PLACEMENT PRIORITIES.— 

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In each year in which 

24 the Secretary awards a legislative fellowship 

25 under this subsection, when considering the 


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1 placement of fellows, the Secretary shall 

2 prioritize placement of fellows in the following: 

3 ‘‘(i) Positions in offices of, or with 

4 Members on, committees of Congress that 

5 have jurisdiction over the National Oceanic 

6 and Atmospheric Administration. 

7 ‘‘(ii) Positions in offices of Members 

8 of Congress that have a demonstrated in9 terest in ocean, coastal, or Great Lakes re10 sources. 

11 ‘‘(B) EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION.—In plac12 ing fellows in offices described in subparagraph 

13 (A), the Secretary shall ensure that placements 

14 are equitably distributed among the political 

15 parties. 

16 ‘‘(3) DURATION.—A fellowship’’. 

17 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

18 subsection (b) shall apply with respect to the first calendar 

19 year beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

20 (d) SENSE OF CONGRESS CONCERNING FEDERAL

21 HIRING OF FORMER FELLOWS.—It is the sense of Con22 gress that in recognition of the competitive nature of the 

23 fellowship under section 208(b) of the National Sea Grant 

24 College Program Act (33 U.S.C. 1127(b)), and of the ex25 ceptional qualifications of fellowship awardees, the SecVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:18 Mar 30, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S129.RS S129

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1 retary of Commerce, acting through the Under Secretary 

2 of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, should encour3 age participating Federal agencies to consider opportuni4 ties for fellowship awardees at the conclusion of their fel5 lowships for workforce positions appropriate for their edu6 cation and experience. 

7 SEC. 4. MODIFICATION OF AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY OF 

8 COMMERCE TO ACCEPT DONATIONS FOR NA9 TIONAL SEA GRANT COLLEGE PROGRAM. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 204(c)(4)(E) (33 U.S.C. 

11 1123(c)(4)(E)) is amended to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘(E) accept donations of money and, not13 withstanding section 1342 of title 31, United 

14 States Code, of voluntary and uncompensated 

15 services;’’. 

16 (b) PRIORITIES.—The Secretary of Commerce, acting 

17 through the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and 

18 Atmosphere, shall establish priorities for the use of dona19 tions accepted under section 204(c)(4)(E) of the National 

20 Sea Grant College Program Act (33 U.S.C. 

21 1123(c)(4)(E)), and shall consider among those priorities 

22 the possibility of expanding the Dean John A. Knauss Ma23 rine Policy Fellowship’s placement of additional fellows in 

24 relevant legislative offices under section 208(b) of that Act 


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1 (33 U.S.C. 1127(b)), in accordance with the recommenda2 tions under subsection (c) of this section. 

3 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

4 of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the National 

5 Sea Grant College Program, in consultation with the Na6 tional Sea Grant Advisory Board and the Sea Grant Asso7 ciation, shall— 

8 (1) develop recommendations for the optimal 

9 use of any donations accepted under section 

10 204(c)(4)(E) of the National Sea Grant College Pro11 gram Act (33 U.S.C. 1123(c)(4)(E)); and 

12 (2) submit to Congress a report on the rec13 ommendations developed under paragraph (1). 

14 (d) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section shall be 

15 construed to limit or otherwise affect any other amounts 

16 available for marine policy fellowships under section 

17 208(b) of the National Sea Grant College Program Act 

18 (33 U.S.C. 1127(b)), including amounts— 

19 (1) accepted under section 204(c)(4)(F) of that 

20 Act (33 U.S.C. 1123(c)(4)(F)); or 

21 (2) appropriated pursuant to the authorization 

22 of appropriations under section 212 of that Act (33 

23 U.S.C. 1131). 


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1 SEC. 5. REPEAL OF REQUIREMENT FOR REPORT ON CO2 ORDINATION OF OCEANS AND COASTAL RE3 SEARCH ACTIVITIES. 

4 Section 9 of the National Sea Grant College Program 

5 Act Amendments of 2002 (33 U.S.C. 857–20) is repealed. 

6 SEC. 6. REDUCTION IN FREQUENCY REQUIRED FOR NA7 TIONAL SEA GRANT ADVISORY BOARD RE8 PORT. 

9 Section 209(b)(2) (33 U.S.C. 1128(b)(2)) is amend10 ed— 

11 (1) in the heading, by striking ‘‘BIENNIAL’’ and 

12 inserting ‘‘PERIODIC’’; and 

13 (2) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘The 

14 Board shall report to the Congress every two years’’ 

15 and inserting ‘‘Not less frequently than once every 

16 3 years, the Board shall submit to Congress a re17 port’’. 

18 SEC. 7. MODIFICATION OF ELEMENTS OF NATIONAL SEA 

19 GRANT COLLEGE PROGRAM. 

20 Section 204(b) (33 U.S.C. 1123(b)) is amended, in 

21 the matter preceding paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘for re22 search, education, extension, training, technology transfer, 

23 and public service’’ after ‘‘financial assistance’’. 


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1 SEC. 8. DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY; DEAN JOHN A. KNAUSS 

2 MARINE POLICY FELLOWSHIP. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—During fiscal year 2017 and any 

4 fiscal year thereafter, the head of any Federal agency may 

5 appoint, without regard to the provisions of subchapter I 

6 of chapter 33 of title 5, United States Code, other than 

7 sections 3303 and 3328 of that title, a qualified candidate 

8 described in subsection (b) directly to a position with the 

9 Federal agency for which the candidate meets Office of 

10 Personnel Management qualification standards. 

11 (b) DEAN JOHN A. KNAUSS MARINE POLICY FEL12 LOWSHIP.—Subsection (a) applies with respect to a 

13 former recipient of a Dean John A. Knauss Marine Policy 

14 Fellowship under section 208(b) of the National Sea 

15 Grant College Program Act (33 U.S.C. 1127(b)) who— 

16 (1) earned a graduate or post-graduate degree 

17 in a field related to ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes 

18 resources or policy from an accredited institution of 

19 higher education; and 

20 (2) successfully fulfilled the requirements of the 

21 fellowship within the executive or legislative branch 

22 of the United States Government. 

23 (c) LIMITATION.—The direct hire authority under 

24 this section shall be exercised with respect to a specific 

25 qualified candidate not later than 2 years after the date 


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1 that the candidate completed the fellowship described in 

2 subsection (b). 

3 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR NA4 TIONAL SEA GRANT COLLEGE PROGRAM. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 212(a) (33 U.S.C. 

6 1131(a)) is amended— 

7 (1) by amending paragraph (1) to read as fol8 lows: 

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

10 appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this 

11 title— 

12 ‘‘(A) $75,600,000 for fiscal year 2017; 

13 ‘‘(B) $79,380,000 for fiscal year 2018; 

14 ‘‘(C) $83,350,000 for fiscal year 2019; 

15 ‘‘(D) $87,520,000 for fiscal year 2020; 

16 ‘‘(E) $91,900,000 for fiscal year 2021; and 

17 ‘‘(F) $96,500,000 for fiscal year 2022.’’; 

18 and 

19 (2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as fol20 lows: 

21 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY ACTIVITIES FOR FISCAL YEARS

22 2017 THROUGH 2022.—In addition to the amounts 

23 authorized to be appropriated under paragraph (1), 

24 there are authorized to be appropriated $6,000,000 


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1 for each of fiscal years 2017 through 2022 for com2 petitive grants for the following: 

3 ‘‘(A) University research on the biology, 

4 prevention, and control of aquatic nonnative 

5 species. 

6 ‘‘(B) University research on oyster dis7 eases, oyster restoration, and oyster-related 

8 human health risks. 

9 ‘‘(C) University research on the biology, 

10 prevention, and forecasting of harmful algal 

11 blooms. 

12 ‘‘(D) University research, education, train13 ing, and extension services and activities fo14 cused on coastal resilience and United States 

15 working waterfronts and other regional or na16 tional priority issues identified in the strategic 

17 plan under section 204(c)(1). 

18 ‘‘(E) University research on sustainable 

19 aquaculture techniques and technologies. 

20 ‘‘(F) Fishery extension activities conducted 

21 by sea grant colleges or sea grant institutes to 

22 enhance, and not supplant, existing core pro23 gram funding.’’. 


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1 (b) MODIFICATION OF LIMITATIONS ON AMOUNTS

2 FOR ADMINISTRATION.—Paragraph (1) of section 212(b) 

3 (33 U.S.C. 1131(b)) is amended to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATION.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—There may not be 

6 used for administration of programs under this 

7 title in a fiscal year more than 5.5 percent of 

8 the lesser of— 

9 ‘‘(i) the amount authorized to be ap10 propriated under this title for the fiscal 

11 year; or 

12 ‘‘(ii) the amount appropriated under 

13 this title for the fiscal year. 

14 ‘‘(B) CRITICAL STAFFING REQUIRE15 MENTS.— 

16 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall 

17 use the authority under subchapter VI of 

18 chapter 33 of title 5, United States Code, 

19 to meet any critical staffing requirement 

20 while carrying out the activities authorized 

21 under this title. 

22 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTION FROM CAP.—For 

23 purposes of subparagraph (A), any costs 

24 incurred as a result of an exercise of au25 thority as described in clause (i) shall not 


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1 be considered an amount used for adminis2 tration of programs under this title in a 

3 fiscal year.’’. 

4 (c) ALLOCATION OF FUNDING.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 204(d)(3) (33 

6 U.S.C. 1123(d)(3)) is amended— 

7 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

8 (A), by striking ‘‘With respect to sea grant col9 leges and sea grant institutes’’ and inserting 

10 ‘‘With respect to sea grant colleges, sea grant 

11 institutes, sea grant programs, and sea grant 

12 projects’’; and 

13 (B) in subparagraph (B), in the matter 

14 preceding clause (i), by striking ‘‘funding 

15 among sea grant colleges and sea grant insti16 tutes’’ and inserting ‘‘funding among sea grant 

17 colleges, sea grant institutes, sea grant pro18 grams, and sea grant projects’’. 

19 (2) REPEAL OF REQUIREMENTS CONCERNING

20 DISTRIBUTION OF EXCESS AMOUNTS.—Section 212 

21 (33 U.S.C. 1131) is amended— 

22 (A) by striking subsection (c); and 

23 (B) by redesignating subsections (d) and 

24 (e) as subsections (c) and (d), respectively. 


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1 SEC. 10. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS. 

2 The National Sea Grant College Program Act (33 

3 U.S.C. 1121 et seq.) is amended— 

4 (1) in section 204(d)(3)(B) (33 U.S.C. 

5 1123(d)(3)(B)), by moving clause (vi) 2 ems to the 

6 right; and 

7 (2) in section 209(b)(2) (33 U.S.C. 

8 1128(b)(2)), as amended by section 6, in the third 

9 sentence, by striking ‘‘The Secretary shall’’ and in10 serting the following: 

11 ‘‘(3) AVAILABILITY OF RESOURCES OF DEPART12 MENT OF COMMERCE.—The Secretary shall’’. 


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Calendar No. 26 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 129 

[Report No. 115–15] 

A BILL 

To reauthorize and amend the National Sea Grant 

College Program Act, and for other purposes. 

MARCH 30, 2017 

Reported without amendment 


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