I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4306 

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

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 8, 2017 

Mr. HUFFMAN (for himself and Mr. LOBIONDO) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 

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’’. 

6 SEC. 2. REFERENCES TO THE NATIONAL SEA GRANT COL7 LEGE PROGRAM ACT. 

8 Except as otherwise expressly provided, wherever in 

9 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 

10 of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other proviVerDate Sep 11 2014 19:54 Nov 13, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4306.IH H4306

sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 4306 IH

1 sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a 

2 section or other provision of the National Sea Grant Col3 lege Program Act (33 U.S.C. 1121 et seq.). 

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

5 POLICY FELLOWSHIP. 

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

7 1127(b)) is amended by striking ‘‘may’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘shall’’. 

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

10 further amended— 

11 (1) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘The Sec12 retary’’ and inserting the following: 

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

14 (2) in paragraph (1), as designated by para15 graph (1) of this section, in the second sentence, by 

16 striking ‘‘A fellowship’’ and inserting the following: 

17 ‘‘(2) PLACEMENT PRIORITIES.— 

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

19 the Secretary awards a legislative fellowship 

20 under this subsection, when considering the 

21 placement of fellows, the Secretary shall 

22 prioritize placement of fellows in the following: 

23 ‘‘(i) Positions in offices of committees 

24 of Congress that have jurisdiction over the 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 4306 IH

1 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin2 istration. 

3 ‘‘(ii) Positions in offices of Members 

4 of Congress who are on such committees. 

5 ‘‘(iii) Positions in offices of Members 

6 of Congress that have a demonstrated in7 terest in ocean, coastal, or Great Lakes re8 sources. 

9 ‘‘(B) EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION.— 

10 ‘‘(i) FINDING AND RECOGNITION.— 

11 Congress— 

12 ‘‘(I) finds that both host offices 

13 and fellows benefit when fellows have 

14 the opportunity to choose from a 

15 range of host offices from different 

16 States and regions, both chambers of 

17 Congress, and both political parties; 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(II) recognizes the steps taken 

20 by the National Sea Grant College 

21 Program to facilitate an equitable dis22 tribution of fellows among the political 

23 parties. 

24 ‘‘(ii) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary 

25 shall ensure, to the maximum extent pracVerDate Sep 11 2014 19:54 Nov 13, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4306.IH H4306

sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 4306 IH

1 ticable, that fellows have the opportunity 

2 to choose from offices that are described in 

3 clauses (i), (ii), and (iii) of subparagraph 

4 (A) and that are equitably distributed 

5 among— 

6 ‘‘(I) the political parties; and 

7 ‘‘(II) the Senate and the House 

8 of Representatives. 

9 ‘‘(3) DURATION.—A fellowship’’. 

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

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

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

13 (d) SENSE OF CONGRESS CONCERNING FEDERAL

14 HIRING OF FORMER FELLOWS.—It is the sense of Con15 gress that in recognition of the competitive nature of the 

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

17 College Program Act (33 U.S.C. 1127(b)), and of the ex18 ceptional qualifications of fellowship awardees, the Sec19 retary of Commerce, acting through the Under Secretary 

20 of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, should encour21 age participating Federal agencies to consider opportuni22 ties for fellowship awardees at the conclusion of their fel23 lowships for workforce positions appropriate for their edu24 cation and experience. 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 4306 IH

1 SEC. 4. MODIFICATION OF AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY OF 

2 COMMERCE TO ACCEPT DONATIONS FOR NA3 TIONAL SEA GRANT COLLEGE PROGRAM. 

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

5 1123(c)(4)(E)) is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(E) accept donations of money and, not7 withstanding section 1342 of title 31, United 

8 States Code, of voluntary and uncompensated 

9 services;’’. 

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

11 through the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and 

12 Atmosphere, shall establish priorities for the use of dona13 tions accepted under section 204(c)(4)(E) of the National 

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

15 1123(c)(4)(E)), and shall consider among those priorities 

16 the possibility of expanding the Dean John A. Knauss Ma17 rine Policy Fellowship’s placement of additional fellows in 

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

19 (33 U.S.C. 1127(b)), in accordance with the recommenda20 tions under subsection (c) of this section. 

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

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

23 Sea Grant College Program, in consultation with the Na24 tional Sea Grant Advisory Board and the Sea Grant Asso25 ciation, shall— 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 4306 IH

1 (1) develop recommendations for the optimal 

2 use of any donations accepted under section 

3 204(c)(4)(E) of the National Sea Grant College Pro4 gram Act (33 U.S.C. 1123(c)(4)(E)); and 

5 (2) submit to Congress a report on the rec6 ommendations developed under paragraph (1). 

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

8 construed to limit or otherwise affect any other amounts 

9 available for marine policy fellowships under section 

10 208(b) of the National Sea Grant College Program Act 

11 (33 U.S.C. 1127(b)), including amounts— 

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

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

14 (2) appropriated under section 212 of that Act 

15 (33 U.S.C. 1131). 

16 SEC. 5. REPEAL OF REQUIREMENT FOR REPORT ON CO17 ORDINATION OF OCEANS AND COASTAL RE18 SEARCH ACTIVITIES. 

19 Section 9 of the National Sea Grant College Program 

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

21 SEC. 6. REDUCTION IN FREQUENCY REQUIRED FOR NA22 TIONAL SEA GRANT ADVISORY BOARD RE23 PORT. 

24 Section 209(b)(2) (33 U.S.C. 1128(b)(2)) is amend25 ed— 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 4306 IH

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

2 inserting ‘‘PERIODIC’’; and 

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

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

5 and inserting ‘‘Not less frequently than once every 

6 3 years, the Board shall submit to Congress a re7 port’’. 

8 SEC. 7. MODIFICATION OF ELEMENTS OF NATIONAL SEA 

9 GRANT COLLEGE PROGRAM. 

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

11 the matter preceding paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘for re12 search, education, extension, training, technology transfer, 

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

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

15 MARINE POLICY FELLOWSHIP. 

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

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

18 appoint, without regard to the provisions of subchapter I 

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

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

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

22 Federal agency for which the candidate meets Office of 

23 Personnel Management qualification standards. 

24 (b) QUALIFIED CANDIDATE.—Subsection (a) applies 

25 with respect to a former recipient of a Dean John A. 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 4306 IH

1 Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship under section 208(b) of 

2 the National Sea Grant College Program Act (33 U.S.C. 

3 1127(b)) who— 

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

5 in a field related to ocean, coastal, or Great Lakes 

6 resources or policy from an institution of higher edu7 cation accredited by an agency or association recog8 nized by the Secretary of Education pursuant to sec9 tion 496(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

10 (20 U.S.C. 1099b(a)); 

11 (2) received a Dean John A. Knauss Marine 

12 Policy Fellowship under section 208(b) of the Na13 tional Sea Grant College Program Act (33 U.S.C. 

14 1127(b)) within 5 years before the date the indi15 vidual is appointed under this section; and 

16 (3) successfully fulfilled the requirements of the 

17 fellowship within the executive or legislative branch 

18 of the United States Government. 

19 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR NA20 TIONAL SEA GRANT COLLEGE PROGRAM. 

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

22 1131(a)) is amended— 

23 (1) by amending paragraph (1) to read as fol24 lows: 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 4306 IH

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

2 appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this 

3 title— 

4 ‘‘(A) $75,600,000 for fiscal year 2018; 

5 ‘‘(B) $79,380,000 for fiscal year 2019; 

6 ‘‘(C) $83,350,000 for fiscal year 2020; 

7 ‘‘(D) $87,520,000 for fiscal year 2021; 

8 ‘‘(E) $91,900,000 for fiscal year 2022; and 

9 ‘‘(F) $96,500,000 for fiscal year 2023.’’; 

10 and 

11 (2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as fol12 lows: 

13 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY ACTIVITIES FOR FISCAL YEARS

14 2018 THROUGH 2023.—In addition to the amounts 

15 authorized to be appropriated under paragraph (1), 

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

17 for each of fiscal years 2018 through 2023 for com18 petitive grants for the following: 

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

20 prevention, and control of aquatic nonnative 

21 species. 

22 ‘‘(B) University research on oyster dis23 eases, oyster restoration, and oyster-related 

24 human health risks. 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
10 

•HR 4306 IH

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

2 prevention, and forecasting of harmful algal 

3 blooms. 

4 ‘‘(D) University research, education, train5 ing, and extension services and activities fo6 cused on coastal resilience and United States 

7 working waterfronts and other regional or na8 tional priority issues identified in the strategic 

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

10 ‘‘(E) University research on sustainable 

11 aquaculture techniques and technologies. 

12 ‘‘(F) Fishery extension activities conducted 

13 by sea grant colleges or sea grant institutes to 

14 enhance, and not supplant, existing core pro15 gram funding.’’. 

16 (b) MODIFICATION OF LIMITATIONS ON AMOUNTS

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

18 (33 U.S.C. 1131(b)) is amended to read as follows: 

19 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATION.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—There may not be 

21 used for administration of programs under this 

22 title in a fiscal year more than 5.5 percent of 

23 the lesser of— 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
11 

•HR 4306 IH

1 ‘‘(i) the amount authorized to be ap2 propriated under this title for the fiscal 

3 year; or 

4 ‘‘(ii) the amount appropriated under 

5 this title for the fiscal year. 

6 ‘‘(B) CRITICAL STAFFING REQUIRE7 MENTS.— 

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

9 use the authority under subchapter VI of 

10 chapter 33 of title 5, United States Code, 

11 to meet any critical staffing requirement 

12 while carrying out the activities authorized 

13 under this title. 

14 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTION FROM CAP.—For 

15 purposes of subparagraph (A), any costs 

16 incurred as a result of an exercise of au17 thority described in clause (i) shall not be 

18 considered an amount used for administra19 tion of programs under this title in a fiscal 

20 year.’’. 

21 (c) ALLOCATION OF FUNDING.— 

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

23 U.S.C. 1123(d)(3)) is amended— 

24 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

25 (A), by striking ‘‘With respect to sea grant colVerDate Sep 11 2014 19:54 Nov 13, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4306.IH H4306

sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
12 

•HR 4306 IH

1 leges and sea grant institutes’’ and inserting 

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

3 institutes, sea grant programs, and sea grant 

4 projects’’; and 

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

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

7 among sea grant colleges and sea grant insti8 tutes’’ and inserting ‘‘funding among sea grant 

9 colleges, sea grant institutes, sea grant pro10 grams, and sea grant projects’’. 

11 (2) REPEAL OF REQUIREMENTS CONCERNING

12 DISTRIBUTION OF EXCESS AMOUNTS.—Section 212 

13 (33 U.S.C. 1131) is amended— 

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

15 (B) by redesignating subsections (d) and 

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

17 SEC. 10. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS. 

18 The National Sea Grant College Program Act (33 

19 U.S.C. 1121 et seq.) is amended— 

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

21 1123(d)(3)(B)), by moving clause (vi) 2 ems to the 

22 right; and 

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

24 1128(b)(2)), as amended by section 6 of this Act, in 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
13 

•HR 4306 IH

1 the third sentence, by striking ‘‘The Secretary shall’’ 

2 and inserting the following: 

3 ‘‘(3) AVAILABILITY OF RESOURCES OF DEPART4 MENT OF COMMERCE.—The Secretary shall’’. 

Æ 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS