II 

Calendar No. 259 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 171 

[Report No. 115–181] 

To reauthorize and amend the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps Act of 2002, to reauthorize the Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 17, 2017 

Mr. SULLIVAN (for himself, Mr. THUNE, Mr. NELSON, Ms. MURKOWSKI, Mr. 

SCHATZ, Ms. CANTWELL, and Mr. WICKER) introduced the following bill; 

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

Science, and Transportation 

NOVEMBER 7, 2017 

Reported by Mr. THUNE, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To reauthorize and amend the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps Act 

of 2002, to reauthorize the Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998, 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, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

3 ‘‘National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Com4 missioned Officer Corps Amendments and Hydrographic 

5 Services Improvement Act Reauthorization and Amend6 ments Act of 2017’’. 

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

8 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. References to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps Act of 2002. 

TITLE I—GENERAL PROVISIONS 

Sec. 101. Strength and distribution in grade. 

Sec. 102. Recalled officers. 

Sec. 103. Obligated service requirement. 

Sec. 104. Training and physical fitness. 

Sec. 105. Recruiting materials. 

Sec. 106. Technical correction. 

TITLE II—PARITY AND RECRUITMENT 

Sec. 201. Education loans. 

Sec. 202. Interest payments. 

Sec. 203. Student pre-commissioning program. 

Sec. 204. Limitation on educational assistance. 

Sec. 205. Applicability of certain provisions of title 10, United States Code, and 

extension of certain authorities applicable to members of the 

Armed Forces to commissioned officer corps. 

Sec. 206. Applicability of certain provisions of title 37, United States Code. 

Sec. 207. Legion of Merit award. 

Sec. 208. Prohibition on retaliatory personnel actions. 

Sec. 209. Penalties for wearing uniform without authority. 

Sec. 210. Application of certain provisions of competitive service law. 

Sec. 211. Employment and reemployment rights. 

Sec. 212. Treatment of commission in commissioned officer corps for purposes 

of certain hiring decisions. 

Sec. 213. Direct hire authority. 

TITLE III—APPOINTMENTS AND PROMOTION OF OFFICERS 

Sec. 301. Appointments. 

Sec. 302. Personnel boards. 

Sec. 303. Delegation of authority. 

Sec. 304. Assistant Administrator of the Office of Marine and Aviation Operations. 


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Sec. 305. Temporary appointments. 

Sec. 306. Officer candidates. 

Sec. 307. Procurement of personnel. 

TITLE IV—SEPARATION AND RETIREMENT OF OFFICERS 

Sec. 401. Involuntary retirement or separation. 

Sec. 402. Separation pay. 

TITLE V—HYDROGRAPHIC SERVICES AND OTHER MATTERS 

Sec. 501. Reauthorization of Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998. 

Sec. 502. Waivers of bond requirements for certain contracts. 

1 SEC. 2. REFERENCES TO NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOS2 PHERIC ADMINISTRATION COMMISSIONED 

3 OFFICER CORPS ACT OF 2002. 

4 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in 

5 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 

6 of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provi7 sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a 

8 section or other provision of the National Oceanic and At9 mospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps 

10 Act of 2002 (33 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.). 

11 TITLE I—GENERAL PROVISIONS 

12 SEC. 101. STRENGTH AND DISTRIBUTION IN GRADE. 

13 Section 214 (33 U.S.C. 3004) is amended to read as 

14 follows: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 214. STRENGTH AND DISTRIBUTION IN GRADE. 

16 ‘‘(a) GRADES.—The commissioned grades in the com17 missioned officer corps of the Administration are the fol18 lowing, in relative rank with officers of the Navy: 

19 ‘‘(1) Vice admiral. 

20 ‘‘(2) Rear admiral. 


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1 ‘‘(3) Rear admiral (lower half). 

2 ‘‘(4) Captain. 

3 ‘‘(5) Commander. 

4 ‘‘(6) Lieutenant commander. 

5 ‘‘(7) Lieutenant. 

6 ‘‘(8) Lieutenant (junior grade). 

7 ‘‘(9) Ensign. 

8 ‘‘(b) GRADE DISTRIBUTION.—The Secretary shall 

9 prescribe, with respect to the distribution on the lineal list 

10 in grade, the percentages applicable to the grades set forth 

11 in subsection (a). 

12 ‘‘(c) ANNUAL COMPUTATION OF NUMBER IN

13 GRADE.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not less frequently than 

15 once each year, the Secretary shall make a computa16 tion to determine the number of officers on the lin17 eal list authorized to be serving in each grade. 

18 ‘‘(2) METHOD OF COMPUTATION.—The number 

19 in each grade shall be computed by applying the ap20 plicable percentage to the total number of such offi21 cers serving on active duty on the date the computa22 tion is made. 

23 ‘‘(3) FRACTIONS.—If a final fraction occurs in 

24 computing the authorized number of officers in a 

25 grade, the nearest whole number shall be taken. If 


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the fraction is 1 1 ⁄2, the next higher whole number 

2 shall be taken. 

3 ‘‘(d) TEMPORARY INCREASE IN NUMBERS.—The 

4 total number of officers authorized by law to be on the 

5 lineal list during a fiscal year may be temporarily exceeded 

6 if the average number on that list during that fiscal year 

7 does not exceed the authorized number. 

8 ‘‘(e) POSITIONS OF IMPORTANCE AND RESPONSI9 BILITY.—Officers serving in positions designated under 

10 section 228(a) and officers recalled from retired status 

11 shall not be counted when computing authorized strengths 

12 under subsection (c) and shall not count against those 

13 strengths. 

14 ‘‘(f) PRESERVATION OF GRADE AND PAY.—No offi15 cer may be reduced in grade or pay or separated from 

16 the commissioned officer corps of the Administration as 

17 the result of a computation made to determine the author18 ized number of officers in the various grades.’’. 

19 SEC. 102. RECALLED OFFICERS. 

20 Section 215 (33 U.S.C. 3005) is amended— 

21 (1) in the matter before paragraph (1), by 

22 striking ‘‘Effective’’ and inserting the following: 

23 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Effective’’; and 

24 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub25 section: 


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1 ‘‘(b) POSITIONS OF IMPORTANCE AND RESPONSI2 BILITY.—Officers serving in positions designated under 

3 section 228 and officers recalled from retired status or de4 tailed to an agency other than the Administration— 

5 ‘‘(1) may not be counted in determining the 

6 total number of authorized officers on the lineal list 

7 under this section; and 

8 ‘‘(2) may not count against such number.’’. 

9 SEC. 103. OBLIGATED SERVICE REQUIREMENT. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A (33 U.S.C. 3001 et 

11 seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 216. OBLIGATED SERVICE REQUIREMENT. 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.— 

14 ‘‘(1) RULEMAKING.—The Secretary shall pre15 scribe the obligated service requirements for appoint16 ments, training, promotions, separations, continu17 ations, and retirement of officers not otherwise cov18 ered by law. 

19 ‘‘(2) WRITTEN AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary 

20 and officers shall enter into written agreements that 

21 describe the officers’ obligated service requirements 

22 prescribed under paragraph (1) in return for such 

23 appointments, training, promotions, separations, and 

24 retirements as the Secretary considers appropriate. 


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1 ‘‘(b) REPAYMENT FOR FAILURE TO SATISFY RE2 QUIREMENTS.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may require 

4 an officer who fails to meet the service requirements 

5 prescribed under subsection (a)(1) to reimburse the 

6 Secretary in an amount that bears the same ratio to 

7 the total costs of the training provided to that offi8 cer by the Secretary as the unserved portion of ac9 tive duty bears to the total period of active duty the 

10 officer agreed to serve. 

11 ‘‘(2) OBLIGATION AS DEBT TO UNITED

12 STATES.—An obligation to reimburse the Secretary 

13 under paragraph (1) shall be considered for all pur14 poses as a debt owed to the United States. 

15 ‘‘(3) DISCHARGE IN BANKRUPTCY.—A dis16 charge in bankruptcy under title 11 that is entered 

17 less than 5 years after the termination of a written 

18 agreement entered into under subsection (a)(2) does 

19 not discharge the individual signing the agreement 

20 from a debt arising under such agreement. 

21 ‘‘(c) WAIVER OR SUSPENSION OF COMPLIANCE.— 

22 The Secretary may waive the service obligation of an offi23 cer who— 

24 ‘‘(1) becomes unqualified to serve on active 

25 duty in the commissioned officer corps of the AdVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:37 Nov 07, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S171.RS S171

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1 ministration because of a circumstance not within 

2 the control of that officer; or 

3 ‘‘(2) is— 

4 ‘‘(A) not physically qualified for appoint5 ment; and 

6 ‘‘(B) determined to be unqualified for serv7 ice in the commissioned officer corps of the Ad8 ministration because of a physical or medical 

9 condition that was not the result of the officer’s 

10 own misconduct or grossly negligent conduct.’’. 

11 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

12 in section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the 

13 Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for 

14 other purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372) is amended by in15 serting after the item relating to section 215 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 216. Obligated service requirement.’’. 

16 SEC. 104. TRAINING AND PHYSICAL FITNESS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A (33 U.S.C. 3001 et 

18 seq.), as amended by section 103(a), is further amended 

19 by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘SEC. 217. TRAINING AND PHYSICAL FITNESS. 

21 ‘‘(a) TRAINING.—The Secretary may take such meas22 ures as may be necessary to ensure that officers are pre23 pared to carry out their duties in the commissioned officer 

24 corps of the Administration and proficient in the skills 


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1 necessary to carry out such duties. Such measures may 

2 include the following: 

3 ‘‘(1) Carrying out training programs and cor4 respondence courses, including establishing and op5 erating a basic officer training program to provide 

6 initial indoctrination and maritime vocational train7 ing for officer candidates as well as refresher train8 ing, mid-career training, aviation training, and such 

9 other training as the Secretary considers necessary 

10 for officer development and proficiency. 

11 ‘‘(2) Providing officers and officer candidates 

12 with books and school supplies. 

13 ‘‘(3) Acquiring such equipment as may be nec14 essary for training and instructional purposes. 

15 ‘‘(b) PHYSICAL FITNESS.—The Secretary shall en16 sure that officers maintain a high physical state of readi17 ness by establishing standards of physical fitness for offi18 cers that are substantially equivalent to those prescribed 

19 for officers in the Coast Guard.’’. 

20 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

21 in section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the 

22 Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for 

23 other purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372), as amended by 

24 section 103(b), is further amended by inserting after the 

25 item relating to section 216 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 217. Training and physical fitness.’’. 


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1 SEC. 105. RECRUITING MATERIALS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A (33 U.S.C. 3001 et 

3 seq.), as amended by section 104(a), is further amended 

4 by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 218. USE OF RECRUITING MATERIALS FOR PUBLIC 

6 RELATIONS. 

7 ‘‘The Secretary may use for public relations purposes 

8 of the Department of Commerce any advertising materials 

9 developed for use for recruitment and retention of per10 sonnel for the commissioned officer corps of the Adminis11 tration. Any such use shall be under such conditions and 

12 subject to such restrictions as the Secretary shall pre13 scribe.’’. 

14 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

15 in section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the 

16 Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for 

17 other purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372), as amended by 

18 section 104(b), is further amended by inserting after the 

19 item relating to section 217 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 218. Use of recruiting materials for public relations.’’. 

20 SEC. 106. TECHNICAL CORRECTION. 

21 Section 101(21)(C) of title 38, United States Code, 

22 is amended by inserting ‘‘in the commissioned officer 

23 corps’’ before ‘‘of the National’’. 


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1 TITLE II—PARITY AND 

2 RECRUITMENT 

3 SEC. 201. EDUCATION LOANS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E (33 U.S.C. 3071 et 

5 seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 267. EDUCATION LOAN REPAYMENT PROGRAM. 

7 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY TO REPAY EDUCATION LOANS.— 

8 For the purpose of maintaining adequate numbers of offi9 cers of the commissioned officer corps of the Administra10 tion on active duty who have skills required by the com11 missioned officer corps, the Secretary may repay, in the 

12 case of a person described in subsection (b), a loan that— 

13 ‘‘(1) was used by the person to finance edu14 cation; and 

15 ‘‘(2) was obtained from a governmental entity, 

16 private financial institution, educational institution, 

17 or other authorized entity. 

18 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE PERSONS.—To be eligible to obtain 

19 a loan repayment under this section, a person must— 

20 ‘‘(1) satisfy one of the requirements specified in 

21 subsection (c); 

22 ‘‘(2) be fully qualified for, or hold, an appoint23 ment as a commissioned officer in the commissioned 

24 officer corps of the Administration; and 


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1 ‘‘(3) sign a written agreement to serve on active 

2 duty, or, if on active duty, to remain on active duty 

3 for a period in addition to any other incurred active 

4 duty obligation. 

5 ‘‘(c) ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL REQUIRE6 MENTS.—One of the following academic requirements 

7 must be satisfied for purposes of determining the eligi8 bility of an individual for a loan repayment under this sec9 tion: 

10 ‘‘(1) The person is fully qualified in a profes11 sion that the Secretary has determined to be nec12 essary to meet identified skill shortages in the com13 missioned officer corps. 

14 ‘‘(2) The person is enrolled as a full-time stu15 dent in the final year of a course of study at an ac16 credited educational institution (as determined by 

17 the Secretary of Education) leading to a degree in 

18 a profession that will meet identified skill shortages 

19 in the commissioned officer corps. 

20 ‘‘(d) LOAN REPAYMENTS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the limits estab22 lished under paragraph (2), a loan repayment under 

23 this section may consist of the payment of the prin24 cipal, interest, and related expenses of a loan ob25 tained by a person described in subsection (b). 


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1 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION ON AMOUNT.—For each year 

2 of obligated service that a person agrees to serve in 

3 an agreement described in subsection (b)(3), the 

4 Secretary may pay not more than the amount speci5 fied in section 2173(e)(2) of title 10, United States 

6 Code. 

7 ‘‘(e) ACTIVE DUTY SERVICE OBLIGATION.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A person entering into an 

9 agreement described in subsection (b)(3) incurs an 

10 active duty service obligation. 

11 ‘‘(2) LENGTH OF OBLIGATION DETERMINED

12 UNDER REGULATIONS.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

14 subparagraph (B), the length of the obligation 

15 under paragraph (1) shall be determined under 

16 regulations prescribed by the Secretary. 

17 ‘‘(B) MINIMUM OBLIGATION.—The regula18 tions prescribed under subparagraph (A) may 

19 not provide for a period of obligation of less 

20 than 1 year for each maximum annual amount, 

21 or portion thereof, paid on behalf of the person 

22 for qualified loans. 

23 ‘‘(3) PERSONS ON ACTIVE DUTY BEFORE EN24 TERING INTO AGREEMENT.—The active duty service 

25 obligation of persons on active duty before entering 


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1 into the agreement shall be served after the conclu2 sion of any other obligation incurred under the 

3 agreement. 

4 ‘‘(f) EFFECT OF FAILURE TO COMPLETE OBLIGA5 TION.— 

6 ‘‘(1) ALTERNATIVE OBLIGATIONS.—An officer 

7 who is relieved of the officer’s active duty obligation 

8 under this section before the completion of that obli9 gation may be given any alternative obligation, at 

10 the discretion of the Secretary. 

11 ‘‘(2) REPAYMENT.—An officer who does not 

12 complete the period of active duty specified in the 

13 agreement entered into under subsection (b)(3), or 

14 the alternative obligation imposed under paragraph 

15 (1), shall be subject to the repayment provisions 

16 under section 216. 

17 ‘‘(g) RULEMAKING.—The Secretary shall prescribe 

18 regulations to carry out this section, including— 

19 ‘‘(1) standards for qualified loans and author20 ized payees; and 

21 ‘‘(2) other terms and conditions for the making 

22 of loan repayments.’’. 

23 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

24 in section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the 

25 Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for 


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1 other purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372) is amended by in2 serting after the item relating to section 266 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 267. Education loan repayment program.’’. 

3 SEC. 202. INTEREST PAYMENTS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E (33 U.S.C. 3071 et 

5 seq.), as amended by section 201(a), is further amended 

6 by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 268. INTEREST PAYMENT PROGRAM. 

8 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary may pay the inter9 est and any special allowances that accrue on one or more 

10 student loans of an eligible officer, in accordance with this 

11 section. 

12 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE OFFICERS.—An officer is eligible for 

13 the benefit described in subsection (a) while the officer— 

14 ‘‘(1) is serving on active duty; 

15 ‘‘(2) has not completed more than 3 years of 

16 service on active duty; 

17 ‘‘(3) is the debtor on one or more unpaid loans 

18 described in subsection (c); and 

19 ‘‘(4) is not in default on any such loan. 

20 ‘‘(c) STUDENT LOANS.—The authority to make pay21 ments under subsection (a) may be exercised with respect 

22 to the following loans: 

23 ‘‘(1) A loan made, insured, or guaranteed under 

24 part B of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 

25 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1071 et seq.). 


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1 ‘‘(2) A loan made under part D of such title 

2 (20 U.S.C. 1087a et seq.). 

3 ‘‘(3) A loan made under part E of such title 

4 (20 U.S.C. 1087aa et seq.). 

5 ‘‘(d) MAXIMUM BENEFIT.—Interest and any special 

6 allowance may be paid on behalf of an officer under this 

7 section for any of the 36 consecutive months during which 

8 the officer is eligible under subsection (b). 

9 ‘‘(e) FUNDS FOR PAYMENTS.—The Secretary may 

10 use amounts appropriated for the pay and allowances of 

11 personnel of the commissioned officer corps of the Admin12 istration for payments under this section. 

13 ‘‘(f) COORDINATION WITH SECRETARY OF EDU14 CATION.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall consult 

16 with the Secretary of Education regarding the ad17 ministration of this section. 

18 ‘‘(2) TRANSFER OF FUNDS.—The Secretary 

19 shall transfer to the Secretary of Education the 

20 funds necessary— 

21 ‘‘(A) to pay interest and special allowances 

22 on student loans under this section (in accord23 ance with sections 428(o), 455(l), and 464(j) of 

24 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

25 1078(o), 1087e(l), and 1087dd(j))); and 


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1 ‘‘(B) to reimburse the Secretary of Edu2 cation for any reasonable administrative costs 

3 incurred by the Secretary in coordinating the 

4 program under this section with the administra5 tion of the student loan programs under parts 

6 B, D, and E of title IV of the Higher Edu7 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1071 et seq., 

8 1087a et seq., 1087aa et seq.). 

9 ‘‘(g) SPECIAL ALLOWANCE DEFINED.—In this sec10 tion, the term ‘special allowance’ means a special allow11 ance that is payable under section 438 of the Higher Edu12 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087–1).’’. 

13 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

14 (1) Section 428(o) of the Higher Education Act 

15 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078(o)) is amended— 

16 (A) by striking the subsection heading and 

17 inserting ‘‘ARMED FORCES AND NOAA COM18 MISSIONED OFFICER CORPS STUDENT LOAN

19 INTEREST PAYMENT PROGRAMS’’; and 

20 (B) in paragraph (1)— 

21 (i) by inserting ‘‘or section 268 of the 

22 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin23 istration Commissioned Officer Corps Act 

24 of 2002’’ after ‘‘Code,’’; and 


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1 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or an officer in the 

2 commissioned officer corps of the National 

3 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 

4 respectively,’’ after ‘‘Armed Forces’’. 

5 (2) Sections 455(l) and 464(j) of the Higher 

6 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(l) and 

7 1087dd(j)) are each amended— 

8 (A) by striking the subsection heading and 

9 inserting ‘‘ARMED FORCES AND NOAA COM10 MISSIONED OFFICER CORPS STUDENT LOAN

11 INTEREST PAYMENT PROGRAMS’’; and 

12 (B) in paragraph (1)— 

13 (i) by inserting ‘‘or section 264 of the 

14 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin15 istration Commissioned Officer Corps Act 

16 of 2002’’ after ‘‘Code,’’; and 

17 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or an officer in the 

18 commissioned officer corps of the National 

19 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 

20 respectively’’ after ‘‘Armed Forces’’. 

21 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

22 in section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the 

23 Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for 

24 other purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372), as amended by 


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1 section 201(b), is further amended by inserting after the 

2 item relating to section 267 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 268. Interest payment program.’’. 

3 SEC. 203. STUDENT PRE-COMMISSIONING PROGRAM. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E (33 U.S.C. 3071 et 

5 seq.), as amended by section 202(a), is further amended 

6 by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 269. STUDENT PRE-COMMISSIONING EDUCATION AS8 SISTANCE PROGRAM. 

9 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE FINANCIAL ASSIST10 ANCE.—For the purpose of maintaining adequate numbers 

11 of officers of the commissioned officer corps of the Admin12 istration on active duty, the Secretary may provide finan13 cial assistance to a person described in subsection (b) for 

14 expenses of the person while the person is pursuing on 

15 a full-time basis at an accredited educational institution 

16 (as determined by the Secretary of Education) a program 

17 of education approved by the Secretary that leads to— 

18 ‘‘(1) a baccalaureate degree in not more than 5 

19 academic years; or 

20 ‘‘(2) a postbaccalaureate degree. 

21 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE PERSONS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A person is eligible to ob23 tain financial assistance under subsection (a) if the 

24 person— 


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1 ‘‘(A) is enrolled on a full-time basis in a 

2 program of education referred to in subsection 

3 (a) at any educational institution described in 

4 such subsection; 

5 ‘‘(B) meets all of the requirements for ac6 ceptance into the commissioned officer corps of 

7 the Administration except for the completion of 

8 a baccalaureate degree; and 

9 ‘‘(C) enters into a written agreement with 

10 the Secretary described in paragraph (2). 

11 ‘‘(2) AGREEMENT.—A written agreement re12 ferred to in paragraph (1)(C) is an agreement be13 tween the person and the Secretary in which the 

14 person— 

15 ‘‘(A) agrees to accept an appointment as 

16 an officer, if tendered; and 

17 ‘‘(B) upon completion of the person’s edu18 cational program, agrees to serve on active 

19 duty, immediately after appointment, for— 

20 ‘‘(i) up to 3 years if the person re21 ceived less than 3 years of assistance; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) up to 5 years if the person re23 ceived at least 3 years of assistance. 


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1 ‘‘(c) QUALIFYING EXPENSES.—Expenses for which 

2 financial assistance may be provided under subsection (a) 

3 are the following: 

4 ‘‘(1) Tuition and fees charged by the edu5 cational institution involved. 

6 ‘‘(2) The cost of books. 

7 ‘‘(3) In the case of a program of education 

8 leading to a baccalaureate degree, laboratory ex9 penses. 

10 ‘‘(4) Such other expenses as the Secretary con11 siders appropriate. 

12 ‘‘(d) LIMITATION ON AMOUNT.—The Secretary shall 

13 prescribe the amount of financial assistance provided to 

14 a person under subsection (a), which may not exceed the 

15 amount specified in section 2173(e)(2) of title 10, United 

16 States Code, for each year of obligated service that a per17 son agrees to serve in an agreement described in sub18 section (b)(2). 

19 ‘‘(e) DURATION OF ASSISTANCE.—Financial assist20 ance may be provided to a person under subsection (a) 

21 for not more than 5 consecutive academic years. 

22 ‘‘(f) SUBSISTENCE ALLOWANCE.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A person who receives fi24 nancial assistance under subsection (a) shall be enti25 tled to a monthly subsistence allowance at a rate 


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1 prescribed under paragraph (2) for the duration of 

2 the period for which the person receives such finan3 cial assistance. 

4 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATION OF AMOUNT.—The Sec5 retary shall prescribe monthly rates for subsistence 

6 allowance provided under paragraph (1), which shall 

7 be equal to the amount specified in section 2144(a) 

8 of title 10, United States Code. 

9 ‘‘(g) INITIAL CLOTHING ALLOWANCE.— 

10 ‘‘(1) TRAINING.—The Secretary may prescribe 

11 a sum which shall be credited to each person who re12 ceives financial assistance under subsection (a) to 

13 cover the cost of the person’s initial clothing and 

14 equipment issue. 

15 ‘‘(2) APPOINTMENT.—Upon completion of the 

16 program of education for which a person receives fi17 nancial assistance under subsection (a) and accept18 ance of appointment in the commissioned officer 

19 corps of the Administration, the person may be 

20 issued a subsequent clothing allowance equivalent to 

21 that normally provided to a newly appointed officer. 

22 ‘‘(h) TERMINATION OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall termi24 nate the assistance provided to a person under this 

25 section if— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the Secretary accepts a request by 

2 the person to be released from an agreement 

3 described in subsection (b)(2); 

4 ‘‘(B) the misconduct of the person results 

5 in a failure to complete the period of active 

6 duty required under the agreement; or 

7 ‘‘(C) the person fails to fulfill any term or 

8 condition of the agreement. 

9 ‘‘(2) REIMBURSEMENT.—The Secretary may re10 quire a person who receives assistance described in 

11 subsection (c), (f), or (g) under an agreement en12 tered into under subsection (b)(1)(C) to reimburse 

13 the Secretary in an amount that bears the same 

14 ratio to the total costs of the assistance provided to 

15 that person as the unserved portion of active duty 

16 bears to the total period of active duty the officer 

17 agreed to serve under the agreement. 

18 ‘‘(3) WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive the 

19 service obligation of a person through an agreement 

20 entered into under subsection (b)(1)(C) if the per21 son— 

22 ‘‘(A) becomes unqualified to serve on active 

23 duty in the commissioned officer corps of the 

24 Administration because of a circumstance not 

25 within the control of that person; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) is— 

2 ‘‘(i) not physically qualified for ap3 pointment; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) determined to be unqualified for 

5 service in the commissioned officer corps of 

6 the Administration because of a physical or 

7 medical condition that was not the result 

8 of the person’s own misconduct or grossly 

9 negligent conduct. 

10 ‘‘(4) OBLIGATION AS DEBT TO UNITED

11 STATES.—An obligation to reimburse the Secretary 

12 imposed under paragraph (2) is, for all purposes, a 

13 debt owed to the United States. 

14 ‘‘(5) DISCHARGE IN BANKRUPTCY.—A dis15 charge in bankruptcy under title 11, United States 

16 Code, that is entered less than 5 years after the ter17 mination of a written agreement entered into under 

18 subsection (b)(1)(C) does not discharge the person 

19 signing the agreement from a debt arising under 

20 such agreement or under paragraph (2). 

21 ‘‘(i) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary may promulgate 

22 such regulations and orders as the Secretary considers ap23 propriate to carry out this section.’’. 

24 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

25 in section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the 


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1 Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for 

2 other purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372), as amended by 

3 section 202(c), is further amended by inserting after the 

4 item relating to section 268 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 269. Student pre-commissioning education assistance program.’’. 

5 SEC. 204. LIMITATION ON EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Each fiscal year, beginning with 

7 the fiscal year in which this Act is enacted, the Secretary 

8 of Commerce shall ensure that the total amount expended 

9 by the Secretary under section 267 of the National Oce10 anic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Offi11 cer Corps Act of 2002 (as added by section 201(a)), sec12 tion 268 of such Act (as added by section 202(a)), and 

13 section 269 of such Act (as added by section 203(a)) does 

14 not exceed the amount by which— 

15 (1) the total amount the Secretary would pay in 

16 that fiscal year to officer candidates under section 

17 203(f)(1) of title 37, United States Code (as added 

18 by section 306(d)), if such section entitled officers 

19 candidates to pay at monthly rates equal to the 

20 basic pay of a commissioned officer in the pay grade 

21 O–1 with less than 2 years of service, exceeds 

22 (2) the total amount the Secretary actually 

23 pays in that fiscal year to officer candidates under 

24 section 203(f)(1) of such title (as so added). 


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1 (b) OFFICER CANDIDATE DEFINED.—In this section, 

2 the term ‘‘officer candidate’’ has the meaning given the 

3 term in section 212 of the National Oceanic and Atmos4 pheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps Act of 

5 2002 (33 U.S.C. 3002), as added by section 306(c). 

6 SEC. 205. APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF 

7 TITLE 10, UNITED STATES CODE, AND EXTEN8 SION OF CERTAIN AUTHORITIES APPLICABLE 

9 TO MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES TO 

10 COMMISSIONED OFFICER CORPS. 

11 (a) APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF

12 TITLE 10.—Section 261(a) (33 U.S.C. 3071(a)) is amend13 ed— 

14 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (13) through 

15 (16) as paragraphs (22) through (25), respectively; 

16 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (7) through 

17 (12) as paragraphs (14) through (19), respectively; 

18 (3) by redesignating paragraphs (4) through 

19 (6) as paragraphs (8) through (10), respectively; 

20 (4) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘(4) Section 771, relating to unauthorized 

23 wearing of uniforms. 

24 ‘‘(5) Section 774, relating to wearing religious 

25 apparel while in uniform. 


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1 ‘‘(6) Section 982, relating to service on State 

2 and local juries. 

3 ‘‘(7) Section 1031, relating to administration of 

4 oaths.’’; 

5 (5) by inserting after paragraph (10), as redes6 ignated, the following: 

7 ‘‘(11) Section 1074n, relating to annual mental 

8 health assessments. 

9 ‘‘(12) Section 1090a, relating to referrals for 

10 mental health evaluations. 

11 ‘‘(13) Chapter 58, relating to the Benefits and 

12 Services for members being separated or recently 

13 separated.’’; and 

14 (6) by inserting after paragraph (19), as redes15 ignated, the following: 

16 ‘‘(20) Subchapter I of chapter 88, relating to 

17 Military Family Programs. 

18 ‘‘(21) Section 2005, relating to advanced edu19 cation assistance, active duty agreements, and reim20 bursement requirements.’’. 

21 (b) EXTENSION OF CERTAIN AUTHORITIES.— 

22 (1) NOTARIAL SERVICES.—Section 1044a of 

23 title 10, United States Code, is amended— 


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1 (A) in subsection (a)(1), by striking 

2 ‘‘armed forces’’ and inserting ‘‘uniformed serv3 ices’’; and 

4 (B) in subsection (b)(4), by striking 

5 ‘‘armed forces’’ both places it appears and in6 serting ‘‘uniformed services’’. 

7 (2) ACCEPTANCE OF VOLUNTARY SERVICES FOR

8 PROGRAMS SERVING MEMBERS AND THEIR FAMI9 LIES.—Section 1588 of such title is amended— 

10 (A) in subsection (a)(3), in the matter be11 fore subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘armed 

12 forces’’ and inserting ‘‘uniformed services’’; and 

13 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

14 subsection: 

15 ‘‘(g) SECRETARY CONCERNED FOR ACCEPTANCE OF

16 SERVICES FOR PROGRAMS SERVING MEMBERS OF NOAA 

17 CORPS AND THEIR FAMILIES.—For purposes of the ac18 ceptance of services described in subsection (a)(3), the 

19 term ‘Secretary concerned’ in subsection (a) shall include 

20 the Secretary of Commerce with respect to members of 

21 the commissioned officer corps of the National Oceanic 

22 and Atmospheric Administration.’’. 

23 (3) CAPSTONE COURSE FOR NEWLY SELECTED

24 FLAG OFFICERS.—Section 2153 of such title is 

25 amended— 


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1 (A) in subsection (a)— 

2 (i) by inserting ‘‘or the commissioned 

3 officer corps of the National Oceanic and 

4 Atmospheric Administration’’ after ‘‘in the 

5 case of the Navy’’; and 

6 (ii) by striking ‘‘other armed forces’’ 

7 and inserting ‘‘other uniformed services’’; 

8 and 

9 (B) in subsection (b)(1), in the matter be10 fore subparagraph (A), by inserting ‘‘or the 

11 Secretary of Commerce, as applicable,’’ after 

12 ‘‘the Secretary of Defense’’. 

13 SEC. 206. APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF 

14 TITLE 37, UNITED STATES CODE. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E (33 U.S.C. 3071 et 

16 seq.) is amended by inserting after section 261 the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘SEC. 261A. APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF 

19 TITLE 37, UNITED STATES CODE. 

20 ‘‘(a) PROVISIONS MADE APPLICABLE TO COMMIS21 SIONED OFFICER CORPS.—The provisions of law applica22 ble to the Armed Forces under the following provisions 

23 of title 37, United States Code, shall apply to the commis24 sioned officer corps of the Administration: 


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1 ‘‘(1) Section 324, relating to accession bonuses 

2 for new officers in critical skills. 

3 ‘‘(2) Section 403(f)(3), relating to prescribing 

4 regulations defining the terms ‘field duty’ and ‘sea 

5 duty’. 

6 ‘‘(3) Section 403(l), relating to temporary con7 tinuation of housing allowance for dependents of 

8 members dying on active duty. 

9 ‘‘(4) Section 488, relating to allowances for re10 cruiting expenses. 

11 ‘‘(5) Section 495, relating to allowances for fu12 neral honors duty. 

13 ‘‘(b) REFERENCES.—The authority vested by title 37, 

14 United States Code, in the ‘military departments’, ‘the 

15 Secretary concerned’, or ‘the Secretary of Defense’ with 

16 respect to the provisions of law referred to in subsection 

17 (a) shall be exercised, with respect to the commissioned 

18 officer corps of the Administration, by the Secretary of 

19 Commerce or the Secretary’s designee.’’. 

20 (b) PERSONAL MONEY ALLOWANCE.—Section 414 of 

21 title 37, United States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘or 

22 the director of the commissioned officer corps of the Na23 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’’ after 

24 ‘‘Health Service’’. 


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1 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

2 in section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the 

3 Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for 

4 other purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372) is amended by in5 serting after the item relating to section 261 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 261A. Applicability of certain provisions of title 37, United States 

Code.’’. 

6 SEC. 207. LEGION OF MERIT AWARD. 

7 Section 1121 of title 10, United States Code, is 

8 amended by striking ‘‘armed forces’’ and inserting ‘‘uni9 formed services’’. 

10 SEC. 208. PROHIBITION ON RETALIATORY PERSONNEL AC11 TIONS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) of section 261 (33 

13 U.S.C. 3071), as amended by section 205(a), is further 

14 amended— 

15 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (8) through 

16 (25) as paragraphs (9) through (26), respectively; 

17 and 

18 (2) by inserting after paragraph (7) the fol19 lowing: 

20 ‘‘(8) Section 1034, relating to protected com21 munications and prohibition of retaliatory personnel 

22 actions.’’. 

23 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Subsection (b) of 

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1 lowing: ‘‘For purposes of paragraph (8) of subsection (a), 

2 the term ‘Inspector General’ in section 1034 of such title 

3 10 shall mean the Inspector General of the Department 

4 of Commerce.’’. 

5 (c) REGULATIONS.—Such section is further amended 

6 by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(c) REGULATIONS REGARDING PROTECTED COM8 MUNICATIONS AND PROHIBITION OF RETALIATORY PER9 SONNEL ACTIONS.—The Secretary may promulgate regu10 lations to carry out the application of section 1034 of title 

11 10, United States Code, to the commissioned officer corps 

12 of the Administration, including by promulgating such ad13 ministrative procedures for investigation and appeal with14 in the commissioned officer corps as the Secretary con15 siders appropriate.’’. 

16 SEC. 209. PENALTIES FOR WEARING UNIFORM WITHOUT 

17 AUTHORITY. 

18 Section 702 of title 18, United States Code, is 

19 amended by striking ‘‘Service or any’’ and inserting ‘‘Serv20 ice, the commissioned officer corps of the National Oce21 anic and Atmospheric Administration, or any’’. 

22 SEC. 210. APPLICATION OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF COM23 PETITIVE SERVICE LAW. 

24 Section 3304(f) of title 5, United States Code, is 

25 amended— 


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1 (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘and mem2 bers of the commissioned officer corps of the Na3 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (or 

4 its predecessor organization the Coast and Geodetic 

5 Survey) separated from such uniformed service’’ 

6 after ‘‘separated from the armed forces’’; 

7 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘or veteran’’ 

8 and inserting ‘‘, veteran, or member’’; and 

9 (3) in paragraph (4), by inserting ‘‘and mem10 bers of the commissioned officer corps of the Na11 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (or 

12 its predecessor organization the Coast and Geodetic 

13 Survey) separated from such uniformed service’’ 

14 after ‘‘separated from the armed forces’’. 

15 SEC. 211. EMPLOYMENT AND REEMPLOYMENT RIGHTS. 

16 Section 4303(16) of title 38, United States Code, is 

17 amended by inserting ‘‘the commissioned officer corps of 

18 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,’’ 

19 after ‘‘Public Health Service,’’. 

20 SEC. 212. TREATMENT OF COMMISSION IN COMMISSIONED 

21 OFFICER CORPS FOR PURPOSES OF CERTAIN 

22 HIRING DECISIONS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E (33 U.S.C. 3071 et 

24 seq.), as amended by this title, is further amended by add25 ing at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 269A. TREATMENT OF COMMISSION IN COMMIS2 SIONED OFFICER CORPS AS EMPLOYMENT IN 

3 ADMINISTRATION FOR PURPOSES OF CER4 TAIN HIRING DECISIONS. 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In any case in which the Sec6 retary accepts an application for a position of employment 

7 with the Administration and limits consideration of appli8 cations for such position to applications submitted by indi9 viduals serving in a career or career-conditional position 

10 in the competitive service within the Administration, the 

11 Secretary shall deem an officer who has served as an offi12 cer in the commissioned officer corps for at least 3 years 

13 to be serving in a career or career-conditional position in 

14 the competitive service within the Administration for pur15 poses of such limitation. 

16 ‘‘(b) CAREER APPOINTMENTS.—If the Secretary se17 lects an application submitted by an officer described in 

18 subsection (a) for a position described in such subsection, 

19 the Secretary shall give such officer a career or career20 conditional appointment in the competitive service, as ap21 propriate. 

22 ‘‘(c) COMPETITIVE SERVICE DEFINED.—In this sec23 tion, the term ‘competitive service’ has the meaning given 

24 the term in section 2102 of title 5, United States Code.’’. 

25 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

26 in section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the 


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1 Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for 

2 other purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372) is amended by in3 serting after the item relating to section 269, as added 

4 by section 203, the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 269A. Treatment of commission in commissioned officer corps as employment in Administration for purposes of certain hiring decisions.’’. 

5 SEC. 213. DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—The head of a Federal agency 

7 may appoint, without regard to the provisions of sub8 chapter I of chapter 33 of title 5, United States Code, 

9 other than sections 3303 and 3328 of such title, a quali10 fied candidate described in subsection (b) directly to a po11 sition in the agency for which the candidate meets quali12 fication standards of the Office of Personnel Management. 

13 (b) CANDIDATES DESCRIBED.—A candidate de14 scribed in this subsection is a current or former member 

15 of the commissioned officer corps of the National Oceanic 

16 and Atmospheric Administration who— 

17 (1) fulfilled his or her obligated service require18 ment under section 216 of the National Oceanic and 

19 Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer 

20 Corps Act of 2002, as added by section 103; 

21 (2) if no longer a member of the commissioned 

22 officer corps of the Administration, was not dis23 charged or released therefrom as part of a discipli24 nary action; and 


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1 (3) has been separated or released from service 

2 in the commissioned officer corps of the Administra3 tion for a period of not more than 5 years. 

4 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply with 

5 respect to appointments made in fiscal year 2017 and in 

6 each fiscal year thereafter. 

7 TITLE III—APPOINTMENTS AND 

8 PROMOTION OF OFFICERS 

9 SEC. 301. APPOINTMENTS. 

10 (a) ORIGINAL APPOINTMENTS.—Section 221 (33 

11 U.S.C. 3021) is amended to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 221. ORIGINAL APPOINTMENTS AND REAPPOINT13 MENTS. 

14 ‘‘(a) ORIGINAL APPOINTMENTS.— 

15 ‘‘(1) GRADES.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

17 subparagraph (B), an original appointment of 

18 an officer may be made in such grades as may 

19 be appropriate for— 

20 ‘‘(i) the qualification, experience, and 

21 length of service of the appointee; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) the commissioned officer corps of 

23 the Administration. 

24 ‘‘(B) APPOINTMENT OF OFFICER CAN25 DIDATES.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) LIMITATION ON GRADE.—An 

2 original appointment of an officer can3 didate, upon graduation from the basic of4 ficer training program of the commissioned 

5 officer corps of the Administration, may 

6 not be made in any other grade than en7 sign. 

8 ‘‘(ii) RANK.—Officer candidates re9 ceiving appointments as ensigns upon 

10 graduation from basic officer training pro11 gram shall take rank according to their 

12 proficiency as shown by the order of their 

13 merit at date of graduation. 

14 ‘‘(2) SOURCE OF APPOINTMENTS.—An original 

15 appointment may be made from among the fol16 lowing: 

17 ‘‘(A) Graduates of the basic officer train18 ing program of the commissioned officer corps 

19 of the Administration. 

20 ‘‘(B) Graduates of the military service 

21 academies of the United States who otherwise 

22 meet the academic standards for enrollment in 

23 the training program described in subparagraph 

24 (A). 


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1 ‘‘(C) Graduates of the maritime academies 

2 of the States who— 

3 ‘‘(i) otherwise meet the academic 

4 standards for enrollment in the training 

5 program described in subparagraph (A); 

6 ‘‘(ii) completed at least 3 years of 

7 regimented training while at a maritime 

8 academy of a State; and 

9 ‘‘(iii) obtained an unlimited tonnage 

10 or unlimited horsepower Merchant Mariner 

11 Credential from the United States Coast 

12 Guard. 

13 ‘‘(D) Licensed officers of the United States 

14 merchant marine who have served 2 or more 

15 years aboard a vessel of the United States in 

16 the capacity of a licensed officer, who otherwise 

17 meet the academic standards for enrollment in 

18 the training program described in subparagraph 

19 (A). 

20 ‘‘(3) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

21 ‘‘(A) MARITIME ACADEMIES OF THE

22 STATES.—The term ‘maritime academies of the 

23 States’ means the following: 

24 ‘‘(i) California Maritime Academy, 

25 Vallejo, California. 


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1 ‘‘(ii) Great Lakes Maritime Academy, 

2 Traverse City, Michigan. 

3 ‘‘(iii) Maine Maritime Academy, 

4 Castine, Maine. 

5 ‘‘(iv) Massachusetts Maritime Acad6 emy, Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts. 

7 ‘‘(v) State University of New York 

8 Maritime College, Fort Schuyler, New 

9 York. 

10 ‘‘(vi) Texas A&M Maritime Academy, 

11 Galveston, Texas. 

12 ‘‘(B) MILITARY SERVICE ACADEMIES OF

13 THE UNITED STATES.—The term ‘military serv14 ice academies of the United States’ means the 

15 following: 

16 ‘‘(i) The United States Military Acad17 emy, West Point, New York. 

18 ‘‘(ii) The United States Naval Acad19 emy, Annapolis, Maryland. 

20 ‘‘(iii) The United States Air Force 

21 Academy, Colorado Springs, Colorado. 

22 ‘‘(iv) The United States Coast Guard 

23 Academy, New London, Connecticut. 

24 ‘‘(v) The United States Merchant Ma25 rine Academy, Kings Point, New York. 


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1 ‘‘(b) REAPPOINTMENT.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para3 graph (2), an individual who previously served in the 

4 commissioned officer corps of the Administration 

5 may be appointed by the Secretary to the grade the 

6 individual held prior to separation. 

7 ‘‘(2) REAPPOINTMENTS TO HIGHER GRADES.— 

8 An appointment under paragraph (1) to a position 

9 of importance and responsibility designated under 

10 section 228 may only be made by the President. 

11 ‘‘(c) QUALIFICATIONS.—An appointment under sub12 section (a) or (b) may not be given to an individual until 

13 the individual’s mental, moral, physical, and professional 

14 fitness to perform the duties of an officer has been estab15 lished under such regulations as the Secretary shall pre16 scribe. 

17 ‘‘(d) PRECEDENCE OF APPOINTEES.—Appointees 

18 under this section shall take precedence in the grade to 

19 which appointed in accordance with the dates of their com20 missions as commissioned officers in such grade. Ap21 pointees whose dates of commission are the same shall 

22 take precedence with each other as the Secretary shall de23 termine. 

24 ‘‘(e) INTER-SERVICE TRANSFERS.—For inter-service 

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1 rective 1300.4 (dated December 27, 2006)) the Secretary 

2 shall— 

3 ‘‘(1) coordinate with the Secretary of Defense 

4 and the Secretary of the Department in which the 

5 Coast Guard is operating to promote and streamline 

6 inter-service transfers; 

7 ‘‘(2) give preference to such inter-service trans8 fers for recruitment purposes as determined appro9 priate by the Secretary; and 

10 ‘‘(3) reappoint such inter-service transfers to 

11 the equivalent grade in the commissioned officer 

12 corps.’’. 

13 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

14 in section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the 

15 Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for 

16 other purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372) is amended by 

17 striking the item relating to section 221 and inserting the 

18 following: 

‘‘Sec. 221. Original appointments and reappointments.’’. 

19 SEC. 302. PERSONNEL BOARDS. 

20 Section 222 (33 U.S.C. 3022) is amended to read as 

21 follows: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 222. PERSONNEL BOARDS. 

23 ‘‘(a) CONVENING.—Not less frequently than once 

24 each year and at such other times as the Secretary deterVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:37 Nov 07, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00041 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S171.RS S171

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1 mines necessary, the Secretary shall convene a personnel 

2 board. 

3 ‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A board convened under 

5 subsection (a) shall consist of 5 or more officers who 

6 are serving in or above the permanent grade of the 

7 officers under consideration by the board. 

8 ‘‘(2) RETIRED OFFICERS.—Officers on the re9 tired list may be recalled to serve on such personnel 

10 boards as the Secretary considers necessary. 

11 ‘‘(3) NO MEMBERSHIP ON 2 SUCCESSIVE

12 BOARDS.—No officer may be a member of 2 succes13 sive personnel boards convened to consider officers 

14 of the same grade for promotion or separation. 

15 ‘‘(c) DUTIES.—Each personnel board shall— 

16 ‘‘(1) recommend to the Secretary such changes 

17 as may be necessary to correct any erroneous posi18 tion on the lineal list that was caused by administra19 tive error; and 

20 ‘‘(2) make selections and recommendations to 

21 the Secretary and the President for the appoint22 ment, promotion, involuntary separation, continu23 ation, and involuntary retirement of officers in the 

24 commissioned officer corps of the Administration as 

25 prescribed in this title. 


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1 ‘‘(d) ACTION ON RECOMMENDATIONS NOT ACCEPT2 ABLE.—If any recommendation by a board convened 

3 under subsection (a) is not accepted by the Secretary or 

4 the President, the board shall make such further rec5 ommendations as the Secretary or the President considers 

6 appropriate.’’. 

7 SEC. 303. DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY. 

8 Section 226 (33 U.S.C. 3026) is amended— 

9 (1) by striking ‘‘Appointments’’ and inserting 

10 the following: 

11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Appointments’’; and 

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

13 ‘‘(b) DELEGATION OF APPOINTMENT AUTHORITY.— 

14 If the President delegates authority to the Secretary to 

15 make appointments under this section, the President shall, 

16 during a period in which the position of the Secretary is 

17 vacant, delegate such authority to the Deputy Secretary 

18 of Commerce or the Under Secretary for Oceans and At19 mosphere during such period.’’. 

20 SEC. 304. ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR OF THE OFFICE OF 

21 MARINE AND AVIATION OPERATIONS. 

22 Section 228(c) (33 U.S.C. 3028(c)) is amended— 

23 (1) in the fourth sentence, by striking ‘‘Direc24 tor’’ and inserting ‘‘Assistant Administrator’’; and 


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1 (2) in the heading, by inserting ‘‘ASSISTANT

2 ADMINISTRATOR OF THE’’ before ‘‘OFFICE’’. 

3 SEC. 305. TEMPORARY APPOINTMENTS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 229 (33 U.S.C. 3029) is 

5 amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 229. TEMPORARY APPOINTMENTS. 

7 ‘‘(a) APPOINTMENTS BY PRESIDENT.—Temporary 

8 appointments in the grade of ensign, lieutenant junior 

9 grade, or lieutenant may be made by the President. 

10 ‘‘(b) TERMINATION.—A temporary appointment to a 

11 position under subsection (a) shall terminate upon ap12 proval of a permanent appointment for such position made 

13 by the President. 

14 ‘‘(c) ORDER OF PRECEDENCE.—Appointees under 

15 subsection (a) shall take precedence in the grade to which 

16 appointed in accordance with the dates of their appoint17 ments as officers in such grade. The order of precedence 

18 of appointees who are appointed on the same date shall 

19 be determined by the Secretary. 

20 ‘‘(d) ANY ONE GRADE.—When determined by the 

21 Secretary to be in the best interest of the commissioned 

22 officer corps, officers in any permanent grade may be tem23 porarily promoted one grade by the President. Any such 

24 temporary promotion terminates upon the transfer of the 

25 officer to a new assignment. 


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1 ‘‘(e) DELEGATION OF APPOINTMENT AUTHORITY.— 

2 If the President delegates authority to the Secretary to 

3 make appointments under this section, the President shall, 

4 during a period in which the position of the Secretary is 

5 vacant, delegate such authority to the Deputy Secretary 

6 of Commerce or the Under Secretary for Oceans and At7 mosphere during such period.’’. 

8 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

9 in section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the 

10 Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for 

11 other purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372) is amended by 

12 striking the item relating to section 229 and inserting the 

13 following: 

‘‘Sec. 229. Temporary appointments.’’. 

14 SEC. 306. OFFICER CANDIDATES. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle B (33 U.S.C. 3021 et 

16 seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘SEC. 234. OFFICER CANDIDATES. 

18 ‘‘(a) DETERMINATION OF NUMBER.—The Secretary 

19 shall determine the number of appointments of officer can20 didates. 

21 ‘‘(b) APPOINTMENT.—Appointment of officer can22 didates shall be made under regulations which the Sec23 retary shall prescribe, including regulations with respect 

24 to determining age limits, methods of selection of officer 

25 candidates, term of service as an officer candidate before 


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1 graduation from the program, and all other matters af2 fecting such appointment. 

3 ‘‘(c) DISMISSAL.—The Secretary may dismiss from 

4 the basic officer training program of the Administration 

5 any officer candidate who, during the officer candidate’s 

6 term as an officer candidate, the Secretary considers un7 satisfactory in either academics or conduct, or not adapted 

8 for a career in the commissioned officer corps of the Ad9 ministration. Officer candidates shall be subject to rules 

10 governing discipline prescribed by the Director of the Na11 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commis12 sioned Officer Corps. 

13 ‘‘(d) AGREEMENT.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each officer candidate 

15 shall sign an agreement with the Secretary in ac16 cordance with section 216(a)(2) regarding the officer 

17 candidate’s term of service in the commissioned offi18 cer corps of the Administration. 

19 ‘‘(2) ELEMENTS.—An agreement signed by an 

20 officer candidate under paragraph (1) shall provide 

21 that the officer candidate agrees to the following: 

22 ‘‘(A) That the officer candidate will com23 plete the course of instruction at the basic offi24 cer training program of the Administration. 


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1 ‘‘(B) That upon graduation from the such 

2 program, the officer candidate— 

3 ‘‘(i) will accept an appointment, if 

4 tendered, as an officer; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) will serve on active duty for at 

6 least 4 years immediately after such ap7 pointment. 

8 ‘‘(e) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall prescribe 

9 regulations to carry out this section. Such regulations 

10 shall include— 

11 ‘‘(1) standards for determining what constitutes 

12 a breach of an agreement signed under such sub13 section (d)(1); and 

14 ‘‘(2) procedures for determining whether such a 

15 breach has occurred. 

16 ‘‘(f) REPAYMENT.—An officer candidate or former 

17 officer candidate who does not fulfill the terms of the obli18 gation to serve as specified under subsection (d) shall be 

19 subject to the repayment provisions of section 216(b).’’. 

20 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

21 in section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the 

22 Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for 

23 other purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372) is amended by in24 serting after the item relating to section 233 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 234. Officer candidates.’’. 


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1 (c) OFFICER CANDIDATE DEFINED.—Section 212(b) 

2 (33 U.S.C. 3002(b)) is amended— 

3 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (4) through 

4 (6) as paragraphs (5) through (7), respectively; and 

5 (2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol6 lowing: 

7 ‘‘(4) OFFICER CANDIDATE.—The term ‘officer 

8 candidate’ means an individual who is enrolled in the 

9 basic officer training program of the Administration 

10 and is under consideration for appointment as an of11 ficer under section 221(a)(2)(A).’’. 

12 (d) PAY FOR OFFICER CANDIDATES.—Section 203 of 

13 title 37, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

14 end the following: 

15 ‘‘(f)(1) An officer candidate enrolled in the basic offi16 cer training program of the commissioned officer corps of 

17 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is 

18 entitled, while participating in such program, to monthly 

19 officer candidate pay at monthly rate equal to the basic 

20 pay of an enlisted member in the pay grade E–5 with less 

21 than 2 years service. 

22 ‘‘(2) An individual who graduates from such program 

23 shall receive credit for the time spent participating in such 

24 program as if such time were time served while on active 

25 duty as a commissioned officer. If the individual does not 


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1 graduate from such program, such time shall not be con2 sidered creditable for active duty or pay.’’. 

3 SEC. 307. PROCUREMENT OF PERSONNEL. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle B (33 U.S.C. 3021 et 

5 seq.), as amended by section 306(a), is further amended 

6 by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 235. PROCUREMENT OF PERSONNEL. 

8 ‘‘The Secretary may make such expenditures as the 

9 Secretary considers necessary in order to obtain recruits 

10 for the commissioned officer corps of the Administration, 

11 including advertising.’’. 

12 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

13 in section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the 

14 Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for 

15 other purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372), as amended by 

16 section 306(b), is further amended by inserting after the 

17 item relating to section 234 the following: 

‘‘235. Procurement of personnel.’’. 

18 TITLE IV—SEPARATION AND 

19 RETIREMENT OF OFFICERS 

20 SEC. 401. INVOLUNTARY RETIREMENT OR SEPARATION. 

21 Section 241 (33 U.S.C. 3041) is amended by adding 

22 at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(d) DEFERMENT OF RETIREMENT OR SEPARATION

24 FOR MEDICAL REASONS.— 


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

2 that the evaluation of the medical condition of an of3 ficer requires hospitalization or medical observation 

4 that cannot be completed with confidence in a man5 ner consistent with the officer’s well being before the 

6 date on which the officer would otherwise be re7 quired to retire or be separated under this section, 

8 the Secretary may defer the retirement or separation 

9 of the officer. 

10 ‘‘(2) CONSENT REQUIRED.—A deferment may 

11 only be made with the written consent of the officer 

12 involved. If the officer does not provide written con13 sent to the deferment, the officer shall be retired or 

14 separated as scheduled. 

15 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION.—A deferral of retirement or 

16 separation under this subsection may not extend for 

17 more than 30 days after completion of the evalua18 tion requiring hospitalization or medical observa19 tion.’’. 

20 SEC. 402. SEPARATION PAY. 

21 Section 242 (33 U.S.C. 3042) is amended by adding 

22 at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(d) EXCEPTION.—An officer discharged for twice 

24 failing selection for promotion to the next higher grade 


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1 is not entitled to separation pay under this section if the 

2 officer— 

3 ‘‘(1) expresses a desire not to be selected for 

4 promotion; or 

5 ‘‘(2) requests removal from the list of select6 ees.’’. 

7 TITLE V—HYDROGRAPHIC 

8 SERVICES AND OTHER MATTERS 

9 SEC. 501. REAUTHORIZATION OF HYDROGRAPHIC SERV10 ICES IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 1998. 

11 (a) REAUTHORIZATIONS.—Section 306 of the Hydro12 graphic Services Improvement Act of 1998 (33 U.S.C. 

13 892d) is amended— 

14 (1) in the matter before paragraph (1), by 

15 striking ‘‘There are’’ and inserting the following: 

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There are’’; 

17 (2) in subsection (a) (as designated by para18 graph (1))— 

19 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘sur20 veys—’’ and all that follows through the end of 

21 the paragraph and inserting ‘‘surveys, 

22 $70,814,000 for each of fiscal years 2017 

23 through 2021.’’; 

24 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘ves25 sels—’’ and all that follows through the end of 


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1 the paragraph and inserting ‘‘vessels, 

2 $25,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2017 

3 through 2021.’’; 

4 (C) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘Admin5 istration—’’ and all that follows through the 

6 end of the paragraph and inserting ‘‘Adminis7 tration, $29,932,000 for each of fiscal years 

8 2017 through 2021.’’; 

9 (D) in paragraph (4), by striking 

10 ‘‘title—’’ and all that follows through the end 

11 of the paragraph and inserting ‘‘title, 

12 $26,800,000 for each of fiscal years 2017 

13 through 2021.’’; and 

14 (E) in paragraph (5), by striking 

15 ‘‘title—’’ and all that follows through the end 

16 of the paragraph and inserting ‘‘title, 

17 $30,564,000 for each of fiscal years 2017 

18 through 2021.’’; and 

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

20 ‘‘(b) ARCTIC PROGRAMS.—Of the amount authorized 

21 by this section for each fiscal year— 

22 ‘‘(1) $10,000,000 is authorized for use— 

23 ‘‘(A) to acquire hydrographic data; 

24 ‘‘(B) to provide hydrographic services; 


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1 ‘‘(C) to conduct coastal change analyses 

2 necessary to ensure safe navigation; 

3 ‘‘(D) to improve the management of coast4 al change in the Arctic; and 

5 ‘‘(E) to reduce risks of harm to Alaska 

6 Native subsistence and coastal communities as7 sociated with increased international maritime 

8 traffic; and 

9 ‘‘(2) $2,000,000 is authorized for use to ac10 quire hydrographic data and provide hydrographic 

11 services in the Arctic necessary to delineate the 

12 United States extended Continental Shelf.’’. 

13 (b) LIMITATION ON ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES FOR

14 SURVEYS.—Section 306 of such Act (33 U.S.C. 892d) is 

15 further amended by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(c) LIMITATION ON ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES

17 FOR SURVEYS.—Of amounts authorized by this section for 

18 each fiscal year for contract hydrographic surveys, not 

19 more than 5 percent is authorized for administrative costs 

20 associated with contract management.’’. 

21 SEC. 502. WAIVERS OF BOND REQUIREMENTS FOR CERTAIN 

22 CONTRACTS. 

23 Section 3134 of title 40, United States Code, is 

24 amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(c) NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMIN2 ISTRATION.—The Secretary of Commerce may waive this 

3 subchapter with respect to contracts for the construction, 

4 alteration, or repair of vessels, regardless of the terms of 

5 the contracts as to payment or title, when the contract 

6 is made under the Act entitled ‘An Act to define the func7 tions and duties of the Coast and Geodetic Survey, and 

8 for other purposes’, approved August 6, 1947 (33 U.S.C. 

9 883a et seq.).’’. 

10 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

11 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Na12 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commis13 sioned Officer Corps Amendments and Hydrographic Serv14 ices Improvement Act Reauthorization and Amendments 

15 Act of 2017’’. 

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

17 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. References to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps Act of 2002. 

TITLE I—GENERAL PROVISIONS 

Sec. 101. Strength and distribution in grade. 

Sec. 102. Recalled officers. 

Sec. 103. Obligated service requirement. 

Sec. 104. Training and physical fitness. 

Sec. 105. Recruiting materials. 

Sec. 106. Technical correction. 

TITLE II—PARITY AND RECRUITMENT 

Sec. 201. Education loans. 

Sec. 202. Interest payments. 

Sec. 203. Student pre-commissioning program. 

Sec. 204. Limitation on educational assistance. 


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Sec. 205. Applicability of certain provisions of title 10, United States Code, and 

extension of certain authorities applicable to members of the 

Armed Forces to commissioned officer corps. 

Sec. 206. Applicability of certain provisions of title 37, United States Code. 

Sec. 207. Legion of Merit award. 

Sec. 208. Prohibition on retaliatory personnel actions. 

Sec. 209. Penalties for wearing uniform without authority. 

Sec. 210. Application of certain provisions of competitive service law. 

Sec. 211. Employment and reemployment rights. 

Sec. 212. Treatment of commission in commissioned officer corps for purposes of 

certain hiring decisions. 

Sec. 213. Direct hire authority. 

TITLE III—APPOINTMENTS AND PROMOTION OF OFFICERS 

Sec. 301. Appointments. 

Sec. 302. Personnel boards. 

Sec. 303. Delegation of authority. 

Sec. 304. Assistant Administrator of the Office of Marine and Aviation Operations. 

Sec. 305. Temporary appointments. 

Sec. 306. Officer candidates. 

Sec. 307. Procurement of personnel. 

TITLE IV—SEPARATION AND RETIREMENT OF OFFICERS 

Sec. 401. Involuntary retirement or separation. 

Sec. 402. Separation pay. 

TITLE V—HYDROGRAPHIC SERVICES AND OTHER MATTERS 

Sec. 501. Reauthorization of Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998. 

Sec. 502. System for tracking and reporting all-inclusive cost of hydrographic 

surveys. 

Sec. 503. Plans for construction of new port facility for homeporting of R/V 

FAIRWEATHER. 

Sec. 504. Waivers of bond requirements for certain contracts. 

1 SEC. 2. REFERENCES TO NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOS2 PHERIC ADMINISTRATION COMMISSIONED 

3 OFFICER CORPS ACT OF 2002. 

4 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in 

5 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of 

6 an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provision, 

7 the reference shall be considered to be made to a section or 

8 other provision of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 


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1 Administration Commissioned Officer Corps Act of 2002 

2 (33 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.). 

3 TITLE I—GENERAL PROVISIONS 

4 SEC. 101. STRENGTH AND DISTRIBUTION IN GRADE. 

5 Section 214 (33 U.S.C. 3004) is amended to read as 

6 follows: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 214. STRENGTH AND DISTRIBUTION IN GRADE. 

8 ‘‘(a) GRADES.—The commissioned grades in the com9 missioned officer corps of the Administration are the fol10 lowing, in relative rank with officers of the Navy: 

11 ‘‘(1) Vice admiral. 

12 ‘‘(2) Rear admiral. 

13 ‘‘(3) Rear admiral (lower half). 

14 ‘‘(4) Captain. 

15 ‘‘(5) Commander. 

16 ‘‘(6) Lieutenant commander. 

17 ‘‘(7) Lieutenant. 

18 ‘‘(8) Lieutenant (junior grade). 

19 ‘‘(9) Ensign. 

20 ‘‘(b) GRADE DISTRIBUTION.—The Secretary shall pre21 scribe, with respect to the distribution on the lineal list in 

22 grade, the percentages applicable to the grades set forth in 

23 subsection (a). 

24 ‘‘(c) ANNUAL COMPUTATION OF NUMBER IN GRADE.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not less frequently than once 

2 each year, the Secretary shall make a computation to 

3 determine the number of officers on the lineal list au4 thorized to be serving in each grade. 

5 ‘‘(2) METHOD OF COMPUTATION.—The number 

6 in each grade shall be computed by applying the ap7 plicable percentage to the total number of such officers 

8 serving on active duty on the date the computation is 

9 made. 

10 ‘‘(3) FRACTIONS.—If a final fraction occurs in 

11 computing the authorized number of officers in a 

12 grade, the nearest whole number shall be taken. If the 

fraction is 1 13 ⁄2, the next higher whole number shall be 

14 taken. 

15 ‘‘(d) TEMPORARY INCREASE IN NUMBERS.—The total 

16 number of officers authorized by law to be on the lineal list 

17 during a fiscal year may be temporarily exceeded if the av18 erage number on that list during that fiscal year does not 

19 exceed the authorized number. 

20 ‘‘(e) POSITIONS OF IMPORTANCE AND RESPONSI21 BILITY.—Officers serving in positions designated under sec22 tion 228(a) and officers recalled from retired status shall 

23 not be counted when computing authorized strengths under 

24 subsection (c) and shall not count against those strengths. 


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1 ‘‘(f) PRESERVATION OF GRADE AND PAY.—No officer 

2 may be reduced in grade or pay or separated from the com3 missioned officer corps of the Administration as the result 

4 of a computation made to determine the authorized number 

5 of officers in the various grades.’’. 

6 SEC. 102. RECALLED OFFICERS. 

7 Section 215 (33 U.S.C. 3005) is amended— 

8 (1) in the matter before paragraph (1), by strik9 ing ‘‘Effective’’ and inserting the following: 

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Effective’’; and 

11 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub12 section: 

13 ‘‘(b) POSITIONS OF IMPORTANCE AND RESPONSI14 BILITY.—Officers serving in positions designated under sec15 tion 228 and officers recalled from retired status or detailed 

16 to an agency other than the Administration— 

17 ‘‘(1) may not be counted in determining the total 

18 number of authorized officers on the lineal list under 

19 this section; and 

20 ‘‘(2) may not count against such number.’’. 

21 SEC. 103. OBLIGATED SERVICE REQUIREMENT. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A (33 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.) 

23 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘SEC. 216. OBLIGATED SERVICE REQUIREMENT. 

25 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) RULEMAKING.—The Secretary shall pre2 scribe the obligated service requirements for appoint3 ments, training, promotions, separations, continu4 ations, and retirement of officers not otherwise cov5 ered by law. 

6 ‘‘(2) WRITTEN AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary 

7 and officers shall enter into written agreements that 

8 describe the officers’ obligated service requirements 

9 prescribed under paragraph (1) in return for such ap10 pointments, training, promotions, separations, and 

11 retirements as the Secretary considers appropriate. 

12 ‘‘(b) REPAYMENT FOR FAILURE TO SATISFY REQUIRE13 MENTS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may require 

15 an officer who fails to meet the service requirements 

16 prescribed under subsection (a)(1) to reimburse the 

17 Secretary in an amount that bears the same ratio to 

18 the total costs of the training provided to that officer 

19 by the Secretary as the unserved portion of active 

20 duty bears to the total period of active duty the officer 

21 agreed to serve. 

22 ‘‘(2) OBLIGATION AS DEBT TO UNITED STATES.— 

23 An obligation to reimburse the Secretary under para24 graph (1) shall be considered for all purposes as a 

25 debt owed to the United States. 


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1 ‘‘(3) DISCHARGE IN BANKRUPTCY.—A discharge 

2 in bankruptcy under title 11 that is entered less than 

3 5 years after the termination of a written agreement 

4 entered into under subsection (a)(2) does not dis5 charge the individual signing the agreement from a 

6 debt arising under such agreement. 

7 ‘‘(c) WAIVER OR SUSPENSION OF COMPLIANCE.—The 

8 Secretary may waive the service obligation of an officer 

9 who— 

10 ‘‘(1) becomes unqualified to serve on active duty 

11 in the commissioned officer corps of the Administra12 tion because of a circumstance not within the control 

13 of that officer; or 

14 ‘‘(2) is— 

15 ‘‘(A) not physically qualified for appoint16 ment; and 

17 ‘‘(B) determined to be unqualified for serv18 ice in the commissioned officer corps of the Ad19 ministration because of a physical or medical 

20 condition that was not the result of the officer’s 

21 own misconduct or grossly negligent conduct.’’. 

22 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections in 

23 section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the Hydro24 graphic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for other 


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1 purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372) is amended by inserting 

2 after the item relating to section 215 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 216. Obligated service requirement.’’. 

3 SEC. 104. TRAINING AND PHYSICAL FITNESS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A (33 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.), 

5 as amended by section 103(a), is further amended by add6 ing at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 217. TRAINING AND PHYSICAL FITNESS. 

8 ‘‘(a) TRAINING.—The Secretary may take such meas9 ures as may be necessary to ensure that officers are pre10 pared to carry out their duties in the commissioned officer 

11 corps of the Administration and proficient in the skills nec12 essary to carry out such duties. Such measures may include 

13 the following: 

14 ‘‘(1) Carrying out training programs and cor15 respondence courses, including establishing and oper16 ating a basic officer training program to provide ini17 tial indoctrination and maritime vocational training 

18 for officer candidates as well as refresher training, 

19 mid-career training, aviation training, and such 

20 other training as the Secretary considers necessary for 

21 officer development and proficiency. 

22 ‘‘(2) Providing officers and officer candidates 

23 with books and school supplies. 

24 ‘‘(3) Acquiring such equipment as may be nec25 essary for training and instructional purposes. 


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1 ‘‘(b) PHYSICAL FITNESS.—The Secretary shall ensure 

2 that officers maintain a high physical state of readiness by 

3 establishing standards of physical fitness for officers that 

4 are substantially equivalent to those prescribed for officers 

5 in the Coast Guard.’’. 

6 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections in 

7 section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the Hydro8 graphic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for other 

9 purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372), as amended by section 

10 103(b), is further amended by inserting after the item relat11 ing to section 216 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 217. Training and physical fitness.’’. 

12 SEC. 105. RECRUITING MATERIALS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A (33 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.), 

14 as amended by section 104(a), is further amended by add15 ing at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘SEC. 218. USE OF RECRUITING MATERIALS FOR PUBLIC RE17 LATIONS. 

18 ‘‘The Secretary may use for public relations purposes 

19 of the Department of Commerce any advertising materials 

20 developed for use for recruitment and retention of personnel 

21 for the commissioned officer corps of the Administration. 

22 Any such use shall be under such conditions and subject 

23 to such restrictions as the Secretary shall prescribe.’’. 

24 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections in 

25 section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the HydroVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:37 Nov 07, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00062 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S171.RS S171

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1 graphic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for other 

2 purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372), as amended by section 

3 104(b), is further amended by inserting after the item relat4 ing to section 217 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 218. Use of recruiting materials for public relations.’’. 

5 SEC. 106. TECHNICAL CORRECTION. 

6 Section 101(21)(C) of title 38, United States Code, is 

7 amended by inserting ‘‘in the commissioned officer corps’’ 

8 before ‘‘of the National’’. 

9 TITLE II—PARITY AND 

10 RECRUITMENT 

11 SEC. 201. EDUCATION LOANS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E (33 U.S.C. 3071 et seq.) 

13 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘SEC. 267. EDUCATION LOAN REPAYMENT PROGRAM. 

15 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY TO REPAY EDUCATION LOANS.—For 

16 the purpose of maintaining adequate numbers of officers of 

17 the commissioned officer corps of the Administration on ac18 tive duty who have skills required by the commissioned offi19 cer corps, the Secretary may repay, in the case of a person 

20 described in subsection (b), a loan that— 

21 ‘‘(1) was used by the person to finance edu22 cation; and 

23 ‘‘(2) was obtained from a governmental entity, 

24 private financial institution, educational institution, 

25 or other authorized entity. 


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1 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE PERSONS.—To be eligible to obtain a 

2 loan repayment under this section, a person must— 

3 ‘‘(1) satisfy 1 of the requirements specified in 

4 subsection (c); 

5 ‘‘(2) be fully qualified for, or hold, an appoint6 ment as a commissioned officer in the commissioned 

7 officer corps of the Administration; and 

8 ‘‘(3) sign a written agreement to serve on active 

9 duty, or, if on active duty, to remain on active duty 

10 for a period in addition to any other incurred active 

11 duty obligation. 

12 ‘‘(c) ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL REQUIRE13 MENTS.—One of the following academic requirements must 

14 be satisfied for purposes of determining the eligibility of an 

15 individual for a loan repayment under this section: 

16 ‘‘(1) The person is fully qualified in a profession 

17 that the Secretary has determined to be necessary to 

18 meet identified skill shortages in the commissioned of19 ficer corps. 

20 ‘‘(2) The person is enrolled as a full-time student 

21 in the final year of a course of study at an accredited 

22 educational institution (as determined by the Sec23 retary of Education) leading to a degree in a profes24 sion that will meet identified skill shortages in the 

25 commissioned officer corps. 


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1 ‘‘(d) LOAN REPAYMENTS.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the limits estab3 lished under paragraph (2), a loan repayment under 

4 this section may consist of the payment of the prin5 cipal, interest, and related expenses of a loan obtained 

6 by a person described in subsection (b). 

7 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION ON AMOUNT.—For each year of 

8 obligated service that a person agrees to serve in an 

9 agreement described in subsection (b)(3), the Sec10 retary may pay not more than the amount specified 

11 in section 2173(e)(2) of title 10, United States Code. 

12 ‘‘(e) ACTIVE DUTY SERVICE OBLIGATION.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A person entering into an 

14 agreement described in subsection (b)(3) incurs an ac15 tive duty service obligation. 

16 ‘‘(2) LENGTH OF OBLIGATION DETERMINED

17 UNDER REGULATIONS.— 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

19 subparagraph (B), the length of the obligation 

20 under paragraph (1) shall be determined under 

21 regulations prescribed by the Secretary. 

22 ‘‘(B) MINIMUM OBLIGATION.—The regula23 tions prescribed under subparagraph (A) may 

24 not provide for a period of obligation of less than 

25 1 year for each maximum annual amount, or 


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1 portion thereof, paid on behalf of the person for 

2 qualified loans. 

3 ‘‘(3) PERSONS ON ACTIVE DUTY BEFORE ENTER4 ING INTO AGREEMENT.—The active duty service obli5 gation of persons on active duty before entering into 

6 the agreement shall be served after the conclusion of 

7 any other obligation incurred under the agreement. 

8 ‘‘(f) EFFECT OF FAILURE TO COMPLETE OBLIGA9 TION.— 

10 ‘‘(1) ALTERNATIVE OBLIGATIONS.—An officer 

11 who is relieved of the officer’s active duty obligation 

12 under this section before the completion of that obliga13 tion may be given any alternative obligation, at the 

14 discretion of the Secretary. 

15 ‘‘(2) REPAYMENT.—An officer who does not com16 plete the period of active duty specified in the agree17 ment entered into under subsection (b)(3), or the al18 ternative obligation imposed under paragraph (1), 

19 shall be subject to the repayment provisions under sec20 tion 216. 

21 ‘‘(g) RULEMAKING.—The Secretary shall prescribe reg22 ulations to carry out this section, including— 

23 ‘‘(1) standards for qualified loans and authorized 

24 payees; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) other terms and conditions for the making 

2 of loan repayments.’’. 

3 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections in 

4 section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the Hydro5 graphic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for other 

6 purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372) is amended by inserting 

7 after the item relating to section 266 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 267. Education loan repayment program.’’. 

8 SEC. 202. INTEREST PAYMENTS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E (33 U.S.C. 3071 et seq.), 

10 as amended by section 201(a), is further amended by add11 ing at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 268. INTEREST PAYMENT PROGRAM. 

13 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary may pay the interest 

14 and any special allowances that accrue on 1 or more stu15 dent loans of an eligible officer, in accordance with this sec16 tion. 

17 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE OFFICERS.—An officer is eligible for 

18 the benefit described in subsection (a) while the officer— 

19 ‘‘(1) is serving on active duty; 

20 ‘‘(2) has not completed more than 3 years of 

21 service on active duty; 

22 ‘‘(3) is the debtor on 1 or more unpaid loans de23 scribed in subsection (c); and 

24 ‘‘(4) is not in default on any such loan. 


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1 ‘‘(c) STUDENT LOANS.—The authority to make pay2 ments under subsection (a) may be exercised with respect 

3 to the following loans: 

4 ‘‘(1) A loan made, insured, or guaranteed under 

5 part B of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 

6 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1071 et seq.). 

7 ‘‘(2) A loan made under part D of such title (20 

8 U.S.C. 1087a et seq.). 

9 ‘‘(3) A loan made under part E of such title (20 

10 U.S.C. 1087aa et seq.). 

11 ‘‘(d) MAXIMUM BENEFIT.—Interest and any special 

12 allowance may be paid on behalf of an officer under this 

13 section for any of the 36 consecutive months during which 

14 the officer is eligible under subsection (b). 

15 ‘‘(e) FUNDS FOR PAYMENTS.—The Secretary may use 

16 amounts appropriated for the pay and allowances of per17 sonnel of the commissioned officer corps of the Administra18 tion for payments under this section. 

19 ‘‘(f) COORDINATION WITH SECRETARY OF EDU20 CATION.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall consult 

22 with the Secretary of Education regarding the admin23 istration of this section. 


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1 ‘‘(2) TRANSFER OF FUNDS.—The Secretary shall 

2 transfer to the Secretary of Education the funds nec3 essary— 

4 ‘‘(A) to pay interest and special allowances 

5 on student loans under this section (in accord6 ance with sections 428(o), 455(l), and 464(j) of 

7 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

8 1078(o), 1087e(l), and 1087dd(j)); and 

9 ‘‘(B) to reimburse the Secretary of Edu10 cation for any reasonable administrative costs 

11 incurred by the Secretary in coordinating the 

12 program under this section with the administra13 tion of the student loan programs under parts B, 

14 D, and E of title IV of the Higher Education Act 

15 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1071 et seq., 1087a et seq., 

16 1087aa et seq.). 

17 ‘‘(g) SPECIAL ALLOWANCE DEFINED.—In this section, 

18 the term ‘special allowance’ means a special allowance that 

19 is payable under section 438 of the Higher Education Act 

20 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087–1).’’. 

21 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

22 (1) Section 428(o) of the Higher Education Act 

23 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078(o)) is amended— 

24 (A) by striking the subsection heading and 

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1 SIONED OFFICER CORPS STUDENT LOAN INTER2 EST PAYMENT PROGRAMS’’; and 

3 (B) in paragraph (1)— 

4 (i) by inserting ‘‘or section 268 of the 

5 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin6 istration Commissioned Officer Corps Act of 

7 2002’’ after ‘‘Code,’’; and 

8 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or an officer in the 

9 commissioned officer corps of the National 

10 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 

11 respectively,’’ after ‘‘Armed Forces’’. 

12 (2) Sections 455(l) and 464(j) of the Higher 

13 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(l) and 

14 1087dd(j)) are each amended— 

15 (A) by striking the subsection heading and 

16 inserting ‘‘ARMED FORCES AND NOAA COMMIS17 SIONED OFFICER CORPS STUDENT LOAN INTER18 EST PAYMENT PROGRAMS’’; and 

19 (B) in paragraph (1)— 

20 (i) by inserting ‘‘or section 268 of the 

21 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin22 istration Commissioned Officer Corps Act of 

23 2002’’ after ‘‘Code,’’; and 

24 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or an officer in the 

25 commissioned officer corps of the National 


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1 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 

2 respectively’’ after ‘‘Armed Forces’’. 

3 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections in 

4 section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the Hydro5 graphic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for other 

6 purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372), as amended by section 

7 201(b), is further amended by inserting after the item relat8 ing to section 267 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 268. Interest payment program.’’. 

9 SEC. 203. STUDENT PRE-COMMISSIONING PROGRAM. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E (33 U.S.C. 3071 et seq.), 

11 as amended by section 202(a), is further amended by add12 ing at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 269. STUDENT PRE-COMMISSIONING EDUCATION AS14 SISTANCE PROGRAM. 

15 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE FINANCIAL ASSIST16 ANCE.—For the purpose of maintaining adequate numbers 

17 of officers of the commissioned officer corps of the Adminis18 tration on active duty, the Secretary may provide financial 

19 assistance to a person described in subsection (b) for ex20 penses of the person while the person is pursuing on a full21 time basis at an accredited educational institution (as de22 termined by the Secretary of Education) a program of edu23 cation approved by the Secretary that leads to— 

24 ‘‘(1) a baccalaureate degree in not more than 5 

25 academic years; or 


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1 ‘‘(2) a postbaccalaureate degree. 

2 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE PERSONS.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A person is eligible to obtain 

4 financial assistance under subsection (a) if the per5 son— 

6 ‘‘(A) is enrolled on a full-time basis in a 

7 program of education referred to in subsection 

8 (a) at any educational institution described in 

9 such subsection; 

10 ‘‘(B) meets all of the requirements for ac11 ceptance into the commissioned officer corps of 

12 the Administration except for the completion of 

13 a baccalaureate degree; and 

14 ‘‘(C) enters into a written agreement with 

15 the Secretary described in paragraph (2). 

16 ‘‘(2) AGREEMENT.—A written agreement referred 

17 to in paragraph (1)(C) is an agreement between the 

18 person and the Secretary in which the person— 

19 ‘‘(A) agrees to accept an appointment as an 

20 officer, if tendered; and 

21 ‘‘(B) upon completion of the person’s edu22 cational program, agrees to serve on active duty, 

23 immediately after appointment, for— 

24 ‘‘(i) up to 3 years if the person re25 ceived less than 3 years of assistance; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) up to 5 years if the person re2 ceived at least 3 years of assistance. 

3 ‘‘(c) QUALIFYING EXPENSES.—Expenses for which fi4 nancial assistance may be provided under subsection (a) 

5 are the following: 

6 ‘‘(1) Tuition and fees charged by the educational 

7 institution involved. 

8 ‘‘(2) The cost of books. 

9 ‘‘(3) In the case of a program of education lead10 ing to a baccalaureate degree, laboratory expenses. 

11 ‘‘(4) Such other expenses as the Secretary con12 siders appropriate. 

13 ‘‘(d) LIMITATION ON AMOUNT.—The Secretary shall 

14 prescribe the amount of financial assistance provided to a 

15 person under subsection (a), which may not exceed the 

16 amount specified in section 2173(e)(2) of title 10, United 

17 States Code, for each year of obligated service that a person 

18 agrees to serve in an agreement described in subsection 

19 (b)(2). 

20 ‘‘(e) DURATION OF ASSISTANCE.—Financial assist21 ance may be provided to a person under subsection (a) for 

22 not more than 5 consecutive academic years. 

23 ‘‘(f) SUBSISTENCE ALLOWANCE.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A person who receives finan25 cial assistance under subsection (a) shall be entitled 


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1 to a monthly subsistence allowance at a rate pre2 scribed under paragraph (2) for the duration of the 

3 period for which the person receives such financial as4 sistance. 

5 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATION OF AMOUNT.—The Sec6 retary shall prescribe monthly rates for subsistence al7 lowance provided under paragraph (1), which shall be 

8 equal to the amount specified in section 2144(a) of 

9 title 10, United States Code. 

10 ‘‘(g) INITIAL CLOTHING ALLOWANCE.— 

11 ‘‘(1) TRAINING.—The Secretary may prescribe a 

12 sum which shall be credited to each person who re13 ceives financial assistance under subsection (a) to 

14 cover the cost of the person’s initial clothing and 

15 equipment issue. 

16 ‘‘(2) APPOINTMENT.—Upon completion of the 

17 program of education for which a person receives fi18 nancial assistance under subsection (a) and accept19 ance of appointment in the commissioned officer corps 

20 of the Administration, the person may be issued a 

21 subsequent clothing allowance equivalent to that nor22 mally provided to a newly appointed officer. 

23 ‘‘(h) TERMINATION OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall termi2 nate the assistance provided to a person under this 

3 section if— 

4 ‘‘(A) the Secretary accepts a request by the 

5 person to be released from an agreement de6 scribed in subsection (b)(2); 

7 ‘‘(B) the misconduct of the person results in 

8 a failure to complete the period of active duty re9 quired under the agreement; or 

10 ‘‘(C) the person fails to fulfill any term or 

11 condition of the agreement. 

12 ‘‘(2) REIMBURSEMENT.—The Secretary may re13 quire a person who receives assistance described in 

14 subsection (c), (f), or (g) under an agreement entered 

15 into under subsection (b)(1)(C) to reimburse the Sec16 retary in an amount that bears the same ratio to the 

17 total costs of the assistance provided to that person as 

18 the unserved portion of active duty bears to the total 

19 period of active duty the officer agreed to serve under 

20 the agreement. 

21 ‘‘(3) WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive the 

22 service obligation of a person through an agreement 

23 entered into under subsection (b)(1)(C) if the per24 son— 


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1 ‘‘(A) becomes unqualified to serve on active 

2 duty in the commissioned officer corps of the Ad3 ministration because of a circumstance not with4 in the control of that person; or 

5 ‘‘(B) is— 

6 ‘‘(i) not physically qualified for ap7 pointment; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) determined to be unqualified for 

9 service in the commissioned officer corps of 

10 the Administration because of a physical or 

11 medical condition that was not the result of 

12 the person’s own misconduct or grossly neg13 ligent conduct. 

14 ‘‘(4) OBLIGATION AS DEBT TO UNITED STATES.— 

15 An obligation to reimburse the Secretary imposed 

16 under paragraph (2) is, for all purposes, a debt owed 

17 to the United States. 

18 ‘‘(5) DISCHARGE IN BANKRUPTCY.—A discharge 

19 in bankruptcy under title 11, United States Code, 

20 that is entered less than 5 years after the termination 

21 of a written agreement entered into under subsection 

22 (b)(1)(C) does not discharge the person signing the 

23 agreement from a debt arising under such agreement 

24 or under paragraph (2). 


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1 ‘‘(i) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary may promulgate 

2 such regulations and orders as the Secretary considers ap3 propriate to carry out this section.’’. 

4 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections in 

5 section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the Hydro6 graphic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for other 

7 purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372), as amended by section 

8 202(c), is further amended by inserting after the item relat9 ing to section 268 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 269. Student pre-commissioning education assistance program.’’. 

10 SEC. 204. LIMITATION ON EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Each fiscal year, beginning with 

12 the fiscal year in which this Act is enacted, the Secretary 

13 of Commerce shall ensure that the total amount expended 

14 by the Secretary under section 267 of the National Oceanic 

15 and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer 

16 Corps Act of 2002 (as added by section 201(a)), section 268 

17 of such Act (as added by section 202(a)), and section 269 

18 of such Act (as added by section 203(a)) does not exceed 

19 the amount by which— 

20 (1) the total amount the Secretary would pay in 

21 that fiscal year to officer candidates under section 

22 203(f)(1) of title 37, United States Code (as added by 

23 section 306(d)), if such section entitled officers can24 didates to pay at monthly rates equal to the basic pay 


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1 of a commissioned officer in the pay grade O–1 with 

2 less than 2 years of service; exceeds 

3 (2) the total amount the Secretary actually pays 

4 in that fiscal year to officer candidates under section 

5 203(f)(1) of such title (as so added). 

6 (b) OFFICER CANDIDATE DEFINED.—In this section, 

7 the term ‘‘officer candidate’’ has the meaning given the term 

8 in section 212 of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

9 Administration Commissioned Officer Corps Act of 2002 

10 (33 U.S.C. 3002), as added by section 306(c). 

11 SEC. 205. APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF 

12 TITLE 10, UNITED STATES CODE, AND EXTEN13 SION OF CERTAIN AUTHORITIES APPLICABLE 

14 TO MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES TO 

15 COMMISSIONED OFFICER CORPS. 

16 (a) APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF TITLE

17 10.—Section 261(a) (33 U.S.C. 3071(a)) is amended— 

18 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (13) through 

19 (16) as paragraphs (22) through (25), respectively; 

20 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (7) through (12) 

21 as paragraphs (14) through (19), respectively; 

22 (3) by redesignating paragraphs (4) through (6) 

23 as paragraphs (8) through (10), respectively; 

24 (4) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol25 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(4) Section 771, relating to unauthorized wear2 ing of uniforms. 

3 ‘‘(5) Section 774, relating to wearing religious 

4 apparel while in uniform. 

5 ‘‘(6) Section 982, relating to service on State 

6 and local juries. 

7 ‘‘(7) Section 1031, relating to administration of 

8 oaths.’’; 

9 (5) by inserting after paragraph (10), as redesig10 nated, the following: 

11 ‘‘(11) Section 1074n, relating to annual mental 

12 health assessments. 

13 ‘‘(12) Section 1090a, relating to referrals for 

14 mental health evaluations. 

15 ‘‘(13) Chapter 58, relating to the Benefits and 

16 Services for members being separated or recently sep17 arated.’’; and 

18 (6) by inserting after paragraph (19), as redesig19 nated, the following: 

20 ‘‘(20) Subchapter I of chapter 88, relating to 

21 Military Family Programs. 

22 ‘‘(21) Section 2005, relating to advanced edu23 cation assistance, active duty agreements, and reim24 bursement requirements.’’. 

25 (b) EXTENSION OF CERTAIN AUTHORITIES.— 


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1 (1) NOTARIAL SERVICES.—Section 1044a of title 

2 10, United States Code, is amended— 

3 (A) in subsection (a)(1), by striking ‘‘armed 

4 forces’’ and inserting ‘‘uniformed services’’; and 

5 (B) in subsection (b)(4), by striking ‘‘armed 

6 forces’’ both places it appears and inserting 

7 ‘‘uniformed services’’. 

8 (2) ACCEPTANCE OF VOLUNTARY SERVICES FOR

9 PROGRAMS SERVING MEMBERS AND THEIR FAMI10 LIES.—Section 1588 of such title is amended— 

11 (A) in subsection (a)(3), in the matter be12 fore subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘armed 

13 forces’’ and inserting ‘‘uniformed services’’; and 

14 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

15 subsection: 

16 ‘‘(g) SECRETARY CONCERNED FOR ACCEPTANCE OF

17 SERVICES FOR PROGRAMS SERVING MEMBERS OF NOAA 

18 CORPS AND THEIR FAMILIES.—For purposes of the accept19 ance of services described in subsection (a)(3), the term ‘Sec20 retary concerned’ in subsection (a) shall include the Sec21 retary of Commerce with respect to members of the commis22 sioned officer corps of the National Oceanic and Atmos23 pheric Administration.’’. 


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1 (3) CAPSTONE COURSE FOR NEWLY SELECTED

2 FLAG OFFICERS.—Section 2153 of such title is 

3 amended— 

4 (A) in subsection (a)— 

5 (i) by inserting ‘‘or the commissioned 

6 officer corps of the National Oceanic and 

7 Atmospheric Administration’’ after ‘‘in the 

8 case of the Navy’’; and 

9 (ii) by striking ‘‘other armed forces’’ 

10 and inserting ‘‘other uniformed services’’; 

11 and 

12 (B) in subsection (b)(1), in the matter be13 fore subparagraph (A), by inserting ‘‘or the Sec14 retary of Commerce, as applicable,’’ after ‘‘the 

15 Secretary of Defense’’. 

16 SEC. 206. APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF 

17 TITLE 37, UNITED STATES CODE. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E (33 U.S.C. 3071 et seq.) 

19 is amended by inserting after section 261 the following: 

20 ‘‘SEC. 261A. APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF 

21 TITLE 37, UNITED STATES CODE. 

22 ‘‘(a) PROVISIONS MADE APPLICABLE TO COMMIS23 SIONED OFFICER CORPS.—The provisions of law applicable 

24 to the Armed Forces under the following provisions of title 


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1 37, United States Code, shall apply to the commissioned 

2 officer corps of the Administration: 

3 ‘‘(1) Section 324, relating to accession bonuses 

4 for new officers in critical skills. 

5 ‘‘(2) Section 403(f)(3), relating to prescribing 

6 regulations defining the terms ‘field duty’ and ‘sea 

7 duty’. 

8 ‘‘(3) Section 403(l), relating to temporary con9 tinuation of housing allowance for dependents of 

10 members dying on active duty. 

11 ‘‘(4) Section 488, relating to allowances for re12 cruiting expenses. 

13 ‘‘(5) Section 495, relating to allowances for fu14 neral honors duty. 

15 ‘‘(b) REFERENCES.—The authority vested by title 37, 

16 United States Code, in the ‘military departments’, ‘the Sec17 retary concerned’, or ‘the Secretary of Defense’ with respect 

18 to the provisions of law referred to in subsection (a) shall 

19 be exercised, with respect to the commissioned officer corps 

20 of the Administration, by the Secretary of Commerce or the 

21 Secretary’s designee.’’. 

22 (b) PERSONAL MONEY ALLOWANCE.—Section 414 of 

23 title 37, United States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘or 

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1 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’’ after 

2 ‘‘Health Service’’. 

3 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections in 

4 section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the Hydro5 graphic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for other 

6 purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372) is amended by inserting 

7 after the item relating to section 261 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 261A. Applicability of certain provisions of title 37, United States Code.’’. 

8 SEC. 207. LEGION OF MERIT AWARD. 

9 Section 1121 of title 10, United States Code, is amend10 ed by striking ‘‘armed forces’’ and inserting ‘‘uniformed 

11 services’’. 

12 SEC. 208. PROHIBITION ON RETALIATORY PERSONNEL AC13 TIONS. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) of section 261 (33 

15 U.S.C. 3071), as amended by section 205(a), is further 

16 amended— 

17 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (8) through (25) 

18 as paragraphs (9) through (26), respectively; and 

19 (2) by inserting after paragraph (7) the fol20 lowing: 

21 ‘‘(8) Section 1034, relating to protected commu22 nications and prohibition of retaliatory personnel ac23 tions.’’. 

24 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Subsection (b) of such 

25 section is amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘For 


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1 purposes of paragraph (8) of subsection (a), the term ‘In2 spector General’ in section 1034 of such title 10 shall mean 

3 the Inspector General of the Department of Commerce.’’. 

4 (c) REGULATIONS.—Such section is further amended 

5 by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(c) REGULATIONS REGARDING PROTECTED COMMU7 NICATIONS AND PROHIBITION OF RETALIATORY PER8 SONNEL ACTIONS.—The Secretary may promulgate regula9 tions to carry out the application of section 1034 of title 

10 10, United States Code, to the commissioned officer corps 

11 of the Administration, including by promulgating such ad12 ministrative procedures for investigation and appeal with13 in the commissioned officer corps as the Secretary considers 

14 appropriate.’’. 

15 SEC. 209. PENALTIES FOR WEARING UNIFORM WITHOUT AU16 THORITY. 

17 Section 702 of title 18, United States Code, is amended 

18 by striking ‘‘Service or any’’ and inserting ‘‘Service, the 

19 commissioned officer corps of the National Oceanic and At20 mospheric Administration, or any’’. 

21 SEC. 210. APPLICATION OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF COM22 PETITIVE SERVICE LAW. 

23 Section 3304(f) of title 5, United States Code, is 

24 amended— 


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1 (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘and mem2 bers of the commissioned officer corps of the National 

3 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (or its 

4 predecessor organization the Coast and Geodetic Sur5 vey) separated from such uniformed service’’ after 

6 ‘‘separated from the armed forces’’; 

7 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘or veteran’’ 

8 and inserting ‘‘, veteran, or member’’; and 

9 (3) in paragraph (4), by inserting ‘‘and mem10 bers of the commissioned officer corps of the National 

11 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (or its 

12 predecessor organization the Coast and Geodetic Sur13 vey) separated from such uniformed service’’ after 

14 ‘‘separated from the armed forces’’. 

15 SEC. 211. EMPLOYMENT AND REEMPLOYMENT RIGHTS. 

16 Section 4303(16) of title 38, United States Code, is 

17 amended by inserting ‘‘the commissioned officer corps of the 

18 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,’’ after 

19 ‘‘Public Health Service,’’. 

20 SEC. 212. TREATMENT OF COMMISSION IN COMMISSIONED 

21 OFFICER CORPS FOR PURPOSES OF CERTAIN 

22 HIRING DECISIONS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E (33 U.S.C. 3071 et seq.), 

24 as amended by this title, is further amended by adding at 

25 the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 269A. TREATMENT OF COMMISSION IN COMMIS2 SIONED OFFICER CORPS AS EMPLOYMENT IN 

3 ADMINISTRATION FOR PURPOSES OF CER4 TAIN HIRING DECISIONS. 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In any case in which the Sec6 retary accepts an application for a position of employment 

7 with the Administration and limits consideration of appli8 cations for such position to applications submitted by indi9 viduals serving in a career or career-conditional position 

10 in the competitive service within the Administration, the 

11 Secretary shall deem an officer who has served as an officer 

12 in the commissioned officer corps for at least 3 years to 

13 be serving in a career or career-conditional position in the 

14 competitive service within the Administration for purposes 

15 of such limitation. 

16 ‘‘(b) CAREER APPOINTMENTS.—If the Secretary selects 

17 an application submitted by an officer described in sub18 section (a) for a position described in such subsection, the 

19 Secretary shall give such officer a career or career-condi20 tional appointment in the competitive service, as appro21 priate. 

22 ‘‘(c) COMPETITIVE SERVICE DEFINED.—In this sec23 tion, the term ‘competitive service’ has the meaning given 

24 the term in section 2102 of title 5, United States Code.’’. 

25 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections in 

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1 graphic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for other 

2 purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372) is amended by inserting 

3 after the item relating to section 269, as added by section 

4 203, the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 269A. Treatment of commission in commissioned officer corps as employment in Administration for purposes of certain hiring decisions.’’. 

5 SEC. 213. DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—The head of a Federal agency may 

7 appoint, without regard to the provisions of subchapter I 

8 of chapter 33 of title 5, United States Code, other than sec9 tions 3303 and 3328 of such title, a qualified candidate de10 scribed in subsection (b) directly to a position in the agency 

11 for which the candidate meets qualification standards of the 

12 Office of Personnel Management. 

13 (b) CANDIDATES DESCRIBED.—A candidate described 

14 in this subsection is a current or former member of the com15 missioned officer corps of the National Oceanic and Atmos16 pheric Administration who— 

17 (1) fulfilled his or her obligated service require18 ment under section 216 of the National Oceanic and 

19 Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer 

20 Corps Act of 2002, as added by section 103; 

21 (2) if no longer a member of the commissioned 

22 officer corps of the Administration, was not dis23 charged or released therefrom as part of a discipli24 nary action; and 


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1 (3) has been separated or released from service in 

2 the commissioned officer corps of the Administration 

3 for a period of not more than 5 years. 

4 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply with 

5 respect to appointments made in fiscal year 2017 and in 

6 each fiscal year thereafter. 

7 TITLE III—APPOINTMENTS AND 

8 PROMOTION OF OFFICERS 

9 SEC. 301. APPOINTMENTS. 

10 (a) ORIGINAL APPOINTMENTS.—Section 221 (33 

11 U.S.C. 3021) is amended to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 221. ORIGINAL APPOINTMENTS AND REAPPOINT13 MENTS. 

14 ‘‘(a) ORIGINAL APPOINTMENTS.— 

15 ‘‘(1) GRADES.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

17 subparagraph (B), an original appointment of 

18 an officer may be made in such grades as may 

19 be appropriate for— 

20 ‘‘(i) the qualification, experience, and 

21 length of service of the appointee; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) the commissioned officer corps of 

23 the Administration. 

24 ‘‘(B) APPOINTMENT OF OFFICER CAN25 DIDATES.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) LIMITATION ON GRADE.—An origi2 nal appointment of an officer candidate, 

3 upon graduation from the basic officer 

4 training program of the commissioned offi5 cer corps of the Administration, may not be 

6 made in any other grade than ensign. 

7 ‘‘(ii) RANK.—Officer candidates receiv8 ing appointments as ensigns upon gradua9 tion from basic officer training program 

10 shall take rank according to their pro11 ficiency as shown by the order of their merit 

12 at date of graduation. 

13 ‘‘(2) SOURCE OF APPOINTMENTS.—An original 

14 appointment may be made from among the following: 

15 ‘‘(A) Graduates of the basic officer training 

16 program of the commissioned officer corps of the 

17 Administration. 

18 ‘‘(B) Graduates of the military service 

19 academies of the United States who otherwise 

20 meet the academic standards for enrollment in 

21 the training program described in subparagraph 

22 (A). 

23 ‘‘(C) Graduates of the maritime academies 

24 of the States who— 


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1 ‘‘(i) otherwise meet the academic 

2 standards for enrollment in the training 

3 program described in subparagraph (A); 

4 ‘‘(ii) completed at least 3 years of regi5 mented training while at a maritime acad6 emy of a State; and 

7 ‘‘(iii) obtained an unlimited tonnage 

8 or unlimited horsepower Merchant Mariner 

9 Credential from the United States Coast 

10 Guard. 

11 ‘‘(D) Licensed officers of the United States 

12 merchant marine who have served 2 or more 

13 years aboard a vessel of the United States in the 

14 capacity of a licensed officer, who otherwise meet 

15 the academic standards for enrollment in the 

16 training program described in subparagraph 

17 (A). 

18 ‘‘(3) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

19 ‘‘(A) MARITIME ACADEMIES OF THE

20 STATES.—The term ‘maritime academies of the 

21 States’ means the following: 

22 ‘‘(i) California Maritime Academy, 

23 Vallejo, California. 

24 ‘‘(ii) Great Lakes Maritime Academy, 

25 Traverse City, Michigan. 


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1 ‘‘(iii) Maine Maritime Academy, 

2 Castine, Maine. 

3 ‘‘(iv) Massachusetts Maritime Acad4 emy, Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts. 

5 ‘‘(v) State University of New York 

6 Maritime College, Fort Schuyler, New York. 

7 ‘‘(vi) Texas A&M Maritime Academy, 

8 Galveston, Texas. 

9 ‘‘(B) MILITARY SERVICE ACADEMIES OF

10 THE UNITED STATES.—The term ‘military serv11 ice academies of the United States’ means the 

12 following: 

13 ‘‘(i) The United States Military Acad14 emy, West Point, New York. 

15 ‘‘(ii) The United States Naval Acad16 emy, Annapolis, Maryland. 

17 ‘‘(iii) The United States Air Force 

18 Academy, Colorado Springs, Colorado. 

19 ‘‘(iv) The United States Coast Guard 

20 Academy, New London, Connecticut. 

21 ‘‘(v) The United States Merchant Ma22 rine Academy, Kings Point, New York. 

23 ‘‘(b) REAPPOINTMENT.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para25 graph (2), an individual who previously served in the 


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1 commissioned officer corps of the Administration may 

2 be appointed by the Secretary to the grade the indi3 vidual held prior to separation. 

4 ‘‘(2) REAPPOINTMENTS TO HIGHER GRADES.— 

5 An appointment under paragraph (1) to a position of 

6 importance and responsibility designated under sec7 tion 228 may only be made by the President. 

8 ‘‘(c) QUALIFICATIONS.—An appointment under sub9 section (a) or (b) may not be given to an individual until 

10 the individual’s mental, moral, physical, and professional 

11 fitness to perform the duties of an officer has been estab12 lished under such regulations as the Secretary shall pre13 scribe. 

14 ‘‘(d) PRECEDENCE OF APPOINTEES.—Appointees 

15 under this section shall take precedence in the grade to 

16 which appointed in accordance with the dates of their com17 missions as commissioned officers in such grade. Appointees 

18 whose dates of commission are the same shall take prece19 dence with each other as the Secretary shall determine. 

20 ‘‘(e) INTER-SERVICE TRANSFERS.—For inter-service 

21 transfers (as described in the Department of Defense Direc22 tive 1300.4 (dated December 27, 2006)) the Secretary 

23 shall— 

24 ‘‘(1) coordinate with the Secretary of Defense 

25 and the Secretary of the Department in which the 


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1 Coast Guard is operating to promote and streamline 

2 inter-service transfers; 

3 ‘‘(2) give preference to such inter-service trans4 fers for recruitment purposes as determined appro5 priate by the Secretary; and 

6 ‘‘(3) reappoint such inter-service transfers to the 

7 equivalent grade in the commissioned officer corps.’’. 

8 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections in 

9 section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the Hydro10 graphic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for other 

11 purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372) is amended by striking 

12 the item relating to section 221 and inserting the following: 

‘‘Sec. 221. Original appointments and reappointments.’’. 

13 SEC. 302. PERSONNEL BOARDS. 

14 Section 222 (33 U.S.C. 3022) is amended to read as 

15 follows: 

16 ‘‘SEC. 222. PERSONNEL BOARDS. 

17 ‘‘(a) CONVENING.—Not less frequently than once each 

18 year and at such other times as the Secretary determines 

19 necessary, the Secretary shall convene a personnel board. 

20 ‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A board convened under sub22 section (a) shall consist of 5 or more officers who are 

23 serving in or above the permanent grade of the offi24 cers under consideration by the board. 


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1 ‘‘(2) RETIRED OFFICERS.—Officers on the retired 

2 list may be recalled to serve on such personnel boards 

3 as the Secretary considers necessary. 

4 ‘‘(3) NO MEMBERSHIP ON 2 SUCCESSIVE

5 BOARDS.—No officer may be a member of 2 successive 

6 personnel boards convened to consider officers of the 

7 same grade for promotion or separation. 

8 ‘‘(c) DUTIES.—Each personnel board shall— 

9 ‘‘(1) recommend to the Secretary such changes as 

10 may be necessary to correct any erroneous position on 

11 the lineal list that was caused by administrative 

12 error; and 

13 ‘‘(2) make selections and recommendations to the 

14 Secretary and the President for the appointment, pro15 motion, involuntary separation, continuation, and 

16 involuntary retirement of officers in the commissioned 

17 officer corps of the Administration as prescribed in 

18 this title. 

19 ‘‘(d) ACTION ON RECOMMENDATIONS NOT ACCEPT20 ABLE.—If any recommendation by a board convened under 

21 subsection (a) is not accepted by the Secretary or the Presi22 dent, the board shall make such further recommendations 

23 as the Secretary or the President considers appropriate.’’. 

24 SEC. 303. DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY. 

25 Section 226 (33 U.S.C. 3026) is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘Appointments’’ and inserting 

2 the following: 

3 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Appointments’’; and 

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

5 ‘‘(b) DELEGATION OF APPOINTMENT AUTHORITY.—If 

6 the President delegates authority to the Secretary to make 

7 appointments under this section, the President shall, during 

8 a period in which the position of the Secretary is vacant, 

9 delegate such authority to the Deputy Secretary of Com10 merce or the Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere 

11 during such period.’’. 

12 SEC. 304. ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR OF THE OFFICE OF 

13 MARINE AND AVIATION OPERATIONS. 

14 Section 228(c) (33 U.S.C. 3028(c)) is amended— 

15 (1) in the fourth sentence, by striking ‘‘Director’’ 

16 and inserting ‘‘Assistant Administrator’’; and 

17 (2) in the heading, by inserting ‘‘ASSISTANT AD18 MINISTRATOR OF THE’’ before ‘‘OFFICE’’. 

19 SEC. 305. TEMPORARY APPOINTMENTS. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 229 (33 U.S.C. 3029) is 

21 amended to read as follows: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 229. TEMPORARY APPOINTMENTS. 

23 ‘‘(a) APPOINTMENTS BY PRESIDENT.—Temporary ap24 pointments in the grade of ensign, lieutenant junior grade, 

25 or lieutenant may be made by the President. 


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1 ‘‘(b) TERMINATION.—A temporary appointment to a 

2 position under subsection (a) shall terminate upon ap3 proval of a permanent appointment for such position made 

4 by the President. 

5 ‘‘(c) ORDER OF PRECEDENCE.—Appointees under sub6 section (a) shall take precedence in the grade to which ap7 pointed in accordance with the dates of their appointments 

8 as officers in such grade. The order of precedence of ap9 pointees who are appointed on the same date shall be deter10 mined by the Secretary. 

11 ‘‘(d) ANY ONE GRADE.—When determined by the Sec12 retary to be in the best interest of the commissioned officer 

13 corps, officers in any permanent grade may be temporarily 

14 promoted one grade by the President. Any such temporary 

15 promotion terminates upon the transfer of the officer to a 

16 new assignment. 

17 ‘‘(e) DELEGATION OF APPOINTMENT AUTHORITY.—If 

18 the President delegates authority to the Secretary to make 

19 appointments under this section, the President shall, during 

20 a period in which the position of the Secretary is vacant, 

21 delegate such authority to the Deputy Secretary of Com22 merce or the Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere 

23 during such period.’’. 

24 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections in 

25 section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the HydroVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:37 Nov 07, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00096 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S171.RS S171

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1 graphic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for other 

2 purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372) is amended by striking 

3 the item relating to section 229 and inserting the following: 

‘‘Sec. 229. Temporary appointments.’’. 

4 SEC. 306. OFFICER CANDIDATES. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle B (33 U.S.C. 3021 et seq.) 

6 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 234. OFFICER CANDIDATES. 

8 ‘‘(a) DETERMINATION OF NUMBER.—The Secretary 

9 shall determine the number of appointments of officer can10 didates. 

11 ‘‘(b) APPOINTMENT.—Appointment of officer can12 didates shall be made under regulations which the Secretary 

13 shall prescribe, including regulations with respect to deter14 mining age limits, methods of selection of officer candidates, 

15 term of service as an officer candidate before graduation 

16 from the program, and all other matters affecting such ap17 pointment. 

18 ‘‘(c) DISMISSAL.—The Secretary may dismiss from the 

19 basic officer training program of the Administration any 

20 officer candidate who, during the officer candidate’s term 

21 as an officer candidate, the Secretary considers unsatisfac22 tory in either academics or conduct, or not adapted for a 

23 career in the commissioned officer corps of the Administra24 tion. Officer candidates shall be subject to rules governing 

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1 anic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Offi2 cer Corps. 

3 ‘‘(d) AGREEMENT.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each officer candidate shall 

5 sign an agreement with the Secretary in accordance 

6 with section 216(a)(2) regarding the officer can7 didate’s term of service in the commissioned officer 

8 corps of the Administration. 

9 ‘‘(2) ELEMENTS.—An agreement signed by an of10 ficer candidate under paragraph (1) shall provide 

11 that the officer candidate agrees to the following: 

12 ‘‘(A) That the officer candidate will com13 plete the course of instruction at the basic officer 

14 training program of the Administration. 

15 ‘‘(B) That upon graduation from the such 

16 program, the officer candidate— 

17 ‘‘(i) will accept an appointment, if 

18 tendered, as an officer; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) will serve on active duty for at 

20 least 4 years immediately after such ap21 pointment. 

22 ‘‘(e) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall prescribe 

23 regulations to carry out this section. Such regulations shall 

24 include— 


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1 ‘‘(1) standards for determining what constitutes 

2 a breach of an agreement signed under such sub3 section (d)(1); and 

4 ‘‘(2) procedures for determining whether such a 

5 breach has occurred. 

6 ‘‘(f) REPAYMENT.—An officer candidate or former offi7 cer candidate who does not fulfill the terms of the obligation 

8 to serve as specified under section (d) shall be subject to 

9 the repayment provisions of section 216(b).’’. 

10 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections in 

11 section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the Hydro12 graphic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for other 

13 purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372) is amended by inserting 

14 after the item relating to section 233 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 234. Officer candidates.’’. 

15 (c) OFFICER CANDIDATE DEFINED.—Section 212(b) 

16 (33 U.S.C. 3002(b)) is amended— 

17 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (4) through (6) 

18 as paragraphs (5) through (7), respectively; and 

19 (2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol20 lowing: 

21 ‘‘(4) OFFICER CANDIDATE.—The term ‘officer 

22 candidate’ means an individual who is enrolled in the 

23 basic officer training program of the Administration 

24 and is under consideration for appointment as an of25 ficer under section 221(a)(2)(A).’’. 


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1 (d) PAY FOR OFFICER CANDIDATES.—Section 203 of 

2 title 37, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

3 end the following: 

4 ‘‘(f)(1) An officer candidate enrolled in the basic officer 

5 training program of the commissioned officer corps of the 

6 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is enti7 tled, while participating in such program, to monthly offi8 cer candidate pay at monthly rate equal to the basic pay 

9 of an enlisted member in the pay grade E–5 with less than 

10 2 years service. 

11 ‘‘(2) An individual who graduates from such program 

12 shall receive credit for the time spent participating in such 

13 program as if such time were time served while on active 

14 duty as a commissioned officer. If the individual does not 

15 graduate from such program, such time shall not be consid16 ered creditable for active duty or pay.’’. 

17 SEC. 307. PROCUREMENT OF PERSONNEL. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle B (33 U.S.C. 3021 et seq.), 

19 as amended by section 306(a), is further amended by add20 ing at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 235. PROCUREMENT OF PERSONNEL. 

22 ‘‘The Secretary may make such expenditures as the 

23 Secretary considers necessary in order to obtain recruits for 

24 the commissioned officer corps of the Administration, in25 cluding advertising.’’. 


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1 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections in 

2 section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize the Hydro3 graphic Services Improvement Act of 1998, and for other 

4 purposes’’ (Public Law 107–372), as amended by section 

5 306(b), is further amended by inserting after the item relat6 ing to section 234 the following: 

‘‘235. Procurement of personnel.’’. 

7 TITLE IV—SEPARATION AND 

8 RETIREMENT OF OFFICERS 

9 SEC. 401. INVOLUNTARY RETIREMENT OR SEPARATION. 

10 Section 241 (33 U.S.C. 3041) is amended by adding 

11 at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(d) DEFERMENT OF RETIREMENT OR SEPARATION

13 FOR MEDICAL REASONS.— 

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

15 that the evaluation of the medical condition of an of16 ficer requires hospitalization or medical observation 

17 that cannot be completed with confidence in a man18 ner consistent with the officer’s well being before the 

19 date on which the officer would otherwise be required 

20 to retire or be separated under this section, the Sec21 retary may defer the retirement or separation of the 

22 officer. 

23 ‘‘(2) CONSENT REQUIRED.—A deferment may 

24 only be made with the written consent of the officer 

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1 sent to the deferment, the officer shall be retired or 

2 separated as scheduled. 

3 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION.—A deferral of retirement or 

4 separation under this subsection may not extend for 

5 more than 30 days after completion of the evaluation 

6 requiring hospitalization or medical observation.’’. 

7 SEC. 402. SEPARATION PAY. 

8 Section 242 (33 U.S.C. 3042) is amended by adding 

9 at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(d) EXCEPTION.—An officer discharged for twice fail11 ing selection for promotion to the next higher grade is not 

12 entitled to separation pay under this section if the officer— 

13 ‘‘(1) expresses a desire not to be selected for pro14 motion; or 

15 ‘‘(2) requests removal from the list of selectees.’’. 

16 TITLE V—HYDROGRAPHIC 

17 SERVICES AND OTHER MATTERS 

18 SEC. 501. REAUTHORIZATION OF HYDROGRAPHIC SERVICES 

19 IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 1998. 

20 (a) REAUTHORIZATIONS.—Section 306 of the Hydro21 graphic Services Improvement Act of 1998 (33 U.S.C. 892d) 

22 is amended— 

23 (1) in the matter before paragraph (1), by strik24 ing ‘‘There are’’ and inserting the following: 

25 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There are’’; 


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1 (2) in subsection (a) (as designated by para2 graph (1))— 

3 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘sur4 veys—’’ and all that follows through the end of 

5 the paragraph and inserting ‘‘surveys, 

6 $70,814,000 for each of fiscal years 2017 through 

7 2021.’’; 

8 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘vessels— 

9 ’’ and all that follows through the end of the 

10 paragraph and inserting ‘‘vessels, $25,000,000 

11 for each of fiscal years 2017 through 2021.’’; 

12 (C) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘Admin13 istration—’’ and all that follows through the end 

14 of the paragraph and inserting ‘‘Administration, 

15 $29,932,000 for each of fiscal years 2017 through 

16 2021.’’; 

17 (D) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘title— 

18 ’’ and all that follows through the end of the 

19 paragraph and inserting ‘‘title, $26,800,000 for 

20 each of fiscal years 2017 through 2021.’’; and 

21 (E) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘title— 

22 ’’ and all that follows through the end of the 

23 paragraph and inserting ‘‘title, $30,564,000 for 

24 each of fiscal years 2017 through 2021.’’; and 

25 (3) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(b) ARCTIC PROGRAMS.—Of the amount authorized 

2 by this section for each fiscal year— 

3 ‘‘(1) $10,000,000 is authorized for use— 

4 ‘‘(A) to acquire hydrographic data; 

5 ‘‘(B) to provide hydrographic services; 

6 ‘‘(C) to conduct coastal change analyses nec7 essary to ensure safe navigation; 

8 ‘‘(D) to improve the management of coastal 

9 change in the Arctic; and 

10 ‘‘(E) to reduce risks of harm to Alaska Na11 tive subsistence and coastal communities associ12 ated with increased international maritime traf13 fic; and 

14 ‘‘(2) $2,000,000 is authorized for use to acquire 

15 hydrographic data and provide hydrographic services 

16 in the Arctic necessary to delineate the United States 

17 extended Continental Shelf.’’. 

18 (b) LIMITATION ON ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES FOR

19 SURVEYS.—Section 306 of such Act (33 U.S.C. 892d) is fur20 ther amended by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(c) LIMITATION ON ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES FOR

22 SURVEYS.—Of amounts authorized by this section for each 

23 fiscal year for contract hydrographic surveys, not more than 

24 5 percent is authorized for administrative costs associated 

25 with contract management.’’. 


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1 SEC. 502. SYSTEM FOR TRACKING AND REPORTING ALL-IN2 CLUSIVE COST OF HYDROGRAPHIC SURVEYS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

4 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce 

5 shall— 

6 (1) develop and implement a system to track and 

7 report the full cost to the Department of Commerce of 

8 hydrographic data collection, including costs relating 

9 to vessel acquisition, vessel repair, and administra10 tion of contracts to procure data; 

11 (2) evaluate additional measures for comparing 

12 cost per unit effort beyond square nautical miles; and 

13 (3) submit to Congress a report on which addi14 tional measures for comparing cost per unit effort the 

15 Secretary intends to use and the rationale for such 

16 use. 

17 (b) DEVELOPMENT OF STRATEGY FOR INCREASED

18 CONTRACTING WITH NONGOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES FOR

19 HYDROGRAPHIC DATA COLLECTION.—Not later than 180 

20 days after the date on which the Secretary completes the 

21 activities required by subsection (a), the Secretary shall de22 velop a strategy for how the National Oceanic and Atmos23 pheric Administration will increase contracting with non24 governmental entities for hydrographic data collection in 

25 a manner that is consistent with the requirements of the 


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1 Ocean and Coastal Mapping Integration Act (Public Law 

2 111–11; 33 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). 

3 SEC. 503. PLANS FOR CONSTRUCTION OF NEW PORT FACIL4 ITY FOR HOMEPORTING OF R/V 

5 FAIRWEATHER. 

6 (a) ACCEPTANCE OF FUNDS AUTHORIZED.—The Sec7 retary of Commerce may accept non-Federal funds for the 

8 purpose of obtaining such cost estimates, designs, and per9 mits as may be necessary for construction of a new port 

10 facility— 

11 (1) to facilitate the homeporting of the R/V 

12 FAIRWEATHER in accordance with title II of the 

13 Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Ju14 diciary, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 

15 2002 (Public Law 107–77; 115 Stat. 775); and 

16 (2) that is under the administrative jurisdiction 

17 of the Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere. 

18 (b) STRATEGIC PLAN REQUIRED.—Not later than 180 

19 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec20 retary shall develop and submit to Congress a strategic plan 

21 for the construction described in subsection (a). 

22 SEC. 504. WAIVERS OF BOND REQUIREMENTS FOR CERTAIN 

23 CONTRACTS. 

24 Section 3134 of title 40, United States Code, is amend25 ed by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(c) NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINIS2 TRATION.—The Secretary of Commerce may waive this sub3 chapter with respect to contracts for the construction, alter4 ation, or repair of vessels, regardless of the terms of the con5 tracts as to payment or title, when the contract is made 

6 under the Act entitled ‘An Act to define the functions and 

7 duties of the Coast and Geodetic Survey, and for other pur8 poses’, approved August 6, 1947 (33 U.S.C. 883a et seq.).’’. 


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Calendar No. 259 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 171 

[Report No. 115–181] 

A BILL 

To reauthorize and amend the National Oceanic 

and for other purposes. Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998, Officer Corps Act of 2002, to reauthorize the and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned 

NOVEMBER 7, 2017 

Reported with an amendment 


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