II 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1999 

To authorize the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard 

is operating to act, without liability for certain damages, to prevent 

and respond to the threat of damage from pollution of the sea by 

crude oil, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

AUGUST 5, 2015 

Mr. NELSON introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To authorize the Secretary of the department in which the 

Coast Guard is operating to act, without liability for 

certain damages, to prevent and respond to the threat 

of damage from pollution of the sea by crude oil, and 

for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Caribbean Oil Spill 

5 Intervention, Prevention, and Preparedness Act’’. 


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1 TITLE I—INTERVENTION 

2 AUTHORITY 

3 SEC. 101. DEFINITION OF VESSEL. 

4 For the purposes of this title, the term ‘‘vessel’’ 

5 means every description of watercraft or other artificial 

6 contrivance used or capable of being used, whether such 

7 capability is practical or not, as a means of transportation 

8 on water, and includes structures, fixed or floating, which 

9 dynamically hold position or are attached to the seabed 

10 or subsoil and are capable of exploring for, drilling for, 

11 developing, or producing crude oil or natural gas. 

12 SEC. 102. GRAVE AND IMMINENT DANGER TO WATERS, 

13 COASTLINE, OR RELATED INTERESTS OF THE 

14 UNITED STATES. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Whenever an incident, activity, or 

16 occurrence involving a vessel in waters beyond the terri17 torial jurisdiction of the United States creates a grave and 

18 imminent threat, as determined by the Secretary of the 

19 department in which the Coast Guard is operating, of 

20 damage to the waters, coastline, or related interests of the 

21 United States from pollution of the sea by crude oil, the 

22 Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is 

23 operating may, without liability for any damage to the 

24 owner, operator, crew, or underwriter of the vessel, or any 


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1 other interested party, act in such waters to prevent or 

2 respond to that threat. 

3 (b) CRITERIA.—In determining whether there is a 

4 grave and imminent threat of damage to the waters, coast5 line, or related interests of the United States under sub6 section (a), the Secretary of the department in which the 

7 Coast Guard is operating shall consider the interests of 

8 the United States directly threatened or affected, includ9 ing impacts on— 

10 (1) the health of coastal communities; 

11 (2) finfish, shellfish, marine mammals, and 

12 other living marine resources; 

13 (3) coastal zone and estuarine activities; 

14 (4) public and private shorelines and beaches; 

15 and 

16 (5) boating, tourism, fishing, and other aspects 

17 of coastal economies. 

18 SEC. 103. INTERVENTION ACTIONS. 

19 Upon a determination under section 102 of this Act 

20 of a grave and imminent threat of damage to the waters, 

21 coastline, or related interests of the United States, the 

22 Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is 

23 operating is authorized— 


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1 (1) to coordinate and direct all public and pri2 vate actions to prevent or respond to the the pollu3 tion or threat of pollution of the sea by crude oil; 

4 (2) to directly or indirectly undertake the whole 

5 or any part of any action required or directed under 

6 paragraph (1) of this section. 

7 SEC. 104. CONSULTATION PROCEDURE. 

8 Except as provided in section 105, before taking any 

9 action under section 103 of this Act, the Secretary of the 

10 department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall— 

11 (1) consult, through the Secretary of State, 

12 with the flag country of any vessel involved and 

13 other affected countries; 

14 (2) notify without delay other departments and 

15 agencies of the Federal Government likely to be af16 fected by any proposed actions; and 

17 (3) consider any views submitted in response to 

18 the consultation or notification required by para19 graphs (1) and (2) of this section. 

20 SEC. 105. EMERGENCY AUTHORITY. 

21 In a case of extreme urgency requiring immediate ac22 tion, the Secretary of the department in which the Coast 

23 Guard is operating may act as necessary based on the ur24 gency of the situation without the prior consultation or 

25 notification required by section 104 of this Act or without 


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1 continuing any consultations previously initiated under 

2 that section. 

3 SEC. 106. REASONABLE ACTIONS; CONSIDERATIONS. 

4 (a) REASONABLE ACTIONS.—Any action coordinated, 

5 directed, or conducted under this Act shall be propor6 tionate to the threat of damage to the waters, coastline, 

7 or related interests of the United States and may not go 

8 beyond what is reasonably necessary to prevent or respond 

9 to that threat. 

10 (b) CONSIDERATIONS.—In considering whether an 

11 action is proportionate to the threat of damage the Sec12 retary of the department in which the Coast Guard is op13 erating shall consider, among other things— 

14 (1) the extent and probability of imminent dam15 age if that action is not taken; 

16 (2) the likelihood of effectiveness of that action; 

17 and 

18 (3) the extent of any damage that may be 

19 caused by that action. 

20 SEC. 107. PERSONAL, FLAG STATE, AND FOREIGN STATE 

21 CONSIDERATIONS. 

22 In the coordination, direction, and conduct of an ac23 tion under this Act the Secretary of the department in 

24 which the Coast Guard is operating shall— 


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1 (1) avoid risk to human life to the extent pos2 sible; 

3 (2) render all possible aid to distressed persons, 

4 including facilitating repatriation of vessel crew; and 

5 (3) not unnecessarily interfere with rights and 

6 interests of others, including the flag state of any 

7 vessel involved, any foreign state in whose waters an 

8 action must be taken, other foreign states threat9 ened by damage, and persons otherwise concerned. 

10 SEC. 108. OIL SPILL LIABILITY TRUST FUND. 

11 The Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund established by sec12 tion 9509 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 shall be 

13 available to the Secretary of the department in which the 

14 Coast Guard is operating for actions taken under sections 

15 102, 103, and 105 of this Act. 

16 TITLE II—FOREIGN OIL SPILL 

17 PREVENTION AND PRE18 PAREDNESS 

19 SEC. 201. CUBAN OIL POLLUTION PREVENTION AND RE20 SPONSE. 

21 (a) STRAITS OF FLORIDA OCEAN CURRENT

22 MODEL.—As soon as practicable after the date of enact23 ment of this Act, the Administrator of the National Oce24 anic and Atmospheric Administration shall develop and 


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1 apply hydrodynamic modeling of the ocean currents and 

2 meteorological modeling of the Straits of Florida. 

3 (b) PROTECTION OF NATIONAL MARINE SANC4 TUARIES IN THE GULF OF MEXICO AND STRAITS OF

5 FLORIDA.—Section 305(b) of the National Marine Sanc6 tuaries Act (16 U.S.C. 1435(b)) is amended by striking 

7 ‘‘established.’’ and inserting ‘‘established, including with 

8 Mexico, Cuba, and the Bahamas, to negotiate oil pollution 

9 prevention and response and protection of the marine re10 sources of the Gulf of Mexico and Straits of Florida.’’ 

11 SEC. 202. REQUIREMENTS FOR CERTAIN DUAL LESSEES. 

12 Section 8(a) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands 

13 Act (43 U.S.C. 1337(a)) is amended by adding at the end 

14 the following: 

15 ‘‘(9) If a bidder for an oil or gas lease under 

16 this subsection is conducting oil or gas operations in 

17 the territorial sea, on the continental shelf, or within 

18 the exclusive economic zone of Cuba, the Secretary 

19 shall not grant an oil or gas lease to the bidder un20 less the bidder submits to the Secretary— 

21 ‘‘(A) an oil spill response plan for the oil 

22 and gas operations in the territorial sea, on the 

23 continental shelf, or within the exclusive eco24 nomic zone of Cuba, that includes 1 or more 

25 worst-case-scenario oil discharge plans; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) evidence that the bidder has suffi2 cient financial resources and other resources 

3 necessary for removal, response costs, and dam4 ages, as determined by the Secretary, to re5 spond to a worst-case-scenario oil discharge in 

6 the territorial sea, on the continental shelf, or 

7 within the exclusive economic zone of Cuba that 

8 occurs in, or that poses a substantial threat to 

9 enter, the marine environment of the United 

10 States.’’. 

11 SEC. 203. CORAL REEF CONSERVATION IN STRAITS OF 

12 FLORIDA. 

13 Title II of the Coral Reef Conservation Act of 2000 

14 (16 U.S.C. 6401 et seq.) is amended— 

15 (1) by redesignating sections 204, 205, 206, 

16 207, 208, 209, and 210 (16 U.S.C. 6403, 6404, 

17 6405, 6406, 6407, 6408, 6409) as sections 205, 

18 206, 207, 208, 209, 210, and 211, respectively; and 

19 (2) by inserting after section 203 (16 U.S.C. 

20 6402) the following: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 204. INTERNATIONAL CORAL REEF CONSERVATION. 

22 ‘‘(a) INTERNATIONAL CORAL REEF CONSERVATION

23 ACTIVITIES.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry 

25 out international coral reef conservation activities 


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1 with respect to coral reef ecosystems in waters be2 yond the territorial jurisdiction of the United States 

3 in the Straits of Florida. The Secretary shall develop 

4 and implement a coral reef ecosystem strategy for 

5 the Straits of Florida pursuant to subsection (b). 

6 ‘‘(2) COORDINATION.—In carrying out this sub7 section, the Secretary shall consult with the Sec8 retary of State, the Administrator of the Agency for 

9 International Development, the Secretary of the In10 terior, other relevant United States stakeholders, 

11 and the Coral Reef Task Force. 

12 ‘‘(b) STRAITS OF FLORIDA CORAL REEF ECOSYSTEM

13 STRATEGY.— 

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

15 the date of enactment of the Caribbean Oil Spill 

16 Intervention, Prevention, and Preparedness Act, the 

17 Secretary shall develop and submit to the Committee 

18 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

19 Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources of 

20 the House of Representatives, and publish in the 

21 Federal Register, a strategy to protect coral reef 

22 ecosystems of the Straits of Florida. The Secretary 

23 shall periodically review and revise the strategy as 

24 necessary. 


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1 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The strategy developed by 

2 the Secretary under paragraph (1) shall— 

3 ‘‘(A) identify coral reef ecosystems 

4 throughout the Straits of Florida that are of 

5 high value for United States marine resources 

6 such as fisheries, or that support other interests 

7 of the United States; 

8 ‘‘(B) summarize existing activities by Fed9 eral agencies and stakeholders described in sub10 section (a)(2) to address the conservation of 

11 coral reef ecosystems identified under subpara12 graph (A); 

13 ‘‘(C) establish goals, objectives, and spe14 cific targets for conservation of coral reef eco15 systems in the Straits of Florida; and 

16 ‘‘(D) describe appropriate activities to 

17 achieve the goals and targets for international 

18 coral reef conservation.’’. 

19 SEC. 204. GULF OIL SPILL RESPONSE PLAN. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 

21 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the depart22 ment in which the Coast Guard is operating shall carry 

23 out an oil spill risk analysis and planning process for the 

24 development and implementation of oil spill response plans 

25 for oil spills in the Straits of Florida and the Gulf of MexVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:41 Aug 13, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1999.IS S1999

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1 ico originating in waters beyond the territorial jurisdiction 

2 of the United States. 

3 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—In developing plans under sub4 section (a), the Secretary of the department in which the 

5 Coast Guard is operating shall— 

6 (1) consult with the heads of other Federal 

7 agencies with relevant scientific and operational ex8 pertise to verify that holders of oil and gas leases 

9 can conduct any response and containment oper10 ations provided for in the plans; 

11 (2) ensure that all critical information and spill 

12 scenarios are included in the plans, including oil spill 

13 containment and control methods to ensure that 

14 holders of oil and gas leased can conduct the oper15 ations provided for in the plans; 

16 (3) ensure that the plans include shared inter17 national standards for natural resource extraction 

18 activities; 

19 (4) in consultation with the Secretary of State, 

20 to the maximum extent practicable, include rec21 ommendations for Congress on a joint contingency 

22 plan with the countries of Mexico, Cuba, and the 

23 Bahamas to ensure an adequate response to oil spills 

24 located in the eastern Gulf of Mexico; and 


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1 (5) to the maximum extent practicable, ensure 

2 that the joint contingency plan described in para3 graph (4) contains a description of the organization 

4 and logistics of a response team for each country de5 scribed in that paragraph (including each applicable 

6 Federal and State agency). 

7 (c) VERIFICATION PROCESS.—The Secretary of the 

8 department in which the Coast Guard is operating may 

9 conduct a verification process to ensure that any compa10 nies operating in the United States that are conducting 

11 drilling operations off the coast of Cuba are subject to 

12 standards that are as stringent as the standards under 

13 the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 

14 et seq.). 

Æ 


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