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Union Calendar No. 262 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2405 

[Report No. 116–323] 

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

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 30, 2019 

Mr. HUFFMAN (for himself, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Mr. KILMER, Mr. KATKO, Mr. 

BEYER, Mr. ZELDIN, Mr. SUOZZI, Mr. PANETTA, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. 

RASKIN, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. COURTNEY, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. CASE, Ms. 

GABBARD, Mr. FITZPATRICK, Mr. SIRES, Mr. PAPPAS, and Mr. 

KEATING) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 

DECEMBER 5, 2019 

Additional sponsors: Mrs. LURIA, Mr. HIGGINS of New York, Mrs. 

RADEWAGEN, Miss GONZA ́LEZ-COLO ́N of Puerto Rico, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. 

HASTINGS, Ms. JAYAPAL, Ms. MOORE, Mr. SCHRADER, Mr. LARSON of 

Connecticut, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. LAWSON of Florida, Mr. WELCH, Mr. 

GOLDEN, Mr. KENNEDY, Ms. PINGREE, Mr. POSEY, Mr. WITTMAN, Mr. 

MALINOWSKI, Mr. HECK, Mr. SARBANES, Mr. RUPPERSBERGER, Mr. 

CUNNINGHAM, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Mr. BYRNE, Mr. TRONE, Ms. 

CASTOR of Florida, Mr. KIND, Mr. CICILLINE, Mrs. DINGELL, and Mr. 

STAUBER

DECEMBER 5, 2019 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 

House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 

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

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on April 30, 2019] 


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A BILL 

To reauthorize and amend the National Sea Grant College 

Program Act, and for other purposes. 


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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Sea Grant Col5 lege Program Amendments Act of 2019’’. 

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

8 Except as otherwise expressly provided, wherever in 

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

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

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

12 other provision of the National Sea Grant College Program 

13 Act (33 U.S.C. 1121 et seq.). 

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

15 POLICY FELLOWSHIP. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 208(b) (33 U.S.C. 1127(b)) 

17 is amended by striking ‘‘may’’ and inserting ‘‘shall’’. 

18 (b) PLACEMENTS IN CONGRESS.—Such section is fur19 ther amended— 

20 (1) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘The Sec21 retary’’ and inserting the following: 

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

23 (2) in paragraph (1), as designated by para24 graph (1) of this section, in the second sentence, by 

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


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1 ‘‘(2) PLACEMENT PRIORITIES.— 

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

3 the Secretary awards a legislative fellowship 

4 under this subsection, when considering the 

5 placement of fellows, the Secretary shall 

6 prioritize placement of fellows in the following: 

7 ‘‘(i) Positions in offices of committees 

8 of Congress that have jurisdiction over the 

9 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin10 istration. 

11 ‘‘(ii) Positions in offices of Members of 

12 Congress who are on such committees. 

13 ‘‘(iii) Positions in offices of Members of 

14 Congress that have a demonstrated interest 

15 in ocean, coastal, or Great Lakes resources. 

16 ‘‘(B) EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION.— 

17 ‘‘(i) FINDING AND RECOGNITION.— 

18 Congress— 

19 ‘‘(I) finds that both host offices 

20 and fellows benefit when fellows have 

21 the opportunity to choose from a range 

22 of host offices from different States and 

23 regions, both chambers of Congress, 

24 and both political parties; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) recognizes the steps taken by 

2 the National Sea Grant College Pro3 gram to facilitate an equitable dis4 tribution of fellows among the political 

5 parties. 

6 ‘‘(ii) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary 

7 shall ensure, to the maximum extent prac8 ticable, that fellows have the opportunity to 

9 choose from offices that are described in 

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

11 (A) and that are equitably distributed 

12 among— 

13 ‘‘(I) the political parties; and 

14 ‘‘(II) the Senate and the House of 

15 Representatives. 

16 ‘‘(iii) POLITICAL AND CAMERAL EQ17 UITY.—The Secretary shall ensure that 

18 placements are equitably distributed be19 tween— 

20 ‘‘(I) the political parties; and 

21 ‘‘(II) the Senate and the House of 

22 Representatives. 

23 ‘‘(3) DURATION.—A fellowship’’. 

24 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by sub25 section (b) shall apply with respect to the first calendar 


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1 year beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act 

2 and each fiscal year thereafter. 

3 (d) SENSE OF CONGRESS CONCERNING FEDERAL HIR4 ING OF FORMER FELLOWS.—It is the sense of Congress that 

5 in recognition of the competitive nature of the fellowship 

6 under section 208(b) of the National Sea Grant College Pro7 gram Act (33 U.S.C. 1127(b)), and of the exceptional quali8 fications of fellowship awardees— 

9 (1) the Secretary of Commerce, acting through 

10 the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and At11 mosphere, should encourage participating Federal 

12 agencies to consider opportunities for fellowship 

13 awardees at the conclusion of their fellowships for 

14 workforce positions appropriate for their education 

15 and experience; and 

16 (2) Members and committees of Congress should 

17 consider opportunities for such awardees for such po18 sitions. 

19 SEC. 4. MODIFICATION OF AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY OF 

20 COMMERCE TO ACCEPT DONATIONS FOR NA21 TIONAL SEA GRANT COLLEGE PROGRAM. 

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

23 1123(c)(4)(E)) is amended to read as follows: 

24 ‘‘(E) accept donations of money and, not25 withstanding section 1342 of title 31, United 


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1 States Code, of voluntary and uncompensated 

2 services;’’. 

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

4 through the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and 

5 Atmosphere, shall establish priorities for the use of dona6 tions accepted under section 204(c)(4)(E) of the National 

7 Sea Grant College Program Act (33 U.S.C. 1123(c)(4)(E)), 

8 and shall consider among those priorities the possibility of 

9 expanding the Dean John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellow10 ship’s placement of additional fellows in relevant legislative 

11 offices under section 208(b) of that Act (33 U.S.C. 1127(b)), 

12 in accordance with the recommendations under subsection 

13 (c) of this section. 

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

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

16 Sea Grant College Program, in consultation with the Na17 tional Sea Grant Advisory Board and the Sea Grant Asso18 ciation, shall— 

19 (1) develop recommendations for the optimal use 

20 of any donations accepted under section 204(c)(4)(E) 

21 of the National Sea Grant College Program Act (33 

22 U.S.C. 1123(c)(4)(E)); and 

23 (2) submit to Congress a report on the rec24 ommendations developed under paragraph (1). 


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

2 construed to limit or otherwise affect any other amounts 

3 available for marine policy fellowships under section 208(b) 

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

5 1127(b)), including amounts— 

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

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

8 (2) appropriated under section 212 of that Act 

9 (33 U.S.C. 1131). 

10 SEC. 5. REPEAL OF REQUIREMENT FOR REPORT ON CO11 ORDINATION OF OCEANS AND COASTAL RE12 SEARCH ACTIVITIES. 

13 Section 9 of the National Sea Grant College Program 

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

15 SEC. 6. REDUCTION IN FREQUENCY REQUIRED FOR NA16 TIONAL SEA GRANT ADVISORY BOARD RE17 PORT. 

18 Section 209(b)(2) (33 U.S.C. 1128(b)(2)) is amend19 ed— 

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

21 inserting ‘‘PERIODIC’’; and 

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

23 shall report to the Congress every two years’’ and in24 serting ‘‘Not less frequently than once every 4 years, 

25 the Board shall submit to Congress a report’’. 


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1 SEC. 7. MODIFICATION OF ELEMENTS OF NATIONAL SEA 

2 GRANT COLLEGE PROGRAM. 

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

4 matter preceding paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘for research, 

5 education, extension, training, technology transfer, public 

6 service,’’ after ‘‘financial assistance’’. 

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

8 MARINE POLICY FELLOWSHIP. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—During fiscal year 2019 and any 

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

11 appoint, without regard to the provisions of subchapter I 

12 of chapter 33 of title 5, United States Code, other than sec13 tions 3303 and 3328 of that title, a qualified candidate de14 scribed in subsection (b) directly to a position with the Fed15 eral agency for which the candidate meets Office of Per16 sonnel Management qualification standards. 

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

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

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

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

21 1127(b)) who— 

22 (1) earned a graduate or post-graduate degree in 

23 a field related to ocean, coastal, or Great Lakes re24 sources or policy from an institution of higher edu25 cation accredited by an agency or association recog26 nized by the Secretary of Education pursuant to secVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:20 Dec 05, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2405.RH H2405

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1 tion 496(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

2 U.S.C. 1099b(a)); 

3 (2) received a Dean John A. Knauss Marine Pol4 icy Fellowship under section 208(b) of the National 

5 Sea Grant College Program Act (33 U.S.C. 1127(b)) 

6 within 5 years before the date the individual is ap7 pointed under this section; and 

8 (3) successfully fulfilled the requirements of the 

9 fellowship within the executive or legislative branch of 

10 the United States Government. 

11 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR NA12 TIONAL SEA GRANT COLLEGE PROGRAM. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 212(a) (33 U.S.C. 1131(a)) 

14 is amended— 

15 (1) by amending paragraph (1) to read as fol16 lows: 

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

18 appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this title— 

19 ‘‘(A) $87,520,000 for fiscal year 2020; 

20 ‘‘(B) $91,900,000 for fiscal year 2021; 

21 ‘‘(C) $96,500,000 for fiscal year 2022; 

22 ‘‘(D) $101,325,000 for fiscal year 2023; 

23 ‘‘(E) $106,380,000 for fiscal year 2024; and 

24 ‘‘(F) $111,710,813 for fiscal year 2025.’’; 

25 and 


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1 (2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as fol2 lows: 

3 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY ACTIVITIES FOR FISCAL YEARS

4 2020 THROUGH 2025.—In addition to the amounts au5 thorized to be appropriated under paragraph (1), 

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

7 each of fiscal years 2020 through 2025 for competitive 

8 grants for the following: 

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

10 prevention, and control of aquatic nonnative spe11 cies. 

12 ‘‘(B) University research on oyster diseases, 

13 oyster restoration, and oyster-related human 

14 health risks. 

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

16 prevention, and forecasting of harmful algal 

17 blooms. 

18 ‘‘(D) University research, education, train19 ing, and extension services and activities focused 

20 on coastal resilience and United States working 

21 waterfronts and other regional or national pri22 ority issues identified in the strategic plan under 

23 section 204(c)(1). 


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1 ‘‘(E) University research and extension on 

2 sustainable aquaculture techniques and tech3 nologies. 

4 ‘‘(F) Fishery research and extension activi5 ties conducted by sea grant colleges or sea grant 

6 institutes to enhance, and not supplant, existing 

7 core program funding.’’. 

8 (b) MODIFICATION OF LIMITATIONS ON AMOUNTS FOR

9 ADMINISTRATION.—Paragraph (1) of section 212(b) (33 

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

11 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATION.— 

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

13 for administration of programs under this title 

14 in a fiscal year more than 5.5 percent of the less15 er of— 

16 ‘‘(i) the amount authorized to be ap17 propriated under this title for the fiscal 

18 year; or 

19 ‘‘(ii) the amount appropriated under 

20 this title for the fiscal year. 

21 ‘‘(B) CRITICAL STAFFING REQUIREMENTS.— 

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

23 use the authority under subchapter VI of 

24 chapter 33 of title 5, United States Code, to 

25 meet any critical staffing requirement while 


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1 carrying out the activities authorized under 

2 this title. 

3 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTION FROM CAP.—For pur4 poses of subparagraph (A), any costs in5 curred as a result of an exercise of authority 

6 described in clause (i) shall not be consid7 ered an amount used for administration of 

8 programs under this title in a fiscal year.’’. 

9 (c) ALLOCATION OF FUNDING.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 204(d)(3) (33 U.S.C. 

11 1123(d)(3)) is amended— 

12 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

13 (A), by striking ‘‘With respect to sea grant col14 leges and sea grant institutes’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘With respect to sea grant colleges, sea grant in16 stitutes, sea grant programs, and sea grant 

17 projects’’; and 

18 (B) in subparagraph (B), in the matter pre19 ceding clause (i), by striking ‘‘funding among 

20 sea grant colleges and sea grant institutes’’ and 

21 inserting ‘‘funding among sea grant colleges, sea 

22 grant institutes, sea grant programs, and sea 

23 grant projects’’. 


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1 (2) REPEAL OF REQUIREMENTS CONCERNING

2 DISTRIBUTION OF EXCESS AMOUNTS.—Section 212 

3 (33 U.S.C. 1131) is amended— 

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

5 (B) by redesignating subsections (d) and (e) 

6 as subsections (c) and (d), respectively. 

7 SEC. 10. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS. 

8 The National Sea Grant College Program Act (33 

9 U.S.C. 1121 et seq.) is amended— 

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

11 1123(d)(3)(B)), by moving clause (vi) 2 ems to the 

12 right; and 

13 (2) in section 209(b)(2) (33 U.S.C. 1128(b)(2)), 

14 as amended by section 6 of this Act, in the third sen15 tence, by striking ‘‘The Secretary shall’’ and inserting 

16 the following: 

17 ‘‘(3) AVAILABILITY OF RESOURCES OF DEPART18 MENT OF COMMERCE.—The Secretary shall’’. 


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Union Calendar No. 262 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2405 

[Report No. 116–323] 

A BILL 

To reauthorize and amend the National Sea Grant 

College Program Act, and for other purposes. 

DECEMBER 5, 2019 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Comand ordered to be printed mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 


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