II

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1888

To support the protection of coral reefs and other resources in units of

the National Park System and other agencies under the administration

of the Secretary of the Interior.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

NOVEMBER 9, 1999

Mr. AKAKA (for himself, Mr. INOUYE, and Mr. GRAHAM) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

A BILL

To support the protection of coral reefs and other resources

in units of the National Park System and other agencies

under the administration of the Secretary of the Interior.

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 ‘‘Coral Reef Resource

5 Conservation and Management Act of 1999’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—
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1 (1) coral reefs have great commercial, rec2 reational, cultural, environmental, and aesthetic

3 value;

4 (2) coral reefs—

(A) provide habitat to 1 5 ⁄3 of all marine fish

6 species;

7 (B) are essential building blocks for bio8 diversity;

9 (C) are instrumental in forming tropical is10 lands;

11 (D) protect coasts from waves and storms;

12 (E) contain an array of potential pharma13 ceuticals; and

14 (F) support tourism and fishing industries

15 in the United States worth billions of dollars;

16 (3) studies indicate that coral reefs in the

17 United States and around the world are being de18 graded and severely threatened by human and envi19 ronmental impacts, including land-based pollution,

20 overfishing, destructive fishing practices, vessel

21 groundings, and climate change;

22 (4) the Department of the Interior—

23 (A) manages extensive acreage that con24 tains sensitive coral reef habitat and adjacent
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1 submerged land at 20 national wildlife refuges

2 and 9 units of the National Park System—

3 (i) in the States of Hawaii and Flor4 ida; and

5 (ii) in the territories of Guam, Amer6 ican Samoa, and the United States Virgin

7 Islands; and

8 (B) maintains oversight responsibility for

9 additional significant coral reef resources under

10 Federal jurisdiction in insular areas, territories,

11 and surrounding territorial waters in the Pa12 cific Ocean and Caribbean Sea;

13 (5) few of the 4,200,000 acres of coral reefs of

14 the United States have been mapped or have had

15 their conditions assessed or characterized;

16 (6) the Department of the Interior conducts sci17 entific research and monitoring to determine the

18 structure, function, status, and condition of the

19 coral reefs of the United States; and

20 (7) the Department of the Interior, in coopera21 tion with public and private partners, provides tech22 nical assistance and engages in management and

23 conservation activities for coral reef habitats.

24 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are—
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1 (1) to conserve, protect, and restore the health

2 of coral reef ecosystems and the species of fish,

3 plants, and animals that depend on those eco4 systems;

5 (2) to support the monitoring, assessment,

6 management, and protection of coral reef ecosystems

7 over which the United States has jurisdiction (in8 cluding coral reef ecosystems located in national

9 wildlife refuges and units of the National Park Sys10 tem);

11 (3) to augment and support the efforts of the

12 Department of the Interior, the National Oceanic

13 and Atmospheric Administration, and other mem14 bers of the Coral Reef Task Force;

15 (4) to support research efforts that contribute

16 to coral reef conservation;

17 (5) to support education, outreach, and enforce18 ment for coral reef conservation;

19 (6) to provide financial resources and matching

20 funds for partnership efforts to accomplish the pur21 poses described in paragraphs (1) through (4); and

22 (7) to coordinate with the Coral Reef Task

23 Force and other agencies to address priorities identi24 fied by the Coral Reef Task Force.
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1 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

2 In this Act:

3 (1) CORAL.—The term ‘‘coral’’ means any spe4 cies of the phylum Cnidaria, including—

5 (A) any species of the order Antipatharia

6 (black corals), Scleractinia (stony corals),

7 Gorgonacea (horny corals), Stolonifera

8 (organpipe corals and others), Alcyanacea (soft

9 corals), or Coenothecalia (blue corals), of the

10 class Anthozoa; and

11 (B) any species of the order

12 Hydrocorallina (fire corals and hydrocorals) of

13 the class Hydrozoa.

14 (2) CORAL REEF.—The term ‘‘coral reef’’

15 means the species (including reef plants and

16 coralline algae), habitats, and other natural re17 sources associated with any reef or shoal composed

18 primarily of corals within all maritime areas and

19 zones subject to the jurisdiction of the United

20 States, including Federal, State, territorial, or com21 monwealth waters in the south Atlantic, the Carib22 bean, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Pacific Ocean.

23 (3) CORAL REEF CONSERVATION PROJECT.—

24 The term ‘‘coral reef conservation project’’ means an

25 activity that contributes to or results in preserving,
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1 sustaining, or enhancing any coral reef ecosystem as

2 a healthy, diverse, and viable ecosystem, including—

3 (A) any action to enhance or improve re4 source management of a coral reef, such as as5 sessment, scientific research, protection, res6 toration and mapping;

7 (B) habitat monitoring and any species

8 survey or monitoring of a species;

9 (C) any activity necessary for planning and

10 development of a strategy for coral reef man11 agement;

12 (D) community outreach and education on

13 the importance and conservation of coral reefs;

14 and

15 (E) any activity in support of the enforce16 ment of laws relating to coral reefs.

17 (4) CORAL REEF TASK FORCE.—The term

18 ‘‘Coral Reef Task Force’’ means the task force es19 tablished under Executive Order No. 13089 (June

20 11, 1998).

21 (5) FOUNDATION.—The term ‘‘foundation’’

22 means a foundation that is a registered nonprofit or23 ganization under section 501(c) of the Internal Rev24 enue Code of 1986.
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1 (6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means

2 the Secretary of the Interior.

3 (7) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means any

4 State of the United States, the District of Columbia,

5 the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Is6 lands, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth

7 of the Mariana Islands, or any other territory or

8 possession of the United States.

9 SEC. 4. CORAL REEF RESOURCE CONSERVATION GRANT

10 PROGRAM.

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall provide

12 grants for coral reef conservation projects in accordance

13 with this section.

14 (b) ELIGIBILITY.—The Secretary may award a grant

15 under this section to—

16 (1) any appropriate natural resource manage17 ment authority of a State—

18 (A) that has jurisdiction over coral reefs;

19 or

20 (B) the activities of which affect coral

21 reefs; or

22 (2) any educational or nongovernmental institu23 tion or organization with demonstrated expertise in

24 marine science or coral reef conservation.

25 (c) MATCHING REQUIREMENTS.—
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1 (1) FEDERAL SHARE.—Except as provided in

2 paragraph (3), the Federal share of the cost of a

3 coral reef conservation project that receives a grant

4 under this section shall not exceed 75 percent of the

5 total cost of the project.

6 (2) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The non-Federal

7 share of the cost of a coral reef conservation project

8 that receives a grant under this section may be pro9 vided in cash or in kind.

10 (3) WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive all or

11 part of the matching requirement under paragraph

12 (1) if—

13 (A) the cost of the project is $25,000 or

14 less; or

15 (B) the project is necessary to undertake,

16 complete, or enhance planning and monitoring

17 requirements for coral reef areas under—

18 (i) the National Wildlife Refuge Sys19 tem Administration Act of 1966 (16

20 U.S.C. 668dd et seq.); or

21 (ii) the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to estab22 lish a National Park Service, and for other

23 purposes’’, approved August 25, 1916 (16

24 U.S.C. 1 et seq.).
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1 (d) ALLOCATION.—The Secretary shall award grants

2 under this section so that—

3 (1) not less than 40 percent of the grant funds

4 available are awarded for coral reef conservation

5 projects in the Pacific Ocean;

6 (2) not less than 40 percent of the grant funds

7 available are awarded for coral reef conservation

8 projects in the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico,

9 and the Caribbean Sea; and

10 (3) the remaining grant funds are awarded for

11 coral reef conservation projects that address emer12 gency priorities or threats identified by the Sec13 retary, in consultation with the Coral Reef Task

14 Force.

15 (e) ANNUAL FUNDING PRIORITIES.—After consulta16 tion with the Coral Reef Task Force, States, regional and

17 local entities, and nongovernmental organizations involved

18 in coral and marine conservation, the Secretary shall iden19 tify site-specific and comprehensive threats and con20 straints that—

21 (1) are known to affect coral reef ecosystems

22 (including coral reef ecosystems in national wildlife

23 refuges and units of the National Park System); and
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1 (2) shall be considered in establishing annual

2 funding priorities for grants awarded under this sub3 section.

4 (f) PROJECT REVIEW AND APPROVAL.—

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall review

6 and rank coral reef conservation project proposals

7 according to the criteria described in subsection (g).

8 (2) PEER REVIEW.—

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—For projects that have

10 a cost of $25,000 or more, the Secretary

11 shall—

12 (i) provide for merit-based peer review

13 of the proposal; and

14 (ii) require standardized documenta15 tion of the peer review.

16 (B) EXPEDITED PROCESS.—For projects

17 that have a cost of less than $25,000, the Sec18 retary shall provide an expedited peer review

19 process.

20 (C) INDIVIDUAL GRANTS.—As part of the

21 peer review process for individual grants, the

22 Secretary shall request written comments from

23 the appropriate bureaus or departments of the

24 State or other government having jurisdiction
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1 over the area where the project is proposed to

2 be conducted.

3 (3) LIST.—At the beginning of each fiscal year,

4 the Secretary shall make available a list describing

5 projects selected during the previous fiscal year for

6 funding under subsection (g).

7 (g) PROJECT APPROVAL CRITERIA.—The Secretary

8 shall evaluate and select project proposals for funding

9 based on the degree to which each proposed project—

10 (1) is consistent with the purposes of this Act;

11 and

12 (2) would—

13 (A) promote the long-term protection, con14 servation, restoration, or enhancement of coral

15 reef ecosystems in or adjoining areas under the

16 jurisdiction of the Department of the Interior;

17 (B) promote cooperative conservation

18 projects with local communities, nongovern19 mental organizations, educational or private in20 stitutions, affected local governments, terri21 tories, or insular areas;

22 (C) enhance public knowledge and aware23 ness of coral reef resources and sustainable use

24 through education and outreach;
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1 (D) develop sound scientific information on

2 the condition of and threats to coral reef eco3 systems through mapping, monitoring, research

4 and analysis; and

5 (E) increase compliance with laws relating

6 to coral reefs.

7 (h) REGULATIONS.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para9 graph (2), not later than 90 days after the date of

10 enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall promul11 gate regulations to implement this Act.

12 (2) PROJECT APPROVAL.—Not later than 180

13 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the

14 Secretary shall promulgate regulations to implement

15 subsection (f), including requirements for project

16 proposals.

17 (3) CONSULTATION.—In developing regulations

18 under this subsection, the Secretary shall identify

19 priorities for coral reef resource protection and con20 servation in consultation with agencies and organiza21 tions involved in coral and marine conservation,

22 including—

23 (A) the Coral Reef Task Force;

24 (B) interested States;

25 (C) regional and local entities; and
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1 (D) nongovernmental organizations.

2 (i) ADMINISTRATION.—

3 (1) FOUNDATION INVOLVEMENT.—

4 (A) AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary may

5 enter into an agreement with 1 or more founda6 tions to accept, receive, hold, transfer, solicit,

7 and administer funds received or made available

8 for a grant program under this Act (including

9 funds received in the form of a gift or dona10 tion).

11 (B) FUNDS.—A foundation that enters

12 into an agreement described in subparagraph

13 (A) shall—

14 (i) invest, reinvest, and otherwise ad15 minister funds described in subparagraph

16 (A); and

17 (ii) maintain the funds and any inter18 est or revenues earned in a separate inter19 est-bearing account that is—

20 (I)(aa) an insured depository in21 stitution, as the term is defined in

22 section 3 of the Federal Deposit In23 surance Act (12 U.S.C. 1813); or

24 (bb) an insured credit union, as

25 the term is defined in section 101 of
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1 the Federal Credit Union Act (12

2 U.S.C. 1752); and

3 (II) established by the foundation

4 solely to support partnerships between

5 the public and private sectors that

6 further the purposes of this Act.

7 (2) REVIEW OF PERFORMANCE.—

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—Beginning in fiscal year

9 2000, and biennially thereafter, the Secretary

10 shall conduct a review of each grant program

11 administered by a foundation under this sub12 section.

13 (B) ASSESSMENT.—Each review under

14 subparagraph (A) shall include a written as15 sessment describing the extent to which the

16 foundation has implemented the goals and re17 quirements of this section.

18 (j) TRANSFERS.—

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Under an agreement entered

20 into under subsection (i)(1)(A), the Secretary may

21 transfer funds appropriated under section 5(b) to a

22 foundation.

23 (2) USE OF TRANSFERRED FUNDS.—Amounts

24 received by a foundation under this subsection may

25 be used for matching, in whole or in part, contribu-
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1 tions (whether in currency, services, or property)

2 made to the foundation by private persons and State

3 and local government agencies.

4 SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro6 priated to carry out this Act $20,000,000 for each of fiscal

7 years 2000 through 2004, to remain available until ex8 pended.

9 (b) LIMITATION ON ADMINISTRATIVE FUNDS.—Not

10 more than 6 percent of the amounts appropriated under

11 this section may be used for program management and

12 administration under this Act.

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