II 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1620 

To provide the Coast Guard and NOAA with additional authorities under 

the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, to strengthen the Oil Pollution Act 

of 1990, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 14, 2007 

Ms. CANTWELL (for herself and Mr. KERRY) introduced the following bill; 

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

Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To provide the Coast Guard and NOAA with additional 

authorities under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, to 

strengthen the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, 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 ‘‘Oil Pollution Preven5 tion and Response Act of 2007’’. 

6 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

7 The table of contents for this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title. 


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Sec. 2. Table of contents. 

Sec. 3. Findings. 

Sec. 4. Definitions. 

TITLE I—PREVENTION OF OIL SPILLS 

Subtitle A—Coast Guard Provisions 

Sec. 101. Rulemakings.

Sec. 102. Oil spill response capability. 

Sec. 103. Inspections by Coast Guard. 

Sec. 104. Oil transfers from vessels.

Sec. 105. Improvements to reduce human error and near-miss incidents.

Sec. 106. Navigational measures for protection of natural resources. 

Sec. 107. Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary. 

Sec. 108. Higher volume port area regulatory definition change. 

Sec. 109. Prevention of small oil spills. 

Sec. 110. Improved coordination with tribal governments.

Sec. 111. Oil spill advisory council.

Sec. 112. Notification requirements. 

Sec. 113. Cooperative State inspection authority. 

Sec. 114. Tug escorts for laden oil tankers. 

Sec. 115. Tank and non-tank vessel response plans. 

Sec. 116. Report on the availability of technology to detect the loss of oil. 

Subtitle B—National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Provisions 

Sec. 151. Hydrographic surveys. 

Sec. 152. Electronic navigational charts. 

TITLE II—RESPONSE 

Sec. 201. Rapid response system. 

Sec. 202. Coast Guard oil spill database. 

Sec. 203. Use of oil spill liability trust fund. 

Sec. 204. Extension of financial responsibility. 

Sec. 205. Liability for use of unsafe single-hull vessels. 

Sec. 206. Response tugs. 

Sec. 207. International efforts on enforcement.

Sec. 208. Investment of amounts in damage assessment and restoration revolving fund. 

TITLE III—RESEARCH AND MISCELLANEOUS REPORTS 

Sec. 301. Federal Oil Spill Research Committee. 

Sec. 302. Grant project for development of cost-effective detection technologies. 

Sec. 303. Status of implementation of recommendations by the National Research Council. 

Sec. 304. GAO report. 

Sec. 305. Oil transportation infrastructure analysis. 

1 SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 

2 The Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) Oil released into the Nation’s marine waters 

2 can cause substantial, and in some cases irreparable, 

3 harm to the marine environment. 

4 (2) The economic impact of oil spills is substan5 tial. Billions of dollars have been spent in the United 

6 States for cleanup of, and damages due to, oil spills; 

7 while many social, cultural, economic, and environ8 mental damages remain uncompensated. 

9 (3) The Oil Pollution Act of 1990, enacted in 

10 response to the worst vessel oil spill in United States 

11 history, substantially reduced the amount of oil spills 

12 from vessels. However, significant volumes of oil 

13 continue to be released, and the potential for a 

14 major spill remains unacceptably high. 

15 (4) Although the total number of oil spills from 

16 vessels has decreased since passage of the Oil Pollu17 tion Act of 1990, more oil was spilled in 2004 from 

18 vessels nationwide than was spilled from vessels in 

19 1992. 

20 (5) Waterborne transportation of oil in the 

21 United States continues to increase. 

22 (6) Although the number of oil spills from tank23 ers declined from 193 in 1992 to 36 in 2004, spills 

24 from oil tankers tend to be large with devastating 

25 impacts. 


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1 (7) While the number of oil spills from tank 

2 barges has declined since 1992 (322 spills to 141 

3 spills in 2004), the volume of oil spilled from tank 

4 barges has remained constant at approximately 

5 200,000 gallons spilled each year. 

6 (8) Oil spills from non-tank vessels averaged be7 tween 125,000 gallons and 400,000 gallons per year 

8 from 1992 through 2004 and accounted for over half 

9 of the total number of spills from all sources, includ10 ing vessels and non-vessel sources. 

11 (9) Recent spills involving significant quantities 

12 of oil have occurred off the coasts of Alaska, Maine, 

13 Massachusetts, Oregon, Virginia, and Washington, 

14 and involved barges, tank vessels, and non-tank ves15 sels. The value of waterfront property, sport, com16 mercial and tribal treaty fisheries, recreation, tour17 ism, and threatened and endangered species con18 tinue to increase. 

19 (10) It is more cost-effective to prevent oil spills 

20 than it is to clean-up oil once it is released into the 

21 environment. 

22 (11) Of the 20 major vessel oil spill incidents 

23 since 1990 where liability limits have been exceeded, 

24 10 involved tank barges, 8 involved non-tank vessels, 


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1 2 involved tankers, and only 1 involved a vessel that 

2 was double-hulled. 

3 (12) Although recent technological improve4 ments in oil tanker design, such as double hulls and 

5 redundant steering, increase tanker safety, these 

6 technologies are not a panacea and cannot ensure 

7 against oil spills, the leading cause of which is 

8 human error. 

9 (13) The Federal Government has a responsi10 bility to protect the Nation’s natural resources, pub11 lic health, and environment by improving Federal 

12 measures to prevent and respond to oil spills. 

13 (14) Environmentally fragile coastal areas are 

14 vitally important to local economies and the way of 

15 life in coastal States and federally recognized tribal 

16 governments. These areas are particularly vulnerable 

17 to the threat of oil spills. Coastal waters contribute 

18 approximately 75 percent of all commercial shellfish 

19 and finfish catches, and over 81 percent of all rec20 reational fishing catches in the United States, out21 side of Alaska and Hawaii. 

22 (15) The northern coast of Washington State 

23 and entrance to Puget Sound is the principal cor24 ridor conveying Pacific Rim commerce into the 

25 State, to Canada’s largest port, and to the United 


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1 States’ third largest naval complex. The area con2 tains a National Marine Sanctuary, a National 

3 Park, and many National Wildlife Refuges contig4 uous with marine waters. 

5 (16) State, local, and tribal governments have 

6 important human resources and spill response capa7 bilities which can contribute to response efforts in 

8 the event of a significant oil spill. State, local, and 

9 tribal governments may have unique local knowledge 

10 of natural resources which can improve the quality 

11 of spill response. For these reasons, State, local and 

12 tribal governments need appropriate information to 

13 have knowledge of spills, as well as incidents and ac14 tivities that may result in a spill, which can impact 

15 State waters. 

16 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

17 In this Act: 

18 (1) AREA TO BE AVOIDED.—The term ‘‘area to 

19 be avoided’’ means a routing measure established by 

20 the International Maritime Organization as an area 

21 to be avoided. 

22 (2) COASTAL STATE.—The term ‘‘coastal 

23 State’’ has the meaning given that term by section 

24 304(4) of the Coastal Zone Management Act of 

25 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1453(4)). 


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1 (3) COMMANDANT.—The term ‘‘Commandant’’ 

2 means the Commandant of the Coast Guard. 

3 (4) NON-TANK VESSEL.—The term ‘‘non-tank 

4 vessel’’ means a self-propelled vessel other than a 

5 tank vessel. 

6 (5) OIL.—The term ‘‘oil’’ has the meaning 

7 given that term by section 1001(23) of the Oil Pol8 lution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701(23)). 

9 (6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

10 the Secretary of the department in which the Coast 

11 Guard is operating except where otherwise explicitly 

12 stated. 

13 (7) TANK VESSEL.—The term ‘‘tank vessel’’ 

14 has the meaning given that term by section 

15 1001(34) of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 

16 U.S.C. 2701(34)). 

17 (8) WATERS SUBJECT TO THE JURISDICTION

18 OF THE UNITED STATES.—The term ‘‘waters sub19 ject to the jurisdiction of the United States’’ means 

20 navigable waters (as defined in section 1001(21) of 

21 the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701(21)) 

22 as well as— 

23 (A) the territorial sea of the United States 

24 as defined in Presidential Proclamation Number 

25 5928 of December 27, 1988; and 


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1 (B) the Exclusive Economic Zone of the 

2 United States established by Presidential Proc3 lamation Number 5030 of March 10, 1983. 

4 (9) OTHER TERMS.—The terms ‘‘facility’’, 

5 ‘‘gross ton’’, ‘‘exclusive economic zone’’, ‘‘incident’’, 

6 ‘‘oil’’, ‘‘tank vessel’’, ‘‘territorial seas’’, and ‘‘vessel’’ 

7 have the meaning given those terms in section 1001 

8 of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701). 

9 TITLE I—PREVENTION OF OIL 

10 SPILLS 

11 Subtitle A—Coast Guard 

12 Provisions 

13 SEC. 101. RULEMAKINGS. 

14 (a) STATUS REPORT.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Within 90 days after the 

16 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 

17 provide a report to the Senate Committee on Com18 merce, Science, and Transportation and the House 

19 of Representatives Committee on Transportation 

20 and Infrastructure on the status of all Coast Guard 

21 rulemakings required (but for which no final rule 

22 has been issued as of the date of enactment of this 

23 Act)— 

24 (A) under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 

25 (33 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.); and 


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1 (B) for— 

2 (i) automatic identification systems 

3 required under section 70114 of title 46, 

4 United States Code; and 

5 (ii) inspection requirements for towing 

6 vessels required under section 3306(j) of 

7 that title. 

8 (2) INFORMATION REQUIRED.—The Secretary 

9 shall include in the report required by paragraph 

10 (1)— 

11 (A) a detailed explanation with respect to 

12 each such rulemaking as to— 

13 (i) what steps have been completed; 

14 (ii) what areas remain to be ad15 dressed; and 

16 (iii) the cause of any delays; and 

17 (B) the date by which a final rule may rea18 sonably be expected to be issued. 

19 (b) FINAL RULES.—The Secretary shall issue a final 

20 rule in each pending rulemaking under the Oil Pollution 

21 Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) as soon as prac22 ticable, but in no event later than 18 months after the 

23 date of enactment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 102. OIL SPILL RESPONSE CAPABILITY. 

2 (a) SAFETY STANDARDS FOR TOWING VESSELS.—In 

3 promulgating regulations for towing vessels under chapter 

4 33 of title 46, United States Code, the Secretary of the 

5 department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall— 

6 (1) give priority to completing such regulations 

7 for towing operations involving tank vessels; and 

8 (2) consider the possible application of stand9 ards that, as of the date of enactment of this Act, 

10 apply to self-propelled tank vessels, and any modi11 fications that may be necessary for application to 

12 towing vessels due to ship design, safety, and other 

13 relevant factors. 

14 (b) REDUCTION OF OIL SPILL RISK IN BUZZARDS

15 BAY.—No later than January 1, 2008, the Secretary of 

16 the department in which the Coast Guard is operating 

17 shall promulgate a final rule for Buzzards Bay, Massachu18 setts, pursuant to the notice of proposed rulemaking pub19 lished on March 29, 2006, (71 Fed. Reg. 15649), after 

20 taking into consideration public comments submitted pur21 suant to that notice, to adopt measures to reduce the risk 

22 of oil spills in Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts. 

23 (c) REPORTING.—The Secretary shall transmit an 

24 annual report to the Senate Committee on Commerce, 

25 Science, and Transportation and the House of Represent26 atives Committee on Resources on the extent to which 


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1 tank vessels in Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts, are using 

2 routes recommended by the Coast Guard. 

3 SEC. 103. INSPECTIONS BY COAST GUARD. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ensure that 

5 the inspection schedule for all United States and foreign6 flag tank vessels that enter a United States port or place 

7 increases the frequency and comprehensiveness of Coast 

8 Guard safety inspections based on such factors as vessel 

9 age, hull configuration, past violations of any applicable 

10 discharge and safety regulations under United States and 

11 international law, indications that the class societies in12 specting such vessels may be substandard, and other fac13 tors relevant to the potential risk of an oil spill. 

14 (b) ENHANCED VERIFICATION OF STRUCTURAL CON15 DITION.—The Coast Guard shall adopt, as part of its in16 spection requirements for tank vessels, additional proce17 dures for enhancing the verification of the reported struc18 tural condition of such vessels, taking into account the 

19 Condition Assessment Scheme adopted by the Inter20 national Maritime Organization by Resolution 94(46) on 

21 April 27, 2001. 

22 SEC. 104. OIL TRANSFERS FROM VESSELS. 

23 (a) REGULATIONS.—Within 1 year after the date of 

24 enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall promulgate reg25 ulations to reduce the risks of oil spills in operations inVerDate Aug 31 2005 03:06 Jun 15, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1620.IS S1620

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1 volving the transfer of oil from or to a tank vessel. The 

2 regulations— 

3 (1) shall focus on operations that have the 

4 highest risks of discharge, including operations at 

5 night and in inclement weather; and 

6 (2) shall consider— 

7 (A) requirements for use of equipment, 

8 such as putting booms in place for transfers; 

9 (B) operational procedures such as man10 ning standards, communications protocols, and 

11 restrictions on operations in high-risk areas; or 

12 (C) both such requirements and oper13 ational procedures. 

14 (b) APPLICATION WITH STATE LAWS.—The regula15 tions promulgated under subsection (a) do not preclude 

16 the enforcement of any State law or regulation the re17 quirements of which are at least as stringent as require18 ments under the regulations (as determined by the Sec19 retary) that— 

20 (1) applies in State waters; 

21 (2) does not conflict with, or interfere with the 

22 enforcement of, requirements and operational proce23 dures under the regulations; and 

24 (3) has been enacted or promulgated before the 

25 date of enactment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 105. IMPROVEMENTS TO REDUCE HUMAN ERROR AND 

2 NEAR-MISS INCIDENTS. 

3 (a) REPORT.—Within 1 year after the date of enact4 ment of this Act, the Secretary shall transmit a report 

5 to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

6 Transportation, the Senate Committee on Environment 

7 and Public Works, and the House of Representatives Com8 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure that, using 

9 available data— 

10 (1) identifies the types of human errors that, 

11 combined, account for over 50 percent of all oil spills 

12 involving vessels that have been caused by human 

13 error in the past 10 years; 

14 (2) identifies the most frequent types of near15 miss oil spill incidents involving vessels such as colli16 sions, groundings, and loss of propulsion in the past 

17 10 years; 

18 (3) describes the extent to which there are gaps 

19 in the data with respect to the information required 

20 under paragraphs (1) and (2) and explains the rea21 son for those gaps; and 

22 (4) includes recommendations by the Secretary 

23 to address the identified types of errors and inci24 dents and to address any such gaps in the data. 

25 (b) MEASURES.—Based on the findings contained in 

26 the report required by subsection (a), the Secretary shall 


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1 take appropriate action, both domestically and at the 

2 International Maritime Organization, to reduce the risk 

3 of oil spills from human errors. 

4 SEC. 106. NAVIGATIONAL MEASURES FOR PROTECTION OF 

5 NATURAL RESOURCES. 

6 (a) DESIGNATION OF AT-RISK AREAS.—The Sec7 retary and the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans 

8 and Atmosphere shall jointly identify areas where routing 

9 or other navigational measures are warranted in waters 

10 subject to the jurisdiction of the United States to reduce 

11 the risk of oil spills and potential damage to natural re12 sources. In identifying those areas, the Secretary and the 

13 Under Secretary shall give priority consideration to nat14 ural resources of particular ecological importance or eco15 nomic importance, including commercial fisheries, aqua16 culture facilities, marine sanctuaries designated by the 

17 Secretary of Commerce pursuant to the National Marine 

18 Sanctuaries Act (16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.), estuaries of na19 tional significance designated under section 319 of the 

20 Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1330), 

21 critical habitats (as defined in section 3(5) of the Endan22 gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1532(5)), estuarine 

23 research reserves within the National Estuarine Research 

24 Reserve System established by section 315 of the Coastal 

25 Zone Management Act of 1972, and national parks and 


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1 national seashores administered by the National Park 

2 Service under the National Park Service Organic Act (16 

3 U.S.C. 1 et seq.). 

4 (b) FACTORS CONSIDERED.—In determining whether 

5 navigational measures are warranted, the Secretary and 

6 the Under Secretary shall consider, at a minimum— 

7 (1) the frequency of transits of vessels required 

8 to prepare a response plan under section 311(j) of 

9 the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 

10 1321(j)); 

11 (2) the type and quantity of oil transported as 

12 cargo or fuel; 

13 (3) the expected benefits of routing measures in 

14 reducing risks of spills; 

15 (4) the costs of such measures; 

16 (5) the safety implications of such measures; 

17 and 

18 (6) the nature and value of the resources to be 

19 protected by such measures. 

20 (c) ESTABLISHMENT OF ROUTING AND OTHER NAVI21 GATIONAL MEASURES.—The Secretary shall establish 

22 such routing or other navigational measures for areas 

23 identified under subsection (a). 

24 (d) ESTABLISHMENT OF AVOIDANCE AREAS.—To the 

25 extent that the Secretary and the Under Secretary conVerDate Aug 31 2005 03:06 Jun 15, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1620.IS S1620

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1 clude that the establishment of areas to be avoided is war2 ranted under this section, they shall seek to establish such 

3 areas through the International Maritime Organization or 

4 establish comparable areas pursuant to regulations and in 

5 a manner that is consistent with international law. 

6 (e) OIL SHIPMENT DATA AND REPORT.— 

7 (1) DATA COLLECTION.—The Secretary, 

8 through the Commandant and in consultation with 

9 the Army Corps of Engineers, shall analyze data on 

10 oil transported as cargo on vessels in the navigable 

11 waters of the United States, including information 

12 on— 

13 (A) the quantity and type of oil being 

14 transported; 

15 (B) the vessels used for such transpor16 tation; 

17 (C) the frequency with which each type of 

18 oil is being transported; and 

19 (D) the point of origin, transit route, and 

20 destination of each such shipment of oil. 

21 (2) REPORT.—The Secretary shall transmit a 

22 report, not less frequently than quarterly, to the 

23 Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

24 Transportation and the House of Representatives 

25 Committee on Energy and Commerce, on the data 


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1 collected and analyzed under paragraph (1) in a for2 mat that does not disclose information exempted 

3 from disclosure under section 552b(e) of title 5, 

4 United States Code. 

5 SEC. 107. OLYMPIC COAST NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY. 

6 (a) OLYMPIC COAST NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY

7 AREA TO BE AVOIDED.—The Secretary and the Under 

8 Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere shall 

9 revise the area to be avoided off the coast of the State 

10 of Washington so that restrictions apply to all vessels re11 quired to prepare a response plan under section 311(j) of 

12 the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 

13 1321(j)) (other than fishing or research vessels while en14 gaged in fishing or research within the area to be avoided). 

15 (b) EMERGENCY OIL SPILL DRILL.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—In cooperation with the Sec17 retary, the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans 

18 and Atmosphere shall conduct a Safe Seas oil spill 

19 drill in the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanc20 tuary in fiscal year 2008. The Secretary and the 

21 Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and At22 mosphere jointly shall coordinate with other Federal 

23 agencies, State, local, and tribal governmental enti24 ties, and other appropriate entities, in conducting 

25 this drill. 


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1 (2) OTHER REQUIRED DRILLS.—Nothing in 

2 this subsection supersedes any Coast Guard require3 ment for conducting emergency oil spill drills in the 

4 Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary. The Sec5 retary shall consider conducting regular field exer6 cises, such as National Preparedness for Response 

7 Exercise Program (PREP) in other national marine 

8 sanctuaries as well as areas identified in section 

9 106(a) of this bill. 

10 (3) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

11 There are authorized to be appropriated to the 

12 Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and At13 mosphere for fiscal year 2008 $700,000 to carry out 

14 this subsection. 

15 SEC. 108. HIGHER VOLUME PORT AREA REGULATORY DEFI16 NITION CHANGE. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Within 30 days after the date of 

18 enactment of this Act, notwithstanding subchapter 5 of 

19 title 5, United States Code, the Commandant shall modify 

20 the definition of the term ‘‘higher volume port area’’ in 

21 section 155.1020 of the Coast Guard regulations (33 

22 C.F.R. 155.1020) by striking ‘‘Port Angeles, WA’’ in 

23 paragraph (13) of that section and inserting ‘‘Cape Flat24 tery, WA’’ without initiating a rulemaking proceeding. 


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1 (b) EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLAN REVIEWS.—With2 in 5 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

3 Coast Guard shall complete its review of any changes to 

4 emergency response plans pursuant to the Federal Water 

5 Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) resulting 

6 from the modification of the higher volume port area defi7 nition required by subsection (a). 

8 SEC. 109. PREVENTION OF SMALL OIL SPILLS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary of Com10 merce for Oceans and Atmosphere, in consultation with 

11 other appropriate agencies, shall establish an oil spill pre12 vention and education program for small vessels. The pro13 gram shall provide for assessment, outreach, and training 

14 and voluntary compliance activities to prevent and improve 

15 the effective response to oil spills from vessels and facili16 ties not required to prepare a vessel response plan under 

17 the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, including rec18 reational vessels, commercial fishing vessels, marinas, and 

19 aquaculture facilities. The Under Secretary may provide 

20 grants to sea grant colleges and institutes designated 

21 under section 207 of the National Sea Grant College Pro22 gram Act (33 U.S.C. 1126) and to State agencies, tribal 

23 governments, and other appropriate entities to carry out— 

24 (1) regional assessments to quantify the source, 

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1 tially on regions in the country where, in the past 

2 10 years, the incidence of such spills is estimated to 

3 be the highest; 

4 (2) voluntary, incentive-based clean marina pro5 grams that encourage marina operators, recreational 

6 boaters and small commercial vessel operators to en7 gage in environmentally sound operating and main8 tenance procedures and best management practices 

9 to prevent or reduce pollution from oil spills and 

10 other sources; 

11 (3) cooperative oil spill prevention education 

12 programs that promote public understanding of the 

13 impacts of spilled oil and provide useful information 

14 and techniques to minimize pollution including meth15 ods to remove oil and reduce oil contamination of 

16 bilge water, prevent accidental spills during mainte17 nance and refueling and properly cleanup and dis18 pose of oil and hazardous substances; and 

19 (4) support for programs, including outreach 

20 and education to address derelict vessels and the 

21 threat of such vessels sinking and discharging oil 

22 and other hazardous substances, including outreach 

23 and education to involve efforts to the owners of 

24 such vessels. 


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1 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated to the Under Secretary 

3 of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere to carry out this 

4 section, $10,000,000 annually for each of fiscal years 

5 2008 through 2012. 

6 SEC. 110. IMPROVED COORDINATION WITH TRIBAL GOV7 ERNMENTS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Within 6 months after the date 

9 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall complete the 

10 development of a tribal consultation policy, which recog11 nizes and protects to the maximum extent practicable trib12 al treaty rights and trust assets in order to improve the 

13 Coast Guard’s consultation and coordination with the trib14 al governments of federally recognized Indian tribes with 

15 respect to oil spill prevention, preparedness, response and 

16 natural resource damage assessment. 

17 (b) NATIONAL PLANNING.—The Secretary shall as18 sist tribal governments to participate in the development 

19 and capacity to implement the National Contingency Plan 

20 and local Area Contingency Plans to the extent they affect 

21 tribal lands, cultural and natural resources. The Secretary 

22 shall ensure that in regions where oil spills are likely to 

23 have an impact on natural or cultural resources owned or 

24 utilized by a federally recognized Indian tribe, the Coast 

25 Guard will— 


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1 (1) ensure that representatives of the tribal 

2 government of the potentially affected tribes are in3 cluded as part of the regional response team co4 chaired by the Coast Guard and the Environmental 

5 Protection Agency to establish policies for respond6 ing to oil spills; and 

7 (2) provide training of tribal incident com8 manders and spill responders. 

9 (c) INCLUSION OF TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—The Sec10 retary shall ensure that, as soon as practicable after iden11 tifying an oil spill that is likely to have an impact on nat12 ural or cultural resources owned or utilized by a federally 

13 recognized Indian tribe, the Coast Guard will— 

14 (1) ensure that representatives of the tribal 

15 government of the affected tribes are included as 

16 part of the incident command system established by 

17 the Coast Guard to respond to the spill; 

18 (2) share information about the oil spill with 

19 the tribal government of the affected tribe; and 

20 (3) to the extent practicable, involve tribal gov21 ernments in deciding how to respond to such spill. 

22 (d) COOPERATIVE ARRANGEMENTS.—The Coast 

23 Guard may enter into memoranda of agreement and asso24 ciated protocols with Indian tribal governments in order 

25 to establish cooperative arrangements for oil pollution preVerDate Aug 31 2005 03:06 Jun 15, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1620.IS S1620

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1 vention, preparedness, and response. Such memoranda 

2 may be entered into prior to the development of the tribal 

3 consultation and coordination policy to provide Indian 

4 tribes grant and contract assistance and may include 

5 training for preparedness and response and provisions on 

6 coordination in the event of a spill. As part of these memo7 randa of agreement, the Secretary may carry out dem8 onstration projects to assist tribal governments in building 

9 the capacity to protect tribal treaty rights and trust assets 

10 from oil spills to the maximum extent possible. 

11 (e) FUNDING FOR TRIBAL PARTICIPATION.—Subject 

12 to the availability of appropriations, the Commandant of 

13 the Coast Guard shall provide assistance to participating 

14 tribal governments in order to facilitate the implementa15 tion of cooperative arrangements under subsection (d) and 

16 ensure the participation of tribal governments in such ar17 rangements. There are authorized to be appropriated to 

18 the Commandant $500,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 

19 through 2012 to be used to carry out this section. 

20 SEC. 111. OIL SPILL ADVISORY COUNCIL. 

21 Section 5002(k) of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 

22 U.S.C. 2732(k)) is amended by adding at the end the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(4) WASHINGTON STATE PROGRAM.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this para2 graph, the oil spill advisory council established by 

3 section 90.56.120 of title 90 of the Revised Code of 

4 Washington is deemed to be an advisory council es5 tablished under this section. The provisions of this 

6 section, other than this paragraph, do not apply to 

7 that oil spill advisory council. 

8 ‘‘(B) FUNDING.—The owners or operators of 

9 terminal facilities or crude oil tankers operating in 

10 Washington State waters shall provide, on an annual 

11 basis, an aggregate amount of not more than 

12 $1,000,000, as determined by the Secretary. Such 

13 amount— 

14 ‘‘(i) shall be made available to the oil spill 

15 advisory council established by section 

16 90.56.120 of title 90 of the Revised Code of 

17 Washington; 

18 ‘‘(ii) shall be adjusted annually by the 

19 Consumer Price Index; and 

20 ‘‘(iii) may be adjusted periodically upon 

21 the mutual consent of the owners or operators 

22 of terminal facilities or crude oil tankers oper23 ating in Washington State waters and the 

24 Council.’’. 


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1 SEC. 112. NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS. 

2 (a) MARINE CASUALTIES.—Section 6101 of title 46, 

3 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 

4 following: 

5 ‘‘(j) NOTICE TO STATES AND TRIBAL GOVERN6 MENTS.—Within 1 hour after receiving a report under this 

7 section, the Secretary shall forward the report to each 

8 State and federally recognized Indian tribal government 

9 that has jurisdiction concurrent with the United States or 

10 adjacent to waters in which the casualty occurred. Each 

11 State shall identify for the Secretary the agency to which 

12 such reports shall be forwarded and shall be responsible 

13 for forwarding appropriate information to local and tribal 

14 governments within its jurisdiction.’’. 

15 (b) STATE-REQUIRED NOTICE OF BULK OIL TRANS16 FERS.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a 

17 coastal State may, by law, require a person to provide no18 tice of 24 hours or more to the State and to the United 

19 States Coast Guard before transferring oil in bulk in an 

20 amount equivalent to 250 barrels or more to, from, or 

21 within a vessel in State waters. The Commandant may as22 sist coastal States in developing appropriate methodologies 

23 for joint Federal and State notification of any such trans24 fers to minimize any potential burden to vessels. 


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1 SEC. 113. COOPERATIVE STATE INSPECTION AUTHORITY. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized to 

3 execute a joint enforcement agreement with the Governor 

4 of a coastal state that meets the requirements of sub5 section (b) under which— 

6 (1) State law enforcement officers with marine 

7 law enforcement responsibilities may be authorized 

8 to perform duties of the Secretary relating to law 

9 enforcement provisions under this title or any other 

10 marine resource law enforced by the Secretary; and 

11 (2) State inspectors are authorized to conduct 

12 inspections of United States and foreign-flag vessels 

13 in United States ports under the supervision of the 

14 Coast Guard and report and refer any documented 

15 deficiencies or violations to the Coast Guard for ac16 tion. 

17 (b) STATE QUALIFICATIONS.—To be eligible to par18 ticipate in a joint enforcement agreement under subsection 

19 (a), a coastal state shall— 

20 (1) submit an application to the Secretary at 

21 such time, in such form, and containing such infor22 mation as the Secretary may require; and 

23 (2) demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Sec24 retary that— 

25 (A) its State inspectors possess, or qualify 

26 for, a merchant mariner officer or engineer liVerDate Aug 31 2005 03:06 Jun 15, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00026 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1620.IS S1620

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1 cense for at least a 1600 gross-ton vessel under 

2 subchapter B of title 46, Code of Federal Regu3 lations; 

4 (B) it has established support for its in5 spection program to track, schedule, and mon6 itor shipping traffic within its waters; and 

7 (C) it has a funding mechanism to main8 tain an inspection program for at least 5 years. 

9 (c) TECHNICAL SUPPORT AND TRAINING.—The Sec10 retary may provide technical support and training for 

11 State inspectors who participate in a joint enforcement 

12 agreement under this section. 

13 SEC. 114. TUG ESCORTS FOR LADEN OIL TANKERS. 

14 Within 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, 

15 the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Com16 mandant, shall enter into negotiations with the Govern17 ment of Canada to ensure that tugboat escorts are re18 quired for all tank ships with a capacity over 40,000 dead19 weight tons in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Strait of Geor20 gia, and in Haro Strait. The Commandant shall consult 

21 with the State of Washington and affected tribal govern22 ments during negotiations with the Government of Can23 ada. 


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1 SEC. 115. TANK AND NON-TANK VESSEL RESPONSE PLANS. 

2 Within 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, 

3 the Secretary shall promulgate regulations authorizing 

4 owners and operators of tank and non-tank vessel to form 

5 non-profit cooperatives for the purpose of complying with 

6 section 311(j) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 

7 (33 U.S.C. 1321(j)). 

8 SEC. 116. REPORT ON THE AVAILABILITY OF TECHNOLOGY 

9 TO DETECT THE LOSS OF OIL. 

10 Within 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, 

11 the Secretary shall submit a report to the Senate Com12 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the 

13 House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Com14 merce on the availability, feasibility, and potential cost of 

15 technology to detect the loss of oil carried as cargo or as 

16 fuel on tank and non-tank vessels greater than 400 gross 

17 tons. 

18 Subtitle B—National Oceanic and 

19 Atmospheric Administration 

20 Provisions 

21 SEC. 151. HYDROGRAPHIC SURVEYS. 

22 (a) REDUCTION OF BACKLOG.—The Under Secretary 

23 of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere shall continue 

24 survey operations to reduce the survey backlog in naviga25 tionally significant waters outlined in its National Survey 


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•S 1620 IS 

1 Plan, concentrating on areas where oil and other haz2 ardous materials are transported. 

3 (b) NEW SURVEYS.—By no later than January 1, 

4 2010, the Under Secretary shall complete new surveys, to5 gether with necessary data processing, analysis, and dis6 semination, for all areas in United States coastal areas 

7 determined by the Under Secretary to be critical areas. 

8 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

9 are authorized to be appropriated to the Under Secretary 

10 for the purpose of carrying out the new surveys required 

11 by subsection (b) such sums as may be necessary for each 

12 of fiscal years 2008 through 2012. 

13 SEC. 152. ELECTRONIC NAVIGATIONAL CHARTS. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—By no later than September 1, 

15 2008, the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and 

16 Atmosphere shall complete the electronic navigation chart 

17 suite for all coastal waters of the United States. 

18 (b) PRIORITIES.—In completing the suite, the Under 

19 Secretary shall give priority to producing and maintaining 

20 the electronic navigation charts of the entrances to major 

21 ports and the coastal transportation routes for oil and haz22 ardous materials, and for estuaries of national significance 

23 designated under section 319 of the Federal Water Pollu24 tion Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1330). 


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1 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated to the Under Secretary 

3 for the purpose of completing the electronic navigation 

4 chart suite $6,200,000 for fiscal years 2008 and 2009. 

5 TITLE II—RESPONSE 

6 SEC. 201. RAPID RESPONSE SYSTEM. 

7 The Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and 

8 Atmosphere shall develop and implement a rapid response 

9 system to collect and predict in situ information about oil 

10 spill behavior, trajectory and impacts, and a mechanism 

11 to provide such information rapidly to Federal, State, trib12 al, and other entities involved in a response to an oil spill. 

13 SEC. 202. COAST GUARD OIL SPILL DATABASE. 

14 The Secretary shall modify the Coast Guard’s oil spill 

15 database as necessary to ensure that it— 

16 (1) includes information on the cause of oil 

17 spills maintained in the database; 

18 (2) is capable of facilitating the analysis of 

19 trends and the comparison of accidents involving oil 

20 spills; and 

21 (3) makes the data available to the public. 

22 SEC. 203. USE OF OIL SPILL LIABILITY TRUST FUND. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1012(a)(5) of the Oil Pol24 lution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2712(a)(5)) is amended— 


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1 (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) and 

2 (C) as subparagraphs (C) and (D), respectively; and 

3 (2) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(B) not more than $15,000,000 in each 

6 fiscal year shall be available to the Under Sec7 retary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmos8 phere for expenses incurred by, and activities 

9 related to, response and damage assessment ca10 pabilities of the National Oceanic and Atmos11 pheric Administration;’’. 

12 (b) USE OF FUND IN NATIONAL EMERGENCIES.— 

13 Notwithstanding any provision of the Oil Pollution Act of 

14 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) to the contrary, no amount 

15 may be made available from the Oil Spill Liability Trust 

16 Fund established by section 9509 of the Internal Revenue 

17 Code of 1986 for claims described in section 1012(a)(4) 

18 of that Act (33 U.S.C. 2712(a)(4)) attributable to any na19 tional emergency or major disaster declared by the Presi20 dent under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and 

21 Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.). 

22 SEC. 204. EXTENSION OF FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY. 

23 Section 1016(a) of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 

24 U.S.C. 2716(a)) is amended— 


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•S 1620 IS 

1 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ after the semicolon in 

2 paragraph (1); 

3 (2) by inserting ‘‘or’’ after the semicolon in 

4 paragraph (2); and 

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

7 ‘‘(3) any tank vessel over 100 gross tons (ex8 cept a non-self-propelled vessel that does not carry 

9 oil as cargo) using any place subject to the jurisdic10 tion of the United States;’’. 

11 SEC. 205. LIABILITY FOR USE OF UNSAFE SINGLE-HULL 

12 VESSELS. 

13 Section 1001(32) of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 

14 (33 U.S.C. 2702(d)) is amended by striking subparagraph 

15 (A) and inserting the following: 

16 ‘‘(A) VESSELS.—In the case of a vessel— 

17 ‘‘(i) any person owning, operating, or 

18 demise chartering the vessel; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) the owner of oil being trans20 ported in a tank vessel with a single hull 

21 after December 31, 2010, if the owner of 

22 the oil knew, or should have known, from 

23 publicly available information that the ves24 sel had a poor safety or operational 

25 record.’’. 


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1 SEC. 206. RESPONSE TUGS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (5) of section 311(j) 

3 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 

4 1321(j)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(J) RESPONSE TUG.— 

6 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary 

7 shall require the stationing of a year round 

8 response tug of a minimum of 70-tons 

9 bollard pull in the entry to the Strait of 

10 Juan de Fuca at Neah Bay capable of pro11 viding rapid assistance and towing capa12 bility to disabled vessels during severe 

13 weather conditions. 

14 ‘‘(ii) SHARED RESOURCES.—The Sec15 retary may authorize compliance with the 

16 response tug stationing requirement of 

17 clause (i) through joint or shared resources 

18 between or among entities to which this 

19 subsection applies. 

20 ‘‘(iii) EXISTING STATE AUTHORITY

21 NOT AFFECTED.—Nothing in this subpara22 graph supersedes or interferes with any ex23 isting authority of a State with respect to 

24 the stationing of rescue tugs in any area 

25 under State law or regulations. 


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1 ‘‘(iv) ADMINISTRATION.—In carrying 

2 out this subparagraph, the Secretary— 

3 ‘‘(I) shall require the vessel re4 sponse plan holders to negotiate and 

5 adopt a cost-sharing formula and a 

6 schedule for carrying out this sub7 paragraph by no later than June 1, 

8 2008; 

9 ‘‘(II) shall establish a cost-shar10 ing formula and a schedule for car11 rying out this subparagraph by no 

12 later than July 1, 2008 (without re13 gard to the requirements of chapter 5 

14 of title 5, United States Code) if the 

15 vessel response plan holders fail to 

16 adopt the cost-sharing formula and 

17 schedule required by subclause (I) of 

18 this clause by June 1, 2008; and 

19 ‘‘(III) shall implement clauses (i) 

20 and (ii) of this subparagraph by June 

21 1, 2008, without a rulemaking and 

22 without regard to the requirements of 

23 chapter 5 of title 5, United States 

24 Code. 


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1 ‘‘(v) LONG TERM TUG CAPABILI2 TIES.—Within 6 months after imple3 menting clauses (i) and (ii), and section 

4 110 of the Oil Pollution Prevention and 

5 Response Act of 2007, the Secretary shall 

6 execute a contract with the National Acad7 emy of Sciences to conduct a study of re8 gional response tug and salvage needs for 

9 Washington’s Olympic coast. In developing 

10 the scope of the study, the National Acad11 emy of Sciences shall consult with Federal, 

12 State, and Tribal trustees as well as rel13 evant stakeholders. The study— 

14 ‘‘(I) shall define the needed capa15 bilities, equipment, and facilities for a 

16 response tug in the entry to the Strait 

17 of Juan de Fuca at Neah Bay in 

18 order to optimize oil spill protection 

19 on Washington’s Olympic coast, pro20 vide rescue towing services, oil spill 

21 response, and salvage and fire-fighting 

22 capabilities; 

23 ‘‘‘(II) shall analyze the tug’s 

24 multi-mission capabilities as well as 

25 its ability to utilize cached salvage, oil 


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1 spill response, and oil storage equip2 ment while responding to a spill or a 

3 vessel in distress and make rec4 ommendations as to the placement of 

5 this equipment; 

6 ‘‘(III) shall address scenarios 

7 that consider all vessel types and 

8 weather conditions and compare cur9 rent Neah Bay tug capabilities, costs, 

10 and benefits with other United States 

11 industry funded response tugs, includ12 ing those currently operating in Alas13 ka’s Prince William Sound; 

14 ‘‘(IV) shall determine whether 

15 the current level of protection af16 forded by the Neah Bay response tug 

17 and associated response equipment is 

18 comparable to protection in other lo19 cations where response tugs operate, 

20 including Prince William Sound, and 

21 if it is not comparable, shall make 

22 recommendations as to how capabili23 ties, equipment, and facilities should 

24 be modified to achieve optimum pro25 tection.’’. 


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1 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary for fis3 cal year 2008 such sums as necessary to carry out section 

4 311(j)(5)(J)(v) of the Federal Water Pollution Control 

5 Act (33 U.S.C. 1321(j)(5)(J)(v)). 

6 SEC. 207. INTERNATIONAL EFFORTS ON ENFORCEMENT. 

7 The Secretary, in consultation with the heads of other 

8 appropriate Federal agencies, shall ensure that the Coast 

9 Guard pursues stronger enforcement in the International 

10 Maritime Organization of agreements related to oil dis11 charges, including joint enforcement operations, training, 

12 and stronger compliance mechanisms. 

13 SEC. 208. INVESTMENT OF AMOUNTS IN DAMAGE ASSESS14 MENT AND RESTORATION REVOLVING FUND. 

15 The Secretary of the Treasury shall invest such por16 tion of the damage assessment and restoration revolving 

17 fund described in title I of the Departments of Commerce, 

18 Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies 

19 Appropriations Act, 1991 (33 U.S.C. 2706 note) as is not, 

20 in the Secretary’s judgment, required to meet current 

21 withdrawals in interest-bearing obligations of the United 

22 States in accordance with section 9602 of the Internal 

23 Revenue Code of 1986. 


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1 TITLE III—RESEARCH AND 

2 MISCELLANEOUS REPORTS 

3 SEC. 301. FEDERAL OIL SPILL RESEARCH COMMITTEE. 

4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a com5 mittee to be known as the Federal Oil Spill Research Com6 mittee. 

7 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The members of the Committee 

8 shall be designated by the Under Secretary of Commerce 

9 for Oceans and Atmosphere and shall include representa10 tives from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin11 istration, the United States Coast Guard, the Environ12 mental Protection Agency, and such other Federal agen13 cies as the President may designate. A representative of 

14 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 

15 designated by the Under Secretary, shall serve as Chair16 man. 

17 (c) DUTIES.—The Committee shall coordinate a com18 prehensive program of oil pollution research, technology 

19 development, and demonstration among the Federal agen20 cies, in cooperation and coordination with industry, uni21 versities, research institutions, State governments, tribal 

22 governments, and other nations, as appropriate, and shall 

23 foster cost-effective research mechanisms, including the 

24 joint funding of research. 

25 (d) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.— 


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1 (1) Not later than 180 days after the date of 

2 enactment of this Act, the Committee shall submit 

3 to Congress a report on the current state of oil spill 

4 prevention and response capabilities that— 

5 (A) identifies current research programs 

6 conducted by governments, universities, and 

7 corporate entities; 

8 (B) assesses the current status of knowl9 edge on oil pollution prevention, response, and 

10 mitigation technologies; 

11 (C) establishes national research priorities 

12 and goals for oil pollution technology develop13 ment related to prevention, response, mitiga14 tion, and environmental effects; 

15 (D) identifies regional oil pollution re16 search needs and priorities for a coordinated 

17 program of research at the regional level devel18 oped in consultation with the State and local 

19 governments, tribes; 

20 (E) assesses the current state of spill re21 sponse equipment, and determines areas in 

22 need of improvement including amount, age, 

23 quality, effectiveness, or necessary technological 

24 improvements; 


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1 (F) assesses the current state of real time 

2 data available to mariners, including water 

3 level, currents and weather information and 

4 predictions, and assesses whether lack of timely 

5 information increases the risk of oil spills; and 

6 (G) includes such recommendations as the 

7 Committee deems appropriate. 

8 (2) QUINQUENNIAL UPDATES.—The Committee 

9 shall submit a report every fifth year after its first 

10 report under paragraph (1) updating the informa11 tion contained in its previous report under this sub12 section. 

13 (e) ADVICE AND GUIDANCE.—The Committee shall 

14 accept comments and input from State and local govern15 ments, Indian tribes, industry representatives, and other 

16 stakeholders. 

17 (f) NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCE PARTICIPA18 TION.—The Chairman, through the National Oceanic and 

19 Atmospheric Administration, shall contract with the Na20 tional Academy of Sciences to— 

21 (1) provide advice and guidance in the prepara22 tion and development of the research plan; and 

23 (2) assess the adequacy of the plan as sub24 mitted, and submit a report to Congress on the con25 clusions of such assessment. 


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1 (g) RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Committee shall estab3 lish a program for conducting oil pollution research 

4 and development. Within 180 days after submitting 

5 its report to the Congress under subsection (d), the 

6 Committee shall submit to Congress a plan for the 

7 implementation of the program. 

8 (2) PROGRAM ELEMENTS.—The program estab9 lished under paragraph (1) shall provide for re10 search, development, and demonstration of new or 

11 improved technologies which are effective in pre12 venting, detecting, or mitigating oil discharges and 

13 which protect the environment, and include— 

14 (A) high priority research areas described 

15 in the report; 

16 (B) environmental effects of acute and 

17 chronic oil spills; 

18 (C) long-term effects of major spills and 

19 the long-term cumulative effects of smaller en20 demic spills; 

21 (D) new technologies to detect accidental 

22 or intentional overboard discharges; 

23 (E) response capabilities, such as improved 

24 booms, oil skimmers, and storage capacity; 


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1 (F) methods to restore and rehabilitate 

2 natural resources damaged by oil discharges; 

3 and 

4 (G) research and training, in consultation 

5 with the National Response Team, to improve 

6 industry’s and Government’s ability to remove 

7 an oil discharge quickly and effectively. 

8 (h) GRANT PROGRAM.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary of 

10 Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere shall manage 

11 a program of competitive grants to universities or 

12 other research institutions, or groups of universities 

13 or research institutions, for the purposes of con14 ducting the program established under subsection 

15 (g). 

16 (2) APPLICATIONS AND CONDITIONS.—In con17 ducting the program, the Under Secretary— 

18 (A) shall establish a notification and appli19 cation procedure; 

20 (B) may establish such conditions, and re21 quire such assurances, as may be appropriate to 

22 ensure the efficiency and integrity of the grant 

23 program; and 

24 (C) may make grants under the program 

25 on a matching or nonmatching basis. 


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1 (i) FACILITATION.—The Committee may develop 

2 memoranda of agreement or memoranda of understanding 

3 with universities, States, or other entities to facilitate the 

4 research program. 

5 (j) ANNUAL REPORTS.—The chairman of the Com6 mittee shall submit an annual report to Congress on the 

7 activities carried out under this section in the preceding 

8 fiscal year, and on activities proposed to be carried out 

9 under this section in the current fiscal year. 

10 (k) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

11 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Com12 merce to carry out this section— 

13 (1) $200,000 for fiscal year 2008, to remain 

14 available until expended, for contracting with the 

15 National Academy of Sciences and other expenses 

16 associated with developing the report and research 

17 program; and 

18 (2) $2,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008, 

19 2009, and 2010, to remain available until expended, 

20 to fund grants under subsection (h). 

21 (l) COMMITTEE REPLACES EXISTING AUTHORITY.— 

22 The authority provided by this section supersedes the au23 thority provided by section 7001 of the Oil Pollution Act 

24 of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2761) for the establishment of the 

25 Interagency Committee on Oil Pollution Research under 


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•S 1620 IS 

1 subsection (a) of that section, and that Committee shall 

2 cease operations and terminate on the date of enactment 

3 of this Act. 

4 SEC. 302. GRANT PROJECT FOR DEVELOPMENT OF COST5 EFFECTIVE DETECTION TECHNOLOGIES. 

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

7 date of enactment of this Act, the Commandant shall es8 tablish a grant program for the development of cost-effec9 tive technologies, such as infrared, pressure sensors, and 

10 remote sensing, for detecting discharges of oil from vessels 

11 as well as methods and technologies for improving detec12 tion and recovery of submerged and sinking oils. 

13 (b) MATCHING REQUIREMENT.—The Federal share 

14 of any project funded under subsection (a) may not exceed 

15 50 percent of the total cost of the project. 

16 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 3 years 

17 after the date of enactment of this Act the Secretary shall 

18 provide a report to the Senate Committee on Commerce, 

19 Science, and Transportation, and to the House of Rep20 resentatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastruc21 ture on the results of the program. 

22 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

23 are authorized to be appropriated to the Commandant to 

24 carry out this section $2,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

25 2008, 2009, and 2010, to remain available until expended. 


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1 (e) TRANSFER PROHIBITED.—Administration of the 

2 program established under subsection (a) may not be 

3 transferred within the Department of Homeland Security 

4 or to another department or Federal agency. 

5 SEC. 303. STATUS OF IMPLEMENTATION OF RECOMMENDA6 TIONS BY THE NATIONAL RESEARCH COUN7 CIL. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Within 90 days after the date of 

9 enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall provide a report 

10 to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

11 Transportation and the House of Representatives Com12 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure on whether 

13 the Coast Guard has implemented each of the rec14 ommendations directed at the Coast Guard, or at the 

15 Coast Guard and other entities, in the following National 

16 Research Council reports: 

17 (1) ‘‘Double-Hull Tanker Legislation, An As18 sessment of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990’’, dated 

19 1998. 

20 (2) ‘‘Oil in the Sea III, Inputs, Fates and Ef21 fects’’, dated 2003. 

22 (b) CONTENT.—The report shall contained a detailed 

23 explanation of the actions taken by the Coast Guard pur24 suant to the National Research Council reports. If the 

25 Secretary determines that the Coast Guard has not fully 


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•S 1620 IS 

1 implemented the recommendations, the Secretary shall in2 clude a detailed explanation of the reasons any such rec3 ommendation has not been fully implemented, together 

4 with any recommendations the Secretary deems appro5 priate for implementing any such non-implemented rec6 ommendation. 

7 SEC. 304. GAO REPORT. 

8 Within 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, 

9 the Comptroller General shall provide a written report 

10 with recommendations for reducing the risks and fre11 quency of releases of oil from vessels (both intentional and 

12 accidental) to the Senate Committee on Commerce, 

13 Science, and Transportation and the House of Represent14 atives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

15 that includes the following: 

16 (1) CONTINUING OIL RELEASES.—A summary 

17 of continuing sources of oil pollution from vessels, 

18 the major causes of such pollution, the extent to 

19 which the Coast Guard or other Federal or State en20 tities regulate such sources and enforce such regula21 tions, possible measures that could reduce such re22 leases of oil. 

23 (2) DOUBLE HULLS.— 

24 (A) A description of the various types of 

25 double hulls, including designs, construction, 


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•S 1620 IS 

1 and materials, authorized by the Coast Guard 

2 for United States flag vessels, and by foreign 

3 flag vessels pursuant to international law, and 

4 any changes with respect to what is now au5 thorized compared to the what was authorized 

6 in the past. 

7 (B) A comparison of the potential struc8 tural and design safety risks of the various 

9 types of double hulls described in subparagraph 

10 (A) that have been observed or identified by the 

11 Coast Guard, or in public documents readily 

12 available to the Coast Guard, including suscep13 tibility to corrosion and other structural con14 cerns, unsafe temperatures within the hulls, the 

15 build-up of gases within the hulls, ease of in16 spection, and any other factors affecting reli17 ability and safety. 

18 (3) ALTERNATIVE DESIGNS FOR NON-TANK

19 VESSELS.—A description of the various types of al20 ternative designs for non-tank vessels to reduce risk 

21 of an oil spill, known effectiveness in reducing oil 

22 spills, and a summary of how extensively such de23 signs are being used in the United States and else24 where. 


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•S 1620 IS 

1 (4) RESPONSE EQUIPMENT.—An assessment of 

2 the sufficiency of oil pollution response and salvage 

3 equipment, the quality of existing equipment, new 

4 developments in the United States and elsewhere, 

5 and whether new technologies are being used in the 

6 United States. 

7 SEC. 305. OIL TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE ANAL8 YSIS. 

9 The Secretary of the Department of Homeland Secu10 rity shall, in conjunction with the Secretary of Commerce, 

11 the Secretary of Transportation, the Administrator of the 

12 Environmental Protection Agency, and the heads of other 

13 appropriate Federal agencies, contract with the National 

14 Research Council to conduct an analysis of the condition 

15 and safety of all aspects of oil transportation infrastruc16 ture in the United States, and provide recommendations 

17 to improve such safety, including an assessment of the 

18 adequacy of contingency and emergency plans in the event 

19 of a natural disaster or emergency. 

Æ 


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