I 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5001 

To establish a pilot program to develop a comprehensive system of ocean 

and coastal observations for the Nation’s oceans, coasts, and Great 

Lakes, including enhanced security at United States ports, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 22, 2004 

Mr. WELDON of Pennsylvania (for himself, Mr. ALLEN, and Mr. GREENWOOD) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Resources, and in addition to the Committee on Science, for a period 

to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 

concerned 

A BILL 

To establish a pilot program to develop a comprehensive 

system of ocean and coastal observations for the Nation’s 

oceans, coasts, and Great Lakes, including enhanced security at United States ports, 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 ‘‘Ocean and Coastal 

5 Observation Systems Act of 2004’’. 
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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 

2 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) The 95,000-mile coastline of the United 

4 States is vital to the Nation’s homeland security, 

5 transportation, trade, environmental and human 

6 health, recreation and tourism, food production, sci7 entific research and education, historical and cul8 tural heritage, and energy production. 

9 (2) More than half of the Nation’s population 

10 lives and works in coastal communities that together 

11 make up 11 percent of its land and its most eco12 logically and economically important regions. These 

13 regions support approximately 190 seaports, contain 

14 most of the Nation’s largest cities, and provide ac15 cess to coastal waters rich in natural resources. 

16 (3) The Nation’s coastal waters and Great 

17 Lakes provide tremendous value to the Nation’s 

18 economy. The Nation’s ports handle goods valued at 

19 more than $700,000,000,000 annually and nearly 

20 half of the goods, including energy products, contain 

21 hazardous materials; the value of the fishing indus22 try exceeds $28,000,000,000 annually; the value of 

23 the recreational fishing industry is estimated at 

24 $20,000,000,000 annually; and the value of the off25 shore oil and gas industry is between 

26 $25,000,000,000 and $40,000,000,000 annually. 
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1 (4) The rich biodiversity of marine organisms 

2 provides society with essential food resources, a 

3 promising source of marine products with commer4 cial and medical potential, and an important con5 tribution to the national economy. 

6 (5) The oceans and the Great Lakes drive cli7 mate and weather factors causing severe weather 

8 events and threatening the health of coastal eco9 systems and communities by creating or affecting 

10 both natural and manmade coastal hazards such as 

11 hurricanes, tsunamis, erosion, oil spills, harmful 

12 algal blooms, and pollution, which can each pose 

13 threats to human health and safety. 

14 (6) Each year, the Coast Guard relies on ocean 

15 information to save 4,380 people, conducts over 

16 65,000 rescue missions, and carries out more than 

17 11,680 environmental cleanups and responses to pol18 lution. 

19 (7) Safeguarding homeland security requires 

20 improved monitoring of the Nation’s ports and 

21 coastline, including the ability to track vessels and 

22 to provide rapid response teams with real-time envi23 ronmental conditions necessary for their work. 

24 (8) Advances in sensing technologies and sci25 entific understanding have made possible long-term 
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1 and continuous observation from shore, space, and 

2 in situ of ocean and coastal characteristics and con3 ditions. 

4 (9) Many elements of an ocean and coastal ob5 serving system are in place but require Federal in6 vestment to consolidate, complete, sustain, and inte7 grate. 

8 (10) National investment in a sustained and in9 tegrated ocean and coastal observing system and in 

10 coordinated programs of research would assist the 

11 Nation and the world in understanding the oceans 

12 and the global climate system, strengthen homeland 

13 security, improve weather and climate forecasts, 

14 strengthen management of marine resources, im15 prove the safety and efficiency of maritime oper16 ations, and mitigate coastal hazards. 

17 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are to pro18 vide for— 

19 (1) the development of an integrated ocean ob20 serving system that provides the data and informa21 tion required to ensure national security and the 

22 quality of life, sustains economic development, sus23 tains and restores healthy marine ecosystems and 

24 the resources they support, enables advances in sci-
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1 entific understanding of the oceans, and strengthens 

2 science education and communication; 

3 (2) implementation of a research and develop4 ment program to better understand the oceans and 

5 achieve the goals of an integrated ocean observing 

6 system; 

7 (3) implementation of a data and information 

8 management system required by all components of 

9 an integrated ocean and coastal observing system 

10 and related research; and 

11 (4) establishment of a system of regional ocean 

12 and coastal observing systems to address local needs 

13 for ocean information. 

14 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

15 In this Act, the following definitions apply: 

16 (1) COUNCIL.—The term ‘‘Council’’ means the 

17 National Ocean Research Leadership Council estab18 lished under section 7902(a) of title 10, United 

19 States Code. 

20 (2) IOOS.—The term ‘‘IOOS’’ means the inte21 grated ocean and coastal observing system to be es22 tablished by the Council under section 4(a). 

23 (3) NATIONAL OCEANOGRAPHIC PARTNERSHIP

24 PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘National Oceanographic 

25 Partnership Program’’ means the program estab-
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1 lished under section 7901 of title 10, United States 

2 Code. 

3 (4) INTERAGENCY PROGRAM OFFICE.—The 

4 term ‘‘interagency program office’’ means the office 

5 established under section 4(d). 

6 SEC. 4. INTEGRATED OCEAN AND COASTAL OBSERVING 

7 SYSTEM. 

8 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The President, acting 

9 through the Council, shall carry out a pilot program to 

10 establish an integrated ocean and coastal observing system 

11 of monitoring, data communication and management, 

12 analysis, modeling, and research designed to provide data 

13 and information for the timely detection and prediction 

14 of changes occurring in the marine and coastal environ15 ment that impact the Nation’s social, economic, and eco16 logical systems. The IOOS shall provide for continuous 

17 and quality-controlled observations of the oceans and 

18 coasts for the following purposes: 

19 (1) Improving the health of the Nation’s 

20 oceans, coasts, and Great Lakes. 

21 (2) Protecting human lives and livelihoods from 

22 hazards. 

23 (3) Supporting national defense and homeland 

24 security efforts. 
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1 (4) Understanding the effects of human activi2 ties and natural variability on the state of the ocean 

3 and coasts and the Nation’s socioeconomic well4 being. 

5 (5) Measuring, explaining, and predicting envi6 ronmental changes. 

7 (6) Providing for the sustainable use, protec8 tion, and enjoyment of ocean and coastal resources. 

9 (7) Providing a scientific basis for implementa10 tion and refinement of ecosystem-based manage11 ment. 

12 (8) Educating the public about the role and im13 portance of the oceans in daily life. 

14 (9) Tracking and understanding climate change 

15 and the ocean’s and Great Lake’s roles in it. 

16 (10) Supplying important information to ma17 rine-related businesses such as marine transpor18 tation, aquaculture, fisheries, and offshore energy 

19 production. 

20 (b) SYSTEM ELEMENTS.—In order to fulfill the pur21 poses of this Act, the IOOS shall consist of the following 

22 program elements: 

23 (1) A national observation program to fulfill na24 tional priorities, including the Nation’s contribution 

25 to the Global Ocean Observing System. 
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1 (2) A network of regional associations to man2 age the regional ocean and coastal observing and in3 formation programs that collect, measure, and dis4 seminate data and information products to meet re5 gional needs. 

6 (3) A data management and communication 

7 system for the timely integration and dissemination 

8 of data and information products from the national 

9 and regional systems. 

10 (4) A research and development program con11 ducted under the guidance of the Council and imple12 mented through the National Oceanographic Part13 nership Program. 

14 (5) An outreach, education, and training pro15 gram that augments existing programs, such as the 

16 National Sea Grant program and the Centers for 

17 Ocean Science Education Excellence program, to en18 sure the use of the data and information for improv19 ing public education and awareness of the Nation’s 

20 oceans and building the technical expertise required 

21 to operate and improve the IOOS. 

22 (c) COUNCIL FUNCTIONS.—In carrying out respon23 sibilities under this section, the Council shall— 

24 (1) serve as the oversight body for the design 

25 and implementation of all aspects of the IOOS; 
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1 (2) adopt plans and budgets that are designed 

2 and maintained by the interagency program office; 

3 (3) coordinate the IOOS with other earth ob4 serving activities and the Global Ocean Observing 

5 System; 

6 (4) coordinate and administer a program of re7 search and development under the National Oceano8 graphic Partnership Program to support the oper9 ation of an integrated ocean and coastal observing 

10 system and to advance the understanding of the 

11 oceans; 

12 (5) establish pilot projects to develop technology 

13 and methods for advancing the development of the 

14 IOOS; 

15 (6) support the development of institutional 

16 mechanisms to further the goals of the program and 

17 provide for the capitalization of the required infra18 structure; 

19 (7) provide, as appropriate, support for and 

20 representation on United States delegations to inter21 national meetings on ocean and coastal observing 

22 programs; and 

23 (8) in consultation with the Secretary of State, 

24 coordinate relevant Federal activities with those of 

25 other nations. 
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1 (d) INTERAGENCY PROGRAM OFFICE.— 

2 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established 

3 under the Council an interagency program office to 

4 be known as ‘‘OceanUS’’. 

5 (2) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The interagency pro6 gram office shall be responsible for program plan7 ning and coordination of the IOOS. The interagency 

8 program office shall— 

9 (A) prepare annual and long-term plans 

10 for consideration by the Council for the design 

11 and implementation of the IOOS that promote 

12 collaboration among Federal agencies and re13 gional associations in developing the global and 

14 national observing systems, including identifica15 tion and refinement of a core set of variables to 

16 be measured by all systems; 

17 (B) coordinate the development of agency 

18 budgets for implementation of the IOOS, in19 cluding budgets for the regional associations; 

20 (C) establish standards and protocols for 

21 data management and communications, includ22 ing quality standards, in consultation with par23 ticipating Federal agencies and regional asso24 ciations; 
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1 (D) certify the regional associations and 

2 establish a process for their periodic review and 

3 recertification; and 

4 (E) establish an external technical com5 mittee to provide biannual review of the IOOS. 

6 (e) LEAD FEDERAL AGENCY.—The National Oceanic 

7 and Atmospheric Administration shall be the lead Federal 

8 agency for implementation and operation of the IOOS. 

9 Based on the plans prepared by the interagency program 

10 office and adopted by the Council, the Administrator of 

11 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 

12 shall— 

13 (1) coordinate implementation, operation, and 

14 improvement of the IOOS; 

15 (2) establish efficient and effective administra16 tive procedures to allocate funds to other Federal 

17 agencies and regional associations in a timely man18 ner and according to the budget adopted by the 

19 Council; and 

20 (3) implement and maintain the appropriate 

21 elements of the IOOS. 

22 (f) REGIONAL OCEAN AND COASTAL OBSERVING

23 SYSTEMS.—Regional associations shall be responsible for 

24 the development and operation of regional ocean and 

25 coastal observing systems to meet the information needs 
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1 of the users groups in the region while adhering to na2 tional standards. A regional association shall— 

3 (1) demonstrate an organizational structure ca4 pable of supporting and integrating all aspects of a 

5 regional ocean and coastal observing and informa6 tion program within a region; 

7 (2) prepare and have approved by the inter8 agency program office a strategic operations plan 

9 that ensures the operation and support of regional 

10 ocean and coastal observing systems pursuant to the 

11 standards established by the Council; and 

12 (3) provide information products for multiple 

13 users in the region. 

14 (g) CIVIL LIABILITY.—For purposes of section 

15 1346(b)(1) and chapter 171 of title 28, United States 

16 Code, any regional ocean and coastal observing system 

17 that is designated part of a regional association under this 

18 section shall, in carrying out the purposes of this Act, be 

19 deemed to be part of the National Oceanic and Atmos20 pheric Administration, and any employee of such system, 

21 while acting within the scope of his or her employment 

22 in carrying out such purposes, shall be deemed to be an 

23 employee of the Government. 
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1 SEC. 5. INTERAGENCY FINANCING. 

2 The departments and agencies represented on the 

3 Council are authorized to participate in interagency fi4 nancing and share, transfer, receive, obligate, and expend 

5 funds appropriated to any member of the Council for the 

6 purposes of carrying out any administrative or pro7 grammatic project or activity under this Act or under the 

8 National Oceanographic Partnership Program, including 

9 support for the interagency program office, a common in10 frastructure, and system integration for an ocean and 

11 coastal observing system. Funds may be transferred 

12 among such departments and agencies through an appro13 priate instrument that specifies the goods, services, or 

14 space being acquired from another Council member and 

15 the costs of the same. 

16 SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

17 (a) OBSERVING SYSTEM AUTHORIZATION.—For de18 velopment and implementation of an integrated ocean and 

19 coastal observing system under section 4, including finan20 cial assistance to the interagency program office, to the 

21 regional associations for the implementation of regional 

22 ocean and coastal observing systems, and to the depart23 ments and agencies represented on the Council, there are 

24 authorized, in addition to any amounts previously author25 ized, to be appropriated to the National Oceanic and At-
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1 mospheric Administration $100,000,000 for fiscal year 

2 2006. 

3 (b) REGIONAL OCEAN AND COASTAL OBSERVING

4 SYSTEMS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Based on guidelines formu6 lated by the interagency program office and ap7 proved by the Council, the Administrator of the Na8 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shall 

9 provide funding to certified regional associations to 

10 design, implement, operate, and improve regional 

11 ocean and coastal observing and information sys12 tems. 

13 (2) FUNDING.—To carry out paragraph (1), the 

14 Administrator shall set aside from amounts appro15 priated pursuant to subsection (a) $50,000,000 for 

16 fiscal year 2006. 

17 (c) AVAILABILITY.—Sums appropriated pursuant to 

18 this section shall remain available until expended. 

19 SEC. 7. REPORTING REQUIREMENT. 

20 Not later than March 31, 2006, the President, acting 

21 through the Council, shall transmit to Congress a report 

22 on the pilot program established under section 4. The re23 port shall include a description of activities carried out 

24 under the program, an evaluation of the effectiveness of 

25 the program, and recommendations concerning reauthor-
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1 ization of the program and funding levels for the program 

2 in succeeding fiscal years. 

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