National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Sexual Harassment and Assault Prevention Improvements Act of 2023

Subjects: Public Lands and Natural Resources, Assault and harassment offenses, Atmospheric science and weather, Congressional oversight, Crime prevention, Crime victims, Criminal investigation, prosecution, interrogation, Department of Commerce, Employment discrimination and employee rights, Government Operations and Politics, Government employee pay, benefits, personnel management, Government studies and investigations, Marine and coastal resources, fisheries, Marine and inland water transportation, Right of privacy, Sex offenses, Transportation safety and security, Worker safety and health


<html><body><pre>[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2990 Introduced in House (IH)]

&lt;DOC&gt;






118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2990

To amend the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 to 
 address sexual harassment involving National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
           Administration personnel, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 28, 2023

 Ms. Bonamici (for herself, Mrs. Gonzalez-Colon, Mr. Huffman, and Ms. 
   Salazar) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
  Committee on Natural Resources, and in addition to the Committee on 
  Transportation and Infrastructure, 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 amend the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 to 
 address sexual harassment involving National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
           Administration personnel, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration Sexual Harassment and Assault Prevention Improvements 
Act of 2023''.

SEC. 2. REFERENCES.

    Except as otherwise specifically provided, whenever in this Act an 
amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment to, or repeal 
of, a provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to a 
provision of subtitle C of title XXXV of Public Law 114-328 (33 U.S.C. 
894 et seq.).

SEC. 3. POLICY ON THE PREVENTION OF AND RESPONSE TO SEXUAL HARASSMENT 
              INVOLVING NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION 
              PERSONNEL.

    Section 3541(f) (33 U.S.C. 894(f)) is amended--
            (1) by inserting ``and equal employment'' after ``sexual 
        harassment'' each place it appears; and
            (2) in paragraph (2)--
                    (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (C) and (D) as 
                subparagraphs (D) and (E), respectively; and
                    (B) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the 
                following:
                    ``(C) A synopsis of each case and the disciplinary 
                action taken, if any, in each case.''.

SEC. 4. ANNUAL REPORT ON SEXUAL ASSAULTS, SEXUAL HARASSMENT, AND EQUAL 
              EMPLOYMENT.

    Section 3548 (33 U.S.C. 894e) is amended--
            (1) by striking the section heading and inserting the 
        following: ``annual report on sexual assaults, sexual 
        harassment, and equal employment in the national oceanic and 
        atmospheric administration.'';
            (2) in subsection (a), by striking ``the sexual assaults 
        involving'' and inserting ``sexual assault and sexual 
        harassment involving and the equal employment of''; and
            (3) in subsection (b)--
                    (A) in paragraph (4), by inserting ``, including a 
                synopsis of each case and the disciplinary action 
                taken, if any, in each case'' before the period at the 
                end; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(5) A summary of the number of change of station, unit 
        transfer, and change of work location requests submitted to the 
        Under Secretary under section 3544(a), including the number of 
        such requests that were denied.
            ``(6) A summary of the number of cases referred to the 
        Coast Guard under this section.
            ``(7) The number of alleged sexual assaults and sexual 
        harassment cases involving fisheries observers, protected 
        species observers, and endangered species observers, 
        including--
                    ``(A) a synopsis of each case and the status of 
                such case;
                    ``(B) the disposition of any investigation; and
                    ``(C) a description of the fishery management 
                region and fishery or the geographic region and type of 
                permitted operation in which the sexual assault or 
                sexual harassment is alleged to have occurred, as 
                appropriate.''.

SEC. 5. INVESTIGATION AND CRIMINAL REFERRAL REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) Technical Amendment.--Sections 3548 and 3549 (33 U.S.C. 894e 
and 894f) are redesignated as sections 3551 and 3552, respectively.
    (b) In General.--Subtitle C of title XXXV (33 U.S.C. 894 et seq.) 
is amended by inserting after section 3547 (33 U.S.C. 894d-2) the 
following:

``SEC. 3548. EXCEPTIONS REGARDING ANONYMITY OF SURVIVORS IN CERTAIN 
              CASES.

    ``(a) In General.--In any case in which an employee, member of the 
commissioned officer corps of the Administration, or covered personnel 
elects restricted or unrestricted reporting under section 3541(b)(3)(B) 
or 3542(b)(5)(B), disclosure of the personally identifying information 
of such individual is authorized to the following persons or 
organizations when disclosure would be for the following reasons:
            ``(1) To Administration staff or law enforcement personnel, 
        if authorized by the survivor in writing.
            ``(2) To Administration staff or law enforcement personnel 
        to prevent or lessen a serious or imminent threat to the health 
        or safety of the survivor or another person.
            ``(3) To a survivor advocate or healthcare provider, if 
        required for the provision of survivor services.
            ``(4) To a State or Federal court, if pursuant to a court 
        order or if disclosure is required by Federal or State statute.
    ``(b) Notice of Disclosure and Privacy Protection.--In any case in 
which information is disclosed under subsection (a), the Secretary 
shall--
            ``(1) make reasonable attempts to provide notice to the 
        individual whose personally identifying information is 
        disclosed; and
            ``(2) take such action as is necessary to protect the 
        privacy and safety of the individual.

``SEC. 3549. RESTRICTED REPORTING.

    ``(a) In General.--Not later than 3 years after the date of the 
enactment of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Sexual 
Harassment and Assault Prevention Improvements Act of 2023, the 
Secretary of Commerce, acting through the Under Secretary for Oceans 
and Atmosphere, shall develop a mechanism to provide a system of 
restricted reporting.
    ``(b) Restricted Reporting Defined.--In this section the term 
`restricted reporting' means a system of reporting that allows 
employees of the Administration, members of the commissioned officer 
corps of the Administration, and covered personnel who allege that they 
have been sexually harassed or sexually assaulted to confidentially 
disclose the details of such sexual harassment or sexual assault to 
specified individuals and receive the services outlined in this 
subtitle--
            ``(1) without the dissemination of the personally 
        identifying information of such individual except as necessary 
        for the provision of such services and as provided by section 
        3548(a); and
            ``(2) without automatically triggering an investigative 
        process.

``SEC. 3550. MARINER REFERRAL.

    ``The Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, acting 
through the Director of the Office of Marine and Aviation Operations 
and in consultation with the Commandant of the Coast Guard, shall, not 
later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of the National 
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Sexual Harassment and Assault 
Prevention Improvements Act of 2023, develop and implement a policy to 
report to the Commandant of the Coast Guard, in accordance with section 
10104 of title 46, United States Code, the names of personnel of the 
Administration who--
            ``(1) are the subject of a claim of an act or offense 
        detrimental to good discipline and safety at sea, such as 
        sexual harassment or sexual assault that is substantiated by an 
        investigation under section 3546, or any other substantiated 
        claim of an act or offense for which suspension or revocation 
        of a credential is either mandatory or sought pursuant to part 
        5 of title 46, Code of Federal Regulations; and
            ``(2) are--
                    ``(A) employees or contractors of the 
                Administration required to hold a valid merchant 
                mariner credential as a condition of employment; or
                    ``(B) crew of a vessel that, at the time of such 
                act or offense, was operating under a contract with the 
                Administration.''.

SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.

    Section 3552 is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 3552. DEFINITIONS.

    ``In this subtitle:
            ``(1) Administration.--The term `Administration' means the 
        National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
            ``(2) Covered personnel.--The term `covered personnel' 
        means an individual who works with or conducts business on 
        behalf of the Administration and includes--
                    ``(A) observers, at-sea monitors, and catch 
                monitors required by the National Marine Fisheries 
                Service to operate on or in commercial fishing vessels, 
                other privately owned vessels, barges, or platforms, 
                and shoreside processing facilities for--
                            ``(i) commercial fisheries observation 
                        required by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
                        Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 
                        et seq.);
                            ``(ii) protected species or endangered 
                        species observation required by the Marine 
                        Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1361 
                        et seq.) or the Endangered Species Act of 1973 
                        (16 U.S.C. 1351 et seq.); or
                            ``(iii) platform removal observation; and
                    ``(B) voting members and executive and 
                administrative staff of regional fishery management 
                councils established by section 302 of the Magnuson-
                Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 
                U.S.C. 1852).
            ``(3) Sexual assault.--The term `sexual assault' has the 
        meaning given the term in section 40002(a) of the Violence 
        Against Women Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 13925(a)).''.

SEC. 7. CONFORMING AND CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.

    (a) Conforming Amendments.--Subtitle C of title XXXV (33 U.S.C. 894 
et seq.) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``individuals who work with or conduct 
        business on behalf of the Administration'' each place it 
        appears and inserting ``covered personnel'';
            (2) by striking ``National Oceanic and Atmospheric'' each 
        place it appears, except--
                    (A) when it appears as ``National Oceanic and 
                Atmospheric Administration Sexual Harassment and 
                Assault Prevention Improvements Act of 2023'';
                    (B) in section 3551, in the section heading; and
                    (C) in section 3552(1);
            (3) by striking the term ``victims'' each place it appears 
        and inserting ``survivors'';
            (4) in section 3541(b)(2)(B), by striking ``victim'' and 
        inserting ``target of sexual harassment'';
            (5) in section 3542--
                    (A) in subsection (b)(9)--
                            (i) by striking ``Victim'' and inserting 
                        ``Survivor''; and
                            (ii) by striking ``victim'' and inserting 
                        ``survivor''; and
                    (B) in subsection (c)--
                            (i) in the heading, by striking ``Victim'' 
                        and inserting ``Survivor'';
                            (ii) in paragraph (2), in the heading, by 
                        striking ``Victim'' and inserting ``Survivor''; 
                        and
                            (iii) by striking the term ``victim'' each 
                        place it appears and inserting ``survivor'';
            (6) in section 3543--
                    (A) in the heading, by striking ``victim'' and 
                inserting ``survivor''; and
                    (B) by striking ``victim'' and inserting 
                ``survivor''; and
            (7) in section 3544--
                    (A) in subsection (a)--
                            (i) by striking ``Victims'' and inserting 
                        ``Survivors''; and
                            (ii) in paragraph (1), by striking ``was'' 
                        each place it appears and inserting ``is''; and
                    (B) by striking ``victim'' each place it appears 
                and inserting ``survivor''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--Each of the tables of contents in section 
2(b) and at the beginning of title XXXV of Public Law 114-328 are 
amended--
            (1) by striking the item relating to section 3543 and 
        inserting the following:

``Sec. 3543. Rights of the survivor of a sexual assault.''; and
            (2) by striking the items relating to sections 3548 and 
        3549 and inserting the following:

``Sec. 3548. Exceptions regarding anonymity of survivors in certain 
                            cases.
``Sec. 3549. Restricted reporting.
``Sec. 3550. Mariner referral.
``Sec. 3551. Annual report on sexual assaults, sexual harassment, and 
                            equal employment in the National Oceanic 
                            and Atmospheric Administration.
``Sec. 3552. Definitions.''.

SEC. 8. PROHIBITED ACTS.

    Section 307(1)(L) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1857(1)(L)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``forcibly''; and
            (2) by striking ``on a vessel''.

SEC. 9. PROHIBITION ON SERVICE IN THE COMMISSIONED OFFICER CORPS OF THE 
              NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION BY 
              INDIVIDUALS CONVICTED OF CERTAIN SEXUAL OFFENSES.

    Section 261(a) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration Commissioned Officer Corps Act of 2002 (33 U.S.C. 
3071(a)) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating paragraph (26) as paragraph (27); and
            (2) by inserting after paragraph (25) the following:
            ``(26) Section 657, relating to prohibition on service by 
        individuals convicted of certain sexual offenses.''.

SEC. 10. DEFINITION OF RESPONSIBLE ENTITY OF A VESSEL.

    Section 10104(g) of title 46, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``or'' at the end;
            (2) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting ``; or''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(3) the Director of the Office of Marine and Aviation 
        Operations, with respect to each vessel owned or operated by 
        the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.''.
                                 &lt;all&gt;
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