Great Lakes Environmental Sensitivity Index Act of 2017

To require the Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere to update periodically the environmental sensitivity index products of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for each coastal area of the Great Lakes, and for other purposes. 1. Update to environmental sensitivity index products of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for Great Lakes (a) Update required Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act and not less frequently than once every 7 years thereafter, the Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere shall update the environmental sensitivity index products of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for each coastal area of the Great Lakes. (b) Environmental sensitivity index product defined In this subsection, the term environmental sensitivity index product (c) Authorization of appropriations (1) In general There is authorized to be appropriated to the Under Secretary $7,500,000 to carry out this section. (2) Availability Amounts appropriated or otherwise made available pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be available to the Under Secretary for the purposes set forth in such paragraph until expended. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Great Lakes Environmental Sensitivity Index Act of 2017 2. Update to environmental sensitivity index products of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for Great Lakes (a) Update required environmental sensitivity index products for Great Lakes Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere shall commence updating the environmental sensitivity index products of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for each coastal area of the Great Lakes. (b) Periodic updates for environmental sensitivity index products generally Subject to the availability of appropriations and the priorities set forth in subsection (c), the Under Secretary shall— (1) periodically update the environmental sensitivity index products of the Administration; and (2) endeavor to do so not less frequently than once every 7 years. (c) Priorities When prioritizing geographic areas to update environmental sensitivity index products, the Under Secretary shall consider— (1) the age of existing environmental sensitivity index products for the areas; (2) the occurrence of extreme events, be it natural or man-made, which have significantly altered the shoreline or ecosystem since the last update; (3) the natural variability of shoreline and coastal environment; and (4) the volume of vessel traffic and general vulnerability to spilled pollutants. (d) Environmental sensitivity index product defined In this subsection, the term environmental sensitivity index product (e) Authorization of appropriations (1) In general There is authorized to be appropriated to the Under Secretary $7,500,000 to carry out subsection (a). (2) Availability Amounts appropriated or otherwise made available pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be available to the Under Secretary for the purposes set forth in such paragraph until expended. October 31, 2017 Reported with an amendment

Summary: Great Lakes Environmental Sensitivity Index Act of 2017 (Sec. 2) This bill requires the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to commence updating its environmental sensitivity index products for each coastal area of the Great Lakes. An environmental sensitivity index product is a map or similar tool that is utilized to identify sensitive shoreline, coastal or offshore, resources prior to an oil spill event. In addition, NOAA must periodically update all of its environmental sensitivity index products and endeavor to do so at least once every seven years.