(B) important feeding, breeding, calving, 
rearing, or migratory habitats of North Atlantic 
right whales that co-occur with areas of high 
risk of mortality, injury, or harassment of such 
whales from vessel strikes, disturbance from de-
velopment activities, and entanglement in com-
mercial fishing gear. 
(3) PILOT
PROJECT
MONITORING
COMPO-
NENTS.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Administrator, in consultation with relevant 
Federal agencies, Tribal governments, and with 
input from affected stakeholders, shall design 
and deploy a real-time monitoring system for 
North Atlantic right whales that includes near 
real-time monitoring methods, technologies, and 
protocols that— 
(i) 
comprise 
sufficient 
detection 
power, spatial coverage, and survey effort 
to detect and localize North Atlantic right 
whales within core foraging habitats; 
(ii) are capable of detecting North At-
lantic right whales acoustically and vis-
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ually, including during periods of poor visi-
bility and darkness; 
(iii) take advantage of dynamic habi-
tat suitability models that help to discern 
the likelihood of North Atlantic right whale 
occurrence in core foraging habitat at any 
given time; 
(iv) coordinate with the Integrated 
Ocean Observing System to leverage moni-
toring assets; 
(v) integrate new near real-time moni-
toring methods and technologies as they 
become available; 
(vi) accurately verify and rapidly com-
municate detection data; and 
(vii) allow for ocean users to con-
tribute data that is verified to be collected 
using comparable near real-time moni-
toring methods and technologies. 
(B) 
NATIONAL
SECURITY
CONSIDER-
ATIONS.—All monitoring methods, technologies, 
and protocols under subparagraph (A) shall be 
consistent with national security considerations 
and interests. 
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(4) PILOT PROGRAM MITIGATION PROTOCOLS.— 
The Secretary shall, in consultation with the Sec-
retary of Homeland Security, Secretary of Defense, 
Secretary of Transportation, and Secretary of the 
Interior, and with input from affected stakeholders, 
develop and deploy mitigation protocols that make 
use of the near real-time monitoring system to direct 
sector-specific mitigation measures that avoid and 
significantly reduce risk of injury and mortality to 
North Atlantic right whales. 
(5) PILOT
PROGRAM
ACCESS
TO
DATA.—The 
Administrator shall provide access to data generated 
by the monitoring system for purposes of scientific 
research and evaluation, and public awareness and 
education, through the NOAA Right Whale Sighting 
Advisory System and WhaleMap or other successive 
public web portals, subject to review for national se-
curity considerations. 
(6) PILOT PROGRAM REPORTING.— 
(A) INTERIM REPORT.—Not later than 2 
years after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Administrator shall submit to the Com-
mittee on Natural Resources of the House of 
Representatives, and the Committee on Com-
merce, Science, and Transportation of the Sen-
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ate, and make available to the public, an in-
terim report that assesses the benefits and effi-
cacy of the North Atlantic right whale near 
real-time monitoring and mitigation pilot pro-
gram. The report shall include— 
(i) a description of the monitoring 
methods and technology in use or planned 
for deployment; 
(ii) analyses of the efficacy of the 
methods and technology in use or planned 
for deployment in detecting North Atlantic 
right whales both individually and in com-
bination; 
(iii) how the monitoring system is di-
rectly informing and improving species 
management and mitigation in near real- 
time across ocean sectors whose activities 
pose a risk to North Atlantic right whales; 
and 
(iv) a prioritized identification of gaps 
in technology or methods requiring future 
research and development. 
(B) FINAL
REPORT.—Not later than 3 
years after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Administrator, in coordination with the 
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Secretary of Defense and the heads of other rel-
evant Federal departments and agencies, shall 
submit to the Committee on Natural Resources 
of the House of Representatives, and the Com-
mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor-
tation of the Senate, and make available to the 
public, a final report, addressing the compo-
nents in subparagraph (A) for the subsequent 1 
year following the publication of the interim re-
port, and including the following— 
(i) a strategic plan to expand the pilot 
program to provide near real-time moni-
toring and mitigation measures to addi-
tional large whale species, including a 
prioritized plan for acquisition, deploy-
ment, and maintenance of monitoring tech-
nologies, and the locations or species for 
which the plan would apply; and 
(ii) a budget and description of appro-
priations necessary to carry out the stra-
tegic plan pursuant to the requirements of 
clause (i). 
(c) ADDITIONAL AUTHORITY.—In carrying out this 
section, the Administrator may enter into and perform 
such contracts, leases, grants, or cooperative agreements 
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as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this sec-
tion on such terms as the Administrator considers appro-
priate, consistent with Federal acquisition regulations. 
(d) REPORTING.—Not later than 1 year after the de-
ployment of the program described in subsection (b) (and 
after completion of the reporting requirements pursuant 
to subsection (b)(5)), and annually thereafter through 
2029, the Administrator shall submit to the Committee 
on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives, 
and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor-
tation of the Senate, and make available to the public, a 
report that assess the benefits and efficacy of the near 
real-time monitoring and mitigation program. 
(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) CORE FORAGING HABITS.—The term ‘‘core 
foraging habitats’’ means areas with biological and 
physical oceanographic features that aggregate 
Calanus finmarchicus and where North Atlantic 
right whales foraging aggregations have been well 
documented. 
(2) LARGE WHALE.—The term ‘‘large whale’’ 
means all Mysticeti species and species within the 
genera Physeter and Orcinus. 
(3) NEAR REAL-TIME.—The term ‘‘near real- 
time’’ means that visual, acoustic, or other detec-
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tions of North Atlantic right whales are transmitted 
and reported as soon as technically feasible, and no 
longer than 24 hours, after they have occurred. 
(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator, to 
support development, deployment, application and ongoing 
maintenance of the monitoring system as required by this 
section, $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 through 
2026. 
SEC. 5. GRANTS TO SUPPORT TECHNOLOGY THAT RE-
DUCES UNDERWATER NOISE FROM VESSELS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 months after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator of 
the Maritime Administration shall establish a grant pro-
gram, to be administered in consultation with the heads 
of other appropriate Federal departments and agencies, 
to provide assistance for the development and implementa-
tion of new or improved technologies that quantifiably re-
duce underwater noise from marine vessels. 
(b) ELIGIBLE USES.—Grants provided under this 
section may be used to develop, assess, and implement new 
or improved technologies that materially reduce under-
water noise from marine vessels. 
(c) OUTREACH.—The Administrator of the Maritime 
Administration shall conduct outreach to eligible entities 
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to provide information on how to apply for assistance 
under this section, the benefits of the program under this 
section, and facilitation of best practices and lessons 
learned. 
(d) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—A person shall be eligible 
for assistance under this section if the person is— 
(1) a corporation established under the laws of 
the United States; 
(2) an individual, partnership, association, or-
ganization or any other combination of individuals, 
provided that each such individual shall be a citizen 
of the United States or lawful permanent resident of 
the United States or a protected individual as such 
term is defined in section 274B(a)(3) of the Immi-
gration and Nationality Act (9 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3)); 
or 
(3) an academic or research organization. 
(e) REQUIREMENTS FOR DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 
CONSULTATION.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Prior to awarding any 
grants under this section, the Administrator of the 
Maritime Administration shall consult with the Sec-
retary of Defense to ensure each eligible entity and 
its proposed activities do not raise national security 
concerns. 
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(2) NOTIFICATION.—In carrying out the re-
quirements of paragraph (1), the Administrator of 
the Maritime Administration shall— 
(A) provide the Secretary of Defense with 
a copy of any grant applications being consid-
ered for funding; and 
(B) ensure such grant applications include 
any information requested by the Secretary of 
Defense to conduct a national security review. 
(3) DETERMINATION OF POTENTIAL ADVERSE 
IMPACT.— 
(A) REQUIREMENT.—Not later than 60 
days after receiving the information requested 
pursuant to paragraph (2), the Secretary of De-
fense shall determine whether a proposed activ-
ity may have a potential adverse impact with 
respect to national security. A determination 
that cannot be completed in the 60-day period 
be extended by mutual agreement between the 
agencies. 
(B) NO DETERMINATION MADE.—A deter-
mination required under this paragraph that 
has not been issued within 120 days, and for 
which the Administrator of the Maritime Ad-
ministration has not agreed to further exten-
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sions, shall be considered complete for the pur-
poses of this subsection and the proposed activ-
ity may move forward. 
(C) LIMITATION.—The Administrator of 
the Maritime Administration may not award 
any grants until the Secretary of Defense has 
completed a determination pursuant to this sub-
section. A proposed activity determined to have 
a potential adverse impact to national security 
may not proceed until modifications are made 
to such proposed activity to resolve national se-
curity concerns. 
(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator of the 
Maritime Administration for carrying out this section, 
$5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 through 2026, 
to remain available until expended. 
SEC. 6. TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT FOR QUIETING UNITED 
STATES GOVERNMENT VESSELS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator 
of the Maritime Administration, in consultation with the 
Commandant of the Coast Guard, the Secretary of De-
fense, the Secretary of Homeland Security, and the Ad-
ministrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad-
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ministration, shall submit to the appropriate committees 
of Congress and publish, a report that includes— 
(1) an identification of existing unclassified 
technologies that reduce underwater noise; and 
(2) an evaluation of the effectiveness and feasi-
bility of incorporating such technologies in the de-
sign, procurement, and construction of non-military 
vessels of the United States Government. 
(b) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS DE-
FINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘appropriate commit-
tees of Congress’’ means— 
(1) the Committee on Armed Services, the 
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor-
tation, the Committee on Environment and Public 
Works, and the Committee on Homeland Security 
and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and 
(2) the Committee on Armed Services, the 
Committee on Energy and Commerce, the Com-
mittee on Homeland Security, the Committee on 
Natural Resources, and the Committee on Transpor-
tation and Infrastructure of the House of Represent-
atives. 
Æ 
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