H. R. 3619—77 
(1) shall focus on operations that have the highest risks 
of discharge, including operations at night and in inclement 
weather; 
(2) shall consider— 
(A) requirements for the use of equipment, such as 
putting booms in place for transfers, safety, and environ-
mental impacts; 
(B) operational procedures such as manning standards, 
communications protocols, and restrictions on operations 
in high-risk areas; or 
(C) both such requirements and operational procedures; 
and 
(3) shall take into account the safety of personnel and 
effectiveness of available procedures and equipment for pre-
venting or mitigating transfer spills. 
(b) APPLICATION WITH STATE LAWS.—The regulations promul-
gated under subsection (a) do not preclude the enforcement of 
any State law or regulation the requirements of which are at 
least as stringent as requirements under the regulations (as deter-
mined by the Secretary) that— 
(1) applies in State waters; and 
(2) does not conflict with, or interfere with the enforcement 
of, requirements and operational procedures under the regula-
tions. 
SEC. 703. IMPROVEMENTS TO REDUCE HUMAN ERROR AND NEAR MISS 
INCIDENTS. 
(a) REPORT.—Within 1 year after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Secretary shall transmit a report to the Senate Com-
mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure that, using avail-
able data— 
(1) identifies the types of human errors that, combined, 
could cause oil spills, with particular attention to human error 
caused by fatigue, in the past 10 years; 
(2) in consultation with representatives of industry and 
labor and experts in the fields of marine casualties and human 
factors, identifies the most frequent types of near-miss oil spill 
incidents involving vessels such as collisions, allisions, 
groundings, and loss of propulsion in the past 10 years; 
(3) describes the extent to which there are gaps in the 
data required under paragraphs (1) and (2), including gaps 
in the ability to define and identify fatigue, and explains the 
reason for those gaps; and 
(4) includes recommendations by the Secretary and rep-
resentatives of industry and labor and experts in the fields 
of marine casualties and human factors to address the identified 
types of errors and any such gaps in the data. 
(b) MEASURES.—Based on the findings contained in the report 
required by subsection (a), the Secretary shall take appropriate 
action to reduce the risk of oil spills caused by human error. 
(c) CONFIDENTIALITY
OF VOLUNTARILY SUBMITTED INFORMA-
TION.—The identity of a person making a voluntary disclosure under 
this section, and any information obtained from any such voluntary 
disclosure, shall be treated as confidential. 
(d) DISCOVERY
OF VOLUNTARILY SUBMITTED INFORMATION.—
H. R. 3619—78 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in this subsection, 
a party in a judicial proceeding may not use discovery to 
obtain information or data collected or received by the Secretary 
for use in the report required in subsection (a). 
(2) EXCEPTION.— 
(A) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a court may allow 
discovery by a party in a judicial proceeding of data 
described in paragraph (1) if, after an in camera review 
of the information or data, the court decides that there 
is a compelling reason to allow the discovery. 
(B) When a court allows discovery in a judicial pro-
ceeding as permitted under this paragraph, the court shall 
issue a protective order— 
(i) to limit the use of the data to the judicial 
proceeding; and 
(ii) to prohibit dissemination of the data to any 
person who does not need access to the data for the 
proceeding. 
(C) A court may allow data it has decided is discover-
able under this paragraph to be admitted into evidence 
in a judicial proceeding only if the court places the data 
under seal to prevent the use of the data for a purpose 
other than for the proceeding. 
(3) APPLICATION.—Paragraph (1) shall not apply to— 
(A) any disclosure made with actual knowledge that 
the disclosure was false, inaccurate, or misleading; or 
(B) any disclosure made with reckless disregard as 
to the truth or falsity of that disclosure. 
(e) RESTRICTION ON USE OF DATA.—Data that is voluntarily 
submitted for the purpose of the study required under subsection 
(a) shall not be used in an administrative action under chapter 
77 of title 46, United States Code. 
SEC. 704. OLYMPIC COAST NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY. 
The Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard 
is operating and the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans 
and Atmosphere shall revise the area to be avoided off the coast 
of the State of Washington so that restrictions apply to all vessels 
required to prepare a response plan pursuant to section 311(j) 
of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1321(j)) 
(other than fishing or research vessels while engaged in fishing 
or research within the area to be avoided). 
SEC. 705. PREVENTION OF SMALL OIL SPILLS. 
(a) PREVENTION AND EDUCATION PROGRAM.—The Under Sec-
retary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, in consultation 
with the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard 
is operating and other appropriate agencies, shall establish an 
oil spill prevention and education program for small vessels. The 
program shall provide for assessment, outreach, and training and 
voluntary compliance activities to prevent and improve the effective 
response to oil spills from vessels and facilities not required to 
prepare a vessel response plan under the Federal Water Pollution 
Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.), including recreational vessels, 
commercial fishing vessels, marinas, and aquaculture facilities. The 
Under Secretary may provide grants to sea grant colleges and 
institutes designated under section 207 of the National Sea Grant
H. R. 3619—79 
College Program Act (33 U.S.C. 1126) and to State agencies, tribal 
governments, and other appropriate entities to carry out— 
(1) regional assessments to quantify the source, incidence 
and volume of small oil spills, focusing initially on regions 
in the country where, in the past 10 years, the incidence of 
such spills is estimated to be the highest; 
(2) voluntary, incentive-based clean marina programs that 
encourage marina operators, recreational boaters, and small 
commercial vessel operators to engage in environmentally 
sound operating and maintenance procedures and best manage-
ment practices to prevent or reduce pollution from oil spills 
and other sources; 
(3) cooperative oil spill prevention education programs that 
promote public understanding of the impacts of spilled oil and 
provide useful information and techniques to minimize pollu-
tion, including methods to remove oil and reduce oil contamina-
tion of bilge water, prevent accidental spills during maintenance 
and refueling and properly cleanup and dispose of oil and 
hazardous substances; and 
(4) support for programs, including outreach and education 
to address derelict vessels and the threat of such vessels sinking 
and discharging oil and other hazardous substances, including 
outreach and education to involve efforts to the owners of 
such vessels. 
(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are authorized 
to be appropriated to the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans 
and Atmosphere to carry out this section, $10,000,000 for each 
of fiscal years 2010 through 2014. 
SEC. 706. IMPROVED COORDINATION WITH TRIBAL GOVERNMENTS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Within 6 months after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast 
Guard is operating shall complete the development of a tribal 
consultation policy, which recognizes and protects to the maximum 
extent practicable tribal treaty rights and trust assets in order 
to improve the Coast Guard’s consultation and coordination with 
the tribal governments of federally recognized Indian tribes with 
respect to oil spill prevention, preparedness, response and natural 
resource damage assessment. 
(b) INCLUSION OF TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—The Secretary of the 
Department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall ensure 
that, as soon as practicable after identifying an oil spill that is 
likely to have a significant impact on natural or cultural resources 
owned or directly utilized by a federally recognized Indian tribe, 
the Coast Guard will— 
(1) ensure that representatives of the tribal government 
of the affected tribes are included as part of the incident com-
mand system established by the Coast Guard to respond to 
the spill; 
(2) share information about the oil spill with the tribal 
government of the affected tribe; and 
(3) to the extent practicable, involve tribal governments 
in deciding how to respond to the spill. 
(c) COOPERATIVE ARRANGEMENTS.—The Coast Guard may enter 
into memoranda of agreement and associated protocols with Indian 
tribal governments in order to establish cooperative arrangements 
for oil pollution prevention, preparedness, and response. Such
H. R. 3619—80 
memoranda may be entered into prior to the development of the 
tribal consultation and coordination policy to provide Indian tribes 
grant and contract assistance. Such memoranda of agreement and 
associated protocols with Indian tribal governments may include— 
(1) arrangements for the assistance of the tribal govern-
ment to participate in the development of the National Contin-
gency Plan and local Area Contingency Plans to the extent 
they affect tribal lands, cultural and natural resources; 
(2) arrangements for the assistance of the tribal govern-
ment to develop the capacity to implement the National Contin-
gency Plan and local Area Contingency Plans to the extent 
they affect tribal lands, cultural and natural resources; 
(3) provisions on coordination in the event of a spill, 
including agreements that representatives of the tribal govern-
ment will be included as part of the regional response team 
co-chaired by the Coast Guard and the Environmental Protec-
tion Agency to establish policies for responding to oil spills; 
(4) arrangements for the Coast Guard to provide training 
of tribal incident commanders and spill responders for oil spill 
preparedness and response; 
(5) demonstration projects to assist tribal governments in 
building the capacity to protect tribal treaty rights and trust 
assets from oil spills; and 
(6) such additional measures the Coast Guard determines 
to be necessary for oil pollution prevention, preparedness, and 
response. 
(d) FUNDING FOR TRIBAL PARTICIPATION.—Subject to the avail-
ability of appropriations, the Commandant of the Coast Guard 
shall provide assistance to participating tribal governments in order 
to facilitate the implementation of cooperative arrangements under 
subsection (c) and ensure the participation of tribal governments 
in such arrangements. There are authorized to be appropriated 
to the Commandant $500,000 for each of fiscal years 2010 through 
2014 to be used to carry out this section. 
SEC. 707. REPORT ON AVAILABILITY OF TECHNOLOGY TO DETECT THE 
LOSS OF OIL. 
Within 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating 
shall submit a report to the Senate Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation and the House of Representatives Com-
mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure on the availability, 
feasibility, and potential cost of technology to detect the loss of 
oil carried as cargo or as fuel on tank and non-tank vessels greater 
than 400 gross tons. 
SEC. 708. USE OF OIL SPILL LIABILITY TRUST FUND. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1012(a)(5) of the Oil Pollution Act 
of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2712(a)(5)) is amended— 
(1) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) and (C) as subpara-
graphs (C) and (D), respectively; and 
(2) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following: 
‘‘(B) not more than $15,000,000 in each fiscal year 
shall be available to the Under Secretary of Commerce 
for Oceans and Atmosphere for expenses incurred by, and 
activities related to, response and damage assessment 
capabilities of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration;’’.