females give birth to a single calf only once every 4 
to 10 years, they are highly vulnerable to the im-
pacts of human activity and habitat degradation; 
(6) North Atlantic right whales frequently cross 
paths with major shipping lanes and fishing 
grounds, leaving the whales particularly vulnerable 
to vessel collisions and fishing gear entanglements, 
the 2 leading causes of injury and death to the spe-
cies; 
(7) even when North Atlantic right whales do 
not die as a result of fishing gear entanglement, 
those whales can still experience significant sub-le-
thal effects such as chronic stress and reproductive 
failure; 
(8) in August 2017, the National Marine Fish-
eries Service announced an Unusual Mortality Event 
involving North Atlantic right whales in 2017, with 
17 known whale deaths that year alone; 
(9) an Unusual Mortality Event involves a sig-
nificant die-off of a population and, according to the 
Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 
1361 et seq.), demands an immediate response; 
(10) based on the current rate of mortality of 
North Atlantic right whales, and because of the 
small number of breeding females in the population 
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and low birth rates, recent analysis suggests the spe-
cies will lose its ability to recover in merely a few 
decades if human-caused mortality is not reduced 
immediately; 
(11) under the Marine Mammal Protection Act 
of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), United States 
fishermen in certain locations have been required to 
modify their fishing gear and behavior to minimize 
the likelihood of entanglements, including by using 
sinking groundlines, having weak links in buoy lines, 
using multiple traps per buoy, appropriately mark-
ing fishing gear, and complying with area closures 
during North Atlantic right whale migrations; 
(12) vessels in United States waters that are 65 
feet or more in length have been required to comply 
with a 10-knot speed limit in certain locations dur-
ing North Atlantic right whale migrations to reduce 
the threat of vessel collisions; and 
(13) North Atlantic right whales are now mi-
grating farther north into Canadian waters and in 
2017 there were at least 12 North Atlantic right 
whale deaths in Canada’s Gulf of St. Lawrence, in 
addition to the 8 documented deaths in United 
States waters in 2017 and 2018. 
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(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con-
gress that— 
(1) the Governments of the United States and 
Canada must work together to reduce lethal and 
sub-lethal effects of human activities on North At-
lantic right whales; and 
(2) effectively addressing the threats to the 
long-term viability of the North Atlantic right 
whales will require a joint commitment and effort 
from government entities, local communities, marine 
scientists and conservationists, fishermen, owners 
and operators of passenger vessels and others in the 
shipping industry, and other stakeholders. 
SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 
The purposes of this Act are the following: 
(1) To rebuild healthy populations of the North 
Atlantic right whale. 
(2) To assist in the conservation and protection 
of North Atlantic right whales by supporting North 
Atlantic right whale conservation programs that 
minimize conflicts between North Atlantic right 
whales and human activities. 
(3) To provide financial resources for those pro-
grams. 
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TITLE I—NORTH ATLANTIC 
RIGHT WHALE CONSERVATION 
SEC. 101. NORTH ATLANTIC RIGHT WHALE CONSERVATION 
ASSISTANCE. 
(a) ASSISTANCE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the availability of 
funds and in consultation with other Federal offi-
cials, the Secretary of Commerce (in this title re-
ferred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall provide competi-
tive financial assistance, including multiyear grants, 
for projects for the conservation of North Atlantic 
right whales for which project proposals are ap-
proved by the Secretary in accordance with this sec-
tion. 
(2) USE OF EXISTING AUTHORITIES.—Assist-
ance provided under this section shall be carried out 
in a manner consistent with authorities available to 
the Secretary under the Endangered Species Act of 
1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and the Marine 
Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1361 et 
seq.). 
(b) PROJECT PROPOSALS.— 
(1) ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.—A project proposal 
may be submitted to the Secretary under this section 
by— 
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(A) relevant State and tribal agencies, re-
search institutions, and nonprofit organizations 
with expertise required for the conservation of 
North Atlantic right whales; and 
(B) any other individual or entity, as de-
termined appropriate by the Secretary, with the 
expertise required for the conservation of North 
Atlantic right whales, including large whale 
disentanglement teams approved by the Na-
tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 
and members in good standing of the National 
Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Re-
sponse Program, sectors of the shipping and 
fishing industries, fishing gear manufacturers, 
and rope manufacturers. 
(2) FEDERAL PARTNERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES.— 
A Federal agency may not be a lead entity or receive 
funding for a project under this section, but may be 
included as a partner or collaborator on a project 
that receives such funding. 
(3) REQUIRED ELEMENTS.—A project proposal 
shall include— 
(A) a statement of the purposes of the 
project; 
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(B) the name of the entity or individual 
with overall responsibility for the project; 
(C) a description of the qualifications of 
the entity or individuals that will conduct the 
project; 
(D) a description of— 
(i) methods for project implementa-
tion and outcome assessment; 
(ii) staffing and stakeholder engage-
ment for the project; 
(iii) the logistics of the project; 
(iv) an estimated timeline for the 
project; and 
(v) 
anticipated 
outcomes 
of 
the 
project; 
(E) a proposed budget for the funds and 
time required to complete the project; 
(F) information regarding the source and 
amount of matching funding available for the 
project; 
(G) information that demonstrates the 
clear potential of the project to contribute to 
the conservation of North Atlantic right whales; 
and 
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(H) any other information that the Sec-
retary considers to be necessary for evaluating 
the eligibility of the project for funding under 
this Act. 
(c) ANNUAL GRANT PROJECT PROPOSAL SOLICITA-
TION, REVIEW, AND APPROVAL.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall annu-
ally— 
(A) solicit project proposals for grants 
under this section; 
(B) provide to other Federal officials, as 
appropriate, copies of each proposal submitted 
in response to the solicitation; and 
(C) review each such proposal on a time-
line that recognizes the urgency of the declining 
North Atlantic right whale population to deter-
mine whether the proposal meets the criteria 
specified in subsection (d). 
(2) 
CONSULTATION; 
APPROVAL
OR
DIS-
APPROVAL.—Subject to the availability of funds, the 
Secretary shall, with respect to each project proposal 
submitted under this section, and after consulting 
with other Federal officials, as appropriate— 
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(A) consult with respect to the proposal 
with the government of each State and foreign 
country in which the project is to be conducted; 
(B) after taking into consideration any 
comments resulting from the consultation and 
any potential losses that could be incurred to 
the fishing industry as a result of the proposal, 
approve or disapprove the proposal; and 
(C) provide written notification of the ap-
proval or disapproval to the individual or entity 
that submitted the proposal, other Federal offi-
cials, and each State and foreign country de-
scribed in subparagraph (A). 
(d) CRITERIA FOR APPROVAL.—The Secretary may 
approve a project proposal under this section if the project 
shows promise for contributing to recovering and sus-
taining a viable population of North Atlantic right whales 
in the wild by assisting efforts to— 
(1) implement conservation programs; 
(2) address the unintentional conflicts between 
humans and North Atlantic right whales through de-
velopment, testing, and use of innovative technology 
or other methods to reduce the lethal and sub-lethal 
effects on North Atlantic right whales from vessel 
collisions and fishing gear entanglements; 
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(3) promote cooperative projects on such topics 
with foreign governments; or 
(4) promote cooperative projects on such topics 
with affected local communities, small businesses 
such as fishermen, others in the private sector, or 
nongovernmental organizations. 
(e) PRIORITY.—To the extent practicable, in deter-
mining whether to approve project proposals under this 
section, the Secretary shall prioritize projects that are de-
signed to reduce the lethal and sub-lethal effects of human 
activities on North Atlantic right whales. In prioritizing 
such projects, the Secretary shall prioritize, among such 
projects, projects that are cooperative in nature and in-
clude fishing or shipping sector participants. 
(f) MATCHING REQUIREMENT.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (3), the non-Federal share of the costs of an 
activity conducted with financial assistance under 
this section shall be 25 percent of such costs. 
(2) IN-KIND
CONTRIBUTIONS.—The Secretary 
may apply to the non-Federal share of an activity 
conducted with financial assistance under this sec-
tion the amount of funds, and the fair market value 
of property and services, provided by non-Federal 
sources and used for the activity. 
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(3) WAIVER
OF
REQUIREMENTS.—The Sec-
retary may waive the application of paragraph (1) if 
the Secretary finds that such waiver is necessary to 
support a conservation project that the Secretary 
has identified as of high priority. 
(g) PROJECT REPORTING.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Each individual or entity 
that receives assistance under this section for a 
project shall submit to the Secretary periodic reports 
(at such intervals as the Secretary may require) that 
include all information that the Secretary, after con-
sultation with other government officials, determines 
is necessary to evaluate the progress and success of 
the project for the purposes of ensuring positive re-
sults, assessing problems, and fostering improve-
ments. 
(2) AVAILABILITY
TO
THE
PUBLIC.—Reports 
under paragraph (1), and any other documents re-
lating to projects for which financial assistance is 
provided under this Act, shall be made available to 
the public in a timely manner. 
SEC. 102. NORTH ATLANTIC RIGHT WHALE INTERAGENCY 
BUDGET. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Office of 
Management and Budget shall include, in the budget of 
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the President submitted to Congress under section 
1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, for fiscal year 
2021 and each fiscal year thereafter, an interagency budg-
et that displays for each Federal agency that engages in 
North Atlantic right whale activities— 
(1) the amount of appropriations and expendi-
tures for the preceding fiscal year for such activities 
and a description of such activities; 
(2) the estimated amount to be expended dur-
ing the current fiscal year for such activities and a 
description of such activities; and 
(3) the amount estimated to be necessary for 
the next fiscal year for such activities and a descrip-
tion of such activities. 
(b) NORTH ATLANTIC RIGHT WHALE ACTIVITIES 
DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘North Atlantic 
right whale activities’’ means any activity of a Federal 
agency to study, observe, monitor, manage, protect, con-
serve, or restore the North Atlantic right whale population 
through direct or indirect means, including through the 
provision of competitive financial assistance to non-Fed-
eral entities. 
SEC. 103. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 
Not later than 2 years after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary 
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shall submit to Congress a report on the results and effec-
tiveness of projects receiving assistance provided under 
this title, including recommendations concerning how this 
title might be improved and whether funding for this title 
should be continued in the future. 
SEC. 104. FUNDING. 
(a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 
(1) AUTHORIZATION.—There is authorized to 
be appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this 
title $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2019 
through 2029. 
(2) 
ADMINISTRATIVE
EXPENSES.—Of 
the 
amounts authorized to be appropriated under this 
subsection for a fiscal year, the Secretary may ex-
pend not more than 5 percent, or up to $80,000, 
whichever is greater, to pay the administrative ex-
penses necessary to carry out this Act. 
(3) 
SUPPLEMENT
NOT
SUPPLANT.—The 
amount authorized to be appropriated by paragraph 
(1) shall supplement and not supplant other 
amounts available to the Secretary. 
(b) ACCEPTANCE AND USE OF DONATIONS.—The 
Secretary may accept, receive, solicit, hold, administer, 
and use any gift, devise, or bequest to provide assistance 
under section 5. 
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TITLE II—CONTINUOUS 
PLANKTON RECORDER 
SEC. 201. SURVEY. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, and on an ongoing basis 
thereafter, the Secretary of Commerce shall conduct a con-
tinuous plankton recorder survey. 
(b) REQUIRED ELEMENTS.—For the purpose of con-
ducting the survey required under subsection (a), the 
Northeast Fisheries Science Center shall— 
(1) to the extent possible, utilize the resources 
of and partner with, on a volunteer basis, research 
institutions, nonprofit organizations, commercial ves-
sels, and other Federal agencies; 
(2) in as short a time as possible, ensure rel-
evant survey samples and results are analyzed, 
stored, archived, and made publicly available; 
(3) prioritize the collection of plankton samples 
and data that inform the conservation of North At-
lantic right whales; and 
(4) to the extent practicable, coordinate with 
the Government of Canada to develop a transbound-
ary understanding of plankton abundance and dis-
tribution. 
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(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—To carry 
out this section there is authorized to be appropriated to 
the Secretary of Commerce $300,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2019 through 2029. 
Æ 
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