H. R. 7776—1699 
(1) the date that is 2 years after such date of enactment; 
or 
(2) the date on which the Federal Communications Commis-
sion promulgates a final rule to authorize a device used to 
mark fishing equipment to operate in radio frequencies assigned 
for Automatic Identification System stations. 
Subtitle D—Environmental Issues 
SEC. 11321. NOTIFICATION OF COMMUNICATION OUTAGES. 
(a) UPGRADES TO RESCUE 21 SYSTEM IN ALASKA.—Not later 
than August 30, 2023, the Commandant shall ensure the timely 
upgrade of the Rescue 21 system in Alaska so as to achieve 98 
percent operational availability of remote fixed facility sites. 
(b) PLAN TO REDUCE OUTAGES.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Commandant shall develop an 
operations and maintenance plan for the Rescue 21 system 
in Alaska that anticipates maintenance needs so as to reduce 
Rescue 21 system outages to the maximum extent practicable. 
(2) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The plan required under para-
graph (1) shall be made available to the public on a publicly 
accessible website. 
(c) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than 180 days after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Commandant shall submit to the 
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 
and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the 
House of Representatives a report that— 
(1) contains a plan for the Coast Guard to notify mariners 
of radio outages for towers owned and operated by the Seven-
teenth Coast Guard District; 
(2) addresses in such plan how the Seventeenth Coast 
Guard will— 
(A) disseminate updates regarding outages on social 
media not less frequently than every 48 hours; 
(B) provide updates on a publicly accessible website 
not less frequently than every 48 hours; 
(C) develop methods for notifying mariners in areas 
in which cellular connectivity does not exist; and 
(D) develop and advertise a web-based communications 
update hub on AM/FM radio for mariners; and 
(3) identifies technology gaps that need to be mitigated 
in order to implement the plan and provides a budgetary assess-
ment necessary to implement the plan. 
(d) CONTINGENCY PLAN.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Commandant shall, in collabora-
tion with relevant Federal, State, Tribal, and other relevant 
entities (including the North Pacific Fishery Management 
Council, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 
Weather Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration Fisheries Service, agencies of the State of 
Alaska, local radio stations, and stakeholders), establish a 
contingency plan to ensure that notifications of an outage of 
the Rescue 21 system in Alaska are broadly disseminated in 
advance of such an outage.
H. R. 7776—1700 
(2) ELEMENTS.—The contingency plan required under para-
graph (1) shall require the Coast Guard to— 
(A) disseminate updates regarding outages of the 
Rescue 21 system in Alaska on social media not less fre-
quently than every 48 hours during an outage; 
(B) provide updates on a publicly accessible website 
not less frequently than every 48 hours during an outage; 
(C) notify mariners in areas in which cellular 
connectivity does not exist; 
(D) develop and advertise a web-based communications 
update hub on AM/FM radio for mariners; and 
(E) identify technology gaps necessary to implement 
the plan and provides a budgetary assessment necessary 
to implement the plan. 
SEC. 11322. IMPROVEMENTS TO COMMUNICATION WITH FISHING 
INDUSTRY AND RELATED STAKEHOLDERS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commandant, in coordination with the 
National Commercial Fishing Safety Advisory Committee estab-
lished by section 15102 of title 46, United States Code, shall develop 
a publicly accessible website that contains all information related 
to fishing industry activities, including vessel safety, inspections, 
enforcement, hazards, training, regulations (including proposed 
regulations), outages of the Rescue 21 system in Alaska and similar 
outages, and any other fishing-related activities. 
(b) AUTOMATIC COMMUNICATIONS.—The Commandant shall pro-
vide methods for regular and automatic email communications with 
stakeholders who elect, through the website developed under sub-
section (a), to receive such communications. 
SEC. 11323. ADVANCE NOTIFICATION OF MILITARY OR OTHER EXER-
CISES. 
In consultation with the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary 
of State, and commercial fishing industry participants, the Com-
mandant shall develop and publish on a publicly available website 
a plan for notifying United States mariners and the operators 
of United States fishing vessels in advance of— 
(1) military exercises in the exclusive economic zone (as 
defined in section 3 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conserva-
tion and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1802)); or 
(2) other military activities that will impact recreational 
or commercial activities. 
SEC. 11324. MODIFICATIONS TO SPORT FISH RESTORATION AND 
BOATING TRUST FUND ADMINISTRATION. 
(a) DINGELL-JOHNSON SPORT FISH RESTORATION ACT AMEND-
MENTS.— 
(1) AVAILABLE
AMOUNTS.—Section 4(b)(1)(B)(i) of the 
Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 
777c(b)(1)(B)(i)) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(i) for the fiscal year that includes November 15, 
2021, the product obtained by multiplying— 
‘‘(I) $12,786,434; and 
‘‘(II) the change, relative to the preceding fiscal 
year, in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban 
Consumers published by the Department of Labor; 
and’’.
H. R. 7776—1701 
(2) AUTHORIZED
EXPENSES.—Section 9(a) of the Dingell- 
Johnson Sport Fish Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 777h(a)) is 
amended— 
(A) in paragraph (7) by striking ‘‘full-time’’; and 
(B) in paragraph (9) by striking ‘‘on a full-time basis’’. 
(b) PITTMAN-ROBERTSON WILDLIFE RESTORATION ACT AMEND-
MENTS.— 
(1) AVAILABLE AMOUNTS.—Section 4(a)(1)(B)(i) of the Pitt-
man-Robertson 
Wildlife 
Restoration 
Act 
(16 
U.S.C. 
669c(a)(1)(B)(i)) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(i) for the fiscal year that includes November 15, 
2021, the product obtained by multiplying— 
‘‘(I) $12,786,434; and 
‘‘(II) the change, relative to the preceding fiscal 
year, in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban 
Consumers published by the Department of Labor; 
and’’. 
(2) AUTHORIZED EXPENSES.—Section 9(a) of the Pittman- 
Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669h(a)) is 
amended— 
(A) in paragraph (7) by striking ‘‘full-time’’; and 
(B) in paragraph (9) by striking ‘‘on a full-time basis’’. 
SEC. 11325. LOAD LINES. 
(a) APPLICATION
TO CERTAIN VESSELS.—During the period 
beginning on the date of enactment of this Act and ending on 
the date that is 3 years after the date on which the report required 
under subsection (b) is submitted, the load line requirements of 
chapter 51 of title 46, United States Code, shall not apply to 
covered fishing vessels. 
(b) GAO REPORT.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 12 months after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United 
States shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, 
and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representa-
tives— 
(A) a report on the safety and seaworthiness of vessels 
described in section 5102(b)(5) of title 46, United States 
Code; and 
(B) recommendations for exempting certain vessels 
from the load line requirements under chapter 51 of title 
46 of such Code. 
(2) ELEMENTS.—The report required under paragraph (1) 
shall include the following: 
(A) An assessment of stability requirements of vessels 
referenced in section 5102(b)(5) of title 46, United States 
Code. 
(B) An analysis of vessel casualties, mishaps, or other 
safety information relevant to load line requirements when 
a vessel is operating part-time as a fish tender vessel. 
(C) An assessment of any other safety information 
as the Comptroller General determines appropriate. 
(D) A list of all vessels that, as of the date of the 
report— 
(i) are covered under section 5102(b)(5) of title 
46, United States Code;
H. R. 7776—1702 
(ii) are acting as part-time fish tender vessels; 
and 
(iii) are subject to any captain of the port zone 
subject to the oversight of the Commandant. 
(3) CONSULTATION.—In preparing the report required under 
paragraph (1), the Comptroller General shall consider consulta-
tion with, at a minimum, the maritime industry, including— 
(A) relevant Federal, State, and Tribal maritime 
associations and groups; and 
(B) relevant federally funded research institutions, 
nongovernmental organizations, and academia. 
(c) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—Nothing in this section shall limit any 
authority available, as of the date of enactment of this Act, to 
the captain of a port with respect to safety measures or any other 
authority as necessary for the safety of covered fishing vessels. 
(d) DEFINITION OF COVERED FISHING VESSEL.—In this section, 
the term ‘‘covered fishing vessel’’ means a vessel that operates 
exclusively in one, or both, of the Thirteenth and Seventeenth 
Coast Guard Districts and that— 
(1) was constructed, under construction, or under contract 
to be constructed as a fish tender vessel before January 1, 
1980; 
(2) was converted for use as a fish tender vessel before 
January 1, 2022, and— 
(A) has a valid stability letter issued in accordance 
with regulations prescribed under chapter 51 of title 46, 
United States Code; and 
(B) the hull and internal structure of the vessel has 
been verified as suitable for intended service as examined 
by a marine surveyor of an organization accepted by the 
Secretary two times in the past five years with no interval 
of more than three years between such examinations; or 
(3) operates part-time as a fish tender vessel for a period 
of less than 180 days. 
SEC. 11326. ACTIONS BY NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES SERVICE TO 
INCREASE ENERGY PRODUCTION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The National Marine Fisheries Service shall, 
immediately upon the enactment of this Act, take action to address 
the outstanding backlog of letters of authorization for the Gulf 
of Mexico. 
(b) SENSE
OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Congress that 
the National Marine Fisheries Service should— 
(1) take immediate action to issue a rule that allows the 
Service to approve outstanding and future applications for let-
ters of authorization consistent with the permitting activities 
of the Service; and 
(2) on or after the effective date of such rule, prioritize 
the consideration of applications in a manner that is consistent 
with applicable Federal law. 
SEC. 11327. AQUATIC NUISANCE SPECIES TASK FORCE. 
(a) RECREATIONAL VESSEL DEFINED.—Section 1003 of the Non-
indigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and Control Act of 1990 
(16 U.S.C. 4702) is amended— 
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (13) through (17) as para-
graphs (15) through (19), respectively; and 
(2) by inserting after paragraph (12) the following: