351 
of prior violations, and such other mat-
ters as justice may require. 
‘‘(2) CIVIL ACTIONS.—At the request of 
the Secretary, the Attorney General may 
bring a civil action in an appropriate dis-
trict court of the United States to enforce 
this section or any regulation issued 
under this section. Any court before 
which such an action is brought may 
award appropriate relief, including tem-
porary or permanent injunctions and 
civil penalties. 
‘‘(m) CONSULTATION WITH CANADA, MEXICO, 
AND OTHER FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS.—In devel-
oping the guidelines and regulations to be 
issued under this section, the Secretary is en-
couraged to consult with the Government of 
Canada, the Government of Mexico and any 
other government of a foreign country that 
the Secretary, after consultation with the 
Task Force, determines to be necessary to de-
velop and implement an effective inter-
national program for preventing the uninten-
tional introduction and spread of aquatic nui-
sance species through ballast water. 
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‘‘(n) 
INTERNATIONAL
COOPERATION.—The 
Secretary, in cooperation with the Under Sec-
retary, the Secretary of State, the Adminis-
trator, the heads of other relevant Federal 
agencies, the International Maritime Organi-
zation of the United Nations, and the Commis-
sion on Environmental Cooperation estab-
lished pursuant to the North American Free 
Trade Agreement, is encouraged to enter into 
negotiations with the governments of foreign 
countries to develop and implement an effec-
tive international program for preventing the 
unintentional introduction and spread of 
aquatic invasive species. The Secretary is par-
ticularly encouraged to seek bilateral or mul-
tilateral agreements with Canada, Mexico, 
and other nations in the Wider Caribbean Re-
gion (as defined in the Convention for the 
Protection and Development of the Marine 
Environment of the Wider Caribbean, signed 
at Cartagena on March 24, 1983 (TIAF 11085)), 
to carry out the objectives of this section. 
‘‘(o) NONDISCRIMINATION.—The Secretary 
shall ensure that foreign vessels do not re-
ceive more favorable treatment than vessels 
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353 
of the United States when the Secretary per-
forms studies, reviews compliance, deter-
mines effectiveness, establishes requirements, 
or performs any other responsibilities under 
this Act. 
‘‘(p) CONSULTATION WITH TASK FORCE.— 
The Secretary shall consult with the Task 
Force in carrying out this section. 
‘‘(q) PREEMPTION.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided 
in subsection (i)(4) but notwithstanding 
any other provision of law, the provisions 
of subsections (e) and (f) supersede any 
provision of State or local law that is in-
consistent with the requirements of those 
subsections or that conflicts with the re-
quirements of those subsections. 
‘‘(2) GREATER PENALTIES OR FEES.—For 
purpose of paragraph (1), the imposition 
by State or local law of greater penalties 
or fees for acts or omissions that are vio-
lations of such law and also violations of 
this Act or the imposition by a State of 
incentives under subsection (f)(9)(B) shall 
not be considered to be inconsistent, or 
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354 
to conflict, with the requirements of sub-
sections (e) and (f). 
‘‘(3) RECEPTION FACILITIES.—The stand-
ards issued by the Secretary or the heads 
of other appropriate Federal agencies 
under subsection (f)(2) do not supersede 
any more stringent standard under any 
otherwise applicable Federal, State, or 
local law. 
‘‘(r) COAST
GUARD
REPORT
ON
OTHER 
SOURCES
OF
VESSEL-BOURNE
NUISANCE
SPE-
CIES.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 
‘‘(A) HULL-FOULING AND OTHER VES-
SEL SOURCES.—Not later than 180 days 
after the date of enactment of the 
Ballast Water Treatment Act of 2007, 
the Secretary shall transmit a report 
to 
the 
Committee 
on 
Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the 
Senate and the Committee on Trans-
portation and Infrastructure of the 
House of Representatives on vessel- 
related pathways of harmful aquatic 
organisms and pathogens other than 
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355 
ballast water and sediment, including 
vessel hulls and equipment, and from 
vessels equipped with ballast tanks 
that carry no ballast water on board. 
‘‘(B) BEST PRACTICES.— 
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—As soon as 
practicable, the Secretary shall 
develop best practices standards 
and procedures designed to re-
duce the introduction and spread 
of invasive species into and with-
in the United States from vessels 
and establish a timeframe for im-
plementation of those standards 
and procedures by vessels. Such 
standards and procedures shall 
include 
designation 
of 
geo-
graphical locations for uptake 
and discharge of untreated bal-
last water, as well as standards 
and procedure for other vessel 
pathways of aquatic invasive spe-
cies. 
‘‘(ii) REPORT.—The Secretary 
shall transmit a report to the 
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356 
committees referred to in sub-
paragraph 
(A) 
describing 
the 
standards and procedures devel-
oped under this subparagraph 
and 
the 
implementation 
time-
frame, together with such rec-
ommendations as the Secretary 
determines appropriate. 
‘‘(iii) REGULATIONS.—The Sec-
retary may issue regulations to 
incorporate and enforce stand-
ards and procedures developed 
under this paragraph. 
‘‘(2) TRANSITING
VESSELS.—Not later 
than 180 days after the date of enactment 
of the Ballast Water Treatment Act of 
2007, the Secretary shall transmit a re-
port to the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the Sen-
ate and the Committee on Transportation 
and Infrastructure of the House of Rep-
resentatives containing— 
‘‘(A) an assessment of the mag-
nitude and potential adverse impacts 
of ballast water operations from for-
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357 
eign vessels designed, adapted, or 
constructed to carry ballast water 
that are transiting waters subject to 
the jurisdiction of the United States; 
and 
‘‘(B) recommendations, including 
legislative recommendations if appro-
priate, of options for addressing bal-
last water operations of those ves-
sels.’’. 
(b) DEFINITIONS.—Section 1003 of the Non-
indigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and 
Control Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 4702) is amend-
ed— 
(1) by redesignating— 
(A) paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) as 
paragraphs (2), (3), and (4), respec-
tively; 
(B) paragraphs (4), (5), and (6) as 
paragraphs (8), (9), and (10), respec-
tively; 
(C) paragraphs (7), (8), (9), and 
(10) as paragraphs (12), (13), (14), and 
(15), respectively; 
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358 
(D) paragraphs (11) and (12) as 
paragraphs (17) and (18), respec-
tively; 
(E) paragraphs (13), (14), and (15) 
as paragraphs (20), (21), and (22), re-
spectively; 
(F) paragraph (16) as paragraph 
(27); and 
(G) paragraph (17) as paragraph 
(23); 
(2) by moving paragraph (23), as so 
redesignated, after paragraph (22), as so 
redesignated; 
(3) by inserting before paragraph (2), 
as so redesignated, the following: 
‘‘(1) ‘Administrator’ means the Admin-
istrator of the Environmental Protection 
Agency;’’; 
(4) by striking paragraph (4), as so re-
designated, and inserting the following: 
‘‘(4) ‘ballast water’ means— 
‘‘(A) water taken on board a ves-
sel to control trim, list, draught, sta-
bility, or stresses of the vessel, includ-
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359 
ing matter suspended in such water; 
or 
‘‘(B) any water placed into a bal-
last tank during cleaning, mainte-
nance, or other operations;’’; 
(5) by inserting after paragraph (4), 
as so redesignated and amended, the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(5) ‘ballast water capacity’ means the 
total volumetric capacity of any tanks, 
spaces, or compartments on a vessel that 
is used for carrying, loading, or dis-
charging ballast water, including any 
multi-use tank, space, or compartment 
designed to allow carriage of ballast 
water; 
‘‘(6) 
‘ballast 
water 
management’ 
means mechanical, physical, chemical, 
and biological processes used, either sin-
gularly or in combination, to remove, 
render harmless, or avoid the uptake or 
discharge of harmful aquatic organisms 
and pathogens within ballast water and 
sediment; 
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360 
‘‘(7) ‘constructed’ means a state of 
construction of a vessel at which— 
‘‘(A) the keel is laid; 
‘‘(B) 
construction 
identifiable 
with the specific vessel begins; 
‘‘(C) assembly of the vessel has 
begun comprising at least 50 tons or 
1 percent of the estimated mass of all 
structural material of the vessel, 
whichever is less; or 
‘‘(D) the vessel undergoes a major 
conversion;’’; 
(6) by inserting after paragraph (10), 
as so redesignated, the following: 
‘‘(11) ‘foreign vessel’ has the meaning 
such term has under section 110 of title 
46, United States Code;’’; 
(7) by inserting after paragraph (15), 
as so redesignated, the following: 
‘‘(16) ‘major conversion’ means a con-
version of a vessel, that— 
‘‘(A) changes its ballast water car-
rying capacity by at least 15 percent; 
‘‘(B) changes the vessel class; 
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361 
‘‘(C) is projected to prolong the 
vessel’s life by at least 10 years (as de-
termined by the Secretary); or 
‘‘(D) results in modifications to 
the vessel’s ballast water system, ex-
cept— 
‘‘(i) component replacement- 
in-kind; or 
‘‘(ii) conversion of a vessel to 
meet the requirements of section 
1101(e);’’; 
(8) by inserting after paragraph (18), 
as so redesignated, the following: 
‘‘(19) ‘sediment’ means matter that 
has settled out of ballast water within a 
vessel;’’; 
(9) in paragraph (12), as so redesig-
nated, by striking the period at the end 
and inserting a semicolon; 
(10) by inserting after paragraph (23), 
as so redesignated and moved, the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(24) ‘United States port’ means a 
port, river, harbor, or offshore terminal 
under the jurisdiction of the United 
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362 
States, including ports located in Puerto 
Rico, Guam, and the United States Virgin 
Islands; 
‘‘(25) ‘vessel of the Armed Forces’ 
means— 
‘‘(A) any vessel owned or operated 
by the Department of Defense, other 
than a time or voyage chartered ves-
sel; and 
‘‘(B) any vessel owned or operated 
by the Department of Homeland Se-
curity that is designated by the Sec-
retary as a vessel equivalent to a ves-
sel described in subparagraph (A); 
‘‘(26) ‘vessel of the United States’ has 
the meaning such term has under section 
116 of title 46, United States Code;’’; 
(11) in paragraph (23), as so redesig-
nated, by striking the period at the end 
and inserting ‘‘;’’; and 
(12) by inserting after paragraph (27), 
as so redesignated and amended, the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(28) ‘waters subject to the jurisdic-
tion of the United States’ means navi-
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363 
gable waters and the territorial sea of the 
United States, the exclusive economic 
zone, and the Great Lakes.’’. 
(c) REPEAL OF SECTION 1103.—Section 1103 
of the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Pre-
vention and Control Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 
4713) is repealed. 
(d) INTERIM FINAL RULE.—The Secretary 
shall issue an interim final rule as a tem-
porary regulation implementing the amend-
ments made by this section as soon as prac-
ticable after the date of enactment of this sec-
tion, without regard to the provisions of chap-
ter 5 of title 5, United States Code. All regula-
tions issued under the authority of this sub-
section that are not earlier superseded by 
final regulations shall expire not later than 
one year after the date of enactment of this 
Act. 
SEC. 504. NATIONAL BALLAST WATER MANAGEMENT IN-
FORMATION. 
Section 1102 (16 U.S.C. 4712) is amended— 
(1) by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(g) BALLAST WATER SURVEYS.— 
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364 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 
conduct the following ballast water sur-
veys: 
‘‘(A) A survey of the number of 
living organisms in untreated ballast 
water of a representative number of 
vessels, as determined by the Sec-
retary. 
‘‘(B) A survey of the number of 
living organisms in the ballast water 
of a representative number of vessels, 
as determined by the Secretary, that 
has been exchanged on the high seas. 
‘‘(C) Surveys of the number of liv-
ing organisms in the ballast water of 
vessels that are participating in a 
program to test and evaluate prom-
ising ballast water treatment, as ap-
proved by the Secretary. 
‘‘(2) REPORTS.—The Secretary shall 
submit to the Committee on Transpor-
tation and Infrastructure of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation 
of the Senate— 
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365 
‘‘(A) a report on the results of the 
surveys under subparagraphs (A) and 
(B) of paragraph (1) by not later than 
18 months after the date of the enact-
ment of the Ballast Water Treatment 
Act of 2007; and 
‘‘(B) a report on the results of the 
surveys 
required 
under 
subpara-
graph (C) of paragraph (1) upon com-
pletion of each demonstration con-
cerned.’’; 
(2) in subsection (b)(1)(B)(ii), by strik-
ing ‘‘guidelines issued and’’; 
(3) in subsection (b)(2)(B)(ii), by strik-
ing ‘‘voluntary guidelines issued, and reg-
ulations 
promulgated,’’ 
and 
inserting 
‘‘regulations promulgated’’; 
(4) in subsection (c)(1), by striking 
‘‘section 1101(b)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 
1101(a)’’; and 
(5) in subsection (f)(1)(B), by striking 
‘‘guidelines issued pursuant to section 
1101(c)’’ and inserting ‘‘regulations issued 
pursuant to section 1101’’. 
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366 
SEC. 505. BALLAST WATER MANAGEMENT EVALUATION 
AND DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM. 
Section 1104 (16 U.S.C. 4714) is amended— 
(1) by striking the section heading 
and inserting the following: 
‘‘SEC. 1104. BALLAST WATER TREATMENT TECHNOLOGY 
EVALUATION 
AND 
DEMONSTRATION 
PRO-
GRAMS.’’; 
(2) by striking subsection (a); 
(3) by redesignating subsection (b) as 
subsection (a); 
(4) by redesignating subsection (c) as 
subsection (d); 
(5) in subsection (a), as so redesig-
nated— 
(A) by striking so much as pre-
cedes paragraph (2) and inserting the 
following: 
‘‘(a) SHIPBOARD TECHNOLOGY EVALUATION 
PROGRAM.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 
establish a Shipboard Technology Eval-
uation Program to evaluate alternative 
ballast 
water 
management 
methods 
aboard vessels to prevent aquatic nui-
sance species from being introduced into 
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367 
and spread through discharges of ballast 
water in waters of the United States.’’; 
and 
(B) in paragraph (2) by striking 
‘‘of the technologies and practices 
used in the demonstration program’’ 
and inserting ‘‘of alternative ballast 
water management methods used in 
the program’’; 
(6) in subsection (a)(3), as so redesig-
nated, by striking ‘‘technologies and prac-
tices’’ 
and 
all 
that 
follows 
through 
‘‘shall—’’ and inserting ‘‘ballast water 
treatment technologies on vessels under 
this subsection, the Secretary shall—’’; 
(7) in subsection (a)(3)(A), as so redes-
ignated, by striking clause (i) and by re-
designating clauses (ii) and (iii) in order 
as clauses (i) and (ii); 
(8) 
by 
amending 
subsection 
(a)(3)(A)(i), as so redesignated, to read as 
follows: 
‘‘(i) have ballast water sys-
tems conducive to testing aboard 
the vessel; and’’; 
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368 
(9) by amending subsection (a)(3)(C), 
as so redesignated, to read as follows: 
‘‘(C) seek to use a variety of vessel 
types.’’; 
(10) by amending subsection (a)(4), as 
so redesignated, to read as follows: 
‘‘(4) SELECTION
OF
ALTERNATIVE
BAL-
LAST
WATER
MANAGEMENT
METHODS.—In 
order for a ballast water treatment tech-
nology to be eligible to be installed on 
vessels for evaluation under this section, 
such technology must be, at a minimum— 
‘‘(A) determined by the Secretary 
to have the demonstrated potential to 
reduce the number of organisms 
greater than or equal to 50 microns in 
minimum dimension in discharged 
ballast water to fewer than 10 living 
organisms per cubic meter of water; 
‘‘(B) cost-effective; 
‘‘(C) environmentally sound; 
‘‘(D) operationally practical; 
‘‘(E) able to be retrofitted on ex-
isting vessels or incorporated in new 
vessel design (or both); 
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369 
‘‘(F) safe for a vessel and crew; 
and 
‘‘(G) accessible to monitoring.’’; 
(11) in subsection (a), as so redesig-
nated, by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(6) AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY TO RE-
VIEW AND REVISE CRITERIA.—The Secretary 
may review and revise the criteria de-
scribed in paragraph (4)(A) to require 
ballast water treatment technologies to 
meet a more stringent ballast water dis-
charge 
standard, 
including 
standards 
promulgated under section 1101(f), before 
being eligible for installation aboard ves-
sels under the program.’’; 
(12) by inserting after subsection (a), 
as so redesignated, the following: 
‘‘(b) SHIPBOARD TECHNOLOGY DEMONSTRA-
TION PROGRAM.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Under Sec-
retary, with the concurrence of and in co-
operation with the Secretary, shall con-
duct a program to demonstrate ballast 
water treatment technologies evaluated 
aboard vessels under subsection (a) to 
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370 
prevent aquatic nuisance species from 
being 
introduced 
into 
and 
spread 
through ballast water in waters of the 
United States. 
‘‘(2) LOCATION.—The installation and 
construction of ballast water treatment 
technologies used in the demonstration 
program under this subsection shall be 
performed in the United States. 
‘‘(3) VESSEL ELIGIBILITY.—Vessels eligi-
ble to participate in the demonstration 
program under this subsection shall con-
sist only of vessels that have been accept-
ed into and are actively participating in 
the Shipboard Technology Evaluation 
Program under subsection (a). 
‘‘(4) GRANTS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Under Sec-
retary shall establish a grant pro-
gram to provide funding for acquir-
ing, installing, and operating ballast 
water treatment technologies aboard 
vessels participating in the program 
under this subsection. 
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