H. R. 7776—1674 
(6) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—In collecting the information required 
under paragraphs (2) and (3), the Commandant shall collect 
such information in a manner which protects the privacy rights 
of individuals who are subjects of such information. 
SEC. 11273. POLICY ON REQUESTS FOR PERMANENT CHANGES OF STA-
TION OR UNIT TRANSFERS BY PERSONS WHO REPORT 
BEING THE VICTIM OF SEXUAL ASSAULT. 
(a) INTERIM UPDATE.—Not later than 30 days after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Commandant, in consultation with 
the Director of the Health, Safety, and Work Life Directorate, 
shall issue an interim update to Coast Guard policy guidance to 
allow a member of the Coast Guard who has reported being the 
victim of a sexual assault, or any other offense covered by section 
920, 920c, or 930 of title 10, United States Code (article 120, 
120c, or 130 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice), to request 
an immediate change of station or an immediate unit transfer. 
(b) FINAL POLICY.—The Commandant shall issue a final policy 
based on the interim updates issued under the preceding sentence 
not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act. 
SEC. 11274. SEX OFFENSES AND PERSONNEL RECORDS. 
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this 
Act, the Commandant shall issue final regulations or policy guid-
ance required to fully implement section 1745 of the National 
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014 (Public Law 113– 
66; 10 U.S.C. 1561 note) with respect to members of the Coast 
Guard. 
SEC. 11275. STUDY ON SPECIAL VICTIMS’ COUNSEL PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall enter into an agreement 
with a federally funded research and development center for the 
conduct of a study on— 
(1) the Special Victims’ Counsel program of the Coast 
Guard; 
(2) Coast Guard investigations of sexual assault offenses 
for cases in which the subject of the investigation is no longer 
under jeopardy for the alleged misconduct for reasons including 
the death of the accused, a lapse in the statute of limitations 
for the alleged offense, and a fully adjudicated criminal trial 
of the alleged offense in which all appeals have been exhausted; 
and 
(3) legal support and representation provided to members 
of the Coast Guard who are victims of sexual assault, including 
in instances in which the accused is a member of the Army, 
Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Space Force. 
(b) ELEMENTS.—The study required by subsection (a) shall 
assess the following: 
(1) The Special Victims’ Counsel program of the Coast 
Guard, including training, effectiveness, capacity to handle the 
number of cases referred, and experience with cases involving 
members of the Coast Guard or members of another armed 
force (as defined in section 101 of title 10, United States Code). 
(2) The experience of Special Victims’ Counsels in rep-
resenting members of the Coast Guard during a court-martial.
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(3) Policies concerning the availability and detailing of 
Special Victims’ Counsels for sexual assault allegations, in par-
ticular such allegations in which the accused is a member 
of another armed force (as defined in section 101 of title 10, 
United States Code), and the impact that the cross-service 
relationship had on— 
(A) the competence and sufficiency of services provided 
to the alleged victim; and 
(B) the interaction between— 
(i) the investigating agency and the Special Vic-
tims’ Counsels; and 
(ii) the prosecuting entity and the Special Victims’ 
Counsels. 
(4) Training provided to, or made available for, Special 
Victims’ Counsels and paralegals with respect to Department 
of Defense processes for conducting sexual assault investiga-
tions and Special Victims’ Counsel representation of sexual 
assault victims. 
(5) The ability of Special Victims’ Counsels to operate 
independently without undue influence from third parties, 
including the command of the accused, the command of the 
victim, the Judge Advocate General of the Coast Guard, and 
the Deputy Judge Advocate General of the Coast Guard. 
(6) The skill level and experience of Special Victims’ Coun-
sels, as compared to special victims’ counsels available to mem-
bers of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Space 
Force. 
(7) Policies regarding access to an alternate Special Victims’ 
Counsel, if requested by the member of the Coast Guard con-
cerned, and potential improvements for such policies. 
(c) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after entering into an 
agreement under subsection (a), the federally funded research and 
development center 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 includes— 
(1) the findings of the study required by such subsection; 
(2) recommendations to improve the coordination, training, 
and experience of Special Victims’ Counsels of the Coast Guard 
so as to improve outcomes for members of the Coast Guard 
who have reported sexual assault; and 
(3) any other recommendation the federally funded research 
and development center considers appropriate. 
TITLE CXIII—ENVIRONMENT 
Subtitle A—Marine Mammals 
SEC. 11301. DEFINITIONS. 
In this subtitle: 
(1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES.—The term 
‘‘appropriate congressional committees’’ means— 
(A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate; and
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(B) the Committees on Transportation and Infrastruc-
ture and Natural Resources of the House of Representa-
tives. 
(2) CORE
FORAGING
HABITATS.—The term ‘‘core foraging 
habitats’’ means areas— 
(A) with biological and physical oceanographic features 
that aggregate Calanus finmarchicus; and 
(B) where North Atlantic right whales foraging 
aggregations have been well documented. 
(3) EXCLUSIVE ECONOMIC ZONE.—The term ‘‘exclusive eco-
nomic zone’’ has the meaning given that term in section 107 
of title 46, United States Code. 
(4) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The term ‘‘institu-
tion of higher education’’ has the meaning given that term 
in section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 1001(a)). 
(5) LARGE CETACEAN.—The term ‘‘large cetacean’’ means 
all endangered or threatened species within— 
(A) the suborder Mysticeti; 
(B) the genera Physeter; or 
(C) the genera Orcinus. 
(6) NEAR
REAL-TIME.—The term ‘‘near real-time’’, with 
respect to monitoring of whales, means that visual, acoustic, 
or other detections of whales are processed, transmitted, and 
reported as close to the time of detection as is technically 
feasible. 
(7) 
NONPROFIT
ORGANIZATION.—The 
term 
‘‘nonprofit 
organization’’ means an organization that is described in section 
501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from 
tax under section 501(a) of such Code. 
(8) PUGET SOUND REGION.—The term ‘‘Puget Sound region’’ 
means the Vessel Traffic Service Puget Sound area described 
in section 161.55 of title 33, Code of Federal Regulations (as 
of the date of enactment of this Act). 
(9) TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—The term ‘‘Tribal government’’ 
means the recognized governing body of any Indian or Alaska 
Native Tribe, band, nation, pueblo, village, community, compo-
nent band, or component reservation, individually identified 
(including parenthetically) in the list published most recently 
as of the date of enactment of this Act pursuant to section 
104 of the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994 
(25 U.S.C. 5131). 
(10) UNDER
SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Under Secretary’’ 
means the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and 
Atmosphere. 
SEC. 11302. ASSISTANCE TO PORTS TO REDUCE IMPACTS OF VESSEL 
TRAFFIC AND PORT OPERATIONS ON MARINE MAMMALS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Under Secretary, in consultation with 
the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the 
Secretary, the Secretary of Defense, and the Administrator of the 
Maritime Administration, shall establish a grant program to provide 
assistance to eligible entities to develop and implement mitigation 
measures that will lead to a quantifiable reduction in threats to 
marine mammals from vessel traffic, including shipping activities 
and port operations.
H. R. 7776—1677 
(b) ELIGIBLE USES.—Assistance provided under subsection (a) 
may be used to develop, assess, and carry out activities that reduce 
threats to marine mammals by— 
(1) reducing underwater stressors related to marine traffic; 
(2) reducing mortality and serious injury from vessel strikes 
and other physical disturbances; 
(3) monitoring sound; 
(4) reducing vessel interactions with marine mammals; 
(5) conducting other types of monitoring that are consistent 
with reducing the threats to, and enhancing the habitats of, 
marine mammals; or 
(6) supporting State agencies and Tribal governments in 
developing the capacity to receive assistance under this section 
through education, training, information sharing, and collabora-
tion to participate in the grant program under this section. 
(c) PRIORITY.—The Under Secretary shall prioritize providing 
assistance under subsection (a) for projects that— 
(1) are based on the best available science with respect 
to methods to reduce threats to marine mammals; 
(2) collect data on the effects of such methods and the 
reduction of such threats; 
(3) assist ports that pose a higher relative threat to marine 
mammals listed as threatened or endangered under the Endan-
gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); 
(4) are in close proximity to areas in which threatened 
or endangered cetaceans are known to experience other 
stressors; or 
(5) allow eligible entities to conduct risk assessments and 
to track progress toward threat reduction. 
(d) OUTREACH.—The Under Secretary, in coordination with the 
Secretary, the Administrator of the Maritime Administration, and 
the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, as 
appropriate, shall conduct coordinated outreach to ports to provide 
information with respect to— 
(1) how to apply for assistance under subsection (a); 
(2) the benefits of such assistance; and 
(3) facilitation of best practices and lessons, including the 
best practices and lessons learned from activities carried out 
using such assistance. 
(e) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not less frequently than annually, the 
Under Secretary shall make available to the public on a publicly 
accessible website of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration a report that includes the following information: 
(1) The name and location of each entity to which assistance 
was awarded under subsection (a) during the year preceding 
submission of the report. 
(2) The amount of each such award. 
(3) A description of the activities carried out with each 
such award. 
(4) An estimate of the likely impact of such activities on 
the reduction of threats to marine mammals. 
(f) DEFINITION OF ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—In this section, the term 
‘‘eligible entity’’ means— 
(1) a port authority for a port; 
(2) a State, regional, local, or Tribal government, or an 
Alaska Native or Native Hawaiian entity that has jurisdiction 
over a maritime port authority or a port;