the United States. Today a small population of 
southern sea otters exists along the California coast-
line. 
(2) Southern sea otters are listed as a threat-
ened species under the Endangered Species Act of 
1973, and are recognized as depleted under the Ma-
rine Mammal Protection Act of 1972. 
(3) Southern sea otters have educational, eco-
nomic, ecological, and scientific importance to the 
people of California and the Nation. 
(4) Recent studies have— 
(A) determined that an elevated level of 
mortality, particularly in adult southern sea ot-
ters, is limiting recovery of the population; and 
(B) determined that the major threats to 
the southern sea otter are largely due to de-
graded marine ecosystems, including infectious 
diseases, sequestration of contaminants, food 
resource limitations, and coastal oil spills. 
(5) Enactment of provisions to implement the 
United States Fish and Wildlife Service document 
entitled ‘‘Final Revised Recovery Plan for the south-
ern sea otter (Enhydra lutris nereis)’’ could lead to 
delisting of the southern sea otter under the Endan-
gered Species Act of 1973. 
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(6) The public would benefit from having well 
managed and viable fisheries, healthy marine eco-
systems, and a recovered sea otter population. 
(7) Research underlies every aspect of recov-
ering southern sea otter populations, educating citi-
zens and stakeholders, and restoring coastal eco-
systems. 
SEC. 3. SOUTHERN SEA OTTER RECOVERY PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior, act-
ing through the United States Fish and Wildlife Service 
(in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’), shall carry 
out a recovery program for southern sea otter populations 
along the coast of California. The recovery program shall 
include the following: 
(1) Monitoring and analysis of southern sea 
otter population demographics and life history pa-
rameters, including a biannual population count. 
(2) Protection of southern sea otter popu-
lations. 
(3) Reduction or elimination of potential factors 
limiting southern sea otter populations that are re-
lated to human activities. 
(4) Assessment of southern sea otter health in 
accordance with the Southern Sea Otter Health As-
sessment Plan developed under subsection (c). 
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(5) Education and outreach to the public about 
southern sea otters and how human activities affect 
their survival. 
(b) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Secretary shall report on 
the status of southern sea otter populations as part of an-
nual reports to the Congress under the Marine Mammal 
Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.) or other 
reporting requirements. 
(c) HEALTH ASSESSMENT PLAN.—The Secretary 
shall— 
(1) in consultation with the Southern Sea Otter 
Recovery Implementation Team referred to in sec-
tion 5, develop a Southern Sea Otter Health Assess-
ment Plan; 
(2) collect and analyze tissue samples from 
southern sea otters; 
(3) after such analysis, submit the tissue sam-
ples to the Secretary of Commerce for inclusion in 
the National Marine Mammal Tissue Bank provided 
for under section 407 of the Marine Mammal Pro-
tection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1421f) to allow for 
managed access to the tissues by other researchers; 
and 
(4) review progress on the implementation of 
the Southern Sea Otter Health Assessment Plan de-
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veloped under paragraph (1) and report the status 
of the plan as part of the report under subsection 
(b). 
(d) CONTENTS OF PLAN.—The Southern Sea Otter 
Health Assessment Plan developed under subsection 
(a)(1) shall include— 
(1) mechanisms to systematically assess and 
evaluate, among other matters, the immunology, vi-
rology, toxicology, bacteriology, parasitology, endo-
crinology, and nutritional status of southern sea ot-
ters; and 
(2) identification of centers of expertise and re-
sources to implement the plan. 
(e) PROMOTION OF ECOSYSTEM SUSTAINABILITY.— 
In implementing this section, the Secretary shall seek to 
recover sea otters while promoting ecosystem sustain-
ability by addressing— 
(1) key threats to marine ecosystem health, and 
ways to mitigate those threats; and 
(2) mechanisms to revise the plan developed 
under subsection (c) to adapt in a timely manner to 
new information on the health of marine ecosystems. 
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SEC. 4. SOUTHERN SEA OTTER RESEARCH PROGRAM. 
(a) GRANT AUTHORITY.—The Secretary shall award 
competitive grants to support research regarding southern 
sea otters. 
(b) RESEARCH SUBJECTS.—Research funded with 
grants under this section shall be in accordance with the 
research goals established by the Sea Otter Recovery Im-
plementation Team under section 5, and shall include the 
following topics: 
(1) Southern sea otter demographics and nat-
ural history. 
(2) The effects and sources of contaminants on 
southern sea otters and sequestration of contami-
nants. 
(3) Infectious diseases and parasites affecting 
southern sea otters. 
(4) Limitations on the availability of food re-
sources for southern sea otters and the impacts of 
food limitation on southern sea otter carrying capac-
ity. 
(c) RECOMMENDATION OF GRANTS BY RECOVERY 
IMPLEMENTATION TEAM REQUIRED.—The Secretary— 
(1) shall submit each grant proposal submitted 
under this section to the Southern Sea Otter Recov-
ery Implementation Team referred to in section 5; 
and 
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