Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Chesapeake Bay Science, 
Education, and Ecosystem Enhancement Act of 2023’’. 
SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
It is the sense of Congress that the National Oceanic 
and Atmospheric Administration’s Chesapeake Bay Office 
should be the primary representative of the National Oce-
anic and Atmospheric Administration in the Chesapeake 
Bay watershed. 
SEC. 3. REAUTHORIZATION OF THE NATIONAL OCEANIC 
AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION CHESA-
PEAKE BAY OFFICE. 
Section 307 of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration Authorization Act of 1992 (15 U.S.C. 
1511d) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)— 
(A) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘(in this 
section’’ and all that follows and inserting a pe-
riod; 
(B) by amending paragraph (2) to read as 
follows: 
‘‘(2) The Office shall be headed by a Director, who— 
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‘‘(A) shall have knowledge and experience in re-
search or resource management efforts in the Chesa-
peake Bay; and 
‘‘(B) shall be responsible for the administration 
and operation of the office and the implementation of 
this section.’’; and 
(C) by striking paragraph (3); 
(2) in subsection (b)— 
(A) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘Sec-
retary of Commerce’’ and inserting ‘‘Adminis-
trator’’; 
(B) in paragraph (3)— 
(i) by inserting ‘‘with and represent’’ 
after ‘‘coordinate’’; 
(ii) by striking ‘‘, the Chesapeake Bay 
Regional Sea Grant Programs, and the 
Chesapeake Bay units of the National Estu-
arine Research Reserve System,’’ and in-
serting ‘‘for the Chesapeake Bay Program 
and that relate to the Chesapeake Bay wa-
tershed in furtherance of such Administra-
tion’s coastal resource stewardship mis-
sion,’’; 
(iii) in subparagraph (A)— 
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(I) in clauses (vi) and (vii), by 
striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; and 
(II) by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(viii) coastal hazards and climate 
change; and 
‘‘(ix) education; and’’; and 
(iv) in subparagraph (B)— 
(I) in clause (iii), by striking 
‘‘and’’ at the end; 
(II) in clause (iv), by inserting 
‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; and 
(III) by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(v) 
integrated 
ecosystem 
assess-
ments;’’; 
(C) in paragraph (4)— 
(i) by striking ‘‘Environmental Protec-
tion Agency’’ and inserting ‘‘Chesapeake 
Executive Council’’; and 
(ii) by inserting before the semicolon at 
the end the following: ‘‘as appropriate to 
further the purposes of this section’’; 
(D) by striking paragraphs (5) and (7); 
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(E) by redesignating paragraph (6) as 
paragraph (5); and 
(F) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(6) perform any functions necessary to support 
the programs referred to in paragraph (3).’’; 
(3) by striking subsections (c), (d), and (e); and 
(4) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(c) PROGRAM ACTIVITIES.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, through 
the Director, shall implement the program activities 
authorized by this section to support the activity of 
the Chesapeake Executive Council and to further the 
purposes of this section. 
‘‘(2) ENSURING
SCIENTIFIC
AND
TECHNICAL 
MERIT.—The Director shall— 
‘‘(A) establish and use an effective and 
transparent mechanism to ensure that projects 
funded under this section have undergone appro-
priate peer review; and 
‘‘(B) provide other appropriate means to 
determine that such projects have acceptable sci-
entific and technical merit for the purpose of 
achieving maximum use of available funds and 
resources to benefit the Chesapeake Bay area. 
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‘‘(3) CONSULTATION WITH CHESAPEAKE EXECU-
TIVE COUNCIL.—The Director shall, in the implemen-
tation of the program activities authorized under this 
section, consult with the Chesapeake Executive Coun-
cil, to ensure that the activities of the Office are con-
sistent with the purposes and priorities of the Chesa-
peake Bay Agreement and plans developed pursuant 
to the such agreement. 
‘‘(4) INTEGRATED COASTAL OBSERVATIONS.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Administrator, 
through the Director, may collaborate with sci-
entific and academic institutions, State and 
Federal agencies, non-governmental organiza-
tions, and other constituents in the Chesapeake 
Bay watershed, to support an integrated observa-
tions system for the Chesapeake Bay consistent 
with the purposes of the Integrated Coastal and 
Ocean Observation System Act of 2009 (33 
U.S.C. 3601 et seq.). 
‘‘(B) SPECIFIC
REQUIREMENTS.—To sup-
port the system referred to in subparagraph (A) 
and provide a complete set of environmental in-
formation for the Chesapeake Bay, the Director 
shall— 
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