KELP Act
Bill: H.R.4458 | Sponsor: Rep. Huffman, Jared (D-CA)
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources

Summary:
Keeping Ecosystems Living and Productive Act or the KELP Act
This bill directs the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to award grants to carry out projects related to the conservation, restoration, or management of kelp forest ecosystems.
NOAA shall award grants for projects that

To establish a grant program within the National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration to award grants to eligible entities for the 
 purpose of carrying out projects on the conservation, restoration, or 
                 management of kelp forest ecosystems.


 


    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Keeping Ecosystems Living and 
Productive Act'' or the ``KELP Act''.

SEC. 2. GRANTS FOR CONSERVING, RECOVERING, AND MAINTAINING KELP FOREST 
              ECOSYSTEMS.

    (a) Establishment.--The Administrator shall establish a grant 
program under which the Administrator shall award grants to eligible 
entities described in subsection (b) to carry out projects relating to 
the conservation, restoration, or management of kelp forest ecosystems.
    (b) Eligible Entity.--To be eligible for a grant under this 
section, an entity shall--
            (1) be a member of the fishing industry, an institution of 
        higher education, a nonprofit organization, an Indian Tribe, or 
        a State agency;
            (2) propose or be conducting a project relating to the 
        conservation, restoration, or management of kelp forest 
        ecosystems developed through consultation with any of the other 
        entities described in paragraph (1); and
            (3) submit to the Administrator an application describing 
        such project at such time, in such manner, and containing such 
        information as the Administrator may require, including 
        information about what criteria will be used to monitor and 
        evaluate the effectiveness of the project and the 
        qualifications of the applicant to conduct, monitor, and 
        evaluate the project.
    (c) Eligible Projects.--The Administrator shall award grants to 
eligible entities for projects that--
            (1) address greatest relative regional declines in kelp 
        forest ecosystems;
            (2) focus on elements such as--
                    (A) long term ecosystem resilience;
                    (B) long term socioeconomic resilience;
                    (C) kelp forest seeding and connectivity;
                    (D) re-establishing trophic structure to support 
                resilience through actions such as targeted urchin 
                removal and predator control efforts;
                    (E) monitoring and assessment of kelp forest 
                ecosystems; or
                    (F) other efforts to restore kelp forest ecosystems 
                and prevent large scale losses of kelp forests; or
            (3) are identified by Federal or State restoration and 
        management plans as focal areas for recovery of kelp forests 
        and associated species.
    (d) Matching Requirement.--
            (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), the 
        amount of Federal funding received as a grant under this 
        section by an eligible entity may not exceed 85 percent of the 
        total cost of the project for which a grant is awarded. For the 
        purposes of this subparagraph, the non-Federal share of project 
        costs may be provided by in-kind contributions and other 
        noncash support.
            (2) Waiver.--The Administrator may waive all or part of the 
        requirement in paragraph (1) if the Administrator determines 
        that no reasonable means are available through which an 
        eligible entity applying for a grant under this section can 
        meet such requirement and the probable benefit of such project 
        outweighs the public interest in such requirement.
    (e) Definitions.--In this section--
            (1) the term ``Administrator'' means the Secretary of 
        Commerce acting through the Administrator of the National 
        Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
            (2) the term ``fishing industry'' means processors, 
        commercial fishermen, and recreational fishermen;
            (3) the term ``Indian Tribe'' has the meaning given such 
        term in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and 
        Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304);
            (4) the term ``institution of higher education'' has the 
        meaning given such term in section 101(a) of the Higher 
        Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a));
            (5) the term ``kelp forest ecosystem'' means a naturally 
        occurring, biotic system dominated by canopy-forming, 
        stipitate, or prostrate benthic macroalgae and associated taxa; 
        and
            (6) the term ``nonprofit organization'' means an 
        organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal 
        Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from tax under section 501(a) 
        of such Code.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that the purposes of this Act and the 
grants authorized by section 2 are to support native wild kelp forest 
ecosystems and restoration of native wild kelp to enable long term 
recovery of naturally functioning kelp forest ecosystems that do not 
involve commercial or mechanized harvesting.
                                                 Union Calendar No. 415

117th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                               H. R. 4458

                          [Report No. 117-574]

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