Title: Living Shorelines Act of 2019
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources

Summary:
Living Shorelines Act of 2019
This bill directs the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to award grants to state or local governments, Indian tribes, or nonprofit organizations to (1) implement climate-resilient living shoreline projects; and (2) encourage innovation in the use of natural materials to protect coastal communities, habitats, and natural system functions.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3115 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3115

  To direct the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
   Administration to make grants to State and local governments and 
  nongovernmental organizations for purposes of carrying out climate-
resilient living shoreline projects that protect coastal communities by 
  supporting ecosystem functions and habitats with the use of natural 
             materials and systems, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              June 5, 2019

   Mr. Pallone (for himself, Mrs. Watson Coleman, Mr. Lowenthal, Ms. 
    Bonamici, Mr. Cartwright, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Mr. Soto, Mrs. 
 Demings, Mr. Khanna, Ms. Blunt Rochester, Ms. Lee of California, and 
  Mrs. Davis of California) introduced the following bill; which was 
             referred to the Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To direct the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
   Administration to make grants to State and local governments and 
  nongovernmental organizations for purposes of carrying out climate-
resilient living shoreline projects that protect coastal communities by 
  supporting ecosystem functions and habitats with the use of natural 
             materials and systems, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Living Shorelines Act of 2019''.

SEC. 2. LIVING SHORELINE GRANT PROGRAM.

    (a) Establishment.--The Administrator shall make grants to eligible 
entities for purposes of--
            (1) designing and implementing large- and small-scale, 
        climate-resilient living shoreline projects; and
            (2) applying innovative uses of natural materials and 
        systems to protect coastal communities, habitats, and natural 
        system functions.
    (b) Project Proposals.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
this section, an eligible entity shall--
            (1) submit to the Administrator a proposal for a living 
        shoreline project, including monitoring, data collection, and 
        measurable performance criteria with respect to the project; 
        and
            (2) demonstrate to the Administrator that the entity has 
        any permits or other authorizations from local, State, and 
        Federal government agencies necessary to carry out the living 
        shoreline project or provide evidence demonstrating general 
        support from such agencies.
    (c) Project Selection.--
            (1) Development of criteria.--The Administrator shall 
        select eligible entities to receive grants under this section 
        based on criteria developed by the Administrator, in 
        consultation with relevant offices of the National Oceanic and 
        Atmospheric Administration, such as the Office of Habitat 
        Conservation, the Office for Coastal Management, and the 
        Restoration Center.
            (2) Considerations.--In developing criteria under paragraph 
        (1) to evaluate a proposed living shoreline project, the 
        Administrator shall take into account--
                    (A) the potential of the project to protect the 
                community and maintain the viability of the 
                environment, such as through protection of ecosystem 
                functions, environmental benefits, or habitat types, in 
                the area where the project is to be carried out;
                    (B) the historic and future environmental 
                conditions of the project site, particularly those 
                environmental conditions affected by climate change;
                    (C) the ecological benefits of the project; and
                    (D) the ability of the entity proposing the project 
                to demonstrate the potential of the project to protect 
                the coastal community where the project is to be 
                carried out, including through--
                            (i) mitigating the effects of erosion;
                            (ii) attenuating the impact of coastal 
                        storms and storm surge;
                            (iii) mitigating shoreline flooding;
                            (iv) mitigating the effects of sea level 
                        rise and extreme tides;
                            (v) sustaining, protecting, or restoring 
                        the functions and habitats of coastal 
                        ecosystems; or
                            (vi) such other forms of coastal protection 
                        as the Administrator considers appropriate.
            (3) Priority.--In selecting living shoreline projects to 
        receive grants under this section, the Administrator shall give 
        priority consideration to a proposed project to be conducted in 
        an area--
                    (A) for which the President has declared, during 
                the 10-year period preceding the submission of the 
                proposal for the project under subsection (b), that a 
                major disaster exists pursuant to section 401 of the 
                Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 
                Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170) because of a hurricane, 
                tropical storm, coastal storm, or flooding; or
                    (B) that has a documented history of coastal 
                erosion or frequent coastal inundation during that 10-
                year period.
            (4) Minimum standards.--
                    (A) In general.--The Administrator shall develop 
                minimum standards to be used in selecting eligible 
                entities to receive grants under this section, taking 
                into account--
                            (i) the considerations described in 
                        paragraph (2); and
                            (ii) the need for such standards to be 
                        general enough to accommodate concerns relating 
                        to specific project sites.
                    (B) Consultations.--In developing standards under 
                subparagraph (A), the Administrator--
                            (i) shall consult with relevant offices of 
                        the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
                        Administration, such as the Office of Habitat 
                        Conservation, the Office for Coastal 
                        Management, and the Restoration Center; and
                            (ii) may consult with--
                                    (I) relevant interagency councils, 
                                such as the Estuary Habitat Restoration 
                                Council;
                                    (II) State coastal management 
                                agencies; and
                                    (III) relevant nongovernmental 
                                organizations.
    (d) Use of Funds.--A grant awarded under this section to an 
eligible entity to carry out a living shoreline project may be used by 
the eligible entity only--
            (1) to carry out the project, including administration, 
        design, permitting, entry into negotiated indirect cost rate 
        agreements, and construction; and
            (2) to monitor, collect, and report data on the performance 
        (including performance over time) of the project, in accordance 
        with standards issued by the Administrator under subsection 
        (f)(2).
    (e) Cost-Sharing.--
            (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), an 
        eligible entity that receives a grant under this section to 
        carry out a living shoreline project shall provide, from non-
        Federal sources, funds or other resources (such as land or 
        conservation easements or in-kind matching from private 
        entities) valued at not less than 50 percent of the total cost, 
        including administrative costs, of the project.
            (2) Reduced matching requirement for certain communities.--
        The Administrator may reduce or waive the matching requirement 
        under paragraph (1) for an eligible entity representing a 
        community or nonprofit organization if--
                    (A) the eligible entity submits to the 
                Administrator in writing--
                            (i) a request for such a reduction and the 
                        amount of the reduction; and
                            (ii) a justification for why the entity 
                        cannot meet the matching requirement; and
                    (B) the Administrator agrees with the 
                justification.
    (f) Monitoring and Reporting.--
            (1) In general.--The Administrator shall require each 
        eligible entity receiving a grant under this section (or a 
        representative of the entity) to carry out a living shoreline 
        project--
                    (A) to transmit to the Administrator data collected 
                under the project;
                    (B) to monitor the project and to collect data on--
                            (i) the ecological benefits of the project 
                        and the protection provided by the project for 
                        the coastal community where the project is 
                        carried out, including through--
                                    (I) mitigating the effects of 
                                erosion;
                                    (II) attenuating the impact of 
                                coastal storms and storm surge;
                                    (III) mitigating shoreline 
                                flooding;
                                    (IV) mitigating the effects of sea 
                                level rise and extreme tides;
                                    (V) sustaining, protecting, or 
                                restoring the functions and habitats of 
                                coastal ecosystems; or
                                    (VI) such other forms of coastal 
                                protection as the Administrator 
                                considers appropriate; and
                            (ii) the performance of the project in 
                        providing such protection;
                    (C) to make data collected under the project 
                available on a publicly accessible internet website of 
                the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; 
                and
                    (D) not later than one year after the entity 
                receives the grant, and annually thereafter until the 
                completion of the project, to submit to the 
                Administrator a report on--
                            (i) the measures described in subparagraph 
                        (B); and
                            (ii) the effectiveness of the project in 
                        increasing protection of the coastal community 
                        where the project is carried out through living 
                        shorelines techniques, including--
                                    (I) a description of--
                                            (aa) the project;
                                            (bb) the activities carried 
                                        out under the project; and
                                            (cc) the techniques and 
                                        materials used in carrying out 
                                        the project; and
                                    (II) data on the performance of the 
                                project in providing protection to that 
                                coastal community.
            (2) Guidelines.--In developing guidelines relating to 
        paragraph (1)(C), the Administrator shall consider how 
        additional data could safely be collected before and after 
        major disasters or severe weather events to measure project 
        performance and project recovery.
            (3) Standards.--
                    (A) In general.--Not later than 90 days after the 
                date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator 
                shall, in consultation with relevant offices of the 
                National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 
                relevant interagency councils, and relevant 
                nongovernmental organizations, issue standards for the 
                monitoring, collection, and reporting under subsection 
                (d)(2) of data regarding the performance of living 
                shoreline projects for which grants are awarded under 
                this section.
                    (B) Reporting.--The standards issued under 
                subparagraph (A) shall require an eligible entity 
                receiving a grant under this section to report the data 
                described in that subparagraph to the Administrator on 
                a regular basis.
    (g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated $50,000,000 to the Administrator for each of fiscal years 
2020 through 2025 for purposes of carrying out this section.
    (h) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
        Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
        Administration.
            (2) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means 
        any of the following:
                    (A) A unit of a State or local government.
                    (B) An organization described in section 501(c)(3) 
                of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that is exempt 
                from taxation under section 501(a) of such Code.
                    (C) An Indian Tribe (as defined in section 4 of the 
                Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act 
                (25 U.S.C. 5304)).
            (3) Living shoreline project.--The term ``living shoreline 
        project''--
                    (A) means a project that--
                            (i) restores or stabilizes a shoreline, 
                        including marshes, wetlands, and other 
                        vegetated areas that are part of the shoreline 
                        ecosystem, by using natural materials and 
                        systems to create buffers to attenuate the 
                        impact of coastal storms, currents, flooding, 
                        and wave energy and to prevent or minimize 
                        shoreline erosion while supporting coastal 
                        ecosystems and habitats;
                            (ii) incorporates as many natural elements 
                        as possible, such as native wetlands, submerged 
                        aquatic plants, oyster shells, native grasses, 
                        shrubs, or trees;
                            (iii) utilizes techniques that incorporate 
                        ecological and coastal engineering principles 
                        in shoreline stabilization; and
                            (iv) to the extent possible, maintains or 
                        restores existing natural slopes and 
                        connections between uplands and adjacent 
                        wetlands or surface waters;
                    (B) may include the use of--
                            (i) natural elements, such as sand, wetland 
                        plants, logs, oysters or other shellfish, 
                        submerged aquatic vegetation, native grasses, 
                        shrubs, trees, or coir fiber logs;
                            (ii) project elements that provide 
                        ecological benefits to coastal ecosystems and 
                        habitats in addition to shoreline protection; 
                        and
                            (iii) structural materials, such as stone, 
                        concrete, wood, vinyl, oyster domes, or other 
                        approved engineered structures in combination 
                        with natural materials; and
                    (C) may include a project that expands upon or 
                restores natural living shorelines or existing living 
                shoreline projects.
            (4) State.--The term ``State'' means each of the several 
        States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 
        Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, 
        and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
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