Title: Protect and Restore America's Estuaries Act
Policy area: Environmental Protection

Summary:
Protect and Restore America's Estuaries Act
This bill reauthorizes for FY2022-FY2026 and revises the National Estuary Program, which provides grants to protect or restore estuaries of national significance. Specifically, the bill expands the types of projects that qualify for grants under the program, such as projects that address issues related to urbanization, stormwater runoff, or accelerated land loss.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3171 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3171

  To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to reauthorize the 
           National Estuary Program, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 9, 2020

 Mr. Whitehouse (for himself, Mr. Cassidy, and Mr. Carper) introduced 
the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee 
                    on Environment and Public Works

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to reauthorize the 
           National Estuary Program, 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 ``Protect and Restore America's 
Estuaries Act''.

SEC. 2. NATIONAL ESTUARY PROGRAM.

    Section 320 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 
1330) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(2)(B), by striking ``and Peconic Bay, 
        New York'' and inserting ``Peconic Bay, New York; Casco Bay, 
        Maine; Tampa Bay, Florida; Coastal Bend, Texas; San Juan Bay, 
        Puerto Rico; Tillamook Bay, Oregon; Piscataqua Region, New 
        Hampshire; Barnegat Bay, New Jersey; Maryland Coastal Bays, 
        Maryland; Charlotte Harbor, Florida; Mobile Bay, Alabama; Morro 
        Bay, California; and Lower Columbia River, Oregon and 
        Washington'';
            (2) in subsection (b)(4)--
                    (A) by striking ``management plan that recommends'' 
                and inserting ``management plan that--
                    ``(A) recommends''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(B) addresses the effects of recurring extreme 
                weather events on the estuary, including the 
                identification and assessment of vulnerabilities in the 
                estuary and the development and implementation of 
                adaptation strategies; and
                    ``(C) increases public education and awareness of 
                the ecological health and water quality conditions of 
                the estuary;'';
            (3) in subsection (c)(5), by inserting ``nonprofit 
        organizations,'' after ``educational institutions,'';
            (4) in subsection (g)(4)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``subsection 
                (i)(2)(B)'' and inserting ``subsection (i)(3)(B)''; and
                    (B) in subparagraph (C)--
                            (i) in the matter preceding clause (i), in 
                        the first sentence--
                                    (I) by inserting ``, emerging,'' 
                                after ``urgent'';
                                    (II) by striking ``coastal areas'' 
                                and inserting ``estuaries of national 
                                significance'';
                            (ii) in clause (vi), by inserting ``, 
                        extreme weather,'' after ``sea level rise'';
                            (iii) by redesignating clauses (vi) and 
                        (vii) as clauses (ix) and (x), respectively; 
                        and
                            (iv) by inserting after clause (v) the 
                        following:
                            ``(vi) stormwater runoff;
                            ``(vii) accelerated land loss;
                            ``(viii) problems resulting from 
                        urbanization and population growth, including--
                                    ``(I) increased demand for sewage 
                                treatment;
                                    ``(II) loss of forests and natural 
                                soil; and
                                    ``(III) increased amounts of 
                                impervious surfaces that affect water 
                                quality;''; and
            (5) in subsection (i)--
                    (A) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph 
                (3); and
                    (B) in paragraph (1), in the matter preceding 
                subparagraph (A), by striking ``There is authorized to 
                be appropriated to the Administrator $26,500,000 for 
                each of fiscal years 2017 through 2021 for--'' and 
                inserting the following: ``There are authorized to be 
                appropriated to the Administrator for the purposes 
                described in paragraph (2)--
                    ``(A) $26,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2017 
                through 2021; and
                    ``(B) $50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 
                through 2026.
            ``(2) Purposes described.--The purposes referred to in 
        paragraph (1) are--''.
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