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 coastal resiliency, stormwater runoff, or accelerated land loss.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4044 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4044

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


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 25, 2019

     Mr. Malinowski (for himself, Mrs. Fletcher, and Mr. Graves of 
  Louisiana) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
             Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 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. MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE.

    Section 320(a)(2)(B) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
U.S.C. 1330(a)(2)(B)) is amended 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''.

SEC. 3. PURPOSES OF CONFERENCE.

    Section 320(b)(4) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
U.S.C. 1330(b)(4)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``management plan that recommends'' and 
        inserting ``management plan that--
                    ``(A) recommends''; and
            (2) 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;''.

SEC. 4. MEMBERS OF CONFERENCE.

    Section 320(c)(5) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
U.S.C. 1330(c)(5)) is amended by inserting ``nonprofit organizations,'' 
after ``educational institutions,''.

SEC. 5. GRANTS.

    Section 320(g)(4)(C) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
U.S.C. 1330(g)(4)(C)) is amended--
            (1) in the matter preceding clause (i)--
                    (A) by inserting ``, emerging,'' after ``urgent''; 
                and
                    (B) by inserting ``or that relate to coastal 
                resiliency'' after ``coastal areas'';
            (2) by redesignating clauses (vi) and (vii) as clauses 
        (viii) and (ix), respectively, and inserting after clause (v) 
        the following:
                            ``(vi) stormwater runoff;
                            ``(vii) accelerated land loss;''; and
            (3) in clause (viii), as so redesignated, by inserting ``, 
        extreme weather,'' after ``sea level rise''.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    Section 320(i)(1) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
U.S.C. 1330(i)(1)) is amended by striking ``$26,500,000 for each of 
fiscal years 2017 through 2021'' and inserting ``$50,000,000 for each 
of fiscal years 2022 through 2026''.
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