Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act of 2015”.
Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act of 2015
A BILL
To modify the Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act of 2009, and for other purposes.
Sec. 2 Purposes
Section 12402(a) of the Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act of 2009 (33 U.S.C. 3701(a)) is amended—
in paragraph (1), by striking “development and coordination” and inserting “coordination and implementation”;
in paragraph (1)(A), by inserting “ocean chemistry and” after “ocean acidification on”;
in paragraph (1)(B), by striking “establish an interagency research and monitoring” and inserting “maintain and advise an interagency research, monitoring, and public outreach”; and
in paragraph (2), by striking “establishment” and inserting “maintenance”.
Sec. 3 Definitions
Section 12403 of the Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act of 2009 (33 U.S.C. 3702) is amended—
in paragraph (1)—
by striking “and changes in ocean” and inserting “, estuaries, and the Great Lakes and changes in their”; and
by striking “from the atmosphere, including carbon dioxide” and inserting “, including carbon dioxide from the atmosphere”; and
in paragraph (3), by striking “Joint”.
Sec. 4 Interagency Subcommittee
Section 12404 of the Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act of 2009 (33 U.S.C. 3703) is amended—
in subsection (a)—
in paragraph (1)—
by striking “Joint Subcommittee on Ocean Science and Technology of the National Science and Technology Council” and inserting “Subcommittee, with the assistance of the interagency working group described in paragraph (2),”; and
by inserting “on ocean acidification” after “working group”; and
in paragraph (2), by striking “United States Geological Survey, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and such other Federal agencies as appropriate” and inserting “Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of State, the Environmental Protection Agency, the United States Geological Survey, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the United States Navy, the Department of Energy, and such other Federal agencies as the Subcommittee considers appropriate”;
in subsection (b)—
in paragraph (2)—
by striking “and” at the end of subparagraph (A);
by inserting “and” at the end of subparagraph (B); and
by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
“(C) adaptation and mitigation strategies to address socioeconomic impacts resulting from ocean acidification;”
by striking “and” at the end of paragraph (4);
by redesignating paragraph (5) as paragraph (6);
by inserting after paragraph (4) the following new paragraph:
“(5) ensure that each of the agencies represented on the interagency working group delivers data and information to support the Information Exchange described in paragraph (6) and the data archive established under section 12406(c)(1); and”
in paragraph (6), as so redesignated by subparagraph (C) of this paragraph—
by inserting “through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, in collaboration with the other agency members of the interagency working group, and in consultation with the Advisory Board established under subsection (d),” before “establish or designate”;
by inserting “create a platform for community coordination and to” after “Exchange to”; and
by inserting “State, local, and tribal governments,” after “useful to policymakers,”;
in subsection (c)—
in paragraph (2)—
by striking “Not later than 2 years after the delivery of the initial report under paragraph (1) and every 2 years thereafter, the Subcommittee” and inserting “Not later than 3 years after publication of the most recent strategic research plan under section 12405, the Subcommittee, in consultation with the Advisory Board established under subsection (d),”;
by inserting “, and to the Office of Management and Budget,” after “House of Representatives”; and
in subparagraph (B), by striking “the interagency research plan developed by the Subcommittee under section 12405” and inserting “such strategic research plan”; and
by striking paragraph (3); and
by adding at the end the following new subsection:
“(d) Advisory Board
“(1) Establishment—The Chairman of the Subcommittee shall establish an Ocean Acidification Advisory Board.
“(2) Membership—The Advisory Board shall have 15 members, with a reasonable cross-sectional representation of the United States coastal, island, and Great Lakes regions, including—
“(A) 2 representatives of the shellfish and crab industry;
“(B) 1 representative of the finfish industry;
“(C) 1 representative of seafood processors;
“(D) 3 representatives from academia, including both natural and social sciences;
“(E) 1 representative of relevant nongovernmental organizations;
“(F) 6 representatives from relevant State, local, and tribal governments and Federal agencies; and
“(G) 1 additional qualified member.
“(3) Appointment of members—The Chairman of the Subcommittee shall appoint members to 5-year terms, giving consideration to ensuring an appropriate balance of scientific, industry, and geographical interests, and ensuring representation from all relevant sectors. A member may be appointed to more than one term.
“(4) Application—The Chairman of the Subcommittee shall seek and give due consideration to applications from members of the public for seats on the Advisory Board.
“(5) Nomination—The Chairman of the Subcommittee shall seek and give due consideration to nominations and recommendations from the public and the members of the interagency working group for the appointments to the Advisory Board.
“(6) Member expertise—Selection of individuals for the Advisory Board shall be based on their demonstrated expertise on ocean acidification and its scientific, economic, industry, and community impacts, and their record of distinguished service in relation to this issue. Their perspectives shall broadly represent the interest group for which the seat is designated.
“(7) Chairman—The Chairman of the Subcommittee shall appoint one member of the Advisory Board to serve as Chairman.
“(8) Meetings—The Advisory Board shall meet at such times and places as may be designated by the Chairman of the Advisory Board, in consultation with the Chairman of the Subcommittee.
“(9) Duties—The Advisory Board shall—
“(A) not later than 6 months after transmittal of a report by the Subcommittee under subsection (c)(2), transmit to the Subcommittee, the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate, the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives an analysis of such report;
“(B) not later than 6 months after publication of the most recent strategic research plan under section 12405, transmit to the Subcommittee, the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate, the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives an analysis of such strategic research plan and the implementation thereof;
“(C) provide ongoing advice to the Subcommittee and the interagency working group on matters related to Federal activities on ocean acidification taken pursuant to this subtitle;
“(D) advise the Subcommittee and the interagency working group on the content and design of the Information Exchange described in subsection (b)(6);
“(E) advise the Subcommittee and the interagency working group on the standards developed for data archiving as required under section 12406(c);
“(F) establish a publicly accessible web page, hosted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, that includes—
“(i) the charter required under section 9(c) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.);
“(ii) schedules and minutes for meetings of the Advisory Board;
“(iii) any documents described in subsections (b) and (c) of section 9 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act that are created by the Advisory Board; and
“(iv) any reports prepared by the Advisory Board;
“(G) publish in the Federal Register the charter described in subparagraph (F)(i); and
“(H) provide to the Library of Congress any charter or document described in subparagraph (F)(i) or (iii).
“(10) Federal Advisory Committee Act—The Federal Advisory Committee Act shall not apply to the Advisory Board, except for section 9(b) and (c) and section 10(a) through (d).”
Sec. 5 Strategic research plan
Section 12405 of the Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act of 2009 (33 U.S.C. 3704) is amended—
in subsection (a)—
by inserting “and not later than 5 years after publication of the most recent plan under this section,” after “enactment of this Act,”;
by inserting “address socioeconomic impacts and” after “mitigation strategies to”; and
by striking “National Academy of Sciences in the review of the plan required under subsection (d)” and inserting “Advisory Board”;
in subsection (b)—
in paragraph (1), by inserting “and social” after “among the ocean”;
in paragraph (2)(B), by striking “improve the ability to”;
in paragraph (2)(C), by inserting “address socioeconomic impacts and” after “mitigation strategies to”;
in paragraph (3)(F), by inserting “and management” after “database development”;
by striking “and” at the end of paragraph (3)(H);
by redesignating subparagraph (I) of paragraph (3) as subparagraph (J);
by inserting after paragraph (3)(H) the following new subparagraph:
“(I) education and outreach activities; and”
in paragraph (4), by striking “set forth” and inserting “ensure an appropriate balance of contribution in setting forth”; and
by amending paragraph (7) to read as follows:
“(7) estimate budget requirements by fiscal year for full implementation of each element of the plan over the course of the 10 years of the plan;”
in subsection (c)—
in paragraph (1)(C), by striking “surface”;
in paragraph (3)—
by striking “input” and inserting “inputs”; and
by inserting “, marine food webs,” after “marine ecosystems”;
in paragraph (4), by striking “on moorings and autonomous floats” and inserting “for monitoring and research”; and
by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
“(6) Research to understand related and cumulative stressors and other biogeochemical processes occurring in conjunction with ocean acidification, including hypoxia and harmful algal blooms.”
by striking subsections (d) and (e) and inserting the following:
“(d) Publication and public comment—Not later than 90 days before the strategic research plan, or any revision thereof, is transmitted to Congress, the Subcommittee shall publish the plan in the Federal Register and provide an opportunity for submission of public comments for a period of not less than 60 days.”
Sec. 6 NOAA ocean acidification activities
Section 12406 of the Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act of 2009 (33 U.S.C. 3705) is amended—
in subsection (a)—
by inserting “coordination,” after “research, monitoring,”;
in paragraph (1)—
in subparagraph (B)—
by inserting “including the Integrated Ocean Observing System and the ocean observing assets of other agencies,” after “ocean observing assets,”; and
by inserting “and agency and department missions, prioritizing co-location of monitoring instruments, assets, and projects for efficient use of resources and to optimize understanding of socioeconomic impacts and ecosystem health” after “research program”;
in subparagraph (C), by inserting “and protecting impacted industries and communities” after “marine ecosystems”; and
in subparagraph (F), by striking “monitoring and impacts research” and inserting “research, monitoring, and adaptation strategies”; and
in paragraph (2), by striking “projects that explore” and inserting “and education projects that explore and communicate”; and
by adding at the end the following new subsection:
“(c) Data archive, access, and availability
“(1) Establishment—The Secretary, in coordination with members of the interagency working group, shall establish data processing, storage, and archive facilities and procedures to provide for the long-term stewardship of environmental data, products, and information necessary for carrying out this subtitle.
“(2) Activities—Activities under this subsection shall include—
“(A) archiving environmental data collected by Federal, State, and local agencies, academic scientists, citizen scientists, industry and tribal organizations, and federally funded research;
“(B) promoting widespread availability and dissemination of environmental data and information through full and open access exchange to the greatest extent possible, including in electronic format on the Internet through resources such as the Information Exchange described in section 12404(b)(6);
“(C) developing standards, protocols, and procedures for interoperability and intercalibration and the sharing of Federal data with State and local government programs, the private sector, and academia; and
“(D) developing metadata standards in accordance with available guidelines.
“(3) Requirement—Recipients of grants from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration under this subtitle shall collect data in accordance with the interoperability, intercalibration, and metadata standards described in paragraph (2) and submit those data to the Secretary on a timely basis.”
Sec. 7 NSF ocean acidification activities
Section 12407 of the Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act of 2009 (33 U.S.C. 3706) is amended—
in subsection (a), by striking “continue to carry out research activities on ocean acidification which shall”; and
by adding at the end the following new subsection:
“(d) Requirement—Recipients of grants from the National Science Foundation under this subtitle shall collect data in accordance with the interoperability, intercalibration, and metadata standards described in section 12406(c)(2) and submit those data to the Secretary on a timely basis.”
Sec. 8 Authorization of appropriations
Section 12409 of the Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act of 2009 (33 U.S.C. 3708) is amended—
in subsection (a), by striking “this subtitle” and all that follows through “2012” and inserting “$20,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2016 through 2019”; and
in subsection (b), by striking “this subtitle” and all that follows through “2012” and inserting “$15,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2016 through 2019”.