[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 273 Introduced in House (IH)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 273

Imposing certain restrictions and requirements on the leasing under the 
 Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act of lands offshore Florida, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 30, 2001

   Mr. Goss introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                         Committee on Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
Imposing certain restrictions and requirements on the leasing under the 
 Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act of lands offshore Florida, 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. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds that--
            (1) preleasing, leasing, exploration, and development and 
        production of oil and gas from the outer Continental Shelf 
        without adequate scientific and environmental information does 
        not provide the level of protection needed for the conservation 
        of the natural resources of the Nation's coastal areas;
            (2) the Secretary of the Interior, assigned the primary 
        responsibility for the proper stewardship of the Nation's 
        public lands and outer Continental Shelf, is required to 
        provide adequate environmental analysis under the Outer 
        Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.), the 
        National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 
        seq.), and other Federal laws, before such lands are leased to 
        develop oil and gas resources; and
            (3) to protect the marine, coastal, and human environments 
        of coastal States, the citizens of such States are entitled to 
        have an adequate body of scientific and environmental 
        information, with a minimal level of uncertainty, before such 
        leasing and development are carried out.

SEC. 2. AREAS COVERED.

    The areas to which this Act applies are--
            (1) that part of the Eastern Gulf of Mexico Planning Area 
        that is east of the lateral seaward boundary between the States 
        of Florida and Alabama;
            (2) the Straits of Florida Planning Area; and
            (3) that part of the South Atlantic Planning Area that is 
        south of the lateral seaward boundary between the States of 
        Florida and Georgia.

SEC. 3. RESTRICTIONS AND REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) General Rule.--The Secretary shall not conduct any preleasing 
activities, hold any lease sale, or approve or permit any exploration, 
production, or drilling activities under the Outer Continental Shelf 
Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.) in any area described in section 2 
unless--
            (1) all assessments, studies, and research required for 
        such area under section 4 have been completed;
            (2) all such assessments, studies, and research have been 
        peer reviewed, by qualified scientists not employed by the 
        Federal Government, as provided for and supervised by the Joint 
        Task Force; and
            (3) the Secretary has transmitted to the Congress and to 
        the Governor of Florida a report, which has been reviewed by 
        the Joint Task Force, certifying that the available physical 
        oceanographic, ecological, and socioeconomic information, and 
        other environmental, endangered and threatened species, and 
        marine mammal information, is adequate to enable the Secretary 
        to carry out his responsibilities in such area under the Outer 
        Continental Shelf Lands Act and other Federal laws, with a 
        minimal level of uncertainty, with respect to all preleasing 
        activities, leasing, and exploration, production, and drilling 
        activities.
    (b) Specific Prohibition.--Notwithstanding subsection (a), the 
Secretary shall not conduct any preleasing activity, hold any lease 
sale, or approve or permit any exploration, production, or drilling 
activities under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act in that part of 
the Eastern Gulf of Mexico Planning Area that is south of 26 degrees 
north latitude and east of 86 degrees west longitude.
    (c) Additional Prohibition.--Notwithstanding subsection (a), the 
Secretary shall not conduct any preleasing activity or hold any lease 
sale in any area described in section 2 until after the expiration of 
the period covered by the next oil and gas leasing program issued under 
section 18 of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1344) 
after the leasing program in effect under such section as of the date 
of enactment of this Act.

SEC. 4. ASSESSMENTS, STUDIES, AND RESEARCH.

    The assessments, studies, and research referred to in section 
3(a)(1) and (2) are as follows:
            (1) Eastern gulf of mexico planning area.--With respect to 
        the area described in section 2(1):
                    (A) The Assessment of the Historical, Social, and 
                Economic Impacts of Outer Continental Shelf Development 
                on Gulf Coast Communities, to be conducted by the 
                Minerals Management Service.
                    (B) The Northeastern Gulf of Mexico Marine 
                Ecosystem Study, to be conducted by the National 
                Biological Survey.
                    (C) Any additional physical oceanographic studies 
                identified and recommended by the Northeast Gulf of 
                Mexico Physical Oceanography Workshop conducted by the 
                Minerals Management Service in conjunction with Florida 
                State University.
                    (D) Any additional studies or research in such area 
                needed to acquire information where one of the National 
                Research Council's reports found available information 
                inadequate.
                    (E) Any additional physical oceanographic, 
                ecological, or socioeconomic or other environmental 
                studies or endangered and threatened species and marine 
                mammal surveys requested by the Governor of Florida or 
the Joint Task Force to minimize the uncertainty about the effects of 
all preleasing activities, leasing, and exploration, production, and 
drilling activities on the marine environment, the coastal environment, 
and the human environment of the State of Florida, including any such 
request for the expansion of assessments, studies, or research 
described in subparagraphs (A) through (D).
            (2) Straits of florida planning area.--With respect to the 
        area described in section 2(2):
                    (A) The Assessment of the Historical, Social, and 
                Economic Impacts of Outer Continental Shelf Development 
                on Gulf Coast Communities, to be conducted by the 
                Minerals Management Service.
                    (B) Any additional physical oceanographic, 
                ecological, or socioeconomic or other environmental 
                studies or endangered and threatened species and marine 
                mammal surveys requested by the Governor of Florida or 
                the Joint Task Force to minimize the uncertainty about 
                the effects of all preleasing activities, leasing, and 
                exploration, production, and drilling activities on the 
                marine environment, the coastal environment, and the 
                human environment of the State of Florida.
            (3) South atlantic planning area.--With respect to the area 
        described in section 2(3), any physical oceanographic, 
        ecological, or socioeconomic or other environmental studies or 
        endangered and threatened species and marine mammal surveys 
        requested by the Governor of Florida or the Joint Task Force to 
        minimize the uncertainty about the effects of all preleasing 
        activities, leasing, and exploration, production, and drilling 
        activities on the marine environment, the coastal environment, 
        and the human environment of the State of Florida.

SEC. 5. JOINT TASK FORCE.

    (a) Establishment.--The Secretary of the Interior shall establish a 
Joint Federal-State Outer Continental Shelf Task Force for the purpose 
of carrying out the responsibilities assigned such Joint Task Force 
under this Act.
    (b) Membership.--The Joint Task Force established under subsection 
(a) shall consist of--
            (1) one representative each from the Environmental 
        Protection Agency, the Minerals Management Service, the 
        National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the United 
        States Fish and Wildlife Service;
            (2) four representatives from the State of Florida 
        appointed by the Secretary of the Interior from a list provided 
        by the Governor of such State; and
            (3) three members appointed by the Secretary of Commerce 
        from a list of individuals nominated by the National Academy of 
        Sciences who are professional scientists in the fields of 
        physical oceanography, marine ecology, and social science.
    (c) Compensation.--(1) Members of the Joint Task Force appointed 
under subsection (b)(3), while performing official duties under this 
Act shall receive compensation for travel and transportation expenses 
under section 5703 of title 5, United States Code.
    (2) Members of the Joint Task Force appointed under subsection 
(b)(3) may be compensated at a rate to be fixed by the Secretary of 
Commerce, but not in excess of the maximum rate of pay allowable under 
section 5376(b)(1) of title 5, United States Code, for each day such 
member spends performing the duties of the Joint Task Force.

SEC. 6. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENTS.

    Approval of the first exploration plan submitted after the date of 
enactment of this Act under section 11 of the Outer Continental Shelf 
Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1340) in each of the 3 areas described in section 
2 (1), (2), and (3) shall be subject to the requirement of a detailed 
statement submitted under section 102(2)(C) of the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)).

SEC. 7. EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS.

    Nothing in this Act shall affect any prohibition in any other law 
against any activities on the outer Continental Shelf.

SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary $3,000,000 
for each of the fiscal years 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006 for 
carrying out this Act.

SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS.

    For the purposes of this Act--
            (1) terms defined in the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act 
        have the meaning given such terms in that Act;
            (2) references to specific Outer Continental Shelf planning 
        areas shall be to areas so designated in the Department of the 
        Interior Outer Continental Shelf Five Year Oil and Gas Leasing 
        Program, 1997-2002;
            (3) the term ``adequate'' means sufficiently complete to 
        enable necessary decisions to be made under the Outer 
        Continental Shelf Lands Act, and of sufficient scientific 
        quality to be repeatable, reliable, and valid in measurements 
        and analysis with appropriate methods and subject;
            (4) the term ``Joint Task Force'' means the Joint Federal-
        State Outer Continental Shelf Task Force established under 
        section 5;
            (5) the term ``National Research Council's reports'' 
        means--
                    (A) the report entitled ``The Adequacy of 
                Environmental Information for Outer Continental Shelf 
                Oil and Gas Decisions: Florida and California'' issued 
                in 1989 by the Council's Committee to Review the Outer 
                Continental Shelf Environmental Studies Program and 
                supported by the President's Outer Continental Shelf 
                Leasing and Development Task Force through Department 
                of the Interior Contract No. 1435000130495; and
                    (B) parts I, II, and III of the ``Assessment of the 
                U.S. Outer Continental Shelf Environmental Studies 
                Program'' issued in 1990 and 1992 by the committee 
                referred to in subparagraph (A), with support from 
                Department of the Interior Contract No. 14-12-001-
                30342; and
            (6) the term ``preleasing activities'' means activities 
        conducted before a lease sale is held, and includes the 
        scheduling of a lease, requests for industry interest, calls 
        for information and nominations, area identifications, 
        publication of draft or final environmental impact statements, 
        notices of sale, and any form of rotary drilling; but such term 
        does not include environmental, geologic, geophysical, 
        economic, engineering, or other scientific analyses, studies, 
        and evaluations.
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