[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3515 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3515

    To establish 4 regional institutes as centers of excellence for 
 research, planning, and related efforts to assess and prepare for the 
         impacts of climate change on ocean and coastal areas.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

           September 18 (legislative day, September 17), 2008

Mr. Whitehouse introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To establish 4 regional institutes as centers of excellence for 
 research, planning, and related efforts to assess and prepare for the 
         impacts of climate change on ocean and coastal areas.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Oceans are a major carbon sink and have absorbed at 
        least 50 percent of all fossil carbon released to the 
        atmosphere since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution.
            (2) The increased absorption of carbon by the oceans due to 
        climate change has--
                    (A) increased ocean acidification, which impacts 
                the health of marine and coastal ecosystems; and
                    (B) influenced the important role oceans play in 
                the global cycling of carbon.
            (3) Climate change has contributed to sea levels rising 7 
        inches during the 20th century and nearly 1.5 inches between 
        1993 and 2003.
            (4) Climate change will greatly amplify risks to coastal 
        populations, economies, and ecosystems from--
                    (A) saltwater inundation of low-lying coastal 
                regions;
                    (B) more frequent flooding due to storm surges; and
                    (C) worsening beach erosion.
            (5) Research into the effects of climate change on coastal 
        environments, and into the ways in which coastal communities 
        must adapt to the challenges brought by climate change, is an 
        essential component to the overall response to climate change.

SEC. 2. INSTITUTES FOR OCEAN AND COASTAL ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE.

    (a) Establishment.--The Administrator of the National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration and the Administrator of the Environmental 
Protection Agency shall jointly establish 4 regional institutes, to be 
known as ``Institutes for Ocean and Coastal Adaptation to Climate 
Change'', at institutions of higher education in the United States for 
research, planning, and related efforts to assess and prepare for the 
impacts of climate change on ocean and coastal areas, including the 
Great Lakes.
    (b) Location.--The Administrators shall designate the location of 1 
of the regional institutes established under subsection (a) at an 
institution of higher education in each of the following regions:
            (1) The Northeast Region, which shall include Connecticut, 
        Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New 
        Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
            (2) The Southeast and Gulf Coast Region, which shall 
        include Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, 
        North Carolina, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, 
        and the Virgin Islands.
            (3) The Western/Pacific Region, which shall include Alaska, 
        American Samoa, California, Guam, Hawaii, the Northern Mariana 
        Islands, Oregon, and Washington.
            (4) The Great Lakes Region, which shall include Illinois, 
        Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin.
    (c) Grants Authorized.--
            (1) In general.--The Administrators shall award grants to 4 
        institutions of higher education to carry out the purposes of 
        this section.
            (2) Application.--An institution of higher education 
        seeking to operate an institute under this section shall submit 
        an application to the Administrators at such time, in such 
        manner, and containing such information as the Administrators 
        may reasonably require.
    (d) Schedule.--The Administrators shall--
            (1) accept applications for grants under this section 
        beginning not later than 9 months after the date of the 
        enactment of this Act; and
            (2) award all of the grants authorized under this section 
        not later than 90 days after the first day on which 
        applications are accepted.
    (e) Objectives.--The Institutes for Ocean and Coastal Adaptation 
shall be centers of excellence that--
            (1) document and predict coastal and ocean effects of 
        climate change; and
            (2) serve as a principle national and international 
        resource for providing technical expertise on adaptation 
        strategies for ocean and coastal area to respond to climate 
        change.
    (f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section.
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