1.This Act may be cited as the
Gulf of Mexico Economic and Environmental Restoration Act
of 2010
.
2.Gulf of Mexico
Recovery Council
(a)There is established the Gulf of Mexico
Recovery Council.
(b)The Council shall consist of each member of
the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force established by Executive Order
13554 (75 Fed. Reg. 62313).
(c)The Chair of the Council shall be the
member designated as the Chair of the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task
Force under Executive Order 13554 (75 Fed. Reg. 62313).
(d)The Council shall—
(1)establish
guidelines for State comprehensive restoration plans under section 4(b);
(2)approve or disapprove State comprehensive
restoration plans under section 4(d);
(3)distribute funds under section 4(e) to
States that have State comprehensive restoration plans approved under section
4(d);
(4)annually review
State comprehensive restoration plans under section 4(e)(2);
(5)establish a Gulf
of Mexico Observation System under section 5;
(6)establish a Gulf
of Mexico sea grant program under section 6;
(7)establish a Gulf
of Mexico seafood marketing program under section 7;
(8)establish a Gulf
of Mexico clean energy program under section 8;
(9)establish a Gulf
coast-based working group that includes representatives of members of the
Council and other local agencies and representatives as appropriate for the
purposes of recommending, coordinating, and implementing policies, programs,
activities, and projects to accomplish Gulf coast economic development,
ecosystem restoration, and public health rehabilitation under this Act;
(10)coordinate the
sharing of scientific information and other research associated with Gulf coast
economic development, ecosystem restoration, and public health rehabilitation;
and
(11)submit an annual
report to Congress under subsection (e).
(e)Not
later than September 30 of each year, the Council shall submit to Congress a
report that summarizes the activities of the Council and the policies, plans,
activities, and projects carried out under this Act.
(f)Nonapplicability
of Federal Advisory Committee ActThe Federal Advisory Committee
Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the Council or the working group
established under subsection (d)(9).
3.Gulf of Mexico
Economic and Environmental Recovery Fund
(a)There is established in the Treasury of the
United States a fund to be known as the Gulf of Mexico Economic and
Environmental Recovery Fund.
(b)Notwithstanding any
other provision of law, the Secretary of the Treasury shall deposit into the
Fund amounts equal to not less than 80 percent of any amounts collected by the
United States before, on, or after the date of the enactment of this Act as
penalties, settlements, or fines under sections 309 and 311 of the Federal
Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1319, 1321) in relation to the Gulf oil
spill.
(c)
(1)The Fund shall be available to the Council, as provided
in appropriations Acts, only for activities related to Gulf coast economic
development, ecosystem restoration, and public health rehabilitation in
accordance with this Act.
(2)
(A)The Council shall distribute 80 percent of the amounts
made available for expenditure from the Fund in a fiscal year to the Gulf
States to be used to carry out their respective State comprehensive restoration
plans approved by the Council under section 4(d)(2), in accordance with section
4(e).
(B)Proportional
distributionThe Council shall allocate the amounts to be
distributed to each Gulf State under this paragraph as follows:
(i)60
percent shall be allocated based on each Gulf State’s proportionate share of
the length of Gulf coast shoreline in the Gulf States, as determined by the
Council based on the most recently available data from, or accepted by, the
Office of Coast Survey of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
(ii)40 percent shall be allocated based on each
Gulf State’s proportionate share of the aggregate population of all counties
contained in whole or in part within the designated Gulf coast boundaries of
the Gulf States, as determined by the Council based on the most recent United
States census.
(3)
(A)The Council shall
distribute the remaining 20 percent of the amounts made available for
expenditure from the Fund in such fiscal year in the form of grants as
follows:
(i)40 percent for the
Gulf of Mexico Observation System established under section 5.
(ii)15 percent for the Gulf of Mexico sea grant
program established under section 6.
(iii)15 percent for
the Gulf of Mexico seafood marketing program established under section
7.
(iv)30 percent for the Gulf of Mexico clean
energy program established under section 8.
(B)Consistency with
regional ecosystem restoration strategyThe Council shall ensure that any funds
made available under this paragraph are used for projects and activities that
are not inconsistent with the regional ecosystem restoration strategy developed
by the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force established by Executive
Order 13554 (75 Fed. Reg. 62313).
4.State
comprehensive restoration plans
(a)In order to be
eligible to receive funds under section 3(c)(2), a Gulf State shall submit to
the Council a State comprehensive restoration plan regarding Gulf coast
economic development, ecosystem restoration, and public health rehabilitation
in the State, in accordance with this section.
(b)
(1)Not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of
this Act, and after providing notice and an opportunity for public comment, the
Council shall make available to the public guidelines for the development and
submission of State comprehensive restoration plans under this section.
(2)
(A)The Council shall
require a State submitting a State comprehensive restoration plan under this
section to ensure that the plan addresses the effects in the State of the Gulf
oil spill with regards to the economy, the environment, and public health, both
physical and mental.
(B)The Council shall
require a State submitting a State comprehensive restoration plan under this
section to ensure that the plan specifically addresses the following
elements:
(i)Environmental restoration and remediation,
including in coastal and marine ecosystems.
(ii)Academic and applied research regarding the
economy, environment, and public health.
(iii)Seafood
marketing.
(iv)Tourism
marketing.
(v)Coastal land
acquisition.
(vi)Ecosystem resource planning and coastal and
marine spatial planning (as that term is defined in Executive Order 13547 (75
Fed. Reg. 43023)).
(vii)Renewable and
clean energy production and development, energy conservation, and related
retrofitting projects.
(c)A State submitting to the Council a State
comprehensive restoration plan under this section shall do so not later than 90
days after the date on which the Council makes guidelines available to the
public under subsection (b).
(d)Review,
approval, and disapproval
(1)Not later than 30 days after a State
submits to the Council a State comprehensive restoration plan under subsection
(a), the Council shall review and either approve or disapprove the State
comprehensive restoration plan in accordance with this subsection.
(2)The Council may approve a State
comprehensive restoration plan from a State under this subsection if the plan
meets all of the requirements of subsection (b) and the guidelines made
available under such subsection.
(3)If the Council disapproves a State
comprehensive restoration plan under this subsection—
(A)the Council shall
provide to the State the reasons for the disapproval; and
(B)the State may
submit a revised State comprehensive restoration plan not later than 30 days
after the date of such disapproval.
(e)
(1)If the Council approves a State
comprehensive restoration plan under subsection (d), the Council shall
establish a timeline for distributing funds to the State under section 3(c)(2)
and distribute the funds according to such timeline.
(2)Not later than September 30 of each year during which
funds are distributed to a State for a State comprehensive restoration plan
under section 3(c)(2), the Council shall conduct a review of the implementation
of the plan.
(3)If the Council finds,
based on an annual review conducted under paragraph (2), that a State is not
fully implementing its State comprehensive restoration plan or the
implementation of such plan is not achieving its stated objectives, the Council
may withhold funds that have not yet been distributed under the timeline
established under paragraph (1).
5.Gulf of Mexico
Observation System
(a)The Council shall establish a Gulf of
Mexico Observation System to observe, monitor, and map the Gulf in a
comprehensive manner in accordance with this section.
(b)
(1)The Gulf of Mexico Observation System established under
subsection (a) shall be implemented through a Gulf of Mexico Exploration
Research Center administered by an eligible entity chosen by the Council based
on an application demonstrating the ability of the eligible entity to carry out
the requirements of this section.
(2)The Council shall make grants under section
3(c)(3)(A) to an eligible entity chosen under paragraph (1) for the
administration of the Gulf of Mexico Exploration Research Center.
(c)Facilitation of
existing technologiesAn eligible entity administering the Gulf
of Mexico Observation System under subsection (b) shall facilitate the use of
existing technologies in order to quickly increase observation and monitoring
capabilities in the Gulf, including facilitating—
(1)enhancement of existing ocean-based
monitoring systems, including satellite imagery, moorings and autonomous
observation platforms, oceanographic research vessels, subsurface sea floor
mapping, coastal and wetland monitoring stations, robotic technology,
computational modeling and forecasting, and vessels to support coastal
monitoring and fishery assessment;
(2)enhancement of the existing land-based
monitoring facilities through the acquisition, construction, and development of
laboratories, port infrastructure, equipment, and personnel that support,
interface, communicate with, and provide integrated observation functions that
supplement the ocean-based monitoring system;
(3)support of
operational costs for staffing relating to existing technologies; and
(4)the development of
academic programs focused on training in supportive fields, such as data
assimilation, information synthesis and modeling, data visualization
capabilities, and data management and analysis.
(d)Development of
new technologiesAn eligible
entity administering the Gulf of Mexico Observation System under subsection (b)
shall facilitate the development of new monitoring technologies.
(e)
(1)An
eligible entity administering the Gulf of Mexico Observation System under
subsection (b) shall deploy monitoring technologies, including the
following:
(A)Coastal sensor moorings.
(B)Deep sea sensor
moorings.
(C)Sea floor sensor
moorings in deep water.
(D)Sensor moorings on
oil and gas platforms and other structures.
(E)Data transmission
systems, including local- and regional-scale data nodes.
(F)Research vessels
for system deployment, system maintenance, and emergency response.
(G)Port facilities to
support research vessels, sensor moorings, and data transmission
systems.
(H)Sensor development
and testing programs.
(I)High-frequency
radars to monitor physical properties of the surface water of the Gulf.
(2)An
eligible entity administering the Gulf of Mexico Observation System under
subsection (b) shall support monitoring technologies, including the following:
(A)Autonomous
underwater vehicles.
(B)Satellite and
acoustic tagging programs for migratory fishes, cetaceans, and sea
turtles.
(C)Computer modeling
systems.
(f)In
this section, the following definitions apply:
(1)The term eligible entity
means an
organization that—
(A)is a consortium of
public and private institutions of higher education in a Gulf State;
(B)is formally
established by a board of higher education in a Gulf State for the purpose of
collaborating on marine science research;
(C)has its operations
physically located in the Gulf coast; and
(D)demonstrates
experience in carrying out the kinds of activities described in this section
and the ability to carry out the requirements of subsections (c), (d), and
(e).
(2)The
term Gulf
means the submerged lands of the Outer Continental
Shelf of the United States, and the areas of the exclusive economic zone of the
United States, within the Gulf of Mexico, including the associated coastal
watersheds, estuaries, beaches, and wetlands.
(g)Coordination
with National Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observation SystemThe Council shall ensure that the Gulf of
Mexico Observation System established under subsection (a) is developed in
coordination with the National Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observation System
established under section 12304 of the Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observation
System Act of 2009 (33 U.S.C. 3603).
6.Gulf of Mexico
sea grant program
(a)The
Council shall establish a grant program to fund Gulf coast restoration projects
carried out by sea grant colleges or institutions, as designated under the
National Sea Grant College Program Act (33 U.S.C. 1121 et seq.), that are
located in Gulf States.
(b)In
order to be eligible to receive a grant under this section, a sea grant college
or institution located in a Gulf State shall submit to the Council an
application describing the research on Gulf coast restoration activities to be
carried out with funds made available through such grant, and how such research
is consistent with the purposes of both the National Sea Grant College Program
and this Act.
(c)A sea grant college or institution
receiving a grant under this section shall submit an annual report to the
Council containing such information as the Council may require.
7.Gulf of Mexico
seafood marketing program
(a)The Council shall establish a Gulf of
Mexico seafood marketing program to be carried out in accordance with this
section.
(b)Gulf of Mexico
Seafood Marketing Board
(1)The Council shall establish a Gulf of
Mexico Seafood Marketing Board in accordance with this subsection.
(2)
(A)The Board shall
consist of 13 members appointed by the Council to reflect the expertise and
interests of the seafood industry located within the Gulf States.
(B)
(i)Not later than 30 days after the date of the enactment
of this Act, the Council shall solicit from the Governors of the Gulf States
nominations of individuals to be appointed as members.
(ii)Not
later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Council
shall appoint members from among the individuals nominated under clause
(i).
(C)The
Council shall ensure that the members fairly reflect the seafood industry
located within the Gulf States. The Board shall include the following:
(i)3
individuals with experience in the harvesting of seafood.
(ii)1
individual with experience in managing a large seafood processing
operation.
(iii)1 individual with experience in managing a
small seafood processing operation.
(iv)1
individual with experience in seafood-related transportation and
logistics.
(v)1
individual with experience in mass-market seafood distribution.
(vi)1
individual with experience in mass-market seafood retail or food
service.
(vii)1
individual with experience in the marketing of seafood.
(viii)1
individual recommended by a Gulf coast region or State seafood marketing
organization.
(ix)1
individual representing the aquaculture production of seafood.
(x)2
individuals representing the general public who are familiar with the seafood
industry as a whole.
(D)
(i)Each member shall be appointed for a term of 3
years.
(ii)No member may serve more than 3 consecutive terms.
(iii)A
vacancy on the Board shall not affect the ability of the Board to function. The
Council shall appoint a new member in the manner in which the original
appointment was made not later than 30 days after a vacancy occurs to fill the
unexpired term of the vacated member.
(E)The Board may remove a member from office
for failure to attend 3 consecutive Board meetings without reasonable
excuse.
(F)Members shall serve without compensation,
but shall be reimbursed in accordance with section 5703 of title 5, United
States Code, for reasonable travel costs and expenses incurred in performing
their duties as a member.
(3)
(A)The
Board shall be chaired by a member selected by a majority of members
voting.
(B)A simple majority of members shall
constitute a quorum, but a lesser number may hold hearings.
(C)
(i)The Board shall
employ an executive director.
(ii)The salary of an executive director employed under clause
(i) may not exceed the highest rate of basic pay established for the Senior
Executive Service under section 5382 of title 5, United States Code.
(iii)In
order to be qualified to be employed as an executive director under clause (i),
an individual must have demonstrated experience in the marketing and promotion
of food products.
(D)An
executive director employed by the Board under subparagraph (C), with the
approval of the Board, may select and employ such additional staff as the
executive director determines necessary.
(E)Limitation on
administrative expensesNot
more than 5 percent of the funds distributed by the Council to the Board each
year may be used by the Board to pay its administrative expenses.
(4)
(A)Not later than
September 30 of each year, the Board shall submit to the Council a seafood
marketing plan that describes the consumer education, research, and other
marketing activities planned by the Board for the following year, including the
selection procedures and criteria the Board plans to use for the awarding of
grants.
(B)The
Board shall design a seafood marketing plan submitted under this paragraph for
the purposes of—
(i)increasing
consumer demand for seafood;
(ii)encouraging,
expanding, or improving the marketing and utilization of seafood; and
(iii)improving
consumer education, research, and other marketing activities regarding
seafood.
(C)Specific
marketing activities permittedThe Board may include in a seafood
marketing plan submitted under this paragraph marketing activities that
reference a particular brand or trade name.
(D)Review;
approval; disapproval
(i)Not
later than 30 days after the Board submits to the Council a seafood marketing
plan under this paragraph, the Council shall review the marketing plan and
approve or disapprove the plan in accordance with this subparagraph.
(ii)If
the Council determines that the plan meets the requirements of this paragraph,
the Council shall approve the plan and make a grant to the Board in accordance
with section 3(c)(3)(A).
(iii)If the Council does not approve a plan
under clause (ii)—
(I)the Council shall
provide to the Board the reasons for the disapproval; and
(II)the Board shall
submit a revised plan not later than 30 days after the date of such
disapproval.
(5)Grants to
organizations and individuals
(A)The Board shall make
grants to organizations and individuals, subject to such terms and conditions
as the Board may require and consistent with the purposes of this section and
the marketing plan approved by the Council.
(B)Promotion of
partnershipsIn making grants
under this subsection, the Board shall promote cost-sharing partnerships with
non-Federal entities and may limit grant amounts to a portion of the estimated
cost of a project.
(C)If the Board conditions
the making of a grant under this subsection on the availability of matching
funds, such matching funds may include funds from private sources, funds from
State or local governments, or the value of in-kind contributions.
(D)The Board shall seek to distribute not less than 10 percent
of the funds it distributes under this subsection in a fiscal year through
grants to minority-owned businesses, veteran-owned businesses, and small
businesses.
(6)The Board shall maintain accounting records
of the receipt and disbursement of all funds of the Board, which shall be
subject to the review of the Council.
(7)Not
later than September 1 of each year, the Board shall submit to the Council a
report detailing the expenditures of the Board during the previous 12 months
and the results of such expenditures.
(c)Not
later than September 30 of each year, the Council shall submit to Congress a
report regarding the results of the operations of the Gulf of Mexico seafood
marketing program.
(d)In
this section, the following definitions apply:
(1)The
term Board
means the Gulf of Mexico Seafood Marketing Board
established by subsection (b)(1).
(2)The
term member
means a member of the Board.
(3)The term minority-owned business
means a
business—
(A)not less than 51 percent of which is owned
by one or more socially and economically disadvantaged individuals or, in the
case of any publicly owned business, not less than 51 percent of the stock of
which is owned by one or more socially and economically disadvantaged
individuals; and
(B)the management and daily business
operations of which are controlled by one or more socially and economically
disadvantaged individuals.
(4)The term seafood
means
farm-raised and wild-caught fish and shellfish harvested in the Gulf coast for
human consumption.
(5)The term small business
has the meaning
given the term small business concern
in section 3 of the Small
Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632).
(6)Socially and
economically disadvantaged individualThe term socially and economically
disadvantaged individual
means an individual described as socially and
economically disadvantaged in section 8(a) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C.
637(a)).
(7)The term veteran
has the
meaning given that term in section 101(2) of title 38, United States Code.
(8)The term
veteran-owned business
means a business—
(A)not less than 51
percent of which is owned by one or more veterans or, in the case of any
publicly owned business, not less than 51 percent of the stock of which is
owned by one or more veterans; and
(B)the management and
daily business operations of which are controlled by one or more
veterans.
8.Gulf of Mexico
clean energy program
(a)The Council shall establish a Gulf of
Mexico clean energy program to make grants to eligible entities for qualified
clean energy projects and qualified energy efficiency projects, in accordance
with this section.
(b)In order to be eligible to receive a grant
under this section, an eligible entity shall submit to the Council an
application at such time, in such form, and containing such information as the
Council may require.
(c)An
eligible entity receiving a grant under this section shall submit an annual
report to the Council containing such information as the Council may
require.
(d)In
this section, the following definitions apply:
(1)The term clean
energy project
means any electricity generation, transmission, storage,
heating, cooling, industrial process, or manufacturing project the primary
purpose of which is the deployment, development, or production of an energy
system or technology that avoids, reduces, or sequesters air pollutants or
anthropogenic greenhouse gases, including projects based on the following
energy technologies:
(A)Solar.
(B)Wind.
(C)Geothermal.
(D)Biomass.
(E)Hydropower.
(F)Ocean.
(G)Fuel cell.
(H)Advanced
battery.
(I)Carbon capture and
sequestration.
(J)Next generation
biofuels.
(2)The term eligible entity
means a State or
local government, an individual, a nonprofit organization, or a private
business.
(3)Energy
efficiency projectThe term energy efficiency
project
means any project, technology, function, or measure that
results in the reduction of energy use required to achieve the same level of
service or output prior to the application of such project, technology,
function, or measure, or substantially reduces greenhouse gas emissions
relative to emissions that would have occurred prior to the application of such
project, technology, function, or measure.
(4)Qualified clean
energy projectThe term qualified clean energy
project
means a clean energy project that—
(A)is carried out
within a Gulf State;
(B)pays wages in
accordance with subchapter IV of chapter 31 of title 40, United States Code
(commonly known as the Davis-Bacon Act); and
(C)satisfies any
other conditions established by the Council.
(5)Qualified energy
efficiency projectThe term qualified energy efficiency
project
means an energy efficiency project, including Smart Grid
technologies and functions characterized in section 1301 of the Energy
Independence and Security Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 17381) and end-use
technologies for efficiency gains in new construction and across existing
infrastructure, that—
(A)is carried out
within a Gulf State;
(B)pays wages in
accordance with subchapter IV of chapter 31 of title 40, United States Code
(commonly known as the Davis-Bacon Act); and
(C)satisfies any
other conditions established by the Council.
9.In this Act, the following definitions
apply:
(1)The term Fund
means the Gulf
of Mexico Economic and Environmental Recovery Fund established by section
3(a).
(2)The
term Council means the Gulf of Mexico Recovery Council established
by section 2(a).
(3)The term Gulf coast means the coastal zones,
as determined pursuant to the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C.
1451 et seq.), of the States of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi
and adjacent State waters and submerged lands of the Outer Continental Shelf in
the Gulf of Mexico.
(4)The term Gulf
States
means the States of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and
Mississippi.
(5)The term Gulf
oil spill
means the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico caused by the
mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon that began on April 20,
2010.