[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2173 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2173

    To facilitate the development of offshore wind energy resources.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 14, 2011

Mr. Wittman (for himself, Mr. Hastings of Washington, Mr. Lamborn, Mr. 
Broun of Georgia, and Mr. Duncan of Tennessee) introduced the following 
     bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To facilitate the development of offshore wind energy resources.

    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 at the ``Advancing Offshore Wind Production 
Act''.

SEC. 2. OFFSHORE METEOROLOGICAL SITE TESTING AND MONITORING PROJECTS.

    (a) Definition of an Offshore Meteorological Site Testing and 
Monitoring Project.--In this section, the term ``offshore 
meteorological site testing and monitoring project'' means a project 
carried out on or in the waters of the Outer Continental Shelf 
administered by the Department of the Interior to test or monitor 
weather (including wind, tidal, current, and solar energy) using 
towers, buoys, or other temporary ocean infrastructure, that--
            (1) causes--
                    (A) less than 1 acre of surface or seafloor 
                disruption at the location of each meteorological tower 
                or other device; and
                    (B) not more than 5 acres of surface or seafloor 
                disruption within the proposed area affected by for the 
                project (including hazards to navigation);
            (2) is decommissioned not more than 5 years after the date 
        of commencement of the project, including--
                    (A) removal of towers, buoys, or other temporary 
                ocean infrastructure from the project site; and
                    (B) restoration of the project site to 
                approximately the original condition of the site; and
            (3) provides meteorological information obtained by the 
        project to the Secretary of the Interior.
    (b) Offshore Meteorological Project Permitting.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of the Interior shall by 
        regulation require that any applicant seeking to conduct an 
        offshore meteorological site testing and monitoring project on 
        the outer Continental Shelf (as that term is defined in the 
        Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.)) 
        must obtain a permit for the project in accordance with this 
        subsection.
            (2) Permit timeline and conditions.--
                    (A) Deadline for approval.--The Secretary shall 
                decide whether to issue a permit for an offshore 
                meteorological site testing and monitoring project 
                within 30 days after receiving an application for the 
                permit.
                    (B) Public comment and consultation.--During the 
                period referred to in subparagraph (A), the Secretary 
                shall--
                            (i) provide an opportunity for submission 
                        of comments by the public; and
                            (ii) consult with the Secretary of Defense, 
                        the Commandant of the Coast Guard, and the 
                        heads of other Federal, State, and local 
                        agencies that would be affected by issuance of 
                        the permit.
                    (C) Denial of permit; opportunity to remedy 
                deficiencies.--If the application is denied, the 
                Secretary shall provide the applicant--
                            (i) in writing, clear and comprehensive 
                        reasons why the application was not approved 
                        and detailed information concerning any 
                        deficiencies in the application; and
                            (ii) an opportunity to remedy such 
                        deficiencies.
    (c) NEPA Exclusion.--Section 102(2)(C) of the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) shall not 
apply with respect to an offshore meteorological site testing and 
monitoring project.
    (d) Protection of Information.--The information provided to the 
Secretary of the Interior pursuant to subsection (a)(3) shall be 
treated by the Secretary as proprietary information and protected 
against disclosure.
                                 <all>