[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1991 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1991

   To establish the National Endowment for the Oceans, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           December 14, 2011

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To establish the National Endowment for the Oceans, 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. NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE OCEANS.

    (a) Coastal State and Coastal Waters Defined.--In this section the 
terms ``coastal State'' and ``coastal waters'' have the meanings given 
the terms ``coastal state'' and ``coastal waters'', respectively, in 
section 304 of the Marine Resources and Engineering Development Act of 
1966 (16 U.S.C. 1453).
    (b) National Endowment for the Oceans.--
            (1) Establishment.--
                    (A) In general.--There is established in the 
                Treasury of the United States a trust fund to be known 
                as the ``National Endowment for the Oceans,'' 
                consisting of such amounts as may be appropriated or 
                credited to the National Endowment for the Oceans.
                    (B) Investment.--Amounts in the National Endowment 
                for the Oceans shall be invested in accordance with 
                section 9602 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, and 
                any interest on, and proceeds from, any such investment 
                shall be available for expenditure in accordance with 
                this subsection.
            (2) Trustee.--The trustee for the National Endowment for 
        the Oceans shall be the Secretary of Commerce.
            (3) Allocation of funds.--
                    (A) In general.--Each fiscal year, the Secretary 
                shall allocate, at a minimum, an amount equal to the 
                interest earned by the National Endowment for the 
                Oceans in the preceding fiscal year, and may distribute 
                an amount equal to up to 10 percent of the total 
                amounts in the National Endowment for the Oceans--
                            (i) to allocate funding to coastal States 
                        and affected Indian tribes;
                            (ii) to make grants to regional ocean and 
                        coastal planning bodies; and
                            (iii) to develop and implement a National 
                        Grant Program for Oceans and Coastal Waters.
                    (B) Program adjustments.--In each fiscal year when 
                the amount described in subsection (c) does not exceed 
                $100,000,000, the Secretary may elect to fund only the 
                grant program established in subparagraph (A)(iii).
            (4) Eligible activities.--Funds deposited in the National 
        Endowment for the Oceans may be allocated by the Secretary only 
        to fund grants for programs and activities intended to restore, 
        protect, maintain, or understand living marine resources and 
        their habitats and resources in ocean and coastal waters, 
        including baseline scientific research, ocean observing, and 
        other programs and activities carried out in coordination with 
        Federal and State departments or agencies, that are consistent 
        with Federal environmental laws and that avoid environmental 
        degradation.
            (5) Application.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
        paragraph (3)(A), an entity shall submit to the Secretary an 
        application therefor at such time, in such manner, and 
        containing such information as the Secretary considers 
        appropriate.
            (6) Funding for coastal states.--The Secretary shall 
        allocate funding among States as follows:
                    (A) 50 percent of the funds shall be allocated 
                equally among coastal States.
                    (B) 25 percent of the funds shall be allocated 
                based on tidal shoreline miles.
                    (C) 25 percent of the funds shall be allocated 
                based on the coastal population density of a coastal 
                State.
                    (D) No State shall be allocated more than 10 
                percent of the total amount of funds available for 
                allocation among coastal States for any fiscal year.
                    (E) No territory shall be allocated more than 1 
                percent of the total amount of funds available for 
                allocation among coastal States for any fiscal year.
    (c) Authorization of Interest Transfers.--Upon the establishment 
through legislation of a Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund, of the 
total amount made available in any fiscal year in that Trust Fund, an 
amount equal to the interest earned by the Trust Fund and proceeds from 
investments made by the Trust Fund in the preceding fiscal year, 50 
percent shall be transferred to the National Endowment for Oceans 
established by section (b)(1)(A).
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