[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3889 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 3889
To provide for the standardization, publication, and accessibility of
data relating to public outdoor recreational use of Federal waterways,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 6, 2024
Mr. Cruz (for himself and Mr. King) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for the standardization, publication, and accessibility of
data relating to public outdoor recreational use of Federal waterways,
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. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Modernizing Access to Our Public
Oceans Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Federal fishing restriction area.--The term ``Federal
fishing restriction area'' means a defined area in which all or
certain fishing activities are temporarily or permanently
banned or restricted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration.
(2) Federal waterway.--The term ``Federal waterway'' means
any portion of a body of water managed in part or in entirety
by the Secretary.
(3) Federal waterway restriction.--The term ``Federal
waterway restriction'' means a restriction on access to or use
of a Federal waterway applied under applicable law by the
Secretary.
(4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Commerce.
SEC. 3. DATA STANDARDIZATION.
Not later than 31 months after the date of the enactment of this
Act, the Secretary, in consultation with relevant stakeholders, shall
develop and adopt standards with respect to the collection and
dissemination of geospatial data relating to public outdoor
recreational use of Federal waterways and Federal fishing restriction
areas, including such data made available under section 4.
SEC. 4. DATA PUBLICATION AND ACCESSIBILITY.
(a) Federal Waterway Fishing Access Data.--Not later than 4 years
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary, to the
maximum extent practicable, shall make available on a publicly
accessible website geographic information system data that--
(1) includes, with respect to Federal waterway
restrictions--
(A) information with respect to the conditions
under which Federal waterways are open or closed to
entry, watercraft, low-elevation aircraft, or diving;
(B) the areas of Federal waterways with
restrictions on motorized propulsion, horsepower, or
gasoline fuel;
(C) the areas of Federal waterways with anchoring
restrictions, no-wake zones, or vessel speed
restrictions; and
(D) the types of watercraft that are restricted on
each area of a Federal waterway, including the
permissibility of--
(i) motorboats;
(ii) non-motorized watercraft;
(iii) personal watercraft;
(iv) airboats;
(v) amphibious aircraft; and
(vi) oceangoing ships; and
(2) describes--
(A) the location and geographic boundaries of
Federal fishing restriction areas, including--
(i) any zones where, and periods when,
fishing is limited under paragraphs (2), (3),
and (4) of section 303(b)(2) of the Magnuson-
Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act
(16 U.S.C. 1853(b)(2));
(ii) full and partial closures, in terms of
both area and duration, as well as seasonal
closures;
(iii) no-catch zones; and
(iv) Federal fishing restrictions within or
surrounding marine protected areas, including
National Marine Sanctuaries; and
(B) to the maximum extent practicable, restrictions
imposed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration on method of catch, such as requirements
relating to the use of circle hooks, descending
devices, and trolling.
(b) Federal Waterway Access and Navigation Information.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall, to the maximum extent
practicable, continue to make available digitized geographic
information system data that includes, with respect to access
to Federal waterways--
(A) navigation information;
(B) bathymetric information; and
(C) depth charts.
(2) Website.--The Secretary shall make the data described
in paragraph (1) available on the website on which the
Secretary makes the data described in subsection (a) available.
(c) Data Accessibility.--The Secretary shall ensure that the
website on which the Secretary makes the data described in subsections
(a) and (b) available--
(1) organizes that data so that the data is findable,
accessible, interoperable, and reusable; and
(2) includes a mechanism by which users can be easily
updated when new data becomes available.
(d) Public Comment.--The Secretary shall develop a process to allow
members of the public to submit questions or comments regarding the
data described in subsections (a) and (b) and the accessibility of that
data under subsection (c).
(e) Updates.--The Secretary, to the maximum extent practicable,
shall update--
(1) the data described in subsections (a)(1) and (b) not
less frequently than 2 times each year; and
(2) the data described in subsection (a)(2) in real time as
changes to Federal fishing restriction areas take effect.
(f) Nondisclosure of Certain Information.--The Secretary may not
disclose, in any geographic information system data made publicly
available under this section, information regarding the nature,
location, character, or ownership of historic, paleontological,
cultural, or archaeological resources, consistent with applicable law.
SEC. 5. COOPERATION AND COORDINATION.
(a) Community Partners and Third-Party Providers.--For purposes of
carrying out this Act, the Secretary may--
(1) coordinate and partner with non-Federal entities,
including--
(A) State agencies;
(B) interstate marine fisheries commissions;
(C) Regional Ocean Partnerships;
(D) experts in data science, analytics, and
operations research;
(E) the private sector, including technology or
geospatial data industries; and
(F) nonprofit organizations; and
(2) enter into agreements with experts described in
subparagraph (D) of paragraph (1), or experts within entities
described in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), (E), or (F) of that
paragraph, to carry out any of the provisions of this Act.
(b) Interagency Coordination.--The Secretary shall, to the maximum
extent practicable, work with the relevant offices of the Department of
the Interior, the Department of Agriculture, the Coast Guard, the Army
Corps of Engineers, and the Interagency Working Group on Ocean and
Coastal Mapping codified by section 12203 of the Ocean and Coastal
Mapping Integration Act (33 U.S.C. 3502) to ensure compatibility and
interoperability among applicable Federal databases with respect to the
collection and dissemination of geospatial data relating to public
outdoor recreational use of Federal waterways and Federal fishing
restriction areas.
(c) Applicability of Federal, State, and Tribal Regulations.--The
Secretary, in developing and distributing geospatial data under this
Act, shall make clear that the data are subject to--
(1) applicable Federal regulations; and
(2) applicable State and Tribal regulations.
SEC. 6. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing in this Act may be construed--
(1) to modify or alter the definition of the term
``navigable waters'' under any provision of Federal law;
(2) to affect the jurisdiction or authority of Federal or
State agencies to regulate navigable waters; or
(3) to increase or diminish the responsibility or authority
of Federal or State agencies to manage fisheries.
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