[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 94 (Wednesday, June 5, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H4327-H4329]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
OCEAN ACIDIFICATION INNOVATION ACT OF 2019
Ms. JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
pass the bill (H.R. 1921) to authorize Federal agencies to establish
prize competitions for innovation or adaptation management development
relating to ocean acidification, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 1921
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 ``Ocean Acidification
Innovation Act of 2019''.
SEC. 2. PRIZE COMPETITIONS.
Section 12404 of the Federal Ocean Acidification Research
And Monitoring Act of 2009 (33 U.S.C. 3703) is amended by
adding at the end the following:
``(d) Prize Competitions.--
``(1) In general.--Any Federal agency with a representative
serving on the interagency working group established under
this section may, either individually or in cooperation with
one or more agencies, carry out a program to award prizes
competitively under section 24 of the Stevenson-Wydler
Technology Innovation Act of 1980 (15 U.S.C. 3719). An agency
seeking to carry out such a program shall carry out such
program in coordination with the chair of such interagency
working group.
``(2) Purposes.--Any prize competition carried out under
this subsection shall be for the purpose of stimulating
innovation to advance our Nation's ability to understand,
research, or monitor ocean acidification or its impacts, or
to develop management or adaptation options for responding to
ocean acidification.
``(3) Priority programs.--Priority shall be given to
establishing programs under this section that address
communities, environments, or industries that are in distress
due to the impacts of ocean acidification, including--
``(A) the development of monitoring or management options
for communities or industries that are experiencing
significant financial hardship;
``(B) the development of adaptation options to alleviate
economic harm and job loss caused by ocean acidification;
``(C) the development of measures to help vulnerable
communities or industries, with an emphasis on rural
communities and businesses; and
``(D) the development of adaptation and management options
for impacted shellfish industries.''.
SEC. 3. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS.
The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of
complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall
be determined by reference to the latest statement titled
``Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation'' for this Act,
submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the
Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such
statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from
Texas (Ms. Johnson) and the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Lucas) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Texas.
General Leave
Ms. JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks
and to include extraneous materials on H.R. 1921, the bill now under
consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from Texas?
There was no objection.
Ms. JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1921, the Ocean Acidification
Innovation Act of 2019, and I thank Mr. Kilmer for introducing this
important legislation and working with our committee.
Additionally, I thank the Science, Space, and Technology Committee
members on both sides of the aisle for their work to advance this bill.
[[Page H4328]]
Ms. Bonamici; Ms. Herrera Beutler; Mr. Crist; the Environment
Subcommittee chair, Mrs. Fletcher; the Environment Subcommittee ranking
member, Mr. Marshall; and my friend, Ranking Member Lucas.
Ocean acidification, as we have discussed today, is a serious
problem. This bill would create Federal prize competitions to spur
innovation in understanding ocean acidification and developing
management strategies for responding to ocean acidification.
Federal prize competitions, while not a replacement for federally
funded research, allow the government to transfer risk to prize
participants and stimulate private-sector investment. This could
enhance and augment our understanding of this important issue.
Mr. Speaker, I strongly urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1921, and
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1921, the Ocean Acidification
Innovation Act of 2019.
This bipartisan legislation is sponsored by Representative Derek
Kilmer and Representative Jaime Herrera Beutler, who can speak
firsthand to how ocean acidification is harming the shellfish
population off Washington State.
H.R. 1921 would allow Federal science agencies to use existing funds
to conduct prize competitions to increase our ability to research,
monitor, and manage the impacts of ocean acidification.
By creating incentives, the legislation recognizes the need to engage
nonprofit groups, private citizens, and the academic community in the
development of solutions to address this problem. Establishment of this
competition will enable us to leverage the ingenuity and
resourcefulness of these communities.
Mr. Speaker, this bill represents an innovative approach to tackling
this problem, and I urge my colleagues to support this bill. I reserve
the balance of my time.
Ms. JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may
consume to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Kilmer), the sponsor of
the bill.
{time} 0945
Mr. KILMER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chair for yielding, and I thank
her for her leadership on these issues and so many others in her
committee's domain.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1921, the bipartisan
Ocean Acidification Innovation Act. Ocean acidification is a rising
threat to coastal communities throughout the Pacific Northwest and
threatens entire livelihoods and industries in my home State of
Washington.
There are generation of folks along the sound and in our coastal
communities who have worked in fishing and in shellfish growing, but
that is endangered if we don't maintain a healthy Pacific Ocean.
Growing evidence suggests that acidic ocean conditions harm the
ability of many marine organisms to generate shells. These marine
organisms, which include oysters, mussels, and pteropods are a key part
of the food chain for salmon, herring, and other fish.
Scientists back home at the University of Washington recently
discovered that ocean acidification also threatens the more than $220
million Dungeness crab fishery, raising serious concerns about future
implications for species and ecosystems in the region.
In Washington State alone, the commercial fishing and seafood
processing industry, which includes shellfish aquaculture, contribute
nearly 16,000 jobs and $9.4 billion in revenue to our economy.
According to a report by Washington Sea Grant, Washington State is the
Nation's leading producer of farmed clams, oysters, and mussels, and
not only are these products delicious, they support jobs.
So really, the Ocean Acidification Innovation Act is really about
jobs. This bill would allow Federal agencies to use existing funds to
conduct prize competitions to increase the ability to research,
monitor, and manage ocean acidification and its impacts. I agree with
the chair that this can't and shouldn't replace direct investment in
research. But this bill creates a strong incentive for experts to focus
on developing innovative solutions to this serious challenge.
This legislation was created in collaboration with key stakeholders,
including the XPRIZE Foundation, an innovative nonprofit organization
that creates competitions designed to encourage increased investment in
solutions to major societal problems. So, for example, the Ansari
XPRIZE awarded for personal spaceflight technology helped launch a
brand-new $2 billion private space industry.
Research also suggests that prize competitions often increase
exponentially the amount of research focused on solving a problem. For
example, the Ansari XPRIZE yielded over $100 million in private
research as 26 teams competed for a $10 million prize.
So Federal agencies have increasingly viewed these prize competitions
as a means of maximizing the return on taxpayer dollars, leveraging
prizes to attract more resources to tackle different scientific
challenges.
Mr. Speaker, I believe the Ocean Acidification and Innovation Act
will encourage collaboration and spur innovative strategies to mitigate
and adapt to ocean acidification. It will help communities,
environments, and industries that rely on healthy oceans and are facing
the hard realities of increasing ocean acidification.
I want to thank my colleague from the Pacific Northwest,
Representative Jamie Herrera Beutler, as well as Suzanne Bonamici and
Don Young for cosponsoring this important legislation. I also want to
thank the chair and the ranking member for their continued leadership
and their support of this.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I note to my colleague that I have no
additional speakers, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the
gentlewoman from Oregon (Ms. Bonamici).
Ms. BONAMICI. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the chairwoman for
yielding and for her support of this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of Congressman Kilmer's
bipartisan Ocean Acidification Innovation Act. I am proud to be an
original cosponsor of this bill, along with Representative Herrera
Beutler from Washington, and my House Oceans Caucus co-chair
Representative Young from Alaska.
This bill would establish a prize competition for Federal agencies
that serve on the Interagency Working Group on Ocean Acidification to
increase efforts to research, monitor, and manage ocean acidification
and its effects. Our understanding of ocean acidification and its
interactions with other environmental stressors, such as hypoxia,
harmful algal blooms, and warming waters is rapidly evolving, but still
limited in scope.
A 2009 paper from the Ocean Carbon and Biochemistry's Ocean
Acidification Subcommittee estimated that a U.S. national program on
ocean acidification would need $50 million to $100 million per year to
provide timely information for managers and decisionmakers.
A 2012 report from the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, based on
informal conversations with various Federal agencies, estimated a need
for approximately $95 million for all Federal ocean acidification
research and monitoring by next year, 2020.
In fiscal year 2019, the NOAA Ocean Acidification Program received
only $12 million, so there is no doubt that gaps in funding are a
result of insufficient resources.
The prize competition established in this bill will encourage
collaboration and spur innovative strategies to mitigate and adapt to
ocean acidification. This will help the communities, environments, and
industries that rely on a healthy ocean and are facing harsh realities
of rising carbon emissions.
Again, I thank Congressman Kilmer for his leadership, especially
given the pervasive effects of ocean acidification on the Pacific
Coast. I urge all of my colleagues to support this bill.
Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for
time. I would simply urge the support of the bill, and I yield back the
balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Johnson) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 1921, as amended.
[[Page H4329]]
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Ms. JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and
nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
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