[House Report 117-564]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


117th Congress }                                          { Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
  2d Session   }                                          { 117-564

======================================================================
 
TO AMEND THE COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT ACT OF 1972 TO AUTHORIZE GRANTS TO 
INDIAN TRIBES TO FURTHER ACHIEVEMENT OF TRIBAL COASTAL ZONE OBJECTIVES, 
                         AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

                                _______
                                

 November 16, 2022.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on 
            the State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Grijalva, from the Committee on Natural Resources, submitted the 
                               following

                              R E P O R T

                             together with

                            DISSENTING VIEWS

                        [To accompany H.R. 1415]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred 
the bill (H.R. 1415) to amend the Coastal Zone Management Act 
of 1972 to authorize grants to Indian Tribes to further 
achievement of Tribal coastal zone objectives, and for other 
purposes, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon 
with an amendment and recommends that the bill as amended do 
pass.
    The amendment is as follows:
  Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
following:

SECTION 1. GRANTS TO FURTHER ACHIEVEMENT OF TRIBAL COASTAL ZONE 
                    OBJECTIVES.

  (a) Grants Authorized.--The Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 (16 
U.S.C. 1451 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 320. GRANTS TO FURTHER ACHIEVEMENT OF TRIBAL COASTAL ZONE 
                    OBJECTIVES.

  ``(a) Grants Authorized.--The Secretary may award competitive grants 
to Indian Tribes to further achievement of the objectives of such a 
Tribe for such Tribe's Tribal coastal zone.
  ``(b) Cost Share.--
          ``(1) In general.--The Federal share of the cost of any 
        activity carried out with a grant of $200,000 or more under 
        this section shall not exceed 95 percent of such cost, except 
        as provided in paragraph (2).
          ``(2) Waiver.--The Secretary may waive the application of 
        paragraph (1) with respect to a grant to an Indian Tribe, or 
        otherwise reduce the portion of the share of the cost of an 
        activity required to be paid by an Indian Tribe under such 
        paragraph.
  ``(c) Compatibility.--The Secretary may not award a grant under this 
section unless the Secretary determines that the activities to be 
carried out with the grant are compatible with this title.
  ``(d) Authorized Objectives and Purposes.--Amounts awarded as a grant 
under this section shall be used for 1 or more of the objectives and 
purposes authorized under subsections (b) and (c), respectively, of 
section 306A.
  ``(e) Funding.--There is authorized to be appropriated to the 
Secretary $5,000,000 to carry out this section for each of fiscal years 
2022 through 2026, of which up to 5 percent may be retained by NOAA to 
administer this section.
  ``(f) Definitions.--In this section, the following definitions apply:
          ``(1) Indian land.--The term `Indian land' has the meaning 
        given such term in section 2601 of the Energy Policy Act of 
        1992 (25 U.S.C. 3501) and the Indian Tribe is within a coastal 
        state, as that term is defined in section 304(4) (16 U.S.C. 
        1453(4)).
          ``(2) Indian tribe.--The term `Indian Tribe' has the meaning 
        given such term in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination 
        and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304).
          ``(3) Tribal coastal zone.--The term `Tribal coastal zone' 
        means any Indian land that is within the coastal zone, as that 
        term is defined in section 304(1) (16 U.S.C. 1453(1)).
          ``(4) Tribal coastal zone objective.--The term `Tribal 
        coastal zone objective' means, with respect to an Indian Tribe, 
        any of the following objectives:
                  ``(A) Protection, restoration, or preservation of 
                areas in the Tribal coastal zone of such Tribe that 
                hold--
                          ``(i) important ecological, cultural, or 
                        sacred significance for such Tribe; or
                          ``(ii) traditional, historic, and aesthetic 
                        values essential to such Tribe.
                  ``(B) Preparing and implementing a special area 
                management plan and technical planning for important 
                coastal areas.
                  ``(C) Any coastal or shoreline stabilization measure, 
                including any mitigation measure, for the purpose of 
                public safety, public access, or cultural or historical 
                preservation.''.
  (b) Guidance.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall issue guidance for the 
program established under the amendment made by subsection (a), 
including the criteria for awarding grants under such program based on 
consultation with Indian Tribes.
  (c) Use of State Grants To Fulfill Tribal Objectives.--Section 
306A(c)(2) of the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 
1455a(c)(2)) is amended by striking ``and'' after the semicolon at the 
end of subparagraph (D), by striking the period at the end of 
subparagraph (E) and inserting ``; and'', and by adding at the end the 
following:
          ``(F) fulfilling any Tribal coastal zone objective (as that 
        term is defined in section 320).''.
  (d) Other Programs Not Affected.--Nothing in this section and the 
amendments made by this section may be construed to limit the ability 
of an Indian Tribe to apply for, receive assistance under, or 
participate in any program authorized by any section of the Coastal 
Zone Management Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.) other than section 
320 of such Act or other related Federal laws.

                          Purpose of the Bill

    The purpose of H.R. 1415 is to amend the Coastal Zone 
Management Act of 1972 to authorize grants to Indian Tribes to 
further achievement of Tribal coastal zone objectives.

                  Background and Need for Legislation

    While most communities are at risk from the adverse impacts 
of climate change, Indigenous peoples are disproportionately 
vulnerable because of public health, food security, and 
infrastructure threats.\1\ Throughout Indian Country, an 
increase in flooding, wildfire, drought, and rising sea levels 
threaten Indigenous peoples' ways of life, affecting their 
traditional subsistence hunting and fishing rights, and 
negatively impacting their commercial activities and tourism 
enterprises. Tribal lands in coastal areas are changing due to 
extreme weather, erosion, and impacts on natural resources.\2\ 
Indigenous peoples have proactively identified and addressed 
climate impacts but face institutional barriers.\3\ The primary 
obstacle is limited access to programs and funding streams that 
account for the unique situations of Indigenous communities.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\See, e.g., Lesley Jantarasami et al., Tribes and Indigenous 
Peoples, in U.S. Glob. Change Rsch. Program, Impacts, Risks, and 
Adaptation in the United States: Fourth National Climate Assessment, 
Volume II ch. 15 (2018), available at https://nca2018.globalchange.gov/
chapter/15/; Janet L. Gamble & John Balbus et al., Populations of 
Concern, in U.S. Glob. Change Rsch. Program, the Impacts of Climate 
Change on Human Health in the United States ch. 9 (2016), https://
health2016.globalchange.gov/high/ClimateHealth2016_09_Populations.pdf.
    \2\See, e.g., NW. Indian Fisheries Comm'n, Climate Change and Our 
Natural Resources: A Report From the Treaty Tribes in Western 
Washington (2016), https://nwifc.org/w/wp-content/uploads/downloads/
2017/01/CC_and_Our_NR_Report_2016-1.pdf.
    \3\See, e.g., Shannon M. McNeeley, Sustainable Climate Change 
Adaptation in Indian Country, 9(3) Weather, Climate, & Soc'y 393 
(2017), available at https://doi.org/10.1175/WCAS-D-16-0121.1.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    H.R. 1415 would provide a funding mechanism for Indian 
Tribes to help build their coastal resiliency. Specifically, 
the bill includes funding under the Coastal Zone Management Act 
for Indian Tribes within coastal zones. The bill would expand 
Coastal Zone Management Act grant eligibility to tribes and 
Alaska Native Corporations and remove the need for tribes, as 
sovereign entities, to channel requests through a state.

                            Committee Action

    H.R. 1415 was introduced on February 26, 2021, by 
Representative Derek Kilmer (D-WA). The bill was referred to 
the Committee on Natural Resources, and within the Committee to 
the Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife and the 
Subcommittee for Indigenous Peoples of the United States. On 
June 22, 2021, the full Committee held a hearing on the bill. 
On January 19, 2022, the Natural Resources Committee met to 
consider the bill. The Subcommittees were discharged by 
unanimous consent. Chair Raul M. Grijalva (D-AZ) offered an 
amendment in the nature of a substitute. Ranking Member Bruce 
Westerman (R-AR) offered an amendment designated Westerman #3 
to the amendment in the nature of a substitute. The amendment 
was not agreed to by voice vote. No additional amendments were 
offered. The amendment in the nature of a substitute was agreed 
to by voice vote. The bill, as amended, was adopted and ordered 
favorably reported to the House of Representatives by a roll 
call vote of 24 yeas and 16 nays, as follows:


                                Hearings

    For the purposes of clause 3(c)(6) of House rule XIII, the 
following hearing was used to develop or consider this measure: 
hearing by the full Committee held on June 22, 2021.

            Committee Oversight Findings and Recommendations

    Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of 
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the 
Committee on Natural Resources' oversight findings and 
recommendations are reflected in the body of this report.

           Compliance With House Rule XIII and Congressional
                               Budget Act

    1. Cost of Legislation and the Congressional Budget Act. 
With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(2) and (3) of 
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and 
sections 308(a) and 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 
1974, as well as clause 3(d) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, the Committee has received the 
following estimate for the bill from the Director of the 
Congressional Budget Office:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                      Washington, DC, May 23, 2022.
Hon. Raul M. Grijalva,
Chairman, Committee on Natural Resources,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1415, a bill to 
amend the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 to authorize 
grants to Indian Tribes to further achievement of Tribal 
coastal zone objectives, and for other purposes.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Robert Reese.
            Sincerely,
                                         Phillip L. Swagel,
                                                          Director.
    Enclosure.

    [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
    

    H.R. 1415 would amend the Coastal Zone Management Act of 
1972 and authorize the appropriation of $5 million annually 
over the 2022-2026 period for the National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to provide competitive grants 
to Indian tribes. Those grants could be used to:
           Protect, preserve, or restore coastal land 
        that tribes consider to have important ecological, 
        cultural, or sacred significance or traditional, 
        historic, or aesthetic values;
           Create or implement area management plans 
        for coastal land; and
           Stabilize coastal shorelines.
    The bill also would allow certain grants to states to be 
used for projects on tribal land related to coastal resiliency 
or restoration activities.
    Based on spending patterns for similar grants, CBO 
estimates that implementing H.R. 1415 would cost $18 million 
over the 2022-2027 period and $7 million after 2027, assuming 
appropriation of the specified amounts. In 2021, NOAA allocated 
about $79 million for all coastal zone management grants.
    The costs of the legislation, detailed in Table 1, fall 
within budget function 300 (natural resources and environment).

               TABLE 1.--ESTIMATED INCREASES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION UNDER H.R. 1415
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                              By fiscal year, millions of dollars--
                                                ----------------------------------------------------------------
                                                   2022     2023     2024     2025     2026     2027   2022-2027
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Authorization..................................        5        5        5        5        5        0        25
Estimated Outlays..............................        *        1        3        5        5        4        18
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* = between zero and $500,000.

    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Robert Reese. 
The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy 
Director of Budget Analysis.
    2. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by 
clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goals and 
objectives of this bill are to amend the Coastal Zone 
Management Act of 1972 to authorize grants to Indian Tribes to 
further achievement of Tribal coastal zone objectives.

                           Earmark Statement

    This bill does not contain any Congressional earmarks, 
limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined 
under clause 9(e), 9(f), and 9(g) of rule XXI of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives.

                 Unfunded Mandates Reform Act Statement

    According to CBO, this bill contains no unfunded mandates 
as defined by the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.

                           Existing Programs

    This bill does not establish or reauthorize a program of 
the federal government known to be duplicative of another 
program. The bill would modify, but not establish or 
reauthorize, state grants under Section 306A of the Coastal 
Zone Management Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1455a). The bill would 
establish Grants to Further Achievement of Tribal Coastal Zone 
Objectives as a new program. Such program was not included in 
any report from the Government Accountability Office to 
Congress pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111-139. The new 
competitive program is related and complementary to, but not 
duplicative of, the following program identified in the most 
recent Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance published 
pursuant to 31 U.S.C. Sec. 6104: Coastal Zone Management 
Administration Awards (CFDA No. 11.419).

                  Applicability to Legislative Branch

    The Committee finds that the legislation does not relate to 
the terms and conditions of employment or access to public 
services or accommodations within the meaning of section 
102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act.

               Preemption of State, Local, or Tribal Law

    Any preemptive effect of this bill over state, local, or 
tribal law is intended to be consistent with the bill's 
purposes and text and the Supremacy Clause of Article VI of the 
U.S. Constitution.

         Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported

  In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by 
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law 
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new 
matter is printed in italics, and existing law in which no 
change is proposed is shown in roman):

                  COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT ACT OF 1972


TITLE III--MANAGEMENT OF THE COASTAL ZONE

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *



                 resource management improvement grants

  Sec. 306A. (a) For purposes of this section--
          (1) The term ``eligible coastal state'' means a 
        coastal state that for any fiscal year for which a 
        grant is applied for under this section--
                  (A) has a management program approved under 
                section 306; and
                  (B) in the judgment of the Secretary, is 
                making satisfactory progress in activities 
                designed to result in significant improvement 
                in achieving the coastal management objectives 
                specified in section 303(2)(A) through (K).
          (2) The term ``urban waterfront and port'' means any 
        developed area that is densely populated and is being 
        used for, or has been used for, urban residential 
        recreational, commercial, shipping or industrial 
        purposes.
  (b) The Secretary may make grants to any eligible coastal 
state to assist that state in meeting one or more of the 
following objectives:
          (1) The preservation or restoration of specific areas 
        of the state that (A) are designated under the 
        management program procedures required by section 
        306(d)(9) because of their conservation recreational, 
        ecological, or esthetic values, or (B) contain one or 
        more coastal resources of national significance, or for 
        the purpose of restoring and enhancing shellfish 
        production by the purchase and distribution of clutch 
        material on publicly owned reef tracts.
          (2) The redevelopment of deteriorating and 
        underutilized urban waterfronts and ports that are 
        designated in the state's management program pursuant 
        to section 306(d)(2)(C) as areas of particular concern.
          (3) The provision of access to public beaches and 
        other public coastal areas and to coastal waters in 
        accordance with the planning process required under 
        section 306(d)(2)(G).
          (4) The development of a coordinated process among 
        State agencies to regulate and issue permits for 
        aquaculture facilities in the coastal zone.
  (c)(1) Each grant made by the Secretary under this section 
shall be subject to such terms and conditions as may be 
appropriate to ensure that the grant is used for purposes 
consistent with this section.
  (2) Grants made under this section may be used for--
          (A) the acquisition of fee simple and other interests 
        in land;
          (B) low-cost construction projects determined by the 
        Secretary to be consistent with the purposes of this 
        section, including but not limited to, paths, walkways, 
        fences, parks, and the rehabilitation of historic 
        buildings and structures; except that not more than 50 
        per centum of any grant made under this section may be 
        used for such construction projects;
          (C) in the case of grants made for objectives 
        described in subsection (b)(2)--
                  (i) the rehabilitation or acquisition of 
                piers to provide increased public use, 
                including compatible commercial activity,
                  (ii) the establishment of shoreline 
                stabilization measures including the 
                installation or rehabilitation of bulkheads for 
                the purpose of public safety or increasing 
                public access and use, and
                  (iii) the removal or replacement of pilings 
                where such action will provide increased 
                recreational use of urban waterfront areas,
        but activities provided for under this paragraph shall 
        not be treated as construction projects subject to the 
        limitations in paragraph (B);
          (D) engineering designs, specifications, and other 
        appropriate reports; [and]
          (E) educational, interpretive, and management costs 
        and such other related costs as the Secretary 
        determines to be consistent with the purposes of this 
        section[.]; and
          (F) fulfilling any Tribal coastal zone objective (as 
        that term is defined in section 320).
  (d)(1) The Secretary may make grants to any coastal state for 
the purpose of carrying out the project or purpose for which 
such grants are awarded, if the state matches any such grant 
according to the following ratios of Federal to state 
contributions for the applicable fiscal year: 4 to 1 for fiscal 
year 1986; 2.3 to 1 for fiscal year 1987; 1.5 to 1 for fiscal 
year 1988; and 1 to 1 for each fiscal year after fiscal year 
1988.
  (2) Grants provided under this section may be used to pay a 
coastal state's share of costs required under any other Federal 
program that is consistent with the purposes of this section.
  (3) The total amount of grants made under this section to any 
eligible coastal state for any fiscal year may not exceed an 
amount equal to 10 per centum of the total amount appropriated 
to carry out this section for such fiscal year.
  (e) With the approval of the Secretary, an eligible coastal 
state may allocate to a local government, an areawide agency 
designated under section 204 of the Demonstration Cities and 
Metropolitan Development Act of 1966, a regional agency, or an 
interstate agency, a portion of any grant made under this 
section for the purpose of carrying out this section; except 
that such an allocation shall not relieve that state of the 
responsibility for ensuring that any funds so allocated are 
applied in furtherance of the state's approved management 
program.
  (f) In addition to providing grants under this section, the 
Secretary shall assist eligible coastal states and their local 
governments in identifying and obtaining other sources of 
available Federal technical and financial assistance regarding 
the objectives of this section.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


SEC. 320. GRANTS TO FURTHER ACHIEVEMENT OF TRIBAL COASTAL ZONE 
                    OBJECTIVES.

  (a) Grants Authorized.--The Secretary may award competitive 
grants to Indian Tribes to further achievement of the 
objectives of such a Tribe for such Tribe's Tribal coastal 
zone.
  (b) Cost Share.--
          (1) In general.--The Federal share of the cost of any 
        activity carried out with a grant of $200,000 or more 
        under this section shall not exceed 95 percent of such 
        cost, except as provided in paragraph (2).
          (2) Waiver.--The Secretary may waive the application 
        of paragraph (1) with respect to a grant to an Indian 
        Tribe, or otherwise reduce the portion of the share of 
        the cost of an activity required to be paid by an 
        Indian Tribe under such paragraph.
  (c) Compatibility.--The Secretary may not award a grant under 
this section unless the Secretary determines that the 
activities to be carried out with the grant are compatible with 
this title.
  (d) Authorized Objectives and Purposes.--Amounts awarded as a 
grant under this section shall be used for 1 or more of the 
objectives and purposes authorized under subsections (b) and 
(c), respectively, of section 306A.
  (e) Funding.--There is authorized to be appropriated to the 
Secretary $5,000,000 to carry out this section for each of 
fiscal years 2022 through 2026, of which up to 5 percent may be 
retained by NOAA to administer this section.
  (f) Definitions.--In this section, the following definitions 
apply:
          (1) Indian land.--The term ``Indian land'' has the 
        meaning given such term in section 2601 of the Energy 
        Policy Act of 1992 (25 U.S.C. 3501) and the Indian 
        Tribe is within a coastal state, as that term is 
        defined in section 304(4) (16 U.S.C. 1453(4)).
          (2) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian Tribe'' has the 
        meaning given such term in section 4 of the Indian 
        Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 
        U.S.C. 5304).
          (3) Tribal coastal zone.--The term ``Tribal coastal 
        zone'' means any Indian land that is within the coastal 
        zone, as that term is defined in section 304(1) (16 
        U.S.C. 1453(1)).
          (4) Tribal coastal zone objective.--The term ``Tribal 
        coastal zone objective'' means, with respect to an 
        Indian Tribe, any of the following objectives:
                  (A) Protection, restoration, or preservation 
                of areas in the Tribal coastal zone of such 
                Tribe that hold--
                          (i) important ecological, cultural, 
                        or sacred significance for such Tribe; 
                        or
                          (ii) traditional, historic, and 
                        aesthetic values essential to such 
                        Tribe.
                  (B) Preparing and implementing a special area 
                management plan and technical planning for 
                important coastal areas.
                  (C) Any coastal or shoreline stabilization 
                measure, including any mitigation measure, for 
                the purpose of public safety, public access, or 
                cultural or historical preservation.

                            DISSENTING VIEWS

    H.R. 1415 is also included as a part of H.R. 3764 
(Grijalva), the massive Ocean-Based Climate Solutions Act, 
which Republicans opposed at Committee markup in 2020.
    H.R. 1415 would create a new $25 million grant program 
under the Coastal Zone Management Act specifically for 
federally recognized Indian tribes and Alaska Native 
Corporations. This funding would be in addition to the funding 
already allocated to states, which Indian tribes have the 
ability to access through partnerships with states to complete 
projects. As reported out of Committee, the federal government 
would pay for 95 percent of the cost of any activity carried 
out under the bill. The Secretary of the Interior would also 
have the discretion to wave the already minimal 5 percent non-
federal cost share.
    In addition, H.R. 1415 as reported by the Committee on 
Natural Resources would remove a commonsense requirement that 
grantees consult with the affected coastal state regarding 
their grant objectives and purposes, which could lead to less 
efficient and uncoordinated expenditure of program funds. 
Lastly, the Committee's Majority ignored concerns raised by the 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) during a 
legislative hearing in the 117th Congress that this bill would 
focus funding on objectives NOAA finds ``capital-intensive and, 
in some cases, adversely affect nearby beaches, dunes, and 
other coastal resources.''\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\Written testimony by RDML Tim Gallaudet, Deputy NOAA 
Administrator, Hearing, July 25, 2019.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    For these reasons, I oppose H.R. 1415.
                                                   Bruce Westerman.

                                  [all]