[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2848 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2848
To A bill to amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to
reauthorize and modify the John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue
Assistance Grant Program, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 26, 2021
Mrs. Murphy of Florida (for herself, Mr. Mast, and Ms. Strickland)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
Natural Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To A bill to amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to
reauthorize and modify the John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue
Assistance Grant Program, 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 ``Marine Mammal Research and Response
Act of 2021''.
SEC. 2. DATA COLLECTION AND DISSEMINATION.
Section 402 of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C.
1421a) is amended--
(1) in subsection (b)--
(A) in paragraph (1)(A), by inserting ``or
entangled'' after ``stranded'';
(B) in paragraph (3)--
(i) by striking ``strandings,'' and
inserting ``strandings and entanglements,
including unusual mortality events,'';
(ii) by inserting ``stranding'' before
``region''; and
(iii) by striking ``marine mammals; and''
and inserting ``marine mammals and entangled
marine mammals to allow comparison of the
causes of illness and deaths in stranded marine
mammals and entangled marine mammals with
physical, chemical, and biological
environmental parameters; and''; and
(C) in paragraph (4), by striking ``analyses, that
would allow comparison of the causes of illness and
deaths in stranded marine mammals with physical,
chemical, and biological environmental parameters.''
and inserting ``analyses.''; and
(2) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the following:
``(c) Information Required To Be Submitted and Collected.--
``(1) In general.--After each response to a stranding or
entanglement event, the Secretary shall collect (including from
any staff of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration that respond directly to such an event), and
shall require each stranding network participant who responds
to that stranding or entanglement to submit to the
Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration--
``(A) data on the stranding event, including NOAA
Form 89-864 (OMB #0648-0178), NOAA Form 89-878 (OMB
#0648-0178), similar successor forms, or similar
information in an appropriate format required by the
United States Fish and Wildlife Service for species
under its management authority;
``(B) supplemental data to the data described in
subparagraph (A), which may include, as available,
relevant information about--
``(i) weather and tide conditions;
``(ii) offshore human, predator, or prey
activity;
``(iii) morphometrics;
``(iv) behavior;
``(v) health assessments;
``(vi) life history samples; or
``(vii) stomach and intestinal contents;
and
``(C) data and results from laboratory analysis of
tissues, which may include, as appropriate and
available--
``(i) histopathology;
``(ii) toxicology;
``(iii) microbiology
``(iv) virology; or
``(v) parasitology.
``(2) Timeline.--A stranding network participant shall
submit--
``(A) the data described in paragraph (1)(A) not
later than 30 days after the date of a response to a
stranding or entanglement event;
``(B) the compiled data described in paragraph
(1)(B) not later than 30 days after the date on which
the data is available to the stranding network
participant; and
``(C) the compiled data described in paragraph
(1)(C) not later than 30 days after the date on which
the laboratory analysis has been reported to the
stranding network participant.
``(d) Availability of Data.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall develop a program to
make information, including any data and metadata collected
under paragraphs (3) or (4) of subsection (b) or subsection
(c), available to researchers, stranding network participants,
and the public--
``(A) to improve real-time coordination of response
to stranding and entanglement events across geographic
areas and between stranding coordinators;
``(B) to identify and quickly disseminate
information on potential public health risks;
``(C) to facilitate integrated interdisciplinary
research;
``(D) to facilitate peer-reviewed publications;
``(E) to archive regional data into 1 national
database for future analyses; and
``(F) for education and outreach activities.
``(2) Access to data.--The Secretary shall ensure that any
data or metadata collected under subsection (c)--
``(A) by staff of the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration that responded directly to a
stranding or entanglement event is available to the
public through the Health MAP and the Observation
System not later than 30 days after that data or
metadata is collected by, available to, or reported to
the Secretary; and
``(B) by a stranding network participant that
responded directly to a stranding or entanglement event
is made available to the public through the Health MAP
and the Observation System 2 years after the date on
which that data is submitted to the Secretary under
subsection (c).
``(3) Exceptions.--
``(A) Written release.--Notwithstanding paragraph
(2)(B), the Secretary may make data described in
paragraph (2)(B) publicly available earlier than 2
years after the date on which that data is submitted to
the Secretary under subsection (c), if the stranding
network participant has completed a written release
stating that such data may be made publicly available.
``(B) Law enforcement.--Notwithstanding paragraph
(2), the Secretary may withhold data for a longer
period than the period of time described in paragraph
(2) in the event of a law enforcement action or legal
action that may be related to that data.
``(e) Standards.--The Secretary, in consultation with the marine
mammal stranding community, shall--
``(1) make publicly available guidance about uniform data
and metadata standards to ensure that data collected in
accordance with this section can be archived in a form that is
readily accessible and understandable to the public through the
Health MAP and the Observation System; and
``(2) periodically update such guidance.
``(f) Management Policy.--In collaboration with the regional
stranding networks, the Secretary shall develop, and periodically
update, a data management and public outreach collaboration policy for
stranding or entanglement events.''.
SEC. 3. STRANDING OR ENTANGLEMENT RESPONSE AGREEMENTS.
(a) In General.--Section 403 of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of
1972 (16 U.S.C. 1421b) is amended--
(1) in the section heading by inserting ``or entanglement''
before ``response'';
(2) in subsection (a), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``or entanglement.''; and
(3) in subsection (b)--
(A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``and'' after the
semicolon;
(B) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at the
end and inserting ``; and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(3) include a description of the data management and
public outreach policy established under section 402(f).''.
(b) Table of Contents Amendment.--The table of contents in the
first section of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (Public Law
92-522; 86 Stat. 1027) is amended by striking the item related to
section 403 and inserting the following:
``Sec. 403. Stranding or entanglement response agreements.''.
SEC. 4. UNUSUAL MORTALITY EVENT ACTIVITY FUNDING.
Section 405 the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C.
1421d) is amended--
(1) by striking subsection (b) and inserting the following:
``(b) Uses.--Amounts in the Fund--
``(1) shall be available only for use by the Secretary, in
consultation with the Secretary of the Interior, and dispersed
among claimants based on budgets approved by the Secretary
prior to expenditure--
``(A) to make advance, partial, or progress
payments under contracts or other funding mechanisms
for property, supplies, salaries, services, and travel
costs incurred in acting in accordance with the
contingency plan issued under section 404(b) or under
the direction of an Onsite Coordinator for an unusual
mortality event designated under section
404(a)(2)(B)(iii);
``(B) for reimbursing any stranding network
participant for costs incurred in the collection,
preparation, analysis, and transportation of marine
mammal tissues and samples collected with respect to an
unusual mortality event for the Tissue Bank; and
``(C) for the care and maintenance of a marine
mammal seized under section 104(c)(2)(D); and
``(2) shall remain available until expended.''; and
(2) in subsection (c)--
(A) in paragraph (2), by striking ``and'' at the
end;
(B) in paragraph (3), by striking the period at the
end and inserting a semicolon; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(4) not more than $250,000 per year, as determined by the
Secretary of Commerce, from sums collected as fines, penalties,
or forfeitures of property by the Secretary of Commerce for
violations of any provision of this Act; and
``(5) sums received from emergency declaration grants for
marine mammal conservation.''.
SEC. 5. LIABILITY.
Section 406(a) of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16
U.S.C. 1421e(a)) is amended, in the matter preceding paragraph (1)--
(1) by inserting ``or entanglement'' after ``to a
stranding''; and
(2) by striking ``government'' and inserting
``Government''.
SEC. 6. NATIONAL MARINE MAMMAL TISSUE BANK AND TISSUE ANALYSIS.
Section 407 of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C.
1421f) is amended--
(1) in subsection (c)(2)(A), by striking ``the health of
marine mammals and'' and inserting ``marine mammal health and
mortality and the health of''; and
(2) in subsection (d), in the matter preceding paragraph
(1), by inserting ``public'' before ``access''.
SEC. 7. MARINE MAMMAL RESCUE AND RESPONSE GRANT PROGRAM AND RAPID
RESPONSE FUND.
(a) In General.--Section 408 of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of
1972 (16 U.S.C. 1421f-1) is amended--
(1) by striking the section heading and inserting ``marine
mammal rescue and response grant program and rapid response
fund'';
(2) by striking subsections (a) through (d) and subsections
(f) through (h);
(3) by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection (f); and
(4) by inserting before subsection (f), as redesignated by
paragraph (3), the following:
``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Emergency assistance.--
``(A) In general.--The term `emergency assistance'
means--
``(i) financial assistance provided to
respond to, or that results from, a stranding
event or entanglement event that--
``(I) causes an immediate increase
in the cost of a response, recovery, or
rehabilitation that is greater than the
usual cost of a response, recovery, or
rehabilitation;
``(II) is cyclical or endemic; or
``(III) involves a marine mammal
that is out of the normal range for
that marine mammal; or
``(ii) financial assistance provided to
respond to, or that results from, a stranding
event or an entanglement event that the
appropriate Secretary or State or Tribal
government considers to be an emergency.
``(B) Exclusions.--The term `emergency assistance'
does not include financial assistance to respond to an
unusual mortality event.
``(2) Secretary.--The term `Secretary' has the meaning
given that term in section 3(12)(A).
``(3) Stranding region.--The term `stranding region' means
a geographic region designated by the applicable Secretary for
purposes of administration of this title.
``(b) John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue and Response Grant
Program.--
``(1) In general.--Subject to the availability of
appropriations or other funding, the applicable Secretary shall
carry out a grant program, to be known as the `John H. Prescott
Marine Mammal Rescue and Response Grant Program' (referred to
in this section as the `grant program'), to award grants to
eligible stranding network participants or stranding network
collaborators, as described in this subsection.
``(2) Purposes.--The purposes of the grant program are to
provide for--
``(A) the recovery, care, or treatment of sick,
injured, or entangled marine mammals;
``(B) responses to marine mammal stranding events
that require emergency assistance;
``(C) the collection of data and samples from
living or dead stranded marine mammals for scientific
research or assessments regarding marine mammal health;
``(D) facility operating costs that are directly
related to activities described in subparagraph (A),
(B), or (C); and
``(E) development of stranding network capacity,
including training for emergency response, where
facilities do not exist or are sparse.
``(3) Contract, grant, and cooperative agreement
authority.--
``(A) In general.--The applicable Secretary may
enter into a contract, grant, or cooperative agreement
with any eligible stranding network participant or
stranding network collaborator, as the Secretary
determines to be appropriate, for the purposes
described in paragraph (2).
``(B) Emergency award flexibility.--Following a
request for emergency award flexibility and analysis of
the merits of and necessity for such a request, the
applicable Secretary may--
``(i) amend any contract, grant, or
cooperative agreement entered into under this
paragraph, including provisions concerning the
period of performance; or
``(ii) waive the requirements under
subsection (f) for grant applications submitted
during the provision of emergency assistance.
``(4) Equitable distribution of funds.--
``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall ensure, to
the extent practicable, that funds awarded under the
grant program are distributed equitably among the
stranding regions.
``(B) Considerations.--In determining priorities
among the stranding regions under this paragraph, the
Secretary may consider--
``(i) equitable distribution within the
stranding regions, including the sub regions
(including, but not limited to, the Gulf of
Mexico);
``(ii) any episodic stranding,
entanglement, or mortality events, except for
unusual mortality events, that occurred in any
stranding region in the preceding year;
``(iii) any data with respect to average
annual stranding, entanglements, and mortality
events per stranding region;
``(iv) the size of the marine mammal
populations inhabiting a stranding region;
``(v) the importance of the region's marine
mammal populations to the well-being of
indigenous communities; and
``(vi) the conservation of protected,
depleted, threatened, or endangered marine
mammal species.
``(C) Strandings.--For the purposes of this
program, priority is to be given to applications
focusing on marine mammal strandings.
``(5) Application.--To be eligible for a grant under the
grant program, a stranding network participant shall--
``(A) submit an application in such form and manner
as the applicable Secretary prescribes; and
``(B) be in compliance with the data reporting
requirements under section 402(d) and any applicable
reporting requirements of the United States Fish and
Wildlife Service for species under its management
jurisdiction.
``(6) Grant criteria.--The Secretary shall, in consultation
with the Marine Mammal Commission, a representative from each
of the stranding regions, and other individuals who represent
public and private organizations that are actively involved in
rescue, rehabilitation, release, scientific research, marine
conservation, and forensic science with respect to stranded
marine mammals under that Department's jurisdiction, develop
criteria for awarding grants under their respective grant
programs.
``(7) Limitations.--
``(A) Maximum grant amount.--No grant made under
the grant program for a single award may exceed
$150,000 in any 12-month period.
``(B) Unexpended funds.--Any funds that have been
awarded under the grant program but that are unexpended
at the end of the 12-month period described in
subparagraph (A) shall remain available until expended.
``(8) Administrative costs and expenses.--The Secretary's
administrative costs and expenses related to reviewing and
awarding grants under the grant program, in any fiscal year may
not exceed the greater of--
``(A) 6 percent of the amounts made available each
fiscal year to carry out the grant program; or
``(B) $80,000.
``(9) Transparency.--The Secretary shall make publicly
available a list of grant proposals for the upcoming fiscal
year, funded grants, and requests for grant flexibility under
this subsection.
``(c) Joseph R. Geraci Marine Mammal Rescue and Rapid Response
Fund.--
``(1) In general.--There is established in the Treasury of
the United States an interest-bearing fund, to be known as the
`Joseph R. Geraci Marine Mammal Rescue and Rapid Response Fund'
(referred to in this section as the `Rapid Response Fund').
``(2) Use of funds.--Amounts in the Rapid Response Fund
shall be available only for use by the Secretary to provide
emergency assistance.
``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--
``(1) In general.--
``(A) Authorization of appropriations.--There is
authorized to be appropriated to carry out the grant
program $7,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021
through 2026, to remain available until expended, of
which for each fiscal year--
``(i) $6,000,000 shall be made available to
the Secretary of Commerce; and
``(ii) $1,000,000 shall be made available
to the Secretary of the Interior.
``(B) Derivation of funds.--Funds to carry out the
activities under this section shall be derived from
amounts authorized to be appropriated pursuant to
subparagraph (A) that are enacted after the date of
enactment of the Marine Mammal Research and Response
Act of 2021.
``(2) Joseph r. geraci marine mammal rescue and rapid
response fund.--There is authorized to be appropriated to the
Rapid Response Fund $500,000 for each of fiscal years 2021
through 2026.
``(e) Acceptance of Donations.--For the purposes of carrying out
this section, the Secretary may solicit, accept, receive, hold,
administer, and use gifts, devises, and bequests without any further
approval or administrative action.''.
(b) Table of Contents Amendment.--The table of contents in the
first section of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (Public Law
92-522; 86 Stat. 1027) (as amended by section 3(b)) is amended by
striking the item related to section 408 and inserting the following:
``Sec. 408. Marine Mammal Rescue and Response Grant Program and Rapid
Response Fund.''.
SEC. 8. HEALTH MAP.
(a) In General.--Title IV of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of
1972 (16 U.S.C. 1421 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 408
the following:
``SEC. 408A. MARINE MAMMAL HEALTH MONITORING AND ANALYSIS PLATFORM
(HEALTH MAP).
``(a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of the Marine Mammal Research and Response Act of 2021, the
Secretary, acting through the Administrator of the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, in consultation with the Secretary of the
Interior and the Marine Mammal Commission, shall--
``(1) establish a marine mammal health monitoring and
analysis platform (referred to in this Act as the `Health
MAP');
``(2) incorporate the Health MAP into the Observation
System; and
``(3) make the Health MAP--
``(A) publicly accessible through the web portal of
the Observation System; and
``(B) interoperable with other national data
systems or other data systems for management or
research purposes, as practicable.
``(b) Purposes.--The purposes of the Health MAP are--
``(1) to promote--
``(A) interdisciplinary research among individuals
with knowledge and experience in marine mammal science,
marine mammal veterinary and husbandry practices,
medical science, and oceanography, and with other
marine scientists;
``(B) timely and sustained dissemination and
availability of marine mammal health, stranding,
entanglement, and mortality data;
``(C) identification of spatial and temporal
patterns of marine mammal mortality, disease, and
stranding;
``(D) evaluation of marine mammal health in terms
of mortality, as well as sublethal marine mammal health
impacts;
``(E) improved collaboration and forecasting of
marine mammal and larger ecosystem health events;
``(F) rapid communication and dissemination of
information regarding marine mammal strandings that may
have implications for human health, such as those
caused by harmful algal blooms; and
``(G) increased accessibility of data in a user
friendly visual interface for public education and
outreach; and
``(2) to contribute to an ocean health index that
incorporates marine mammal health data.
``(c) Requirements.--The Health MAP shall--
``(1) integrate in situ, remote, and other marine mammal
health, stranding, and mortality data, including visualizations
and metadata, collected by marine mammal stranding networks,
Federal, State, local, and Tribal governments, private
partners, and academia; and
``(2) be designed--
``(A) to enhance data and information availability,
including data sharing among stranding network
participants, scientists, and the public within and
across stranding network regions;
``(B) to facilitate data and information access
across scientific disciplines, scientists, and
managers;
``(C) to facilitate public access to national and
regional marine mammal health, stranding, entanglement,
and mortality data, including visualizations and
metadata, through the national and regional data
portals of the Observation System; and
``(D) in collaboration with, and with input from,
States and stranding network participants.
``(d) Procedures and Guidelines.--The Secretary shall establish and
implement policies, protocols, and standards for--
``(1) reporting marine mammal health data collected by
stranding networks consistent with subsections (c) and (d) of
section 402;
``(2) promptly transmitting health data from the stranding
networks and other appropriate data providers to the Health
MAP;
``(3) disseminating and making publicly available data on
marine mammal health, stranding, entanglement, and mortality
data in a timely and sustained manner; and
``(4) integrating additional marine mammal health,
stranding, or other relevant data as the Secretary determines
appropriate.
``(e) Consultation.--The Administrator of the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration shall maintain and update the Health MAP in
consultation with the Secretary of the Interior and the Marine Mammal
Commission.
``(f) Contributions.--For purposes of carrying out this section,
the Secretary may solicit, accept, receive, hold, administer, and use
gifts, devises, and bequests without any further approval or
administrative action.''.
(b) Table of Contents Amendment.--The table of contents in the
first section of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (Public Law
92-522; 86 Stat. 1027) (as amended by section 7(b)) is amended by
inserting after the item related to section 408 the following:
``Sec. 408A. Health MAP.''.
SEC. 9. REPORTS TO CONGRESS.
(a) In General.--Title IV of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of
1972 (16 U.S.C. 1421 et seq.) (as amended by section 8(a)) is amended
by inserting after section 408A the following:
``SEC. 408B. REPORTS TO CONGRESS.
``(a) Definition of Appropriate Committees of Congress.--In this
section, the term `appropriate committees of Congress' means--
``(1) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation of the Senate;
``(2) the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of
Representatives; and
``(3) the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of
the House of Representatives.
``(b) Health MAP Status Report.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 2 year after the date of
enactment of the Marine Mammal Research and Response Act of
2021, the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration, in consultation with the Marine Mammal
Commission, the Secretary of the Interior, and the National
Ocean Research Leadership Council, shall submit to the
appropriate committees of Congress a report describing the
status of the Health MAP.
``(2) Requirements.--The report under paragraph (1) shall
include--
``(A) a detailed evaluation of the data made
publicly available through the Health MAP;
``(B) a detailed list of any gaps in data collected
pursuant to the Health MAP, a description of the
reasons for those gaps, and recommended actions to
close those gaps;
``(C) an analysis of the effectiveness of using the
website of the Observation System as the platform to
collect, organize, visualize, archive, and disseminate
marine mammal stranding and health data;
``(D) a list of publications, presentations, or
other relevant work product resulting from, or produced
in collaboration with, the Health MAP;
``(E) a description of emerging marine mammal
health concerns and the applicability of those concerns
to human health;
``(F) an analysis of the feasibility of the
Observation System being used as an alert system during
stranding events, entanglement events, and unusual
mortality events for the stranding network, Observation
System partners, Health MAP partners, Federal and State
agencies, and local and Tribal governments;
``(G) an evaluation of the use of Health MAP data
to predict broader ecosystem events and changes that
may impact marine mammal or human health and specific
examples of proven or potential uses of Observation
System data for those purposes; and
``(H) recommendations for the Health MAP with
respect to--
``(i) filling any identified data gaps;
``(ii) standards that could be used to
improve data quality, accessibility,
transmission, interoperability, and sharing;
``(iii) any other strategies that would
contribute to the effectiveness and usefulness
of the Health MAP; and
``(iv) the funding levels needed to
maintain and improve the Health MAP.
``(c) Data Gap Analysis.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 5 years after the date on
which the report required under subsection (b)(1) is submitted,
and every 10 years thereafter, the Administrator of the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, in
consultation with the Marine Mammal Commission and the
Secretary of Commerce, shall--
``(A) make publicly available a report on the data
gap analysis described in paragraph (2); and
``(B) provide a briefing to the appropriate
committees of Congress concerning that data gap
analysis.
``(2) Requirements.--The data gap analysis under paragraph
(1) shall include--
``(A) an overview of existing participants within a
marine mammal stranding network;
``(B) an identification of coverage needs and
participant gaps within a network;
``(C) an identification of data and reporting gaps
from members of a network; and
``(D) an analysis of how stranding and health data
are shared and made available to scientists, academics,
State, local, and Tribal governments, and the public.
``(d) Marine Mammal Response Capabilities in the Arctic.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of the Marine Mammal Research and Response Act of
2021, the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration, the Director of the United States Fish and
Wildlife Service, and the Director of the United States
Geologic Survey, in consultation with the Marine Mammal
Commission and the Secretary of the Interior, shall--
``(A) make publicly available a report describing
the response capabilities for sick and injured marine
mammals in the Arctic regions of the United States; and
``(B) provide a briefing to the appropriate
committees of Congress on that report.
``(2) Arctic.--The term `Arctic' has the meaning given the
term in section 112 of the Arctic Research and Policy Act of
1984 (15 U.S.C. 4111).
``(3) Requirements.--The report under paragraph (1) shall
include--
``(A) a description, developed in consultation with
the Fish and Wildlife Service of the Department of the
Interior, of all marine mammal stranding agreements in
place for the Arctic region of the United States,
including species covered, response capabilities,
facilities and equipment, and data collection and
analysis capabilities;
``(B) a list of State and local government agencies
that have personnel trained to respond to marine mammal
strandings in the Arctic region of the United States;
``(C) an assessment of potential response and data
collection partners and sources of local information
and knowledge, including Alaska Native people and
villages;
``(D) an analysis of spatial and temporal trends in
marine mammal strandings and unusual mortality events
that are correlated with changing environmental
conditions in the Arctic region of the United States;
``(E) a description of training and other resource
needs to meet emerging response requirements in the
Arctic region of the United States;
``(F) an analysis of oiled marine mammal response
and rehabilitation capabilities in the Arctic region of
the United States, including personnel, equipment,
facilities, training, and husbandry capabilities, and
an assessment of factors that affect response and
rehabilitation success rates; and
``(G) recommendations to address future stranding
response needs for marine mammals in the Arctic region
of the United States.''.
(b) Table of Contents Amendment.--The table of contents in the
first section of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (Public Law
92-522; 86 Stat. 1027) (as amended by section 8(b)) is amended by
inserting after the item related to section 408A the following:
``Sec. 408B. Reports to Congress.''.
SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
Section 409 of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C.
1421g) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``1993 and 1994;'' and
inserting ``2021 through 2026;'';
(2) in paragraph (2), by striking ``1993 and 1994;'' and
inserting ``2021 through 2026;''; and
(3) in paragraph (3), by striking ``fiscal year 1993.'' and
inserting ``for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2026.''.
SEC. 11. DEFINITIONS.
Section 410 of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C.
1421h) is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (6) as
paragraphs (2), (5), (6), (7), (8), and (9), respectively;
(2) by inserting before paragraph (2) (as so redesignated)
the following:
``(1) The term `entangle' or `entanglement' means an event
in the wild in which a living or dead marine mammal has gear,
rope, line, net, or other material wrapped around or attached
to the marine mammal and is--
``(A) on lands under the jurisdiction of the United
States, including beaches and shorelines; or
``(B) in waters under the jurisdiction of the
United States, including any navigable waters.'';
(3) in paragraph (2) (as so redesignated) by striking ``The
term'' and inserting ``Except as used in section 408, the
term''; and
(4) by inserting after paragraph (2) (as so redesignated)
the following:
``(3) The term `Health MAP' means the Marine Mammal Health
Monitoring and Analysis Platform established under section
408A(a)(1).
``(4) The term `Observation System' means the National
Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observation System established
under section 12304 of the Integrated Coastal and Ocean
Observation System Act of 2009 (33 U.S.C. 3603).''.
SEC. 12. STUDY ON MARINE MAMMAL MORTALITY.
(a) In General.--Not later than 12 months after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Undersecretary of Commerce for Oceans and
Atmosphere shall, in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior
and the Marine Mammal Commission, conduct a study evaluating the
connections among marine heat waves, frequency and intensity of harmful
algal blooms, prey availability, and habitat degradation, and the
impacts of these conditions on marine mammal mortality.
(b) Report.--The Undersecretary of Commerce for Oceans and
Atmosphere, in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior and the
Marine Mammal Commission, shall prepare, post to a publicly available
website, and brief the appropriate committees of Congress on, a report
containing the results of the study described in subsection (a). The
report shall identify priority research activities, opportunities for
collaboration, and current gaps in effort and resource limitations
related to advancing scientific understanding of how ocean heat waves,
harmful algae blooms, availability of prey, and habitat degradation
impact marine mammal mortality. The report shall include
recommendations for policies needed to mitigate and respond to
mortality events.
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