June 5, 2019 - Issue: Vol. 165, No. 94 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 1st Session

[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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