Coastal Communities Ocean Acidification Act of 2025

This bill aims to help coastal communities deal with ocean and coastal acidification. It tells the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to work closely with state and local governments and Indian Tribes on community risk studies, research planning, and similar efforts, so decisions are based on local needs and science. NOAA must also set up or keep an ongoing way to hear from people who are affected—like coastal industries, fishery councils, Indigenous groups, local resource managers, and outside scientists—through a liaison, regular meetings, or an online platform, so research and monitoring support real, on-the-ground actions.

The bill adds two seats to the advisory board for representatives from Indian Tribes, Native Hawaiian organizations, Tribal organizations, and Tribal consortia. It also requires the board to create a policy within one year to engage and coordinate with Indian Tribes, after consulting with them. NOAA may collaborate with Native Hawaiian organizations, Tribal organizations, and Tribal consortia, and must prioritize underserved groups when using its resources for this work. The bill also makes small wording fixes to the 2009 law to improve clarity.

Key points

• Who is affected: Coastal communities; state and local governments; Indian Tribes; Native Hawaiian organizations; coastal industries; fishery councils; local resource managers; and outside scientists who advise on ocean issues.
• What changes: More collaboration on community vulnerability assessments and research planning; a permanent way for NOAA to gather local input; added Tribal and Native Hawaiian representation on the advisory board; a required Tribal engagement policy; and a focus on underserved communities .
• When: The advisory board must adopt the Tribal engagement policy within one year of being established; NOAA’s ongoing input process is to be maintained or set up going forward .