Sponsors (16)
The bill strengthens national monitoring, coordination, and financial support for harmful algal bloom and hypoxia response—improving public health, tribal subsistence protections, and scientific capacity—while increasing federal spending, administrative complexity, and some local infrastructure and compliance costs.
Residents, recreational and commercial fishers, and local economies in affected waters will get better monitoring, forecasting, and earlier warnings about harmful algal blooms and hypoxia, improving public-health protections and reducing economic losses.
NOAA and EPA receive multi-year, dedicated funding to expand monitoring, research, and response capacity (authorizations of ~$19.5M to NOAA and ~$8M to EPA for FY2026–2030), enabling sustained national scientific activity on HABs and hypoxia.
States, Tribes, Native Hawaiian organizations, and local governments can obtain federal reimbursements, waivers of non‑Federal cost shares, and dedicated response funding (including $2M/year FY2026–2030), lowering financial barriers to assessment and response after major events.
Taxpayers and federal budgets will face increased obligations from new authorizations and reimbursements, raising federal spending and potentially adding to the deficit or crowding other priorities.
Expanding program scope, new reporting requirements, and broader criteria for federal action will increase administrative burden and complexity for federal, state, tribal, and local agencies, potentially slowing implementation.
States, tribes, and local partners may need to invest in new monitoring equipment, data systems, and interoperability to meet mandated standards, imposing upfront infrastructure costs on those jurisdictions.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Broadens federal HAB/hypoxia assessments, adds DOE to the task force, requires 5‑year action strategies, expands event criteria, and authorizes $2M/year (FY2026–2030) with cost‑share waivers.
Introduced January 14, 2025 by Daniel Scott Sullivan · Last progress September 11, 2025
Directs federal agencies to strengthen how the U.S. studies, monitors, and responds to harmful algal blooms (HABs) and hypoxia by broadening the assessment scope, adding the Department of Energy to the interagency task force, and requiring five‑year action strategies and scientific assessments for marine and freshwater systems. It authorizes federal payments and cost‑share waivers to support state, Tribal, and local assessments of events of national significance and provides $2 million per year for fiscal years 2026–2030 to carry out those authorities.