Help Our Kelp Act of 2025

This legislation would set up a NOAA-run grant program to conserve and restore ocean kelp forests. The program must start within 6 months of becoming law and would focus on bringing back native, wild kelp without commercial or mechanized harvesting. Eligible applicants include members of the fishing industry, colleges, nonprofits, Indian Tribes, state agencies, and local governments, working together on projects to protect and rebuild kelp ecosystems.

Grants could fund work like reseeding kelp, removing problem sea urchins, helping sunflower sea stars recover, monitoring kelp health, and using Indigenous knowledge in planning and restoration. Projects should target areas with the biggest kelp losses or places named in Tribal, federal, or state recovery plans. Most projects would need at least a 15% non-federal match (cash or in-kind), though the agency can waive this if strict conditions are met.

• Who is affected: Fishing industry members, universities, nonprofits, Indian Tribes, state agencies, and local governments.
• What changes: NOAA creates a kelp restoration grant program, sets guidelines using best science and community input, and ranks projects for funding.
• Funding: Authorizes $5 million per year from 2026–2030; at least $750,000 each year is set aside for Indian Tribes. If no Tribe receives a grant in a year, that set-aside can go to others and the agency must do outreach to Tribes.
• When: Program must be up and running within 180 days after enactment.