Save Our Seas 2.0 Amendments Act

This bill updates the Save Our Seas 2.0 laws to make it easier to prevent and clean up ocean and Great Lakes trash. It gives NOAA’s Marine Debris Program more flexible tools to work with partners, including grants, contracts, and other kinds of agreements. It also lets NOAA pitch in with non-cash help, like staff time or equipment, when a project benefits the agency. The Marine Debris Foundation would run more smoothly: board members would serve six-year terms, the board would hire a chief executive officer who can hire staff, and the main office must be in the Washington, DC area or a coastal shoreline community. The bill adds outreach rules so the Foundation uses best practices to work with Indian Tribes, and it says this does not replace formal consultation or change treaty rights.

The bill expands who can partner and receive support to include regional organizations, Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, and foreign governments, alongside states and local agencies. It also defines key terms, including “coastal shoreline community” (a city or county next to the ocean, major estuaries, or the Great Lakes) and terms for Tribal governments and organizations, to guide programs and grants. Parts of earlier laws are moved into one place, and job titles in the text are updated (for example, using “Under Secretary” instead of “Administrator”) to keep things consistent . The short title is the Save Our Seas 2.0 Amendments Act.

• Who is affected: coastal shoreline communities (including Great Lakes areas), Indian Tribes and Tribal organizations, state and local agencies, regional organizations, nonprofits, and potential foreign partners; plus NOAA and the Marine Debris Foundation .
• What changes: more flexible agreements and non-cash support from NOAA; stronger Foundation governance and a defined office location; added outreach to Tribes; clearer definitions; and cleaner, consolidated law text .