H.R. 2620

119th CONGRESS 1st Session

To amend the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act to improve the administration of the Marine Debris Foundation, to amend the Marine Debris Act to improve the administration of the Marine Debris Program of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES · April 3, 2025 · Sponsor: Ms. Bonamici

H.R. 2620

SEC. 1. Short title

This Act may be cited as the Save Our Seas 2.0 Amendments Act.

SEC. 2. Modifications to the marine debris program of the national oceanic and atmospheric administration

(a) In general
- The Marine Debris Act () is amended— Public Law 109–449
  - by inserting before section 3 the following:
  - by redesignating sections 3 through 6 as sections 101 through 104, respectively.
(b) Grants, cooperative agreements, contracts, and other agreements
- Section 101(d) of the Marine Debris Act (), as redesignated by this Act, is amended— 33 U.S.C. 1952(d)
  - in the subsection heading by striking and inserting ;
  - in paragraph (1) by striking and contractsand inserting , contracts, and other agreements;
  - in paragraph (2)—
    - in subparagraph (B)—
      - (i) by striking part of theand inserting part of a; and
      - (ii) by inserting after ; and
    - in subparagraph (C) in the matter preceding clause (i) by inserting after ; and
    - (7) In-kind contributions
      - With respect to any project carried out pursuant to a contract or other agreement entered into under paragraph (1) that is not a cooperative agreement or an agreement to provide financial assistance in the form of a grant, the Under Secretary may contribute on an in-kind basis the portion of the costs of the project that the Under Secretary determines represents the amount of benefit the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration derives from the project.
  - by adding at the end the following:

SEC. 3. Modifications to the marine debris foundation

(a) In general
- Subtitle B of title I of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act () is transferred to appear after section 104 of the Marine Debris Act (), as redesignated by this Act. Public Law 116–224; Public Law 109–449
(b) Status of foundation
- Section 111(a) of the Marine Debris Act (), as transferred by this Act, is amended, in the second sentence, by striking organizationand inserting corporation. Public Law 109–449
(c) Purposes
- Section 111(b) of the Marine Debris Act (), as transferred and redesignated by this Act, is amended— Public Law 109–449
  - in paragraph (3) by inserting after ; and
  - in paragraph (4) by striking title IIand inserting subtitle C.
(d) Board of directors
- (1) Appointment, vacancies, and removal
  - Section 112(b) of the Marine Debris Act (), as transferred by this Act, is amended— Public Law 109–449
    - by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (5) as paragraphs (2) through (6) respectively;
      - (1) Recommendations of board regarding appointments
        
        For appointments made under paragraph (2), the Board shall submit to the Under Secretary recommendations on candidates for appointment.
    - by inserting before paragraph (2), as redesignated, the following:
    - in paragraph (2), as redesignated, in the matter preceding subparagraph (A)—
      - (i) by striking and consideringand inserting considering; and
      - (ii) by inserting after ;
      - (3) Terms
        
        Any Director appointed under paragraph (2) shall be appointed for a term of 6 years.
    - by amending paragraph (3), as redesignated, to read as follows:
    - in paragraph (4)(A), as redesignated, by inserting after ; and
    - in paragraph (6), as redesignated—
      - (i) by inserting after ; and
      - (ii) by inserting after .
- (2) General powers
  - Section 112(g) of the Marine Debris Act (), as transferred by this Act, is amended— Public Law 109–449
    - in paragraph (1)(A) by striking officers and employeesand inserting the initial officers and employees; and
    - in paragraph (2)(B)(i) by striking its chief operating officerand inserting the chief executive officer of the Foundation.
- (3) Chief executive officer
  - Section 112 of the Marine Debris Act (), as transferred by this Act, is amended by adding at the end the following: Public Law 109–449
    - (h) Chief executive officer
      - (1) Appointment; removal; review
        
        The Board shall appoint and review the performance of, and may remove, the chief executive officer of the Foundation.
      - (2) Powers
        
        The chief executive officer of the Foundation may appoint, remove, and review the performance of any officer or employee of the Foundation.
(e) Powers of foundation
- Section 113(c)(1) of the Marine Debris Act (), as transferred by this Act, is amended in the matter preceding subparagraph (A)— Public Law 109–449
  - by inserting before ; and
  - by striking acting as a trusteeand inserting formed.
(f) Principal office
- Section 113 of the Marine Debris Act (), as transferred by this Act, is amended by adding at the end the following: Public Law 109–449
  - (g) Principal office
    - The Board shall locate the principal office of the Foundation in the National Capital Region, as such term is defined in section 2674(f)(2) of title 10, United States Code, or a coastal shoreline community.
(g) Best practices; rule of construction
- Section 113 of the Marine Debris Act (), as transferred by this Act and amended by subsection (e), is further amended by adding at the end the following: Public Law 109–449
  - (h) Best practices
    - (1) In general
      - The Foundation shall develop and implement best practices for conducting outreach to Indian Tribes and Tribal Governments.
    - (2) Requirements
      - The best practices developed under paragraph (1) shall—
        
        include a process to support technical assistance and capacity building to improve outcomes; and
        
        promote an awareness of programs and grants available under this Act.
  - (i) Rule of construction
    - Nothing in this Act may be construed—
      - to satisfy any requirement for government-to-government consultation with Tribal Governments; or
      - to affect or modify any treaty or other right of any Tribal Government.
(h) Authorization of appropriations
- Section 118(a) of the Marine Debris Act (), as transferred by this Act, is amended— Public Law 109–449
  - in paragraph (1), by inserting after ; and
  - in paragraph (2), by striking and State and local government agenciesand inserting , State and local government agencies, regional organizations, Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, and foreign governments.
(i) Reauthorization
- Section 9(a) of the Marine Debris Act () is amended by striking the first place it appears and all that follows through and inserting carrying out. Public Law 109–449

SEC. 4. Transfers

(a) Save our seas 2.0 act
- Subtitle C of title I of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act () is transferred to appear after section 119 of the Marine Debris Act () as transferred and redesignated by this Act. Public Law 116–224; Public Law 109–449
(b) Marine debris act
- The Marine Debris Act () is amended— Public Law 109–449
  - by transferring sections 7, 8, 9 (as amended), and 10 to appear after section 127, as transferred by this Act, and redesignated as sections 131, 132, 133, and 134, respectively; and
  - by inserting before section 131, as so transferred and redesignated, the following:

SEC. 5. Definitions

(a) In general
- Section 131 of the Marine Debris Act (), as transferred and redesignated by this Act, is amended— Public Law 109–449
  - by striking paragraph (1);
  - by redesignating paragraphs (2), (3), (4), (5), (6), and (7) as paragraphs (5), (6), (7), (11), (12), and (13), respectively;
    - (1) Circular economy
      - The term has the meaning given such term in section 2 of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act (). circular economy Public Law 116–224
    - (2) Coastal shoreline community
      - The term means a city or county directly adjacent to the open ocean, major estuaries, or the Great Lakes. coastal shoreline community
    - (3) EPA administrator
      - The term has the meaning given such term in section 2 of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act (). EPA Administrator Public Law 116–224
    - (4) Indian Tribe
      - The term has the meaning given that term in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (). Indian Tribe 25 U.S.C. 5304
  - by inserting before paragraph (5), as so redesignated, the following:
    - (9) Nonprofit organization
      - The term has the meaning given such term in section 2 of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act (). nonprofit organization Public Law 116–224
    - (10) Post-consumer materials management
      - The term has the meaning given such term in section 2 of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act (). post-consumer materials management Public Law 116–224
  - by inserting before paragraph (11), as so redesignated, the following:
    - (14) Tribal Government
      - The term means the recognized governing body of any Indian or Alaska Native Tribe, band, nation, pueblo, village, community, component band, or component reservation, individually identified (including parenthetically) in the list published most recently as of the date of the enactment of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Amendments Act pursuant to section 104 of the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994 (). Tribal Government 25 U.S.C. 5131
    - (15) Tribal organization
      - The term has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (). Tribal organization 25 U.S.C. 5304
    - (16) Under secretary
      - The term has the meaning given such term in section 2 of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act (). Under Secretary Public Law 116–224
  - by inserting after paragraph (13), as so redesignated, the following:
  - in paragraph (13), as so redesignated—
    - by redesignating subparagraphs (B), (C), and (D) as subparagraphs (C), (D), and (E); and
      - Indian Tribe;
    - by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following:
(b) Transfer
- (1) In general
  - Section 2(7) of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act () is transferred to section 131 of the Marine Debris Act (), inserted after paragraph (7) (as redesignated), and redesignated as paragraph (8). Public Law 116–224; Public Law 109–449
- (2) Redesignation
  - Section 2 of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act () is amended by redesignating paragraphs (8) through (11) as paragraphs (7) through (10), respectively. Public Law 116–224
(c) Non-federal funds
- Paragraph (8)(D) of section 131 of the Marine Debris Act (), as transferred and redesignated by this Act, is amended by striking . Public Law 109–449

SEC. 6. Conforming amendments

(a) In general
- Sections 1 and 2 of the Marine Debris Act, sections 101, 102, and 104 of the Marine Debris Act, as redesignated by this Act, and section 133 of the Marine Debris Act, as transferred and so redesignated by this Act, are amended by striking Administratorand inserting Under Secretary.
(b) Section 103
- Section 103 of the Marine Debris Act is amended by—
  - striking Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrationand inserting Under Secretary;
  - striking Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agencyand inserting EPA Administrator; and
  - in subsection (e)(3) by striking section 3and inserting section 101.
(c) Section 123
- Section 123 of the Marine Debris Act, as transferred and so redesignated by this Act, is amended by striking title Iand inserting subtitle B.
(d) Section 133
- Section 133 of the Marine Debris Act, as transferred and so redesignated by this Act, is amended by striking sections 3, 5, and 6and inserting sections 101, 103, and 104.
(e) Section 134
- Section 134 of the Marine Debris Act, as transferred and so redesignated by this Act, is amended by striking Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agencyand inserting EPA Administrator.
(f) Tribal Government
- Subtitle A of the Marine Debris Act, as designated in this Act, is amended by striking tribal governmentand inserting Tribal Government.