Coastal and Great Lakes Communities Enhancement Act
Latest action. Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Coastal and Great Lakes Communities Enhancement Act
This bill addresses provisions related to coastal zone management, waterfronts, climate change, fish habitats, the Great Lakes, coastal science and data, and the National Sea Grant College Program.
TITLE I--COASTAL RESILIENCE AND ECONOMIC ENHANCEMENT
(Sec. 101) This section authorizes the Department of Commerce to award grants to Indian tribes to further achievement of any of the following tribal coastal zone objectives:
protecting, restoring, or preserving areas in the zone that hold important ecological, cultural, or sacred significance for the tribes, or traditional, historic, and esthetic values essential to the tribes;
preparing and implementing a special area management plan and technical planning for important coastal areas; and
implementing any coastal or shoreline stabilization measure for the purpose of public safety, public access, or cultural or historical preservation.
(Sec. 102) The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) must award grants to state or local governments, Indian tribes, or nonprofit organizations to (1) implement climate-resilient living shoreline projects; and (2) encourage innovation in the use of natural materials to protect coastal communities, habitats, and natural system functions.
(Sec. 103) This section addresses the preservation and accessibility of waterfronts in coastal states.
NOAA must establish a Working Waterfront Task Force that will be designed to identify and address critical working waterfront needs with respect to cultural and economic importance, environmental threats, and market conditions for water-dependent businesses.
NOAA must also establish a Working Waterfront Grant Program. Under the program, NOAA may award grants to coastal states with approved working waterfront plans in place to preserve and expand access to coastal waters for people engaged in fishing, aquaculture, boat building, and other water-dependent businesses.
In addition, NOAA is authorized to award grants to coastal states for the purpose of developing or revising working waterfront plans.
States are allowed to allocate any grant money received to eligible local governments and other entities. Each state that is awarded a grant must contribute at least 25% of matching funds towards the total cost of the project carried out with the grant, subject to certain exceptions.
The summary continues for 34 more paragraphs. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Passed House" stage on December 10, 2019. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on December 12, 2019: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 116th Congress (2019-20), 344 of the 14,345 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.4 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Derek Kilmer (D-WA) introduced it on January 23, 2019, and 14 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 11 Democrats, 3 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on January 23, 2019, 2787 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 2464 days ago, on December 12, 2019.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 116th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2021 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers