Okaloosa County BOCC — Sept 11, 2012 — SB1400 RESTORE Act — reading text

AUTHENTICATED U.S. GOVERNMENT INFORMATION GPO. II 112TH CONGRESS =2e" §. 1400 To restore the natural resources, ecosystems, fisheries, marine and wildlife habitats, beaches, and coastal wetlands of Gulf Coast States, to create jobs and revive the economic health of communities adversely affected by the explosion on, and sinking of, the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JULY 21, 2011 Ms. LANDRIEU (for herself, Mr. SHeuBy, Mr. Virrer, Mr. NELSON of Flor- ida, Mr. RuBio, Mr. Sessions, Mr. CocuRan, Mr. WIcKER, and Mrs. HUTCHISON) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and re- ferred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works A BILL To restore the natural resources, ecosystems, fisheries, ma- rine and wildlife habitats, beaches, and coastal wetlands of Gulf Coast States, to create jobs and revive the eco- nomic health of communities adversely affected by the explosion on, and sinking of, the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon, and for other purposes. 1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 2 tiwes of the United States of America in Congress assembled, eo Aa NWN Or FP WHO YY & NO NO NO HNO HN VN DR RR Re ee ee RR NN mA BP WHO NYO FH OT OO WB HN DB TD HBP WO NBO KH | SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ‘Resources and Eco- systems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Re- vived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act of 2011”. SEC, 2. FINDINGS. Congress finds that— (1) as a result of decades of oil and gas devel- opment in the Gulf of Mexico, producing and non- producing States in the Gulf Coast region have borne substantial risks of environmental damage and economic harm, all of which culminated with the ex- plosion on, and sinking of, the mobile offshore drill- ing unit Deepwater Horizon; (2) the discharge of oil in the Gulf of Mexico that began following the explosion on, and sinking of, the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Hori- zon has caused substantial environmental destruc- tion and economic harm to the people and commu- nities of the Gulf Coast region; (3)(A) in the report entitled “America’s Gulf Coast—A Long Term Recovery Plan after the Deep- water Horizon Oil Spill’, the Secretary of the Navy stated, ‘Together, the Gulf’s tourism and commer- cial and recreational fishing industries contribute tens of billions of dollars to the U.S. economy. More than 90 percent of the nation’s offshore crude oil eS 1400 IS Co wan Dn HH FE WO YPN KF Oo pO VN NO NO Be BR Be Re Re RO Rh WO NO FH CO OO CO NH DUA FSP WO NO KF CO 3 and natural gas is produced in the Gulf, and the federal treasury receives roughly $4.5 billion dollars every year from offshore leases and royalties. And it is in the Gulf of Mexico that nearly one third of sea- food production in the continental U.S. is harvested. America needs a healthy and resilient Gulf Coast, one that can support the diverse economies, commu- nities, and cultures of the region.”’; (B) to address the needs of the Gulf Coast re- gion, the Secretary of the Navy stated, “It is rec- ommended that the President urge Congress to pass legislation that would dedicate a significant amount of any civil penalties recovered under the Clean Water Act from parties responsible for the Deep- water Horizon oil spill to those directly impacted by that spill.”’; and (C) to mitigate local challenges and help restore the resiliency of communities adversely affected by the spill, the Secretary of the Navy stated that the legislation described in subparagraph (B) should “!b}uild economic development strategies around community needs, and take particular efforts to ad- dress the needs of disadvantaged, underserved, and resource constrained communities”’; *S 1400 IS oOo Oo SN NH mH FP WO YP KF oO wo NO WHO HN DN RRR Re RB Re nA BP WO NO KF DO Oo DB sD A FP WO NY KF CO 4 (4) in a final report to the President, the Na- tional Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling— (A) stated, ‘Estimates of the cost of Gulf restoration, including but not limited to the Mississippi Delta, vary widely, but according to testimony before the Commission, full restora- tion of the Gulf will require $15 billion to $20 billion: a minimum of $500 million annually for 30 years.”; and (B) like the Secretary of the Navy, rec- ommended that, to meet the needs described in subparagraph (A), a substantial portion of ap- plicable penalties under the Federal Water Pol- lution Control Act (83 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) be dedicated to long-term restoration of the Gulf of Mexico; (5) taking into account the risks borne by Gulf Coast States for decades of oil and gas development and the environmental degradation suffered by the Gulf Coast ecosystem, the amounts received by the United States as payment of administrative, civil, or criminal penalties in connection with the explosion on, and sinking of, the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon should be expended— *S 1400 IS mo Oo NN OH KR WHO YP eS Oo NO NO NO RB RRR Re RE RE Oo NYO FF CF Oo DOB as WB DH FP WHO NY KF OO 5 (A) to restore the natural resources, eco- systems, fisheries, marine and wildlife habitats, beaches, barrier islands, dunes, coastal wet- lands, and economy of the Gulf Coast; and (B) to address the associated economic harm suffered by the people and communities of the region; (6) the projects and programs authorized by this Act and the amendments made by this Act should be carried out pursuant to contracts awarded in a manner that provides a preference to individuals and entities that reside in, are headquartered in, or are principally engaged in business in a Gulf Coast State; and (7) Federal, State, and local officials should seek— (A) to leverage the financial resources made available under this Act; and (B) to the maximum extent practicable, to ensure that projects funded pursuant to this Act complement efforts planned or in operation to revitalize the natural resources and economic health of the Gulf Coast region. *S 1400 IS oo wea HN DH AW FP WO YN SH wm po NH HN HN HN KR RR Se Be BR RP Re Re an BB WwW NYO KF CD Oo BOB HT Dn FP WO YP KF OO 6 SEC. 3. GULF COAST RESTORATION TRUST FUND. (a) HSTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the Treasury of the United States a trust fund to be known as the “Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund” (referred to in this section as the ‘Trust Fund’’), consisting of such amounts as are deposited in the Trust Fund under this Act or any other provision of law. (b) TRANSFERS.—The Sceretary of the Treasury shall deposit in the Trust Fund an amount equal to 80 percent of all administrative and civil penalties paid by responsible parties after the date of enactment of this Act in connection with the explosion on, and sinking of, the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon pursuant to a court order, negotiated settlement, or other instru- ment in accordance with section 311 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1321). (ec) EXPENDITURES.—Amounts in the Trust Fund, including interest earned on advances to the Trust Fund and proceeds from investment under subsection (d), shall— (1) be available for expenditure, without further appropriation, solely for the purpose and eligible ac- tivities of this Act; and (2) remain available until expended, without fis- cal year limitation. eS 1400 IS Oo HF ND Or FP WY YH NO NO bd NO NO RR RB RO RR eR BRB WO YHOO fF CO DO DB nA ND Oo FP WO NH KK OO 7 (d) INVESTMENT.—Amounts in the Trust Fund shall be invested in accordance with section 9702 of title 31, United States Code, and any interest on, and proceeds from, any such investment shall be available for expendi- ture in accordance with this Act and the amendments made by this Act. (e) ADMINISTRATION.—Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, after providing notice and an opportunity for public comment, the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of the In- terior and the Secretary of Commerce, shall establish such procedures as the Secretary determines to be necessary to deposit amounts in, and expend amounts from, the Trust Fund pursuant to this Act, including— (1) procedures to assess whether the programs and activities carried out under this Act and the amendments made by this Act achieve compliance with applicable requirements, including procedures by which the Secretary of the Treasury may deter- mine whether an expenditure by a Gulf Coast State or coastal political subdivision (as those terms are defined in section 311 of the Federal Water Pollu- tion Control Act (83 U.S.C. 1321)) pursuant to such a program or activity achieves compliance; - eS 1400 IS 8 1 (2) auditing requirements to ensure that amounts in the Trust Fund are expended as in- tended; and (3) procedures for identification and allocation 2 3 4 5 of funds available to the Secretary under other pro- 6 visions of law that may be necessary to pay the ad- 7 ministrative expenses directly attributable to the 8 management of the Trust Fund. 9 SEC. 4. GULF COAST NATURAL RESOURCES RESTORATION 10 AND ECONOMIC RECOVERY. 11 Section 311 of the Federal Water Pollution Control 12 Act (33 U.S.C. 1821) is amended— 13 (1) in subsection (a)— 14 (A) in paragraph (25)(B), by striking 15 “and’’ at the end; 16 (B) in paragraph (26)(D), by striking the 17 period at the end and inserting a semicolon; 18 and 19 (C) by adding at the end the following: 20 “(27) the term ‘Chairperson’ means the Chair- 21 person of the Council; 22 “(28) the term ‘coastal political subdivision’ 23 means any local political jurisdiction that is imme- 24 diately below the State level of government, includ- 25 ing a county, parish, or borough, with a coastline *S 1400 IS oO eo JN DH OH FF WO YP Fe — = ep Ww bwNoO | ©} 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 9 that is contiguous with any portion of the United States Gulf of Mexico; ““(29) the term ‘Comprehensive Plan’ means the comprehensive plan developed by the Council pursu- ant to subsection (t); “(30) the term ‘Council’ means the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council established pursuant to subsection (t); “(31) the term ‘Deepwater Horizon oil spill’ means the blowout and explosion of the mobile off- shore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon that occurred on April 20, 2010, and resulting hydrocarbon re- leases into the environment; (32) the term ‘Gulf Coast ecosystem’ means— “(A) in the Gulf Coast States, the coastal zones (as that term is defined in section 304 of the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1453)) that border the Gulf of Mexico; “(B) any adjacent land, water, and water- sheds, that are within 25 miles of those coastal zones of the Gulf Coast States; and “(C) all Federal waters in the Gulf of Mex- 1G0; *S 1400 IS So ea SYN DWN AW FP WO YH & wo NO NO YN NON HB Re KF HF FF Fe Se Re BR wo PO F& OD Oo WO IT HDB A BP WO HPO YK OSC 10 (33) the term ‘Gulf Coast State’ means any of the States of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mis- sissippi, and Texas; and “(34) the term ‘Trust Fund’ means the Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund established pursuant to section 3 of the Resources and Ecosystems Sus- tainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act of 2011.”; (2) in subsection (s), by inserting ‘‘except as provided in subsection (t)” before the period at the end; and (3) by adding at the end the following: “(t) GULF COAST RESTORATION AND RECOVERY.— “(1) STATE ALLOCATION AND EXPENDI- TURES. “(A) IN GENERAL.—Of the total amounts made available in any fiscal year from the Trust Fund, 35 percent shall be available, in accordance with the requirements of this sec- tion, to the Gulf Coast States in equal shares for expenditure for ecological and economic res- toration of the Gulf Coast ecosystem in accord- ance with this subsection. “(B) USE OF FUNDS.— eS 1400 IS Oo Oo