PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · Sep 10, 2015
National Oceans and Coastal Security Act
This bill authorizes the Department of Commerce and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to establish the National Oceans and Coastal Security Fund as a tax exempt fund for supporting programs and activities to protect, conserve, and restore ocean and coastal resources and coastal infrastructure.
Donations from a foreign government may not be deposited into the fund.
Commerce must prioritize projects that have non-federal partners sharing the project costs.
According to a specified allocation formula, the Foundation must award a minimum percentage of funds as grants to eligible coastal states while awarding a lesser percentage of funds to entities including states, Indian tribes, regional bodies, associations, non-governmental organizations, and academic institutions.
The bill amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to require the President to ensure that a certain percent of offshore energy revenues are deposited into the fund.
People & committees
Sen. Whitehouse, Sheldon [D-RI] · D–RI
Legislative record
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Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Introduced in Senate
Primary sources
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No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Sep 8, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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