Sec. 15. Destruction of coral reefs
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The Act (16 U.S.C. 6401 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 212, as added by section 14 of this Act, the following: Except as provided in subsection (f), all persons who engage in an activity that is prohibited under subsections
(b)or
(d)of section 212, or create an imminent risk thereof, are liable, jointly and severally, to the United States for an amount equal to the sum of— response costs and damages resulting from the destruction, loss, taking, or injury, or imminent risk thereof, including damages resulting from the response actions; costs of seizure, forfeiture, storage, and disposal arising from liability under this section; and interest on that amount calculated in the manner described in section 1005 of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 ( 33 U.S.C. 2705 ). Any vessel used in an activity that is prohibited under subsection
(b)or
(d)of section 212, or creates an imminent risk thereof, shall be liable in rem to the United States for an amount equal to the sum of— response costs and damages resulting from such destruction, loss, taking, or injury, or imminent risk thereof, including damages resulting from the response actions; costs of seizure, forfeiture, storage, and disposal arising from liability under this section; and interest on that amount calculated in the manner described in section 1005 of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 ( 33 U.S.C. 2705 ). The amount of liability shall constitute a maritime lien on the vessel and may be recovered in an action in rem in any district court of the United States that has jurisdiction over the vessel. A person or vessel is not liable under this subsection if that person or vessel establishes that the destruction, loss, taking, or injury was caused solely by an act of God, an act of war, or an act or omission of a third party (other than an employee or agent of the defendant or one whose act or omission occurs in connection with a contractual relationship, existing directly or indirectly with the defendant), and the person or master of the vessel acted with due care. Nothing in sections 30501 through 30512 or section 30706 of title 46, United States Code, shall limit liability to any person under this title. The Secretary may undertake or authorize all necessary actions to prevent or minimize the destruction, loss, or taking of, or injury to, coral reefs, or components thereof, or to minimize the risk or imminent risk of such destruction, loss, taking, or injury. The Secretary shall assess damages (as defined in section 221(8)) to coral reefs and shall consult with State officials regarding response and damage assessment actions undertaken for coral reefs within State waters. There shall be no double recovery under this chapter for coral reef damages, including the cost of damage assessment, for the same incident. The Attorney General, upon the request of the Secretary, may commence a civil action against any person or vessel that may be liable under subsection
(a)of this section for response costs, seizure, forfeiture, storage, or disposal costs, and damages, and interest on that amount calculated in the manner described in section 1005 of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2705). The Secretary, acting as trustee for coral reefs for the United States, shall submit a request for such an action to the Attorney General whenever a person or vessel may be liable for such costs or damages. A civil action under this title may be brought in the United States district court for any district in which— the defendant is located, resides, or is doing business, in the case of an action against a person; the vessel is located, in the case of an action against a vessel; the destruction, loss, or taking of, or injury to a coral reef, or component thereof, occurred or in which there is an imminent risk of such destruction, loss, taking, or injury; or where some or all of the coral reef or component thereof that is the subject of the action is not within the territory covered by any United States district court, such action may be brought either in the United States district court for the district closest to the location where the destruction, loss, taking, injury, or risk of injury occurred, or in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. Any costs, including response costs and damages recovered by the Secretary under this section shall— be deposited into an account or accounts in the Damage Assessment Restoration Revolving Fund established by the Department of Commerce Appropriations Act, 1991 (33 U.S.C. 2706 note), or the Natural Resource Damage Assessment and Restoration Fund established by the Department of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1992 ( 43 U.S.C. 1474b ), as appropriate given the location of the violation; be available for use by the Secretary without further appropriation and remain available until expended; and be for use, as the Secretary considers appropriate— to reimburse the Secretary or any other Federal or State agency that conducted activities under subsection
(a)or
(b)of this section for costs incurred in conducting the activity; to be transferred to the Emergency Response, Stabilization, and Restoration Account established under section 208(d) to reimburse that account for amounts used for authorized emergency actions; and after reimbursement of such costs, to restore, replace, or acquire the equivalent of any coral reefs, or components thereof, including the reasonable costs of monitoring, or to minimize or prevent threats of equivalent injury to, or destruction of coral reefs, or components thereof. In development of restoration alternatives under paragraph (1)(C), the Secretary shall consider State and territorial preferences and, if appropriate, shall prioritize restoration projects with geographic and ecological linkages to the injured resources. An action for response costs or damages under subsection
(c)shall be barred unless the complaint is filed not later than 3 years after the date on which the Secretary completes a damage assessment and restoration plan for the coral reefs, or components thereof, to which the action relates. In the event of threatened or actual destruction of, loss of, taking of, or injury to a coral reef or component thereof resulting from an incident caused by a component of any Department or agency of the United States Government, the cognizant Department or agency shall satisfy its obligations under this section by promptly, in coordination with the Secretary, taking appropriate actions to respond to and mitigate the harm and restoring or replacing the coral reef or components thereof and reimbursing the Secretary for all assessment costs. No officer or employee of a uniformed service (as defined in section 101 of title 10, United States Code) shall be held liable under this section, either in such officer's or employee's personal or official capacity, for any violation of section 212 occurring during the performance of the officer's or employee's official governmental duties. No contract employee of a uniformed service (as defined in section 101 of title 10, United States Code), serving as vessel master or crew member, shall be liable under this section for any violation of section 212 if that contract employee— is acting as a contract employee of a uniformed service under the terms of an operating contract for a vessel owned by a uniformed service, or a time charter for pre-positioned vessels, special mission vessels, or vessels exclusively transporting military supplies and materials; and is engaged in an action or actions over which such employee has been given no discretion (such as, anchoring or mooring at one or more designated anchorages or buoys, or executing specific operational elements of a special mission activity), as determined by the uniformed service controlling the contract. .
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