Sec. 201. Offshore Wind Energy Fisheries Compensation Fund
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The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act ( 43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq. ) is amended by adding at the end the following: There is established in the Treasury of the United States a fund, to be known as the Offshore Wind Energy Fisheries Compensation Fund (referred to in this section as the Fund ). The Fund shall be available to the Secretary of Commerce without fiscal year limitation as a revolving fund for the purpose of making payments to compensate eligible recipients for losses caused by the planning, pre-construction survey, construction, maintenance, operation, and decommissioning of offshore wind energy facilities on the outer Continental Shelf within the jurisdiction of a State that participates in the Fund.
Each offshore wind lease holder and project sponsor shall be required to provide amounts into the Fund as described in subsection (b), unless the offshore wind lease holder or project sponsor is in a State that is not participating in the Fund pursuant to paragraph (3). Each State that does not have an existing or under development fisheries compensation fund or a comparable program shall participate in the Fund with respect to projects within the jurisdiction of the State. Each State that has an existing or under development fisheries compensation fund or a comparable program is not required to participate in the Fund, but may elect to opt-into participation in the Fund with respect to projects within the jurisdiction of the State.
An offshore wind lease holder or project sponsor shall only provide amounts into the Fund or a State's fisheries compensation fund, and not both. The Fund shall— be used by the Secretary of Commerce to provide to eligible recipients payments for claims described under subsection (c); and consist of— revenues received from investments made under paragraph (5); and amounts collected pursuant to subsection (b). Amounts in the Fund that are not currently needed for the purposes of the Fund shall be— kept on deposit in appropriate interest-bearing accounts that shall be established by the Secretary of the Treasury; or invested in obligations of, or guaranteed by, the United States.
Any revenue accruing from such deposits and investments described in subparagraph
(A)shall be deposited in the Fund. The Fund shall be divided into 3 separate geographic area accounts based on the jurisdiction of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission, and the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission. In addition to the 3 separate geographic area accounts described in clause (i), the Secretary of Commerce may add 1 or more separate geographic area accounts into which the Fund shall be divided. The division of amounts in each geographic area account of the Fund shall be based on the leasing activity for offshore wind energy in the geographic area of the account and payments from amounts in each account of the Fund shall address losses in the applicable geographic area. The Secretary, acting through the Director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management— shall require offshore wind lease holders in States that are participating in the Fund to include fisheries compensation as part of the leasing process for offshore wind energy under section 33, including by providing to the Secretary, for deposit into the Fund, amounts determined to be appropriate by the Secretary pursuant to paragraph (2), which shall be separate from any other fees, payments, or other amounts, and paid in one lump sum at final investment decision; shall require project sponsors in States that are participating in the Fund to provide to the Secretary, for deposit into the Fund, an additional amount equal to 5 percent of any amount required to be provided for deposit into the Fund under subparagraph (A), of which additional amount— 40 percent shall be available to the Secretary to cover the administrative expenses of carrying out this section; and 60 percent shall be available to the Secretary of Commerce to cover the administrative expenses of carrying out this section; shall deposit any amounts received under subparagraph
(A)or
(B)in the Fund; and shall require the designated liaisons appointed under section 8(p)(11)(B)(ii) to conduct outreach to fishermen on the availability of compensation from the Fund pursuant to this section. The Secretary, in coordination with the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, shall establish a formula to calculate the amounts to be paid by each project sponsor into the Fund. The Secretary shall evaluate and potentially adjust the formula established under subparagraph
(A)not less often than every 5 years. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to diminish or otherwise alter a State's authority pursuant to the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 ( 16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq. ). The requirements described in this subsection shall not apply to a project sponsor that issued a notice of intent to prepare a draft environmental impact statement with respect to the project before the date the Fund is established under subsection (a). The Secretary of Commerce— in collaboration with relevant agencies that hold relevant fisheries data, such as State agencies, Regional Fishery Management Councils, and the applicable Interstate Marine Fisheries Commission, shall establish a process to file, process, and verify claims for purposes of making payments from the Fund; and shall make payments to eligible recipients from the Fund— in accordance with this section; and in consultation with Interstate Marine Fisheries Commissions, at the discretion of the Secretary of Commerce. The Secretary of Commerce may not make a payment from the Fund— for gear loss or damage; for loss caused by the negligence or fault of the claimant; for loss caused by events or occurrences unrelated to planning, pre-construction survey, construction, maintenance, operation, or decommissioning of offshore wind energy projects on the outer Continental Shelf; or for any portion of loss that may be compensated by insurance. In general Payments made, including direct payments, under this section from the Fund shall— be based on the scope of the verified claim; be fair and provided efficiently and in a transparent manner; and if the eligible recipient receiving the payment has or will receive direct compensation for the verified claim pursuant to a community benefit agreement or other agreement between such eligible recipient and a holder of a lease, easement, or right-of-way, be reduced by an amount that is equal to the amount of such direct compensation. If the Secretary of Commerce determines that there are sufficient amounts in a geographic area account of the Fund, as described in subsection (a)(6), to provide payments for all verified claims at any given time, the Secretary may use not more than $20,000,000 of amounts in the geographic area account of the Fund that are in excess of the amount necessary to provide payments for all verified claims to provide grants to eligible recipients, and other entities determined appropriate by the Secretary, to mitigate the potential effects of development of an offshore wind energy project, including by paying for gear modifications, navigation technology improvements, and other measures, including training, to enhance safety. The Secretary of Commerce, in coordination with the Secretary of the Treasury, shall establish and convene an advisory group not less frequently than twice a year that shall provide recommendations on the development and administration of this section. The advisory group established under paragraph
(1)shall— be comprised of individuals— appointed by the Secretary of Commerce; and representing the geographic diversity of areas impacted by the development of offshore wind energy projects; and include representatives from— recreational fishing interests; commercial fishing interests; Tribal fishing interests; fish processing interests; the National Marine Fisheries Service; the Department of the Interior; State agencies; the fisheries science community; the offshore wind industry; and other fields of expertise necessary to effectively develop and administer this section, as determined by the Secretary of Commerce. The Secretary of Commerce may provide amounts to any member of the advisory group to pay for travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for an employee of an agency under section 5703 of title 5, United States Code, while away from the home or regular place of business of the member in the performance of the duties of the advisory group. The Secretary of Commerce shall submit to Congress, and make publicly available, an annual report on activities carried out under this section, including a description of claims filed and the amount of payments and grants provided. If the Secretary, in coordination with the Secretary of Commerce, determines that a geographic area account of the Fund does not contain a sufficient amount to provide payments for all verified claims under this section, the Secretary may, not more than once each calendar year, require each holder of an offshore wind energy lease located within the area covered by the geographic area account to pay an amount specified by the Secretary in accordance with paragraph (2), which shall be deposited into such geographic area account of the Fund. No holder of an offshore wind energy lease shall be required to pay an amount under paragraph
(1)that is in excess of $3 per acre per year of the leased area. In this section: The term eligible recipient means— a community, stakeholder, or Tribal interest— that uses a geographic space of an offshore wind energy lease area, or uses resources harvested from a geographic space of an offshore wind energy lease area; for which such use is directly and adversely impacted by the development of an offshore wind energy project located in such area; and located in the United States, including the territories of the United States; or a regional association, cooperative, nonprofit organization, commission, or corporation that— serves, and acts on behalf of, a community, stakeholder, or Tribal interest described in paragraph (1); and is located in the United States, including the territories of the United States. The term Interstate Marine Fisheries Commission means the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission, or the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission. .
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