Sec. 101. Office of Aquaculture

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There is established within the headquarters of the National Marine Fisheries Service of the Administration the Office of Aquaculture (in this section referred to as the Office ). The Administrator shall ensure the Office is provided with sufficient resources to carry out the duties of the Office under subsection (d). The Administrator shall provide for representation of the Office in each of the regional fisheries offices of the Administration. In carrying out paragraph (1), the Administrator— shall provide for the placement of at least one regional aquaculture coordinator from the Office in each regional fisheries office; shall otherwise ensure that the representation of the Office at a regional fisheries office is, at a minimum, sufficient to permit the Office to fulfill the duties of the Office under subsection (d); and may increase that representation to the extent warranted by the activity and interest of aquaculture stakeholders in the region.

The Office shall— coordinate the implementation of this Act, including administration of— the aquaculture research program established under subsection (e); the offshore aquaculture assessment program established under section 201; and the issuance of permits under section 202; coordinate regulatory, scientific, outreach, and international issues related to aquaculture within the Administration; collaborate with and leverage existing efforts by the national sea grant college program— to conduct outreach, education, extension services, and training efforts for aquaculture and offshore aquaculture; and to engage with aquaculture stakeholders and, from time to time, convene conferences for aquaculture stakeholders to exchange information and ideas; maintain aquaculture capacity in the regions covered by the regional fisheries offices of the Administration; develop recommendations for performance standards for offshore aquaculture operations that, at a minimum— encourage development of offshore aquaculture in a manner that complies with environmental law; are based on the best scientific information available; take into account traditional knowledge of Tribal and Indigenous communities as appropriate to the region; are adaptive to offshore aquaculture developments, such as updates in technology and changes in environmental conditions; and prefer species that are native or historically naturalized to the region; and prioritize the health of cultured species.

Upon request of the Governor of a coastal State, the Office shall enter into an agreement with the State to allow the State, and aquaculture stakeholders in the State as appropriate, to participate in the activities authorized under sections 201 and 203 and titles III and IV, as though— the aquaculture conducted in the State’s coastal waters were offshore aquaculture; and facilities for aquaculture in the State’s coastal waters were offshore aquaculture facilities. Nothing in this paragraph or in any agreement entered into under this paragraph shall be construed to affect the authority of the Administrator to issue permits for or regulate aquaculture in State waters, except as expressly provided in such an agreement.

The Administrator shall establish, and provide resources (in addition to the resources required under subsection (b)) for, an aquaculture research program that draws upon the scientific capacity of programs of the Administration, such as the Fisheries Science Centers, the national sea grant college program, and the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, to support the efforts of the Office to implement this Act. As part of the aquaculture research program established under paragraph (1), the Office shall— ensure that commercial-scale offshore aquaculture demonstration projects for which permits are issued under section 202 are scientifically monitored to support the implementation of this Act; evaluate data; conduct additional research to support the development of sustainable offshore aquaculture; administer support for industry under section 301; administer the Aquaculture Centers of Excellence under section 302; administer the contract to conduct the study described in section 401; and coordinate the engagement of the Administration with the Comptroller General of the United States as the Comptroller General prepares the report required by section 402.

The Administrator shall include, in the budget justification materials submitted to Congress in support of the budget of the President for a fiscal year pursuant to section 1105 of title 31, United States Code, a request for funding for the Office as a separate line item with the National Marine Fisheries Service.