This bill updates federal laws on harmful algal blooms and hypoxia (oxygen-depleted “dead zones” in water bodies), expanding the government’s response to these environmental threats across oceans, the Great Lakes, and freshwater systems like lakes and rivers. It requires a federal task force involving agencies such as NOAA, EPA, and the Department of Energy to produce a comprehensive national action strategy every five years, examining causes, health and economic impacts, and prevention methods, with special attention to Indian tribes, Native Hawaiian organizations, rural and subsistence communities, and industries like fisheries and agriculture. The legislation creates new research and monitoring programs, including a national observing network, an incubator program to test new bloom-control technologies, and expanded toxin testing access in remote areas. It also clarifies agency responsibilities, with NOAA handling marine and coastal blooms and EPA focusing on freshwater blooms, and allows federal grants and cost-sharing agreements with states, tribes, and local governments to address major bloom events. The bill authorizes about $27.5 million per year in funding from 2025 through 2029 to carry out these efforts.
Take Action
Your position
Add a comment
to comment on this bill.
Annotate the text
Highlight any passage on the Summary or Full Text tab to attach a note. Annotations appear on the Annotations tab.