33 U.S.C. § 3402 — Program established

Page 970 TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS § 3401 1 See References in Text note below. Editorial Notes CODIFICATION Section was enacted as part of the Water Resources Development Act of 2022, and also as part of the James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for Fis- cal Year 2023, and not as part of the National Levee Safety Act of 2007 which comprises this chapter. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries ‘‘SECRETARY’’ DEFINED Secretary means the Secretary of the Army, see sec- tion 8002 of Pub. L. 117–263, set out as a note under sec- tion 2201 of this title. CHAPTER 47—OCEAN EXPLORATION SUBCHAPTER I—EXPLORATION Sec. 3401. Purpose. 3402. Program established. 3403. Powers and duties of the Administrator. 3404. Education, workforce training, and outreach. 3405. Ocean Exploration Advisory Board. 3406. Authorization of appropriations. 3407. Definitions. 3408. National Ocean Mapping, Exploration, and Characterization Council. SUBCHAPTER II—NOAA UNDERSEA RESEARCH PROGRAM 3421 to 3426. Repealed. SUBCHAPTER I—EXPLORATION § 3401. Purpose The purpose of this subchapter is to establish the national ocean exploration program within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis- tration. (Pub. L. 111–11, title XII, § 12001, Mar. 30, 2009, 123 Stat. 1417; Pub. L. 117–263, div. J, title CIII, § 10305(a), Dec. 23, 2022, 136 Stat. 3971.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2022—Pub. L. 117–263 struck out ‘‘and the national un- dersea research program’’ after ‘‘national ocean explo- ration program’’. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries SHORT TITLE Pub. L. 111–11, title XII, § 12101, Mar. 30, 2009, 123 Stat. 1419, which provided that part II of subtitle A of title XII of Pub. L. 111–11, which enacted subchapter II of this chapter, could be cited as the ‘‘NOAA Undersea Re- search Program Act of 2009’’, was repealed by Pub. L. 117–263, div. J, title CIII, § 10306(a), Dec. 23, 2022, 136 Stat. 3974. § 3402. Program established The Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shall, in con- sultation with the National Science Foundation and other appropriate Federal agencies, estab- lish a coordinated national ocean exploration program within the National Oceanic and At- mospheric Administration that promotes col- laboration with other Federal ocean research and exploration programs. To the extent appro- priate, the Administrator shall seek to facilitate coordination of data and information manage- ment systems, outreach and education programs to improve public understanding of ocean and coastal resources, and development and transfer of technologies to facilitate ocean research and ocean exploration and characterization efforts. (Pub. L. 111–11, title XII, § 12002, Mar. 30, 2009, 123 Stat. 1417; Pub. L. 117–263, div. J, title CIII, § 10305(b), Dec. 23, 2022, 136 Stat. 3971.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2022—Pub. L. 117–263 struck out ‘‘and undersea’’ after ‘‘Federal ocean’’ in first sentence and substituted ‘‘re- search and ocean exploration and characterization ef- forts’’ for ‘‘and undersea research and exploration’’ in second sentence. § 3403. Powers and duties of the Administrator (a) In general In carrying out the program authorized by sec- tion 3402 of this title, the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra- tion, in consultation with the Ocean Policy Committee established under section 8932 of title 10, shall— (1) conduct interdisciplinary expeditions or other scientific activities in conjunction with other Federal and State agencies, Tribal Gov- ernments, private industry, academia (includ- ing secondary schools, community colleges, and universities), and nongovernmental orga- nizations, to map, explore, and characterize little known areas of the marine environment, inventory, observe, characterize, and assess living and nonliving marine resources, and re- port such findings; (2) give priority attention to deep ocean re- gions of the exclusive economic zone, with a focus on deep water marine systems that hold potential for important scientific discoveries, such as hydrothermal vent communities and seamounts; (3) conduct scientific expeditions to locate, define, and document historic shipwrecks, sub- merged sites, and other ocean exploration ac- tivities that combine archaeology and oceano- graphic sciences; (4) develop and implement a transparent, competitive process for merit-based peer-re- view and approval of proposals for activities to be conducted under this program, taking into consideration advice of the Board established under section 3405 of this title; (5) support technological innovation of the United States marine science community by promoting the development and use of new and emerging technologies for research, com- munication, navigation, and data collection, such as sensors and autonomous vehicles; (6) establish an ocean exploration forum, in consultation with the National Ocean Map- ping, Exploration, and Characterization Coun- cil established under section 5405 1 of the James M. Inhofe National Defense Authoriza- tion Act for Fiscal Year 2023, to encourage partnerships and promote communication