Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2014

Floor Speech

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Ms. BONAMICI. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from California for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to join my colleagues today in support of H.R. 4005, the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act. I know that the chairmen and ranking members have worked diligently on the underlying bill, and I commend them for their efforts.

Importantly, I am grateful for the opportunity to work with them to add language from two bills I introduced to help coastal communities dealing with increasing marine debris.

Since the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan in 2011, residents of the Pacific Northwest have faced an increase in the volume of marine debris reaching our coast. This debris is a hazard to navigators, a threat to the marine environment, and a potential drag on coastal tourism.

Following the arrival of a 66-foot dock on an Oregon beach in June 2012, I worked with a bipartisan coalition on two bills to improve the Federal response to marine debris.

The first proposal, which I introduced with the gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. Herrera Beutler), was introduced to expedite NOAA's grant process for debris cleanup by allowing NOAA to prioritize grant applications from communities affected by a severe marine debris event.

I partnered with Congressman Don Young on the second proposal to allow NOAA to reimburse States for debris cleanup costs with a generous $5 million gift from the Government of Japan.

I would like to thank the chairman and ranking member of the Natural Resources Committee for their support, with special thanks to my Oregon colleague, Ranking Member DeFazio.

I would also like to thank the chairman and ranking member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee for including these proposals in the underlying bill.

I am pleased to have worked with so many Members on the passage of these bipartisan marine provisions, and I urge a ``yes'' vote on the underlying bill.

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