1625-0102 Stat/Authority

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

under specified sections of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees, see section 529 [title I, § 101(c)(1)]
of Pub. L. 101–509, set out in a note under section 5376
of Title 5.

§ 1321. Oil and hazardous substance liability
(a) Definitions
For the purpose of this section, the term—
(1) ‘‘oil’’ means oil of any kind or in any
form, including, but not limited to, petroleum,
fuel oil, sludge, oil refuse, and oil mixed with
wastes other than dredged spoil;
(2) ‘‘discharge’’ includes, but is not limited
to, any spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring,
emitting, emptying or dumping, but excludes
(A) discharges in compliance with a permit
under section 1342 of this title, (B) discharges
resulting from circumstances identified and
reviewed and made a part of the public record
with respect to a permit issued or modified
under section 1342 of this title, and subject to
a condition in such permit,,1 (C) continuous or
anticipated intermittent discharges from a
point source, identified in a permit or permit
application under section 1342 of this title,
which are caused by events occurring within
the scope of relevant operating or treatment
systems, and (D) discharges incidental to mechanical removal authorized by the President
under subsection (c) of this section;
(3) ‘‘vessel’’ means every description of
watercraft or other artificial contrivance
used, or capable of being used, as a means of
transportation on water other than a public
vessel;
(4) ‘‘public vessel’’ means a vessel owned or
bareboat-chartered and operated by the United
States, or by a State or political subdivision
thereof, or by a foreign nation, except when
such vessel is engaged in commerce;
(5) ‘‘United States’’ means the States, the
District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of
Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, American Samoa,
the Virgin Islands, and the Trust Territory of
the Pacific Islands;
(6) ‘‘owner or operator’’ means (A) in the
case of a vessel, any person owning, operating,
or chartering by demise, such vessel, and (B)
in the case of an onshore facility, and an offshore facility, any person owning or operating
such onshore facility or offshore facility, and
(C) in the case of any abandoned offshore facility, the person who owned or operated such facility immediately prior to such abandonment;
(7) ‘‘person’’ includes an individual, firm,
corporation, association, and a partnership;
(8) ‘‘remove’’ or ‘‘removal’’ refers to containment and removal of the oil or hazardous substances from the water and shorelines or the
taking of such other actions as may be necessary to prevent, minimize, or mitigate damage to the public health or welfare, including,
but not limited to, fish, shellfish, wildlife, and
public and private property, shorelines, and
beaches;
(9) ‘‘contiguous zone’’ means the entire zone
established or to be established by the United
1 So

in original.

Page 478

States under article 24 of the Convention on
the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone;
(10) ‘‘onshore facility’’ means any facility
(including, but not limited to, motor vehicles
and rolling stock) of any kind located in, on,
or under, any land within the United States
other than submerged land;
(11) ‘‘offshore facility’’ means any facility of
any kind located in, on, or under, any of the
navigable waters of the United States, any facility of any kind which is subject to the jurisdiction of the United States and is located in,
on, or under any other waters, other than a
vessel or a public vessel, and, for the purposes
of applying subsections (b), (c), (e), and (o),
any foreign offshore unit (as defined in section
1001 of the Oil Pollution Act 2) or any other facility located seaward of the exclusive economic zone;
(12) ‘‘act of God’’ means an act occasioned by
an unanticipated grave natural disaster;
(13) ‘‘barrel’’ means 42 United States gallons
at 60 degrees Fahrenheit;
(14) ‘‘hazardous substance’’ means any substance designated pursuant to subsection (b)(2)
of this section;
(15) ‘‘inland oil barge’’ means a non-self-propelled vessel carrying oil in bulk as cargo and
certificated to operate only in the inland waters of the United States, while operating in
such waters;
(16) ‘‘inland waters of the United States’’
means those waters of the United States lying
inside the baseline from which the territorial
sea is measured and those waters outside such
baseline which are a part of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway;
(17) ‘‘otherwise subject to the jurisdiction of
the United States’’ means subject to the jurisdiction of the United States by virtue of
United States citizenship, United States vessel
documentation or numbering, or as provided
for by international agreement to which the
United States is a party;
(18) ‘‘Area Committee’’ means an Area Committee established under subsection (j);
(19) ‘‘Area Contingency Plan’’ means an Area
Contingency Plan prepared under subsection
(j);
(20) ‘‘Coast Guard District Response Group’’
means a Coast Guard District Response Group
established under subsection (j);
(21) ‘‘Federal On-Scene Coordinator’’ means
a Federal On-Scene Coordinator designated in
the National Contingency Plan;
(22) ‘‘National Contingency Plan’’ means the
National Contingency Plan prepared and published under subsection (d);
(23) ‘‘National Response Unit’’ means the
National Response Unit established under subsection (j);
(24) ‘‘worst case discharge’’ means—
(A) in the case of a vessel, a discharge in
adverse weather conditions of its entire
cargo; and
(B) in the case of an offshore facility or onshore facility, the largest foreseeable discharge in adverse weather conditions;
(25) ‘‘removal costs’’ means—
2 See

References in Text note below.

Page 479

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

(A) the costs of removal of oil or a hazardous substance that are incurred after it is
discharged; and
(B) in any case in which there is a substantial threat of a discharge of oil or a hazardous substance, the costs to prevent, minimize, or mitigate that threat;
(26) ‘‘nontank vessel’’ means a self-propelled
vessel that—
(A) is at least 400 gross tons as measured
under section 14302 of title 46 or, for vessels
not measured under that section, as measured under section 14502 of that title;
(B) is not a tank vessel;
(C) carries oil of any kind as fuel for main
propulsion; and
(D) operates on the navigable waters of the
United States, as defined in section 2101(23)
of that title;
(27) the term ‘‘best available science’’ means
science that—
(A) maximizes the quality, objectivity, and
integrity of information, including statistical information;
(B) uses peer-reviewed and publicly available data; and
(C) clearly documents and communicates
risks and uncertainties in the scientific
basis for such projects;
(28) the term ‘‘Chairperson’’ means the
Chairperson of the Council;
(29) the term ‘‘coastal political subdivision’’
means any local political jurisdiction that is
immediately below the State level of government, including a county, parish, or borough,
with a coastline that is contiguous with any
portion of the United States Gulf of Mexico;
(30) the term ‘‘Comprehensive Plan’’ means
the comprehensive plan developed by the
Council pursuant to subsection (t);
(31) the term ‘‘Council’’ means the Gulf
Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council established pursuant to subsection (t);
(32) the term ‘‘Deepwater Horizon oil spill’’
means the blowout and explosion of the mobile
offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon that
occurred on April 20, 2010, and resulting hydrocarbon releases into the environment;
(33) the term ‘‘Gulf Coast region’’ means—
(A) in the Gulf Coast States, the coastal
zones (as that term is defined in section 1453
of title 16),1 except that, in this section, the
term ‘‘coastal zones’’ includes land within
the coastal zones that is held in trust by, or
the use of which is by law subject solely to
the discretion of, the Federal Government or
officers or agents of the Federal Government)) 1 that border the Gulf of Mexico;
(B) any adjacent land, water, and watersheds, that are within 25 miles of the coastal
zones described in subparagraph (A) of the
Gulf Coast States; and
(C) all Federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico;
(34) the term ‘‘Gulf Coast State’’ means any
of the States of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana,
Mississippi, and Texas; and
(35) the term ‘‘Trust Fund’’ means the Gulf
Coast Restoration Trust Fund established pur-

§ 1321

suant to section 1602 of the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities,
and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast
States Act of 2012.
(b) Congressional declaration of policy against
discharges of oil or hazardous substances;
designation of hazardous substances; study
of higher standard of care incentives and report to Congress; liability; penalties; civil actions: penalty limitations, separate offenses,
jurisdiction, mitigation of damages and costs,
recovery of removal costs, alternative remedies, and withholding clearance of vessels
(1) The Congress hereby declares that it is the
policy of the United States that there should be
no discharges of oil or hazardous substances into
or upon the navigable waters of the United
States, adjoining shorelines, or into or upon the
waters of the contiguous zone, or in connection
with activities under the Outer Continental
Shelf Lands Act [43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.] or the
Deepwater Port Act of 1974 [33 U.S.C. 1501 et
seq.], or which may affect natural resources belonging to, appertaining to, or under the exclusive management authority of the United States
(including resources under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act
[16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.]).
(2)(A) The Administrator shall develop, promulgate, and revise as may be appropriate, regulations designating as hazardous substances,
other than oil as defined in this section, such
elements and compounds which, when discharged in any quantity into or upon the navigable waters of the United States or adjoining
shorelines or the waters of the contiguous zone
or in connection with activities under the Outer
Continental Shelf Lands Act [43 U.S.C. 1331 et
seq.] or the Deepwater Port Act of 1974 [33 U.S.C.
1501 et seq.], or which may affect natural resources belonging to, appertaining to, or under
the exclusive management authority of the
United States (including resources under the
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act [16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.]), present
an imminent and substantial danger to the public health or welfare, including, but not limited
to, fish, shellfish, wildlife, shorelines, and beaches.
(B) The Administrator shall within 18 months
after the date of enactment of this paragraph,
conduct a study and report to the Congress on
methods, mechanisms, and procedures to create
incentives to achieve a higher standard of care
in all aspects of the management and movement
of hazardous substances on the part of owners,
operators, or persons in charge of onshore facilities, offshore facilities, or vessels. The Administrator shall include in such study (1) limits of liability, (2) liability for third party damages, (3)
penalties and fees, (4) spill prevention plans, (5)
current practices in the insurance and banking
industries, and (6) whether the penalty enacted
in subclause (bb) of clause (iii) of subparagraph
(B) of subsection (b)(2) of section 311 of Public
Law 92–500 should be enacted.
(3) The discharge of oil or hazardous substances (i) into or upon the navigable waters of
the United States, adjoining shorelines, or into
or upon the waters of the contiguous zone, or (ii)

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

in connection with activities under the Outer
Continental Shelf Lands Act [43 U.S.C. 1331 et
seq.] or the Deepwater Port Act of 1974 [33 U.S.C.
1501 et seq.], or which may affect natural resources belonging to, appertaining to, or under
the exclusive management authority of the
United States (including resources under the
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act [16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.]), in such
quantities as may be harmful as determined by
the President under paragraph (4) of this subsection, is prohibited, except (A) in the case of
such discharges into the waters of the contiguous zone or which may affect natural resources
belonging to, appertaining to, or under the exclusive management authority of the United
States (including resources under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act), where permitted under the Protocol
of 1978 Relating to the International Convention
for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973,
and (B) where permitted in quantities and at
times and locations or under such circumstances
or conditions as the President may, by regulation, determine not to be harmful. Any regulations issued under this subsection shall be consistent with maritime safety and with marine
and navigation laws and regulations and applicable water quality standards.
(4) The President shall by regulation determine for the purposes of this section those quantities of oil and any hazardous substances the
discharge of which may be harmful to the public
health or welfare or the environment of the
United States, including but not limited to fish,
shellfish, wildlife, and public and private property, shorelines, and beaches.
(5) Any person in charge of a vessel or of an
onshore facility or an offshore facility shall, as
soon as he has knowledge of any discharge of oil
or a hazardous substance from such vessel or facility in violation of paragraph (3) of this subsection, immediately notify the appropriate
agency of the United States Government of such
discharge. The Federal agency shall immediately notify the appropriate State agency of
any State which is, or may reasonably be expected to be, affected by the discharge of oil or
a hazardous substance. Any such person (A) in
charge of a vessel from which oil or a hazardous
substance is discharged in violation of paragraph (3)(i) of this subsection, or (B) in charge of
a vessel from which oil or a hazardous substance
is discharged in violation of paragraph (3)(ii) of
this subsection and who is otherwise subject to
the jurisdiction of the United States at the time
of the discharge, or (C) in charge of an onshore
facility or an offshore facility, who fails to notify immediately such agency of such discharge
shall, upon conviction, be fined in accordance
with title 18, or imprisoned for not more than 5
years, or both. Notification received pursuant to
this paragraph shall not be used against any
such natural person in any criminal case, except
a prosecution for perjury or for giving a false
statement.
(6) ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTIES.—
(A) VIOLATIONS.—Any owner, operator, or
person in charge of any vessel, onshore facility, or offshore facility—
(i) from which oil or a hazardous substance
is discharged in violation of paragraph (3), or

Page 480

(ii) who fails or refuses to comply with any
regulation issued under subsection (j) to
which that owner, operator, or person in
charge is subject,
may be assessed a class I or class II civil penalty by the Secretary of the department in
which the Coast Guard is operating, the Secretary of Transportation, or the Administrator.
(B) CLASSES OF PENALTIES.—
(i) CLASS I.—The amount of a class I civil
penalty under subparagraph (A) may not exceed $10,000 per violation, except that the
maximum amount of any class I civil penalty under this subparagraph shall not exceed $25,000. Before assessing a civil penalty
under this clause, the Administrator or Secretary, as the case may be, shall give to the
person to be assessed such penalty written
notice of the Administrator’s or Secretary’s
proposal to assess the penalty and the opportunity to request, within 30 days of the date
the notice is received by such person, a hearing on the proposed penalty. Such hearing
shall not be subject to section 554 or 556 of
title 5, but shall provide a reasonable opportunity to be heard and to present evidence.
(ii) CLASS II.—The amount of a class II
civil penalty under subparagraph (A) may
not exceed $10,000 per day for each day during which the violation continues; except
that the maximum amount of any class II
civil penalty under this subparagraph shall
not exceed $125,000. Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, a class II civil penalty shall be assessed and collected in the
same manner, and subject to the same provisions, as in the case of civil penalties assessed and collected after notice and opportunity for a hearing on the record in accordance with section 554 of title 5. The Administrator and Secretary may issue rules for discovery procedures for hearings under this
paragraph.
(C) RIGHTS OF INTERESTED PERSONS.—
(i) PUBLIC NOTICE.—Before issuing an order
assessing a class II civil penalty under this
paragraph the Administrator or Secretary,
as the case may be, shall provide public notice of and reasonable opportunity to comment on the proposed issuance of such order.
(ii) PRESENTATION OF EVIDENCE.—Any person who comments on a proposed assessment
of a class II civil penalty under this paragraph shall be given notice of any hearing
held under this paragraph and of the order
assessing such penalty. In any hearing held
under this paragraph, such person shall have
a reasonable opportunity to be heard and to
present evidence.
(iii) RIGHTS OF INTERESTED PERSONS TO A
HEARING.—If no hearing is held under subparagraph (B) before issuance of an order assessing a class II civil penalty under this
paragraph, any person who commented on
the proposed assessment may petition, within 30 days after the issuance of such order,
the Administrator or Secretary, as the case
may be, to set aside such order and to provide a hearing on the penalty. If the evi-

Page 481

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

dence presented by the petitioner in support
of the petition is material and was not considered in the issuance of the order, the Administrator or Secretary shall immediately
set aside such order and provide a hearing in
accordance with subparagraph (B)(ii). If the
Administrator or Secretary denies a hearing
under this clause, the Administrator or Secretary shall provide to the petitioner, and
publish in the Federal Register, notice of
and the reasons for such denial.
(D) FINALITY OF ORDER.—An order assessing
a class II civil penalty under this paragraph
shall become final 30 days after its issuance
unless a petition for judicial review is filed
under subparagraph (G) or a hearing is requested under subparagraph (C)(iii). If such a
hearing is denied, such order shall become
final 30 days after such denial.
(E) EFFECT OF ORDER.—Action taken by the
Administrator or Secretary, as the case may
be, under this paragraph shall not affect or
limit the Administrator’s or Secretary’s authority to enforce any provision of this chapter; except that any violation—
(i) with respect to which the Administrator or Secretary has commenced and is
diligently prosecuting an action to assess a
class II civil penalty under this paragraph,
or
(ii) for which the Administrator or Secretary has issued a final order assessing a
class II civil penalty not subject to further
judicial review and the violator has paid a
penalty assessed under this paragraph,
shall not be the subject of a civil penalty action under section 1319(d), 1319(g), or 1365 of
this title or under paragraph (7).
(F) EFFECT OF ACTION ON COMPLIANCE.—No
action by the Administrator or Secretary
under this paragraph shall affect any person’s
obligation to comply with any section of this
chapter.
(G) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—Any person against
whom a civil penalty is assessed under this
paragraph or who commented on the proposed
assessment of such penalty in accordance with
subparagraph (C) may obtain review of such
assessment—
(i) in the case of assessment of a class I
civil penalty, in the United States District
Court for the District of Columbia or in the
district in which the violation is alleged to
have occurred, or
(ii) in the case of assessment of a class II
civil penalty, in United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit or
for any other circuit in which such person
resides or transacts business,
by filing a notice of appeal in such court within the 30-day period beginning on the date the
civil penalty order is issued and by simultaneously sending a copy of such notice by certified mail to the Administrator or Secretary,
as the case may be, and the Attorney General.
The Administrator or Secretary shall promptly file in such court a certified copy of the
record on which the order was issued. Such
court shall not set aside or remand such order
unless there is not substantial evidence in the

§ 1321

record, taken as a whole, to support the finding of a violation or unless the Administrator’s or Secretary’s assessment of the penalty
constitutes an abuse of discretion and shall
not impose additional civil penalties for the
same violation unless the Administrator’s or
Secretary’s assessment of the penalty constitutes an abuse of discretion.
(H) COLLECTION.—If any person fails to pay
an assessment of a civil penalty—
(i) after the assessment has become final,
or
(ii) after a court in an action brought
under subparagraph (G) has entered a final
judgment in favor of the Administrator or
Secretary, as the case may be,
the Administrator or Secretary shall request
the Attorney General to bring a civil action in
an appropriate district court to recover the
amount assessed (plus interest at currently
prevailing rates from the date of the final
order or the date of the final judgment, as the
case may be). In such an action, the validity,
amount, and appropriateness of such penalty
shall not be subject to review. Any person who
fails to pay on a timely basis the amount of an
assessment of a civil penalty as described in
the first sentence of this subparagraph shall be
required to pay, in addition to such amount
and interest, attorneys fees and costs for collection proceedings and a quarterly nonpayment penalty for each quarter during
which such failure to pay persists. Such nonpayment penalty shall be in an amount equal
to 20 percent of the aggregate amount of such
person’s penalties and nonpayment penalties
which are unpaid as of the beginning of such
quarter.
(I) SUBPOENAS.—The Administrator or Secretary, as the case may be, may issue subpoenas for the attendance and testimony of
witnesses and the production of relevant papers, books, or documents in connection with
hearings under this paragraph. In case of contumacy or refusal to obey a subpoena issued
pursuant to this subparagraph and served upon
any person, the district court of the United
States for any district in which such person is
found, resides, or transacts business, upon application by the United States and after notice
to such person, shall have jurisdiction to issue
an order requiring such person to appear and
give testimony before the administrative law
judge or to appear and produce documents before the administrative law judge, or both, and
any failure to obey such order of the court
may be punished by such court as a contempt
thereof.
(7) CIVIL PENALTY ACTION.—
(A) DISCHARGE, GENERALLY.—Any person who
is the owner, operator, or person in charge of
any vessel, onshore facility, or offshore facility from which oil or a hazardous substance is
discharged in violation of paragraph (3), shall
be subject to a civil penalty in an amount up
to $25,000 per day of violation or an amount up
to $1,000 per barrel of oil or unit of reportable
quantity of hazardous substances discharged.
(B) FAILURE TO REMOVE OR COMPLY.—Any
person described in subparagraph (A) who,
without sufficient cause—

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

(i) fails to properly carry out removal of
the discharge under an order of the President pursuant to subsection (c); or
(ii) fails to comply with an order pursuant
to subsection (e)(1)(B);
shall be subject to a civil penalty in an
amount up to $25,000 per day of violation or an
amount up to 3 times the costs incurred by the
Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund as a result of
such failure.
(C) FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH REGULATION.—
Any person who fails or refuses to comply with
any regulation issued under subsection (j)
shall be subject to a civil penalty in an
amount up to $25,000 per day of violation.
(D) GROSS NEGLIGENCE.—In any case in which
a violation of paragraph (3) was the result of
gross negligence or willful misconduct of a
person described in subparagraph (A), the person shall be subject to a civil penalty of not
less than $100,000, and not more than $3,000 per
barrel of oil or unit of reportable quantity of
hazardous substance discharged.
(E) JURISDICTION.—An action to impose a
civil penalty under this paragraph may be
brought in the district court of the United
States for the district in which the defendant
is located, resides, or is doing business, and
such court shall have jurisdiction to assess
such penalty.
(F) LIMITATION.—A person is not liable for a
civil penalty under this paragraph for a discharge if the person has been assessed a civil
penalty under paragraph (6) for the discharge.
(8) DETERMINATION OF AMOUNT.—In determining the amount of a civil penalty under
paragraphs (6) and (7), the Administrator, Secretary, or the court, as the case may be, shall
consider the seriousness of the violation or violations, the economic benefit to the violator, if
any, resulting from the violation, the degree of
culpability involved, any other penalty for the
same incident, any history of prior violations,
the nature, extent, and degree of success of any
efforts of the violator to minimize or mitigate
the effects of the discharge, the economic impact of the penalty on the violator, and any
other matters as justice may require.
(9) MITIGATION OF DAMAGE.—In addition to establishing a penalty for the discharge of oil or a
hazardous substance, the Administrator or the
Secretary of the department in which the Coast
Guard is operating may act to mitigate the
damage to the public health or welfare caused
by such discharge. The cost of such mitigation
shall be deemed a cost incurred under subsection
(c) of this section for the removal of such substance by the United States Government.
(10) RECOVERY OF REMOVAL COSTS.—Any costs
of removal incurred in connection with a discharge excluded by subsection (a)(2)(C) of this
section shall be recoverable from the owner or
operator of the source of the discharge in an action brought under section 1319(b) of this title.
(11) LIMITATION.—Civil penalties shall not be
assessed under both this section and section 1319
of this title for the same discharge.
(12) WITHHOLDING CLEARANCE.—If any owner,
operator, or person in charge of a vessel is liable
for a civil penalty under this subsection, or if

Page 482

reasonable cause exists to believe that the
owner, operator, or person in charge may be subject to a civil penalty under this subsection, the
Secretary of the Treasury, upon the request of
the Secretary of the department in which the
Coast Guard is operating or the Administrator,
shall with respect to such vessel refuse or revoke—
(A) the clearance required by section 60105 of
title 46;
(B) a permit to proceed under section 4367 of
the Revised Statutes of the United States (46
U.S.C. App. 313); 2 and
(C) a permit to depart required under section
1443 2 of title 19;
as applicable. Clearance or a permit refused or
revoked under this paragraph may be granted
upon the filing of a bond or other surety satisfactory to the Secretary of the department in
which the Coast Guard is operating or the Administrator.
(c) Federal removal authority
(1) General removal requirement
(A) The President shall, in accordance with
the National Contingency Plan and any appropriate Area Contingency Plan, ensure effective
and immediate removal of a discharge, and
mitigation or prevention of a substantial
threat of a discharge, of oil or a hazardous
substance—
(i) into or on the navigable waters;
(ii) on the adjoining shorelines to the navigable waters;
(iii) into or on the waters of the exclusive
economic zone; or
(iv) that may affect natural resources belonging to, appertaining to, or under the exclusive management authority of the United
States.
(B) In carrying out this paragraph, the
President may—
(i) remove or arrange for the removal of a
discharge, and mitigate or prevent a substantial threat of a discharge, at any time;
(ii) direct or monitor all Federal, State,
and private actions to remove a discharge;
and
(iii) remove and, if necessary, destroy a
vessel discharging, or threatening to discharge, by whatever means are available.
(2) Discharge posing substantial threat to public health or welfare
(A) If a discharge, or a substantial threat of
a discharge, of oil or a hazardous substance
from a vessel, offshore facility, or onshore facility is of such a size or character as to be a
substantial threat to the public health or welfare of the United States (including but not
limited to fish, shellfish, wildlife, other natural resources, and the public and private
beaches and shorelines of the United States),
the President shall direct all Federal, State,
and private actions to remove the discharge or
to mitigate or prevent the threat of the discharge.
(B) In carrying out this paragraph, the
President may, without regard to any other
provision of law governing contracting proce-

Page 483

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

dures or employment of personnel by the Federal Government—
(i) remove or arrange for the removal of
the discharge, or mitigate or prevent the
substantial threat of the discharge; and
(ii) remove and, if necessary, destroy a
vessel discharging, or threatening to discharge, by whatever means are available.
(3) Actions in accordance with National Contingency Plan
(A) Each Federal agency, State, owner or operator, or other person participating in efforts
under this subsection shall act in accordance
with the National Contingency Plan or as directed by the President.
(B) An owner or operator participating in efforts under this subsection shall act in accordance with the National Contingency Plan and
the applicable response plan required under
subsection (j), or as directed by the President,
except that the owner or operator may deviate
from the applicable response plan if the President or the Federal On-Scene Coordinator determines that deviation from the response
plan would provide for a more expeditious or
effective response to the spill or mitigation of
its environmental effects.
(C) In any case in which the President or the
Federal On-Scene Coordinator authorizes a deviation from the salvor as part of a deviation
under subparagraph (B) from the applicable response plan required under subsection (j), the
Commandant of the Coast Guard shall submit
to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives
and the Committee on Commerce, Science,
and Transportation of the Senate a report describing the deviation and the reasons for such
deviation not less than 3 days after such deviation is authorized.
(4) Exemption from liability
(A) A person is not liable for removal costs
or damages which result from actions taken or
omitted to be taken in the course of rendering
care, assistance, or advice consistent with the
National Contingency Plan or as otherwise directed by the President relating to a discharge
or a substantial threat of a discharge of oil or
a hazardous substance.
(B) Subparagraph (A) does not apply—
(i) to a responsible party;
(ii) to a response under the Comprehensive
Environmental Response, Compensation,
and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et
seq.);
(iii) with respect to personal injury or
wrongful death; or
(iv) if the person is grossly negligent or engages in willful misconduct.
(C) A responsible party is liable for any removal costs and damages that another person
is relieved of under subparagraph (A).
(5) Obligation and liability of owner or operator not affected
Nothing in this subsection affects—
(A) the obligation of an owner or operator
to respond immediately to a discharge, or
the threat of a discharge, of oil; or
(B) the liability of a responsible party
under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 [33 U.S.C.
2701 et seq.].

§ 1321

(6) ‘‘Responsible party’’ defined
For purposes of this subsection, the term
‘‘responsible party’’ has the meaning given
that term under section 1001 of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 [33 U.S.C. 2701].
(d) National Contingency Plan
(1) Preparation by President
The President shall prepare and publish a
National Contingency Plan for removal of oil
and hazardous substances pursuant to this section.
(2) Contents
The National Contingency Plan shall provide for efficient, coordinated, and effective
action to minimize damage from oil and hazardous substance discharges, including containment, dispersal, and removal of oil and
hazardous substances, and shall include, but
not be limited to, the following:
(A) Assignment of duties and responsibilities among Federal departments and agencies in coordination with State and local
agencies and port authorities including, but
not limited to, water pollution control and
conservation and trusteeship of natural resources (including conservation of fish and
wildlife).
(B) Identification, procurement, maintenance, and storage of equipment and supplies.
(C) Establishment or designation of Coast
Guard strike teams, consisting of—
(i) personnel who shall be trained, prepared, and available to provide necessary
services to carry out the National Contingency Plan;
(ii) adequate oil and hazardous substance
pollution control equipment and material;
and
(iii) a detailed oil and hazardous substance pollution and prevention plan, including measures to protect fisheries and
wildlife.
(D) A system of surveillance and notice designed to safeguard against as well as ensure
earliest possible notice of discharges of oil
and hazardous substances and imminent
threats of such discharges to the appropriate
State and Federal agencies.
(E) Establishment of a national center to
provide coordination and direction for operations in carrying out the Plan.
(F) Procedures and techniques to be employed in identifying, containing, dispersing,
and removing oil and hazardous substances.
(G) A schedule, prepared in cooperation
with the States, identifying—
(i) dispersants, other chemicals, and
other spill mitigating devices and substances, if any, that may be used in carrying out the Plan,
(ii) the waters in which such dispersants,
other chemicals, and other spill mitigating
devices and substances may be used, and
(iii) the quantities of such dispersant,
other chemicals, or other spill mitigating
device or substance which can be used
safely in such waters,
which schedule shall provide in the case of
any dispersant, chemical, spill mitigating

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

device or substance, or waters not specifically identified in such schedule that the
President, or his delegate, may, on a caseby-case basis, identify the dispersants, other
chemicals, and other spill mitigating devices
and substances which may be used, the waters in which they may be used, and the
quantities which can be used safely in such
waters.
(H) A system whereby the State or States
affected by a discharge of oil or hazardous
substance may act where necessary to remove such discharge and such State or
States may be reimbursed in accordance
with the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 [33 U.S.C.
2701 et seq.], in the case of any discharge of
oil from a vessel or facility, for the reasonable costs incurred for that removal, from
the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund.
(I) Establishment of criteria and procedures to ensure immediate and effective Federal identification of, and response to, a discharge, or the threat of a discharge, that results in a substantial threat to the public
health or welfare of the United States, as required under subsection (c)(2).
(J) Establishment of procedures and standards for removing a worst case discharge of
oil, and for mitigating or preventing a substantial threat of such a discharge.
(K) Designation of the Federal official who
shall be the Federal On-Scene Coordinator
for each area for which an Area Contingency
Plan is required to be prepared under subsection (j).
(L) Establishment of procedures for the coordination of activities of—
(i) Coast Guard strike teams established
under subparagraph (C);
(ii) Federal On-Scene Coordinators designated under subparagraph (K);
(iii) District Response Groups established under subsection (j); and
(iv) Area Committees established under
subsection (j).
(M) A fish and wildlife response plan, developed in consultation with the United
States Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and other interested parties (including
State fish and wildlife conservation officials), for the immediate and effective protection, rescue, and rehabilitation of, and
the minimization of risk of damage to, fish
and wildlife resources and their habitat that
are harmed or that may be jeopardized by a
discharge.
(3) Revisions and amendments
The President may, from time to time, as
the President deems advisable, revise or otherwise amend the National Contingency Plan.
(4) Actions in accordance with National Contingency Plan
After publication of the National Contingency Plan, the removal of oil and hazardous
substances and actions to minimize damage
from oil and hazardous substance discharges
shall, to the greatest extent possible, be in accordance with the National Contingency Plan.

Page 484

(e) Civil enforcement
(1) Orders protecting public health
In addition to any action taken by a State
or local government, when the President determines that there may be an imminent and
substantial threat to the public health or welfare of the United States, including fish, shellfish, and wildlife, public and private property,
shorelines, beaches, habitat, and other living
and nonliving natural resources under the jurisdiction or control of the United States, because of an actual or threatened discharge of
oil or a hazardous substance from a vessel or
facility in violation of subsection (b), the
President may—
(A) require the Attorney General to secure
any relief from any person, including the
owner or operator of the vessel or facility, as
may
be
necessary
to
abate
such
endangerment; or
(B) after notice to the affected State, take
any other action under this section, including issuing administrative orders, that may
be necessary to protect the public health
and welfare.
(2) Jurisdiction of district courts
The district courts of the United States
shall have jurisdiction to grant any relief
under this subsection that the public interest
and the equities of the case may require.
(f) Liability for actual costs of removal
(1) Except where an owner or operator can
prove that a discharge was caused solely by (A)
an act of God, (B) an act of war, (C) negligence
on the part of the United States Government, or
(D) an act or omission of a third party without
regard to whether any such act or omission was
or was not negligent, or any combination of the
foregoing clauses, such owner or operator of any
vessel from which oil or a hazardous substance
is discharged in violation of subsection (b)(3) of
this section shall, notwithstanding any other
provision of law, be liable to the United States
Government for the actual costs incurred under
subsection (c) for the removal of such oil or substance by the United States Government in an
amount not to exceed, in the case of an inland
oil barge $125 per gross ton of such barge, or
$125,000, whichever is greater, and in the case of
any other vessel, $150 per gross ton of such vessel (or, for a vessel carrying oil or hazardous
substances as cargo, $250,000), whichever is
greater, except that where the United States can
show that such discharge was the result of willful negligence or willful misconduct within the
privity and knowledge of the owner, such owner
or operator shall be liable to the United States
Government for the full amount of such costs.
Such costs shall constitute a maritime lien on
such vessel which may be recovered in an action
in rem in the district court of the United States
for any district within which any vessel may be
found. The United States may also bring an action against the owner or operator of such vessel
in any court of competent jurisdiction to recover such costs.
(2) Except where an owner or operator of an
onshore facility can prove that a discharge was
caused solely by (A) an act of God, (B) an act of

Page 485

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

war, (C) negligence on the part of the United
States Government, or (D) an act or omission of
a third party without regard to whether any
such act or omission was or was not negligent,
or any combination of the foregoing clauses,
such owner or operator of any such facility from
which oil or a hazardous substance is discharged
in violation of subsection (b)(3) of this section
shall be liable to the United States Government
for the actual costs incurred under subsection
(c) for the removal of such oil or substance by
the United States Government in an amount not
to exceed $50,000,000, except that where the
United States can show that such discharge was
the result of willful negligence or willful misconduct within the privity and knowledge of the
owner, such owner or operator shall be liable to
the United States Government for the full
amount of such costs. The United States may
bring an action against the owner or operator of
such facility in any court of competent jurisdiction to recover such costs. The Administrator is
authorized, by regulation, after consultation
with the Secretary of Commerce and the Small
Business Administration, to establish reasonable and equitable classifications of those onshore facilities having a total fixed storage capacity of 1,000 barrels or less which he determines because of size, type, and location do not
present a substantial risk of the discharge of oil
or a hazardous substance in violation of subsection (b)(3) of this section, and apply with respect to such classifications differing limits of
liability which may be less than the amount
contained in this paragraph.
(3) Except where an owner or operator of an
offshore facility can prove that a discharge was
caused solely by (A) an act of God, (B) an act of
war, (C) negligence on the part of the United
States Government, or (D) an act or omission of
a third party without regard to whether any
such act or omission was or was not negligent,
or any combination of the foregoing clauses,
such owner or operator of any such facility from
which oil or a hazardous substance is discharged
in violation of subsection (b)(3) of this section
shall, notwithstanding any other provision of
law, be liable to the United States Government
for the actual costs incurred under subsection
(c) for the removal of such oil or substance by
the United States Government in an amount not
to exceed $50,000,000, except that where the
United States can show that such discharge was
the result of willful negligence or willful misconduct within the privity and knowledge of the
owner, such owner or operator shall be liable to
the United States Government for the full
amount of such costs. The United States may
bring an action against the owner or operator of
such a facility in any court of competent jurisdiction to recover such costs.
(4) The costs of removal of oil or a hazardous
substance for which the owner or operator of a
vessel or onshore or offshore facility is liable
under subsection (f) of this section shall include
any costs or expenses incurred by the Federal
Government or any State government in the restoration or replacement of natural resources
damaged or destroyed as a result of a discharge
of oil or a hazardous substance in violation of
subsection (b) of this section.

§ 1321

(5) The President, or the authorized representative of any State, shall act on behalf of the
public as trustee of the natural resources to recover for the costs of replacing or restoring such
resources. Sums recovered shall be used to restore, rehabilitate, or acquire the equivalent of
such natural resources by the appropriate agencies of the Federal Government, or the State
government.
(g) Third party liability
Where the owner or operator of a vessel (other
than an inland oil barge) carrying oil or hazardous substances as cargo or an onshore or offshore facility which handles or stores oil or hazardous substances in bulk, from which oil or a
hazardous substance is discharged in violation
of subsection (b) of this section, alleges that
such discharge was caused solely by an act or
omission of a third party, such owner or operator shall pay to the United States Government
the actual costs incurred under subsection (c)
for removal of such oil or substance and shall be
entitled by subrogation to all rights of the
United States Government to recover such costs
from such third party under this subsection. In
any case where an owner or operator of a vessel,
of an onshore facility, or of an offshore facility,
from which oil or a hazardous substance is discharged in violation of subsection (b)(3) of this
section, proves that such discharge of oil or hazardous substance was caused solely by an act or
omission of a third party, or was caused solely
by such an act or omission in combination with
an act of God, an act of war, or negligence on
the part of the United States Government, such
third party shall, notwithstanding any other
provision of law, be liable to the United States
Government for the actual costs incurred under
subsection (c) for removal of such oil or substance by the United States Government, except
where such third party can prove that such discharge was caused solely by (A) an act of God,
(B) an act of war, (C) negligence on the part of
the United States Government, or (D) an act or
omission of another party without regard to
whether such act or omission was or was not
negligent, or any combination of the foregoing
clauses. If such third party was the owner or operator of a vessel which caused the discharge of
oil or a hazardous substance in violation of subsection (b)(3) of this section, the liability of such
third party under this subsection shall not exceed, in the case of an inland oil barge $125 per
gross ton of such barge, or $125,000, whichever is
greater, and in the case of any other vessel, $150
per gross ton of such vessel (or, for a vessel carrying oil or hazardous substances as cargo,
$250,000), whichever is greater. In any other case
the liability of such third party shall not exceed
the limitation which would have been applicable
to the owner or operator of the vessel or the onshore or offshore facility from which the discharge actually occurred if such owner or operator were liable. If the United States can show
that the discharge of oil or a hazardous substance in violation of subsection (b)(3) of this
section was the result of willful negligence or
willful misconduct within the privity and
knowledge of such third party, such third party
shall be liable to the United States Government

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

for the full amount of such removal costs. The
United States may bring an action against the
third party in any court of competent jurisdiction to recover such removal costs.
(h) Rights against third parties who caused or
contributed to discharge
The liabilities established by this section shall
in no way affect any rights which (1) the owner
or operator of a vessel or of an onshore facility
or an offshore facility may have against any
third party whose acts may in any way have
caused or contributed to such discharge, or (2)
The 3 United States Government may have
against any third party whose actions may in
any way have caused or contributed to the discharge of oil or hazardous substance.
(i) Recovery of removal costs
In any case where an owner or operator of a
vessel or an onshore facility or an offshore facility from which oil or a hazardous substance is
discharged in violation of subsection (b)(3) of
this section acts to remove such oil or substance
in accordance with regulations promulgated
pursuant to this section, such owner or operator
shall be entitled to recover the reasonable costs
incurred in such removal upon establishing, in a
suit which may be brought against the United
States Government in the United States Court
of Federal Claims, that such discharge was
caused solely by (A) an act of God, (B) an act of
war, (C) negligence on the part of the United
States Government, or (D) an act or omission of
a third party without regard to whether such
act or omission was or was not negligent, or of
any combination of the foregoing causes.
(j) National Response System
(1) In general
Consistent with the National Contingency
Plan required by subsection (c)(2) 2 of this section, as soon as practicable after October 18,
1972, and from time to time thereafter, the
President shall issue regulations consistent
with maritime safety and with marine and
navigation laws (A) establishing methods and
procedures for removal of discharged oil and
hazardous substances, (B) establishing criteria
for the development and implementation of
local and regional oil and hazardous substance
removal contingency plans, (C) establishing
procedures, methods, and equipment and other
requirements for equipment to prevent discharges of oil and hazardous substances from
vessels and from onshore facilities and offshore facilities, and to contain such discharges, and (D) governing the inspection of
vessels carrying cargoes of oil and hazardous
substances and the inspection of such cargoes
in order to reduce the likelihood of discharges
of oil from vessels in violation of this section.
(2) National Response Unit
The Secretary of the department in which
the Coast Guard is operating shall establish a
National Response Unit at Elizabeth City,
North Carolina. The Secretary, acting through
the National Response Unit—
(A) shall compile and maintain a comprehensive computer list of spill removal re3 So

in original. Probably should not be capitalized.

Page 486

sources, personnel, and equipment that is
available worldwide and within the areas
designated by the President pursuant to
paragraph (4), and of information regarding
previous spills, including data from universities, research institutions, State governments, and other nations, as appropriate,
which shall be disseminated as appropriate
to response groups and area committees, and
which shall be available to Federal and
State agencies and the public;
(B) shall provide technical assistance,
equipment, and other resources requested by
a Federal On-Scene Coordinator;
(C) shall coordinate use of private and public personnel and equipment to remove a
worst case discharge, and to mitigate or prevent a substantial threat of such a discharge, from a vessel, offshore facility, or
onshore facility operating in or near an area
designated by the President pursuant to
paragraph (4);
(D) may provide technical assistance in
the preparation of Area Contingency Plans
required under paragraph (4);
(E) shall administer Coast Guard strike
teams established under the National Contingency Plan;
(F) shall maintain on file all Area Contingency Plans approved by the President under
this subsection; and
(G) shall review each of those plans that
affects its responsibilities under this subsection.
(3) Coast Guard District Response Groups
(A) The Secretary of the department in
which the Coast Guard is operating shall establish in each Coast Guard district a Coast
Guard District Response Group.
(B) Each Coast Guard District Response
Group shall consist of—
(i) the Coast Guard personnel and equipment, including firefighting equipment, of
each port within the district;
(ii) additional prepositioned equipment;
and
(iii) a district response advisory staff.
(C) Coast Guard district response groups—
(i) shall provide technical assistance,
equipment, and other resources when required by a Federal On-Scene Coordinator;
(ii) shall maintain all Coast Guard response equipment within its district;
(iii) may provide technical assistance in
the preparation of Area Contingency Plans
required under paragraph (4); and
(iv) shall review each of those plans that
affect its area of geographic responsibility.
(4) Area Committees and Area Contingency
Plans
(A) There is established for each area designated by the President an Area Committee
comprised of members appointed by the President from qualified—
(i) personnel of Federal, State, and local
agencies; and
(ii) members of federally recognized Indian
tribes, where applicable.
(B) Each Area Committee, under the direction of the Federal On-Scene Coordinator for
its area, shall—

Page 487

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

(i) prepare for its area the Area Contingency Plan required under subparagraph (C);
(ii) work with State, local, and tribal officials to enhance the contingency planning of
those officials and to assure preplanning of
joint response efforts, including appropriate
procedures for mechanical recovery, dispersal, shoreline cleanup, protection of sensitive environmental areas, and protection,
rescue, and rehabilitation of fisheries and
wildlife, including advance planning with respect to the closing and reopening of fishing
areas following a discharge; and
(iii) work with State, local, and tribal officials to expedite decisions for the use of
dispersants and other mitigating substances
and devices.
(C) Each Area Committee shall prepare and
submit to the President for approval an Area
Contingency Plan for its area. The Area Contingency Plan shall—
(i) when implemented in conjunction with
the National Contingency Plan, be adequate
to remove a worst case discharge, and to
mitigate or prevent a substantial threat of
such a discharge, from a vessel, offshore facility, or onshore facility operating in or
near the area;
(ii) describe the area covered by the plan,
including the areas of special economic or
environmental importance that might be
damaged by a discharge;
(iii) describe in detail the responsibilities
of an owner or operator and of Federal,
State, and local agencies in removing a discharge, and in mitigating or preventing a
substantial threat of a discharge;
(iv) list the equipment (including firefighting equipment), dispersants or other
mitigating substances and devices, and personnel available to an owner or operator,
Federal, State, and local agencies, and tribal
governments, to ensure an effective and immediate removal of a discharge, and to ensure mitigation or prevention of a substantial threat of a discharge;
(v) compile a list of local scientists, both
inside and outside Federal Government service, with expertise in the environmental effects of spills of the types of oil typically
transported in the area, who may be contacted to provide information or, where appropriate, participate in meetings of the scientific support team convened in response to
a spill, and describe the procedures to be followed for obtaining an expedited decision regarding the use of dispersants;
(vi) describe in detail how the plan is integrated into other Area Contingency Plans
and vessel, offshore facility, and onshore facility response plans approved under this
subsection, and into operating procedures of
the National Response Unit;
(vii) include a framework for advance planning and decisionmaking with respect to the
closing and reopening of fishing areas following a discharge, including protocols and
standards for the closing and reopening of
fishing areas;
(viii) include any other information the
President requires; and

§ 1321

(ix) be updated periodically by the Area
Committee.
(D) The President shall—
(i) review and approve Area Contingency
Plans under this paragraph; and
(ii) periodically review Area Contingency
Plans so approved.
(5) Tank vessel, nontank vessel, and facility response plans
(A)(i) The President shall issue regulations
which require an owner or operator of a tank
vessel or facility described in subparagraph (C)
to prepare and submit to the President a plan
for responding, to the maximum extent practicable, to a worst case discharge, and to a
substantial threat of such a discharge, of oil or
a hazardous substance.
(ii) The President shall also issue regulations which require an owner or operator of a
nontank vessel to prepare and submit to the
President a plan for responding, to the maximum extent practicable, to a worst case discharge, and to a substantial threat of such a
discharge, of oil.
(B) The Secretary of the Department in
which the Coast Guard is operating may issue
regulations which require an owner or operator of a tank vessel, a nontank vessel, or a facility described in subparagraph (C) that
transfers noxious liquid substances in bulk to
or from a vessel to prepare and submit to the
Secretary a plan for responding, to the maximum extent practicable, to a worst case discharge, and to a substantial threat of such a
discharge, of a noxious liquid substance that is
not designated as a hazardous substance or
regulated as oil in any other law or regulation.
For purposes of this paragraph, the term ‘‘noxious liquid substance’’ has the same meaning
when that term is used in the MARPOL Protocol described in section 1901(a)(3) 2 of this
title.
(C) The tank vessels, nontank vessels, and
facilities referred to in subparagraphs (A) and
(B) are the following:
(i) A tank vessel, as defined under section
2101 of title 46.
(ii) A nontank vessel.
(iii) An offshore facility.
(iv) An onshore facility that, because of its
location, could reasonably be expected to
cause substantial harm to the environment
by discharging into or on the navigable waters, adjoining shorelines, or the exclusive
economic zone.
(D) A response plan required under this paragraph shall—
(i) be consistent with the requirements of
the National Contingency Plan and Area
Contingency Plans;
(ii) identify the qualified individual having
full authority to implement removal actions, and require immediate communications between that individual and the appropriate Federal official and the persons providing personnel and equipment pursuant to
clause (iii);
(iii) identify, and ensure by contract or
other means approved by the President the

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

availability of, private personnel and equipment necessary to remove to the maximum
extent practicable a worst case discharge
(including a discharge resulting from fire or
explosion), and to mitigate or prevent a substantial threat of such a discharge;
(iv) describe the training, equipment testing, periodic unannounced drills, and response actions of persons on the vessel or at
the facility, to be carried out under the plan
to ensure the safety of the vessel or facility
and to mitigate or prevent the discharge, or
the substantial threat of a discharge;
(v) be updated periodically; and
(vi) be resubmitted for approval of each
significant change.
(E) With respect to any response plan submitted under this paragraph for an onshore facility that, because of its location, could reasonably be expected to cause significant and
substantial harm to the environment by discharging into or on the navigable waters or
adjoining shorelines or the exclusive economic
zone, and with respect to each response plan
submitted under this paragraph for a tank vessel, nontank vessel, or offshore facility, the
President shall—
(i) promptly review such response plan;
(ii) require amendments to any plan that
does not meet the requirements of this paragraph;
(iii) approve any plan that meets the requirements of this paragraph;
(iv) review each plan periodically thereafter; and
(v) in the case of a plan for a nontank vessel, consider any applicable State-mandated
response plan in effect on August 9, 2004, and
ensure consistency to the extent practicable.
(F) A tank vessel, nontank vessel, offshore
facility, or onshore facility required to prepare a response plan under this subsection
may not handle, store, or transport oil unless—
(i) in the case of a tank vessel, nontank
vessel, offshore facility, or onshore facility
for which a response plan is reviewed by the
President under subparagraph (E), the plan
has been approved by the President; and
(ii) the vessel or facility is operating in
compliance with the plan.
(G) Notwithstanding subparagraph (E), the
President may authorize a tank vessel,
nontank vessel, offshore facility, or onshore
facility to operate without a response plan approved under this paragraph, until not later
than 2 years after the date of the submission
to the President of a plan for the tank vessel,
nontank vessel, or facility, if the owner or operator certifies that the owner or operator has
ensured by contract or other means approved
by the President the availability of private
personnel and equipment necessary to respond, to the maximum extent practicable, to
a worst case discharge or a substantial threat
of such a discharge.
(H) The owner or operator of a tank vessel,
nontank vessel, offshore facility, or onshore
facility may not claim as a defense to liability
under title I of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 [33

Page 488

U.S.C. 2701 et seq.] that the owner or operator
was acting in accordance with an approved response plan.
(I) The Secretary shall maintain, in the Vessel Identification System established under
chapter 125 of title 46, the dates of approval
and review of a response plan under this paragraph for each tank vessel and nontank vessel
that is a vessel of the United States.
(6) Equipment requirements and inspection
The President may require—
(A) periodic inspection of containment
booms, skimmers, vessels, and other major
equipment used to remove discharges; and
(B) vessels operating on navigable waters
and carrying oil or a hazardous substance in
bulk as cargo, and nontank vessels carrying
oil of any kind as fuel for main propulsion,
to carry appropriate removal equipment
that employs the best technology economically feasible and that is compatible with
the safe operation of the vessel.
(7) Area drills
The President shall periodically conduct
drills of removal capability, without prior notice, in areas for which Area Contingency
Plans are required under this subsection and
under relevant tank vessel, nontank vessel,
and facility response plans. The drills may include participation by Federal, State, and
local agencies, the owners and operators of
vessels and facilities in the area, and private
industry. The President may publish annual
reports on these drills, including assessments
of the effectiveness of the plans and a list of
amendments made to improve plans.
(8) United States Government not liable
The United States Government is not liable
for any damages arising from its actions or
omissions relating to any response plan required by this section.
(9) Western Alaska oil spill planning criteria
program
(A) Definitions
In this paragraph:
(i) Alternative planning criteria
The term ‘‘alternative planning criteria’’
means criteria submitted under section
155.1065 or 155.5067 of title 33, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on December
23, 2022), for vessel response plans.
(ii) Prince William Sound Captain of the
Port Zone
The term ‘‘Prince William Sound Captain of the Port Zone’’ means the area described in section 3.85–15(b) of title 33,
Code of Federal Regulations (or successor
regulations).
(iii) Secretary
The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of the department in which the
Coast Guard is operating.
(iv) Vessel response plan
The term ‘‘vessel response plan’’ means a
plan required to be submitted by the owner

Page 489

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

or operator of a tank vessel or a nontank
vessel under regulations issued by the
President under paragraph (5).
(v) Western Alaska Captain of the Port
Zone
The term ‘‘Western Alaska Captain of
the Port Zone’’ means the area described
in section 3.85–15(a) of title 33, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on December
23, 2022).
(B) Requirement
Except as provided in subparagraph (I), for
any part of the area of responsibility of the
Western Alaska Captain of the Port Zone or
the Prince William Sound Captain of the
Port Zone for which the Secretary has determined that the national planning criteria established pursuant to this subsection are inappropriate for a vessel operating in such
area, a vessel response plan with respect to
a discharge of oil for such a vessel shall comply with the Western Alaska oil spill planning criteria established under subparagraph
(D)(i).
(C) Relation to national planning criteria
The Western Alaska oil spill planning criteria established under subparagraph (D)(i)
shall, with respect to a discharge of oil from
a vessel described in subparagraph (B), apply
in lieu of any alternative planning criteria
accepted for vessels operating, prior to the
date on which the Western Alaska oil spill
planning criteria are established, in any part
of the area of responsibility of the Western
Alaska Captain of the Port Zone or the
Prince William Sound Captain of the Port
Zone for which the Secretary has determined that the national planning criteria established pursuant to this subsection are inappropriate for a vessel operating in such
area.
(D) Establishment of Western Alaska oil spill
planning criteria
(i) In general
The President, acting through the Commandant, in consultation with the Western
Alaska Oil Spill Criteria Program Manager
selected under section 323 of title 14, shall
establish—
(I) Western Alaska oil spill planning
criteria for a worst case discharge of oil,
and a substantial threat of such a discharge, within any part of the area of responsibility of the Western Alaska Captain of the Port Zone or Prince William
Sound Captain of the Port Zone for
which the Secretary has determined that
the national planning criteria established pursuant to this subsection are inappropriate for a vessel operating in
such area; and
(II) standardized submission, review,
approval, and compliance verification
processes for the Western Alaska oil spill
planning criteria established under this
clause, including the quantity and frequency of drills and on-site verifications
of vessel response plans approved pursuant to such planning criteria.

§ 1321

(ii) Development of subregions
(I) Development
After establishing the Western Alaska
oil spill planning criteria under clause
(i), and if necessary to adequately reflect
the needs and capabilities of various locations within the Western Alaska Captain of the Port Zone, the President, acting through the Commandant, and in
consultation with the Western Alaska
Oil Spill Criteria Program Manager selected under section 323 of title 14, may
develop subregions for which planning
criteria may differ from planning criteria for other subregions in the Western
Alaska Captain of the Port Zone.
(II) Limitation
Any planning criteria for a subregion
developed under this clause may not be
less stringent than the Western Alaska
oil spill planning criteria established
under clause (i).
(iii) Assessment
(I) In general
Prior to developing a subregion, the
President, acting through the Commandant, shall conduct an assessment
on any potential impacts to the entire
Western Alaska Captain of the Port Zone
to include quantity and availability of
response resources in the proposed subregion and in surrounding areas and any
changes or impacts to surrounding areas
resulting in the development of a subregion with different standards.
(II) Consultation
In conducting an assessment under
this clause, the President, acting
through the Commandant, shall consult
with State and local governments,
Tribes (as defined in section 323 of title
14), the owners and operators that would
operate under the proposed subregions,
oil spill removal organizations, Alaska
Native organizations, and environmental
nongovernmental
organizations,
and
shall take into account any experience
with the prior use of subregions within
the State of Alaska.
(III) Submission
The President, acting through the
Commandant, shall submit the results of
an assessment conducted under this
clause to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on
Commerce, Science, and Transportation
of the Senate.
(E) Inclusions
(i) Requirements
The Western Alaska oil spill planning
criteria established under subparagraph
(D)(i) shall include planning criteria for
the following:
(I) Mechanical oil spill response resources that are required to be located

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS
within any part of the area of responsibility of the Western Alaska Captain of
the Port Zone or the Prince William
Sound Captain of the Port Zone for
which the Secretary has determined that
the national planning criteria established pursuant to this subsection are inappropriate for a vessel operating in
such area.
(II) Response times for mobilization of
oil spill response resources and arrival
on the scene of a worst case discharge of
oil, or substantial threat of such a discharge, occurring within such part of
such area.
(III) Pre-identified vessels for oil spill
response that are capable of operating in
the ocean environment.
(IV) Ensuring the availability of at
least 1 oil spill removal organization
that is classified by the Coast Guard and
that—
(aa) is capable of responding in all
operating environments in such part of
such area;
(bb) controls oil spill response resources of dedicated and nondedicated
resources within such part of such
area, through ownership, contracts,
agreements, or other means approved
by the President, sufficient—
(AA) to mobilize and sustain a response to a worst case discharge of
oil; and
(BB) to contain, recover, and temporarily store discharged oil;
(cc) has pre-positioned oil spill response resources in strategic locations
throughout such part of such area in a
manner that ensures the ability to support response personnel, marine operations, air cargo, or other related logistics infrastructure;
(dd) has temporary storage capability using both dedicated and nondedicated assets located within such
part of such area;
(ee) has non-mechanical oil spill response resources capable of responding
to a discharge of persistent oil and a
discharge of nonpersistent oil, whether
the discharged oil was carried by a vessel as fuel or cargo; and
(ff) has wildlife response resources
for primary, secondary, and tertiary
responses to support carcass collection, sampling, deterrence, rescue, and
rehabilitation of birds, sea turtles, marine mammals, fishery resources, and
other wildlife.
(V) With respect to tank barges carrying nonpersistent oil in bulk as cargo,
oil spill response resources that are required to be carried on board.
(VI) Specifying a minimum length of
time that approval of a vessel response
plan under this paragraph is valid.
(VII) Managing wildlife protection and
rehabilitation, including identified wildlife protection and rehabilitation resources in that area.

Page 490

(ii) Additional considerations
The Western Alaska oil spill planning
criteria established under subparagraph
(D)(i) may include planning criteria for the
following:
(I) Vessel routing measures consistent
with international routing measure deviation protocols.
(II) Maintenance of real-time continuous vessel tracking, monitoring, and
engagement protocols with the ability to
detect and address vessel operation
anomalies.
(F) Requirement for approval
The President may approve a vessel response plan for a vessel under this paragraph
only if the owner or operator of the vessel
demonstrates the availability of the oil spill
response resources required to be included in
the vessel response plan under the Western
Alaska oil spill planning criteria established
under subparagraph (D)(i).
(G) Periodic audits
The Secretary shall conduct periodic audits to ensure compliance of vessel response
plans and oil spill removal organizations
within the Western Alaska Captain of the
Port Zone and the Prince William Sound
Captain of the Port Zone with the Western
Alaska oil spill planning criteria established
under subparagraph (D)(i).
(H) Review of determination
Not less frequently than once every 5
years, the Secretary shall review each determination of the Secretary under subparagraph (B) that the national planning criteria
established pursuant to this subsection are
inappropriate for a vessel operating in the
area of responsibility of the Western Alaska
Captain of the Port Zone and the Prince William Sound Captain of the Port Zone.
(I) Vessels in Cook Inlet
Unless otherwise authorized by the Secretary, a vessel may only operate in Cook
Inlet, Alaska, under a vessel response plan
approved under paragraph (5) that meets the
requirements of the national planning criteria established pursuant to this subsection.
(J) Savings provisions
Nothing in this paragraph affects—
(i) the requirements under this subsection applicable to vessel response plans
for vessels operating within the area of responsibility of the Western Alaska Captain
of the Port Zone, within Cook Inlet, Alaska;
(ii) the requirements under this subsection applicable to vessel response plans
for vessels operating within the area of responsibility of the Prince William Sound
Captain of the Port Zone that are subject
to section 5005 of the Oil Pollution Act of
1990 (33 U.S.C. 2735); or
(iii) the authority of a Federal On-Scene
Coordinator to use any available resources
when responding to an oil spill.

Page 491

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

(k) Repealed. Pub. L. 101–380, title II, § 2002(b)(2),
Aug. 18, 1990, 104 Stat. 507
(l) Administration
The President is authorized to delegate the administration of this section to the heads of
those Federal departments, agencies, and instrumentalities which he determines to be appropriate. Each such department, agency, and instrumentality, in order to avoid duplication of
effort, shall, whenever appropriate, utilize the
personnel, services, and facilities of other Federal departments, agencies, and instrumentalities.
(m) Administrative provisions
(1) For vessels
Anyone authorized by the President to enforce the provisions of this section with respect to any vessel may, except as to public
vessels—
(A) board and inspect any vessel upon the
navigable waters of the United States or the
waters of the contiguous zone,
(B) with or without a warrant, arrest any
person who in the presence or view of the authorized person violates the provisions of
this section or any regulation issued thereunder, and
(C) execute any warrant or other process
issued by an officer or court of competent
jurisdiction.
(2) For facilities
(A) Recordkeeping
Whenever required to carry out the purposes of this section, the Administrator, the
Secretary of Transportation, or the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast
Guard is operating shall require the owner
or operator of a facility to which this section applies to establish and maintain such
records, make such reports, install, use, and
maintain such monitoring equipment and
methods, and provide such other information as the Administrator or Secretary, as
the case may be, may require to carry out
the objectives of this section.
(B) Entry and inspection
Whenever required to carry out the purposes of this section, the Administrator, the
Secretary of Transportation, or the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast
Guard is operating or an authorized representative of the Administrator or Secretary, upon presentation of appropriate credentials, may—
(i) enter and inspect any facility to
which this section applies, including any
facility at which any records are required
to be maintained under subparagraph (A);
and
(ii) at reasonable times, have access to
and copy any records, take samples, and
inspect any monitoring equipment or
methods required under subparagraph (A).
(C) Arrests and execution of warrants
Anyone authorized by the Administrator
or the Secretary of the department in which
the Coast Guard is operating to enforce the

§ 1321

provisions of this section with respect to any
facility may—
(i) with or without a warrant, arrest any
person who violates the provisions of this
section or any regulation issued thereunder in the presence or view of the person
so authorized; and
(ii) execute any warrant or process
issued by an officer or court of competent
jurisdiction.
(D) Public access
Any records, reports, or information obtained under this paragraph shall be subject
to the same public access and disclosure requirements which are applicable to records,
reports, and information obtained pursuant
to section 1318 of this title.
(n) Jurisdiction
The several district courts of the United
States are invested with jurisdiction for any actions, other than actions pursuant to subsection
(i)(l),2 arising under this section. In the case of
Guam and the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, such actions may be brought in the district court of Guam, and in the case of the Virgin Islands such actions may be brought in the
district court of the Virgin Islands. In the case
of American Samoa and the Trust Territory of
the Pacific Islands, such actions may be brought
in the District Court of the United States for
the District of Hawaii and such court shall have
jurisdiction of such actions. In the case of the
Canal Zone, such actions may be brought in the
United States District Court for the District of
the Canal Zone.
(o) Obligation for damages unaffected; local authority not preempted; existing Federal authority not modified or affected
(1) Nothing in this section shall affect or modify in any way the obligations of any owner or
operator of any vessel, or of any owner or operator of any onshore facility or offshore facility
to any person or agency under any provision of
law for damages to any publicly owned or privately owned property resulting from a discharge of any oil or hazardous substance or from
the removal of any such oil or hazardous substance.
(2) Nothing in this section shall be construed
as preempting any State or political subdivision
thereof from imposing any requirement or liability with respect to the discharge of oil or
hazardous substance into any waters within
such State, or with respect to any removal activities related to such discharge.
(3) Nothing in this section shall be construed
as affecting or modifying any other existing authority of any Federal department, agency, or
instrumentality, relative to onshore or offshore
facilities under this chapter or any other provision of law, or to affect any State or local law
not in conflict with this section.
(p) Repealed. Pub. L. 101–380, title II, § 2002(b)(4),
Aug. 18, 1990, 104 Stat. 507
(q) Establishment of maximum limit of liability
with respect to onshore or offshore facilities
The President is authorized to establish, with
respect to any class or category of onshore or

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

offshore facilities, a maximum limit of liability
under subsections (f)(2) and (3) of this section of
less than $50,000,000, but not less than $8,000,000.
(r) Liability limitations not to limit liability
under other legislation
Nothing in this section shall be construed to
impose, or authorize the imposition of, any limitation on liability under the Outer Continental
Shelf Lands Act [43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.] or the
Deepwater Port Act of 1974 [33 U.S.C. 1501 et
seq.].
(s) Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund
The Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund established
under section 9509 of title 26 shall be available to
carry out subsections (b), (c), (d), (j), and (l) as
those subsections apply to discharges, and substantial threats of discharges, of oil. Any
amounts received by the United States under
this section shall be deposited in the Oil Spill
Liability Trust Fund except as provided in subsection (t).
(t) Gulf Coast restoration and recovery
(1) State allocation and expenditures
(A) In general
Of the total amounts made available in
any fiscal year from the Trust Fund, 35 percent shall be available, in accordance with
the requirements of this section, to the Gulf
Coast States in equal shares for expenditure
for ecological and economic restoration of
the Gulf Coast region in accordance with
this subsection.
(B) Use of funds
(i) Eligible activities in the Gulf Coast region
Subject to clause (iii), amounts provided
to the Gulf Coast States under this subsection may only be used to carry out 1 or
more of the following activities in the Gulf
Coast region:
(I) Restoration and protection of the
natural resources, ecosystems, fisheries,
marine and wildlife habitats, beaches,
and coastal wetlands of the Gulf Coast
region.
(II) Mitigation of damage to fish, wildlife, and natural resources.
(III) Implementation of a federally approved marine, coastal, or comprehensive conservation management plan, including fisheries monitoring.
(IV) Workforce development and job
creation.
(V) Improvements to or on State parks
located in coastal areas affected by the
Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
(VI) Infrastructure projects benefitting
the economy or ecological resources, including port infrastructure.
(VII) Coastal flood protection and related infrastructure.
(VIII) Planning assistance.
(IX) Administrative costs of complying
with this subsection.
(ii) Activities to promote tourism and seafood in the Gulf Coast region
Amounts provided to the Gulf Coast
States under this subsection may be used

Page 492

to carry out 1 or more of the following activities:
(I) Promotion of tourism in the Gulf
Coast Region, including recreational
fishing.
(II) Promotion of the consumption of
seafood harvested from the Gulf Coast
Region.
(iii) Limitation
(I) In general
Of the amounts received by a Gulf
Coast State under this subsection, not
more than 3 percent may be used for administrative costs eligible under clause
(i)(IX).
(II) Claims for compensation
Activities funded under this subsection
may not be included in any claim for
compensation paid out by the Oil Spill
Liability Trust Fund after July 6, 2012.
(C) Coastal political subdivisions
(i) Distribution
In the case of a State where the coastal
zone includes the entire State—
(I) 75 percent of funding shall be provided directly to the 8 disproportionately affected counties impacted by the
Deepwater Horizon oil spill; and
(II) 25 percent shall be provided directly to nondisproportionately impacted counties within the State.
(ii) Nondisproportionately impacted counties
The total amounts made available to
coastal political subdivisions in the State
of Florida under clause (i)(II) shall be distributed according to the following
weighted formula:
(I) 34 percent based on the weighted average of the population of the county.
(II) 33 percent based on the weighted
average of the county per capita sales
tax collections estimated for fiscal year
2012.
(III) 33 percent based on the inverse
proportion of the weighted average distance from the Deepwater Horizon oil rig
to each of the nearest and farthest
points of the shoreline.
(D) Louisiana
(i) In general
Of the total amounts made available to
the State of Louisiana under this paragraph:
(I) 70 percent shall be provided directly
to the State in accordance with this subsection.
(II) 30 percent shall be provided directly to parishes in the coastal zone (as
defined in section 1453 of title 16) of the
State of Louisiana according to the following weighted formula:
(aa) 40 percent based on the weighted
average of miles of the parish shoreline
oiled.
(bb) 40 percent based on the weighted
average of the population of the parish.

Page 493

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

(cc) 20 percent based on the weighted
average of the land mass of the parish.
(ii) Conditions
(I) Land use plan
As a condition of receiving amounts allocated under this paragraph, the chief
executive of the eligible parish shall certify to the Governor of the State that
the parish has completed a comprehensive land use plan.
(II) Other conditions
A coastal political subdivision receiving funding under this paragraph shall
meet all of the conditions in subparagraph (E).
(E) Conditions
As a condition of receiving amounts from
the Trust Fund, a Gulf Coast State, including the entities described in subparagraph
(F), or a coastal political subdivision shall—
(i) agree to meet such conditions, including audit requirements, as the Secretary
of the Treasury determines necessary to
ensure that amounts disbursed from the
Trust Fund will be used in accordance with
this subsection;
(ii) certify in such form and in such manner as the Secretary of the Treasury determines necessary that the project or program for which the Gulf Coast State or
coastal political subdivision is requesting
amounts—
(I) is designed to restore and protect
the natural resources, ecosystems, fisheries, marine and wildlife habitats,
beaches, coastal wetlands, or economy of
the Gulf Coast;
(II) carries out 1 or more of the activities described in clauses (i) and (ii) of
subparagraph (B);
(III) was selected based on meaningful
input from the public, including broadbased participation from individuals,
businesses, and nonprofit organizations;
and
(IV) in the case of a natural resource
protection or restoration project, is
based on the best available science;
(iii) certify that the project or program
and the awarding of a contract for the expenditure of amounts received under this
paragraph are consistent with the standard procurement rules and regulations
governing a comparable project or program in that State, including all applicable competitive bidding and audit requirements; and
(iv) develop and submit a multiyear implementation plan for the use of such
amounts, which may include milestones,
projected completion of each activity, and
a mechanism to evaluate the success of
each activity in helping to restore and protect the Gulf Coast region impacted by the
Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
(F) Approval by State entity, task force, or
agency
The following Gulf Coast State entities,
task forces, or agencies shall carry out the

§ 1321

duties of a Gulf Coast State pursuant to this
paragraph:
(i) Alabama
(I) In general
In the State of Alabama, the Alabama
Gulf Coast Recovery Council, which
shall be comprised of only the following:
(aa) The Governor of Alabama, who
shall also serve as Chairperson and preside over the meetings of the Alabama
Gulf Coast Recovery Council.
(bb) The Director of the Alabama
State Port Authority, who shall also
serve as Vice Chairperson and preside
over the meetings of the Alabama Gulf
Coast Recovery Council in the absence
of the Chairperson.
(cc) The Chairman of the Baldwin
County Commission.
(dd) The President of the Mobile
County Commission.
(ee) The Mayor of the city of Bayou
La Batre.
(ff) The Mayor of the town of Dauphin Island.
(gg) The Mayor of the city of
Fairhope.
(hh) The Mayor of the city of Gulf
Shores.
(ii) The Mayor of the city of Mobile.
(jj) The Mayor of the city of Orange
Beach.
(II) Vote
Each member of the Alabama Gulf
Coast Recovery Council shall be entitled
to 1 vote.
(III) Majority vote
All decisions of the Alabama Gulf
Coast Recovery Council shall be made by
majority vote.
(IV) Limitation on administrative expenses
Administrative duties for the Alabama
Gulf Coast Recovery Council may only
be performed by public officials and employees that are subject to the ethics
laws of the State of Alabama.
(ii) Louisiana
In the State of Louisiana, the Coastal
Protection and Restoration Authority of
Louisiana.
(iii) Mississippi
In the State of Mississippi, the Mississippi Department of Environmental
Quality.
(iv) Texas
In the State of Texas, the Office of the
Governor or an appointee of the Office of
the Governor.
(G) Compliance with eligible activities
If the Secretary of the Treasury determines that an expenditure by a Gulf Coast
State or coastal political subdivision of
amounts made available under this subsection does not meet one of the activities

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

described in clauses (i) and (ii) of subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall make no additional amounts from the Trust Fund available to that Gulf Coast State or coastal political subdivision until such time as an
amount equal to the amount expended for
the unauthorized use—
(i) has been deposited by the Gulf Coast
State or coastal political subdivision in
the Trust Fund; or
(ii) has been authorized by the Secretary
of the Treasury for expenditure by the
Gulf Coast State or coastal political subdivision for a project or program that
meets the requirements of this subsection.
(H) Compliance with conditions
If the Secretary of the Treasury determines that a Gulf Coast State or coastal political subdivision does not meet the requirements of this paragraph, including the conditions of subparagraph (E), where applicable, the Secretary of the Treasury shall
make no amounts from the Trust Fund
available to that Gulf Coast State or coastal
political subdivision until all conditions of
this paragraph are met.
(I) Public input
In meeting any condition of this paragraph, a Gulf Coast State may use an appropriate procedure for public consultation in
that Gulf Coast State, including consulting
with one or more established task forces or
other entities, to develop recommendations
for proposed projects and programs that
would restore and protect the natural resources, ecosystems, fisheries, marine and
wildlife habitats, beaches, coastal wetlands,
and economy of the Gulf Coast.
(J) Previously approved projects and programs
A Gulf Coast State or coastal political
subdivision shall be considered to have met
the conditions of subparagraph (E) for a specific project or program if, before July 6,
2012—
(i) the Gulf Coast State or coastal political subdivision has established conditions
for carrying out projects and programs
that are substantively the same as the
conditions described in subparagraph (E);
and
(ii) the applicable project or program
carries out 1 or more of the activities described in clauses (i) and (ii) of subparagraph (B).
(K) Local preference
In awarding contracts to carry out a
project or program under this paragraph, a
Gulf Coast State or coastal political subdivision may give a preference to individuals
and
companies
that
reside
in,
are
headquartered in, or are principally engaged
in business in the State of project execution.
(L) Unused funds
Funds allocated to a State or coastal political subdivision under this paragraph
shall remain in the Trust Fund until such
time as the State or coastal political sub-

Page 494

division develops and submits a plan identifying uses for those funds in accordance with
subparagraph (E)(iv).
(M) Judicial review
If the Secretary of the Treasury determines that a Gulf Coast State or coastal political subdivision does not meet the requirements of this paragraph, including the conditions of subparagraph (E), the Gulf Coast
State or coastal political subdivision may
obtain expedited judicial review within 90
days after that decision in a district court of
the United States, of appropriate jurisdiction and venue, that is located within the
State seeking the review.
(N) Cost-sharing
(i) In general
A Gulf Coast State or coastal political
subdivision may use, in whole or in part,
amounts made available under this paragraph to that Gulf Coast State or coastal
political subdivision to satisfy the nonFederal share of the cost of any project or
program authorized by Federal law that is
an eligible activity described in clauses (i)
and (ii) of subparagraph (B).
(ii) Effect on other funds
The use of funds made available from the
Trust Fund to satisfy the non-Federal
share of the cost of a project or program
that meets the requirements of clause (i)
shall not affect the priority in which other
Federal funds are allocated or awarded.
(2) Council establishment and allocation
(A) In general
Of the total amount made available in any
fiscal year from the Trust Fund, 30 percent
shall be disbursed to the Council to carry
out the Comprehensive Plan.
(B) Council expenditures
(i) In general
In accordance with this paragraph, the
Council shall expend funds made available
from the Trust Fund to undertake projects
and programs, using the best available
science, that would restore and protect the
natural resources, ecosystems, fisheries,
marine and wildlife habitats, beaches,
coastal wetlands, and economy of the Gulf
Coast.
(ii) Allocation and expenditure procedures
The Secretary of the Treasury shall develop such conditions, including audit requirements, as the Secretary of the Treasury determines necessary to ensure that
amounts disbursed from the Trust Fund to
the Council to implement the Comprehensive Plan will be used in accordance with
this paragraph.
(iii) Administrative expenses
Of the amounts received by the Council
under this paragraph, not more than 3 percent may be used for administrative expenses, including staff.

Page 495

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

(C) Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council
(i) Establishment
There is established as an independent
entity in the Federal Government a council to be known as the ‘‘Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council’’.
(ii) Membership
The Council shall consist of the following members, or in the case of a Federal agency, a designee at the level of the
Assistant Secretary or the equivalent:
(I) The Secretary of the Interior.
(II) The Secretary of the Army.
(III) The Secretary of Commerce.
(IV) The Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
(V) The Secretary of Agriculture.
(VI) The head of the department in
which the Coast Guard is operating.
(VII) The Governor of the State of Alabama.
(VIII) The Governor of the State of
Florida.
(IX) The Governor of the State of Louisiana.
(X) The Governor of the State of Mississippi.
(XI) The Governor of the State of
Texas.
(iii) Alternate
A Governor appointed to the Council by
the President may designate an alternate
to represent the Governor on the Council
and vote on behalf of the Governor.
(iv) Chairperson
From among the Federal agency members of the Council, the representatives of
States on the Council shall select, and the
President shall appoint, 1 Federal member
to serve as Chairperson of the Council.
(v) Presidential appointment
All Council members shall be appointed
by the President.
(vi) Council actions
(I) In general
The following actions by the Council
shall require the affirmative vote of the
Chairperson and a majority of the State
members to be effective:
(aa) Approval of a Comprehensive
Plan and future revisions to a Comprehensive Plan.
(bb) Approval of State plans pursuant to paragraph (3)(B)(iv).
(cc) Approval of reports to Congress
pursuant to clause (vii)(VII).
(dd) Approval of transfers pursuant
to subparagraph (E)(ii)(I).
(ee) Other significant actions determined by the Council.
(II) Quorum
A majority of State members shall be
required to be present for the Council to
take any significant action.
(III) Affirmative vote requirement considered met
For approval of State plans pursuant
to paragraph (3)(B)(iv), the certification

§ 1321

by a State member of the Council that
the plan satisfies all requirements of
clauses (i) and (ii) of paragraph (3)(B),
when joined by an affirmative vote of
the Federal Chairperson of the Council,
shall be considered to satisfy the requirements for affirmative votes under
subclause (I).
(IV) Public transparency
Appropriate actions of the Council, including significant actions and associated deliberations, shall be made available to the public via electronic means
prior to any vote.
(vii) Duties of Council
The Council shall—
(I) develop the Comprehensive Plan
and future revisions to the Comprehensive Plan;
(II) identify as soon as practicable the
projects that—
(aa) have been authorized prior to
July 6, 2012, but not yet commenced;
and
(bb) if implemented quickly, would
restore and protect the natural resources, ecosystems, fisheries, marine
and wildlife habitats, beaches, barrier
islands, dunes, and coastal wetlands of
the Gulf Coast region;
(III) establish such other 1 or more advisory committees as may be necessary
to assist the Council, including a scientific advisory committee and a committee to advise the Council on public
policy issues;
(IV) collect and consider scientific and
other research associated with restoration of the Gulf Coast ecosystem, including research, observation, and monitoring carried out pursuant to sections
1604 and 1605 of the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the
Gulf Coast States Act of 2012;
(V) develop standard terms to include
in contracts for projects and programs
awarded pursuant to the Comprehensive
Plan that provide a preference to individuals and companies that reside in, are
headquartered in, or are principally engaged in business in a Gulf Coast State;
(VI) prepare an integrated financial
plan and recommendations for coordinated budget requests for the amounts
proposed to be expended by the Federal
agencies represented on the Council for
projects and programs in the Gulf Coast
States; and
(VII) submit to Congress an annual report that—
(aa) summarizes the policies, strategies, plans, and activities for addressing the restoration and protection of
the Gulf Coast region;
(bb) describes the projects and programs being implemented to restore
and protect the Gulf Coast region, including—

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS
(AA) a list of each project and program;
(BB) an identification of the funding provided to projects and programs identified in subitem (AA);
(CC) an identification of each recipient for funding identified in
subitem (BB); and
(DD) a description of the length of
time and funding needed to complete
the objectives of each project and
program identified in subitem (AA);
(cc) makes such recommendations to
Congress for modifications of existing
laws as the Council determines necessary to implement the Comprehensive Plan;
(dd) reports on the progress on implementation of each project or program—
(AA) after 3 years of ongoing activity of the project or program, if applicable; and
(BB) on completion of the project
or program;

(ee) includes the information required to be submitted under section
1605(c)(4) of the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the
Gulf Coast States Act of 2012; and
(ff) submits the reports required
under item (dd) to—
(AA) the Committee on Science,
Space, and Technology, the Committee on Natural Resources, the
Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure, and the Committee
on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives; and
(BB) the Committee on Environment and Public Works, the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation, the Committee on
Energy and Natural Resources, and
the Committee on Appropriations of
the Senate.
(viii) Application of chapter 10 of title 5
The Council, or any other advisory committee established under this subparagraph, shall not be considered an advisory
committee under chapter 10 of title 5.
(ix) Sunset
The authority for the Council, and any
other advisory committee established
under this subparagraph, shall terminate
on the date all funds in the Trust Fund
have been expended.
(D) Comprehensive plan
(i) Proposed plan
(I) In general
Not later than 180 days after July 6,
2012, the Chairperson, on behalf of the
Council and after appropriate public
input, review, and comment, shall publish a proposed plan to restore and protect the natural resources, ecosystems,

Page 496

fisheries, marine and wildlife habitats,
beaches, and coastal wetlands of the Gulf
Coast region.
(II) Inclusions
The proposed plan described in subclause (I) shall include and incorporate
the findings and information prepared by
the President’s Gulf Coast Restoration
Task Force.
(ii) Publication
(I) Initial plan
Not later than 1 year after July 6, 2012,
and after notice and opportunity for public comment, the Chairperson, on behalf
of the Council and after approval by the
Council, shall publish in the Federal
Register the initial Comprehensive Plan
to restore and protect the natural resources, ecosystems, fisheries, marine
and wildlife habitats, beaches, and coastal wetlands of the Gulf Coast region.
(II) Cooperation with Gulf Coast Restoration Task Force
The Council shall develop the initial
Comprehensive Plan in close coordination with the President’s Gulf Coast Restoration Task Force.
(III) Considerations
In developing the initial Comprehensive Plan and subsequent updates, the
Council shall consider all relevant findings, reports, or research prepared or
funded under section 1604 or 1605 of the
Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast
States Act of 2012.
(IV) Contents
The initial Comprehensive Plan shall
include—
(aa) such provisions as are necessary
to fully incorporate in the Comprehensive Plan the strategy, projects, and
programs recommended by the President’s Gulf Coast Restoration Task
Force;
(bb) a list of any project or program
authorized prior to July 6, 2012, but not
yet commenced, the completion of
which would further the purposes and
goals of this subsection and of the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast
States Act of 2012;
(cc) a description of the manner in
which amounts from the Trust Fund
projected to be made available to the
Council for the succeeding 10 years will
be allocated; and
(dd) subject to available funding in
accordance
with
clause
(iii),
a
prioritized list of specific projects and
programs to be funded and carried out
during the 3-year period immediately
following the date of publication of the
initial Comprehensive Plan, including

Page 497

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

a table that illustrates the distribution
of projects and programs by the Gulf
Coast State.
(V) Plan updates
The Council shall update—
(aa) the Comprehensive Plan every 5
years in a manner comparable to the
manner established in this subparagraph for each 5-year period for which
amounts are expected to be made
available to the Gulf Coast States from
the Trust Fund; and
(bb) the 3-year list of projects and
programs
described
in
subclause
(IV)(dd) annually.
(iii) Restoration priorities
Except for projects and programs described in clause (ii)(IV)(bb), in selecting
projects and programs to include on the 3year list described in clause (ii)(IV)(dd),
based on the best available science, the
Council shall give highest priority to
projects that address 1 or more of the following criteria:
(I) Projects that are projected to make
the greatest contribution to restoring
and protecting the natural resources,
ecosystems, fisheries, marine and wildlife habitats, beaches, and coastal wetlands of the Gulf Coast region, without
regard to geographic location within the
Gulf Coast region.
(II) Large-scale projects and programs
that are projected to substantially contribute to restoring and protecting the
natural resources, ecosystems, fisheries,
marine and wildlife habitats, beaches,
and coastal wetlands of the Gulf Coast
ecosystem.
(III) Projects contained in existing
Gulf Coast State comprehensive plans
for the restoration and protection of natural resources, ecosystems, fisheries,
marine and wildlife habitats, beaches,
and coastal wetlands of the Gulf Coast
region.
(IV) Projects that restore long-term
resiliency of the natural resources, ecosystems, fisheries, marine and wildlife
habitats, beaches, and coastal wetlands
most impacted by the Deepwater Horizon
oil spill.
(E) Implementation
(i) In general
The Council, acting through the Federal
agencies represented on the Council and
Gulf Coast States, shall expend funds made
available from the Trust Fund to carry out
projects and programs adopted in the Comprehensive Plan.
(ii) Administrative responsibility
(I) In general
Primary authority and responsibility
for each project and program included in
the Comprehensive Plan shall be assigned by the Council to a Gulf Coast
State represented on the Council or a
Federal agency.

§ 1321

(II) Transfer of amounts
Amounts necessary to carry out each
project or program included in the Comprehensive Plan shall be transferred by
the Secretary of the Treasury from the
Trust Fund to that Federal agency or
Gulf Coast State as the project or program is implemented, subject to such
conditions as the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary
of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce, established pursuant to section
1602 of the Resources and Ecosystems
Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities,
and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast
States Act of 2012.
(III) Limitation on transfers
(aa) Grants to nongovernmental entities
In the case of funds transferred to a
Federal or State agency under subclause (II), the agency shall not make
1 or more grants or cooperative agreements to a nongovernmental entity if
the total amount provided to the entity would equal or exceed 10 percent of
the total amount provided to the agency for that particular project or program, unless the 1 or more grants have
been reported in accordance with item
(bb).
(bb) Reporting of grantees
At least 30 days prior to making a
grant or entering into a cooperative
agreement described in item (aa), the
name of each grantee, including the
amount and purpose of each grant or
cooperative agreement, shall be published in the Federal Register and delivered to the congressional committees
listed
in
subparagraph
(C)(vii)(VII)(ff).
(cc) Annual reporting of grantees
Annually, the name of each grantee,
including the amount and purposes of
each grant or cooperative agreement,
shall be published in the Federal Register and delivered to Congress as part
of the report submitted pursuant to
subparagraph (C)(vii)(VII).
(IV) Project and program limitation
The Council, a Federal agency, or a
State may not carry out a project or program funded under this paragraph outside of the Gulf Coast region.
(F) Coordination
The Council and the Federal members of
the Council may develop memoranda of understanding establishing integrated funding
and implementation plans among the member agencies and authorities.
(3) Oil spill restoration impact allocation
(A) In general
(i) Disbursement
Of the total amount made available from
the Trust Fund, 30 percent shall be dis-

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

bursed pursuant to the formula in clause
(ii) to the Gulf Coast States on the approval of the plan described in subparagraph (B)(i).
(ii) Formula
Subject to subparagraph (B), for each
Gulf Coast State, the amount disbursed
under this paragraph shall be based on a
formula established by the Council by regulation that is based on a weighted average of the following criteria:
(I) 40 percent based on the proportionate number of miles of shoreline in
each Gulf Coast State that experienced
oiling on or before April 10, 2011, compared to the total number of miles of
shoreline that experienced oiling as a result of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
(II) 40 percent based on the inverse proportion of the average distance from the
mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater
Horizon at the time of the explosion to
the nearest and farthest point of the
shoreline that experienced oiling of each
Gulf Coast State.
(III) 20 percent based on the average
population in the 2010 decennial census
of coastal counties bordering the Gulf of
Mexico within each Gulf Coast State.
(iii) Minimum allocation
The amount disbursed to a Gulf Coast
State for each fiscal year under clause (ii)
shall be at least 5 percent of the total
amounts made available under this paragraph.
(B) Disbursement of funds
(i) In general
The Council shall disburse amounts to
the respective Gulf Coast States in accordance with the formula developed under
subparagraph (A) for projects, programs,
and activities that will improve the ecosystems or economy of the Gulf Coast region, subject to the condition that each
Gulf Coast State submits a plan for the expenditure of amounts disbursed under this
paragraph that meets the following criteria:
(I) All projects, programs, and activities included in the plan are eligible activities pursuant to clauses (i) and (ii) of
paragraph (1)(B).
(II) The projects, programs, and activities included in the plan contribute to
the overall economic and ecological recovery of the Gulf Coast.
(III) The plan takes into consideration
the Comprehensive Plan and is consistent with the goals and objectives of
the Plan, as described in paragraph
(2)(B)(i).
(ii) Funding
(I) In general
Except as provided in subclause (II),
the plan described in clause (i) may use
not more than 25 percent of the funding
made
available
for
infrastructure
projects eligible under subclauses (VI)
and (VII) of paragraph (1)(B)(i).

Page 498

(II) Exception
The plan described in clause (i) may
propose to use more than 25 percent of
the funding made available for infrastructure projects eligible under subclauses (VI) and (VII) of paragraph
(1)(B)(i) if the plan certifies that—
(aa) ecosystem restoration needs in
the State will be addressed by the
projects in the proposed plan; and
(bb) additional investment in infrastructure is required to mitigate the
impacts of the Deepwater Horizon Oil
Spill to the ecosystem or economy.
(iii) Development
The plan described in clause (i) shall be
developed by—
(I) in the State of Alabama, the Alabama Gulf Coast Recovery Council established under paragraph (1)(F)(i);
(II) in the State of Florida, a consortia 4 of local political subdivisions
that includes at a minimum 1 representative of each affected county;
(III) in the State of Louisiana, the
Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority of Louisiana;
(IV) in the State of Mississippi, the Office of the Governor or an appointee of
the Office of the Governor; and
(V) in the State of Texas, the Office of
the Governor or an appointee of the Office of the Governor.
(iv) Approval
Not later than 60 days after the date on
which a plan is submitted under clause (i),
the Council shall approve or disapprove
the plan based on the conditions of clause
(i).
(C) Disapproval
If the Council disapproves a plan pursuant
to subparagraph (B)(iv), the Council shall—
(i) provide the reasons for disapproval in
writing; and
(ii) consult with the State to address any
identified deficiencies with the State plan.
(D) Failure to submit adequate plan
If a State fails to submit an adequate plan
under this paragraph, any funds made available under this paragraph shall remain in
the Trust Fund until such date as a plan is
submitted and approved pursuant to this
paragraph.
(E) Judicial review
If the Council fails to approve or take action within 60 days on a plan, as described in
subparagraph (B)(iv), the State may obtain
expedited judicial review within 90 days of
that decision in a district court of the
United States, of appropriate jurisdiction
and venue, that is located within the State
seeking the review.
(F) Cost-sharing
(i) In general
A Gulf Coast State or coastal political
subdivision may use, in whole or in part,
4 So

in original. Probably should be ‘‘consortium’’.

Page 499

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

amounts made available to that Gulf Coast
State or coastal political subdivision
under this paragraph to satisfy the nonFederal share of any project or program
that—
(I) is authorized by other Federal law;
and
(II) is an eligible activity described in
clause (i) or (ii) of paragraph (1)(B).
(ii) Effect on other funds
The use of funds made available from the
Trust Fund under this paragraph to satisfy
the non-Federal share of the cost of a
project or program described in clause (i)
shall not affect the priority in which other
Federal funds are allocated or awarded.
(4) Authorization of interest transfers
Of the total amount made available for any
fiscal year from the Trust Fund that is equal
to the interest earned by the Trust Fund and
proceeds from investments made by the Trust
Fund in the preceding fiscal year—
(A) 50 percent shall be divided equally between—
(i) the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration
Science, Observation, Monitoring, and
Technology program authorized in section
1604 of the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States
Act of 2012; and
(ii) the centers of excellence research
grants authorized in section 1605 of that
Act; and
(B) 50 percent shall be made available to
the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council to carry out the Comprehensive Plan pursuant to paragraph (2).
(June 30, 1948, ch. 758, title III, § 311, as added
Pub. L. 92–500, § 2, Oct. 18, 1972, 86 Stat. 862;
amended Pub. L. 93–207, § 1(4), Dec. 28, 1973, 87
Stat. 906; Pub. L. 95–217, §§ 57, 58(a)–(g), (i),
(k)–(m), Dec. 27, 1977, 91 Stat. 1593–1596; Pub. L.
95–576, § 1(b), Nov. 2, 1978, 92 Stat. 2467; Pub. L.
96–478, § 13(b), Oct. 21, 1980, 94 Stat. 2303; Pub. L.
96–483, § 8, Oct. 21, 1980, 94 Stat. 2362; Pub. L.
96–561, title II, § 238(b), Dec. 22, 1980, 94 Stat. 3300;
Pub. L. 97–164, title I, § 161(5), Apr. 2, 1982, 96
Stat. 49; Pub. L. 100–4, title V, § 502(b), Feb. 4,
1987, 101 Stat. 75; Pub. L. 101–380, title II,
§ 2002(b), title IV, §§ 4201(a), (b), (b)[(c)], 4202(a),
(c), 4204, 4301(a), (b), 4305, 4306, Aug. 18, 1990, 104
Stat. 507, 523–527, 532, 533, 540, 541; Pub. L.
102–388, title III, § 349, Oct. 6, 1992, 106 Stat. 1554;
Pub. L. 102–572, title IX, § 902(b)(1), Oct. 29, 1992,
106 Stat. 4516; Pub. L. 104–208, div. A, title I,
§ 101(a) [title II, § 211(b)], Sept. 30, 1996, 110 Stat.
3009, 3009–41; Pub. L. 104–324, title XI, §§ 1143, 1144,
Oct. 19, 1996, 110 Stat. 3992; Pub. L. 105–383, title
IV, § 411, Nov. 13, 1998, 112 Stat. 3432; Pub. L.
108–293, title VII, § 701(a), (b), (d), Aug. 9, 2004, 118
Stat. 1067, 1068; Pub. L. 109–241, title VI, § 608,
title IX, § 901(i), July 11, 2006, 120 Stat. 558, 564;
Pub. L. 112–90, § 10, Jan. 3, 2012, 125 Stat. 1912;
Pub. L. 112–141, div. A, title I, § 1603, July 6, 2012,
126 Stat. 589; Pub. L. 113–281, title III, § 313, Dec.
18, 2014, 128 Stat. 3048; Pub. L. 115–91, div. C, title
XXXV, § 3508(b)(2), Dec. 12, 2017, 131 Stat. 1916;
Pub. L. 115–232, div. C, title XXXV, § 3541(b)(5),

§ 1321

Aug. 13, 2018, 132 Stat. 2323; Pub. L. 117–263, div.
K, title CXIII, §§ 11306, 11309(b)(1), Dec. 23, 2022,
136 Stat. 4078, 4081; Pub. L. 117–286, § 4(a)(201),
Dec. 27, 2022, 136 Stat. 4328.)
Editorial Notes
REFERENCES IN TEXT
Section 1001 of the Oil Pollution Act, referred to in
subsec. (a)(11), probably means section 1001 of Pub. L.
101–380, known as the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, which
is classified to section 2701 of this title.
The Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf
Coast States Act of 2012, referred to in subsecs. (a)(35)
and (t)(2)(C)(vii)(IV), (VII)(ee), (D)(ii)(III), (IV)(bb),
(E)(ii)(II), (4)(A), is subtitle F (§§ 1601–1608) of title I of
div. A of Pub. L. 112–141, July 6, 2012, 126 Stat. 588,
which is set out as a note below.
The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, referred to in
subsecs. (b)(1), (2)(A), (3) and (r), is act Aug. 7, 1953, ch.
345, 67 Stat. 462, which is classified generally to subchapter III (§ 1331 et seq.) of chapter 29 of Title 43, Public Lands. For complete classification of this Act to the
Code, see Short Title note set out under section 1301 of
Title 43 and Tables.
The Deepwater Port Act of 1974, referred to in subsecs. (b)(1), (2)(A), (3) and (r), is Pub. L. 93–627, Jan. 3,
1975, 88 Stat. 2126, which is classified generally to chapter 29 (§ 1501 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note
set out under section 1501 of this title and Tables.
The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act, referred to in subsec. (b)(1), (2)(A),
(3), is Pub. L. 94–265, Apr. 13, 1976, 90 Stat. 331, which is
classified principally to chapter 38 (§ 1801 et seq.) of
Title 16, Conservation. For complete classification of
this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under
section 1801 of Title 16 and Tables.
The date of enactment of this paragraph, referred to
in subsec. (b)(2)(B), probably means the date of enactment of Pub. L. 95–576, which amended subsec. (b)(2)(B)
and which was approved Nov. 2, 1978.
The penalty enacted in subclause (bb) of clause (iii) of
subparagraph (B) of subsection (b)(2) of section 311 of
Public Law 92–500, referred to in subsec. (b)(2)(B), probably means the penalty provision of subsec.
(b)(2)(B)(iii)(bb) of this section as added by Pub. L.
92–500, § 2, Oct. 18, 1972, 86 Stat. 864, prior to the amendment to subsec. (b)(2)(B) by section 1(b)(3) of Pub. L.
95–576. Prior to amendment, subsec. (b)(2)(B)(iii)(bb)
read as follows: ‘‘a penalty determined by the number
of units discharged multiplied by the amount established for such unit under clause (iv) of this subparagraph, but such penalty shall not be more than
$5,000,000 in the case of a discharge from a vessel and
$500,000 in the case of a discharge from an onshore or
offshore facility.’’
Section 4367 of the Revised Statutes of the United
States (46 U.S.C. App. 313), referred to in subsec.
(b)(12)(B), was repealed by Pub. L. 103–182, title VI,
§ 690(a)(21), Dec. 8, 1993, 107 Stat. 2223.
Section 1443 of title 19, referred to in subsec.
(b)(12)(C), was repealed by Pub. L. 103–182, title VI,
§ 690(b)(6), Dec. 8, 1993, 107 Stat. 2223.
The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, referred to in subsec. (c)(4)(B)(ii), is Pub. L. 96–510, Dec. 11, 1980, 94 Stat.
2767, which is classified principally to chapter 103 (§ 9601
et seq.) of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare. For
complete classification of this Act to the Code, see
Short Title note set out under section 9601 of Title 42
and Tables.
The Oil Pollution Act of 1990, referred to in subsecs.
(c)(5)(B), (d)(2)(H), and (j)(5)(H), is Pub. L. 101–380, Aug.
18, 1990, 104 Stat. 484, which is classified principally to
chapter 40 (§ 2701 et seq.) of this title. Title I of the Act
is classified generally to subchapter I (§ 2701 et seq.) of
chapter 40 of this title. For complete classification of

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under
section 2701 of this title and Tables.
Subsection (c)(2) of this section, referred to in subsec.
(j)(1), was generally amended by Pub. L. 101–380, title
IV, § 4201(a), Aug. 18, 1990, 104 Stat. 523, and no longer
contains provisions establishing a National Contingency Plan. However, such provisions are contained in
subsec. (d) of this section.
Par. (3) of section 1901(a) of this title, referred to in
subsec. (j)(5)(B), was redesignated par. (4) by Pub. L.
110–280, § 3(1), July 21, 2008, 122 Stat. 2611.
Subsection (i)(l), referred to in subsec. (n), probably
should be ‘‘subsection (i)(1)’’. The par. (1) designation
was struck out from subsec. (i) by Pub. L. 101–380, title
II, §2002(b)(1), Aug. 18, 1990, 104 Stat. 507.
CODIFICATION
In subsec. (b)(12)(A), ‘‘section 60105 of title 46’’ substituted for ‘‘section 4197 of the Revised Statutes of the
United States (46 App. U.S.C. 91)’’ on authority of Pub.
L. 109–304, § 18(c), Oct. 6, 2006, 120 Stat. 1709, which Act
enacted section 60105 of Title 46, Shipping.
AMENDMENTS
2022—Subsec. (c)(3)(C). Pub. L. 117–263, § 11306, added
subpar. (C).
Subsec. (j)(9). Pub. L. 117–263, § 11309(b)(1), added par.
(9).
Subsec. (t)(2)(C)(viii). Pub. L. 117–286 substituted
‘‘chapter 10 of title 5’’ for ‘‘Federal Advisory Committee Act’’ in heading and ‘‘chapter 10 of title 5.’’ for
‘‘the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.).’’
in text.
2018—Subsec. (a)(26)(D). Pub. L. 115–232 substituted
‘‘section 2101(23)’’ for ‘‘section 2101(17a)’’.
2017—Subsec. (a)(11). Pub. L. 115–91 substituted ‘‘any
facility’’ for ‘‘and any facility’’ and inserted ‘‘, and, for
the purposes of applying subsections (b), (c), (e), and
(o), any foreign offshore unit (as defined in section 1001
of the Oil Pollution Act) or any other facility located
seaward of the exclusive economic zone’’ after ‘‘public
vessel’’.
2014—Subsec. (j)(4)(A). Pub. L. 113–281, § 313(1), substituted ‘‘qualified—’’ for ‘‘qualified personnel of Federal, State, and local agencies.’’ in introductory provisions and added cls. (i) and (ii).
Subsec. (j)(4)(B)(ii). Pub. L. 113–281, § 313(2), substituted ‘‘, local, and tribal’’ for ‘‘and local’’ and ‘‘wildlife, including advance planning with respect to the
closing and reopening of fishing areas following a discharge;’’ for ‘‘wildlife;’’.
Subsec. (j)(4)(B)(iii). Pub. L. 113–281, § 313(3), substituted ‘‘, local, and tribal’’ for ‘‘and local’’.
Subsec. (j)(4)(C)(iv). Pub. L. 113–281, § 313(4)(A), substituted ‘‘, Federal, State, and local agencies, and tribal governments’’ for ‘‘and Federal, State, and local
agencies’’.
Subsec. (j)(4)(C)(vii) to (ix). Pub. L. 113–281, § 313(4)(B),
(C), added cl. (vii) and redesignated former cls. (vii) and
(viii) as (viii) and (ix), respectively.
2012—Subsec. (a)(27) to (35). Pub. L. 112–141, § 1603(1),
added pars. (27) to (35).
Subsec. (b)(6)(A). Pub. L. 112–90, § 10(b), substituted
‘‘operating, the Secretary of Transportation, or’’ for
‘‘operating or’’ in concluding provisions.
Subsec. (m)(2)(A), (B). Pub. L. 112–90, § 10(a), which directed amendment of subpars. (A) and (B) by substituting ‘‘Administrator, the Secretary of Transportation, or’’ for ‘‘Administrator or’’ was executed by
making the substitution the first place appearing in
each subpar., to reflect the probable intent of Congress.
Subsec. (s). Pub. L. 112–141, § 1603(2), inserted ‘‘except
as provided in subsection (t)’’ before period at end.
Subsec. (t). Pub. L. 112–141, § 1603(3), added subsec. (t).
2006—Subsec. (a)(26). Pub. L. 109–241, § 608, amended
par. (26) generally. Prior to amendment, par. (26) read
as follows: ‘‘ ‘nontank vessel’ means a self-propelled
vessel of 400 gross tons as measured under section 14302
of title 46 or greater, other than a tank vessel, that car-

Page 500

ries oil of any kind as fuel for main propulsion and
that—
‘‘(A) is a vessel of the United States; or
‘‘(B) operates on the navigable waters of the United
States.’’
Subsec. (j)(5)(A)(ii), (B), (F), and (G). Pub. L. 109–241,
§ 901(i)(1), substituted ‘‘nontank’’ for ‘‘non-tank’’ wherever appearing.
Subsec. (j)(5)(H). Pub. L. 109–241, § 901(i)(2), amended
directory language of Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(b)(9). See
2004 Amendment note below.
2004—Subsec. (a)(26). Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(a), added
par. (26).
Subsec. (j)(5). Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(b)(1), inserted
‘‘, nontank vessel,’’ after ‘‘vessel’’ in heading.
Subsec. (j)(5)(A). Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(b)(2), (d)(3), designated existing text as cl. (i), substituted ‘‘subparagraph (C)’’ for ‘‘subparagraph (B)’’, and added cl. (ii).
Subsec. (j)(5)(B). Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(d)(2), added subpar. (B). Former subpar. (B) redesignated (C).
Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(b)(3), (4), inserted ‘‘, nontank
vessels,’’ after ‘‘vessels’’ in introductory provisions,
added cl. (ii), and redesignated former cls. (ii) and (iii)
as (iii) and (iv), respectively.
Subsec. (j)(5)(C). Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(d)(1), (4), redesignated subpar. (B) as (C) and substituted ‘‘subparagraphs (A) and (B)’’ for ‘‘subparagraph (A)’’ in introductory provisions. Former subpar. (C) redesignated (D).
Subsec. (j)(5)(D). Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(d)(1), redesignated subpar. (C) as (D). Former subpar (D) redesignated (E).
Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(b)(5), inserted ‘‘, nontank vessel,’’ after ‘‘vessel’’ in introductory provisions and
added cl. (v).
Subsec. (j)(5)(E). Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(d)(1), redesignated subpar. (D) as (E). Former subpar. (E) redesignated (F).
Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(b)(6), inserted ‘‘non-tank vessel,’’
after ‘‘vessel,’’ in two places.
Subsec. (j)(5)(F). Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(d)(1), (5), redesignated subpar. (E) as (F) and substituted ‘‘subparagraph (E),’’ for ‘‘subparagraph (D),’’ in cl. (i). Former
subpar. (F) redesignated (G).
Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(b)(7), inserted ‘‘non-tank vessel,’’
after ‘‘vessel,’’ and substituted ‘‘vessel, non-tank vessel, or’’ for ‘‘vessel or’’.
Subsec. (j)(5)(G). Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(d)(1), redesignated subpar. (F) as (G). Former subpar. (G) redesignated (H).
Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(b)(8), inserted ‘‘nontank vessel,’’
after ‘‘vessel,’’.
Subsec. (j)(5)(H). Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(d)(1), redesignated subpar. (G) as (H). Former subpar. (H) redesignated (I).
Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(b)(9), as amended by Pub. L.
109–241, § 901(i)(2), inserted ‘‘and nontank vessel’’ after
‘‘each tank vessel’’.
Subsec. (j)(5)(I). Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(d)(1), redesignated subpar. (H) as (I).
Subsec. (j)(6). Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(b)(10), substituted
‘‘The President may require—’’ for ‘‘Not later than 2
years after August 18, 1990, the President shall require—’’ in introductory provisions.
Subsec. (j)(6)(B). Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(b)(11), inserted
‘‘, and nontank vessels carrying oil of any kind as fuel
for main propulsion,’’ after ‘‘cargo’’.
Subsec. (j)(7). Pub. L. 108–293, § 701(b)(12), inserted
‘‘, nontank vessel,’’ after ‘‘vessel’’.
1998—Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 105–383, § 411(b), substituted ‘‘, (C)’’ for ‘‘and (C)’’ and inserted ‘‘, and (D)
discharges incidental to mechanical removal authorized by the President under subsection (c) of this section’’ before semicolon at end.
Subsec. (a)(8). Pub. L. 105–383, § 411(a)(1), substituted
‘‘to prevent, minimize, or mitigate damage’’ for ‘‘to
minimize or mitigate damage’’.
Subsec. (a)(25). Pub. L. 105–383, § 411(a)(2), added par.
(25).
Subsec. (c)(4)(A). Pub. L. 105–383, § 411(a)(3), inserted
‘‘relating to a discharge or a substantial threat of a dis-

Page 501

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

charge of oil or a hazardous substance’’ before period at
end.
1996—Subsec. (b)(1), (2)(A), (3). Pub. L. 104–208 substituted ‘‘Magnuson-Stevens Fishery’’ for ‘‘Magnuson
Fishery’’ wherever appearing.
Subsec. (c)(3)(B). Pub. L. 104–324, § 1144, inserted
‘‘, except that the owner or operator may deviate from
the applicable response plan if the President or the
Federal On-Scene Coordinator determines that deviation from the response plan would provide for a more
expeditious or effective response to the spill or mitigation of its environmental effects’’ before period at end.
Subsec. (j)(2)(A). Pub. L. 104–324, § 1143(1), inserted
‘‘and of information regarding previous spills, including data from universities, research institutions, State
governments, and other nations, as appropriate, which
shall be disseminated as appropriate to response groups
and area committees, and’’ after ‘‘paragraph (4),’’.
Subsec. (j)(4)(C)(v). Pub. L. 104–324, § 1143(2), inserted
‘‘compile a list of local scientists, both inside and outside Federal Government service, with expertise in the
environmental effects of spills of the types of oil typically transported in the area, who may be contacted to
provide information or, where appropriate, participate
in meetings of the scientific support team convened in
response to a spill, and’’ before ‘‘describe’’.
1992—Subsec. (b)(12). Pub. L. 102–388 added par. (12).
Subsec. (i). Pub. L. 102–572 substituted ‘‘United States
Court of Federal Claims’’ for ‘‘United States Claims
Court’’.
1990—Subsec. (a)(8). Pub. L. 101–380, § 4201(b)(1)[(c)(1)],
inserted ‘‘containment and’’ after ‘‘refers to’’.
Subsec. (a)(16). Pub. L. 101–380, § 4201(b)(2)[(c)(2)], substituted semicolon for period at end.
Subsec. (a)(17). Pub. L. 101–380, § 4201(b)(3)[(c)(3)], substituted ‘‘otherwise’’ for ‘‘Otherwise’’ and semicolon for
period at end.
Subsec.
(a)(18)
to
(24).
Pub.
L.
101–380,
§ 4201(b)(4)[(c)(4)], added pars. (18) to (24).
Subsec. (b)(4). Pub. L. 101–380, § 4204, inserted ‘‘or the
environment’’ after ‘‘the public health or welfare’’.
Subsec. (b)(5). Pub. L. 101–380, § 4301(a), inserted after
first sentence ‘‘The Federal agency shall immediately
notify the appropriate State agency of any State which
is, or may reasonably be expected to be, affected by the
discharge of oil or a hazardous substance.’’, substituted
‘‘fined in accordance with title 18, United States Code,
or imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both’’ for
‘‘fined not more than $10,000, or imprisoned for not
more than one year, or both’’, struck out ‘‘or information obtained by the exploitation of such notification’’
before ‘‘shall not be used’’, and inserted ‘‘natural’’ before ‘‘person in any’’.
Subsec. (b)(6) to (11). Pub. L. 101–380, § 4301(b), added
pars. (6) to (11) and struck out former par. (6) which related to assessment of civil penalties, limited to $5,000
for each offense, against any owner, operator, or person
in charge of any onshore or offshore facility from which
oil or a hazardous substance was discharged in violation of par. (3).
Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 101–380, § 4201(a), amended subsec.
(c) generally, substituting present provisions for provisions authorizing President to arrange for removal of
discharge of oil or a hazardous substance into or upon
the navigable waters of the U.S., unless he determined
such removal would be properly conducted by owner or
operator of the vessel causing discharge, and directed
President to prepare and publish a National Contingency Plan within 60 days after October 18, 1972.
Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 101–380, § 4201(b), amended subsec.
(d) generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (d) read as
follows: ‘‘Whenever a marine disaster in or upon the
navigable waters of the United States has created a
substantial threat of a pollution hazard to the public
health or welfare of the United States, including, but
not limited to, fish, shellfish, and wildlife and the public and private shorelines and beaches of the United
States, because of a discharge, or an imminent discharge, of large quantities of oil, or of a hazardous substance from a vessel the United States may (A) coordi-

§ 1321

nate and direct all public and private efforts directed
at the removal or elimination of such threat; and (B)
summarily remove, and, if necessary, destroy such vessel by whatever means are available without regard to
any provisions of law governing the employment of personnel or the expenditure of appropriated funds. Any
expense incurred under this subsection or under the
Intervention on the High Seas Act (or the convention
defined in section 2(3) thereof) shall be a cost incurred
by the United States Government for the purposes of
subsection (f) in the removal of oil or hazardous substance.’’
Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 101–380, § 4306, amended subsec. (e)
generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (e) read as follows: ‘‘In addition to any other action taken by a State
or local government, when the President determines
there is an imminent and substantial threat to the public health or welfare of the United States, including,
but not limited to, fish, shellfish, and wildlife and public and private property, shorelines, and beaches within
the United States, because of an actual or threatened
discharge of oil or hazardous substance into or upon
the navigable waters of the United States from an onshore or offshore facility, the President may require
the United States attorney of the district in which the
threat occurs to secure such relief as may be necessary
to abate such threat, and the district courts of the
United States shall have jurisdiction to grant such relief as the public interest and the equities of the case
may require.’’
Subsec. (i). Pub. L. 101–380, § 2002(b)(1), struck out par.
(1) designation before ‘‘In any case’’ and struck out
pars. (2) and (3) which read as follows:
‘‘(2) The provisions of this subsection shall not apply
in any case where liability is established pursuant to
the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, or the Deepwater Port Act of 1974.
‘‘(3) Any amount paid in accordance with a judgment
of the United States Claims Court pursuant to this section shall be paid from the funds established pursuant
to subsection (k).’’
Subsec. (j). Pub. L. 101–380, § 4202(a), amended heading, inserted heading for par. (1) and realigned its margin, added pars. (2) to (8), and struck out former par. (2)
which read as follows: ‘‘Any owner or operator of a vessel or an onshore facility or an offshore facility and
any other person subject to any regulation issued under
paragraph (1) of this subsection who fails or refuses to
comply with the provisions of any such regulations,
shall be liable to a civil penalty of not more than $5,000
for each such violation. This paragraph shall not apply
to any owner or operator of any vessel from which oil
or a hazardous substance is discharged in violation of
paragraph (3)(ii) of subsection (b) unless such owner,
operator, or person in charge is otherwise subject to
the jurisdiction of the United States. Each violation
shall be a separate offense. The President may assess
and compromise such penalty. No penalty shall be assessed until the owner, operator, or other person
charged shall have been given notice and an opportunity for a hearing on such charge. In determining the
amount of the penalty, or the amount agreed upon in
compromise, the gravity of the violation, and the demonstrated good faith of the owner, operator, or other
person charged in attempting to achieve rapid compliance, after notification of a violation, shall be considered by the President.’’
Subsec. (k). Pub. L. 101–380, § 2002(b)(2), struck out
subsec. (k) which authorized appropriations and supplemental appropriations to create and maintain a revolving fund to carry out subsecs. (c), (d), (i), and (l) of this
section.
Subsec. (l). Pub. L. 101–380, § 2002(b)(3), struck out
after first sentence ‘‘Any moneys in the fund established by subsection (k) of this section shall be available to such Federal departments, agencies, and instrumentalities to carry out the provisions of subsections
(c) and (i) of this section.’’
Subsec. (m). Pub. L. 101–380, § 4305, amended subsec.
(m) generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (m) read as

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

follows: ‘‘Anyone authorized by the President to enforce the provisions of this section may, except as to
public vessels, (A) board and inspect any vessel upon
the navigable waters of the United States or the waters
of the contiguous zone, (B) with or without a warrant
arrest any person who violates the provisions of this
section or any regulation issued thereunder in his presence or view, and (C) execute any warrant or other
process issued by an officer or court of competent jurisdiction.’’
Subsec. (o)(2). Pub. L. 101–380, § 4202(c), inserted ‘‘, or
with respect to any removal activities related to such
discharge’’ after ‘‘within such State’’.
Subsec. (p). Pub. L. 101–380, § 2002(b)(4), struck out
subsec. (p) which provided for establishment and maintenance of evidence of financial responsibility by vessels over 300 gross tons carrying oil or hazardous substances.
Subsec. (s). Pub. L. 101–380, § 2002(b)(5), added subsec.
(s).
1987—Subsec. (a)(5). Pub. L. 100–4 substituted ‘‘the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands’’ for
‘‘the Canal Zone’’.
1982—Subsec. (i)(1), (3). Pub. L. 97–164 substituted
‘‘Claims Court’’ for ‘‘Court of Claims’’.
1980—Subsec. (b)(1), (2)(A), (3). Pub. L. 96–561 substituted ‘‘Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Management Act’’ for ‘‘Fishery Conservation and Management
Act of 1976’’.
Subsec. (b)(3)(A). Pub. L. 96–478 struck out ‘‘of oil’’
after ‘‘in the case of such discharges’’ and substituted
‘‘Protocol of 1978 Relating to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973’’
for ‘‘International Convention for the Prevention of
Pollution of the Sea by Oil, 1954, as amended’’.
Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 96–561 substituted ‘‘Magnuson
Fishery Conservation and Management Act’’ for ‘‘Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976’’.
Subsec. (k). Pub. L. 96–483 designated existing provisions as par. (1) and added par. (2).
1978—Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 95–576, § 1(b)(1), excluded
discharges described in cls. (A) to (C) from term ‘‘discharge’’.
Subsec. (a)(17). Pub. L. 95–576, § 1(b)(2), added par. (17).
Subsec. (b)(2)(B). Pub. L. 95–576, § 1(b)(3), substituted
requirement that a study be made respecting methods,
mechanisms, and procedures for creating incentives to
achieve higher standard of care in management and
movement of hazardous substances, including consideration of enumerated items, and a report made to Congress within 18 months after Nov. 2, 1978, for provisions
concerning actual removability of any designated hazardous substance, liability during two year period commencing Oct. 18, 1972 based on toxicity, degradability,
and dispersal characteristics of the substance limited
to $50,000 and without limitation in cases of willful negligence or willful misconduct, liability after such two
year period ranging from $500 to $5,000 based on toxicity, etc., or liability for penalty determined by number of units discharged multiplied by amount established for the unit limited to $5,000,000 in the case of a
discharge from a vessel and to $500,000 in the case of a
discharge from onshore or offshore facility, establishment by regulation of a unit of measurement based
upon the usual trade practice for each designated hazardous substance and establishment for such unit a
fixed monetary amount ranging from $100 to $1,000
based on toxicity, etc.
Subsec. (b)(3). Pub. L. 95–576, § 1(b)(4), substituted
‘‘such quantities as may be harmful’’ for ‘‘harmful
quantities’’.
Subsec. (b)(4). Pub. L. 95–576, § 1(b)(5), struck out ‘‘, to
be issued as soon as possible after October 18, 1972,’’
after ‘‘regulation’’ and substituted ‘‘substances’’ for
‘‘substance’’ and ‘‘discharge of which may be harmful’’
for ‘‘discharge of which, at such times, locations, circumstances, and conditions, will be harmful’’.
Subsec. (b)(5). Pub. L. 95–576, § 1(b)(6), inserted ‘‘at the
time of the discharge’’ after ‘‘otherwise subject to the
jurisdiction of the United States’’.

Page 502

Subsec. (b)(6)(A) to (E). Pub. L. 95–576, § 1(b)(7), designated existing provisions as subpar. (A), inserted ‘‘at
the time of the discharge’’ after ‘‘jurisdiction of the
United States’’, and added subpars. (B) to (E).
1977—Subsec. (a)(11). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(k), inserted
‘‘, and any facility of any kind which is subject to the
jurisdiction of the United States and is located in, on,
or under any other waters,’’ after ‘‘United States’’.
Subsec. (a)(15), (16). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(d)(1), added
pars. (15) and (16).
Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(a)(1), inserted reference to activities under the Outer Continental Shelf
Lands Act or the Deepwater Port Act of 1974, or which
may affect natural resources belonging to, appertaining to, or under the exclusive management authority of the United States (including resources under the
Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976).
Subsec. (b)(2)(A). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(a)(2), inserted reference to activities under the Outer Continental Shelf
Lands Act or the Deepwater Port Act of 1974, or which
may affect natural resources belonging to, appertaining to, or under the exclusive management authority of the United States (including resources under the
Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976).
Subsec. (b)(2)(B)(v). Pub. L. 95–217, § 57, added cl. (v).
Subsec. (b)(3). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(a)(3), (4), designated
part of existing provisions preceding cl. (A) as cl. (i)
and added cl. (ii), and, in cl. (A), inserted ‘‘or which
may affect natural resources belonging to, appertaining to, or under the exclusive management authority of the United States (including resources under the
Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976)’’
after ‘‘waters of the contiguous zone’’ and struck out
‘‘article IV of’’ before ‘‘the International Convention
for the Prevention of Pollution of the Sea by Oil, 1954’’.
Subsec. (b)(4). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(a)(5), struck out provisions under which, in the case of the discharge of oil
into or upon the waters of the contiguous zone, only
those discharges which threatened the fishery resources of the contiguous zone or threatened to pollute
or contribute to the pollution of the territory or the
territorial sea of the United States could be determined
to be harmful.
Subsec. (b)(5). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(a)(6), added cls. (A),
(B), and (C) between ‘‘Any such person’’ and ‘‘who fails
to notify’’.
Subsec. (b)(6). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(a)(7), (8), substituted
‘‘Any owner, operator, or person in charge of any onshore facility, or offshore facility’’ for ‘‘Any owner or
operator of any vessel, onshore facility, or offshore facility’’ in provision relating to violations of par. (3) of
this subsection, and inserted provisions directing the
assessment of a civil penalty of not more than $5,000 for
each offense by the Secretary of the department in
which the Coast Guard is operating to be assessed
against any owner, operator, or person in charge of any
vessel from which oil or a hazardous substance is discharged in violation of paragraph (3)(i) of this subsection, and any owner, operator, or person in charge of
a vessel from which oil or a hazardous substance is discharged in violation of paragraph (3)(ii) who is otherwise subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.
Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(b), (c)(1), inserted
‘‘or there is a substantial threat of such discharge,’’
after ‘‘Whenever any oil or a hazardous substance is
discharged,’’ and ‘‘or in connection with activities
under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act or the
Deepwater Port Act of 1974, or which may affect natural resources belonging to, appertaining to, or under
the exclusive management authority of the United
States (including resources under the Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976)’’ after ‘‘waters
of the contiguous zone,’’.
Subsec. (c)(2)(D). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(e), substituted
‘‘and imminent threats of such discharges to the appropriate State and Federal agencies;’’ for ‘‘to the appropriate Federal agency;’’.
Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(c)(2), inserted ‘‘or
under the Intervention on the High Seas Act (or the
convention defined in section 2(3) thereof)’’ after ‘‘Any
expense incurred under this subsection’’.

Page 503

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

Subsec. (f)(1). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(d)(2), substituted
‘‘, in the case of an inland oil barge $125 per gross ton
of such barge, or $125,000, whichever is greater, and in
the case of any other vessel, $150 per gross ton of such
vessel (or, for a vessel carrying oil or hazardous substances as cargo, $250,000), whichever is greater,’’ for
‘‘$100 per gross ton of such vessel or $14,000,000, whichever is lesser,’’.
Subsec. (f)(2), (3). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(d)(5), (6), substituted ‘‘$50,000,000’’ for ‘‘$8,000,000’’.
Subsec. (f)(4), (5). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(g), added pars. (4)
and (5).
Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(d)(3), (f), substituted
‘‘, in the case of an inland oil barge $125 per gross ton
of such barge, or $125,000, whichever is greater, and in
the case of any other vessel, $150 per gross ton of such
vessel (or, for a vessel carrying oil or hazardous substances as cargo, $250,000), whichever is greater’’ for
‘‘$100 per gross ton of such vessel or $14,000,000, whichever is the lesser’’ in the existing provisions and inserted provision under which, where the owner or operator of a vessel (other than an inland oil barge) carrying oil or hazardous substances as cargo or an onshore or offshore facility which handles or stores oil or
hazardous substances in bulk, from which oil or a hazardous substance is discharged in violation of subsec.
(b) of this section, alleges that the discharge was
caused solely by an act or omission of a third party,
the owner or operator must pay to the United States
Government the actual costs incurred under subsec. (c)
of this section for removal of the oil or substance and
shall be entitled by subrogation to all rights of the
United States Government to recover the costs from
the third party under this subsection.
Subsec. (i)(2). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(m), inserted reference to the Deepwater Port Act of 1974.
Subsec. (j)(2). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(c)(3), inserted provision that subsec. (j)(2) shall not apply to any owner or
operator of any vessel from which oil or a hazardous
substance is discharged in violation of subsec. (b)(3)(ii)
of this section unless the owner, operator, or person in
charge is otherwise subject to the jurisdiction of the
United States.
Subsec. (k). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(l), substituted ‘‘such
sums as may be necessary to maintain such fund at a
level of $35,000,000’’ for ‘‘not to exceed $35,000,000’’.
Subsec. (p)(1). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(d)(4), substituted
‘‘, in the case of an inland oil barge $125 per gross ton
of such barge, or $125,000, whichever is greater, and in
the case of any other vessel, $150 per gross ton of such
vessel (or, for a vessel carrying oil or hazardous substances as cargo, $250,000), whichever is greater,’’ for
‘‘$100 per gross ton, or $14,000,000 whichever is the lesser,’’.
Subsecs. (q), (r). Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(i), added subsecs.
(q) and (r).
1973—Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 93–207, § 1(4)(A), (B), substituted ‘‘(b)(3)’’ for ‘‘(b)(2)’’ wherever appearing in
pars. (1) to (3), and substituted ‘‘Administrator’’ for
‘‘Secretary’’ in last sentence of par. (2).
Subsecs. (g), (i). Pub. L. 93–207, § 1(4)(C), substituted
‘‘(b)(3)’’ for ‘‘(b)(2)’’ wherever appearing.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2012 AMENDMENT
Amendment by Pub. L. 112–141 effective Oct. 1, 2012,
see section 3(a) of Pub. L. 112–141, set out as an Effective and Termination Dates of 2012 Amendment note
under section 101 of Title 23, Highways.
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2006 AMENDMENT
Pub. L. 109–241, title IX, § 901(i)(2), July 11, 2006, 120
Stat. 564, provided in part that the amendment made
by section 901(i)(2) is effective Aug. 9, 2004.
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1996 AMENDMENT
Pub. L. 104–208, div. A, title I, § 101(a) [title II,
§ 211(b)], Sept. 30, 1996, 110 Stat. 3009, 3009–41, provided

§ 1321

that the amendment made by that section is effective
15 days after Oct. 11, 1996.
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1992 AMENDMENT
Amendment by Pub. L. 102–572 effective Oct. 29, 1992,
see section 911 of Pub. L. 102–572, set out as a note
under section 171 of Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial
Procedure.
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1990 AMENDMENT
Amendment by Pub. L. 101–380 applicable to incidents
occurring after Aug. 18, 1990, see section 1020 of Pub. L.
101–380, set out as an Effective Date note under section
2701 of this title.
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1982 AMENDMENT
Amendment by Pub. L. 97–164 effective Oct. 1, 1982,
see section 402 of Pub. L. 97–164, set out as a note under
section 171 of Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial Procedure.
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1980 AMENDMENTS
Pub. L. 96–561, title II, § 238(b), Dec. 22, 1980, 94 Stat.
3300, provided that the amendment made by that section is effective 15 days after Dec. 22, 1980.
Amendment by Pub. L. 96–478 effective Oct. 2, 1983,
see section 14(a) of Pub. L. 96–478, set out as an Effective Date note under section 1901 of this title.
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1977 AMENDMENT
Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(h), Dec. 27, 1977, 91 Stat. 1596, provided that: ‘‘The amendments made by paragraphs (5)
and (6) of subsection (d) of this section [amending this
section] shall take effect 180 days after the date of enactment of the Clean Water Act of 1977 [Dec. 27, 1977].’’
RULE OF CONSTRUCTION
Nothing in amendment made by section 11309(b)(1) of
Pub. L. 117–263 to be construed to satisfy any requirement for government-to-government consultation with
Tribal governments or to affect or modify any treaty or
other right of any Tribal government, see section 11003
of Pub. L. 117–263, set out as a note under section 245 of
Title 6, Domestic Security.
TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS
For transfer of authorities, functions, personnel, and
assets of the Coast Guard, including the authorities
and functions of the Secretary of Transportation relating thereto, to the Department of Homeland Security,
and for treatment of related references, see sections
468(b), 551(d), 552(d), and 557 of Title 6, Domestic Security, and the Department of Homeland Security Reorganization Plan of November 25, 2002, as modified, set
out as a note under section 542 of Title 6.
LIMITED INDEMNITY PROVISIONS IN STANDBY OIL SPILL
RESPONSE CONTRACTS
Pub. L. 117–263, div. K, title CXIII, § 11307, Dec. 23,
2022, 136 Stat. 4078, provided that:
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsections (b) and (c),
a contract with the Coast Guard for the containment or
removal of a discharge entered into by the President
under section 311(c) of the Federal Water Pollution
Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1321(c)) shall contain a provision
to indemnify a contractor for liabilities and expenses
incidental to the containment or removal arising out of
the performance of the contract that is substantially
identical to the terms contained in subsections (d)
through (h) of section H.4 (except for paragraph (1) of
subsection (d)) of the contract offered by the Coast
Guard in the solicitation numbered DTCG89–98–
A–68F953, dated November 17, 1998.
‘‘(b) REQUIREMENTS.—
‘‘(1) SOURCE OF FUNDS.—The provision required
under subsection (a) shall include a provision that
the obligation to indemnify is limited to funds available in the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund established

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

by section 9509(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986
[26 U.S.C. 9509(a)] at the time the claim for indemnity
is made.
‘‘(2) UNCOMPENSATED REMOVAL.—A claim for indemnity under a contract described in subsection (a) shall
be made as a claim for uncompensated removal costs
under section 1012(a)(4) of the Oil Pollution Act of
1990 (33 U.S.C. 2712(a)(4)).
‘‘(3) LIMITATION.—The total indemnity for a claim
under a contract described in subsection (a) may not
be more than $50,000 per incident.
‘‘(c) APPLICABILITY OF EXEMPTIONS.—Notwithstanding
subsection (a), the United States shall not be obligated
to indemnify a contractor for any act or omission of
the contractor carried out pursuant to a contract entered into under this section where such act or omission is grossly negligent or which constitutes willful
misconduct.’’
ESTABLISHMENT OF WESTERN ALASKA OIL SPILL
PLANNING CRITERIA
Pub. L. 117–263, div. K, title CXIII, § 11309(b)(2), Dec.
23, 2022, 136 Stat. 4085, provided that:
‘‘(A) DEADLINE.—Not later than 2 years after the date
of enactment of this Act [Dec. 23, 2022], the President
shall establish the Western Alaska oil spill planning
criteria required to be established under paragraph
(9)(D)(i) of section 311(j) of the Federal Water Pollution
Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1321(j)).
‘‘(B) CONSULTATION.—In establishing the Western
Alaska oil spill planning criteria described in subparagraph (A), the President shall consult with the Federal
agencies, State and local governments, Tribes (as defined in section 323 of title 14, United States Code), the
owners and operators that would be subject to such
planning criteria, oil spill removal organizations, Alaska Native organizations, and environmental nongovernmental organizations.
‘‘(C) CONGRESSIONAL REPORT.—Not later than 2 years
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary
shall submit to Congress a report describing the status
of implementation of paragraph (9) of section 311(j) of
the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C.
1321(j)).’’
[Nothing in amendment made by Pub. L. 117–263 to be
construed to satisfy any requirement for governmentto-government consultation with Tribal governments
or to affect or modify any treaty or other right of any
Tribal government, see section 11003 of Pub. L. 117–263,
set out as a note under section 245 of Title 6, Domestic
Security.]
[For definition of ‘‘Secretary’’ as used in section
11309(b)(2) of Pub. L. 117–263, set out above, see section
11002 of Pub. L. 117–263, set out as a note under section
106 of Title 14, Coast Guard.]
TERMINATION OF UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR
THE DISTRICT OF THE CANAL ZONE
For termination of the United States District Court
for the District of the Canal Zone at end of the ‘‘transition period’’, being the 30-month period beginning Oct.
1, 1979, and ending midnight Mar. 31, 1982, see Paragraph 5 of Article XI of the Panama Canal Treaty of
1977 and sections 2101 and 2201 to 2203 of Pub. L. 96–70,
title II, Sept. 27, 1979, 93 Stat. 493, formerly classified to
sections 3831 and 3841 to 3843, respectively, of Title 22,
Foreign Relations and Intercourse.
COAST GUARD RESPONSE PLAN REQUIREMENTS
Pub. L. 117–263, div. K, title CXIII, § 11315, Dec. 23,
2022, 136 Stat. 4087, provided that:
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the availability of appropriations, the Commandant [of the Coast Guard]
shall develop and carry out a program—
‘‘(1) to increase collection and improve the quality
of incident data on oil spill location and response capability by periodically evaluating the data, documentation, and analysis of—
‘‘(A) Coast Guard-approved vessel response plans,
including vessel response plan audits and assessments;

Page 504

‘‘(B) oil spill response drills conducted under section 311(j)(7) of the Federal Water Pollution Control
Act (33 U.S.C. 1321(j)(7)) that occur within the Marine Transportation System; and
‘‘(C) responses to oil spill incidents that require
mobilization of contracted response resources;
‘‘(2) to improve the effectiveness of vessel response
plans by—
‘‘(A) systematically reviewing the capacity of an
oil spill response organization identified in a vessel
response plan to provide the specific response resources, such as private personnel, equipment,
other vessels identified in such vessel response
plan; and
‘‘(B) approving a vessel response plan only after
confirming the identified oil spill response organization has the capacity to provide such response resources;
‘‘(3) to update, not less frequently than annually,
information contained in the Coast Guard Response
Resource Inventory and other Coast Guard tools used
to document the availability and status of oil spill response equipment, so as to ensure that such information remains current; and
‘‘(4) subject to section 552 of title 5, United States
Code (commonly known as the ‘Freedom of Information Act’), to make data collected under paragraph (1)
available to the public.
‘‘(b) POLICY.—Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of this Act [Dec. 23, 2022], the Commandant
shall issue a policy—
‘‘(1) to establish processes to maintain the program
under subsection (a) and support Coast Guard oil spill
prevention and response activities, including by incorporating oil spill incident data from after-action
oil spill reports and data ascertained from vessel response plan exercises and audits into—
‘‘(A) review and approval process standards and
metrics;
‘‘(B) alternative planning criteria review processes;
‘‘(C) Area Contingency Plan development;
‘‘(D) risk assessments developed under section
70001 of title 46, United States Code, including lessons learned from reportable marine casualties;
‘‘(E) processes and standards which mitigate the
impact of military personnel rotations in Coast
Guard field units on knowledge and awareness of
vessel response plan requirements, including
knowledge relating to the evaluation of proposed
alternatives to national planning requirements; and
‘‘(F) processes and standards which evaluate the
consequences of reporting inaccurate data in vessel
response plans submitted to the Commandant pursuant to part 300 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, and submitted for storage in the Marine Information for Safety and Law Enforcement database pursuant to section 300.300 of such title (or any
successor regulation);
‘‘(2) to standardize and develop tools, training, and
other relevant guidance that may be shared with vessel owners and operators to assist with accurately
calculating and measuring the performance and viability of proposed alternatives to national planning
criteria requirements and Area Contingency Plans
administered by the Coast Guard;
‘‘(3) to improve training of Coast Guard personnel
to ensure continuity of planning activities under this
section, including by identifying ways in which civilian staffing may improve the continuity of operations; and
‘‘(4) to increase Federal Government engagement
with State, local, and Tribal governments and stakeholders so as to strengthen coordination and efficiency of oil spill responses.
‘‘(c) PERIODIC UPDATES.—Not less frequently than
every 5 years, the Commandant shall update the processes established under subsection (b)(1) to incorporate
relevant analyses of—
‘‘(1) incident data on oil spill location and response
quality;

Page 505

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

‘‘(2) oil spill risk assessments;
‘‘(3) oil spill response effectiveness and the effects
of such response on the environment;
‘‘(4) oil spill response drills conducted under section
311(j)(7) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act
(33 U.S.C. 1321(j)(7));
‘‘(5) marine casualties reported to the Coast Guard;
and
‘‘(6) near miss incidents documented by a vessel
traffic service center (as such terms are defined in
sections 70001(m) of title 46, United States Code).
‘‘(d) REPORT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the
date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter for 5 years, the Commandant shall provide to
the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives a briefing on the status of ongoing and planned
efforts to improve the effectiveness and oversight of
the program established under subsection (a) and vessel response plan approvals.
‘‘(2) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The Commandant shall
publish the briefing required under paragraph (1) on a
publicly accessible website of the Coast Guard.’’
[Nothing in amendment made by Pub. L. 117–263 to be
construed to satisfy any requirement for governmentto-government consultation with Tribal governments
or to affect or modify any treaty or other right of any
Tribal government, see section 11003 of Pub. L. 117–263,
set out as a note under section 245 of Title 6, Domestic
Security.]
Pub. L. 115–282, title VIII, § 823(a), Dec. 4, 2018, 132
Stat. 4311, provided that:
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of the Oil Pollution
Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.), the Commandant of
the Coast Guard may approve a vessel response plan
under section 311 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1321) for a vessel operating in any
area covered by the Captain of the Port Zone (as established by the Commandant) that includes the Arctic, if
the Commandant verifies that—
‘‘(A) equipment required to be available for response under the plan has been tested and proven capable of operating in the environmental conditions
expected in the area in which it is intended to be operated; and
‘‘(B) the operators of such equipment have conducted training on the equipment within the area
covered by such Captain of the Port Zone.
‘‘(2) POST-APPROVAL REQUIREMENTS.—In approving a
vessel response plan under paragraph (1), the Commandant shall—
‘‘(A) require that the oil spill removal organization
identified in the vessel response plan conduct regular
exercises and drills using the response resources identified in the plan in the area covered by the Captain
of the Port Zone that includes the Arctic; and
‘‘(B) allow such oil spill removal organization to
take credit for a response to an actual spill or release
in the area covered by such Captain of the Port Zone,
instead of conducting an exercise or drill required
under subparagraph (A), if the oil spill removal organization—
‘‘(i) documents which exercise or drill requirements were met during the response; and
‘‘(ii) submits a request for credit to, and receives
approval from, the Commandant.’’
Pub. L. 113–281, title III, § 317, Dec. 18, 2014, 128 Stat.
3050, provided that:
‘‘(a) VESSEL RESPONSE PLAN CONTENTS.—The Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is
operating shall require that each vessel response plan
prepared for a mobile offshore drilling unit includes information from the facility response plan prepared for
the mobile offshore drilling unit regarding the planned
response to a worst case discharge, and to a threat of
such a discharge.
‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
‘‘(1) MOBILE OFFSHORE DRILLING UNIT.—The term
‘mobile offshore drilling unit’ has the meaning given

§ 1321

that term in section 1001 of the Oil Pollution Act of
1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701).
‘‘(2) RESPONSE PLAN.—The term ‘response plan’
means a response plan prepared under section 311(j) of
the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C.
1321(j)).
‘‘(3) WORST CASE DISCHARGE.—The term ‘worst case
discharge’ has the meaning given that term under
section 311(a) of the Federal Water Pollution Control
Act (33 U.S.C. 1321(a)).
‘‘(c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section
shall be construed to require the Coast Guard to review
or approve a facility response plan for a mobile offshore
drilling unit.’’
RESOURCES AND ECOSYSTEMS SUSTAINABILITY, TOURIST
OPPORTUNITIES, AND REVIVED ECONOMIES OF THE
GULF COAST STATES
Pub. L. 112–141, div. A, title I, subtitle F, July 6, 2012,
126 Stat. 588, provided that:
‘‘SEC. 1601. SHORT TITLE.
‘‘This subtitle may be cited as the ‘Resources and
Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and
Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act of
2012’.
‘‘SEC. 1602. GULF COAST RESTORATION TRUST
FUND.
‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the
Treasury of the United States a trust fund to be known
as the ‘Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund’ (referred to
in this section as the ‘Trust Fund’), consisting of such
amounts as are deposited in the Trust Fund under this
Act [probably means this subtitle] or any other provision of law.
‘‘(b) TRANSFERS.—The Secretary of the Treasury shall
deposit in the Trust Fund an amount equal to 80 percent of all administrative and civil penalties paid by
responsible parties after the date of enactment of this
Act [July 6, 2012] in connection with the explosion on,
and sinking of, the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon pursuant to a court order, negotiated settlement, or other instrument in accordance with section 311 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33
U.S.C. 1321).
‘‘(c) EXPENDITURES.—Amounts in the Trust Fund, including interest earned on advances to the Trust Fund
and proceeds from investment under subsection (d),
shall—
‘‘(1) be available for expenditure, without further
appropriation, solely for the purpose and eligible activities of this subtitle and the amendments made by
this subtitle [amending this section]; and
‘‘(2) remain available until expended, without fiscal
year limitation.
‘‘(d) INVESTMENT.—Amounts in the Trust Fund shall
be invested in accordance with section 9702 of title 31,
United States Code, and any interest on, and proceeds
from, any such investment shall be available for expenditure in accordance with this subtitle and the
amendments made by this subtitle.
‘‘(e) ADMINISTRATION.—Not later than 180 days after
the date of enactment of this Act, after providing notice and an opportunity for public comment, the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce,
shall establish such procedures as the Secretary determines to be necessary to deposit amounts in, and expend amounts from, the Trust Fund pursuant to this
subtitle, including—
‘‘(1) procedures to assess whether the programs and
activities carried out under this subtitle and the
amendments made by this subtitle achieve compliance with applicable requirements, including procedures by which the Secretary of the Treasury may determine whether an expenditure by a Gulf Coast
State or coastal political subdivision (as those terms
are defined in section 311 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1321)) pursuant to such a
program or activity achieves compliance;

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

‘‘(2) auditing requirements to ensure that amounts
in the Trust Fund are expended as intended; and
‘‘(3) procedures for identification and allocation of
funds available to the Secretary under other provisions of law that may be necessary to pay the administrative expenses directly attributable to the management of the Trust Fund.
‘‘(f) SUNSET.—The authority for the Trust Fund shall
terminate on the date all funds in the Trust Fund have
been expended.
‘‘SEC. 1603. GULF COAST NATURAL RESOURCES
RESTORATION AND ECONOMIC RECOVERY.
‘‘[Amended this section.]
‘‘SEC. 1604. GULF COAST ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION SCIENCE, OBSERVATION, MONITORING,
AND TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM.
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘Administrator’
means the Administrator of the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration.
‘‘(2) COMMISSION.—The term ‘Commission’ means
the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission.
‘‘(3) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘Director’ means the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
‘‘(4) PROGRAM.—The term ‘program’ means the Gulf
Coast Ecosystem Restoration Science, Observation,
Monitoring, and Technology program established
under this section.
‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the
date of enactment of this Act [July 6, 2012], the Administrator, in consultation with the Director, shall
establish the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration
Science, Observation, Monitoring, and Technology
program to carry out research, observation, and monitoring to support, to the maximum extent practicable, the long-term sustainability of the ecosystem, fish stocks, fish habitat, and the recreational, commercial, and charter fishing industry
in the Gulf of Mexico.
‘‘(2) EXPENDITURE OF FUNDS.—For each fiscal year,
amounts made available to carry out this subsection
may be expended for, with respect to the Gulf of Mexico—
‘‘(A) marine and estuarine research;
‘‘(B) marine and estuarine ecosystem monitoring
and ocean observation;
‘‘(C) data collection and stock assessments;
‘‘(D) pilot programs for—
‘‘(i) fishery independent data; and
‘‘(ii) reduction of exploitation of spawning aggregations; and
‘‘(E) cooperative research.
‘‘(3) COOPERATION WITH THE COMMISSION.—For each
fiscal year, amounts made available to carry out this
subsection may be transferred to the Commission to
establish a fisheries monitoring and research program, with respect to the Gulf of Mexico.
‘‘(4) CONSULTATION.—The Administrator and the Director shall consult with the Regional Gulf of Mexico
Fishery Management Council and the Commission in
carrying out the program.
‘‘(c) SPECIES INCLUDED.—The research, monitoring,
assessment, and programs eligible for amounts made
available under the program shall include all marine,
estuarine, aquaculture, and fish species in State and
Federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
‘‘(d) RESEARCH PRIORITIES.—In distributing funding
under this subsection, priority shall be given to integrated, long-term projects that—
‘‘(1) build on, or are coordinated with, related research activities; and
‘‘(2) address current or anticipated marine ecosystem, fishery, or wildlife management information
needs.
‘‘(e) DUPLICATION.—In carrying out this section, the
Administrator, in consultation with the Director, shall
seek to avoid duplication of other research and monitoring activities.

Page 506

‘‘(f) COORDINATION WITH OTHER PROGRAMS.—The Administrator, in consultation with the Director, shall
develop a plan for the coordination of projects and activities between the program and other existing Federal and State science and technology programs in the
States of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and
Texas, as well as between the centers of excellence.
‘‘(g) LIMITATION ON EXPENDITURES.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not more than 3 percent of funds
provided in subsection (h) shall be used for administrative expenses.
‘‘(2) NOAA.—The funds provided in subsection (h)
may not be used—
‘‘(A) for any existing or planned research led by
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, unless agreed to in writing by the grant recipient;
‘‘(B) to implement existing regulations or initiate
new regulations promulgated or proposed by the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration;
or
‘‘(C) to develop or approve a new limited access
privilege program (as that term is used in section
303A of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1853a)) for any
fishery under the jurisdiction of the South Atlantic, Mid-Atlantic, New England, or Gulf of Mexico
Fishery Management Councils.
‘‘(h) FUNDING.—Of the total amount made available
for each fiscal year for the Gulf Coast Restoration
Trust Fund established under section 1602, 2.5 percent
shall be available to carry out the program.
‘‘(i) SUNSET.—The program shall cease operations
when all funds in the Gulf Coast Restoration Trust
Fund established under section 1602 have been expended.
‘‘SEC. 1605. CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE RESEARCH
GRANTS.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Of the total amount made available for each fiscal year from the Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund established under section 1602, 2.5 percent shall be made available to the Gulf Coast States
(as defined in section 311(a) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act [33 U.S.C. 1321(a)] (as added by section
1603 of the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability,
Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the
Gulf Coast States Act of 2012)), in equal shares, exclusively for grants in accordance with subsection (c) to
establish centers of excellence to conduct research only
on the Gulf Coast Region (as defined in section 311 of
the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33. [sic]
U.S.C. 1321)).
‘‘(b) APPROVAL BY STATE ENTITY, TASK FORCE, OR
AGENCY.—The duties of a Gulf Coast State under this
section shall be carried out by the applicable Gulf
Coast State entities, task forces, or agencies listed in
section 311(t)(1)(F) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (as added by section 1603 of the Resources and
Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and
Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act of
2012), and for the State of Florida, a consortium of public and private research institutions within the State,
which shall include the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the Florida Fish and Wildlife
Conservation Commission, for that Gulf Coast State.
‘‘(c) GRANTS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A Gulf Coast State shall use the
amounts made available to carry out this section to
award competitive grants to nongovernmental entities and consortia in the Gulf Coast region (including
public and private institutions of higher education)
for the establishment of centers of excellence as described in subsection (d).
‘‘(2) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive a grant
under this subsection, an entity or consortium described in paragraph (1) shall submit to a Gulf Coast
State an application at such time, in such manner,
and containing such information as the Gulf Coast
State determines to be appropriate.

Page 507

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

‘‘(3) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this subsection, a Gulf Coast State shall give priority to entities and consortia that demonstrate the ability to establish the broadest cross-section of participants
with interest and expertise in any discipline described in subsection (d) on which the proposal of the
center of excellence will be focused.
‘‘(4) REPORTING.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each Gulf Coast State shall
provide annually to the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration
Council
established
under
section
311(t)(2)(C) of the Federal Water Pollution Control
Act [31 U.S.C. 1321(t)(2)(C)] (as added by section 1603
of the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability,
Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of
the Gulf Coast States Act of 2012) information regarding all grants, including the amount, discipline
or disciplines, and recipients of the grants, and in
the case of any grant awarded to a consortium, the
membership of the consortium.
‘‘(B) INCLUSION.—The Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council shall include the information received under subparagraph (A) in the annual report
to Congress of the Council required under section
311(t)(2)(C)(vii)(VII) of the Federal Water Pollution
Control Act (as added by section 1603 of the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf
Coast States Act of 2012).
‘‘(d) DISCIPLINES.—Each center of excellence shall
focus on science, technology, and monitoring in at
least 1 of the following disciplines:
‘‘(1) Coastal and deltaic sustainability, restoration
and protection, including solutions and technology
that allow citizens to live in a safe and sustainable
manner in a coastal delta in the Gulf Coast Region.
‘‘(2) Coastal fisheries and wildlife ecosystem research and monitoring in the Gulf Coast Region.
‘‘(3) Offshore energy development, including research and technology to improve the sustainable and
safe development of energy resources in the Gulf of
Mexico.
‘‘(4) Sustainable and resilient growth, economic and
commercial development in the Gulf Coast Region.
‘‘(5) Comprehensive observation, monitoring, and
mapping of the Gulf of Mexico.
‘‘SEC. 1606. EFFECT.
‘‘(a) DEFINITION OF DEEPWATER HORIZON OIL SPILL.—
In this section, the term ‘Deepwater Horizon oil spill’
has the meaning given the term in section 311(a) of the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1321(a)).
‘‘(b) EFFECT AND APPLICATION.—Nothing in this subtitle or any amendment made by this subtitle—
‘‘(1) supersedes or otherwise affects any other provision of Federal law, including, in particular, laws providing recovery for injury to natural resources under
the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.)
and laws for the protection of public health and the
environment; or
‘‘(2) applies to any fine collected under section 311
of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C.
1321) for any incident other than the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
‘‘(c) USE OF FUNDS.—Funds made available under this
subtitle may be used only for eligible activities specifically authorized by this subtitle and the amendments
made by this subtitle.
‘‘SEC. 1607. RESTORATION AND PROTECTION ACTIVITY LIMITATIONS.
‘‘(a) WILLING SELLER.—Funds made available under
this subtitle may only be used to acquire land or interests in land by purchase, exchange, or donation from a
willing seller.
‘‘(b) ACQUISITION OF FEDERAL LAND.—None of the
funds made available under this subtitle may be used to
acquire land in fee title by the Federal Government unless—
‘‘(1) the land is acquired by exchange or donation;
or

§ 1321

‘‘(2) the acquisition is necessary for the restoration
and protection of the natural resources, ecosystems,
fisheries, marine and wildlife habitats, beaches, and
coastal wetlands of the Gulf Coast region and has the
concurrence of the Governor of the State in which
the acquisition will take place.
‘‘SEC. 1608. INSPECTOR GENERAL.
‘‘The Office of the Inspector General of the Department of the Treasury shall have authority to conduct,
supervise, and coordinate audits and investigations of
projects, programs, and activities funded under this
subtitle and the amendments made by this subtitle.’’
RULEMAKINGS
Pub. L. 111–281, title VII, § 701(a), (b), Oct. 15, 2010, 124
Stat. 2980, provided that:
‘‘(a) STATUS REPORT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the
date of enactment of this Act [Oct. 15, 2010], the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is
operating shall provide a report to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
and the House of Representatives Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure on the status of all
Coast Guard rulemakings required or otherwise being
developed (but for which no final rule has been issued
as of the date of enactment of this Act) under section
311 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33
U.S.C. 1321).
‘‘(2) INFORMATION REQUIRED.—The Secretary shall
include in the report required in paragraph (1)—
‘‘(A) a detailed explanation with respect to each
such rulemaking as to—
‘‘(i) what steps have been completed;
‘‘(ii) what areas remain to be addressed; and
‘‘(iii) the cause of any delays; and
‘‘(B) the date by which a final rule may reasonably be expected to be issued.
‘‘(b) FINAL RULES.—The Secretary shall issue a final
rule in each pending rulemaking described in subsection (a) as soon as practicable, but in no event later
than 18 months after the date of enactment of this
Act.’’
IMPLEMENTATION DATE FOR VESSEL RESPONSE PLANS
FOR NONTANK VESSELS
Pub. L. 108–293, title VII, § 701(c), Aug. 9, 2004, 118
Stat. 1068, provided that: ‘‘No later than one year after
the date of enactment of this Act [Aug. 9, 2004], the
owner or operator of a nontank vessel (as defined [sic]
section 311(j)(9) [311(a)(26)] of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1321(j)(9) [1321(a)(26)], as
amended by this section) shall prepare and submit a
vessel response plan for such vessel.’’
REPORT ON OIL SPILL RESPONDER IMMUNITY
Pub. L. 107–295, title IV, § 440, Nov. 25, 2002, 116 Stat.
2130, provided that:
‘‘(a) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than January 1,
2004, the Secretary of the department in which the
Coast Guard is operating, jointly with the Secretary of
Commerce and the Secretary of the Interior, and after
consultation with the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and the Attorney General,
shall submit a report to the Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the
House of Representatives on the immunity from criminal and civil penalties provided under existing law of a
private responder (other than a responsible party) in
the case of the incidental take of federally listed fish
or wildlife that results from, but is not the purpose of,
carrying out an otherwise lawful activity conducted by
that responder during an oil spill removal activity
where the responder was acting in a manner consistent
with the National Contingency Plan or as otherwise directed by the Federal On-Scene Coordinator for the
spill, and on the circumstances under which such pen-

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

alties have been or could be imposed on a private responder. The report shall take into consideration the
procedures under the Inter-Agency Memorandum for
addressing incidental takes.
‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section—
‘‘(1) the term ‘Federal On-Scene Coordinator’ has
the meaning given that term in section 311 of the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1321);
‘‘(2) the term ‘incidental take’ has the meaning
given that term in the Inter-Agency Memorandum;
‘‘(3) the term ‘Inter-Agency Memorandum’ means
the Inter-Agency Memorandum of Agreement Regarding Oil Spill Planning and Response Activities
under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act’s National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan and the Endangered Species Act [of
1973, 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.], effective on July 22, 2001;
‘‘(4) the terms ‘National Contingency Plan’, ‘removal’, and ‘responsible party’ have the meanings
given those terms under section 1001 of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701); and
‘‘(5) the term ‘private responder’ means a nongovernmental entity or individual that is carrying
out an oil spill removal activity at the direction of a
Federal agency or a responsible party.’’
OIL SPILL LIABILITY UNDER OIL POLLUTION ACT OF
1990
Pub. L. 101–380, title II, § 2002(a), Aug. 18, 1990, 104
Stat. 507, provided that: ‘‘Subsections (f), (g), (h), and
(i) of section 311 of the Federal Water Pollution Control
Act (33 U.S.C. 1321) shall not apply with respect to any
incident for which liability is established under section
1002 of this Act [33 U.S.C. 2702].’’
TRANSFER OF MONEYS TO OIL SPILL LIABILITY TRUST
FUND
Pub. L. 101–380, title II, § 2002(b)(2), Aug. 18, 1990, 104
Stat. 507, provided that: ‘‘Subsection (k) [of this section] is repealed. Any amounts remaining in the revolving fund established under that subsection shall be deposited in the [Oil Spill Liability Trust] Fund. The
Fund shall assume all liability incurred by the revolving fund established under that subsection.’’
REVISION OF NATIONAL CONTINGENCY PLAN
Pub. L. 101–380, title IV, § 4201(c)[(d)], Aug. 18, 1990, 104
Stat. 527, provided that: ‘‘Not later than one year after
the date of the enactment of this Act [Aug. 18, 1990],
the President shall revise and republish the National
Contingency Plan prepared under section 311(c)(2) of
the Federal Water Pollution Control Act [33 U.S.C.
1321(c)(2)] (as in effect immediately before the date of
the enactment of this Act) to implement the amendments made by this section and section 4202 [amending
this section].’’
[For delegation of functions of President under section 4201(c) of Pub. L. 101–380, set out above, see Ex.
Ord. No. 12580, Jan. 23, 1987, 52 F.R. 2923, as amended,
set out as a note under section 9615 of Title 42, The
Public Health and Welfare.]
IMPLEMENTATION OF NATIONAL PLANNING AND
RESPONSE SYSTEM
Pub. L. 101–380, title IV, § 4202(b), Aug. 18, 1990, 104
Stat. 531, provided that:
‘‘(1) AREA COMMITTEES AND CONTINGENCY PLANS.—(A)
Not later than 6 months after the date of the enactment of this Act [Aug. 18, 1990], the President shall designate the areas for which Area Committees are established under section 311(j)(4) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act [33 U.S.C. 1321(j)(4)], as amended by
this Act. In designating such areas, the President shall
ensure that all navigable waters, adjoining shorelines,
and waters of the exclusive economic zone are subject
to an Area Contingency Plan under that section.
‘‘(B) Not later than 18 months after the date of the
enactment of this Act, each Area Committee established under that section shall submit to the President
the Area Contingency Plan required under that section.

Page 508

‘‘(C) Not later than 24 months after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the President shall—
‘‘(i) promptly review each plan;
‘‘(ii) require amendments to any plan that does not
meet the requirements of section 311(j)(4) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act; and
‘‘(iii) approve each plan that meets the requirements of that section.
‘‘(2) NATIONAL RESPONSE UNIT.—Not later than one
year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the
Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard
is operating shall establish a National Response Unit in
accordance with section 311(j)(2) of the Federal Water
Pollution Control Act, as amended by this Act.
‘‘(3) COAST GUARD DISTRICT RESPONSE GROUPS.—Not
later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this
Act, the Secretary of the department in which the
Coast Guard is operating shall establish Coast Guard
District Response Groups in accordance with section
311(j)(3) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as
amended by this Act.
‘‘(4) TANK VESSEL AND FACILITY RESPONSE PLANS;
TRANSITION PROVISION; EFFECTIVE DATE OF PROHIBITION.—(A) Not later than 24 months after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the President shall issue
regulations for tank vessel and facility response plans
under section 311(j)(5) of the Federal Water Pollution
Control Act, as amended by this Act.
‘‘(B) During the period beginning 30 months after the
date of the enactment of this paragraph [Aug. 18, 1990]
and ending 36 months after that date of enactment, a
tank vessel or facility for which a response plan is required to be prepared under section 311(j)(5) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended by this
Act, may not handle, store, or transport oil unless the
owner or operator thereof has submitted such a plan to
the President.
‘‘(C) Subparagraph (E) of section 311(j)(5) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended by this
Act, shall take effect 36 months after the date of the
enactment of this Act.’’
DEPOSIT OF CERTAIN PENALTIES INTO OIL SPILL
LIABILITY TRUST FUND
Penalties paid pursuant to this section and sections
1319(c) and 1501 et seq. of this title to be deposited in
the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund created under section 9509 of Title 26, Internal Revenue Code, see section
4304 of Pub. L. 101–380, set out as a note under section
9509 of Title 26.
ALLOWABLE DELAY IN ESTABLISHING FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY FOR INCREASE IN AMOUNTS UNDER 1977
AMENDMENT
Pub. L. 95–217, § 58(j), Dec. 27, 1977, 91 Stat. 1596, provided that: ‘‘No vessel subject to the increased amounts
which result from the amendments made by subsections (d)(2), (d)(3), and (d)(4) of this section [amending this section] shall be required to establish any evidence of financial responsibility under section 311(p) of
the Federal Water Pollution Control Act [subsec. (p) of
this section] for such increased amounts before October
1, 1978.’’
Executive Documents
TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS
Enforcement functions of Administrator or other official of the Environmental Protection Agency under
this section relating to spill prevention, containment
and countermeasure plans with respect to pre-construction, construction, and initial operation of transportation system for Canadian and Alaskan natural gas
were transferred to the Federal Inspector, Office of
Federal Inspector for the Alaska Natural Gas Transportation System, until the first anniversary of the date of
initial operation of the Alaska Natural Gas Transportation System, see Reorg. Plan No. 1 of 1979, §§ 102(a),
203(a), 44 F.R. 33663, 33666, 93 Stat. 1373, 1376, effective

Page 509

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

July 1, 1979, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employees. Office of Federal Inspector for the Alaska Natural Gas Transportation System abolished and functions and authority vested in Inspector transferred to Secretary of Energy by section
3012(b) of Pub. L. 102–486, set out as an Abolition of Office of Federal Inspector note under section 719e of
Title 15, Commerce and Trade. Functions and authority
vested in Secretary of Energy subsequently transferred
to Federal Coordinator for Alaska Natural Gas Transportation Projects by section 720d(f) of Title 15.
DELEGATION OF FUNCTIONS
For delegation of certain functions of President
under this section, see Ex. Ord. No. 12580, Jan. 23, 1987,
52 F.R. 2923, as amended, set out as a note under section
9615 of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare.
TERMINATION OF TRUST TERRITORY OF THE PACIFIC
ISLANDS
For termination of Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, see note set out preceding section 1681 of Title
48, Territories and Insular Possessions.
TERRITORIAL SEA AND CONTIGUOUS ZONE OF UNITED
STATES
For extension of territorial sea and contiguous zone
of United States, see Proc. No. 5928 and Proc. No. 7219,
respectively, set out as notes under section 1331 of Title
43, Public Lands.
EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 11735
Ex. Ord. No. 11735, Aug. 3, 1973, 38 F.R. 21243, as
amended by Ex. Ord. No. 12418, May 5, 1983, 48 F.R.
20891, which assigned functions of the President regarding water pollution, was revoked by Ex. Ord. No. 12777,
§ 8(i), Oct. 18, 1991, 56 F.R. 54769, set out below.
EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 12418
Ex. Ord. No. 12418, May 5, 1983, 48 F.R. 20891, which
transferred certain functions relating to the financial
responsibility of vessels for water pollution and established authority of Federal agencies to respond to discharges or substantial threats of discharges of oil and
hazardous substances, was revoked by Ex. Ord. No.
12777, § 8(i), Oct. 18, 1991, 56 F.R. 54769, set out below.
EX. ORD. NO. 12777. IMPLEMENTATION OF THIS SECTION
AND OIL POLLUTION ACT OF 1990
Ex. Ord. No. 12777, Oct. 18, 1991, 56 F.R. 54757, as
amended by Ex. Ord. No. 13286, § 34, Feb. 28, 2003, 68 F.R.
10625; Ex. Ord. No. 13638, § 1, Mar. 15, 2013, 78 F.R. 17589,
provided:
By the authority vested in me as President by the
Constitution and the laws of the United States of
America, including Section 311 of the Federal Water
Pollution Control Act, (‘‘FWPCA’’) (33 U.S.C. 1321), as
amended by the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (Public Law
101–380) (‘‘OPA’’), and by Section 301 of Title 3 of the
United States Code, it is hereby ordered as follows:
SECTION 1. National Contingency Plan, Area Committees,
and Area Contingency Plans. (a) [Amended Ex. Ord. No.
12580, set out as a note under section 9615 of Title 42,
The Public Health and Welfare.]
(b) The functions vested in the President by Section
311(j)(4) of FWPCA, and Section 4202(b)(1) of OPA [set
out as a note above], respecting the designation of
Areas, the appointment of Area Committee members,
the requiring of information to be included in Area
Contingency Plans, and the review and approval of
Area Contingency Plans are delegated to the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (‘‘Administrator’’) for the inland zone and the Secretary of
the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating
for the coastal zone (inland and coastal zones are defined in the NCP).
SEC. 2. National Response System. (a) The functions
vested in the President by Section 311(j)(1)(A) of

§ 1321

FWPCA, respecting the establishment of methods and
procedures for the removal of discharged oil and hazardous substances, and by Section 311(j)(1)(B) of
FWPCA respecting the establishment of criteria for the
development and implementation of local and regional
oil and hazardous substance removal contingency
plans, are delegated to the Administrator for the inland
zone and the Secretary of the Department in which the
Coast Guard is operating for the coastal zone.
(b)(1) The functions vested in the President by Section 311(j)(1)(C) of FWPCA, respecting the establishment of procedures, methods, and equipment and other
requirements for equipment to prevent and to contain
discharges of oil and hazardous substances from nontransportation-related onshore facilities, are delegated
to the Administrator.
(2) The functions vested in the President by Section
311(j)(1)(C) of FWPCA, respecting the establishment of
procedures, methods, and equipment and other requirements for equipment to prevent and to contain discharges of oil and hazardous substances from vessels
and transportation-related onshore facilities and deepwater ports subject to the Deepwater Ports [Port] Act
of 1974 (‘‘DPA’’) [33 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.], are delegated to
the Secretary of Transportation and the Secretary of
the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating.
(3) The functions vested in the President by Section
311(j)(1)(C) of FWPCA, respecting the establishment of
procedures, methods, and equipment and other requirements for equipment to prevent and to contain discharges of oil and hazardous substances from offshore
facilities, including associated pipelines, other than
deepwater ports subject to the DPA, are delegated to
the Secretary of the Interior.
(c) The functions vested in the President by Section
311(j)(1)(D) of FWPCA, respecting the inspection of vessels carrying cargoes of oil and hazardous substances
and the inspection of such cargoes, are delegated to the
Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard
is operating.
(d)(1) The functions vested in the President by Section 311(j)(5) of FWPCA and Section 4202(b)(4) of OPA
[set out as a note above], respecting the issuance of
regulations requiring the owners or operators of nontransportation-related onshore facilities to prepare and
submit response plans, the approval of means to ensure
the availability of private personnel and equipment,
the review and approval of such response plans, and the
authorization of non-transportation-related onshore facilities to operate without approved response plans, are
delegated to the Administrator.
(2) The functions vested in the President by Section
311(j)(5) of FWPCA and Section 4202(b)(4) of OPA, respecting the issuance of regulations requiring the owners or operators of tank vessels, transportation-related
onshore facilities and deepwater ports subject to the
DPA, to prepare and submit response plans, the approval of means to ensure the availability of private
personnel and equipment, the review and approval of
such response plans, and the authorization of tank vessels, transportation-related onshore facilities and deepwater ports subject to the DPA to operate without approved response plans, are delegated to the Secretary of
Transportation and the Secretary of the Department in
which the Coast Guard is operating.
(3) The functions vested in the President by Section
311(j)(5) of FWPCA and Section 4202(b)(4) of OPA, respecting the issuance of regulations requiring the owners or operators of offshore facilities, including associated pipelines, other than deepwater ports subject to
the DPA, to prepare and submit response plans, the approval of means to ensure the availability of private
personnel and equipment, the review and approval of
such response plans, and the authorization of offshore
facilities, including associated pipelines, other than
deepwater ports subject to the DPA, to operate without
approved response plans, are delegated to the Secretary
of the Interior.
(e)(1) The functions vested in the President by Section 311(j)(6)(A) of FWPCA, respecting the requirements

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

for periodic inspections of containment booms and
equipment used to remove discharges at non-transportation-related onshore facilities, are delegated to the
Administrator.
(2) The functions vested in the President by Section
311(j)(6)(A) of FWPCA, respecting the requirements for
periodic inspections of containment booms and equipment used to remove discharges on vessels, and at
transportation-related onshore facilities and deepwater
ports subject to the DPA, are delegated to the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard is
operating.
(3) The functions vested in the President by Section
311(j)(6)(A) of FWPCA, respecting the requirements for
periodic inspections of containment booms and equipment used to remove discharges at offshore facilities,
including associated pipelines, other than deepwater
ports subject to the DPA, are delegated to the Secretary of the Interior.
(f) The functions vested in the President by Section
311(j)(6)(B) of FWPCA, respecting requirements for vessels to carry appropriate removal equipment, are delegated to the Secretary of the Department in which the
Coast Guard is operating.
(g)(1) The functions vested in the President by Section 311(j)(7) of FWPCA, respecting periodic drills of removal capability under relevant response plans for onshore and offshore facilities located in the inland zone,
and the publishing of annual reports on those drills, are
delegated to the Administrator.
(2) The functions vested in the President by Section
311(j)(7) of FWPCA, respecting periodic drills of removal capability under relevant response plans for
tank vessels, and for onshore and offshore facilities located in the coastal zone, and the publishing of annual
reports on those drills, are delegated to the Secretary
of the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating.
(h) No provision of Section 2 of this order, including,
but not limited to, any delegation or assignment of any
function hereunder, shall in any way affect, or be construed or interpreted to affect the authority of any Department or agency, or the head of any Department or
agency under any provision of law other than Section
311(j) of FWPCA or Section 4202(b)(4) of OPA.
(i) The functions vested in the President by Section
311(j) of FWPCA or Section 4202(b)(4) of OPA which
have been delegated or assigned by Section 2 of this
order may be redelegated to the head of any Executive
department or agency with his or her consent.
SEC. 3. Removal. The functions vested in the President
by Section 311(c) of FWPCA and Section 1011 of OPA [33
U.S.C. 2711], respecting an effective and immediate removal or arrangement for removal of a discharge and
mitigation or prevention of a substantial threat of a
discharge of oil or a hazardous substance, the direction
and monitoring of all Federal, State and private actions, the removal and destruction of a vessel, the
issuance of directions, consulting with affected trustees, and removal completion determinations, are delegated to the Administrator for the inland zone and to
the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast
Guard is operating for the coastal zone.
SEC. 4. Liability Limit Adjustment. (a)(1) The following
functions vested in the President by section 1004(d) of
OPA are delegated to the Secretary of the department
in which the Coast Guard is operating, acting in consultation with the Administrator, the Secretary of
Transportation, the Secretary of the Interior, and the
Attorney General:
(A) the adjustment of the limits of liability listed
in section 1004(a) of OPA for vessels, onshore facilities, and deepwater ports subject to the DPA, to reflect significant increases in the Consumer Price
Index;
(B) the establishment of limits of liability under
section 1004(d)(1), with respect to classes or categories of marine transportation-related onshore facilities, and the adjustment of any such limits of liability established under section 1004(d)(1), and of any

Page 510

limits of liability established under section 1004(d)(2)
with respect to deepwater ports subject to the DPA,
to reflect significant increases in the Consumer Price
Index; and
(C) the reporting to Congress on the desirability of
adjusting limits of liability, with respect to vessels,
marine transportation-related onshore facilities, and
deepwater ports subject to the DPA.
(2) The Administrator and the Secretary of Transportation will provide necessary regulatory analysis support to ensure timely regulatory Consumer Price Index
adjustments by the Secretary of the department in
which the Coast Guard is operating of the limits of liability listed in section 1004(a) of OPA for onshore facilities under subparagraph (a)(1)(A) of this section.
(b) The following functions vested in the President by
section 1004(d) of OPA are delegated to the Administrator, acting in consultation with the Secretary of the
department in which the Coast Guard is operating, the
Secretary of Transportation, the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Energy, and the Attorney General:
(1) the establishment of limits of liability under section 1004(d)(1), with respect to classes or categories of
non-transportation-related onshore facilities, and the
adjustment of any such limits of liability established
under section 1004(d)(1) by the Administrator to reflect
significant increases in the Consumer Price Index; and
(2) the reporting to Congress on the desirability of adjusting limits of liability with respect to non-transportation-related onshore facilities.
(c) The following functions vested in the President by
section 1004(d) of OPA are delegated to the Secretary of
Transportation, acting in consultation with the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is
operating, the Administrator, the Secretary of the Interior, and the Attorney General:
(1) the establishment of limits of liability under section 1004(d)(1), with respect to classes or categories of
non-marine transportation-related onshore facilities,
and the adjustment of any such limits of liability established under section 1004(d)(1) by the Secretary of
Transportation to reflect significant increases in the
Consumer Price Index; and
(2) the reporting to Congress on the desirability of adjusting limits of liability, with respect to non-marine
transportation-related onshore facilities.
(d) The following functions vested in the President by
section 1004(d) of OPA are delegated to the Secretary of
the Interior, acting in consultation with the Secretary
of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating, the Administrator, the Secretary of Transportation, and the Attorney General:
(1) the adjustment of limits of liability to reflect significant increases in the Consumer Price Index with respect to offshore facilities, including associated pipelines, other than deepwater ports subject to the DPA;
and
(2) the reporting to Congress on the desirability of adjusting limits of liability with respect to offshore facilities, including associated pipelines, other than deepwater ports subject to the DPA.
SEC. 5. Financial Responsibility. (a)(1) The functions
vested in the President by Section 1016(e) of OPA [33
U.S.C. 2716(e)], respecting (in the case of offshore facilities other than deepwater ports) the issuance of regulations concerning financial responsibility, the determination of acceptable methods of financial responsibility, and the specification of necessary or unacceptable terms, conditions, or defenses, are delegated to the
Secretary of the Interior.
(2) The functions vested in the President by Section
1016(e) of OPA, respecting (in the case of deepwater
ports) the issuance of regulations concerning financial
responsibility, the determination of acceptable methods of financial responsibility, and the specification of
necessary or unacceptable terms, conditions, or defenses, are delegated to the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating.
(b)(1) The functions vested in the President by Section 4303 of OPA [33 U.S.C. 2716a], respecting (in cases

Page 511

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

involving vessels) the assessment of civil penalties, the
compromising, modification or remission, with or without condition, and the referral for collection of such
imposed penalties, and requests to the Attorney General to secure necessary judicial relief, are delegated to
the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast
Guard is operating.
(2) The functions vested in the President by Section
4303 of OPA, respecting (in cases involving offshore facilities other than deepwater ports) the assessment of
civil penalties, the compromising, modification or remission, with or without condition, and the referral for
collection of such imposed penalties, and requests to
the Attorney General to secure necessary judicial relief, are delegated to the Secretary of the Interior.
(3) The functions vested in the President by Section
4303 of OPA, respecting (in cases involving deepwater
ports) the assessment of civil penalties, the compromising, modification or remission, with or without condition, and the referral for collection of such imposed
penalties, and requests to the Attorney General to secure necessary judicial relief, are delegated to the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard is
operating.
SEC. 6. Enforcement. (a) The functions vested in the
President by Section 311(m)(1) of FWPCA, respecting
the enforcement of Section 311 with respect to vessels,
are delegated to the Secretary of the Department in
which the Coast Guard is operating.
(b) The functions vested in the President by Section
311(e) of FWPCA, respecting determinations of imminent and substantial threat, requesting the Attorney
General to secure judicial relief, and other action including issuing administrative orders, are delegated to
the Administrator for the inland zone and to the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard is
operating for the coastal zone.
SEC. 7. Management of the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund
and Claims. (a)(1)(A) The functions vested in the President by Section 1012(a)(1), (3), and (4) of OPA [33 U.S.C.
2712(a)(1), (3), (4)] respecting payment of removal costs
and claims and determining consistency with the National Contingency Plan (NCP) are delegated to the
Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard
is operating.
(B) The functions vested in the President by Section
6002(b) of the OPA [33 U.S.C. 2752(b)] respecting making
amounts, not to exceed $50,000,000 and subject to normal budget controls, in any fiscal year, available from
the Fund (i) to carry out Section 311(c) of FWPCA, and
(ii) to initiate the assessment of natural resources
damages required under Section 1006 of OPA [33 U.S.C.
2706] are delegated to the Secretary of the Department
in which the Coast Guard is operating. Such Secretary
shall make amounts available from the Fund to initiate the assessment of natural resources damages exclusively to the Federal trustees designated in the
NCP. Such Federal trustees shall allocate such
amounts among all trustees required to assess natural
resources damages under Section 1006 of OPA.
(2) The functions vested in the President by Section
1012(a)(2) of OPA [33 U.S.C. 2712(a)(2)], respecting the
payment of costs and determining consistency with the
NCP, are delegated to the Federal trustees designated
in the NCP.
(3) The functions vested in the President by Section
1012(a)(5) of OPA, respecting the payment of costs and
expenses of departments and agencies having responsibility for the implementation, administration, and enforcement of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 and subsections (b), (c), (d), (j) and (l) of Section 311 of FWPCA,
are delegated to each head of such department and
agency.
(b) The functions vested in the President by Section
1012(c) of OPA, respecting designation of Federal officials who may obligate money, are delegated to each
head of the departments and agencies to whom functions have been delegated under section 7(a) of this
order for the purpose of carrying out such functions.
(c)(1) The functions vested in the President by Section 1012(d) and (e) of OPA, respecting the obligation of

§ 1321

the Trust Fund on the request of a Governor or pursuant to an agreement with a State, entrance into agreements with States, agreement upon terms and conditions, and the promulgation of regulations concerning
such obligation and entrance into such agreement, are
delegated to the Secretary of the Department in which
the Coast Guard is operating, in consultation with the
Administrator.
(2) The functions vested in the President by Section
1013(e) of OPA [33 U.S.C. 2713(e)], respecting the promulgation and amendment of regulations for the presentation, filing, processing, settlement, and adjudication
of claims under OPA against the Trust Fund, are delegated to the Secretary of the Department in which the
Coast Guard is operating, in consultation with the Attorney General.
(3) The functions vested in the President by Section
1012(a) of OPA, respecting the payment of costs, damages, and claims, delegated herein to the Secretary of
the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating,
include, inter alia, the authority to process, settle, and
administratively adjudicate such costs, damages, and
claims, regardless of amount.
(d)(1) The Coast Guard is designated the ‘‘appropriate
agency’’ for the purpose of receiving the notice of discharge of oil or hazardous substances required by Section 311(b)(5) of FWPCA, and the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating is authorized to issue regulations implementing this designation.
(2) The functions vested in the President by Section
1014 of OPA [33 U.S.C. 2714], respecting designation of
sources of discharges or threats, notification to responsible parties, promulgation of regulations respecting
advertisements, the advertisement of designation, and
notification of claims procedures, are delegated to the
Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard
is operating.
SEC. 8. Miscellaneous. (a) The functions vested in the
President by Section 311(b)(3) and (4) of FWPCA, as
amended by the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, respecting
the determination of quantities of oil and any hazardous substances the discharge of which may be harmful to the public health or welfare or the environment
and the determinations of quantities, time, locations,
circumstances, or conditions, which are not harmful,
are delegated to the Administrator.
(b) The functions vested in the President by Section
311(d)(2)(G) of FWPCA, respecting schedules of dispersant, chemical, and other spill mitigating devices or
substances, are delegated to the Administrator.
(c) The functions vested in the President by Section
1006(b)(3) and (4) of OPA [33 U.S.C. 2706(b)(3), (4)] respecting the receipt of designations of State and Indian
tribe trustees for natural resources are delegated to the
Administrator.
(d) The function vested in the President by Section
3004 of OPA [104 Stat. 508], with respect to encouraging
the development of an international inventory of
equipment and personnel, is delegated to the Secretary
of the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating, in consultation with the Secretary of State.
(e) The functions vested in the President by Section
4113 of OPA [104 Stat. 516], respecting a study on the
use of liners or other secondary means of containment
for onshore facilities, and the implementation of the
recommendations of the study, are delegated to the Administrator.
(f) The function vested in the President by Section
5002(c)(2)(D) of OPA [33 U.S.C. 2732(c)(2)(D)], respecting
the designating of an employee of the Federal Government who shall represent the Federal Government on
the Oil Terminal Facilities and Oil Tanker Operations
Associations, is delegated to the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating.
(g) The functions vested in the President by Section
5002(o) of OPA, respecting the annual certification of
alternative voluntary advisory groups, are delegated to
the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast
Guard is operating.

§ 1321

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

(h) The function vested in the President by Section
7001(a)(3) of OPA [33 U.S.C. 2761(a)(3)], respecting the
appointment of Federal agencies to membership on the
Interagency Coordinating Committee on Oil Pollution
Research, is delegated to the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating.
(i) Executive Order No. 11735 of August 3, 1973, Executive Order No. 12123 of February 26, 1979, Executive
Order No. 12418 of May 5, 1983 and the memorandum of
August 24, 1990, delegating certain authorities of the
President under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 are revoked.
SEC. 9. Consultation. Authorities and functions delegated or assigned by this order shall be exercised subject to consultation with the Secretaries of departments and the heads of agencies with statutory responsibilities which may be significantly affected, including, but not limited to, the Department of Justice.
SEC. 10. Litigation. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this order, any representation pursuant to or
under this order in any judicial proceedings shall be by
or through the Attorney General. The conduct and control of all litigation arising under the Oil Pollution Act
of 1990 [see Short Title note set out under section 2701
of this title] shall be the responsibility of the Attorney
General.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this order,
the authority under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 to require the Attorney General to commence litigation is
retained by the President.
(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this order,
the Secretaries of the Departments of Transportation,
Commerce, Interior, Agriculture, the Secretary of the
Department in which the Coast Guard is operating,
and/or the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency may request that the Attorney General
commence litigation under the Oil Pollution Act of
1990.
(d) The Attorney General, in his discretion, is authorized to require that, with respect to a particular oil
spill, an agency refrain from taking administrative enforcement action without first consulting with the Attorney General.
EX. ORD. NO. 13626. GULF COAST ECOSYSTEM
RESTORATION
Ex. Ord. No. 13626, Sept. 10, 2012, 77 F.R. 56749, provided:
By the authority vested in me as President by the
Constitution and the laws of the United States of
America, including section 311 of the Federal Water
Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) (33 U.S.C. 1321), section
1006 of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2706), and
section 301 of title 3, United States Code, it is hereby
ordered as follows:
SECTION 1. Policy. Executive Order 13554 of October 5,
2010, was issued after the blowout and explosion of the
mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon that
occurred on April 20, 2010, and resulted in the largest
oil spill in U.S. history (Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill).
Executive Order 13554 recognized the Gulf Coast as a
national treasure and addressed the longstanding ecological decline of that region, which was compounded
by the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill. In doing so, Executive Order 13554 established a Gulf Coast Ecosystem
Restoration Task Force (Task Force) to coordinate
intergovernmental efforts, planning, and the exchange
of information in order to better implement Gulf Coast
ecosystem restoration and facilitate appropriate accountability and support throughout the restoration
process.
Since the implementation of Executive Order 13554,
the Federal Government’s Gulf Coast ecosystem restoration planning efforts have advanced significantly.
The Task Force’s Gulf of Mexico Regional Ecosystem
Restoration Strategy (Strategy), created with input
from Federal, State, tribal, and local governments, and
thousands of involved citizens and organizations across
the region, serves as a comprehensive restoration plan
for addressing ecological concerns in the Gulf of Mex-

Page 512

ico. In light of the release of the Strategy, the ongoing
work of the Natural Resource Damage Trustee Council
(Trustee Council) under the Oil Pollution Act, and the
recent passage of the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act of 2012 (RESTORE
Act) (title I, subtitle F of Public Law 112–141), this
order affirms the Federal Government’s Gulf Coast ecosystem restoration efforts and realigns responsibilities
to ensure the most effective governmental planning
and coordination to reach these goals.
SEC. 2. Termination of the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force. The progress of the Task Force is noteworthy. It has completed the Strategy and the preliminary planning and coordination tasks that it was intended to produce and has significantly advanced important ecosystem restoration goals for the Gulf of
Mexico. In light of the recent creation, described below,
of the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council (Gulf
Restoration Council), which will build upon the Task
Force’s already successful collaboration between Federal, State, and tribal governments and, as directed by
statute, include and incorporate in its proposed comprehensive plan the findings and information prepared
by the Task Force, the Task Force shall terminate no
later than 60 days after the Gulf Restoration Council
commences its work. The functions of the Task Force
will be performed by the Gulf Restoration Council and
the Trustee Council to the extent practicable, as set
forth in this order. Prior to its termination, the Task
Force will provide such assistance as is appropriate to
the Gulf Restoration Council.
SEC. 3. The Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund and the
Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council.
(a) Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund. The RESTORE
Act, which was signed into law as part of the Moving
Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (Public Law
112–141), established a mechanism for providing funding
to the Gulf region to restore ecosystems and rebuild
local economies damaged by the Deepwater Horizon Oil
Spill. The RESTORE Act established in the Treasury of
the United States the Gulf Coast Restoration Trust
Fund (Trust Fund), consisting of 80 percent of an
amount equal to any administrative and civil penalties
paid after the date of the RESTORE Act by the responsible parties in connection with the Deepwater Horizon
Oil Spill to the United States pursuant to a court
order, negotiated settlement, or other instrument in
accordance with section 311 of the FWPCA (33 U.S.C.
1321).
(b) Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council. The RESTORE Act established the Gulf Restoration Council,
an independent entity charged with developing a comprehensive plan for ecosystem restoration in the Gulf
Coast (Comprehensive Plan), as well as any future revisions to the Comprehensive Plan. Among its other duties, the Gulf Restoration Council is tasked with identifying projects and programs aimed at restoring and
protecting the natural resources and ecosystems of the
Gulf Coast region, to be funded from a portion of the
Trust Fund; establishing such other advisory committees as may be necessary to assist the Gulf Restoration
Council, including a scientific advisory committee and
a committee to advise the Gulf Restoration Council on
public policy issues; gathering information relevant to
Gulf Coast restoration, including through research,
modeling, and monitoring; and providing an annual report to the Congress on implementation progress. Consistent with the RESTORE Act, the Comprehensive
Plan developed by the Gulf Restoration Council will include provisions necessary to fully incorporate the
Strategy, projects, and programs recommended by the
Task Force.
(c) Federal members of the Gulf Restoration Council
and Trustee Council, as well as all Federal entities involved in Gulf Coast restoration, shall work closely
with one another to advance their common goals, reduce duplication, and maximize consistency among
their efforts. All Federal members are directed to consult with each other and with all non-federal members

Page 513

TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS

in carrying out their duties on the Gulf Restoration
Council.
SEC. 4. Ongoing Role of the Natural Resource Damage
Assessment Trustee Council. (a) Executive Order 13554
recognized the role of the Trustee Council, and designated trustees as provided in 33 U.S.C. 2706, with
trusteeship over natural resources injured, lost, or destroyed as a result of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill.
Specifically, Executive Order 13554 recognized the importance of carefully coordinating the work of the Task
Force with the Trustee Council, whose members have
statutory responsibility to assess natural resources
damages from the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, to restore trust resources, and seek compensation for lost
use of those trust resources. Section 3(b) of Executive
Order 13554 instructed the Task Force to ‘‘support the
Natural Resource Damage Assessment process by referring potential ecosystem restoration actions to the
* * * Trustee Council for consideration and facilitating
coordination among the relevant departments, agencies, and offices, as appropriate, subject to the independent statutory responsibilities of the trustees.’’ The
Department of Commerce (through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), the Department
of the Interior (through the Fish and Wildlife Service
and the National Park Service), and the Department of
Justice have worked to identify linkages and opportunities for the Task Force to complement the restoration progress of the Trustee Council.
(b) Section 7(e) of Executive Order 13554 provides that
nothing in that order shall interfere with the statutory
responsibilities and authority of the Trustee Council or
the individual trustees to carry out their statutory responsibilities to assess natural resource damages and
implement restoration actions under 33 U.S.C. 2706 and
other applicable law. Agencies that were members of
the Task Force shall continue to comply with these requirements.
SEC. 5. Designating Trustees for Natural Resource Damage Assessment. Given their authorities, programs, and
expertise, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
and the Department of Agriculture (USDA) have institutional capacities that can contribute significantly to
the Natural Resource Damage Assessment and restoration efforts, including scientific and policy expertise as
well as experience gained in the Task Force process and
other planning efforts in the Gulf area. In addition,
EPA’s and USDA’s relevant authorities cover a range
of natural resources and their supporting ecosystems,
including waters, sediments, barrier islands, wetlands,
soils, land management, air resources, and drinking
water supplies. The inclusion of EPA and USDA as
trustees participating in the Natural Resource Damage
Assessment and restoration efforts will maximize coordination across the Federal Government and enhance
overall efficiencies regarding Gulf Coast ecosystem restoration. Accordingly, without limiting the designations in Executive Order 12777 of October 18, 1991, or
any other existing designations, and pursuant to section 2706(b)(2) of title 33, United States Code, I hereby
designate the Administrator of EPA and the Secretary
of Agriculture as additional trustees for Natural Resource Damage Assessment and restoration solely in
connection with injury to, destruction of, loss of, or
loss of use of natural resources, including their supporting ecosystems, resulting from the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill. The addition of these Federal trustees
does not, in and of itself, alter any existing agreements
among or between the trustees and any other entity.
All Federal trustees are directed to consult, coordinate,
and cooperate with each other in carrying out all of
their trustee duties and responsibilities.
The Administrator of EPA is hereby directed to revise Subpart G of the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan to reflect the designations for the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill discussed
in this section.
SEC. 6. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order
shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:
(i) the authority granted by law to a department or
agency, or the head thereof; or

§ 1321a

(ii) the functions of the Trustee Council, or those of
the Director of the Office of Management and Budget,
relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative
proposals.
(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with
applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.
(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create
any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the
United States, its departments, agencies, or entities,
its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.
(d) Executive Order 13554 of October 5, 2010, is hereby
revoked concurrent with the termination of the Task
Force under the terms described in section 2 of this
order.
BARACK OBAMA.

§ 1321a. Prevention of small oil spills
(a) Prevention and education program
The Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans
and Atmosphere, in consultation with the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast
Guard is operating and other appropriate agencies, shall establish an oil spill prevention and
education program for small vessels. The program shall provide for assessment, outreach,
and training and voluntary compliance activities to prevent and improve the effective response to oil spills from vessels and facilities
not required to prepare a vessel response plan
under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act
(33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.), including recreational
vessels, commercial fishing vessels, marinas,
and aquaculture facilities. The Under Secretary
may provide grants to sea grant colleges and institutes designated under section 1126 of this
title and to State agencies, tribal governments,
and other appropriate entities to carry out—
(1) regional assessments to quantify the
source, incidence and volume of small oil
spills, focusing initially on regions in the
country where, in the past 10 years, the incidence of such spills is estimated to be the
highest;
(2) voluntary, incentive-based clean marina
programs that encourage marina operators,
recreational boaters, and small commercial
vessel operators to engage in environmentally
sound operating and maintenance procedures
and best management practices to prevent or
reduce pollution from oil spills and other
sources;
(3) cooperative oil spill prevention education
programs that promote public understanding
of the impacts of spilled oil and provide useful
information and techniques to minimize pollution, including methods to remove oil and reduce oil contamination of bilge water, prevent
accidental spills during maintenance and refueling and properly cleanup and dispose of oil
and hazardous substances; and
(4) support for programs, including outreach
and education to address derelict vessels and
the threat of such vessels sinking and discharging oil and other hazardous substances,
including outreach and education to involve
efforts to the owners of such vessels.
(b) Authorization of appropriations
There are authorized to be appropriated to the
Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and