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September 21, 1999
(House)


H.R. 1243 - National Marine Sanctuaries Enhancement Act
(Saxton (R) New Jersey and 5 cosponsors)

The Administration supports House passage of H.R. 1243, which reauthorizes for five years the National Marine Sanctuaries Act and the National Estuarine Reserves program of the Coastal Zone Management Act. While the Administration supports the provisions concerning the National Estuarine Reserves program in H.R. 1243, the Administration continues to recommend that the program be reauthorized as part of a broader reauthorization of the Coastal Zone Management Act.

The Administration will continue to seek improvements to H.R. 1243 as the legislation progresses through the legislative process. These improvements include:

  • Streamlining procedures for changing a term of designation of a sanctuary.

  • Strengthening the natural resource damage assessment provisions and reflecting current practices that emphasize a restoration-based approach.

  • Conforming the out-year authorizations to those proposed by the Administration.
Pay-As-You-Go Scoring

H.R. 1243 would affect receipts and direct spending; therefore, it is subject to the pay-as-you-go (Paygo) requirements of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990. OMB's estimate is that the bill's Paygo impact would not be significant.