S 843 United States Senate · 119th Congress

Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance and Rehabilitation Act of 2025

This bill amends the Marine Mammal Protection Act to create new provisions specifically for sea turtles. It establishes a dedicated $5 million annual grant program (2025-2030) for sea turtle rescue and rehabilitation, funded through a new "Sea Turtle Rescue, Rehabilitation, and Rapid Response Fund" with $500,000 yearly. Eligible applicants include coastal organizations with Endangered Species Act authorizations or cooperative agreements, required to follow specific care standards and data reporting. The law directly affects wildlife rehabilitation groups and coastal communities handling stranded sea turtles by providing targeted federal funding and clear grant eligibility criteria.
Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Mar 2025
Committee Review
Jul 2025
Senate Passage
Mar 2026
House Passage
President
Introduced Mar 4, 2025 Last action Mar 24, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduced in Senate Engrossed in Senate · 1 edit · Mar 22, 2026
MINOR
A single grammatical correction was made in the name of the Joseph R. Geraci Marine Mammal Rescue and Rapid Response Fund. The word 'be' was added to correct 'to known as' to 'to be known as.' This is a clerical fix with no substantive policy impact.
TECHNICAL

Corrected a grammatical error in the fund name from 'to known as' to 'to be known as' for the Joseph R. Geraci Marine Mammal Rescue and Rapid Response Fund.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
10
Key actions
4
Committee
3
Mar 22, 2026
Upper · Passed
Passed Senate with an amendment by Unanimous Consent. (consideration: CR S1503-1504; text of amendment in the nature of a substitute: CR S1504)
upper
Mar 22, 2026
Upper · Passed
Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate with an amendment by Unanimous Consent.
upper
Jul 16, 2025
Upper · Passed
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Reported by Senator Cruz with an amendment. With written report No. 119-41.
upper
Mar 12, 2025
Upper · Passed
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.
upper
Mar 4, 2025
Committee
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
upper
Mar 4, 2025
Introduced
Introduced in Senate
upper
1 primary · 7 co-sponsors

Sponsors