The Resilient Transit Act of 2025 establishes a new federal grant program to fund public transportation resilience projects addressing climate change impacts like flooding, wildfires, and extreme weather. It directs $300 million for fiscal year 2026 to help state and local transit agencies in underserved communities - including low-income areas, communities of color, Tribal communities, and medically underserved regions - improve infrastructure. Eligible projects include installing flood barriers, backup power systems, vulnerability assessments, and climate adaptation planning. Recipients must report annually on how funds are used, with specific focus on projects benefiting communities identified through federal environmental justice mapping tools.
HR 360, the Oyster Reef Recovery Act of 2025, establishes a federal program to conserve and restore oyster reefs through technical and financial assistance. The program provides competitive grants to eligible entities - including state/local governments, nonprofits, educational institutions, and the shellfish industry (defined as growers and harvesters) - to fund restoration projects, monitoring, and workforce training focused on coastal resilience. Grants require applicants to demonstrate projects won’t interfere with commercial fishing or other water uses. The bill authorizes $15 million annually from 2026-2030 for these efforts, while explicitly preserving state and tribal authority over oyster management.
The Manatee Protection Act of 2025 would require the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to officially list the West Indian manatee as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act. This designation would subject the manatee to all federal protections and regulations, including restrictions on activities harming the animals or their critical habitat. The bill directly affects the manatee population and activities in their environment, such as boating, coastal development, and waterway management, which would now require federal permits to avoid harming the species. It mandates a formal listing under existing law rather than creating new protections, ensuring the manatee is legally recognized as endangered for conservation enforcement.
This bill amends existing laws to increase federal support for flood protection and watershed restoration projects. It allows the Secretary to fund measures that exceed immediate needs if they benefit long-term watershed health and prevent repeated damage. Local organizations managing flood control infrastructure can now receive up to 90% federal funding for rehabilitation projects in "limited resource areas" (compared to 65% generally), while still covering permit and resource rights costs themselves. The bill directly affects local governments and watershed groups undertaking flood prevention work by expanding eligible projects under conservation programs to specifically include flood/drought mitigation.
This bill expands eligibility for wastewater infrastructure grants under the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act. It allows states and Indian Tribes to directly apply for these grants - previously, only municipalities and local governments could apply. The changes specifically update two sections of the law to include "States," before "municipalities" and "units of local government" in grant application criteria. This means coastal states and tribal governments can now seek funding to improve wastewater systems and reduce ocean pollution. The policy change directly affects communities managing coastal water infrastructure seeking federal grant support.
This bill reauthorizes the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) through fiscal year 2031, providing $500 million annually for Great Lakes cleanup and restoration projects. It directly affects federal agencies (like the EPA), state governments, tribes, and environmental groups working on Great Lakes water quality, habitat restoration, and pollution prevention. The key provision extends existing funding levels for five additional years (2027-2031), ensuring continued support for projects addressing invasive species, toxic pollutants, and coastal wetlands restoration across the Great Lakes region. This is a funding authorization bill, not a policy change to the program's scope.
S 513, the Help Our Kelp Act of 2025, creates a federal grant program to fund projects restoring and conserving kelp forest ecosystems. It directly affects eligible entities like fishing industry groups, tribal governments, nonprofits, and coastal local governments, which can apply for grants covering up to 85% of project costs. Key provisions require projects to address declining kelp forests through methods such as removing sea urchins, restoring natural food chains, integrating Indigenous knowledge, and monitoring ecosystems. The bill authorizes $5 million annually (2026-2030), with at least $750,000 reserved specifically for tribal-led projects.
The MRRRI Act establishes a federal initiative to protect and restore the ecological health of the Mississippi River and its floodplain by creating a Mississippi River National Program Office within the Environmental Protection Agency. The program focuses on five key areas: improving water quality, enhancing community resilience to floods, protecting fish and wildlife habitat, preventing invasive species spread, and improving scientific monitoring. It will fund projects through grants to states, tribes, local governments, and organizations that address these focus areas, with specific requirements for Tribal involvement and environmental monitoring. The initiative requires the development of actionable goals, an action plan, and a science plan, and mandates regular reporting to Congress on progress.
This bill requires the EPA Administrator to develop new or revised water quality criteria through formal rulemaking (not guidance) and mandates judicial review for these criteria. It directly affects the EPA's process for setting national water quality standards that states use to regulate pollution in rivers, lakes, and coastal waters. Key changes include amending the Clean Water Act to specify that criteria must be issued "by rule" and adding judicial review authority for EPA's criteria decisions under section 304(a)(10). The bill does not change the criteria themselves, only the procedural steps for their development and legal challenge.
The ReSCUE Oceans Act establishes a federal program to advance research on marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR), which involves intentionally removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and storing it in ocean environments. The bill creates a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) program to fund research on various mCDR approaches like ocean alkalinity enhancement and macroalgae cultivation, while requiring consultation with Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations. It establishes research areas for field trials with specific environmental monitoring requirements, develops protocols for measuring and verifying carbon removal, and mandates biennial reports on progress. The legislation directly affects federal agencies, research institutions, and coastal communities, particularly through its tribal consultation requirements and community engagement provisions. The bill aims to support safe and effective mCDR research while protecting marine ecosystems and ensuring meaningful community engagement.
