NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION VESSEL FLEET.

SEC. 8402. NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION VESSEL FLEET. (a) In General.—The NOAA Fleet Modernization Act (33 U.S.C. 891 et seq.) is amended— (1) in section 603 (33 U.S.C. 891a)— (A) in the section heading, by striking “fleet” and all that follows through “program” and inserting “operation and maintenance of noaa fleet”; and (B) by striking “is authorized” and all that follows and inserting the following: “, acting through the Assistant Administrator of NOAA for Marine and Aviation Operations, shall operate and maintain a fleet of vessels to meet the requirements of NOAA in carrying out the mission and functions of NOAA, subject to the requirements of this title.”; (2) in section 604 (33 U.S.C. 891b)— (A) in subsection (a), by striking “Secretary” and all that follows and inserting “Secretary, acting through the Assistant Administrator of NOAA for Marine and Aviation Operations, shall develop and submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives a replacement and modernization plan for the NOAA fleet not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026, and every 2 years thereafter.”; (B) by striking subsections (b) and (d); (C) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (b); (D) in subsection (b), as so redesignated— (i) in paragraph (1), by striking “proposed” and all that follows and inserting the following: “in operation in the NOAA fleet as of the date of submission of the Plan, a description of the status of those vessels, and a statement of the planned and anticipated service life of those vessels;”; (ii) by striking paragraph (6); (iii) by redesignating paragraphs (2), (3), (4), and (5) as paragraphs (4), (5), (6), and (7), respectively; (iv) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following: “(2) a plan with respect to operation, maintenance, and replacement of vessels described in paragraph (1), including the schedule for maintenance or replacement and anticipated funding requirements; “(3) the number of vessels proposed to be constructed by NOAA;” ; (v) in paragraph (4), as so redesignated, by striking “constructed, leased, or chartered” and inserting “acquired, leased, or chartered by NOAA”; (vi) in paragraph (6), as so redesignated— (I) by striking “or any other federal official” and inserting “the Director of the National Science Foundation, or any other Federal official”; and (II) by striking “their availability” and inserting “the availability of those vessels”; (vii) in paragraph (7), as so redesignated, by striking “; and” and inserting a semicolon; and (viii) by adding at the end the following: “(8) a plan for using small vessels, uncrewed systems, and partnerships to augment the requirements of NOAA for days at sea; “(9) the number of officers of the NOAA commissioned officer corps and professional wage mariners needed to operate and maintain the NOAA fleet, including the vessels identified under paragraph (3); and “(10) current and potential challenges with meeting the requirements under paragraph (9) and proposed solutions to those challenges.” ; and (E) by adding at the end the following: “(c) Vessel Procurement Approval.—The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration may not procure vessels that are more than 65 feet in length without the approval of the Assistant Administrator of NOAA for Marine and Aviation Operations.” ; (3) in section 605 (33 U.S.C. 891c)— (A) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking “working through the Office of the NOAA Corps Operations and the Systems Procurement Office” and inserting “acting through the Assistant Administrator of NOAA for Marine and Aviation Operations”; and (B) in subsection (b)— (i) by striking “shall” and all that follows through “submit to Congress” and inserting “, acting through the Assistant Administrator of NOAA for Marine and Aviation Operations, shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources and 139 STAT. 1910 the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives,”; and (ii) by striking “subsequent”; (4) in section 608 (33 U.S.C. 891f)— (A) by striking subsection (b); (B) by striking “(a) Vessel Agreements.—”; and (C) by inserting after “Secretary” the following: “, acting through the Assistant Administrator of NOAA for Marine and Aviation Operations,”; and (5) in section 610 (33 U.S.C. 891h)— (A) in subsection (a), by striking “for carrying” and all that follows and inserting the following: “$93,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2025 through 2026 to carry out this title and section 302 of the Fisheries Survey Vessel Authorization Act of 2000 (title III of Public Law 106-450; 114 Stat. 1945; 33 U.S.C. 891b note).”; and (B) in subsection (b), by striking “National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration fleet modernization” and inserting “NOAA fleet modernization,”. (b) Fishery Survey Vessels.—Section 302(a) of the Fisheries Survey Vessel Authorization Act of 2000 (title III of Public Law 106-450; 114 Stat. 1945; 33 U.S.C. 891b note) is amended— (1) by striking “may in accordance with this section” and inserting “may”; (2) by striking “up to six”; and (3) by inserting after “this section” the following: “and the NOAA Fleet Modernization Act (33 U.S.C. 891 et seq.)”. (c) Notifications of Proposed Deactivation of Vessels.—Section 401(b)(4) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Authorization Act of 1992 (Public Law 102-567; 106 Stat. 4291; 33 U.S.C. 891b note) is amended— (1) by striking “(A)” and all that follows through “The Secretary” and inserting “The Secretary”; (2) by striking “the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries” and inserting “the Committee on Natural Resources and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology”; and (3) by striking “, if an equivalent” and all that follows through “deactivation”.