Senate Passes Save Our Seas Act

The U.S. Senate has voted unanimously to pass the Save Our Seas (SOS) 2.0 Act, S. 1982, legislation introduced by Senators Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) to address the plastic debris crisis threatening coastal economies and harming marine life. SOS 2.0 builds on the success of the Save Our Seas Act, introduced by Senators Sullivan and Whitehouse, and signed into law by President Trump in October 2018.

The Save Our Seas 2.0 Act is composed of three main pieces:

1)      Strengthening the United States’ domestic marine debris response capability with a Marine Debris Foundation, a genius prize for innovation, and new research to tackle the issue.

2)      Enhancing global engagement to combat marine debris, including formalizing U.S. policy on international cooperation, enhancing federal agency outreach to other countries, and exploring the potential for a new international agreement on the challenge.

3)      Improving domestic infrastructure to prevent marine debris through new grants for and studies of waste management and mitigation.

Each of the bill’s components was reviewed and passed by a committee of jurisdiction – the Senate Commerce, Science & Transportation Committee, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee. Sullivan sits on both the Senate EPW and Commerce Committees.

The Save Our Seas 2.0 Act is cosponsored by Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Rob Portman (R-Ohio), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Tom Carper (D-Del.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), David Perdue (R-Ga.), Brian Schatz (D- Hawaii), Angus King (I-Maine), and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), in addition to Senators Menendez, Whitehouse, and Sullivan.