This bill prohibits the Department of Commerce from designating as a national marine sanctuary an area of the marine environment off the coast of Alaska seaward of the high tide line unless an act of Congress requires Commerce to make the designation and prescribes the boundaries of the designated area.
To amend the National Marine Sanctuaries Act to prescribe an additional 
requirement for the designation of marine sanctuaries off the coast of 
                    Alaska, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. LIMITATION ON AUTHORITY TO DESIGNATE MARINE SANCTUARIES.

    Section 303 of the National Marine Sanctuaries Act (16 U.S.C. 1433) 
is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``The Secretary may'' 
        and inserting ``Subject to subsection (c), the Secretary may''; 
        and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(c) Limitation.--The Secretary may not designate as a national 
marine sanctuary any area of the marine environment off the coast of 
Alaska seaward of the high tide line unless an Act of Congress--
            ``(1) requires the Secretary to make such a designation; 
        and
            ``(2) prescribes the boundaries of the area to be given 
        such designation by the Secretary.''.
                                 <all>
To amend the National Marine Sanctuaries Act to prescribe an additional requirement for the designation of marine sanctuaries off the coast of Alaska, and for other purposes.
To amend the National Marine Sanctuaries Act to prescribe an additional requirement for the designation of marine sanctuaries off the coast of Alaska, and for other purposes.
Official Titles - House of Representatives
Official Title as Introduced
To amend the National Marine Sanctuaries Act to prescribe an additional requirement for the designation of marine sanctuaries off the coast of Alaska, and for other purposes.
Rep. Young, Don