To amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to support the responsible development of offshore renewable energy projects, establish the Offshore Power Administration, and for other purposes.
Summary
What This Bill Does
The bill directs Secretary of Interior to establish and update national offshore wind goals and issue permits authorizing at least 30 GW by 2030 and 50 GW by 2035, amends OCSLA to define "offshore renewable energy project" and add policy declarations supporting zero-emission electricity, coexistence with other ocean users, and achieving state/federal renewable energy goals, and amends OCSLA to add new Section 34 establishing Offshore Renewable Energy Compensation Fund in Treasury, funded by offshore wind royalties/fees, to provide payments and grants to covered entities (fishing, maritime. It relies on appropriations, compliance mandates, grants, and reporting requirements. The main policy areas are Energy, Agriculture, Defense, and Trade.
Who Benefits and How
Offshore wind developers could gain revenue opportunities, Domestic shipyards could gain revenue opportunities, and Shipyard workers could gain revenue opportunities.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Department of Energy would take on compliance duties, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management would take on compliance duties, and Offshore wind developers could face higher costs.
Key Provisions
- Directs Secretary of Interior to establish and update national offshore wind goals and issue permits authorizing at least 30 GW by 2030 and 50 GW by 2035.
- Amends OCSLA to define "offshore renewable energy project" and add policy declarations supporting zero-emission electricity, coexistence with other ocean users, and achieving state/federal renewable energy goals.
- Amends OCSLA to add new Section 34 establishing Offshore Renewable Energy Compensation Fund in Treasury, funded by offshore wind royalties/fees, to provide payments and grants to covered entities (fishing, maritime...
- Creates detailed text of compensation fund provisions: claims process, verification, payment methodology, reduction for duplicate community benefit agreement payments, and eligible mitigation activities.
- Provides appropriates $50 million to Interior and $45 million to Commerce for FY2026 to hire staff, develop environmental documents, procure technical services, support data systems, and facilitate permitting...
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
The bill directs Secretary of Interior to establish and update national offshore wind goals and issue permits authorizing at least 30 GW by 2030 and 50 GW by 2035, amends OCSLA to define "offshore renewable energy project" and add policy declarations supporting zero-emission electricity, coexistence with other ocean users, and achieving state/federal renewable energy goals, and amends OCSLA to add new Section 34 establishing Offshore Renewable Energy Compensation Fund in Treasury, funded by offshore wind royalties/fees, to provide payments and grants to covered entities (fishing, maritime.
Key Policy Areas
Energy, Agriculture, Defense, Trade
Primary Purpose
The bill directs Secretary of Interior to establish and update national offshore wind goals and issue permits authorizing at least 30 GW by 2030 and 50 GW by 2035, amends OCSLA to define "offshore renewable energy project" and add policy declarations supporting zero-emission electricity, coexistence with other ocean users, and achieving state/federal renewable energy goals, and amends OCSLA to add new Section 34 establishing Offshore Renewable Energy Compensation Fund in Treasury, funded by offshore wind royalties/fees, to provide payments and grants to covered entities (fishing, maritime.
Policy Domains
Offshore Renewable Energy Development
Identified Gains
- Offshore wind developers
- Domestic shipyards
- Shipyard workers
- Fishing industry claiming damages
- Department of the Interior
Identified Costs
- Department of Energy
- Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
- Offshore wind developers
- Electric grid component manufacturers
- Department of the Interior
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
IntroducedMr. Tonko introduced the following bill; which was referred to …
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Offshore wind developers, Regional transmission organizations
Offshore wind developers faces effects in multiple directions
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Department of Commerce/NOAA, Department of Energy
Department of the Interior faces effects in multiple directions
Positive-direction: Department of Commerce/NOAA
Negative-direction: Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Department of Energy
Coastal communities affected by offshore wind, States with offshore wind potential, States with renewable energy goals
Commercial fishing industry, Fishing industry claiming damages
Electric grid component manufacturers, Shipyard workers
Positive-direction: Shipyard workers
Negative-direction: Electric grid component manufacturers
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of the Interior (in OCSLA context)
- "secretary_of_energy"
- → Secretary of Energy
- "secretary_of_commerce"
- → Secretary of Commerce
- "secretary_of_interior"
- → Secretary of the Interior
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
A project to carry out activities related to wind, solar, wave, or tidal energy on the outer Continental Shelf
Fishing industry participants, coastal communities, and maritime users eligible for compensation fund payments
Offshore transmission lines and facilities connecting offshore wind projects to onshore grid
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology