H.R. 3596 would require the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with coastal States, regional governments, and coastal property owners, to establish a task force to identify the needs of working waterfronts (as defined in the bill) and to implement improvement plans. The bill would authorize the appropriation of $12 million for a grant program and $12 million to cover the subsidy costs for loans to assist those waterfronts. Under the bill, the Secretary would be responsible for various reporting, implementation, and technical assistance requirements with regard to each program.
The bill does not specify the years for the authorized appropriation so CBO has assumed that all of the authorizations would be for 2020. Assuming appropriation of the authorized amounts, and based on historical spending patterns for similar programs, CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 3596 would cost $23 million over the 2020-2024 period. The costs of the legislation (detailed in Table 1) fall within budget function 300 (natural resources and environment).
