756 



30 



The director of planning for Guam stated : 



The Guam Legislature has recognized the serious access 

 problems its citizens face, and has passed legislation relative 

 to this problem. Having Federal funds available to help 

 implement their eif orts will improve our effectiveness. 



7. Associate Administrator of NOAA for Coastal Zone Management 

 The events since passage of the Coastal Zone Management Act of 



1972 — most notably the energy crisis and its attendant problems and 

 pressures on the coastal zone — have elevated the importance of sound 

 coastal zone management as a public policy issue for the Nation as a 

 whole. Initially, the program was administered within the National 

 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) by the Director 

 of the Office of Coastal Zone Management. In February 1975, recog- 

 nizing the elevated level of responsibility being handled by the Direc- 

 tor, Robert W. Knecht, the Administrator designated him as Assistant 

 Administrator of NOAA for Coastal Zone Management. The commit- 

 tee believes however, that this administrative elevation does not suf- 

 ficiently reflect the importance of coastal zone management within 

 NOAA and the Department of Commerce. Therefore, the Committee 

 provides in S. 586 for the creation of the post of Associate Adminis- 

 trator for Coastal Zone Management. As an executive level 5 appoint- 

 ment, the office would require a Presidential appointment and Senate 

 confirmation. The Committee believes that Mr. Knecht, as Director 

 and subsequently Assistant Administrator for Coastal Zone Manage- 

 ment, has performed his duties with unusual ability and competence, 

 and the members wish to express their hope that the President will 

 appoint him to fill the position of Associate Administrator. 



8. Protection, of State Role in Land and Water Use Decisions 



The Committee does not intend, by adding a requirement that States 

 develop a planning process for energy facilities as a component of 

 their comprehensive coastal zone management programs prior to 

 secretarial approval of such programs, to imply a greater Federal role 

 in specific siting decisions made bv the States. This is stated explicitly 

 in section 318(a) of S. 586. 



9. Application of National Environmental Policy Act 



Section 318(b) states that grants or loans made pursuant to section 

 308 of the Act, as amended, are not to be deemed "major Federal 

 actions significantly affecting the quality of the human environment," 

 so that the preparation of environmental impact statements relating 

 to decisions about grants or loans will not be required for compliance 

 with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. This does not 

 mean, however, that the construction of a public facility or any other 

 action paid for with such grants or loans, which requires an environ- 

 mental impact statement on its own merits, is exempt from that 

 requirement. 



Section-by- Section Analysis 

 Short Title 



Section 101. The Act may be cited as the "Coastal Zone Manage- 

 ment Act Amendments of 1975". 



