An Act Relative to Oceans

On July 19, An Act Relative to Oceans was approved by the State Senate and was sent to the House of Representatives for consideration. However, the 2006 legislative session ended before the House could take the matter to the floor, so the bill will have to be re-filed in the next session that begins in January 2007. The proposed legislation will allow for more proactive and effective management of Massachusetts ocean resources, by authorizing state agencies to develop a statewide Ocean Management Plan to manage, develop, and protect natural and economic ocean resources within state waters. In response to the over-arching recommendation from the Massachusetts Ocean Management Task Force for comprehensive ocean management, the proposed bill, originally sponsored by Governor Mitt Romney and Senator Robert O'Leary (Cape Cod and Islands), is one of the first of its kind in the United States. The latest version of the bill was a compromise supported by Senators O'Leary and Bruce Tarr (Gloucester).

For updates and a history on the bill, go to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Legislative Tracking System and search for "Senate No. 2653."