Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance and Rehabilitation Act of 2025
Click any stage to learn more about the legislative process.
Would expand the existing federal marine mammal rescue grant program to include separate grants for sea turtle rescue, rehabilitation, and response, and would create a dedicated Sea Turtle Rescue, Rehabilitation, and Rapid Response Fund with emergency assistance money — authorizing up to $5 million per year through FY2030 for the grants.
The bill would bring sea turtles, which are protected under the Endangered Species Act, into a grant structure previously limited to marine mammals, giving rescue organizations a dedicated federal funding pathway for the first time.
What this bill would do
What it would do
The bill would amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to add sea turtles as a separate eligible category under the existing federal rescue and response grant program. Qualifying organizations could receive grants to recover, treat, or rehabilitate sick, injured, or stranded sea turtles; collect scientific data from living or dead stranded animals; cover facility operating costs directly tied to sea turtle care; and build stranding-network capacity in areas where rescue facilities are scarce. To be eligible, an organization must hold an authorization under the Endangered Species Act or have a cooperative agreement with the federal government for sea turtle work, meet federal care standards for captive sea turtles, and comply with Sea Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network data-reporting requirements.
The bill would also establish the Sea Turtle Rescue, Rehabilitation, and Rapid Response Fund — an interest-bearing Treasury fund dedicated to emergency assistance — alongside a separately renamed Joseph R. Geraci Marine Mammal Rescue and Rapid Response Fund. The bill does not itself guarantee appropriations; it sets authorized spending levels that Congress must separately fund.
Key provisions
- 1Would add sea turtles as a separate eligible category under the existing federal marine mammal rescue and response grant program, administered jointly by the Secretary of Commerce and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
- 2Would authorize grant funds for recovery, care, treatment, rehabilitation, scientific data collection, facility operating costs, and stranding network capacity development for sea turtles.
- 3Would require grant applicants to hold an Endangered Species Act authorization or cooperative agreement, meet federal captive-care standards, and comply with Sea Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network data-reporting requirements.
- 4Would establish the Sea Turtle Rescue, Rehabilitation, and Rapid Response Fund — an interest-bearing Treasury fund — for emergency assistance, alongside a renamed marine mammal rapid-response fund.
- 5Would authorize $5,000,000 per fiscal year for FY2025–FY2030 for the sea turtle rescue and response grant program, and $500,000 per year for each of the two rapid-response funds.
Who would be affected
Nonprofit rescue organizations, aquariums, and state wildlife agencies that rehabilitate sea turtles and could apply for new grants; the Secretary of Commerce and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which would jointly administer the program; and threatened or endangered sea turtle populations stranding on U.S. coastlines.
Why it matters
Sea turtle rescue facilities currently lack a dedicated federal grant line, often competing against or operating outside the marine mammal funding structure. If enacted, the bill would give qualifying rescue organizations a stable, authorized source of federal support for day-to-day operations and emergency response — which could expand care capacity, particularly in areas where stranding networks are thin or nonexistent.
What would change
Changes to existing law
Amends Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, Section 408 (16 U.S.C. 1421f-1) (Sec. 2)
Adds sea turtles as a separate grant-eligible category, creates the Sea Turtle Rapid Response Fund, renames the existing rapid-response fund, and authorizes new appropriations through FY2030.
Agencies directed to act
Funding and costs
- $5,000,000
Sea turtle rescue, rehabilitation, and response grant program
- $500,000
Joseph R. Geraci Marine Mammal Rescue and Rapid Response Fund for emergency assistance
- $500,000
Sea Turtle Rescue, Rehabilitation, and Rapid Response Fund for emergency assistance
Congressional Budget Office estimate
CBO estimates S. 843 would cost $31 million over the 2025–2030 period and $3 million after 2030, subject to future appropriations, with a negligible increase in direct spending.
CBO estimates that enacting S. 843 would require about $31 million in discretionary spending (funds that Congress must appropriate each year) over the 2025–2030 period and an additional $3 million after 2030, based on the authorized amounts. The bill authorizes $5 million per year for NOAA and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to fund grants for stranded marine turtle rescue, rehabilitation, research, and facility operations, plus roughly $4 million total over 2025–2030 for two conservation trust funds. Enacting the bill would also increase mandatory direct spending by less than $500,000 over the 2025–2035 period, reflecting interest credited to those trust funds. CBO found no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates in the bill.
How implementation would work
The Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (in place of the Marine Mammal Commission used for marine mammal grants), would develop sea-turtle-specific grant criteria, application requirements, and administration procedures. Eligible entities would apply to the Secretary of Commerce and must hold an Endangered Species Act authorization or cooperative agreement, meet Interior Department captive-care standards, and report data to the Sea Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network. The separate rapid-response fund would be available only for emergency assistance. Grants are subject to availability of appropriations specifically designated for sea turtle rescue.
Legislative status & sources
Latest action
Held at the desk.
Official CRS summary
Show the CRS summaryHide the CRS summary
This bill reauthorizes through FY2030 and expands the John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue and Response Grant Program to include separate grants to rescue sea turtles. The grants must be used for
- the recovery, care, or treatment of sick, injured, or entangled sea turtles;
- responses to rescue stranded sea turtles;
- the collection of data and samples from living or dead stranded sea turtles for scientific research or health assessments;
- facility operating costs that are directly related to activities to assist sea turtles; or
- development of stranding network capacity where facilities do not exist or are sparse.
In addition, the bill establishes the Sea Turtle Rescue, Rehabilitation, and Rapid Response Fund.
Legislative subjects
Animal protection and human-animal relationships; Animals; Endangered and threatened species; Reptiles; Seashores and lakeshores
Committee report
S. Rept. 119-41