A new federal program would be created to coordinate watershed restoration across the entire New York–New Jersey Harbor region, covering every waterway that drains into the harbor. The program would fund habitat restoration, water quality improvement, green infrastructure, shoreline resilience projects, and environmental education — with a focus on communities affected by environmental injustice. Competitive matching grants would be available to state, Tribal, and local governments, nonprofits, and universities, with the federal share covering up to 50% of costs (or up to 100% for disadvantaged communities). The bill authorizes $20 million per year through 2031.
Congressional Summary
New York-New Jersey Watershed Protection ActThis bill establishes programs to restore and protect the New York-New Jersey Watershed. The watershed is composed of all land area the surface water of which drains into the New York-New Jersey Harbor, the waters contained within that land area, and associated estuaries.Specifically, the bill requires the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to establish the New York-New Jersey Watershed Restoration Program, a nonregulatory program, to coordinate restoration and protection activities among government entities and conservation partners throughout the watershed.The bill also establishes the New York-New Jersey Watershed Restoration Grant Program, a voluntary grant and technical assistance program, to provide competitive matching grants to certain entities to implement restoration and protection activities for the watershed. The federal government may not maintain ownership of any land acquired under the bill except for the purpose of promptly transferring ownership to grant recipients.The bill ceases to have force or effect on October 1, 2031.
Details
- Congress
- 119th
- Chamber
- Senate
- Status
- summarized
- Action
- Introduced in Senate
- Action Date
- 2025-09-29
- Date Added
- 2026-04-09