Bipartisan Measure Cosponsored by Senator Hassan Passes Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

Committee Also Approved Bipartisan Bills to Improve Access to Wireless and Broadband in Rural Communities, Combat and Prevent Human Trafficking

WASHINGTON – The Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee today approved the Coordinated Ocean Monitoring and Research Act, a bipartisan bill cosponsored by Senator Maggie Hassan.

The Coordinated Ocean Monitoring and Research Act would reauthorize and make improvements to the Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observing System Act of 2009 and to the Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act of 2009. By reauthorizing these programs until 2021, this bipartisan bill will expand monitoring and research priorities, improve stakeholder engagement, and help protect and strengthen New Hampshire’s coastal communities.

“The bipartisan Coordinated Ocean Monitoring and Research Act is an important step forward in our efforts to protect the environment and natural resources that make the Granite State unique,” Senator Hassan said. “Our coastal communities are critical to our economy in the Granite State, and this measure will help safeguard these magnificent, yet fragile, ecosystems as climate change continues to threaten our environment, economy, and way of life in New Hampshire.”

Senator Hassan also voted to approve the Rural Wireless Act of 2017, requiring the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to improve data collection for wireless voice and broadband service. In doing so, the bipartisan bill will help improve access to wireless and broadband service in rural communities throughout New Hampshire and across America.

“Improving and expanding access to wireless and broadband service in our rural communities is critical to the economic success of our people, businesses, and communities, as well as to our public safety, and this bipartisan bill is critical to those efforts,” said Senator Hassan. “I look forward to continue working across the aisle to move this important measure forward. It will help to ensure that all hard-working Granite Staters have the resources and tools they need to get ahead and stay ahead in the 21^st century innovation economy.”

Senator Hassan also voted for two bills to help combat and prevent human trafficking. The No Human Trafficking on Our Roads Act requires the Secretary of Transportation to disqualify individuals from operating commercial vehicles for their lifetime if they previously used a commercial vehicle for human trafficking purposes. The Combating Human Trafficking in Commercial Vehicles Act directs the Secretary of Transportation to designate a department official to coordinate human trafficking prevention efforts across the agency’s modal administrations and other federal agencies. The bill also allows certain programs to fund the recognition, prevention, and reporting of human trafficking.

“Human trafficking is a deplorable crime, and we must do everything in our power to prevent it from happening in the first place,” said Senator Hassan. “I was proud to work across party lines during my time as Governor of New Hampshire to strengthen our laws against human trafficking, and these bipartisan measures build on those efforts to prevent this unspeakable crime in New Hampshire and throughout America.”

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