16 U.S. Code § 1445a

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16 U.S. Code § 1445a - Advisory Councils | U.S. Code | US Law | LII / Legal Information Institute

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16 U.S. Code § 1445a - Advisory Councils
U.S. Code

Notes

(a) Establishment
The Secretary may establish one or more advisory councils (in this section referred
to as an “Advisory Council”) to advise and make recommendations to the Secretary
regarding the designation and management of national marine sanctuaries. The
Advisory Councils shall be exempt from chapter 10 of title 5.

(b) Membership
Members of the Advisory Councils may be appointed from among—

(1) persons employed by Federal or State agencies with expertise in
management of natural resources;

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16 U.S. Code § 1445a - Advisory Councils | U.S. Code | US Law | LII / Legal Information Institute

(2) members of relevant Regional Fishery Management Councils established
under section 1852 of this title; and

(3) representatives of local user groups, conservation and other public interest
organizations, scientific organizations, educational organizations, or others
interested in the protection and multiple use management of sanctuary
resources.

(c) Limits on membership
For sanctuaries designated after November 4, 1992, the membership of Advisory
Councils shall be limited to no more than 15 members.

(d) Staffing and assistance
The Secretary may make available to an Advisory Council any staff, information,
administrative services, or assistance the Secretary determines are reasonably
required to enable the Advisory Council to carry out its functions.

(e) Public participation and procedural matters
The following guidelines apply with respect to the conduct of business
meetings of an Advisory Council:

(1) Each meeting shall be open to the public, and interested persons shall be
permitted to present oral or written statements on items on the agenda.

(2) Emergency meetings may be held at the call of the chairman or presiding
officer.

(3) Timely notice of each meeting, including the time, place, and agenda of the
meeting, shall be published locally and in the Federal Register, except that in
the case of a meeting of an Advisory Council established to provide assistance
regarding any individual national marine sanctuary the notice is not required to
be published in the Federal Register.

(4) Minutes of each meeting shall be kept and contain a summary of the
attendees and matters discussed.
(Pub. L. 92–532, title III, § 315, as added Pub. L. 102–587, title II, § 2112, Nov. 4, 1992,
106 Stat. 5046; amended Pub. L. 104–283, §§ 5, 9(f), Oct. 11, 1996, 110 Stat. 3363, 3368;
Pub. L. 106–513, §§ 16, 19(b)(5), Nov. 13, 2000, 114 Stat. 2391, 2393; Pub. L. 117–286,
§ 4(a)(112), Dec. 27, 2022, 136 Stat. 4318.)

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