H.R. 1808 — Keep America’s Waterfronts Working Act of 2025

This section establishes a new section 306B of the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 (CZMA) on working waterfronts (i.e., coastal areas supporting commercial and recreational fishing, boating businesses, aquaculture, boatbuilding, and other water-dependent coastal uses). Subsection (a) directs the Secretary of Commerce to establish a task force, including federal agency representatives (e.g., NOAA, USFWS, EPA), experts, Indian Tribes, and Native Hawaiian organizations, to (1) identify and prioritize critical needs of working waterfronts in states with approved CZMA programs (e.g., economic/cultural importance, threats from trade barriers, sea level rise, extreme weather, ocean acidification, and algal blooms); (2) outline options to address those needs, including adaptation/mitigation; (3) assign responsible federal agencies; and (4) recommend agencies where none is identified. The task force must report to Congress within 18 months of enactment, after which identified agencies must implement options within 30 months, subject to appropriations. Subsection (b) authorizes covered entities (e.g., coastal states or local governments) to submit working waterfronts plans for Secretary approval, which must (1) preserve/expand public access to coastal waters; (2) complement existing local/regional plans; (3) involve stakeholders; (4) designate qualified holders with enforcement duties and retain entity oversight; and (5) include assessments of value/threats to working waterfronts, identification of at-risk or historically connected areas, needs/strategic plans for preservation/expansion/improvement, public access analysis, community support, and reversion contingencies.