H.R. 8450 — Save Willy Act of 2026

This section establishes a four-year pilot program, to be carried out by the Secretary of Homeland Security (with concurrence of the NOAA Administrator) not later than one year after enactment, for a Cetacean Desk within the San Francisco Vessel Traffic Service (VTS). (The desk, staffed by not more than two full-time equivalent positions that also perform other VTS duties, is to improve coordination with the maritime industry and monitor large cetaceans—i.e., whales such as humpbacks and blues—in San Francisco Bay and the Golden Gate strait to reduce vessel strikes, disturbances, and other impacts.) The section requires Cetacean Desk personnel to engage vessel operators in whale-prone areas to communicate sightings and ensure compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and guidance; authorizes a memorandum of understanding for real-time data sharing among California, NOAA, the VTS, and others; directs leveraging of existing data sources (including the vessel strike data program under the FY2023 National Defense Authorization Act) and emerging technologies such as AI for detection, tracking, and communication; and requires consultations with Tribal governments, California, academia, industry, ports, and nongovernmental organizations. Further, the section directs the Secretary to implement VTS local variances and cooperative agreements—consistent with safe navigation under 46 U.S.C. §70001—to facilitate voluntary coordination and provide training on whale protection measures (e.g., buffer zones, speed limits, no-go zones, critical habitat). Finally, the section requires the Coast Guard Commandant, in coordination with NOAA and the Maritime Administration, to submit annual reports to Congress beginning one year after enactment.