106 STAT. 4286

PUBLIC LAW 102-567—OCT. 29, 1992

33 USC 1251
note.

Establishment.

"(e) Of the sums authorized under subsection (a) of this section,
no more than $2,500,000 are authorized to be appropriated for
each of the fiscal years 1992 and 1993 to enable the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to establish the Chesa-
peake Bay Estuarine Resources Office under section 306 of the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Authorization
Act of 1991. No more than 20 percent of the amount appropriated
under the authorization in this subsection shall be used for adminis-
trative purposes.".

(e) CHESAPEAKE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL.—For purposes of this
section, "Chesapeake Executive Council* means the representatives
from the Commonwealth of Virginia, the State of Maryland, the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the Environmental Protection
Agency, the District of Columbia, and the Chesapeake Bay Commis-
sion, who are signatories to the Chesapeake Bay Agreement, and
any future signatories to that Agreement.

SEC. 308. NATIONAL SHELLFISH INDICATOR PROGRAM.

(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF A RESEARCH PROGRAM.—The Secretary
of Commerce, in cooperation with the Secretary* of Health and
Human Services ana the Administrator of the Environmental
Protection Agency, shall establish and administer a 5-year national
shellfish research program (hereafter in this section referred to
as the "Program") for the purpose of improving existing classifica-
tion systems for shellfish growing waters using the latest techno-
logical advancements in microbiology and epidemiological methods.
Within 12 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the
Secretary of Commerce, in cooperation with the advisory committee
established under subsection (b) and the Consortium, shall develop
a comprehensive 5-year plan for the Program which shall at a
minimum provide for—

(1) an environmental assessment of commercial shellfish
growing areas in the United States, including an evaluation
of the relationships between indicators of fecal contamination
and human enteric pathogens;

(2) the evaluation of such relationships with respect to
potential health hazards associated with human consumption
of shellfish;

(3) a comparison of the current microbiological methods
used for evaluating indicator bacteria and human enteric patho-
gens in shellfish and shellfish growing waters with new techno-
logical methods designed for this purpose;

(4) the evaluation of current and projected systems for
human sewage treatment in eliminating viruses and other
human enteric pathogens which accumulate in shellfish;

(5) the design of epidemiological studies to relate
microbiological data, sanitary survey data, and human shellfish
consumption data to actual hazards to health associated with
such consumption; and

(6) recommendations for revising Federal shellfish stand-
ards and improving the capabilities of Federal and State agen-
cies to effectively manage shellfish and ensure the safety of
shellfish intended for human consumption.

(b) ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—(1) For the purpose of providing
oversight of the Program on a continuing basis, an advisory commit-
tee (hereafter in this section referred to as the "Committee") shall
be established under a memorandum of understanding between