Pensacola and Perdido Bays Estuary of National Significance Act to Become Law

The US House of Representatives passed US Senator Marco Rubio’s (R-FL) Pensacola and Perdido Bays Estuary of National Significance Act (S. 50) to direct the Environmental Protection Agency to formally enroll the Pensacola and Perdido Bays Estuary Program (PPBEP) into the National Estuary Program. This will then list Pensacola and Perdido Bays as an “Estuary of National Significance.”

First introduced in June 2021, the US Senate passed the bill unanimously earlier this year. The bill now heads to the President’s desk to be signed into law.

Senators Rubio and Rick Scott (R-FL) applauded the House’s passage of the legislation.

“I am grateful for the House’s passage of my bill to designate the Pensacola and Perdido Bays Estuary Program. The EPA’s National Estuary Program has a successful track record of cooperative federalism across the nation, including with the four existing Florida programs. Enrolling the PPBEP into this program will provide critical support for restoration, conservation, and monitoring efforts in Pensacola and Perdido Bays while enhancing economic activity in the Florida Panhandle,” said Senator Rubio.

“The Pensacola and Perdido Bays Estuary of National Significance Act will take important steps in our fight to protect and conserve Florida’s environment and natural resources. I am proud that our good bill was passed by the House of Representatives, unanimously passed by the Senate, and now heads to the president’s desk to be signed into law—a major win for Florida’s panhandle,” added Senator Scott.

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