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Our ocean, coasts, and Great Lakes represent tremendous economic and cultural resources for the American people. To balance sustainable development of our seas with conservation and conscious stewardship, the United States engages scientists and policymakers to guide Federal ocean policy. This work is integrated into decision making in part through the Ocean Policy Committee (OPC), which oversees ocean policy within the United States and is led by the Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality.
The Ocean Policy Committee (OPC)
The Ocean Policy Committee (OPC) was codified by the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 to coordinate Federal actions on ocean-related matters. The OPC traces its roots to the National Ocean Council created by Executive Order 13457 and the Ocean Policy Committee established by EO 13840. The OPC is co-chaired by the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy and the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality, and is directed to engage and collaborate with the ocean community on ocean-related matters, facilitate coordination and integration of Federal activities in ocean and coastal waters to inform ocean policy, identify priority ocean science and technology needs, and to leverage resources and expertise to maximize the effectiveness of Federal investments in ocean research.
The Ocean Policy Committee (OPC) sits as the top of the interagency ocean science and technology and management policy organizational chart. The OPC is advised by the Ocean Research Advisory Panel (ORAP). Under the OPC, are the Ocean Science and Technology (OST) and Ocean Resource Management (ORM) Subcommittees. The OST is also known as the Subcommittee on Ocean Science and Technology (SOST) under the National Science and Technology Council. Under the OST are two subgroups: the National Oceanographic Partnership Program (NOPP) and the National Ocean Mapping, Exploration, and Characterization (NOMEC) Council. The Interagency Working Groups on Ocean and Coastal Mapping (IWG-OCM) and Ocean Exploration and Characterization (IWG-OEC) sit under the NOMEC Council. Under the ORM are three interagency teams to develop and advance 1) Spatial Data and Tools, 2) a U.S. Ocean Action Climate Plan, and 3) a National Strategy for a Sustainable Ocean Economy.
Membership of the OPC
- Office of Science and Technology Policy (Co-chair)
- Council on Environmental Quality (Co-chair)
- Secretary of State
- Secretary of Defense
- Attorney General
- Secretary of the Interior
- Secretary of Agriculture
- Secretary of Commerce
- Secretary of Transportation
- Secretary of Energy
- Secretary of Homeland Security
- Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
- Director of the Office of Management and Budget
- Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- Director of the National Science Foundation
- Director of National Intelligence
- Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
- Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere
- Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works)
- Commandant of the Coast Guard
- Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs
- Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism
- Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy
- Assistant to the President for Economic Policy
- A representative from the Office of the Vice President designated by the Vice President
- Such other officers or employees of the Federal Government as the Co-Chairs may from time to time designate