Press Releases

Today, U.S. Representatives Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) and Rob Wittman (R-Va.) reintroduced bipartisan legislation to safeguard and strengthen America’s working waterfronts. The Keep America’s Waterfronts Working Act would create a grant program and preservation loan fund to provide funding options for waterfront-preservation efforts, as well as establish a Working Waterfronts Task Force at the Department of Commerce. 

“Across the country, our working waterfronts are rapidly disappearing, including right here in Maine, where only about 20 miles of my state’s 5,000 miles of coastline are still dedicated to ocean commerce,” Congresswoman Pingree said. “Between increasing development pressures and the significant threats posed by climate change—as we experienced firsthand during last year’s unprecedented winter storms—America’s coastal communities are struggling to hang on. Our goal with this legislation is to bring real, lasting investments to our country’s working waterfronts: protecting jobs, strengthening infrastructure, improving public access, and encouraging greater climate resiliency. Working waterfronts are an integral part of Maine’s economy and heritage, and I remain wholeheartedly committed to ensuring our coastal communities and businesses have the resources they need not just to survive, but truly thrive in the 21st Century.”

“Deteriorating waterfronts don’t just weaken our economy—they erode the heart of our communities, especially in Virginia’s First District,” said Congressman Wittman. “Working waterfronts support businesses, provide access to water, drive economic vitality, and enhance our quality of life. Yet, rising pressure from population growth and development threatens to displace Virginia’s water-dependent industries and the families who have deep cultural and historical ties to these areas. That’s why I’m proud to reintroduce the bipartisan Keep America’s Waterfronts Working Act to safeguard the character of our coastal communities by protecting jobs, preserving commercial activities, and ensuring public access to our nation’s shores.”

The bipartisan bill—which passed the House in the 116th Congress, but was never taken up by the Republican-controlled Senate—offers much-needed support to states, Tribes, and municipalities seeking to preserve their working waterfronts. 

The Keep America’s Waterfronts Working Act:

• Establishes a Working Waterfronts Grant Program to provide matching, competitive grants to coastal states, Tribes, and Native Hawaiian Organizations to help preserve and expand access to coastal waters for water-dependent businesses.
• Creates a revolving loan fund for working waterfronts preservation, modeled after state drinking water loans.
• Authorizes $50 million each for both the loan and grant programs.
• Organizes a Working Waterfronts Task Force at the Department of Commerce to identify and prioritize critical needs for working waterfronts, especially in the face of the climate crisis and increased trade threats.
• This bill would enable coastal states, Tribes, and communities to determine what kinds of working waterfront projects are most important to them. States with approved working waterfront plans would be eligible to apply for both grants and loans, which they could then allocate to local governments, agencies, and nonprofits.

The legislation is supported by: The National Working Waterfront Network, East Coast Shellfish Growers Association, The Conservation Fund, National Marine Manufacturers Association, Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association, Island Institute, Maine Department of Marine Resources, Maine Lobstermen’s Association, Fishing Communities Coalition, Conservation Law Foundation Maine, The Marine Fish Conservation Network, The Working Waterfront Coalition of Whatcom County in Washington state, Friends of Casco Bay, Sea Meadows Marine, and Chris Warner –Shellfish harvester, oyster farmer, and realtor. 

"Heightened demands on working waterfronts in the last decade bring into sharp focus the need for federal legislation such as the 'Keep America’s Waterfronts Working Act.' U.S. coastal communities are grappling with a host of challenges including the loss of working waterfront space to other uses and the impacts of climate change on coastal property and natural resources,” said Kristin Uiterwyk, Chair of the National Working Waterfront Network, a nationwide network of businesses, industry associations, nonprofits, local governments and communities, state and federal agencies, universities, Sea Grant programs, and individuals dedicated to supporting, preserving, and enhancing our nation’s working waterfronts and waterways. “The proposed legislation includes important stepping stones to support our working waterfronts with the designation of a task force to identify and address the needs of working waterfront communities and the opportunity to develop waterfront plans making coastal communities eligible for federal funding. These are critical efforts to ensure the economic and social health of our working waterfront communities.”

"The Keep America's Waterfronts Working Act includes creative approaches to preserve the infrastructure that community-based commercial fisheries across the country depend on. The bill's sponsors are advancing intelligent investments in working waterfronts to harden up to threats like gentrification and climate change. The members of the Fishing Communities Coalitionapplaud and thank Rep. Pingree and Rep. Wittman for introducing this important bill."

Additional supportive statements can be found here.

Pingree has long advocated for federal resources to help Maine communities preserve and expand shoreline access and infrastructure for water-dependent industries such as fishing, boat building, and aquaculture. She first introduced legislation to protect working waterfronts in the 111th Congress. 

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