Undersea Cable Protection Act of 2025
Introduced Sep 18, 2025 by Sen. Marsha Blackburn
It's waiting on a committee vote to reach the full chamber. Most bills never leave this stage.
This bill prohibits the Department of Commerce from enforcing certain permit requirements for activities related to undersea fiber optic cables in national marine sanctuaries.
Specifically, Commerce may not prohibit or require an authorization for any covered activities related to undersea fiber optic cables if a license, lease, or permit has been issued by a state or federal agency to authorize the covered activity. Covered activities are the installation, continued presence, operation, maintenance, repair, or recovery of undersea fiber optic cables in a national marine sanctuary.
The bill also authorizes Commerce to direct the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to engage in interagency cooperation regarding federal agency actions that are likely to destroy, cause the loss of, or injure a resource in a national marine sanctuary and involve covered activities.
Summary by the Congressional Research Service.
No floor votes yet — it hasn't reached the floor of either chamber.