US Senators Brian Schatz of Hawaii and Roger Wicker of Mississippi have introduced the Marine Aquaculture Research for America (MARA) Act of 2025, a bipartisan bill aimed at advancing commercial-scale offshore aquaculture in US federal waters. “The bipartisan consensus is clear: Congressional action is needed to build a robust American open ocean aquaculture industry, and the MARA Act lays the groundwork towards that goal. Create a dedicated Office of Aquaculture within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Marine Fisheries Service to coordinate federal permitting for a US aquaculture programme. The bill builds on years of bipartisan legislative effort, incorporating key provisions from both the Advancing the Quality and Understanding of American Aquaculture (AQUAA) Act, and the Science-based Equitable Aquaculture Food (SEAfood) Act, which were both introduced in previous congresses. This May, the EPA awarded a historic permit for Ocean Era’s Velella Epsilon demonstration project, allowing a single net pen in open ocean waters off Florida’s coast.