Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 92 Part 1.djvu/711

 PUBLIC LAW 95-372—SEPT. 18, 1978 designee, shall administer all necessary oaths to any witnesses summoned before such investigation. " (g) The Secretary shall, after consultation with the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard, is operating, include in his annual report to the Congress required by section 15 of this Act the number of violations of safety regulations reported or alleged, any investigations undertaken, the results of such investigations, and any administrative or judicial action taken as a result of such investigations, and the results of the diving studies conducted under section 21 (e) of this Act. SEC.

23.

CITIZEN SUITS,

COURT JURISDICTION, AND JUDICIAL

92 STAT. 657

Report to Congress, 43 USC 1343.

^«^' P- 654. 43 USC 1349.

KEVIBW.—(a)(1) Except as provided in this section, any person having a valid legal interest which is or may be adversely affected may commence a civil action on his own behalf to compel compliance with this Act against any person, including the United States, and any other government instrumentality or agency (to the extent permitted by the eleventh amendment to the Constitution) for any alleged vio- USC prec.title1. lation of any provision of this Act or any regulation promulgated under this Act, or of the terms of any permit or lease issued by the Secretary under this Act. "(2) Except as provided in paragraph (3) of this subsection, no action may be commenced under subsection (a)(1) of this section— "(A) prior to sixty days after the plaintiff has given notice of the alleged violation, in writing under oath, to the Secretary and any other appropirate Federal oiRcial, to the State in which the violation allegedly occurred or is occurring, and to any alleged violator; or "(B) if the Attorney General has commenced and is diligently prosecuting a civil action in a court of the United States or a State with respect to such matter, but in any such action in a court of the United States any person having a legal interest which is or may be adversely affected may intervene as a matter of right. "(3) An action may be brought under this subsection immediately after notification of the alleged violation in any case in which the alleged violation constitutes an imminent threat to the public health or safety or would immediately affect a legal interest of the plaintiff. " (4) In any action commenced pursuant to this section, the Attorney General, upon the request of the Secretary or any other appropirate Federal official, may intervene as a matter of right. "(5) A court, in issuing any final order in any action brought pursuant to subsection (a)(1) or subsection (c) of this section, may award costs of litigation, including reasonable attorney and expert witness fees, to any party, whenever such court determines such award is appropriate. The court may, if a temporary restraining order or preliminary injunction is sought, require the filing of a bond or equivalent security in a sufficient amount to compensate for any loss or damage suffered, in accordance with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. "(6) Except as provided in subsection (c) of this section, all suits challenging actions or decisions allegedly in violation of, or seeking enforcement of, the provisions of this Act, or any regulation promulgated under this Act, or the terms of any permit or lease issued by the Secretary under this Act, shall be undertaken in accordance with the procedures described in this subsection. Nothing in this section shall restrict any right which any person or class of persons may have under any other Act or common law to seek appropriate relief. "(b)(1) Except as provided in subsection (c) of this section, the district courts of the United States shall have jurisdiction of cases and

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