The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Deep-Sea Coral Research and Technology Program (DSCRTP) was launched in 2009, following the reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA). The goal is to provide scientific information needed to conserve and manage deep-sea coral ecosystems in the United States (NOAA 2008; Hourigan 2009). The Program is guided by the NOAA Strategic Plan for Deep-Sea Coral and Sponge Ecosystems, which aims to (1) produce sound science to support NOAA's role in managing fishing impacts and to address threats to deep-sea coral ecosystems, (2) support conservation of deep-sea ecosystems in National Marine Sanctuaries, and (3) integrate the expertise and resources available across NOAA (NOAA 2010a). The Program works in consultation with regional fishery management councils and in partnership with other federal agencies and academic partners to support focused, three-year research initiatives in priority regions, through analysis of existing information about deep-sea coral ecosystems, studies of the distribution and intensity of fishing activities that impact deep-sea corals in federal waters, and investigations of coral and sponge bycatch in fisheries (NOAA 2010a). Since its inception, the DSCRTP has funded targeted research initiatives in the South Atlantic (2009-2011) (Figure 1), the West Coast (2010-2012), Alaska (2012-2014), the Northeast (2013-2015), and the Pacific Islands (2015-2017).