WASHINGTON — All hands are on deck in the nation's capital when it comes to addressing Florida's unique algae and other water issues.

More than half of the state's congressional delegation huddled last Wednesday in a hearing led by Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-20th District) and Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-16th District). The bipartisan group continues to search for solutions.

Last year’s red tide bloom was rated as one of the worst in recorded history, which is why scientists are reminding federal lawmakers that funding must remain consistent so they can continue to conduct research and prevent it in the future.

“My district is right in the heart of all of this," said freshman Rep. Greg Steube (R-Florida), who represents the 17th District, in an interview with Spectrum News.

Florida is the only state on the mainland with two coastlines and lawmakers know how critical it is to combat issues like oil drilling, red tide, and harmful algae blooms.

Steube said he would like to see the federal government assist in helping to convert homes on septic tanks to sewer systems.

“It has a huge impact in reducing the amount of chemicals and products and nitrogen and phosphorous that’s going into our water system," he said. "It’s no secret that a lot of these algae blooms, where they are blooming comes from areas that have high concentration of septic tanks.”

Experts from across the state testified about the situation and urged federal lawmakers to provide more funding and to better coordinate with their counterparts on the local level.

Rep. Darren Soto (D-9th District) and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida) are teaming up to introduce a reef conservation act reauthorization in the near future.

"It includes funding to restore Florida’s great reef, which has been plagued by bleaching as of late because of nutrients and other pollution," Soto said.

"We have professionals from Mote Marine Institute, feel very confident that they could restore a large part of it if given the resources to do so," he added.

The meeting of the congressional delegation was the first of the year, and they plan to hold more in the future.

“I think this delegation — bipartisan, across the aisle — really gets the importance of water from environmental concerns to economic concerns, and is ready to take meaningful action moving forward," said Rep. Michael Waltz (R-6th District).

In addition to introducing legislation that would ban oil drilling off the eastern gulf permanently, all 27 members of the state’s Congressional delegation recently sent a letter to the Interior Secretary demanding that oil rigs stay away from Florida’s waters.

“We want to protect the environment, we don’t want any offshore drilling anywhere near Florida," said Rep. Francis Rooney (R-19th District), who spearheaded the letter.

The letter from the delegation comes as the Interior Department prepares to release a five-year plan to open up 90 percent of the Outer Continental Shelf to oil and gas exploration. It’s unclear if an exemption will be made for the Sunshine State.