Endangered Species Listing and Delisting Process Reform Act of 1999

Summary: Endangered Species Listing and Delisting Process Reform Act of 1999 - Amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to direct the Secretary of the Interior, when required under such Act to use the best scientific and commercial data available in the determination of a species for inclusion on the endangered or threatened list, to use data that is empirical or has been field-tested or peer-reviewed. Allows the Secretary to make such a determination only if there is sufficient biological information to support recovery planning for the species. 
Adds certain information required in a petition to add a species to the endangered or threatened list, including documentation of the species, a description of its range, and an appraisal of its status and threats.  Requires the Secretary to notify and provide a copy of such petition to the State agency of each State in which the species is believed to occur and to solicit the assessment of such agency as to whether the petitioned action is warranted.  Provides authorized actions by the Secretary when considering adding a species to such lists when no petition has been received.  Requires the consideration of appropriate State assessments before final publication of a finding that a petition is warranted.  Requires the Secretary to hold at least two (currently one) public hearings in each appropriate State before implementation of any final regulation to implement an endangered or threatened determination (but limits to ten the total number of such hearings with respect to each proposed regulation). 
Directs the Secretary, upon publication of a proposed regulation determining an endangered or threatened listing, to make publicly available all information on which the determination is based, as well as all information relating to the species that does not support such determination (with an exception for disclosures protected under the Freedom of Information Act or the Privacy Act). 
Directs the Secretary to establish criteria that must be met for scientific and commercial data to be used in a determination that a species is endangered or threatened.  Requires such data to include field observation of the species involved. Requires the Secretary to accept and use data collected by landowners. 
Directs the Secretary to: (1) begin developing a recovery plan for an endangered or threatened species on the date of promulgation of the proposed regulation for such determination; and (2) issue such plan no later than the date of final promulgation of such regulation. 
Requires the Secretary, if he finds that the criteria of a recovery plan has been met for a: (1) change of status of an endangered or threatened species, to publish a notice of such change in status; and (2) removal of a species covered by a plan from an endangered or threatened list, to publish a notice of an intent to remove such species from such list.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Endangered Species Listing and 
Delisting Process Reform Act of 1999''.

SEC. 2. LISTING PROCESS REFORMS.

    (a) Best Scientific and Commercial Data Available.--
            (1) In general.--Section 3 of the Endangered Species Act of 
        1973 (16 U.S.C. 1532) is amended--
                    (A) by striking the section heading and inserting 
                the following:

                ``definitions and general provisions'';

                    (B) by striking ``For the purposes of this Act--'' 
                and inserting the following:
    ``(a) Definitions.--In this Act:''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(b) General Provisions.--Where this Act requires the Secretary to 
use the best scientific and commercial data available, the Secretary 
shall obtain and use scientific or commercial data that is empirical or 
has been field-tested or peer-reviewed.''.
            (2) Conforming amendment.--The table of contents in the 
        first section of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 
        prec. 1531) is amended by striking the item relating to section 
        3 and inserting the following:

``Sec. 3. Definitions and general provisions.''.
    (b) Finding of Sufficient Biological Information To Support 
Recovery Planning.--Section 4(b) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 
(16 U.S.C. 1533(b)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1)(A), by adding at the end the 
        following: ``The Secretary shall determine that a species is an 
        endangered species or a threatened species only if the 
        Secretary finds that there is sufficient biological information 
        to support recovery planning for the species under subsection 
        (f).''; and
            (2) in the first sentence of paragraph (3)(A), by inserting 
        before the period at the end the following: ``and as to whether 
        the petition presents sufficient biological information to 
        support recovery planning for the species under subsection 
        (f)''.
    (c) Petition Process.--Section 4(b)(3) of the Endangered Species 
Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1533(b)(3)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
                    ``(E) Listing petition information.--In the case of 
                a petition to add a species to a list published under 
                subsection (c), a finding that the petition presents 
                the information described in subparagraph (A) shall not 
                be made unless the petition provides--
                            ``(i) documentation from a published 
                        scientific source that the fish, wildlife, or 
                        plant that is the subject of the petition is a 
                        species;
                            ``(ii) a description of the available data 
                        on the historical and current range and 
                        distribution of the species, an explanation of 
                        the methodology used to collect the data, and 
                        identification of the location where the data 
                        can be reviewed;
                            ``(iii) an appraisal of the available data 
                        on the status and trends of all extant 
                        populations of the species;
                            ``(iv) an appraisal of the available data 
                        on the threats to the species;
                            ``(v) an identification of the information 
                        contained or referred to in the petition that 
                        has been peer-reviewed or field-tested; and
                            ``(vi) a description of at least 1 study or 
                        credible expert opinion, from a person not 
                        affiliated with the petitioner, to support the 
                        action requested in the petition.
                    ``(F) Notification to states.--
                            ``(i) Petitioned actions.--If a petition is 
                        found to present information described in 
                        subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall notify 
                        and provide a copy of the petition to the State 
                        agency of each State in which the species is 
                        believed to occur and solicit the assessment of 
                        the agency, to be submitted to the Secretary 
                        during a comment period ending 90 days after 
                        the date of notification, as to whether the 
petitioned action is warranted.
                            ``(ii) Other actions.--If the Secretary has 
                        not received a petition to add a species to a 
                        list published under subsection (c) and the 
                        Secretary is considering proposing to list the 
                        species as an endangered species or a 
                        threatened species under subsection (a), the 
                        Secretary shall notify the State agency of each 
                        State in which the species is believed to occur 
                        and solicit the assessment of the agency, to be 
                        submitted to the Secretary during a comment 
                        period ending 90 days after the date of the 
                        notification, as to whether the listing would 
                        be in accordance with subsection (a).
                            ``(iii) Consideration of state 
                        assessments.--Before publication of a finding 
                        described in subparagraph (A) that a petition 
                        is warranted, the Secretary shall consider any 
                        assessments submitted with respect to the 
                        species within the comment period established 
                        under clause (i) or (ii).''.
    (d) Improving Public Hearings in the Listing Process.--
            (1) In general.--Section 4(b)(5) of the Endangered Species 
        Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1533(b)(5)) is amended by striking 
        subparagraph (E) and inserting the following:
            ``(E) promptly hold at least 2 hearings in each State in 
        which the species proposed for determination as an endangered 
        species or a threatened species is located (including at least 
        1 hearing in an affected rural area if 1 or more rural areas 
        within the State are affected by the determination), except 
        that the Secretary may not be required to hold more than 10 
        hearings under this subparagraph with respect to the proposed 
        regulation.''.
            (2) Definition of rural area.--Section 3(a) of the 
        Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1532(a)) (as amended 
        by subsection (a)(1)(B)) is amended--
                    (A) by redesignating paragraphs (12) through (14) 
                as paragraphs (11) through (13), respectively; and
                    (B) by inserting before paragraph (15) the 
                following:
            ``(14) Rural area.--The term `rural area' means a county or 
        unincorporated area that has no city or town that has a 
        population of more than 10,000 inhabitants.''.
            (3) Conforming amendment.--Section 7(n) of the Endangered 
        Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1536(n)) is amended in the first 
        sentence by striking ``, as defined by section 3(13) of this 
        Act,''.
    (e) Emergency Listing.--Section 4(b)(7) of the Endangered Species 
Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1533(b)(7)) is amended by striking ``posing a 
significant risk to the well-being'' and inserting ``that poses an 
imminent threat to the continued existence''.
    (f) Other Listing Reforms.--Section 4(b) of the Endangered Species 
Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1533(b)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
            ``(9) Availability of listing data.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), 
                upon publication of a proposed regulation determining 
                that a species is an endangered species or a threatened 
                species, the Secretary shall make publicly available--
                            ``(i) all information on which the 
                        determination is based, including all 
                        scientific studies and data underlying the 
                        studies; and
                            ``(ii) all information relating to the 
                        species that the Secretary possesses and that 
                        does not support the determination.
                    ``(B) Limitation.--Subparagraph (A) does not 
                require disclosure of any information that--
                            ``(i) is not subject to section 552 of 
                        title 5, United States Code (commonly known as 
                        the `Freedom of Information Act'); or
                            ``(ii) is prohibited from being disclosed 
                        under section 552a of title 5, United States 
                        Code (commonly known as the `Privacy Act').
            ``(10) Establishment of criteria for scientific studies to 
        support listing.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
        enactment of this paragraph, the Secretary shall promulgate 
        regulations that establish criteria that must be met for 
        scientific and commercial data to be used as the basis of a 
        determination under this section that a species is an 
        endangered species or a threatened species.
            ``(11) Field data.--
                    ``(A) Requirement.--The Secretary may not determine 
                that a species is an endangered species or a threatened 
species unless the determination is supported by data obtained by 
observation of the species in the field.
                    ``(B) Data from landowners.--The Secretary shall--
                            ``(i) accept and acknowledge receipt of 
                        data regarding the status of a species that is 
                        collected by the owner of land through 
                        observation of the species on the land; and
                            ``(ii) include the data in the rulemaking 
                        record compiled for any determination that the 
                        species is an endangered species or a 
                        threatened species.''.

SEC. 3. DEADLINE FOR DEVELOPMENT OF RECOVERY PLANS.

    Section 4(f) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 
1533(f)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(6) Deadline for development of recovery plans.--The 
        Secretary shall--
                    ``(A) begin developing a recovery plan required for 
                a species under paragraph (1) on the date of 
                promulgation of the proposed regulation to implement a 
                determination under subsection (a)(1) with respect to 
                the species; and
                    ``(B) issue a recovery plan in final form not later 
                than the date of promulgation of the final regulation 
                to implement the determination.''.

SEC. 4. DELISTING.

    Section 4(f) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 
1533(f)) (as amended by section 3) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
            ``(7) Effect of fulfillment of recovery plan criteria.--
                    ``(A) Change in status.--If the Secretary finds 
                that the criteria of a recovery plan have been met for 
                a change in status of the species covered by the 
                recovery plan from an endangered species to a 
                threatened species, or from a threatened species to an 
                endangered species, the Secretary shall promptly 
                publish in the Federal Register a notice of the change 
                in status of the species.
                    ``(B) Removal from listing.--If the Secretary finds 
                that the criteria of a recovery plan have been met for 
                the removal of the species covered by the recovery plan 
                from a list published under subsection (c), the 
                Secretary shall promptly publish in the Federal 
                Register a notice of an intent to remove the species 
                from the list.''.