I 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5579 

To amend the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to provide for improved 

precision in the listing, delisting, and downlisting of endangered species 

and potentially endangered species. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 10, 2020 

Mr. GIANFORTE (for himself, Mr. GOSAR, Mr. NEWHOUSE, Mr. CRAWFORD, 

and Mr. MCCLINTOCK) introduced the following bill; which was referred 

to the Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To amend the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to provide 

for improved precision in the listing, delisting, and 

downlisting of endangered species and potentially endangered species. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Less Imprecision in 

5 Species Treatment Act of 2020’’ or the ‘‘LIST Act of 

6 2020’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. REQUIREMENT TO INITIATE DELISTING. 

2 (a) REQUIREMENT IN CASE OF RECOVERY.—Section 

3 4(b) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 

4 1533(b)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(9)(A) The Secretary shall initiate the procedures 

6 in accordance with subsection (a)(1) to remove a species 

7 from a list published under subsection (c) if— 

8 ‘‘(i) the goals of a recovery plan for the species 

9 developed under subsection (f) have been met; or 

10 ‘‘(ii) the goals for recovery of the species have 

11 not been developed under subsection (f), and the 

12 Secretary determines that the species has recovered 

13 sufficiently to no longer require the protection of the 

14 Act. 

15 ‘‘(B) Notwithstanding the requirement of subsection 

16 (c)(2) that each determination under subparagraph (B) of 

17 that subsection shall be made in accordance with the pro18 visions of subsections (a) and (b), the Secretary shall re19 move a species from any list published under subsection 

20 (c) if the Department of the Interior has produced or re21 ceived substantial scientific or commercial information 

22 demonstrating that the species is recovered or that recov23 ery goals set for the species under subsection (f) have been 

24 met. 

25 ‘‘(C) In the case of a species removed under subpara26 graph (A) from a list published under subsection (c), the 


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1 publication and notice under subsection (b)(5) shall con2 sist solely of a notice of such removal.’’. 

3 (b) REQUIREMENT IN CASE ERRONEOUSLY OR

4 WRONGFULLY LISTED.—Section 4(b)(3) of the Endan5 gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1533(a)), as amend6 ed by subsection (a), is further amended by adding at the 

7 end the following: 

8 ‘‘(H)(i) Not later than 90 days after the date the De9 partment of the Interior receives or produces under this 

10 subsection information described in clause (ii) regarding 

11 a species included in a list under subsection (c), the Sec12 retary shall to the maximum extent practicable find 

13 whether the inclusion of such species in such list was less 

14 than likely to have occurred in the absence of the scientific 

15 or commercial information referred to in clause (ii). 

16 ‘‘(ii) Information referred to in clause (i) is any infor17 mation demonstrating that the listing was determined on 

18 the basis of scientific or commercial information available 

19 to, or received or produced by, the Department under 

20 paragraphs (1) and (3) of subsection (b) that at the time 

21 the scientific or commercial information was available to 

22 or received or produced by the Department it was— 

23 ‘‘(I) inaccurate beyond scientifically reasonable 

24 margins of error; 

25 ‘‘(II) fraudulent; or 


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1 ‘‘(III) misrepresentative. 

2 ‘‘(iii) Notwithstanding the requirement under sub3 section (c)(2)(B) that each determination under subpara4 graph (B) shall be made in accordance with the provisions 

5 of subsections (a) and (b), the Secretary shall— 

6 ‘‘(I) remove from any list published under sub7 section (c) any species for which a positive finding 

8 is made under clause (i); and 

9 ‘‘(II) promptly publish in the Federal Register 

10 notice of such finding that includes such information 

11 as was received or produced by the Department 

12 under such clause. 

13 ‘‘(iv) Any positive finding by the Secretary under 

14 clause (i) shall not be subject to judicial review. 

15 ‘‘(v) Any negative finding by the Secretary under 

16 clause (i) shall be subject to judicial review. 

17 ‘‘(vi) In the case of a species removed under clause 

18 (iii) from a list, the publication and notice under sub19 section (b)(5) shall consist solely of a notice of such re20 moval. 

21 ‘‘(vii) If the Secretary finds that a person submitted 

22 a petition that is the subject of a positive finding under 

23 clause (i) knowing that it contained scientific or commer24 cial information described in clause (ii), then during the 

25 10-year period beginning on the date of the finding under 


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1 this clause the person shall not be considered an interested 

2 person for purposes of subparagraph (A) with respect to 

3 any petition submitted by the person after the date the 

4 person submitted such scientific or commercial informa5 tion.’’. 

6 SEC. 3. EXPANDED CONSIDERATION DURING FIVE-YEAR 

7 REVIEW. 

8 Section 4(c) (16 U.S.C. 1533(c)) is amended by add9 ing at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(3) Each determination under paragraph (2)(B) 

11 shall consider one of the following: 

12 ‘‘(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B) 

13 of this paragraph, the criteria required under sub14 section (f)(1)(B) in the recovery plan for the species. 

15 ‘‘(B) If the objective, measurable criteria under 

16 subsection (f)(1)(B)(ii) are not established, the fac17 tors for the determination that a species is an en18 dangered species or a threatened species set forth in 

19 subsections (a)(1) and (b)(1). 

20 ‘‘(C) A finding of error in the determination 

21 that the species is an endangered species, a threat22 ened species, or extinct. 

23 ‘‘(D) A determination that the species is no 

24 longer an endangered species or threatened species 

25 or in danger of extinction, based on an analysis of 


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1 the factors that are the basis for listing in sub2 sections (a)(1) and (b)(1).’’. 

Æ 


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