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Union Calendar No. 525 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 1907 

[Report No. 110–811] 

To authorize the acquisition of land and interests in land from willing sellers 

to improve the conservation of, and to enhance the ecological values 

and functions of, coastal and estuarine areas to benefit both the environment and the economies of coastal communities, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 18, 2007 

Mr. SAXTON (for himself and Mrs. CAPPS) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 

JULY 31, 2008 

Additional sponsors: Mr. PAYNE, Mr. ALLEN, Mr. FARR, Mr. GILCHREST, Mr. 

SMITH of New Jersey, Mr. GERLACH, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. 

DINGELL, Mr. MCINTYRE, Mr. MORAN of Virginia, Mr. GEORGE MILLER

of California, Mr. CASTLE, Mr. LOBIONDO, Mr. THOMPSON of California, 

Ms. MATSUI, Mrs. TAUSCHER, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. STARK, Mr. LANTOS, Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. INSLEE, Ms. 

DELAURO, and Mr. SHAYS

JULY 31, 2008 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 

House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on April 18, 2007] 

A BILL 

To authorize the acquisition of land and interests in land 


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from willing sellers to improve the conservation of, and 

to enhance the ecological values and functions of, coastal 

and estuarine areas to benefit both the environment and 

the economies of coastal communities, and for other purposes. 

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 ‘‘Coastal and Estuarine 

5 Land Conservation Program Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION OF COASTAL AND ESTUARINE 

7 LAND CONSERVATION PROGRAM. 

8 The Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 

9 1451 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 307 the 

10 following new section: 

11 ‘‘AUTHORIZATION OF THE COASTAL AND ESTUARINE LAND

12 CONSERVATION PROGRAM

13 ‘‘SEC. 307A. (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 

14 conduct a Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Pro15 gram, in cooperation with appropriate State, regional, and 

16 other units of government, for the purposes of protecting im17 portant coastal and estuarine areas that have significant 

18 conservation, recreation, ecological, historical, or aesthetic 

19 values, or that are threatened by conversion from their nat20 ural, undeveloped, or recreational state to other uses or 

21 could be managed or restored to effectively conserve, enVerDate Aug 31 2005 02:04 Aug 01, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H1907.RH H1907

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1 hance, or restore ecological function. The program shall be 

2 administered by the National Ocean Service of the National 

3 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration through the Of4 fice of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management. 

5 ‘‘(b) PROPERTY ACQUISITION GRANTS.—The Secretary 

6 shall make grants under the program to coastal states with 

7 approved coastal zone management plans or National Estu8 arine Research Reserve units for the purpose of acquiring 

9 property or interests in property described in subsection (a) 

10 that will further the goals of— 

11 ‘‘(1) a Coastal Zone Management Plan or Pro12 gram approved under this title; 

13 ‘‘(2) a National Estuarine Research Reserve 

14 management plan; 

15 ‘‘(3) a regional or State watershed protection or 

16 management plan involving coastal states with ap17 proved coastal zone management programs; or 

18 ‘‘(4) a State coastal land acquisition plan that 

19 is consistent with an approved coastal zone manage20 ment program. 

21 ‘‘(c) GRANT PROCESS.—The Secretary shall allocate 

22 funds to coastal states or National Estuarine Research Re23 serves under this section through a competitive grant proc24 ess in accordance with guidelines that meet the following 

25 requirements: 


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1 ‘‘(1) The Secretary shall consult with the coastal 

2 state’s coastal zone management program, any Na3 tional Estuarine Research Reserve in that State, and 

4 the lead agency designated by the Governor for coordi5 nating the implementation of this section (if different 

6 from the coastal zone management program). 

7 ‘‘(2) Each participating coastal state, after con8 sultation with local governmental entities and other 

9 interested stakeholders, shall identify priority con10 servation needs within the State, the values to be pro11 tected by inclusion of lands in the program, and the 

12 threats to those values that should be avoided. 

13 ‘‘(3) Each participating coastal state shall to the 

14 extent practicable ensure that the acquisition of prop15 erty or easements shall not impact working water16 front needs. 

17 ‘‘(4) The applicant shall identify the values to be 

18 protected by inclusion of the lands in the program, 

19 management activities that are planned and the man20 ner in which they may affect the values identified, 

21 and any other information from the landowner rel22 evant to administration and management of the land. 

23 ‘‘(5) Awards shall be based on demonstrated need 

24 for protection and ability to successfully leverage 

25 funds among participating entities, including Federal 


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1 programs, regional organizations, State and other 

2 governmental units, landowners, corporations, or pri3 vate organizations. 

4 ‘‘(6) The governor, or the lead agency designated 

5 by the governor for coordinating the implementation 

6 of this section, where appropriate in consultation 

7 with the appropriate local government, shall deter8 mine that the application is consistent with the 

9 State’s or territory’s approved coastal zone plan, pro10 gram, and policies prior to submittal to the Sec11 retary. 

12 ‘‘(7) Priority shall be given to lands described in 

13 subsection (a) that can be effectively managed and 

14 protected and that have significant ecological value. 

15 ‘‘(8) In developing guidelines under this section, 

16 the Secretary shall consult with coastal states, other 

17 Federal agencies, and other interested stakeholders 

18 with expertise in land acquisition and conservation 

19 procedures. 

20 ‘‘(9) Eligible coastal states or National Estua21 rine Research Reserves may allocate grants to local 

22 governments or agencies eligible for assistance under 

23 section 306A(e). 

24 ‘‘(10) The Secretary shall develop performance 

25 measures that the Secretary shall use to evaluate and 


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1 report on the program’s effectiveness in accomplishing 

2 its purposes, and shall submit such evaluations to 

3 Congress triennially. 

4 ‘‘(11) For projects that rank equally under the 

5 guidelines, priority shall be given to projects that le6 verage a higher percentage of non-Federal matching 

7 funds. 

8 ‘‘(d) LIMITATIONS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) A grant awarded under this section may be 

10 used to purchase land or an interest in land, includ11 ing an easement, only from a willing seller. 

12 ‘‘(2) All acquisitions of land with a grant under 

13 this section shall be made in a voluntary manner and 

14 shall not be the result of a forced taking. 

15 ‘‘(3) Any interest in land, including any ease16 ment, acquired with a grant under this section shall 

17 not be considered to create any liability, or have any 

18 effect on liability under any other law, of any private 

19 property owner with respect to any person injured on 

20 the private property. 

21 ‘‘(e) PRIVATE PROPERTY PROTECTIONS.—Nothing in 

22 this title— 

23 ‘‘(1) requires a private property owner to par24 ticipate in the program under this section; 


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1 ‘‘(2) requires any private property owner to 

2 allow public access (including Federal, State, or local 

3 government access) to the private property; or 

4 ‘‘(3) modifies the application of any provision of 

5 Federal, State, or local law with regard to public ac6 cess to or use of private property, except as provided 

7 by a voluntary agreement entered into by the owner 

8 or custodian of the property. 

9 ‘‘(f) RECOGNITION OF AUTHORITY TO CONTROL LAND

10 USE.—Nothing in this title modifies the authority of Fed11 eral, State, or local governments to regulate land use. 

12 ‘‘(g) MATCHING REQUIREMENTS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may not make 

14 a grant under the program unless the Federal funds 

15 are matched by non-Federal funds in accordance with 

16 this subsection. 

17 ‘‘(2) COST SHARE REQUIREMENT.— 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Grant funds under the 

19 program shall require a 100 percent match from 

20 other non-Federal sources. 

21 ‘‘(B) WAIVER OF REQUIREMENT.—The Sec22 retary may grant a waiver of subparagraph (A) 

23 for underserved communities, communities that 

24 have an inability to draw on other sources of 

25 funding because of the small population or low 


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1 income of the community, or for other reasons 

2 the Secretary deems appropriate and consistent 

3 with the purposes of the program. 

4 ‘‘(3) OTHER FEDERAL FUNDS.—Where financial 

5 assistance awarded under this section represents only 

6 a portion of the total cost of a project, funding from 

7 other Federal sources may be applied to the cost of the 

8 project. Each portion shall be subject to match re9 quirements under the applicable provision of law. 

10 ‘‘(4) SOURCE OF MATCHING COST SHARE.—For 

11 purposes of paragraph (2)(A), the non-Federal cost 

12 share for a project may be determined by taking into 

13 account the following: 

14 ‘‘(A) The value of land or a conservation 

15 easement may be used by a project applicant as 

16 non-Federal match, if the Secretary determines 

17 that— 

18 ‘‘(i) the land meets the criteria set 

19 forth in section 2(b) and is acquired in the 

20 period beginning 3 years before the date of 

21 the submission of the grant application and 

22 ending 3 years after the date of the award 

23 of the grant; 

24 ‘‘(ii) the value of the land or easement 

25 is held by a non-governmental organization 


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1 included in the grant application in per2 petuity for conservation purposes of the pro3 gram; and 

4 ‘‘(iii) the land or easement is connected 

5 either physically or through a conservation 

6 planning process to the land or easement 

7 that would be acquired. 

8 ‘‘(B) The appraised value of the land or 

9 conservation easement at the time of the grant 

10 closing will be considered and applied as the 

11 non-Federal cost share. 

12 ‘‘(C) Costs associated with land acquisition, 

13 land management planning, remediation, res14 toration, and enhancement may be used as non15 Federal match if the activities are identified in 

16 the plan and expenses are incurred within the 

17 period of the grant award, or, for lands described 

18 in (A), within the same time limits described 

19 therein. These costs may include either cash or 

20 in-kind contributions. 

21 ‘‘(h) RESERVATION OF FUNDS FOR NATIONAL ESTUA22 RINE RESEARCH RESERVE SITES.—No less than 15 percent 

23 of funds made available under this section shall be available 

24 for acquisitions benefitting National Estuarine Research 

25 Reserves. 


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1 ‘‘(i) LIMIT ON ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—No more 

2 than 5 percent of the funds made available to the Secretary 

3 under this section shall be used by the Secretary for plan4 ning or administration of the program. The Secretary shall 

5 provide a report to Congress with an account of all expendi6 tures under this section for fiscal year 2009 and triennially 

7 thereafter. 

8 ‘‘(j) TITLE AND MANAGEMENT OF ACQUIRED PROP9 ERTY.—If any property is acquired in whole or in part 

10 with funds made available through a grant under this sec11 tion, the grant recipient shall provide— 

12 ‘‘(1) such assurances as the Secretary may re13 quire that— 

14 ‘‘(A) the title to the property will be held by 

15 the grant recipient or another appropriate public 

16 agency designated by the recipient in perpetuity; 

17 ‘‘(B) the property will be managed in a 

18 manner that is consistent with the purposes for 

19 which the land entered into the program and 

20 shall not convert such property to other uses; and 

21 ‘‘(C) if the property or interest in land is 

22 sold, exchanged, or divested, funds equal to the 

23 current value will be returned to the Secretary in 

24 accordance with applicable Federal law for re25 distribution in the grant process; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) certification that the property (including 

2 any interest in land) will be acquired from a willing 

3 seller. 

4 ‘‘(k) REQUIREMENT FOR PROPERTY USED FOR NON5 FEDERAL MATCH.—If the grant recipient elects to use any 

6 land or interest in land held by a non-governmental organi7 zation as a non-Federal match under subsection (g), the 

8 grant recipient must to the Secretary’s satisfaction dem9 onstrate in the grant application that such land or interest 

10 will satisfy the same requirements as the lands or interests 

11 in lands acquired under the program. 

12 ‘‘(l) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

13 ‘‘(1) CONSERVATION EASEMENT.—The term ‘con14 servation easement’ includes an easement or restric15 tion, recorded deed, or a reserve interest deed where 

16 the grantee acquires all rights, title, and interest in 

17 a property, that do not conflict with the goals of this 

18 section except those rights, title, and interests that 

19 may run with the land that are expressly reserved by 

20 a grantor and are agreed to at the time of purchase. 

21 ‘‘(2) INTEREST IN PROPERTY.—The term ‘inter22 est in property’ includes a conservation easement. 

23 ‘‘(m) APPLICATION.—Only States with coastal popu24 lations with at least 85 people per square mile may be eligi25 ble for grants under this program. For purposes of this subVerDate Aug 31 2005 02:04 Aug 01, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H1907.RH H1907

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1 section, coastal population shall be calculated using the 

2 most recent Census Bureau numbers for the population of 

3 coastal counties that are wholly or partially within the 

4 State’s legally defined coastal zones. 

5 ‘‘(n) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

6 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry 

7 out this section $60,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2009 

8 through 2013.’’. 


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Union Calendar No. 525 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 1907 

[Report No. 110

–811] 

A BILL 

To authorize the acquisition of land and interests 

of coastal communities, and for other purposes. benefit both the environment and the economies and functions of, coastal and estuarine areas to servation of, and to enhance the ecological values in land from willing sellers to improve the conJULY 31, 2008 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Comand ordered to be printed mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 


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