115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1417 

AN ACT 

To require the Secretary of the Interior to develop a categorical exclusion for covered vegetative management activities carried out to establish or improve habitat for greater sage-grouse and mule deer, 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, 
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Sage-Grouse and Mule 

3 Deer Habitat Conservation and Restoration Act of 2018’’. 

4 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

5 In this Act: 

6 (1) COVERED VEGETATION MANAGEMENT AC7 TIVITY.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘covered 

9 vegetation management activity’’ means any ac10 tivity described in subparagraph (B) that— 

11 (i) is carried out on public land ad12 ministered by the Bureau of Land Man13 agement; 

14 (ii) meets the objectives of the order 

15 of the Secretary numbered 3336 and dated 

16 January 5, 2015; 

17 (iii) conforms to an applicable land 

18 use plan; 

19 (iv) protects, restores, or improves 

20 greater sage-grouse or mule deer habitat in 

21 a sagebrush steppe ecosystem as described 

22 in— 

23 (I) Circular 1416 of the United 

24 States Geological Survey entitled 

25 ‘‘Restoration Handbook for Sagebrush 

26 Steppe Ecosystems with Emphasis on 
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1 Greater Sage-Grouse Habitat—Part 

2 1. Concepts for Understanding and 

3 Applying Restoration’’ (2015); or 

4 (II) the habitat guidelines for 

5 mule deer published by the Mule Deer 

6 Working Group of the Western Asso7 ciation of Fish and Wildlife Agencies; 

8 (v) will not permanently impair— 

9 (I) the natural state of the treat10 ed area; 

11 (II) outstanding opportunities for 

12 solitude; 

13 (III) outstanding opportunities 

14 for primitive, unconfined recreation; 

15 (IV) economic opportunities con16 sistent with multiple-use management; 

17 or 

18 (V) the identified values of a unit 

19 of the National Landscape Conserva20 tion System; and 

21 (vi)(I) restores native vegetation fol22 lowing a natural disturbance; 

23 (II) prevents the expansion into great24 er sage-grouse or mule deer habitat of— 
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1 (aa) juniper, pinyon pine, or 

2 other associated conifers; or 

3 (bb) nonnative or invasive vegeta4 tion; 

5 (III) reduces the risk of loss of great6 er sage-grouse or mule deer habitat from 

7 wildfire or any other natural disturbance; 

8 or 

9 (IV) provides emergency stabilization 

10 of soil resources after a natural disturb11 ance. 

12 (B) DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITIES.—An ac13 tivity referred to in subparagraph (A) is— 

14 (i) manual cutting and removal of ju15 niper trees, pinyon pine trees, other associ16 ated conifers, or other nonnative or 

17 invasive vegetation; 

18 (ii) mechanical mastication, cutting, 

19 or mowing, mechanical piling and burning, 

20 chaining, broadcast burning, or yarding; 

21 (iii) removal of cheat grass, medusa 

22 head rye, or other nonnative, invasive vege23 tation; 
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1 (iv) collection and seeding or planting 

2 of native vegetation using a manual, me3 chanical, or aerial method; 

4 (v) seeding of nonnative, noninvasive, 

5 ruderal vegetation only for the purpose of 

6 emergency stabilization; 

7 (vi) targeted use of an herbicide, sub8 ject to the condition that the use shall be 

9 in accordance with applicable legal require10 ments, Federal agency procedures, and 

11 land use plans; 

12 (vii) targeted livestock grazing to 

13 mitigate hazardous fuels and control nox14 ious and invasive weeds; 

15 (viii) temporary removal of wild 

16 horses or burros in the area in which the 

17 activity is being carried out to ensure 

18 treatment objectives are met; 

19 (ix) in coordination with the affected 

20 permit holder, modification or adjustment 

21 of permissible usage under an annual plan 

22 of use of a grazing permit issued by the 

23 Secretary to achieve restoration treatment 

24 objectives; 
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1 (x) installation of new, or modification 

2 of existing, fencing or water sources in3 tended to control use or improve wildlife 

4 habitat; or 

5 (xi) necessary maintenance of, repairs 

6 to, rehabilitation of, or reconstruction of 

7 an existing permanent road or construction 

8 of temporary roads to accomplish the ac9 tivities described in this subparagraph. 

10 (C) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘covered 

11 vegetation management activity’’ does not in12 clude— 

13 (i) any activity conducted in a wilder14 ness area or wilderness study area; or 

15 (ii) any activity for the construction of 

16 a permanent road or permanent trail. 

17 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

18 the Secretary of the Interior. 

19 (3) TEMPORARY ROAD.—The term ‘‘temporary 

20 road’’ means a road that is— 

21 (A) authorized— 

22 (i) by a contract, permit, lease, other 

23 written authorization; or 

24 (ii) pursuant to an emergency oper25 ation; 
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1 (B) not intended to be part of the perma2 nent transportation system of a Federal depart3 ment or agency; 

4 (C) not necessary for long-term resource 

5 management; 

6 (D) designed in accordance with standards 

7 appropriate for the intended use of the road, 

8 taking into consideration— 

9 (i) safety; 

10 (ii) the cost of transportation; and 

11 (iii) impacts to land and resources; 

12 and 

13 (E) managed to minimize— 

14 (i) erosion; and 

15 (ii) the introduction or spread of 

16 invasive species. 

17 SEC. 3. IMPROVEMENT OF HABITAT FOR GREATER SAGE18 GROUSE AND MULE DEER. 

19 (a) CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

21 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

22 shall develop 1 or more categorical exclusions (as de23 fined in section 1508.4 of title 40, Code of Federal 

24 Regulations (or a successor regulation)) for covered 

25 vegetation management activities carried out to pro-
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1 tect, restore, or improve habitat for greater sage2 grouse or mule deer. 

3 (2) ADMINISTRATION.—In developing and ad4 ministering a categorical exclusion under paragraph 

5 (1), the Secretary shall— 

6 (A) comply with the National Environ7 mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 

8 seq.); 

9 (B) apply the extraordinary circumstances 

10 procedures under section 220.6 of title 36, Code 

11 of Federal Regulations (or successor regula12 tions), in determining whether to use the cat13 egorical exclusion; and 

14 (C) consider— 

15 (i) the relative efficacy of landscape16 scale habitat projects; 

17 (ii) the likelihood of continued de18 clines in the populations of greater sage19 grouse and mule deer in the absence of 

20 landscape-scale vegetation management; 

21 and 

22 (iii) the need for habitat restoration 

23 activities after wildfire or other natural 

24 disturbances. 
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1 (b) IMPLEMENTATION OF COVERED VEGETATIVE

2 MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES WITHIN THE RANGE OF

3 GREATER SAGE-GROUSE AND MULE DEER.—If a categor4 ical exclusion developed under subsection (a) is used to 

5 implement a covered vegetative management activity in an 

6 area within the range of both greater sage-grouse and 

7 mule deer, the covered vegetative management activity 

8 shall protect, restore, or improve habitat concurrently for 

9 both greater sage-grouse and mule deer. 

10 (c) LONG-TERM MONITORING AND MAINTENANCE.— 

11 Before commencing any covered vegetation management 

12 activity that is covered by a categorical exclusion under 

13 subsection (a), the Secretary shall develop a long-term 

14 monitoring and maintenance plan, covering at least the 

15 20 year-period beginning on the date of commencement, 

16 to ensure that management of the treated area does not 

17 degrade the habitat gains secured by the covered vegeta18 tion management activity. 

19 (d) DISPOSAL OF VEGETATIVE MATERIAL.—Subject 

20 to applicable local restrictions, any vegetative material re21 sulting from a covered vegetation management activity 

22 that is covered by a categorical exclusion under subsection 

23 (a) may be— 

24 (1) used for— 

25 (A) fuel wood; or 
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1 (B) other products; or 

2 (2) piled or burned, or both. 

3 (e) TREATMENT FOR TEMPORARY ROADS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 

5 2(1)(B)(xi), any temporary road constructed in car6 rying out a covered vegetation management activity 

7 that is covered by a categorical exclusion under sub8 section (a)— 

9 (A) shall be used by the Secretary for the 

10 covered vegetation management activity for not 

11 more than 2 years; and 

12 (B) shall be decommissioned by the Sec13 retary not later than 3 years after the earlier 

14 of the date on which— 

15 (i) the temporary road is no longer 

16 needed; and 

17 (ii) the project is completed. 

18 (2) REQUIREMENT.—A treatment under para19 graph (1) shall include reestablishing native vegeta20 tive cover— 

21 (A) as soon as practicable; but 
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1 (B) not later than 10 years after the date 

2 of completion of the applicable covered vegeta3 tion management activity. 

Passed the Senate September 6, 2018. 

Attest: 

Secretary. 
115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1417 

AN ACT 

To require the Secretary of the Interior to develop 

deer, and for other purposes. improve habitat for greater sage-grouse and mule management activities carried out to establish or a categorical exclusion for covered vegetative