II 

Calendar No. 237 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1514 

[Report No. 115–168] 

To amend certain Acts to reauthorize those Acts and to increase protections 

for wildlife, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 29, 2017 

Mr. BARRASSO (for himself, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. BOOZMAN, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, 

Mrs. CAPITO, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. ENZI, Mr. KING, Mr. JOHNSON, Mr. 

INHOFE, and Mr. KENNEDY) introduced the following bill; which was 

read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public 

Works 

OCTOBER 5, 2017 

Reported by Mr. BARRASSO, with an amendment 

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

A BILL 

To amend certain Acts to reauthorize those Acts and to 

increase protections for wildlife, 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, 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 1514 RS

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Hunting Heritage and 

3 Environmental Legacy Preservation for Wildlife Act’’ or 

4 the ‘‘HELP for Wildlife Act’’. 

5 SEC. 2. TARGET PRACTICE AND MARKSMANSHIP. 

6 (a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to fa7 cilitate the construction and expansion of public target 

8 ranges, including ranges on Federal land managed by the 

9 Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management. 

10 (b) DEFINITION OF PUBLIC TARGET RANGE.—In 

11 this section, the term ‘‘public target range’’ means a spe12 cific location that— 

13 (1) is identified by a governmental agency for 

14 recreational shooting; 

15 (2) is open to the public; 

16 (3) may be supervised; and 

17 (4) may accommodate archery or rifle, pistol, or 

18 shotgun shooting. 

19 (c) AMENDMENTS TO PITTMAN-ROBERTSON WILD20 LIFE RESTORATION ACT.— 

21 (1) DEFINITIONS.—Section 2 of the Pittman22 Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 

23 669a) is amended— 

24 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (2) 

25 through (8) as paragraphs (3) through (9), re26 spectively; and 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 1514 RS

1 (B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the 

2 following: 

3 ‘‘(2) the term ‘public target range’ means a 

4 specific location that— 

5 ‘‘(A) is identified by a governmental agen6 cy for recreational shooting; 

7 ‘‘(B) is open to the public; 

8 ‘‘(C) may be supervised; and 

9 ‘‘(D) may accommodate archery or rifle, 

10 pistol, or shotgun shooting;’’. 

11 (2) EXPENDITURES FOR MANAGEMENT OF

12 WILDLIFE AREAS AND RESOURCES.—Section 8(b) of 

13 the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act (16 

14 U.S.C. 669g(b)) is amended— 

15 (A) by striking ‘‘(b) Each State’’ and in16 serting the following: 

17 ‘‘(b) EXPENDITURES FOR MANAGEMENT OF WILD18 LIFE AREAS AND RESOURCES.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para20 graph (2), each State’’; 

21 (B) in paragraph (1) (as so designated), in 

22 the first sentence, by striking ‘‘construction, op23 eration,’’ and inserting ‘‘operation’’; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 1514 RS

1 (C) in the second sentence, by striking 

2 ‘‘The non-Federal share’’ and inserting the fol3 lowing: 

4 ‘‘(3) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The non-Federal 

5 share’’; 

6 (D) in the third sentence, by striking ‘‘The 

7 Secretary’’ and inserting the following: 

8 ‘‘(4) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary’’; and 

9 (E) by inserting after paragraph (1) (as 

10 designated by subparagraph (A)) the following: 

11 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding the limita12 tion described in paragraph (1), a State may pay up 

13 to 90 percent of the cost of acquiring land for, ex14 panding, or constructing a public target range.’’. 

15 (3) FIREARM AND BOW HUNTER EDUCATION

16 AND SAFETY PROGRAM GRANTS.—Section 10 of the 

17 Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act (16 

18 U.S.C. 669h–1) is amended— 

19 (A) in subsection (a), by adding at the end 

20 the following: 

21 ‘‘(3) ALLOCATION OF ADDITIONAL AMOUNTS.— 

22 Of the amount apportioned to a State for any fiscal 

23 year under section 4(b), the State may elect to allo24 cate not more than 10 percent, to be combined with 

25 the amount apportioned to the State under paraVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 1514 RS

1 graph (1) for that fiscal year, for acquiring land for, 

2 expanding, or constructing a public target range.’’; 

3 (B) by striking subsection (b) and insert4 ing the following: 

5 ‘‘(b) COST SHARING.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para7 graph (2), the Federal share of the cost of any activ8 ity carried out using a grant under this section shall 

9 not exceed 75 percent of the total cost of the activ10 ity. 

11 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC TARGET RANGE CONSTRUCTION OR

12 EXPANSION.—The Federal share of the cost of ac13 quiring land for, expanding, or constructing a public 

14 target range in a State on Federal or non-Federal 

15 land pursuant to this section or section 8(b) shall 

16 not exceed 90 percent of the cost of the activity.’’; 

17 and 

18 (C) in subsection (c)(1)— 

19 (i) by striking ‘‘Amounts made’’ and 

20 inserting the following: 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

22 subparagraph (B), amounts made’’; and 

23 (ii) by adding at the end the fol24 lowing: 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 1514 RS

1 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Amounts provided for 

2 acquiring land for, constructing, or expanding a 

3 public target range shall remain available for 

4 expenditure and obligation during the 5-fiscal5 year period beginning on October 1 of the first 

6 fiscal year for which the amounts are made 

7 available.’’. 

8 (d) SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING COOPERA9 TION.—It is the sense of Congress that, consistent with 

10 applicable laws (including regulations), the Chief of the 

11 Forest Service and the Director of the Bureau of Land 

12 Management should cooperate with State and local au13 thorities and other entities to carry out waste removal and 

14 other activities on any Federal land used as a public target 

15 range to encourage continued use of that land for target 

16 practice or marksmanship training. 

17 SEC. 3. BAITING OF MIGRATORY GAME BIRDS. 

18 Section 3 of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (16 

19 U.S.C. 704) is amended by striking subsection (b) and in20 serting the following: 

21 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITION OF BAITING.— 

22 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

23 ‘‘(A) BAITED AREA.— 

24 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘baited 

25 area’ means— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
7 

•S 1514 RS

1 ‘‘(I) any area on which salt, 

2 grain, or other feed has been placed, 

3 exposed, deposited, distributed, or 

4 scattered, if the salt, grain, or feed 

5 could lure or attract migratory game 

6 birds; and 

7 ‘‘(II) in the case of waterfowl, 

8 cranes (family Gruidae), and coots 

9 (family Rallidae), a standing, 

10 unharvested crop that has been ma11 nipulated through activities such as 

12 mowing, discing, or rolling, unless the 

13 activities are normal agricultural prac14 tices. 

15 ‘‘(ii) EXCLUSIONS.—An area shall not 

16 be considered to be a ‘baited area’ if the 

17 area— 

18 ‘‘(I) has been treated with a nor19 mal agricultural practice; 

20 ‘‘(II) has standing crops that 

21 have not been manipulated; or 

22 ‘‘(III) has standing crops that 

23 have been or are flooded. 

24 ‘‘(B) BAITING.—The term ‘baiting’ means 

25 the direct or indirect placing, exposing, deposVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
8 

•S 1514 RS

1 iting, distributing, or scattering of salt, grain, 

2 or other feed that could lure or attract migra3 tory game birds to, on, or over any areas on 

4 which a hunter is attempting to take migratory 

5 game birds. 

6 ‘‘(C) MIGRATORY GAME BIRD.—The term 

7 ‘migratory game bird’ means migratory bird 

8 species— 

9 ‘‘(i) that are within the taxonomic 

10 families of Anatidae, Columbidae, Gruidae, 

11 Rallidae, and Scolopacidae; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) for which open seasons are pre13 scribed by the Secretary of the Interior. 

14 ‘‘(D) NORMAL AGRICULTURAL PRAC15 TICE.— 

16 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘normal 

17 agricultural practice’ means any practice in 

18 1 annual growing season that— 

19 ‘‘(I) is carried out in order to 

20 produce a marketable crop, including 

21 planting, harvest, post-harvest, or soil 

22 conservation practices; and 

23 ‘‘(II) is recommended for the 

24 successful harvest of a given crop by 

25 the applicable State office of the CoVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
9 

•S 1514 RS

1 operative Extension System of the De2 partment of Agriculture, in consulta3 tion with, and if requested, the con4 currence of, the head of the applicable 

5 State department of fish and wildlife. 

6 ‘‘(ii) INCLUSIONS.— 

7 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Subject to 

8 subclause (II), the term ‘normal agri9 cultural practice’ includes the destruc10 tion of a crop in accordance with 

11 practices required by the Federal 

12 Crop Insurance Corporation for agri13 cultural producers to obtain crop in14 surance under the Federal Crop In15 surance Act (7 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.) 

16 on land on which a crop during the 

17 current or immediately preceding crop 

18 year was not harvestable due to a nat19 ural disaster (including any hurricane, 

20 storm, tornado, flood, high water, 

21 wind-driven water, tidal wave, tsu22 nami, earthquake, volcanic eruption, 

23 landslide, mudslide, drought, fire, 

24 snowstorm, or other catastrophe that 

25 is declared a major disaster by the 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
10 

•S 1514 RS

1 President in accordance with section 

2 401 of the Robert T. Stafford Dis3 aster Relief and Emergency Assist4 ance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170)). 

5 ‘‘(II) LIMITATIONS.—The term 

6 ‘normal agricultural practice’ only in7 cludes a crop described in subclause 

8 (I) that has been destroyed or manip9 ulated through activities that include 

10 (but are not limited to) mowing, 

11 discing, or rolling if the Federal Crop 

12 Insurance Corporation certifies that 

13 flooding was not an acceptable method 

14 of destruction to obtain crop insur15 ance under the Federal Crop Insur16 ance Act (7 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.). 

17 ‘‘(E) WATERFOWL.—The term ‘waterfowl’ 

18 means native species of the family Anatidae. 

19 ‘‘(2) PROHIBITION.—It shall be unlawful for 

20 any person— 

21 ‘‘(A) to take any migratory game bird by 

22 baiting or on or over any baited area, if the 

23 person knows or reasonably should know that 

24 the area is a baited area; or 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
11 

•S 1514 RS

1 ‘‘(B) to place or direct the placement of 

2 bait on or adjacent to an area for the purpose 

3 of causing, inducing, or allowing any person to 

4 take or attempt to take any migratory game 

5 bird by baiting or on or over the baited area. 

6 ‘‘(3) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary of the In7 terior may promulgate regulations to implement this 

8 subsection. 

9 ‘‘(4) REPORTS.—Annually, the Secretary of Ag10 riculture shall submit to the Secretary of the Inte11 rior a report that describes any changes to normal 

12 agricultural practices across the range of crops 

13 grown by agricultural producers in each region of 

14 the United States in which the recommendations are 

15 provided to agricultural producers.’’. 

16 SEC. 4. NORTH AMERICAN WETLANDS CONSERVATION ACT. 

17 (a) REAL PROPERTY.—Section 6(a)(3) of the North 

18 American Wetlands Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 

19 4405(a)(3)) is amended— 

20 (1) by striking ‘‘(3) in lieu of’’ and inserting 

21 the following: 

22 ‘‘(3) PROVISION OF FUNDS OR CONVEYANCE OF

23 REAL PROPERTY INTEREST.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In lieu of’’; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
12 

•S 1514 RS

1 (2) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘The 

2 Secretary shall’’ and inserting the following: 

3 ‘‘(B) DETERMINATION.—The Secretary 

4 shall’’; and 

5 (3) by striking the third sentence and inserting 

6 the following: 

7 ‘‘(C) REAL PROPERTY.—Any real property 

8 interest conveyed under this paragraph shall be 

9 subject to terms and conditions that ensure 

10 that— 

11 ‘‘(i) the real property interest will be 

12 administered for the long-term conserva13 tion and management of the wetland eco14 system and the fish and wildlife dependent 

15 on that ecosystem; 

16 ‘‘(ii) the grantor of a real property in17 terest has been provided with information 

18 relating to all available conservation op19 tions, including conservation options that 

20 involve the conveyance of a real property 

21 interest for a limited period of time; and 

22 ‘‘(iii) the provision of the information 

23 described in clause (ii) has been docu24 mented.’’. 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
13 

•S 1514 RS

1 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

2 7(c) of the North American Wetlands Conservation Act 

3 (16 U.S.C. 4406(c)) is amended— 

4 (1) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’; 

5 (2) in paragraph (5), by striking the period at 

6 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

7 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(6) $50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2018 

9 through 2022.’’. 

10 SEC. 5. NATIONAL FISH AND WILDLIFE FOUNDATION ES11 TABLISHMENT ACT. 

12 (a) BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF FOUNDATION.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 3 of the National 

14 Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act (16 

15 U.S.C. 3702) is amended— 

16 (A) in subsection (b)— 

17 (i) by striking paragraph (2) and in18 serting the following: 

19 ‘‘(2) IN GENERAL.—After consulting with the 

20 Secretary of Commerce and considering the rec21 ommendations submitted by the Board, the Sec22 retary of the Interior shall appoint 28 Directors 

23 who, to the maximum extent practicable, shall— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
14 

•S 1514 RS

1 ‘‘(A) be knowledgeable and experienced in 

2 matters relating to the conservation of fish, 

3 wildlife, or other natural resources; and 

4 ‘‘(B) represent a balance of expertise in 

5 ocean, coastal, freshwater, and terrestrial re6 source conservation.’’; and 

7 (ii) by striking paragraph (3) and in8 serting the following: 

9 ‘‘(3) TERMS.—Each Director (other than a Di10 rector described in paragraph (1)) shall be appointed 

11 for a term of 6 years.’’; and 

12 (B) in subsection (g)(2)— 

13 (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

14 ‘‘(A) Officers and employees may not be 

15 appointed until the Foundation has suffi16 cient funds to pay them for their service. 

17 Officers’’ and inserting the following: 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Officers’’; and 

19 (ii) by striking subparagraph (B) and 

20 inserting the following: 

21 ‘‘(B) EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR.—The Foun22 dation shall have an Executive Director who 

23 shall be— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
15 

•S 1514 RS

1 ‘‘(i) appointed by, and serve at the di2 rection of, the Board as the chief executive 

3 officer of the Foundation; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) knowledgeable and experienced in 

5 matters relating to fish and wildlife con6 servation.’’. 

7 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

8 4(a)(1)(B) of the North American Wetlands Con9 servation Act (16 U.S.C. 4403(a)(1)(B)) is amended 

10 by striking ‘‘Secretary of the Board’’ and inserting 

11 ‘‘Executive Director of the Board’’. 

12 (b) RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF FOUNDATION.— 

13 Section 4 of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation 

14 Establishment Act (16 U.S.C. 3703) is amended— 

15 (1) in subsection (c)— 

16 (A) by striking ‘‘(c) POWERS.—To carry 

17 out its purposes under’’ and inserting the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘(c) POWERS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To carry out the purposes 

21 described in’’; 

22 (B) by redesignating paragraphs (1) 

23 through (11) as subparagraphs (A) through 

24 (K), respectively, and indenting appropriately; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
16 

•S 1514 RS

1 (C) in subparagraph (D) (as redesignated 

2 by subparagraph (B)), by striking ‘‘that are in3 sured by an agency or instrumentality of the 

4 United States’’ and inserting ‘‘at 1 or more fi5 nancial institutions that are members of the 

6 Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or the 

7 Securities Investment Protection Corporation’’; 

8 (D) in subparagraph (E) (as redesignated 

9 by subparagraph (B)), by striking ‘‘paragraph 

10 (3) or (4)’’ and inserting ‘‘subparagraph (C) or 

11 (D)’’; 

12 (E) in subparagraph (J) (as redesignated 

13 by subparagraph (B)), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

14 end; 

15 (F) by striking subparagraph (K) (as re16 designated by subparagraph (B)) and inserting 

17 the following: 

18 ‘‘(K) to receive and administer restitution 

19 and community service payments, amounts for 

20 mitigation of impacts to natural resources, and 

21 other amounts arising from legal, regulatory, or 

22 administrative proceedings, subject to the con23 dition that the amounts are received or admin24 istered for purposes that further the conservaVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
17 

•S 1514 RS

1 tion and management of fish, wildlife, plants, 

2 and other natural resources; and 

3 ‘‘(L) to do acts necessary to carry out the 

4 purposes of the Foundation.’’; and 

5 (G) by striking the undesignated matter at 

6 the end and inserting the following: 

7 ‘‘(2) TREATMENT OF REAL PROPERTY.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this 

9 Act, an interest in real property shall be treated 

10 as including easements or other rights for pres11 ervation, conservation, protection, or enhance12 ment by and for the public of natural, scenic, 

13 historic, scientific, educational, inspirational, or 

14 recreational resources. 

15 ‘‘(B) ENCUMBERED REAL PROPERTY.—A 

16 gift, devise, or bequest may be accepted by the 

17 Foundation even though the gift, devise, or be18 quest is encumbered, restricted, or subject to 

19 beneficial interests of private persons if any 

20 current or future interest in the gift, devise, or 

21 bequest is for the benefit of the Foundation. 

22 ‘‘(3) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—The acceptance and 

23 administration of amounts by the Foundation under 

24 paragraph (1)(K) does not alter, supersede, or limit 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
18 

•S 1514 RS

1 any regulatory or statutory requirement associated 

2 with those amounts.’’; 

3 (2) by striking subsections (f) and (g); and 

4 (3) by redesignating subsections (h) and (i) as 

5 subsections (f) and (g), respectively. 

6 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

7 10 of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Estab8 lishment Act (16 U.S.C. 3709) is amended— 

9 (1) in subsection (a), by striking paragraph (1) 

10 and inserting the following: 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

12 appropriated to carry out this Act for each of fiscal 

13 years 2018 through 2022— 

14 ‘‘(A) $15,000,000 to the Secretary of the 

15 Interior; 

16 ‘‘(B) $5,000,000 to the Secretary of Agri17 culture; and 

18 ‘‘(C) $5,000,000 to the Secretary of Com19 merce.’’; 

20 (2) in subsection (b)— 

21 (A) by striking paragraph (1) and insert22 ing the following: 

23 ‘‘(1) AMOUNTS FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the 

25 amounts authorized to be appropriated under 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
19 

•S 1514 RS

1 subsection (a), Federal departments, agencies, 

2 or instrumentalities are authorized to provide 

3 funds to the Foundation through Federal finan4 cial assistance grants and cooperative agree5 ments, subject to the condition that the 

6 amounts are used for purposes that further the 

7 conservation and management of fish, wildlife, 

8 plants, and other natural resources in accord9 ance with this Act. 

10 ‘‘(B) ADVANCES.—Federal departments, 

11 agencies, or instrumentalities may advance 

12 amounts described in subparagraph (A) to the 

13 Foundation in a lump sum without regard to 

14 when the expenses for which the amounts are 

15 used are incurred. 

16 ‘‘(C) MANAGEMENT FEES.—The Founda17 tion may assess and collect fees for the manage18 ment of amounts received under this para19 graph.’’; 

20 (B) in paragraph (2)— 

21 (i) in the paragraph heading, by strik22 ing ‘‘FUNDS’’ and inserting ‘‘AMOUNTS’’; 

23 (ii) by striking ‘‘shall be used’’ and in24 serting ‘‘may be used’’; and 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
20 

•S 1514 RS

1 (iii) by striking ‘‘and State and local 

2 government agencies’’ and inserting ‘‘, 

3 State and local government agencies, and 

4 other entities’’; and 

5 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(3) ADMINISTRATION OF AMOUNTS.— 

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In entering into con8 tracts, agreements, or other partnerships pursu9 ant to this Act, a Federal department, agency, 

10 or instrumentality shall have discretion to waive 

11 any competitive process applicable to the de12 partment, agency, or instrumentality for enter13 ing into contracts, agreements, or partnerships 

14 with the Foundation if the purpose of the waiv15 er is— 

16 ‘‘(i) to address an environmental 

17 emergency resulting from a natural or 

18 other disaster; or 

19 ‘‘(ii) as determined by the head of the 

20 applicable Federal department, agency, or 

21 instrumentality, to reduce administrative 

22 expenses and expedite the conservation and 

23 management of fish, wildlife, plants, and 

24 other natural resources. 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
21 

•S 1514 RS

1 ‘‘(B) REPORTS.—The Foundation shall in2 clude in the annual report submitted under sec3 tion 7(b) a description of any use of the author4 ity under subparagraph (A) by a Federal de5 partment, agency, or instrumentality in that fis6 cal year.’’; and 

7 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(d) USE OF GIFTS, DEVISES, OR BEQUESTS OF

9 MONEY OR OTHER PROPERTY.—Any gifts, devises, or be10 quests of amounts or other property, or any other amounts 

11 or other property, transferred to, deposited with, or other12 wise in the possession of the Foundation pursuant to this 

13 Act, may be made available by the Foundation to Federal 

14 departments, agencies, or instrumentalities and may be 

15 accepted and expended (or the disposition of the amounts 

16 or property directed), without further appropriation, by 

17 those Federal departments, agencies, or instrumentalities, 

18 subject to the condition that the amounts or property be 

19 used for purposes that further the conservation and man20 agement of fish, wildlife, plants, and other natural re21 sources.’’. 

22 (d) LIMITATION ON AUTHORITY.—Section 11 of the 

23 National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act 

24 (16 U.S.C. 3710) is amended by inserting ‘‘exclusive’’ be25 fore ‘‘authority’’. 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
22 

•S 1514 RS

1 SEC. 6. REAUTHORIZATION OF NEOTROPICAL MIGRATORY 

2 BIRD CONSERVATION ACT. 

3 Section 10 of the Neotropical Migratory Bird Con4 servation Act (16 U.S.C. 6109) is amended to read as fol5 lows: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

7 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro8 priated to carry out this Act $6,500,000 for each of fiscal 

9 years 2018 through 2022. 

10 ‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS.—Of the amounts made avail11 able under subsection (a) for each fiscal year, not less than 

12 75 percent shall be expended for projects carried out at 

13 a location outside of the United States.’’. 

14 SEC. 7. REISSUANCE OF FINAL RULE REGARDING GRAY 

15 WOLVES IN WESTERN GREAT LAKES. 

16 Before the end of the 60-day period beginning on the 

17 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior 

18 shall reissue the final rule published on December 28, 

19 2011 (76 Fed. Reg. 81666), without regard to any other 

20 provision of statute or regulation that applies to issuance 

21 of such rule. Such reissuance shall not be subject to judi22 cial review. 

23 SEC. 8. REISSUANCE OF FINAL RULE REGARDING GRAY 

24 WOLVES IN WYOMING. 

25 The final rule published on September 10, 2012 (77 

26 Fed. Reg. 55530) that was reinstated on March 3, 2017, 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
23 

•S 1514 RS

1 by the decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Dis2 trict of Columbia (No. 14–5300) and further republished 

3 on May 1, 2017 (82 Fed. Reg. 20284–85) that reinstates 

4 the removal of Federal protections for the gray wolf in 

5 Wyoming under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as 

6 amended, shall not be subject to judicial review. 

7 SEC. 9. MODIFICATION OF DEFINITION OF SPORT FISHING 

8 EQUIPMENT UNDER TOXIC SUBSTANCES 

9 CONTROL ACT. 

10 Section 3(2)(B) of the Toxic Substances Control Act 

11 (15 U.S.C. 2602(2)(B)) is amended— 

12 (1) in clause (v), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

13 (2) in clause (vi) by striking the period at the 

14 end and inserting ‘‘, and’’; and 

15 (3) by inserting after clause (vi) the following: 

16 ‘‘(vii) any sport fishing equipment (as such 

17 term is defined in section 4162(a) of the Internal 

18 Revenue Code of 1986) the sale of which is subject 

19 to the tax imposed by section 4161(a) of such Code 

20 (determined without regard to any exemptions from 

21 such tax provided by section 4162 or 4221 or any 

22 other provision of such Code), and sport fishing 

23 equipment components.’’. 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
24 

•S 1514 RS

1 SEC. 10. REAUTHORIZATION OF CHESAPEAKE BAY PRO2 GRAM. 

3 Section 117 of the Federal Water Pollution Control 

4 Act (33 U.S.C. 1267) is amended by striking subsection 

5 (j) and inserting the following: 

6 ‘‘(j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

7 is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

8 $90,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2018 through 2022.’’. 

9 SEC. 11. REAUTHORIZATION OF CHESAPEAKE BAY INITIA10 TIVE ACT OF 1998. 

11 Section 502(c) of the Chesapeake Bay Initiative Act 

12 of 1998 (Public Law 105–312; 112 Stat. 2963; 129 Stat. 

13 2579) is amended by striking ‘‘2017’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘2023’’. 

15 SEC. 12. NATIONAL FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION 

16 THROUGH PARTNERSHIPS. 

17 (a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to en18 courage partnerships among public agencies and other in19 terested parties to promote fish conservation— 

20 (1) to achieve measurable habitat conservation 

21 results through strategic actions of Fish Habitat 

22 Partnerships that lead to better fish habitat condi23 tions and increased fishing opportunities by— 

24 (A) improving ecological conditions; 

25 (B) restoring natural processes; or 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
25 

•S 1514 RS

1 (C) preventing the decline of intact and 

2 healthy systems; 

3 (2) to establish a consensus set of national con4 servation strategies as a framework to guide future 

5 actions and investment by Fish Habitat Partner6 ships; 

7 (3) to broaden the community of support for 

8 fish habitat conservation by— 

9 (A) increasing fishing opportunities; 

10 (B) fostering the participation of local 

11 communities, especially young people in local 

12 communities, in conservation activities; and 

13 (C) raising public awareness of the role 

14 healthy fish habitat play in the quality of life 

15 and economic well-being of local communities; 

16 (4) to fill gaps in the National Fish Habitat As17 sessment and the associated database of the Na18 tional Fish Habitat Assessment— 

19 (A) to empower strategic conservation ac20 tions supported by broadly available scientific 

21 information; and 

22 (B) to integrate socioeconomic data in the 

23 analysis to improve the lives of humans in a 

24 manner consistent with fish habitat conserva25 tion goals; and 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
26 

•S 1514 RS

1 (5) to communicate to the public and conserva2 tion partners— 

3 (A) the conservation outcomes produced 

4 collectively by Fish Habitat Partnerships; and 

5 (B) new opportunities and voluntary ap6 proaches for conserving fish habitat. 

7 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

8 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT9 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com10 mittees’’ means— 

11 (A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

12 and Transportation and the Committee on En13 vironment and Public Works of the Senate; and 

14 (B) the Committee on Natural Resources 

15 of the House of Representatives. 

16 (2) BOARD.—The term ‘‘Board’’ means the Na17 tional Fish Habitat Board established by subsection 

18 (c)(1)(A). 

19 (3) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

20 the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife 

21 Service. 

22 (4) EPA ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR.—The 

23 term ‘‘EPA Assistant Administrator’’ means the As24 sistant Administrator for Water of the Environ25 mental Protection Agency. 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
27 

•S 1514 RS

1 (5) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ 

2 has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the 

3 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

4 Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 

5 (6) NOAA ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR.—The 

6 term ‘‘NOAA Assistant Administrator’’ means the 

7 Assistant Administrator for Fisheries of the Na8 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 

9 (7) PARTNERSHIP.—The term ‘‘Partnership’’ 

10 means a self-governed entity designated by Congress 

11 as a Fish Habitat Partnership under subsection 

12 (d)(6) after a recommendation by the Board under 

13 subsection (d)(1). 

14 (8) REAL PROPERTY INTEREST.—The term 

15 ‘‘real property interest’’ means an ownership interest 

16 in— 

17 (A) land; or 

18 (B) water (including water rights). 

19 (9) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

20 the Secretary of the Interior. 

21 (10) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 

22 the several States. 

23 (11) STATE AGENCY.—The term ‘‘State agen24 cy’’ means— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
28 

•S 1514 RS

1 (A) the fish and wildlife agency of a State; 

2 and 

3 (B) any department or division of a de4 partment or agency of a State that manages in 

5 the public trust the inland or marine fishery re6 sources or sustains the habitat for those fishery 

7 resources of the State pursuant to State law or 

8 the constitution of the State. 

9 (c) NATIONAL FISH HABITAT BOARD.— 

10 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

11 (A) FISH HABITAT BOARD.—There is es12 tablished a board, to be known as the ‘‘National 

13 Fish Habitat Board’’, whose duties are— 

14 (i) to promote, oversee, and coordinate 

15 the implementation of this section; 

16 (ii) to establish national goals and pri17 orities for fish habitat conservation; 

18 (iii) to recommend to Congress enti19 ties for designation as Partnerships; and 

20 (iv) to review and make recommenda21 tions regarding fish habitat conservation 

22 projects. 

23 (B) MEMBERSHIP.—The Board shall be 

24 composed of 25 members, of whom— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
29 

•S 1514 RS

1 (i) 1 shall be a representative of the 

2 Department of the Interior; 

3 (ii) 1 shall be a representative of the 

4 United States Geological Survey; 

5 (iii) 1 shall be a representative of the 

6 Department of Commerce; 

7 (iv) 1 shall be a representative of the 

8 Department of Agriculture; 

9 (v) 1 shall be a representative of the 

10 Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies; 

11 (vi) 4 shall be representatives of State 

12 agencies, 1 of whom shall be nominated by 

13 a regional association of fish and wildlife 

14 agencies from each of the Northeast, 

15 Southeast, Midwest, and Western regions 

16 of the United States; 

17 (vii) 1 shall be a representative of ei18 ther— 

19 (I) Indian tribes in the State of 

20 Alaska; or 

21 (II) Indian tribes in States other 

22 than the State of Alaska; 

23 (viii) 1 shall be a representative of ei24 ther— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
30 

•S 1514 RS

1 (I) the Regional Fishery Manage2 ment Councils established under sec3 tion 302 of the Magnuson-Stevens 

4 Fishery Conservation and Manage5 ment Act (16 U.S.C. 1852); or 

6 (II) a representative of the Ma7 rine Fisheries Commissions, which is 

8 composed of— 

9 (aa) the Atlantic States Ma10 rine Fisheries Commission; 

11 (bb) the Gulf States Marine 

12 Fisheries Commission; and 

13 (cc) the Pacific States Ma14 rine Fisheries Commission; 

15 (ix) 1 shall be a representative of the 

16 Sportfishing and Boating Partnership 

17 Council; 

18 (x) 7 shall be representatives selected 

19 from each of— 

20 (I) the recreational sportfishing 

21 industry; 

22 (II) the commercial fishing in23 dustry; 

24 (III) marine recreational anglers; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
31 

•S 1514 RS

1 (IV) freshwater recreational an2 glers; 

3 (V) habitat conservation organi4 zations; and 

5 (VI) science-based fishery organi6 zations; 

7 (xi) 1 shall be a representative of a 

8 national private landowner organization; 

9 (xii) 1 shall be a representative of an 

10 agricultural production organization; 

11 (xiii) 1 shall be a representative of 

12 local government interests involved in fish 

13 habitat restoration; 

14 (xiv) 2 shall be representatives from 

15 different sectors of corporate industries, 

16 which may include— 

17 (I) natural resource commodity 

18 interests, such as petroleum or min19 eral extraction; 

20 (II) natural resource user indus21 tries; and 

22 (III) industries with an interest 

23 in fish and fish habitat conservation; 

24 and 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
32 

•S 1514 RS

1 (xv) 1 shall be a leadership private 

2 sector or landowner representative of an 

3 active partnership. 

4 (C) COMPENSATION.—A member of the 

5 Board shall serve without compensation. 

6 (D) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—A member of the 

7 Board may be allowed travel expenses, includ8 ing per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates au9 thorized for an employee of an agency under 

10 subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United 

11 States Code, while away from the home or reg12 ular place of business of the member in the per13 formance of the duties of the Board. 

14 (2) APPOINTMENT AND TERMS.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise 

16 provided in this subsection, a member of the 

17 Board described in any of clauses (vi) through 

18 (xiv) of paragraph (1)(B) shall serve for a term 

19 of 3 years. 

20 (B) INITIAL BOARD MEMBERSHIP.— 

21 (i) IN GENERAL.—The initial Board 

22 will consist of representatives as described 

23 in clauses (i) through (vi) of paragraph 

24 (1)(B). 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
33 

•S 1514 RS

1 (ii) REMAINING MEMBERS.—Not later 

2 than 60 days after the date of enactment 

3 of this Act, the representatives of the ini4 tial Board pursuant to clause (i) shall ap5 point the remaining members of the Board 

6 described in clauses (viii) through (xiv) of 

7 paragraph (1)(B). 

8 (iii) TRIBAL REPRESENTATIVES.—Not 

9 later than 60 days after the enactment of 

10 this Act, the Secretary shall provide to the 

11 Board a recommendation of not fewer than 

12 3 tribal representatives, from which the 

13 Board shall appoint 1 representative pur14 suant to clause (vii) of paragraph (1)(B). 

15 (C) TRANSITIONAL TERMS.—Of the mem16 bers described in paragraph (1)(B)(x) initially 

17 appointed to the Board— 

18 (i) 2 shall be appointed for a term of 

19 1 year; 

20 (ii) 2 shall be appointed for a term of 

21 2 years; and 

22 (iii) 3 shall be appointed for a term of 

23 3 years. 

24 (D) VACANCIES.— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
34 

•S 1514 RS

1 (i) IN GENERAL.—A vacancy of a 

2 member of the Board described in any of 

3 clauses (viii) through (xiv) of paragraph 

4 (1)(B) shall be filled by an appointment 

5 made by the remaining members of the 

6 Board. 

7 (ii) TRIBAL REPRESENTATIVES.—Fol8 lowing a vacancy of a member of the 

9 Board described in clause (vii) of para10 graph (1)(B), the Secretary shall rec11 ommend to the Board a list of not fewer 

12 than 3 tribal representatives, from which 

13 the remaining members of the Board shall 

14 appoint a representative to fill the vacancy. 

15 (E) CONTINUATION OF SERVICE.—An indi16 vidual whose term of service as a member of the 

17 Board expires may continue to serve on the 

18 Board until a successor is appointed. 

19 (F) REMOVAL.—If a member of the Board 

20 described in any of clauses (viii) through (xiv) 

21 of paragraph (1)(B) misses 3 consecutive regu22 larly scheduled Board meetings, the members of 

23 the Board may— 

24 (i) vote to remove that member; and 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
35 

•S 1514 RS

1 (ii) appoint another individual in ac2 cordance with subparagraph (D). 

3 (3) CHAIRPERSON.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—The representative of 

5 the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies 

6 appointed pursuant to paragraph (1)(B)(v) 

7 shall serve as Chairperson of the Board. 

8 (B) TERM.—The Chairperson of the Board 

9 shall serve for a term of 3 years. 

10 (4) MEETINGS.— 

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall 

12 meet— 

13 (i) at the call of the Chairperson; but 

14 (ii) not less frequently than twice each 

15 calendar year. 

16 (B) PUBLIC ACCESS.—All meetings of the 

17 Board shall be open to the public. 

18 (5) PROCEDURES.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall estab20 lish procedures to carry out the business of the 

21 Board, including— 

22 (i) a requirement that a quorum of 

23 the members of the Board be present to 

24 transact business; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
36 

•S 1514 RS

1 (ii) a requirement that no rec2 ommendations may be adopted by the 

Board, except by the vote of 2 3 ⁄3 of all mem4 bers; 

5 (iii) procedures for establishing na6 tional goals and priorities for fish habitat 

7 conservation for the purposes of this sec8 tion; 

9 (iv) procedures for designating Part10 nerships under subsection (d); and 

11 (v) procedures for reviewing, evalu12 ating, and making recommendations re13 garding fish habitat conservation projects. 

14 (B) QUORUM.—A majority of the members 

15 of the Board shall constitute a quorum. 

16 (d) FISH HABITAT PARTNERSHIPS.— 

17 (1) AUTHORITY TO RECOMMEND.—The Board 

18 may recommend to Congress the designation of Fish 

19 Habitat Partnerships in accordance with this sub20 section. 

21 (2) PURPOSES.—The purposes of a Partnership 

22 shall be— 

23 (A) to work with other regional habitat 

24 conservation programs to promote cooperation 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
37 

•S 1514 RS

1 and coordination to enhance fish and fish habi2 tats; 

3 (B) to engage local and regional commu4 nities to build support for fish habitat conserva5 tion; 

6 (C) to involve diverse groups of public and 

7 private partners; 

8 (D) to develop collaboratively a strategic 

9 vision and achievable implementation plan that 

10 is scientifically sound; 

11 (E) to leverage funding from sources that 

12 support local and regional partnerships; 

13 (F) to use adaptive management prin14 ciples, including evaluation of project success 

15 and functionality; 

16 (G) to develop appropriate local or regional 

17 habitat evaluation and assessment measures 

18 and criteria that are compatible with national 

19 habitat condition measures; and 

20 (H) to implement local and regional pri21 ority projects that improve conditions for fish 

22 and fish habitat. 

23 (3) CRITERIA FOR DESIGNATION.—An entity 

24 seeking to be designated by Congress as a Partner25 ship shall— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
38 

•S 1514 RS

1 (A) submit to the Board an application at 

2 such time, in such manner, and containing such 

3 information as the Board may reasonably re4 quire; and 

5 (B) demonstrate to the Board that the en6 tity has— 

7 (i) a focus on promoting the health of 

8 important fish and fish habitats; 

9 (ii) an ability to coordinate the imple10 mentation of priority projects that support 

11 the goals and national priorities set by the 

12 Board that are within the Partnership 

13 boundary; 

14 (iii) a self-governance structure that 

15 supports the implementation of strategic 

16 priorities for fish habitat; 

17 (iv) the ability to develop local and re18 gional relationships with a broad range of 

19 entities to further strategic priorities for 

20 fish and fish habitat; 

21 (v) a strategic plan that details re22 quired investments for fish habitat con23 servation that addresses the strategic fish 

24 habitat priorities of the Partnership and 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
39 

•S 1514 RS

1 supports and meets the strategic priorities 

2 of the Board; 

3 (vi) the ability to develop and imple4 ment fish habitat conservation projects 

5 that address strategic priorities of the 

6 Partnership and the Board; and 

7 (vii) the ability to develop fish habitat 

8 conservation priorities based on sound 

9 science and data, the ability to measure 

10 the effectiveness of fish habitat projects of 

11 the Partnership, and a clear plan as to 

12 how Partnership science and data compo13 nents will be integrated with the overall 

14 Board science and data effort. 

15 (4) REQUIREMENTS FOR RECOMMENDATION TO

16 CONGRESS.—The Board may recommend to Con17 gress for designation an application for a Partner18 ship submitted under paragraph (3)(A) if the Board 

19 determines that the applicant— 

20 (A) meets the criteria described in para21 graph (3)(B); 

22 (B) identifies representatives to provide 

23 support and technical assistance to the Partner24 ship from a diverse group of public and private 

25 partners, which may include State or local govVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00039 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
40 

•S 1514 RS

1 ernments, nonprofit entities, Indian tribes, and 

2 private individuals, that are focused on con3 servation of fish habitats to achieve results 

4 across jurisdictional boundaries on public and 

5 private land; 

6 (C) is organized to promote the health of 

7 important fish species and important fish habi8 tats, including reservoirs, natural lakes, coastal 

9 and marine environments, and estuaries; 

10 (D) identifies strategic fish and fish habi11 tat priorities for the Partnership area in the 

12 form of geographical focus areas or key 

13 stressors or impairments to facilitate strategic 

14 planning and decisionmaking; 

15 (E) is able to address issues and priorities 

16 on a nationally significant scale; 

17 (F) includes a governance structure that— 

18 (i) reflects the range of all partners; 

19 and 

20 (ii) promotes joint strategic planning 

21 and decisionmaking by the applicant; 

22 (G) demonstrates completion of, or signifi23 cant progress toward the development of, a 

24 strategic plan to address the decline in fish pop25 ulations, rather than simply treating symptoms, 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
41 

•S 1514 RS

1 in accordance with the goals and national prior2 ities established by the Board; and 

3 (H) promotes collaboration in developing a 

4 strategic vision and implementation program 

5 that is scientifically sound and achievable. 

6 (5) REPORT TO CONGRESS.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than Feb8 ruary 1 of the first fiscal year beginning after 

9 the date of enactment of this Act and each Feb10 ruary 1 thereafter, the Board shall develop and 

11 submit to the appropriate congressional com12 mittees an annual report, to be entitled ‘‘Report 

13 to Congress on Future Fish Habitat Partner14 ships and Modifications’’, that— 

15 (i) identifies any entity that— 

16 (I) meets the requirements de17 scribed in paragraph (4); and 

18 (II) the Board recommends for 

19 designation as a Partnership; 

20 (ii) describes any proposed modifica21 tions to a Partnership previously des22 ignated by Congress under paragraph (6); 

23 (iii) with respect to each entity rec24 ommended for designation as a PartnerVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00041 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
42 

•S 1514 RS

1 ship, describes, to the maximum extent 

2 practicable— 

3 (I) the purpose of the rec4 ommended Partnership; and 

5 (II) how the recommended Part6 nership fulfills the requirements de7 scribed in paragraph (4). 

8 (B) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY; NOTIFICA9 TION.—The Board shall— 

10 (i) make the report publicly available, 

11 including on the Internet; and 

12 (ii) provide to the appropriate con13 gressional committees and the State agen14 cy of any State included in a recommended 

15 Partnership area written notification of the 

16 public availability of the report. 

17 (6) DESIGNATION OR MODIFICATION OF PART18 NERSHIP.—Congress shall have the sole authority to 

19 designate or modify a Partnership. 

20 (7) EXISTING PARTNERSHIPS.— 

21 (A) DESIGNATION REVIEW.—Not later 

22 than 5 years after the date of enactment of this 

23 Act, any fish habitat partnership receiving Fed24 eral funds as of the date of enactment of this 

25 Act shall be subject to a designation review by 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
43 

•S 1514 RS

1 Congress in which Congress shall have the op2 portunity to designate the partnership under 

3 paragraph (6). 

4 (B) INELIGIBILITY FOR FEDERAL

5 FUNDS.—A partnership referred to in subpara6 graph (A) that Congress does not designate as 

7 described in that subparagraph shall be ineli8 gible to receive Federal funds under this sec9 tion. 

10 (e) FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION PROJECTS.— 

11 (1) SUBMISSION TO BOARD.—Not later than 

12 March 31 of each calendar year, each Partnership 

13 shall submit to the Board a list of priority fish habi14 tat conservation projects recommended by the Part15 nership for annual funding under this section. 

16 (2) RECOMMENDATIONS BY BOARD.—Not later 

17 than July 1 of each calendar year, the Board shall 

18 submit to the Secretary a priority list of fish habitat 

19 conservation projects that includes the description, 

20 including estimated costs, of each project that the 

21 Board recommends that the Secretary approve and 

22 fund under this section for the following fiscal year. 

23 (3) CRITERIA FOR PROJECT SELECTION.—The 

24 Board shall select each fish habitat conservation 

25 project to be recommended to the Secretary under 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
44 

•S 1514 RS

1 paragraph (2) after taking into consideration, at a 

2 minimum, the following information: 

3 (A) A recommendation of the Partnership 

4 that is, or will be, participating actively in im5 plementing the fish habitat conservation 

6 project. 

7 (B) The capabilities and experience of 

8 project proponents to implement successfully 

9 the proposed project. 

10 (C) The extent to which the fish habitat 

11 conservation project — 

12 (i) fulfills a local or regional priority 

13 that is directly linked to the strategic plan 

14 of the Partnership and is consistent with 

15 the purpose of this section; 

16 (ii) addresses the national priorities 

17 established by the Board; 

18 (iii) is supported by the findings of 

19 the Habitat Assessment of the Partnership 

20 or the Board, and aligns or is compatible 

21 with other conservation plans; 

22 (iv) identifies appropriate monitoring 

23 and evaluation measures and criteria that 

24 are compatible with national measures; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
45 

•S 1514 RS

1 (v) provides a well-defined budget 

2 linked to deliverables and outcomes; 

3 (vi) leverages other funds to imple4 ment the project; 

5 (vii) addresses the causes and proc6 esses behind the decline of fish or fish 

7 habitats; and 

8 (viii) includes an outreach or edu9 cation component that includes the local or 

10 regional community. 

11 (D) The availability of sufficient non-Fed12 eral funds to match Federal contributions for 

13 the fish habitat conservation project, as re14 quired by paragraph (5); 

15 (E) The extent to which the local or re16 gional fish habitat conservation project— 

17 (i) will increase fish populations in a 

18 manner that leads to recreational fishing 

19 opportunities for the public; 

20 (ii) will be carried out through a coop21 erative agreement among Federal, State, 

22 and local governments, Indian tribes, and 

23 private entities; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
46 

•S 1514 RS

1 (iii) increases public access to land or 

2 water for fish and wildlife-dependent rec3 reational opportunities; 

4 (iv) advances the conservation of fish 

5 and wildlife species that have been identi6 fied by the States as species of greatest 

7 conservation need; 

8 (v) where appropriate, advances the 

9 conservation of fish and fish habitats 

10 under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Con11 servation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 

12 1801 et seq.) and other relevant Federal 

13 law and State wildlife action plans; and 

14 (vi) promotes strong and healthy fish 

15 habitats so that desired biological commu16 nities are able to persist and adapt. 

17 (F) The substantiality of the character and 

18 design of the fish habitat conservation project. 

19 (4) LIMITATIONS.— 

20 (A) REQUIREMENTS FOR EVALUATION.— 

21 No fish habitat conservation project may be 

22 recommended by the Board under paragraph 

23 (2) or provided financial assistance under this 

24 section unless the fish habitat conservation 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
47 

•S 1514 RS

1 project includes an evaluation plan designed 

2 using applicable Board guidance— 

3 (i) to appropriately assess the biologi4 cal, ecological, or other results of the habi5 tat protection, restoration, or enhancement 

6 activities carried out using the assistance; 

7 (ii) to reflect appropriate changes to 

8 the fish habitat conservation project if the 

9 assessment substantiates that the fish 

10 habitat conservation project objectives are 

11 not being met; 

12 (iii) to identify improvements to exist13 ing fish populations, recreational fishing 

14 opportunities and the overall economic ben15 efits for the local community of the fish 

16 habitat conservation project; and 

17 (iv) to require the submission to the 

18 Board of a report describing the findings 

19 of the assessment. 

20 (B) ACQUISITION AUTHORITIES.— 

21 (i) IN GENERAL.—A State, local gov22 ernment, or other non-Federal entity is eli23 gible to receive funds for the acquisition of 

24 real property from willing sellers under 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
48 

•S 1514 RS

1 this section if the acquisition ensures 1 

2 of— 

3 (I) public access for compatible 

4 fish and wildlife-dependent recreation; 

5 or 

6 (II) a scientifically based, direct 

7 enhancement to the health of fish and 

8 fish populations, as determined by the 

9 Board. 

10 (ii) STATE AGENCY APPROVAL.— 

11 (I) IN GENERAL.—All real prop12 erty interest acquisition projects fund13 ed under this section are required to 

14 be approved by the State agency in 

15 the State in which the project is oc16 curring. 

17 (II) PROHIBITION.—The Board 

18 may not recommend, and the Sec19 retary may not provide any funding 

20 for, any real property interest acquisi21 tion that has not been approved by 

22 the State agency. 

23 (iii) ASSESSMENT OF OTHER AU24 THORITIES.—The Fish Habitat Partner25 ship shall conduct a project assessment, 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
49 

•S 1514 RS

1 submitted with the funding request and 

2 approved by the Board, to demonstrate all 

3 other Federal, State, and local authorities 

4 for the acquisition of real property have 

5 been exhausted. 

6 (iv) RESTRICTIONS.—A real property 

7 interest may not be acquired pursuant to a 

8 fish habitat conservation project by a 

9 State, local government, or other non-Fed10 eral entity, unless— 

11 (I) the owner of the real property 

12 authorizes the State, local govern13 ment, or other non-Federal entity to 

14 acquire the real property; and 

15 (II) the Secretary and the Board 

16 determine that the State, local govern17 ment, or other non-Federal entity 

18 would benefit from undertaking the 

19 management of the real property 

20 being acquired because that is in ac21 cordance with the goals of a partner22 ship. 

23 (5) NON-FEDERAL CONTRIBUTIONS.— 

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

25 subparagraph (B), no fish habitat conservation 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
50 

•S 1514 RS

1 project may be recommended by the Board 

2 under paragraph (2) or provided financial as3 sistance under this section unless at least 50 

4 percent of the cost of the fish habitat conserva5 tion project will be funded with non-Federal 

6 funds. 

7 (B) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The non-Fed8 eral share of the cost of a fish habitat conserva9 tion project— 

10 (i) may not be derived from another 

11 Federal grant program; but 

12 (ii) may include in-kind contributions 

13 and cash. 

14 (C) SPECIAL RULE FOR INDIAN TRIBES.— 

15 Notwithstanding subparagraph (A) or any other 

16 provision of law, any funds made available to 

17 an Indian tribe pursuant to this section may be 

18 considered to be non-Federal funds for the pur19 pose of subparagraph (A). 

20 (6) APPROVAL.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days 

22 after the date of receipt of the recommended 

23 priority list of fish habitat conservation projects 

24 under paragraph (2), subject to the limitations 

25 of paragraph (4), and based, to the maximum 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
51 

•S 1514 RS

1 extent practicable, on the criteria described in 

2 paragraph (3), the Secretary, after consulting 

3 with the Secretary of Commerce on marine or 

4 estuarine projects, shall approve or reject any 

5 fish habitat conservation project recommended 

6 by the Board. 

7 (B) FUNDING.—If the Secretary approves 

8 a fish habitat conservation project under sub9 paragraph (A), the Secretary shall use amounts 

10 made available to carry out this section to pro11 vide funds to carry out the fish habitat con12 servation project. 

13 (C) NOTIFICATION.—If the Secretary re14 jects any fish habitat conservation project rec15 ommended by the Board under paragraph (2), 

16 not later than 180 days after the date of receipt 

17 of the recommendation, the Secretary shall pro18 vide to the Board, the appropriate Partnership, 

19 and the appropriate congressional committees a 

20 written statement of the reasons that the Sec21 retary rejected the fish habitat conservation 

22 project. 

23 (f) TECHNICAL AND SCIENTIFIC ASSISTANCE.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director, the NOAA 

25 Assistant Administrator, the EPA Assistant AdminVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00051 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
52 

•S 1514 RS

1 istrator, and the Director of the United States Geo2 logical Survey, in coordination with the Forest Serv3 ice and other appropriate Federal departments and 

4 agencies, may provide scientific and technical assist5 ance to the Partnerships, participants in fish habitat 

6 conservation projects, and the Board. 

7 (2) INCLUSIONS.—Scientific and technical as8 sistance provided pursuant to paragraph (1) may in9 clude— 

10 (A) providing technical and scientific as11 sistance to States, Indian tribes, regions, local 

12 communities, and nongovernmental organiza13 tions in the development and implementation of 

14 Partnerships; 

15 (B) providing technical and scientific as16 sistance to Partnerships for habitat assessment, 

17 strategic planning, and prioritization; 

18 (C) supporting the development and imple19 mentation of fish habitat conservation projects 

20 that are identified as high priorities by Partner21 ships and the Board; 

22 (D) supporting and providing recommenda23 tions regarding the development of science24 based monitoring and assessment approaches 

25 for implementation through Partnerships; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
53 

•S 1514 RS

1 (E) supporting and providing recommenda2 tions for a national fish habitat assessment; 

3 (F) ensuring the availability of experts to 

4 assist in conducting scientifically based evalua5 tion and reporting of the results of fish habitat 

6 conservation projects; and 

7 (G) providing resources to secure state 

8 agency scientific and technical assistance to 

9 support Partnerships, participants in fish habi10 tat conservation projects, and the Board. 

11 (g) COORDINATION WITH STATES AND INDIAN

12 TRIBES.—The Secretary shall provide a notice to, and co13 operate with, the appropriate State agency or tribal agen14 cy, as applicable, of each State and Indian tribe within 

15 the boundaries of which an activity is planned to be car16 ried out pursuant to this section, including notification, 

17 by not later than 30 days before the date on which the 

18 activity is implemented. 

19 (h) INTERAGENCY OPERATIONAL PLAN.—Not later 

20 than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, and 

21 every 5 years thereafter, the Director, in cooperation with 

22 the NOAA Assistant Administrator, the EPA Assistant 

23 Administrator, the Director of the United States Geologi24 cal Survey, and the heads of other appropriate Federal 

25 departments and agencies (including at a minimum, those 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
54 

•S 1514 RS

1 agencies represented on the Board) shall develop an inter2 agency operational plan that describes— 

3 (1) the functional, operational, technical, sci4 entific, and general staff, administrative, and mate5 rial needs for the implementation of this section; and 

6 (2) any interagency agreements between or 

7 among Federal departments and agencies to address 

8 those needs. 

9 (i) ACCOUNTABILITY AND REPORTING.— 

10 (1) REPORTING.— 

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 5 years 

12 after the date of enactment of this Act, and 

13 every 5 years thereafter, the Board shall submit 

14 to the appropriate congressional committees a 

15 report describing the progress of this section. 

16 (B) CONTENTS.—Each report submitted 

17 under subparagraph (A) shall include— 

18 (i) an estimate of the number of 

19 acres, stream miles, or acre-feet, or other 

20 suitable measures of fish habitat, that was 

21 maintained or improved by partnerships of 

22 Federal, State, or local governments, In23 dian tribes, or other entities in the United 

24 States during the 5-year period ending on 

25 the date of submission of the report; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
55 

•S 1514 RS

1 (ii) a description of the public access 

2 to fish habitats established or improved 

3 during that 5-year period; 

4 (iii) a description of the improved op5 portunities for public recreational fishing; 

6 and 

7 (iv) an assessment of the status of 

8 fish habitat conservation projects carried 

9 out with funds provided under this section 

10 during that period, disaggregated by year, 

11 including— 

12 (I) a description of the fish habi13 tat conservation projects rec14 ommended by the Board under sub15 section (e)(2); 

16 (II) a description of each fish 

17 habitat conservation project approved 

18 by the Secretary under subsection 

19 (e)(6), in order of priority for funding; 

20 (III) a justification for— 

21 (aa) the approval of each 

22 fish habitat conservation project; 

23 and 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
56 

•S 1514 RS

1 (bb) the order of priority for 

2 funding of each fish habitat con3 servation project; 

4 (IV) a justification for any rejec5 tion of a fish habitat conservation 

6 project recommended by the Board 

7 under subsection (e)(2) that was 

8 based on a factor other than the cri9 teria described in subsection (e)(3); 

10 and 

11 (V) an accounting of expendi12 tures by Federal, State, or local gov13 ernments, Indian tribes, or other enti14 ties to carry out fish habitat conserva15 tion projects. 

16 (2) STATUS AND TRENDS REPORT.—Not later 

17 than December 31, 2018, and every 5 years there18 after, the Board shall submit to the appropriate con19 gressional committees a report that includes— 

20 (A) a status of all Partnerships designated 

21 under this section; 

22 (B) a description of the status of fish habi23 tats in the United States as identified by estab24 lished Partnerships; and 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
57 

•S 1514 RS

1 (C) enhancements or reductions in public 

2 access as a result of— 

3 (i) the activities of the Partnerships; 

4 or 

5 (ii) any other activities carried out 

6 pursuant to this section. 

7 (j) EFFECT OF SECTION.— 

8 (1) WATER RIGHTS.—Nothing in this section— 

9 (A) establishes any express or implied re10 served water right in the United States for any 

11 purpose; 

12 (B) affects any water right in existence on 

13 the date of enactment of this Act; 

14 (C) preempts or affects any State water 

15 law or interstate compact governing water; or 

16 (D) affects any Federal or State law in ex17 istence on the date of enactment of the Act re18 garding water quality or water quantity. 

19 (2) AUTHORITY TO ACQUIRE WATER RIGHTS OR

20 RIGHTS TO PROPERTY.—Under this section, only a 

21 State, local government, or other non-Federal entity 

22 may acquire, under State law, water rights or rights 

23 to property. 

24 (3) STATE AUTHORITY.—Nothing in this sec25 tion— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
58 

•S 1514 RS

1 (A) affects the authority, jurisdiction, or 

2 responsibility of a State to manage, control, or 

3 regulate fish and wildlife under the laws and 

4 regulations of the State; or 

5 (B) authorizes the Secretary to control or 

6 regulate within a State the fishing or hunting 

7 of fish and wildlife. 

8 (4) EFFECT ON INDIAN TRIBES.—Nothing in 

9 this section abrogates, abridges, affects, modifies, 

10 supersedes, or alters any right of an Indian tribe 

11 recognized by treaty or any other means, includ12 ing— 

13 (A) an agreement between the Indian tribe 

14 and the United States; 

15 (B) Federal law (including regulations); 

16 (C) an Executive order; or 

17 (D) a judicial decree. 

18 (5) ADJUDICATION OF WATER RIGHTS.—Noth19 ing in this section diminishes or affects the ability 

20 of the Secretary to join an adjudication of rights to 

21 the use of water pursuant to subsection (a), (b), or 

22 (c) of section 208 of the Department of Justice Ap23 propriation Act, 1953 (43 U.S.C. 666). 

24 (6) DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE AUTHOR25 ITY.—Nothing in this section affects the authority, 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
59 

•S 1514 RS

1 jurisdiction, or responsibility of the Department of 

2 Commerce to manage, control, or regulate fish or 

3 fish habitats under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

4 Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 

5 et seq.). 

6 (7) EFFECT ON OTHER AUTHORITIES.— 

7 (A) PRIVATE PROPERTY PROTECTION.— 

8 Nothing in this section permits the use of funds 

9 made available to carry out this section to ac10 quire real property or a real property interest 

11 without the written consent of each owner of 

12 the real property or real property interest. 

13 (B) MITIGATION.—Nothing in this section 

14 permits the use of funds made available to 

15 carry out this section for fish and wildlife miti16 gation purposes under— 

17 (i) the Federal Water Pollution Con18 trol Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.); 

19 (ii) the Fish and Wildlife Coordina20 tion Act (16 U.S.C. 661 et seq.); 

21 (iii) the Water Resources Develop22 ment Act of 1986 (Public Law 99–662; 

23 100 Stat. 4082); or 

24 (iv) any other Federal law or court 

25 settlement. 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
60 

•S 1514 RS

1 (C) CLEAN WATER ACT.—Nothing in this 

2 section affects any provision of the Federal 

3 Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et 

4 seq.), including any definition in that Act. 

5 (k) NONAPPLICABILITY OF FEDERAL ADVISORY

6 COMMITTEE ACT.—The Federal Advisory Committee Act 

7 (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to— 

8 (1) the Board; or 

9 (2) any Partnership. 

10 (l) FUNDING.— 

11 (1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

12 (A) FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION

13 PROJECTS.—There is authorized to be appro14 priated to the Secretary $7,200,000 for each of 

15 fiscal years 2018 through 2022 to provide 

16 funds for fish habitat conservation projects ap17 proved under subsection (e)(6), of which 5 per18 cent shall be made available for each fiscal year 

19 for projects carried out by Indian tribes. 

20 (B) ADMINISTRATIVE AND PLANNING EX21 PENSES.—There is authorized to be appro22 priated to the Secretary for each of fiscal years 

23 2018 through 2022 an amount equal to 5 per24 cent of the amount appropriated for the appliVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00060 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
61 

•S 1514 RS

1 cable fiscal year pursuant to subparagraph 

2 (A)— 

3 (i) for administrative and planning ex4 penses; and 

5 (ii) to carry out subsection (i). 

6 (C) TECHNICAL AND SCIENTIFIC ASSIST7 ANCE.—There is authorized to be appropriated 

8 for each of fiscal years 2018 through 2022 to 

9 carry out, and provide technical and scientific 

10 assistance under, subsection (f)— 

11 (i) $500,000 to the Secretary for use 

12 by the United States Fish and Wildlife 

13 Service; 

14 (ii) $500,000 to the NOAA Assistant 

15 Administrator for use by the National Oce16 anic and Atmospheric Administration; 

17 (iii) $500,000 to the EPA Assistant 

18 Administrator for use by the Environ19 mental Protection Agency; and 

20 (iv) $500,000 to the Secretary for use 

21 by the United States Geological Survey. 

22 (2) AGREEMENTS AND GRANTS.—The Secretary 

23 may— 

24 (A) on the recommendation of the Board, 

25 and notwithstanding sections 6304 and 6305 of 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
62 

•S 1514 RS

1 title 31, United States Code, and the Federal 

2 Financial Assistance Management Improvement 

3 Act of 1999 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note; Public Law 

4 106–107), enter into a grant agreement, coop5 erative agreement, or contract with a Partner6 ship or other entity for a fish habitat conserva7 tion project or restoration or enhancement 

8 project; 

9 (B) apply for, accept, and use a grant 

10 from any individual or entity to carry out the 

11 purposes of this section; and 

12 (C) make funds available to any Federal 

13 department or agency for use by that depart14 ment or agency to provide grants for any fish 

15 habitat protection project, restoration project, 

16 or enhancement project that the Secretary de17 termines to be consistent with this section. 

18 (3) DONATIONS.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may— 

20 (i) enter into an agreement with any 

21 organization described in section 501(c)(3) 

22 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that 

23 is exempt from taxation under section 

24 501(a) of that Code to solicit private donaVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00062 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
63 

•S 1514 RS

1 tions to carry out the purposes of this sec2 tion; and 

3 (ii) accept donations of funds, prop4 erty, and services to carry out the purposes 

5 of this section. 

6 (B) TREATMENT.—A donation accepted 

7 under this section— 

8 (i) shall be considered to be a gift or 

9 bequest to, or otherwise for the use of, the 

10 United States; and 

11 (ii) may be— 

12 (I) used directly by the Sec13 retary; or 

14 (II) provided to another Federal 

15 department or agency through an 

16 interagency agreement. 

17 (m) PROHIBITION AGAINST IMPLEMENTATION OF

18 REGULATORY AUTHORITY BY FEDERAL AGENCIES .— 

19 Any Partnership designated under this section— 

20 (1) shall be for the sole purpose of promoting 

21 fish conservation; and 

22 (2) shall not be used to implement any regu23 latory authority of any Federal agency. 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
64 

•S 1514 RS

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Hunting Heritage and 

3 Environmental Legacy Preservation for Wildlife Act’’ or the 

4 ‘‘HELP for Wildlife Act’’. 

5 SEC. 2. TARGET PRACTICE AND MARKSMANSHIP. 

6 (a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to facili7 tate the construction and expansion of public target ranges, 

8 including ranges on Federal land managed by the Forest 

9 Service and the Bureau of Land Management. 

10 (b) DEFINITION OF PUBLIC TARGET RANGE.—In this 

11 section, the term ‘‘public target range’’ means a specific lo12 cation that— 

13 (1) is identified by a governmental agency for 

14 recreational shooting; 

15 (2) is open to the public; 

16 (3) may be supervised; and 

17 (4) may accommodate archery or rifle, pistol, or 

18 shotgun shooting. 

19 (c) AMENDMENTS TO PITTMAN-ROBERTSON WILDLIFE

20 RESTORATION ACT.— 

21 (1) DEFINITIONS.—Section 2 of the Pittman22 Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669a) 

23 is amended— 

24 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (2) 

25 through (8) as paragraphs (3) through (9), re26 spectively; and 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
65 

•S 1514 RS

1 (B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(2) the term ‘public target range’ means a spe4 cific location that— 

5 ‘‘(A) is identified by a governmental agency 

6 for recreational shooting; 

7 ‘‘(B) is open to the public; 

8 ‘‘(C) may be supervised; and 

9 ‘‘(D) may accommodate archery or rifle, 

10 pistol, or shotgun shooting;’’. 

11 (2) EXPENDITURES FOR MANAGEMENT OF WILD12 LIFE AREAS AND RESOURCES.—Section 8(b) of the 

13 Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act (16 

14 U.S.C. 669g(b)) is amended— 

15 (A) by striking ‘‘(b) Each State’’ and in16 serting the following: 

17 ‘‘(b) EXPENDITURES FOR MANAGEMENT OF WILDLIFE

18 AREAS AND RESOURCES.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para20 graph (2), each State’’; 

21 (B) in paragraph (1) (as so designated), in 

22 the first sentence, by striking ‘‘construction, op23 eration,’’ and inserting ‘‘operation’’; 

24 (C) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘The 

25 non-Federal share’’ and inserting the following: 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
66 

•S 1514 RS

1 ‘‘(3) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The non-Federal 

2 share’’; 

3 (D) in the third sentence, by striking ‘‘The 

4 Secretary’’ and inserting the following: 

5 ‘‘(4) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary’’; and 

6 (E) by inserting after paragraph (1) (as 

7 designated by subparagraph (A)) the following: 

8 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding the limita9 tion described in paragraph (1), a State may pay up 

10 to 90 percent of the cost of acquiring land for, ex11 panding, or constructing a public target range.’’. 

12 (3) FIREARM AND BOW HUNTER EDUCATION AND

13 SAFETY PROGRAM GRANTS.—Section 10 of the Pitt14 man-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 

15 669h–1) is amended— 

16 (A) in subsection (a), by adding at the end 

17 the following: 

18 ‘‘(3) ALLOCATION OF ADDITIONAL AMOUNTS.—Of 

19 the amount apportioned to a State for any fiscal year 

20 under section 4(b), the State may elect to allocate not 

21 more than 10 percent, to be combined with the 

22 amount apportioned to the State under paragraph (1) 

23 for that fiscal year, for acquiring land for, expanding, 

24 or constructing a public target range.’’; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
67 

•S 1514 RS

1 (B) by striking subsection (b) and inserting 

2 the following: 

3 ‘‘(b) COST SHARING.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para5 graph (2), the Federal share of the cost of any activity 

6 carried out using a grant under this section shall not 

7 exceed 75 percent of the total cost of the activity. 

8 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC TARGET RANGE CONSTRUCTION OR

9 EXPANSION.—The Federal share of the cost of acquir10 ing land for, expanding, or constructing a public tar11 get range in a State on Federal or non-Federal land 

12 pursuant to this section or section 8(b) shall not ex13 ceed 90 percent of the cost of the activity.’’; and 

14 (C) in subsection (c)(1)— 

15 (i) by striking ‘‘Amounts made’’ and 

16 inserting the following: 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

18 subparagraph (B), amounts made’’; and 

19 (ii) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Amounts provided for 

21 acquiring land for, constructing, or expanding a 

22 public target range shall remain available for ex23 penditure and obligation during the 5-fiscal-year 

24 period beginning on October 1 of the first fiscal 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
68 

•S 1514 RS

1 year for which the amounts are made avail2 able.’’. 

3 (d) SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING COOPERA4 TION.—It is the sense of Congress that, consistent with ap5 plicable laws (including regulations), the Chief of the Forest 

6 Service and the Director of the Bureau of Land Manage7 ment should cooperate with State and local authorities and 

8 other entities to carry out waste removal and other activi9 ties on any Federal land used as a public target range to 

10 encourage continued use of that land for target practice or 

11 marksmanship training. 

12 SEC. 3. BAITING OF MIGRATORY GAME BIRDS. 

13 Section 3 of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (16 U.S.C. 

14 704) is amended by striking subsection (b) and inserting 

15 the following: 

16 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITION OF BAITING.— 

17 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

18 ‘‘(A) BAITED AREA.— 

19 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘baited 

20 area’ means— 

21 ‘‘(I) any area on which salt, 

22 grain, or other feed has been placed, 

23 exposed, deposited, distributed, or scat24 tered, if the salt, grain, or feed could 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
69 

•S 1514 RS

1 lure or attract migratory game birds; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(II) in the case of waterfowl, 

4 cranes (family Gruidae), and coots 

5 (family Rallidae), a standing, 

6 unharvested crop that has been manip7 ulated through activities such as mow8 ing, discing, or rolling, unless the ac9 tivities are normal agricultural prac10 tices. 

11 ‘‘(ii) EXCLUSIONS.—An area shall not 

12 be considered to be a ‘baited area’ if the 

13 area— 

14 ‘‘(I) has been treated with a nor15 mal agricultural practice; 

16 ‘‘(II) has standing crops that have 

17 not been manipulated; or 

18 ‘‘(III) has standing crops that 

19 have been or are flooded. 

20 ‘‘(B) BAITING.—The term ‘baiting’ means 

21 the direct or indirect placing, exposing, depos22 iting, distributing, or scattering of salt, grain, or 

23 other feed that could lure or attract migratory 

24 game birds to, on, or over any areas on which 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
70 

•S 1514 RS

1 a hunter is attempting to take migratory game 

2 birds. 

3 ‘‘(C) MIGRATORY GAME BIRD.—The term 

4 ‘migratory game bird’ means migratory bird 

5 species— 

6 ‘‘(i) that are within the taxonomic 

7 families of Anatidae, Columbidae, Gruidae, 

8 Rallidae, and Scolopacidae; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) for which open seasons are pre10 scribed by the Secretary of the Interior. 

11 ‘‘(D) NORMAL AGRICULTURAL PRACTICE.— 

12 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘normal 

13 agricultural practice’ means any practice 

14 in 1 annual growing season that— 

15 ‘‘(I) is carried out in order to 

16 produce a marketable crop, including 

17 planting, harvest, post-harvest, or soil 

18 conservation practices; and 

19 ‘‘(II) is recommended for the suc20 cessful harvest of a given crop by the 

21 applicable State office of the Coopera22 tive Extension System of the Depart23 ment of Agriculture, in consultation 

24 with, and if requested, the concurrence 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
71 

•S 1514 RS

1 of, the head of the applicable State de2 partment of fish and wildlife. 

3 ‘‘(ii) INCLUSIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Subject to 

5 subclause (II), the term ‘normal agri6 cultural practice’ includes the destruc7 tion of a crop in accordance with prac8 tices required by the Federal Crop In9 surance Corporation for agricultural 

10 producers to obtain crop insurance 

11 under the Federal Crop Insurance Act 

12 (7 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.) on land on 

13 which a crop during the current or im14 mediately preceding crop year was not 

15 harvestable due to a natural disaster 

16 (including any hurricane, storm, tor17 nado, flood, high water, wind-driven 

18 water, tidal wave, tsunami, earth19 quake, volcanic eruption, landslide, 

20 mudslide, drought, fire, snowstorm, or 

21 other catastrophe that is declared a 

22 major disaster by the President in ac23 cordance with section 401 of the Robert 

24 T. Stafford Disaster Relief and EmerVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00071 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
72 

•S 1514 RS

1 gency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 

2 5170)). 

3 ‘‘(II) LIMITATIONS.—The term 

4 ‘normal agricultural practice’ only in5 cludes a crop described in subclause (I) 

6 that has been destroyed or manipulated 

7 through activities that include (but are 

8 not limited to) mowing, discing, or 

9 rolling if the Federal Crop Insurance 

10 Corporation certifies that flooding was 

11 not an acceptable method of destruction 

12 to obtain crop insurance under the 

13 Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 U.S.C. 

14 1501 et seq.). 

15 ‘‘(E) WATERFOWL.—The term ‘waterfowl’ 

16 means native species of the family Anatidae. 

17 ‘‘(2) PROHIBITION.—It shall be unlawful for any 

18 person— 

19 ‘‘(A) to take any migratory game bird by 

20 baiting or on or over any baited area, if the per21 son knows or reasonably should know that the 

22 area is a baited area; or 

23 ‘‘(B) to place or direct the placement of bait 

24 on or adjacent to an area for the purpose of 

25 causing, inducing, or allowing any person to 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
73 

•S 1514 RS

1 take or attempt to take any migratory game bird 

2 by baiting or on or over the baited area. 

3 ‘‘(3) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary of the Inte4 rior may promulgate regulations to implement this 

5 subsection. 

6 ‘‘(4) REPORTS.—Annually, the Secretary of Ag7 riculture shall submit to the Secretary of the Interior 

8 a report that describes any changes to normal agri9 cultural practices across the range of crops grown by 

10 agricultural producers in each region of the United 

11 States in which the recommendations are provided to 

12 agricultural producers.’’. 

13 SEC. 4. NORTH AMERICAN WETLANDS CONSERVATION ACT. 

14 (a) REAL PROPERTY.—Section 6(a)(3) of the North 

15 American Wetlands Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 

16 4405(a)(3)) is amended— 

17 (1) by striking ‘‘(3) in lieu of’’ and inserting the 

18 following: 

19 ‘‘(3) PROVISION OF FUNDS OR CONVEYANCE OF

20 REAL PROPERTY INTEREST.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In lieu of’’; 

22 (2) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘The Sec23 retary shall’’ and inserting the following: 

24 ‘‘(B) DETERMINATION.—The Secretary 

25 shall’’; and 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
74 

•S 1514 RS

1 (3) by striking the third sentence and inserting 

2 the following: 

3 ‘‘(C) REAL PROPERTY.—Any real property 

4 interest conveyed under this paragraph shall be 

5 subject to terms and conditions that ensure 

6 that— 

7 ‘‘(i) the real property interest will be 

8 administered for the long-term conservation 

9 and management of the wetland ecosystem 

10 and the fish and wildlife dependent on that 

11 ecosystem; 

12 ‘‘(ii) the grantor of a real property in13 terest has been provided with information 

14 relating to all available conservation op15 tions, including conservation options that 

16 involve the conveyance of a real property 

17 interest for a limited period of time; and 

18 ‘‘(iii) the provision of the information 

19 described in clause (ii) has been docu20 mented.’’. 

21 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

22 7(c) of the North American Wetlands Conservation Act (16 

23 U.S.C. 4406(c)) is amended— 

24 (1) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
75 

•S 1514 RS

1 (2) in paragraph (5), by striking the period at 

2 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

3 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(6) $50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2018 

5 through 2022.’’. 

6 SEC. 5. NATIONAL FISH AND WILDLIFE FOUNDATION ES7 TABLISHMENT ACT. 

8 (a) BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF FOUNDATION.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 3 of the National Fish 

10 and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act (16 

11 U.S.C. 3702) is amended— 

12 (A) in subsection (b)— 

13 (i) by striking paragraph (2) and in14 serting the following: 

15 ‘‘(2) IN GENERAL.—After consulting with the 

16 Secretary of Commerce and considering the rec17 ommendations submitted by the Board, the Secretary 

18 of the Interior shall appoint 28 Directors who, to the 

19 maximum extent practicable, shall— 

20 ‘‘(A) be knowledgeable and experienced in 

21 matters relating to the conservation of fish, wild22 life, or other natural resources; and 

23 ‘‘(B) represent a balance of expertise in 

24 ocean, coastal, freshwater, and terrestrial re25 source conservation.’’; and 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
76 

•S 1514 RS

1 (ii) by striking paragraph (3) and in2 serting the following: 

3 ‘‘(3) TERMS.—Each Director (other than a Di4 rector described in paragraph (1)) shall be appointed 

5 for a term of 6 years.’’; and 

6 (B) in subsection (g)(2)— 

7 (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

8 ‘‘(A) Officers and employees may not be ap9 pointed until the Foundation has sufficient 

10 funds to pay them for their service. Offi11 cers’’ and inserting the following: 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Officers’’; and 

13 (ii) by striking subparagraph (B) and 

14 inserting the following: 

15 ‘‘(B) EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR.—The Founda16 tion shall have an Executive Director who shall 

17 be— 

18 ‘‘(i) appointed by, and serve at the di19 rection of, the Board as the chief executive 

20 officer of the Foundation; and 

21 ‘‘(ii) knowledgeable and experienced in 

22 matters relating to fish and wildlife con23 servation.’’. 

24 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

25 4(a)(1)(B) of the North American Wetlands ConservaVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00076 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
77 

•S 1514 RS

1 tion Act (16 U.S.C. 4403(a)(1)(B)) is amended by 

2 striking ‘‘Secretary of the Board’’ and inserting ‘‘Ex3 ecutive Director of the Board’’. 

4 (b) RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF FOUNDATION.—Sec5 tion 4 of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Estab6 lishment Act (16 U.S.C. 3703) is amended— 

7 (1) in subsection (c)— 

8 (A) by striking ‘‘(c) POWERS.—To carry 

9 out its purposes under’’ and inserting the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘(c) POWERS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To carry out the purposes 

13 described in’’; 

14 (B) by redesignating paragraphs (1) 

15 through (11) as subparagraphs (A) through (K), 

16 respectively, and indenting appropriately; 

17 (C) in subparagraph (D) (as redesignated 

18 by subparagraph (B)), by striking ‘‘that are in19 sured by an agency or instrumentality of the 

20 United States’’ and inserting ‘‘at 1 or more fi21 nancial institutions that are members of the Fed22 eral Deposit Insurance Corporation or the Secu23 rities Investment Protection Corporation’’; 

24 (D) in subparagraph (E) (as redesignated 

25 by subparagraph (B)), by striking ‘‘paragraph 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
78 

•S 1514 RS

1 (3) or (4)’’ and inserting ‘‘subparagraph (C) or 

2 (D)’’; 

3 (E) in subparagraph (J) (as redesignated 

4 by subparagraph (B)), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

5 end; 

6 (F) by striking subparagraph (K) (as redes7 ignated by subparagraph (B)) and inserting the 

8 following: 

9 ‘‘(K) to receive and administer restitution 

10 and community service payments, amounts for 

11 mitigation of impacts to natural resources, and 

12 other amounts arising from legal, regulatory, or 

13 administrative proceedings, subject to the condi14 tion that the amounts are received or adminis15 tered for purposes that further the conservation 

16 and management of fish, wildlife, plants, and 

17 other natural resources; and 

18 ‘‘(L) to do acts necessary to carry out the 

19 purposes of the Foundation.’’; and 

20 (G) by striking the undesignated matter at 

21 the end and inserting the following: 

22 ‘‘(2) TREATMENT OF REAL PROPERTY.— 

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this 

24 Act, an interest in real property shall be treated 

25 as including easements or other rights for preserVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00078 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
79 

•S 1514 RS

1 vation, conservation, protection, or enhancement 

2 by and for the public of natural, scenic, historic, 

3 scientific, educational, inspirational, or rec4 reational resources. 

5 ‘‘(B) ENCUMBERED REAL PROPERTY.—A 

6 gift, devise, or bequest may be accepted by the 

7 Foundation even though the gift, devise, or be8 quest is encumbered, restricted, or subject to ben9 eficial interests of private persons if any current 

10 or future interest in the gift, devise, or bequest 

11 is for the benefit of the Foundation. 

12 ‘‘(3) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—The acceptance and ad13 ministration of amounts by the Foundation under 

14 paragraph (1)(K) does not alter, supersede, or limit 

15 any regulatory or statutory requirement associated 

16 with those amounts.’’; 

17 (2) by striking subsections (f) and (g); and 

18 (3) by redesignating subsections (h) and (i) as 

19 subsections (f) and (g), respectively. 

20 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 10 

21 of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establish22 ment Act (16 U.S.C. 3709) is amended— 

23 (1) in subsection (a), by striking paragraph (1) 

24 and inserting the following: 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
80 

•S 1514 RS

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

2 appropriated to carry out this Act for each of fiscal 

3 years 2018 through 2022— 

4 ‘‘(A) $15,000,000 to the Secretary of the In5 terior; 

6 ‘‘(B) $5,000,000 to the Secretary of Agri7 culture; and 

8 ‘‘(C) $5,000,000 to the Secretary of Com9 merce.’’; 

10 (2) in subsection (b)— 

11 (A) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting 

12 the following: 

13 ‘‘(1) AMOUNTS FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the 

15 amounts authorized to be appropriated under 

16 subsection (a), Federal departments, agencies, or 

17 instrumentalities are authorized to provide funds 

18 to the Foundation through Federal financial as19 sistance grants and cooperative agreements, sub20 ject to the condition that the amounts are used 

21 for purposes that further the conservation and 

22 management of fish, wildlife, plants, and other 

23 natural resources in accordance with this Act. 

24 ‘‘(B) ADVANCES.—Federal departments, 

25 agencies, or instrumentalities may advance 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
81 

•S 1514 RS

1 amounts described in subparagraph (A) to the 

2 Foundation in a lump sum without regard to 

3 when the expenses for which the amounts are 

4 used are incurred. 

5 ‘‘(C) MANAGEMENT FEES.—The Foundation 

6 may assess and collect fees for the management 

7 of amounts received under this paragraph.’’; 

8 (B) in paragraph (2)— 

9 (i) in the paragraph heading, by strik10 ing ‘‘FUNDS’’ and inserting ‘‘AMOUNTS’’; 

11 (ii) by striking ‘‘shall be used’’ and in12 serting ‘‘may be used’’; and 

13 (iii) by striking ‘‘and State and local 

14 government agencies’’ and inserting ‘‘, State 

15 and local government agencies, and other 

16 entities’’; and 

17 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(3) ADMINISTRATION OF AMOUNTS.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In entering into con20 tracts, agreements, or other partnerships pursu21 ant to this Act, a Federal department, agency, or 

22 instrumentality shall have discretion to waive 

23 any competitive process applicable to the depart24 ment, agency, or instrumentality for entering 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
82 

•S 1514 RS

1 into contracts, agreements, or partnerships with 

2 the Foundation if the purpose of the waiver is— 

3 ‘‘(i) to address an environmental emer4 gency resulting from a natural or other dis5 aster; or 

6 ‘‘(ii) as determined by the head of the 

7 applicable Federal department, agency, or 

8 instrumentality, to reduce administrative 

9 expenses and expedite the conservation and 

10 management of fish, wildlife, plants, and 

11 other natural resources. 

12 ‘‘(B) REPORTS.—The Foundation shall in13 clude in the annual report submitted under sec14 tion 7(b) a description of any use of the author15 ity under subparagraph (A) by a Federal de16 partment, agency, or instrumentality in that fis17 cal year.’’; and 

18 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(d) USE OF GIFTS, DEVISES, OR BEQUESTS OF

20 MONEY OR OTHER PROPERTY.—Any gifts, devises, or be21 quests of amounts or other property, or any other amounts 

22 or other property, transferred to, deposited with, or other23 wise in the possession of the Foundation pursuant to this 

24 Act, may be made available by the Foundation to Federal 

25 departments, agencies, or instrumentalities and may be acVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00082 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
83 

•S 1514 RS

1 cepted and expended (or the disposition of the amounts or 

2 property directed), without further appropriation, by those 

3 Federal departments, agencies, or instrumentalities, subject 

4 to the condition that the amounts or property be used for 

5 purposes that further the conservation and management of 

6 fish, wildlife, plants, and other natural resources.’’. 

7 (d) LIMITATION ON AUTHORITY.—Section 11 of the 

8 National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act 

9 (16 U.S.C. 3710) is amended by inserting ‘‘exclusive’’ before 

10 ‘‘authority’’. 

11 SEC. 6. REAUTHORIZATION OF NEOTROPICAL MIGRATORY 

12 BIRD CONSERVATION ACT. 

13 Section 10 of the Neotropical Migratory Bird Con14 servation Act (16 U.S.C. 6109) is amended to read as fol15 lows: 

16 ‘‘SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro18 priated to carry out this Act $6,500,000 for each of fiscal 

19 years 2018 through 2022. 

20 ‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS.—Of the amounts made available 

21 under subsection (a) for each fiscal year, not less than 75 

22 percent shall be expended for projects carried out at a loca23 tion outside of the United States.’’. 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
84 

•S 1514 RS

1 SEC. 7. REISSUANCE OF FINAL RULE REGARDING GRAY 

2 WOLVES IN WESTERN GREAT LAKES. 

3 Before the end of the 60-day period beginning on the 

4 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior 

5 shall reissue the final rule published on December 28, 2011 

6 (76 Fed. Reg. 81666), without regard to any other provision 

7 of statute or regulation that applies to issuance of such rule. 

8 Such reissuance shall not be subject to judicial review. 

9 SEC. 8. REISSUANCE OF FINAL RULE REGARDING GRAY 

10 WOLVES IN WYOMING. 

11 The final rule published on September 10, 2012 (77 

12 Fed. Reg. 55530) that was reinstated on March 3, 2017, 

13 by the decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District 

14 of Columbia (No. 14–5300) and further republished on May 

15 1, 2017 (82 Fed. Reg. 20284–85) that reinstates the removal 

16 of Federal protections for the gray wolf in Wyoming under 

17 the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended, shall not 

18 be subject to judicial review. 

19 SEC. 9. MODIFICATION OF DEFINITION OF SPORT FISHING 

20 EQUIPMENT UNDER TOXIC SUBSTANCES CON21 TROL ACT. 

22 Section 3(2)(B) of the Toxic Substances Control Act 

23 (15 U.S.C. 2602(2)(B)) is amended— 

24 (1) in clause (v), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

25 (2) in clause (vi) by striking the period at the 

26 end and inserting ‘‘, and’’; and 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
85 

•S 1514 RS

1 (3) by inserting after clause (vi) the following: 

2 ‘‘(vii) any sport fishing equipment (as such term 

3 is defined in section 4162(a) of the Internal Revenue 

4 Code of 1986) the sale of which is subject to the tax 

5 imposed by section 4161(a) of such Code (determined 

6 without regard to any exemptions from such tax pro7 vided by section 4162 or 4221 or any other provision 

8 of such Code), and sport fishing equipment compo9 nents.’’. 

10 SEC. 10. REAUTHORIZATION OF CHESAPEAKE BAY PRO11 GRAM. 

12 Section 117 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 

13 (33 U.S.C. 1267) is amended by striking subsection (j) and 

14 inserting the following: 

15 ‘‘(j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

16 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

17 $90,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2018 through 2022.’’. 

18 SEC. 11. REAUTHORIZATION OF CHESAPEAKE BAY INITIA19 TIVE ACT OF 1998. 

20 Section 502(c) of the Chesapeake Bay Initiative Act 

21 of 1998 (Public Law 105–312; 112 Stat. 2963; 129 Stat. 

22 2579) is amended by striking ‘‘2017’’ and inserting ‘‘2023’’. 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
86 

•S 1514 RS

1 SEC. 12. NATIONAL FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION 

2 THROUGH PARTNERSHIPS. 

3 (a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to en4 courage partnerships among public agencies and other in5 terested parties to promote fish conservation— 

6 (1) to achieve measurable habitat conservation 

7 results through strategic actions of Fish Habitat Part8 nerships that lead to better fish habitat conditions 

9 and increased fishing opportunities by— 

10 (A) improving ecological conditions; 

11 (B) restoring natural processes; or 

12 (C) preventing the decline of intact and 

13 healthy systems; 

14 (2) to establish a consensus set of national con15 servation strategies as a framework to guide future 

16 actions and investment by Fish Habitat Partnerships; 

17 (3) to broaden the community of support for fish 

18 habitat conservation by— 

19 (A) increasing fishing opportunities; 

20 (B) fostering the participation of local com21 munities, especially young people in local com22 munities, in conservation activities; and 

23 (C) raising public awareness of the role 

24 healthy fish habitat play in the quality of life 

25 and economic well-being of local communities; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
87 

•S 1514 RS

1 (4) to fill gaps in the National Fish Habitat As2 sessment and the associated database of the National 

3 Fish Habitat Assessment— 

4 (A) to empower strategic conservation ac5 tions supported by broadly available scientific 

6 information; and 

7 (B) to integrate socioeconomic data in the 

8 analysis to improve the lives of humans in a 

9 manner consistent with fish habitat conservation 

10 goals; and 

11 (5) to communicate to the public and conserva12 tion partners— 

13 (A) the conservation outcomes produced col14 lectively by Fish Habitat Partnerships; and 

15 (B) new opportunities and voluntary ap16 proaches for conserving fish habitat. 

17 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

18 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT19 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional commit20 tees’’ means— 

21 (A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

22 and Transportation and the Committee on Envi23 ronment and Public Works of the Senate; and 

24 (B) the Committee on Natural Resources of 

25 the House of Representatives. 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
88 

•S 1514 RS

1 (2) BOARD.—The term ‘‘Board’’ means the Na2 tional Fish Habitat Board established by subsection 

3 (c)(1)(A). 

4 (3) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means the 

5 Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Serv6 ice. 

7 (4) EPA ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR.—The term 

8 ‘‘EPA Assistant Administrator’’ means the Assistant 

9 Administrator for Water of the Environmental Pro10 tection Agency. 

11 (5) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ has 

12 the meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian 

13 Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 

14 U.S.C. 5304). 

15 (6) NOAA ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR.—The 

16 term ‘‘NOAA Assistant Administrator’’ means the As17 sistant Administrator for Fisheries of the National 

18 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 

19 (7) PARTNERSHIP.—The term ‘‘Partnership’’ 

20 means a self-governed entity designated by Congress 

21 as a Fish Habitat Partnership under subsection 

22 (d)(6) after a recommendation by the Board under 

23 subsection (d)(1). 

24 (8) REAL PROPERTY INTEREST.—The term ‘‘real 

25 property interest’’ means an ownership interest in— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
89 

•S 1514 RS

1 (A) land; or 

2 (B) water (including water rights). 

3 (9) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

4 the Secretary of the Interior. 

5 (10) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 

6 the several States. 

7 (11) STATE AGENCY.—The term ‘‘State agency’’ 

8 means— 

9 (A) the fish and wildlife agency of a State; 

10 and 

11 (B) any department or division of a depart12 ment or agency of a State that manages in the 

13 public trust the inland or marine fishery re14 sources or sustains the habitat for those fishery 

15 resources of the State pursuant to State law or 

16 the constitution of the State. 

17 (c) NATIONAL FISH HABITAT BOARD.— 

18 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

19 (A) FISH HABITAT BOARD.—There is estab20 lished a board, to be known as the ‘‘National 

21 Fish Habitat Board’’, whose duties are— 

22 (i) to promote, oversee, and coordinate 

23 the implementation of this section; 

24 (ii) to establish national goals and pri25 orities for fish habitat conservation; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
90 

•S 1514 RS

1 (iii) to recommend to Congress entities 

2 for designation as Partnerships; and 

3 (iv) to review and make recommenda4 tions regarding fish habitat conservation 

5 projects. 

6 (B) MEMBERSHIP.—The Board shall be 

7 composed of 25 members, of whom— 

8 (i) 1 shall be a representative of the 

9 Department of the Interior; 

10 (ii) 1 shall be a representative of the 

11 United States Geological Survey; 

12 (iii) 1 shall be a representative of the 

13 Department of Commerce; 

14 (iv) 1 shall be a representative of the 

15 Department of Agriculture; 

16 (v) 1 shall be a representative of the 

17 Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies; 

18 (vi) 4 shall be representatives of State 

19 agencies, 1 of whom shall be nominated by 

20 a regional association of fish and wildlife 

21 agencies from each of the Northeast, South22 east, Midwest, and Western regions of the 

23 United States; 

24 (vii) 1 shall be a representative of ei25 ther— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
91 

•S 1514 RS

1 (I) Indian tribes in the State of 

2 Alaska; or 

3 (II) Indian tribes in States other 

4 than the State of Alaska; 

5 (viii) 1 shall be a representative of ei6 ther— 

7 (I) the Regional Fishery Manage8 ment Councils established under sec9 tion 302 of the Magnuson-Stevens 

10 Fishery Conservation and Management 

11 Act (16 U.S.C. 1852); or 

12 (II) a representative of the Marine 

13 Fisheries Commissions, which is com14 posed of— 

15 (aa) the Atlantic States Ma16 rine Fisheries Commission; 

17 (bb) the Gulf States Marine 

18 Fisheries Commission; and 

19 (cc) the Pacific States Ma20 rine Fisheries Commission; 

21 (ix) 1 shall be a representative of the 

22 Sportfishing and Boating Partnership 

23 Council; 

24 (x) 7 shall be representatives selected 

25 from each of— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
92 

•S 1514 RS

1 (I) the recreational sportfishing 

2 industry; 

3 (II) the commercial fishing indus4 try; 

5 (III) marine recreational anglers; 

6 (IV) freshwater recreational an7 glers; 

8 (V) habitat conservation organiza9 tions; and 

10 (VI) science-based fishery organi11 zations; 

12 (xi) 1 shall be a representative of a na13 tional private landowner organization; 

14 (xii) 1 shall be a representative of an 

15 agricultural production organization; 

16 (xiii) 1 shall be a representative of 

17 local government interests involved in fish 

18 habitat restoration; 

19 (xiv) 2 shall be representatives from 

20 different sectors of corporate industries, 

21 which may include— 

22 (I) natural resource commodity 

23 interests, such as petroleum or mineral 

24 extraction; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
93 

•S 1514 RS

1 (II) natural resource user indus2 tries; and 

3 (III) industries with an interest 

4 in fish and fish habitat conservation; 

5 and 

6 (xv) 1 shall be a leadership private sec7 tor or landowner representative of an active 

8 partnership. 

9 (C) COMPENSATION.—A member of the 

10 Board shall serve without compensation. 

11 (D) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—A member of the 

12 Board may be allowed travel expenses, including 

13 per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates author14 ized for an employee of an agency under sub15 chapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States 

16 Code, while away from the home or regular place 

17 of business of the member in the performance of 

18 the duties of the Board. 

19 (2) APPOINTMENT AND TERMS.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise pro21 vided in this subsection, a member of the Board 

22 described in any of clauses (vi) through (xiv) of 

23 paragraph (1)(B) shall serve for a term of 3 

24 years. 

25 (B) INITIAL BOARD MEMBERSHIP.— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
94 

•S 1514 RS

1 (i) IN GENERAL.—The initial Board 

2 will consist of representatives as described 

3 in clauses (i) through (vi) of paragraph 

4 (1)(B). 

5 (ii) REMAINING MEMBERS.—Not later 

6 than 60 days after the date of enactment of 

7 this Act, the representatives of the initial 

8 Board pursuant to clause (i) shall appoint 

9 the remaining members of the Board de10 scribed in clauses (viii) through (xiv) of 

11 paragraph (1)(B). 

12 (iii) TRIBAL REPRESENTATIVES.—Not 

13 later than 60 days after the enactment of 

14 this Act, the Secretary shall provide to the 

15 Board a recommendation of not fewer than 

16 3 tribal representatives, from which the 

17 Board shall appoint 1 representative pursu18 ant to clause (vii) of paragraph (1)(B). 

19 (C) TRANSITIONAL TERMS.—Of the members 

20 described in paragraph (1)(B)(x) initially ap21 pointed to the Board— 

22 (i) 2 shall be appointed for a term of 

23 1 year; 

24 (ii) 2 shall be appointed for a term of 

25 2 years; and 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
95 

•S 1514 RS

1 (iii) 3 shall be appointed for a term of 

2 3 years. 

3 (D) VACANCIES.— 

4 (i) IN GENERAL.—A vacancy of a 

5 member of the Board described in any of 

6 clauses (viii) through (xiv) of paragraph 

7 (1)(B) shall be filled by an appointment 

8 made by the remaining members of the 

9 Board. 

10 (ii) TRIBAL REPRESENTATIVES.—Fol11 lowing a vacancy of a member of the Board 

12 described in clause (vii) of paragraph 

13 (1)(B), the Secretary shall recommend to 

14 the Board a list of not fewer than 3 tribal 

15 representatives, from which the remaining 

16 members of the Board shall appoint a rep17 resentative to fill the vacancy. 

18 (E) CONTINUATION OF SERVICE.—An indi19 vidual whose term of service as a member of the 

20 Board expires may continue to serve on the 

21 Board until a successor is appointed. 

22 (F) REMOVAL.—If a member of the Board 

23 described in any of clauses (viii) through (xiv) of 

24 paragraph (1)(B) misses 3 consecutive regularly 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
96 

•S 1514 RS

1 scheduled Board meetings, the members of the 

2 Board may— 

3 (i) vote to remove that member; and 

4 (ii) appoint another individual in ac5 cordance with subparagraph (D). 

6 (3) CHAIRPERSON.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—The representative of the 

8 Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies ap9 pointed pursuant to paragraph (1)(B)(v) shall 

10 serve as Chairperson of the Board. 

11 (B) TERM.—The Chairperson of the Board 

12 shall serve for a term of 3 years. 

13 (4) MEETINGS.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall meet— 

15 (i) at the call of the Chairperson; but 

16 (ii) not less frequently than twice each 

17 calendar year. 

18 (B) PUBLIC ACCESS.—All meetings of the 

19 Board shall be open to the public. 

20 (5) PROCEDURES.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall estab22 lish procedures to carry out the business of the 

23 Board, including— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
97 

•S 1514 RS

1 (i) a requirement that a quorum of the 

2 members of the Board be present to transact 

3 business; 

4 (ii) a requirement that no rec5 ommendations may be adopted by the 

Board, except by the vote of 2 6 ⁄3 of all mem7 bers; 

8 (iii) procedures for establishing na9 tional goals and priorities for fish habitat 

10 conservation for the purposes of this section; 

11 (iv) procedures for designating Part12 nerships under subsection (d); and 

13 (v) procedures for reviewing, evalu14 ating, and making recommendations re15 garding fish habitat conservation projects. 

16 (B) QUORUM.—A majority of the members 

17 of the Board shall constitute a quorum. 

18 (d) FISH HABITAT PARTNERSHIPS.— 

19 (1) AUTHORITY TO RECOMMEND.—The Board 

20 may recommend to Congress the designation of Fish 

21 Habitat Partnerships in accordance with this sub22 section. 

23 (2) PURPOSES.—The purposes of a Partnership 

24 shall be— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
98 

•S 1514 RS

1 (A) to work with other regional habitat con2 servation programs to promote cooperation and 

3 coordination to enhance fish and fish habitats; 

4 (B) to engage local and regional commu5 nities to build support for fish habitat conserva6 tion; 

7 (C) to involve diverse groups of public and 

8 private partners; 

9 (D) to develop collaboratively a strategic vi10 sion and achievable implementation plan that is 

11 scientifically sound; 

12 (E) to leverage funding from sources that 

13 support local and regional partnerships; 

14 (F) to use adaptive management principles, 

15 including evaluation of project success and 

16 functionality; 

17 (G) to develop appropriate local or regional 

18 habitat evaluation and assessment measures and 

19 criteria that are compatible with national habi20 tat condition measures; and 

21 (H) to implement local and regional pri22 ority projects that improve conditions for fish 

23 and fish habitat. 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
99 

•S 1514 RS

1 (3) CRITERIA FOR DESIGNATION.—An entity 

2 seeking to be designated by Congress as a Partnership 

3 shall— 

4 (A) submit to the Board an application at 

5 such time, in such manner, and containing such 

6 information as the Board may reasonably re7 quire; and 

8 (B) demonstrate to the Board that the enti9 ty has— 

10 (i) a focus on promoting the health of 

11 important fish and fish habitats; 

12 (ii) an ability to coordinate the imple13 mentation of priority projects that support 

14 the goals and national priorities set by the 

15 Board that are within the Partnership 

16 boundary; 

17 (iii) a self-governance structure that 

18 supports the implementation of strategic 

19 priorities for fish habitat; 

20 (iv) the ability to develop local and re21 gional relationships with a broad range of 

22 entities to further strategic priorities for 

23 fish and fish habitat; 

24 (v) a strategic plan that details re25 quired investments for fish habitat conservaVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00099 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
100 

•S 1514 RS

1 tion that addresses the strategic fish habitat 

2 priorities of the Partnership and supports 

3 and meets the strategic priorities of the 

4 Board; 

5 (vi) the ability to develop and imple6 ment fish habitat conservation projects that 

7 address strategic priorities of the Partner8 ship and the Board; and 

9 (vii) the ability to develop fish habitat 

10 conservation priorities based on sound 

11 science and data, the ability to measure the 

12 effectiveness of fish habitat projects of the 

13 Partnership, and a clear plan as to how 

14 Partnership science and data components 

15 will be integrated with the overall Board 

16 science and data effort. 

17 (4) REQUIREMENTS FOR RECOMMENDATION TO

18 CONGRESS.—The Board may recommend to Congress 

19 for designation an application for a Partnership sub20 mitted under paragraph (3)(A) if the Board deter21 mines that the applicant— 

22 (A) meets the criteria described in para23 graph (3)(B); 

24 (B) identifies representatives to provide 

25 support and technical assistance to the PartnerVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00100 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
101 

•S 1514 RS

1 ship from a diverse group of public and private 

2 partners, which may include State or local gov3 ernments, nonprofit entities, Indian tribes, and 

4 private individuals, that are focused on con5 servation of fish habitats to achieve results across 

6 jurisdictional boundaries on public and private 

7 land; 

8 (C) is organized to promote the health of 

9 important fish species and important fish habi10 tats, including reservoirs, natural lakes, coastal 

11 and marine environments, and estuaries; 

12 (D) identifies strategic fish and fish habitat 

13 priorities for the Partnership area in the form of 

14 geographical focus areas or key stressors or im15 pairments to facilitate strategic planning and 

16 decisionmaking; 

17 (E) is able to address issues and priorities 

18 on a nationally significant scale; 

19 (F) includes a governance structure that— 

20 (i) reflects the range of all partners; 

21 and 

22 (ii) promotes joint strategic planning 

23 and decisionmaking by the applicant; 

24 (G) demonstrates completion of, or signifi25 cant progress toward the development of, a straVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00101 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
102 

•S 1514 RS

1 tegic plan to address the decline in fish popu2 lations, rather than simply treating symptoms, 

3 in accordance with the goals and national prior4 ities established by the Board; and 

5 (H) promotes collaboration in developing a 

6 strategic vision and implementation program 

7 that is scientifically sound and achievable. 

8 (5) REPORT TO CONGRESS.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than February 

10 1 of the first fiscal year beginning after the date 

11 of enactment of this Act and each February 1 

12 thereafter, the Board shall develop and submit to 

13 the appropriate congressional committees an an14 nual report, to be entitled ‘‘Report to Congress 

15 on Future Fish Habitat Partnerships and Modi16 fications’’, that— 

17 (i) identifies any entity that— 

18 (I) meets the requirements de19 scribed in paragraph (4); and 

20 (II) the Board recommends for 

21 designation as a Partnership; 

22 (ii) describes any proposed modifica23 tions to a Partnership previously designated 

24 by Congress under paragraph (6); 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
103 

•S 1514 RS

1 (iii) with respect to each entity rec2 ommended for designation as a Partnership, 

3 describes, to the maximum extent prac4 ticable— 

5 (I) the purpose of the rec6 ommended Partnership; and 

7 (II) how the recommended Part8 nership fulfills the requirements de9 scribed in paragraph (4). 

10 (B) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY; NOTIFICATION.— 

11 The Board shall— 

12 (i) make the report publicly available, 

13 including on the Internet; and 

14 (ii) provide to the appropriate congres15 sional committees and the State agency of 

16 any State included in a recommended Part17 nership area written notification of the pub18 lic availability of the report. 

19 (6) DESIGNATION OR MODIFICATION OF PART20 NERSHIP.—Congress shall have the sole authority to 

21 designate or modify a Partnership. 

22 (7) EXISTING PARTNERSHIPS.— 

23 (A) DESIGNATION REVIEW.—Not later than 

24 5 years after the date of enactment of this Act, 

25 any fish habitat partnership receiving Federal 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
104 

•S 1514 RS

1 funds as of the date of enactment of this Act 

2 shall be subject to a designation review by Con3 gress in which Congress shall have the oppor4 tunity to designate the partnership under para5 graph (6). 

6 (B) INELIGIBILITY FOR FEDERAL FUNDS.— 

7 A partnership referred to in subparagraph (A) 

8 that Congress does not designate as described in 

9 that subparagraph shall be ineligible to receive 

10 Federal funds under this section. 

11 (e) FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION PROJECTS.— 

12 (1) SUBMISSION TO BOARD.—Not later than 

13 March 31 of each calendar year, each Partnership 

14 shall submit to the Board a list of priority fish habi15 tat conservation projects recommended by the Part16 nership for annual funding under this section. 

17 (2) RECOMMENDATIONS BY BOARD.—Not later 

18 than July 1 of each calendar year, the Board shall 

19 submit to the Secretary a priority list of fish habitat 

20 conservation projects that includes the description, in21 cluding estimated costs, of each project that the Board 

22 recommends that the Secretary approve and fund 

23 under this section for the following fiscal year. 

24 (3) CRITERIA FOR PROJECT SELECTION.—The 

25 Board shall select each fish habitat conservation 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
105 

•S 1514 RS

1 project to be recommended to the Secretary under 

2 paragraph (2) after taking into consideration, at a 

3 minimum, the following information: 

4 (A) A recommendation of the Partnership 

5 that is, or will be, participating actively in im6 plementing the fish habitat conservation project. 

7 (B) The capabilities and experience of 

8 project proponents to implement successfully the 

9 proposed project. 

10 (C) The extent to which the fish habitat con11 servation project — 

12 (i) fulfills a local or regional priority 

13 that is directly linked to the strategic plan 

14 of the Partnership and is consistent with 

15 the purpose of this section; 

16 (ii) addresses the national priorities 

17 established by the Board; 

18 (iii) is supported by the findings of the 

19 Habitat Assessment of the Partnership or 

20 the Board, and aligns or is compatible with 

21 other conservation plans; 

22 (iv) identifies appropriate monitoring 

23 and evaluation measures and criteria that 

24 are compatible with national measures; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
106 

•S 1514 RS

1 (v) provides a well-defined budget 

2 linked to deliverables and outcomes; 

3 (vi) leverages other funds to implement 

4 the project; 

5 (vii) addresses the causes and processes 

6 behind the decline of fish or fish habitats; 

7 and 

8 (viii) includes an outreach or edu9 cation component that includes the local or 

10 regional community. 

11 (D) The availability of sufficient non-Fed12 eral funds to match Federal contributions for the 

13 fish habitat conservation project, as required by 

14 paragraph (5); 

15 (E) The extent to which the local or re16 gional fish habitat conservation project— 

17 (i) will increase fish populations in a 

18 manner that leads to recreational fishing 

19 opportunities for the public; 

20 (ii) will be carried out through a coop21 erative agreement among Federal, State, 

22 and local governments, Indian tribes, and 

23 private entities; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
107 

•S 1514 RS

1 (iii) increases public access to land or 

2 water for fish and wildlife-dependent rec3 reational opportunities; 

4 (iv) advances the conservation of fish 

5 and wildlife species that have been identi6 fied by the States as species of greatest con7 servation need; 

8 (v) where appropriate, advances the 

9 conservation of fish and fish habitats under 

10 the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 

11 and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et 

12 seq.) and other relevant Federal law and 

13 State wildlife action plans; and 

14 (vi) promotes strong and healthy fish 

15 habitats so that desired biological commu16 nities are able to persist and adapt. 

17 (F) The substantiality of the character and 

18 design of the fish habitat conservation project. 

19 (4) LIMITATIONS.— 

20 (A) REQUIREMENTS FOR EVALUATION.—No 

21 fish habitat conservation project may be rec22 ommended by the Board under paragraph (2) or 

23 provided financial assistance under this section 

24 unless the fish habitat conservation project inVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00107 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
108 

•S 1514 RS

1 cludes an evaluation plan designed using appli2 cable Board guidance— 

3 (i) to appropriately assess the biologi4 cal, ecological, or other results of the habitat 

5 protection, restoration, or enhancement ac6 tivities carried out using the assistance; 

7 (ii) to reflect appropriate changes to 

8 the fish habitat conservation project if the 

9 assessment substantiates that the fish habi10 tat conservation project objectives are not 

11 being met; 

12 (iii) to identify improvements to exist13 ing fish populations, recreational fishing 

14 opportunities and the overall economic ben15 efits for the local community of the fish 

16 habitat conservation project; and 

17 (iv) to require the submission to the 

18 Board of a report describing the findings of 

19 the assessment. 

20 (B) ACQUISITION AUTHORITIES.— 

21 (i) IN GENERAL.—A State, local gov22 ernment, or other non-Federal entity is eli23 gible to receive funds for the acquisition of 

24 real property from willing sellers under this 

25 section if the acquisition ensures 1 of— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
109 

•S 1514 RS

1 (I) public access for compatible 

2 fish and wildlife-dependent recreation; 

3 or 

4 (II) a scientifically based, direct 

5 enhancement to the health of fish and 

6 fish populations, as determined by the 

7 Board. 

8 (ii) STATE AGENCY APPROVAL.— 

9 (I) IN GENERAL.—All real prop10 erty interest acquisition projects fund11 ed under this section are required to be 

12 approved by the State agency in the 

13 State in which the project is occurring. 

14 (II) PROHIBITION.—The Board 

15 may not recommend, and the Secretary 

16 may not provide any funding for, any 

17 real property interest acquisition that 

18 has not been approved by the State 

19 agency. 

20 (iii) ASSESSMENT OF OTHER AUTHORI21 TIES.—The Fish Habitat Partnership shall 

22 conduct a project assessment, submitted 

23 with the funding request and approved by 

24 the Board, to demonstrate all other Federal, 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
110 

•S 1514 RS

1 State, and local authorities for the acquisi2 tion of real property have been exhausted. 

3 (iv) RESTRICTIONS.—A real property 

4 interest may not be acquired pursuant to a 

5 fish habitat conservation project by a State, 

6 local government, or other non-Federal enti7 ty, unless— 

8 (I) the owner of the real property 

9 authorizes the State, local government, 

10 or other non-Federal entity to acquire 

11 the real property; and 

12 (II) the Secretary and the Board 

13 determine that the State, local govern14 ment, or other non-Federal entity 

15 would benefit from undertaking the 

16 management of the real property being 

17 acquired because that is in accordance 

18 with the goals of a partnership. 

19 (5) NON-FEDERAL CONTRIBUTIONS.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

21 subparagraph (B), no fish habitat conservation 

22 project may be recommended by the Board under 

23 paragraph (2) or provided financial assistance 

24 under this section unless at least 50 percent of 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
111 

•S 1514 RS

1 the cost of the fish habitat conservation project 

2 will be funded with non-Federal funds. 

3 (B) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The non-Fed4 eral share of the cost of a fish habitat conserva5 tion project— 

6 (i) may not be derived from another 

7 Federal grant program; but 

8 (ii) may include in-kind contributions 

9 and cash. 

10 (C) SPECIAL RULE FOR INDIAN TRIBES.— 

11 Notwithstanding subparagraph (A) or any other 

12 provision of law, any funds made available to an 

13 Indian tribe pursuant to this section may be 

14 considered to be non-Federal funds for the pur15 pose of subparagraph (A). 

16 (6) APPROVAL.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days 

18 after the date of receipt of the recommended pri19 ority list of fish habitat conservation projects 

20 under paragraph (2), subject to the limitations 

21 of paragraph (4), and based, to the maximum 

22 extent practicable, on the criteria described in 

23 paragraph (3), the Secretary, after consulting 

24 with the Secretary of Commerce on marine or es25 tuarine projects, shall approve or reject any fish 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
112 

•S 1514 RS

1 habitat conservation project recommended by the 

2 Board. 

3 (B) FUNDING.—If the Secretary approves a 

4 fish habitat conservation project under subpara5 graph (A), the Secretary shall use amounts made 

6 available to carry out this section to provide 

7 funds to carry out the fish habitat conservation 

8 project. 

9 (C) NOTIFICATION.—If the Secretary rejects 

10 any fish habitat conservation project rec11 ommended by the Board under paragraph (2), 

12 not later than 180 days after the date of receipt 

13 of the recommendation, the Secretary shall pro14 vide to the Board, the appropriate Partnership, 

15 and the appropriate congressional committees a 

16 written statement of the reasons that the Sec17 retary rejected the fish habitat conservation 

18 project. 

19 (f) TECHNICAL AND SCIENTIFIC ASSISTANCE.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director, the NOAA As21 sistant Administrator, the EPA Assistant Adminis22 trator, and the Director of the United States Geologi23 cal Survey, in coordination with the Forest Service 

24 and other appropriate Federal departments and agen25 cies, may provide scientific and technical assistance 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
113 

•S 1514 RS

1 to the Partnerships, participants in fish habitat con2 servation projects, and the Board. 

3 (2) INCLUSIONS.—Scientific and technical assist4 ance provided pursuant to paragraph (1) may in5 clude— 

6 (A) providing technical and scientific as7 sistance to States, Indian tribes, regions, local 

8 communities, and nongovernmental organiza9 tions in the development and implementation of 

10 Partnerships; 

11 (B) providing technical and scientific as12 sistance to Partnerships for habitat assessment, 

13 strategic planning, and prioritization; 

14 (C) supporting the development and imple15 mentation of fish habitat conservation projects 

16 that are identified as high priorities by Partner17 ships and the Board; 

18 (D) supporting and providing recommenda19 tions regarding the development of science-based 

20 monitoring and assessment approaches for im21 plementation through Partnerships; 

22 (E) supporting and providing recommenda23 tions for a national fish habitat assessment; 

24 (F) ensuring the availability of experts to 

25 assist in conducting scientifically based evaluaVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00113 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
114 

•S 1514 RS

1 tion and reporting of the results of fish habitat 

2 conservation projects; and 

3 (G) providing resources to secure state agen4 cy scientific and technical assistance to support 

5 Partnerships, participants in fish habitat con6 servation projects, and the Board. 

7 (g) COORDINATION WITH STATES AND INDIAN

8 TRIBES.—The Secretary shall provide a notice to, and co9 operate with, the appropriate State agency or tribal agency, 

10 as applicable, of each State and Indian tribe within the 

11 boundaries of which an activity is planned to be carried 

12 out pursuant to this section, including notification, by not 

13 later than 30 days before the date on which the activity 

14 is implemented. 

15 (h) INTERAGENCY OPERATIONAL PLAN.—Not later 

16 than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, and 

17 every 5 years thereafter, the Director, in cooperation with 

18 the NOAA Assistant Administrator, the EPA Assistant Ad19 ministrator, the Director of the United States Geological 

20 Survey, and the heads of other appropriate Federal depart21 ments and agencies (including at a minimum, those agen22 cies represented on the Board) shall develop an interagency 

23 operational plan that describes— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
115 

•S 1514 RS

1 (1) the functional, operational, technical, sci2 entific, and general staff, administrative, and mate3 rial needs for the implementation of this section; and 

4 (2) any interagency agreements between or 

5 among Federal departments and agencies to address 

6 those needs. 

7 (i) ACCOUNTABILITY AND REPORTING.— 

8 (1) REPORTING.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 5 years 

10 after the date of enactment of this Act, and every 

11 5 years thereafter, the Board shall submit to the 

12 appropriate congressional committees a report 

13 describing the progress of this section. 

14 (B) CONTENTS.—Each report submitted 

15 under subparagraph (A) shall include— 

16 (i) an estimate of the number of acres, 

17 stream miles, or acre-feet, or other suitable 

18 measures of fish habitat, that was main19 tained or improved by partnerships of Fed20 eral, State, or local governments, Indian 

21 tribes, or other entities in the United States 

22 during the 5-year period ending on the date 

23 of submission of the report; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
116 

•S 1514 RS

1 (ii) a description of the public access to 

2 fish habitats established or improved during 

3 that 5-year period; 

4 (iii) a description of the improved op5 portunities for public recreational fishing; 

6 and 

7 (iv) an assessment of the status of fish 

8 habitat conservation projects carried out 

9 with funds provided under this section dur10 ing that period, disaggregated by year, in11 cluding— 

12 (I) a description of the fish habi13 tat conservation projects recommended 

14 by the Board under subsection (e)(2); 

15 (II) a description of each fish 

16 habitat conservation project approved 

17 by the Secretary under subsection 

18 (e)(6), in order of priority for funding; 

19 (III) a justification for— 

20 (aa) the approval of each fish 

21 habitat conservation project; and 

22 (bb) the order of priority for 

23 funding of each fish habitat con24 servation project; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
117 

•S 1514 RS

1 (IV) a justification for any rejec2 tion of a fish habitat conservation 

3 project recommended by the Board 

4 under subsection (e)(2) that was based 

5 on a factor other than the criteria de6 scribed in subsection (e)(3); and 

7 (V) an accounting of expenditures 

8 by Federal, State, or local govern9 ments, Indian tribes, or other entities 

10 to carry out fish habitat conservation 

11 projects. 

12 (2) STATUS AND TRENDS REPORT.—Not later 

13 than December 31, 2018, and every 5 years thereafter, 

14 the Board shall submit to the appropriate congres15 sional committees a report that includes— 

16 (A) a status of all Partnerships designated 

17 under this section; 

18 (B) a description of the status of fish habi19 tats in the United States as identified by estab20 lished Partnerships; and 

21 (C) enhancements or reductions in public 

22 access as a result of— 

23 (i) the activities of the Partnerships; or 

24 (ii) any other activities carried out 

25 pursuant to this section. 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
118 

•S 1514 RS

1 (j) EFFECT OF SECTION.— 

2 (1) WATER RIGHTS.—Nothing in this section— 

3 (A) establishes any express or implied re4 served water right in the United States for any 

5 purpose; 

6 (B) affects any water right in existence on 

7 the date of enactment of this Act; 

8 (C) preempts or affects any State water law 

9 or interstate compact governing water; or 

10 (D) affects any Federal or State law in ex11 istence on the date of enactment of the Act re12 garding water quality or water quantity. 

13 (2) AUTHORITY TO ACQUIRE WATER RIGHTS OR

14 RIGHTS TO PROPERTY.—Under this section, only a 

15 State, local government, or other non-Federal entity 

16 may acquire, under State law, water rights or rights 

17 to property. 

18 (3) STATE AUTHORITY.—Nothing in this sec19 tion— 

20 (A) affects the authority, jurisdiction, or re21 sponsibility of a State to manage, control, or 

22 regulate fish and wildlife under the laws and 

23 regulations of the State; or 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
119 

•S 1514 RS

1 (B) authorizes the Secretary to control or 

2 regulate within a State the fishing or hunting of 

3 fish and wildlife. 

4 (4) EFFECT ON INDIAN TRIBES.—Nothing in this 

5 section abrogates, abridges, affects, modifies, super6 sedes, or alters any right of an Indian tribe recog7 nized by treaty or any other means, including— 

8 (A) an agreement between the Indian tribe 

9 and the United States; 

10 (B) Federal law (including regulations); 

11 (C) an Executive order; or 

12 (D) a judicial decree. 

13 (5) ADJUDICATION OF WATER RIGHTS.—Nothing 

14 in this section diminishes or affects the ability of the 

15 Secretary to join an adjudication of rights to the use 

16 of water pursuant to subsection (a), (b), or (c) of sec17 tion 208 of the Department of Justice Appropriation 

18 Act, 1953 (43 U.S.C. 666). 

19 (6) DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE AUTHORITY.— 

20 Nothing in this section affects the authority, jurisdic21 tion, or responsibility of the Department of Commerce 

22 to manage, control, or regulate fish or fish habitats 

23 under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 

24 and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.). 

25 (7) EFFECT ON OTHER AUTHORITIES.— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
120 

•S 1514 RS

1 (A) PRIVATE PROPERTY PROTECTION.— 

2 Nothing in this section permits the use of funds 

3 made available to carry out this section to ac4 quire real property or a real property interest 

5 without the written consent of each owner of the 

6 real property or real property interest. 

7 (B) MITIGATION.—Nothing in this section 

8 permits the use of funds made available to carry 

9 out this section for fish and wildlife mitigation 

10 purposes under— 

11 (i) the Federal Water Pollution Control 

12 Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.); 

13 (ii) the Fish and Wildlife Coordination 

14 Act (16 U.S.C. 661 et seq.); 

15 (iii) the Water Resources Development 

16 Act of 1986 (Public Law 99–662; 100 Stat. 

17 4082); or 

18 (iv) any other Federal law or court set19 tlement. 

20 (C) CLEAN WATER ACT.—Nothing in this 

21 section affects any provision of the Federal 

22 Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et 

23 seq.), including any definition in that Act. 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
121 

•S 1514 RS

1 (k) NONAPPLICABILITY OF FEDERAL ADVISORY COM2 MITTEE ACT.—The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 

3 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to— 

4 (1) the Board; or 

5 (2) any Partnership. 

6 (l) FUNDING.— 

7 (1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

8 (A) FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION

9 PROJECTS.—There is authorized to be appro10 priated to the Secretary $7,200,000 for each of 

11 fiscal years 2018 through 2022 to provide funds 

12 for fish habitat conservation projects approved 

13 under subsection (e)(6), of which 5 percent shall 

14 be made available for each fiscal year for projects 

15 carried out by Indian tribes. 

16 (B) ADMINISTRATIVE AND PLANNING EX17 PENSES.—There is authorized to be appropriated 

18 to the Secretary for each of fiscal years 2018 

19 through 2022 an amount equal to 5 percent of 

20 the amount appropriated for the applicable fiscal 

21 year pursuant to subparagraph (A)— 

22 (i) for administrative and planning 

23 expenses; and 

24 (ii) to carry out subsection (i). 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
122 

•S 1514 RS

1 (C) TECHNICAL AND SCIENTIFIC ASSIST2 ANCE.—There is authorized to be appropriated 

3 for each of fiscal years 2018 through 2022 to 

4 carry out, and provide technical and scientific 

5 assistance under, subsection (f)— 

6 (i) $500,000 to the Secretary for use by 

7 the United States Fish and Wildlife Service; 

8 (ii) $500,000 to the NOAA Assistant 

9 Administrator for use by the National Oce10 anic and Atmospheric Administration; 

11 (iii) $500,000 to the EPA Assistant 

12 Administrator for use by the Environmental 

13 Protection Agency; and 

14 (iv) $500,000 to the Secretary for use 

15 by the United States Geological Survey. 

16 (2) AGREEMENTS AND GRANTS.—The Secretary 

17 may— 

18 (A) on the recommendation of the Board, 

19 and notwithstanding sections 6304 and 6305 of 

20 title 31, United States Code, and the Federal Fi21 nancial Assistance Management Improvement 

22 Act of 1999 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note; Public Law 

23 106–107), enter into a grant agreement, coopera24 tive agreement, or contract with a Partnership 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
123 

•S 1514 RS

1 or other entity for a fish habitat conservation 

2 project or restoration or enhancement project; 

3 (B) apply for, accept, and use a grant from 

4 any individual or entity to carry out the pur5 poses of this section; and 

6 (C) make funds available to any Federal de7 partment or agency for use by that department 

8 or agency to provide grants for any fish habitat 

9 protection project, restoration project, or en10 hancement project that the Secretary determines 

11 to be consistent with this section. 

12 (3) DONATIONS.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may— 

14 (i) enter into an agreement with any 

15 organization described in section 501(c)(3) 

16 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that 

17 is exempt from taxation under section 

18 501(a) of that Code to solicit private dona19 tions to carry out the purposes of this sec20 tion; and 

21 (ii) accept donations of funds, prop22 erty, and services to carry out the purposes 

23 of this section. 

24 (B) TREATMENT.—A donation accepted 

25 under this section— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
124 

•S 1514 RS

1 (i) shall be considered to be a gift or 

2 bequest to, or otherwise for the use of, the 

3 United States; and 

4 (ii) may be— 

5 (I) used directly by the Secretary; 

6 or 

7 (II) provided to another Federal 

8 department or agency through an 

9 interagency agreement. 

10 (m) PROHIBITION AGAINST IMPLEMENTATION OF REG11 ULATORY AUTHORITY BY FEDERAL AGENCIES .—Any Part12 nership designated under this section— 

13 (1) shall be for the sole purpose of promoting fish 

14 conservation; and 

15 (2) shall not be used to implement any regu16 latory authority of any Federal agency. 

17 SEC. 13. PERMITS FOR IMPORTATION OF POLAR BEAR TRO18 PHIES TAKEN IN SPORT HUNTS IN CANADA. 

19 Section 104(c)(5)(D) of the Marine Mammal Protec20 tion Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1374(c)(5)(D)) is amended to 

21 read as follows: 

22 ‘‘(D)(i) The Secretary of the Interior shall, expe23 ditiously after the expiration of the applicable 30-day 

24 period under subsection (d)(2), issue a permit for the 

25 importation of any polar bear part (other than an inVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00124 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
125 

•S 1514 RS

1 ternal organ) from a polar bear taken in a sport hunt 

2 in Canada to any person— 

3 ‘‘(I) who submits, with the permit applica4 tion, proof that the polar bear was legally har5 vested by the person before February 18, 1997; or 

6 ‘‘(II) who has submitted, in support of a 

7 permit application submitted before May 15, 

8 2008, proof that the polar bear was legally har9 vested by the person before May 15, 2008, from 

10 a polar bear population from which a sport11 hunted trophy could be imported before that date 

12 in accordance with section 18.30(i) of title 50, 

13 Code of Federal Regulations. 

14 ‘‘(ii) The Secretary shall issue permits under 

15 clause (i)(I) without regard to subparagraphs (A) and 

16 (C)(ii) of this paragraph, subsection (d)(3), and sec17 tions 101 and 102. Sections 101(a)(3)(B) and 

18 102(b)(3) shall not apply to the importation of any 

19 polar bear part authorized by a permit issued under 

20 clause (i)(I). This clause shall not apply to polar bear 

21 parts that were imported before June 12, 1997. 

22 ‘‘(iii) The Secretary shall issue permits under 

23 clause (i)(II) without regard to subparagraph (C)(ii) 

24 of this paragraph or subsection (d)(3). Sections 

25 101(a)(3)(B) and 102(b)(3) shall not apply to the imVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Oct 05, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00125 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1514.RS S1514

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
126 

•S 1514 RS

1 portation of any polar bear part authorized by a per2 mit issued under clause (i)(II). This clause shall not 

3 apply to polar bear parts that were imported before 

4 the date of enactment of the Hunting Heritage and 

5 Environmental Legacy Preservation for Wildlife 

6 Act.’’. 

7 SEC. 14. GREAT LAKES MONITORING, ASSESSMENT, 

8 SCIENCE, AND RESEARCH. 

9 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

10 (1) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means the 

11 Director of the United States Geological Survey. 

12 (2) GREAT LAKES BASIN.—The term ‘‘Great 

13 Lakes Basin’’ means the air, land, water, and living 

14 organisms in the United States within the drainage 

15 basin of the Saint Lawrence River at and upstream 

16 from the point at which such river and the Great 

17 Lakes become the international boundary between 

18 Canada and the United States. 

19 (b) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

20 (1) The Great Lakes support a diverse ecosystem, 

21 on which the vibrant and economically valuable Great 

22 Lakes fisheries depend. 

23 (2) To continue successful fisheries management 

24 and coordination, as has occurred since signing of the 

25 Convention on Great Lakes Fisheries between the 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
127 

•S 1514 RS

1 United States and Canada on September 10, 1954, 

2 management of the ecosystem and its fisheries require 

3 sound, reliable science, and the use of modern sci4 entific technologies. 

5 (3) Fisheries research is necessary to support 

6 multi-jurisdictional fishery management decisions 

7 and actions regarding recreational and sport fishing, 

8 commercial fisheries, tribal harvest, allocation deci9 sions, and fish stocking activities. 

10 (4) President Richard Nixon submitted, and the 

11 Congress approved, Reorganization Plan No. 4 (84 

12 Stat. 2090), conferring science activities and manage13 ment of marine fisheries to the National Oceanic and 

14 Atmospheric Administration. 

15 (5) Reorganization Plan No. 4 expressly excluded 

16 fishery research activities within the Great Lakes 

17 from the transfer, retaining management and sci18 entific research duties within the already-established 

19 jurisdictions under the 1954 Convention on Great 

20 Lakes Fisheries, including those of the Great Lakes 

21 Fishery Commission and the Department of the Inte22 rior. 

23 (c) MONITORING, ASSESSMENT, SCIENCE, AND RE24 SEARCH.— 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
128 

•S 1514 RS

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director may conduct 

2 monitoring, assessment, science, and research, in sup3 port of the binational fisheries within the Great Lakes 

4 Basin. 

5 (2) SPECIFIC AUTHORITIES.—The Director shall, 

6 under paragraph (1)— 

7 (A) execute a comprehensive, multi-lake, 

8 freshwater fisheries science program; 

9 (B) coordinate with and work cooperatively 

10 with regional, State, tribal, and local govern11 ments; and 

12 (C) consult with other interested entities 

13 groups, including academia and relevant Cana14 dian agencies. 

15 (3) INCLUDED RESEARCH.—To properly serve 

16 the needs of fisheries managers, monitoring, assess17 ment, science, and research under this section may 

18 include— 

19 (A) deepwater ecosystem sciences; 

20 (B) biological and food-web components; 

21 (C) fish movement and behavior investiga22 tions; 

23 (D) fish population structures; 

24 (E) fish habitat investigations; 

25 (F) invasive species science; 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
129 

•S 1514 RS

1 (G) use of existing, new, and experimental 

2 biological assessment tools, equipment, vessels, 

3 other scientific instrumentation and laboratory 

4 capabilities necessary to support fishery manage5 ment decisions; and 

6 (H) studies to assess impacts on Great 

7 Lakes Fishery resources. 

8 (4) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—Nothing in this section is 

9 intended or shall be construed to impede, supersede, 

10 or alter the authority of the Great Lakes Fishery 

11 Commission, States, and Indian tribes under the Con12 vention on Great Lakes Fisheries between the United 

13 States of America and Canada on September 10, 

14 1954, and the Great Lakes Fishery Act of 1956 (16 

15 U.S.C. 931 et seq.). 

16 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For each 

17 of fiscal years 2018 through 2022, there is authorized to 

18 be appropriated $15,000,000 to carry out this section. 

19 SEC. 15. USE OF VALUE OF LAND FOR COST SHARING. 

20 The Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act (16 

21 U.S.C. 669 et seq.) is amended— 

22 (1) by redesignating section 13 as section 14; 

23 and 

24 (2) by inserting after section 12 the following: 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
130 

•S 1514 RS

1 ‘‘SEC. 13. VALUE OF LAND. 

2 ‘‘Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any in3 stitution eligible to receive Federal funds under the Agricul4 tural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 

5 1998 (7 U.S.C. 7601 et seq.) shall be allowed to use the 

6 value of any land owned by the institution as an in-kind 

7 match to satisfy any cost sharing requirement under this 

8 Act.’’. 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS

ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS
Calendar No. 237 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1514 

[Report No. 115–168] 

A BILL 

To amend certain Acts to reauthorize those Acts 

other purposes. and to increase protections for wildlife, and for 

OCTOBER 5, 2017 

Reported with an amendment 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with BILLS