I 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 411 

To assist in the conservation of rare felids and rare canids by supporting 

and providing financial resources for the conservation programs of nations within the range of rare felid and rare canid populations and 

projects of persons with demonstrated expertise in the conservation of 

rare felid and rare canid populations. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 9, 2009 

Mr. INSLEE (for himself, Mr. TANNER, Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky, Mr. ROYCE, 

Ms. BORDALLO, and Mr. MCHUGH) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To assist in the conservation of rare felids and rare canids 

by supporting and providing financial resources for the 

conservation programs of nations within the range of 

rare felid and rare canid populations and projects of 

persons with demonstrated expertise in the conservation 

of rare felid and rare canid populations. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Great Cats and Rare 

5 Canids Act of 2009’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. PURPOSES. 

2 The purposes of this Act are to provide financial re3 sources and to foster international cooperation— 

4 (1) to restore and perpetuate healthy popu5 lations of rare felids and rare canids in the wild; and 

6 (2) to assist in the conservation of rare felid 

7 and rare canid populations worldwide. 

8 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

9 In this Act: 

10 (1) CITES.—The term ‘‘CITES’’ means the 

11 Convention on International Trade in Endangered 

12 Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, done at Wash13 ington March 3, 1973 (27 UST 1087; TIAS 8249), 

14 including its appendices. 

15 (2) CONSERVATION.—The term ‘‘conserva16 tion’’— 

17 (A) means the methods and procedures 

18 necessary to bring a species of rare felid or rare 

19 canid to the point at which there are sufficient 

20 populations in the wild to ensure the long-term 

21 viability of the species; and 

22 (B) includes all activities associated with 

23 protection and management of a rare felid or 

24 rare canid population, including— 


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1 (i) maintenance, management, protec2 tion, and restoration of rare felid or rare 

3 canid habitat; 

4 (ii) research and monitoring; 

5 (iii) law enforcement; 

6 (iv) community outreach and edu7 cation; 

8 (v) conflict resolution initiatives; and 

9 (vi) strengthening the capacity of local 

10 communities, governmental agencies, non11 governmental organizations and other in12 stitutions to implement conservation pro13 grams. 

14 (3) FUND.—The term ‘‘Fund’’ means the Great 

15 Cats and Rare Canids Conservation Fund estab16 lished by section 5. 

17 (4) IUCN RED LIST.—The term ‘‘IUCN Red 

18 List’’ means the Red List of Threatened Species 

19 Maintained by the World Conservation Union. 

20 (5) RARE CANID.—The term ‘‘rare canid’’— 

21 (A) except as provided in subparagraph 

22 (B), means any of the canid species dhole 

23 (Cuon alpinus), gray wolf (Canis lupus), Ethio24 pian wolf (Canis simensis), bush dog (Speothos 

25 venaticus), African wild dog (Lycaon pictus), 


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1 maned wolf (Chrysocyon brachyurus), and Dar2 win’s fox, (Pseudalopex fulvipes), including any 

3 subspecies or population of such a species; and 

4 (B) does not include any subspecies or 

5 population that is native to the area comprised 

6 of the United States and Canada or the Euro7 pean Union. 

8 (6) RARE FELID.—The term ‘‘rare felid’’— 

9 (A) except as provided in subparagraph 

10 (B), means any of the felid species lion 

11 (Panthera leo), leopard (Panthera pardus), jag12 uar (Panthera onca), snow leopard (Uncia 

13 uncia), clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa), 

14 cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus), Iberian lynx (Lynx 

15 pardina), and Borneo bay cat (Catopuma 

16 badia), including any subspecies or population 

17 of such a species; and 

18 (B) does not include— 

19 (i) any species, subspecies, or popu20 lation that is native to the United States; 

21 and 

22 (ii) any tiger (Panthera tigris). 

23 (7) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

24 the Secretary of the Interior. 


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1 SEC. 4. FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the availability of 

3 funds and in consultation with other appropriate Federal 

4 officials, the Secretary shall use amounts in the Fund to 

5 provide financial assistance for projects for the conserva6 tion of rare felid and rare canids for which project pro7 posals are approved by the Secretary in accordance with 

8 this section. 

9 (b) PROJECT PROPOSALS.— 

10 (1) ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.—A proposal for a 

11 project for the conservation of rare felid and canids 

12 may be submitted to the Secretary by— 

13 (A) any wildlife management authority of 

14 a country that has within its boundaries any 

15 part of the range of a rare felid or rare canid 

16 species, respectively; and 

17 (B) any person or group with the dem18 onstrated expertise required for the conserva19 tion in the wild of rare felids or rare canids, re20 spectively. 

21 (2) PROJECT PROPOSALS.—To be considered 

22 for financial assistance for a project under this Act, 

23 an applicant shall submit a project proposal that in24 cludes— 

25 (A) a concise statement of the purposes of 

26 the project; 


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1 (B) the name of the individual responsible 

2 for conducting the project; 

3 (C) a description of the qualifications of 

4 the individuals who will conduct the project; 

5 (D) a concise description of— 

6 (i) methods for project implementa7 tion and outcome assessment; 

8 (ii) staffing for the project; 

9 (iii) the logistics of the project; and 

10 (iv) community involvement in the 

11 project; 

12 (E) an estimate of funds and time required 

13 to complete the project; 

14 (F) evidence of support for the project by 

15 appropriate governmental entities of the coun16 tries in which the project will be conducted, if 

17 the Secretary determines that such support is 

18 required for the success of the project; 

19 (G) information regarding the source and 

20 amount of matching funding available for the 

21 project; and 

22 (H) any other information that the Sec23 retary considers to be necessary for evaluating 

24 the eligibility of the project for funding under 

25 this Act. 


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1 (c) PROJECT REVIEW AND APPROVAL.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall— 

3 (A) not later than 30 days after receiving 

4 a project proposal, provide a copy of the pro5 posal to the appropriate Federal officials; and 

6 (B) review each project proposal in a time7 ly manner to determine if the proposal meets 

8 the criteria specified in subsection (d). 

9 (2) CONSULTATION; APPROVAL OR DIS10 APPROVAL.—Not later than 180 days after receiving 

11 a project proposal, and subject to the availability of 

12 funds, the Secretary, after consulting with other ap13 propriate Federal officials, shall— 

14 (A) ensure the proposal contains assur15 ances that the project will be implemented in 

16 consultation with relevant wildlife management 

17 authorities and other appropriate government 

18 officials with jurisdiction over the resources ad19 dressed by the project; 

20 (B) approve or disapprove the proposal; 

21 and 

22 (C) provide written notification of the ap23 proval or disapproval to the person who sub24 mitted the proposal, other appropriate Federal 


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1 officials, and each country within whose borders 

2 the project will take place. 

3 (d) CRITERIA FOR APPROVAL.—The Secretary may 

4 approve a project proposal under this section if the project 

5 will contribute to conservation of rare felids or rare canids 

6 in the wild by assisting efforts to— 

7 (1) implement conservation programs; 

8 (2) address the conflicts between humans and 

9 rare felids or rare canids, respectively, that arise 

10 from competition for the same habitat or resources; 

11 (3) enhance compliance with CITES, the En12 dangered Species Act of 1973, and other applicable 

13 laws that prohibit or regulate the taking or trade of 

14 rare felids and rare canids or regulate the use and 

15 management of rare felid and rare canid habitat; 

16 (4) develop sound scientific information on, or 

17 methods for monitoring— 

18 (A) the condition and health of rare felid 

19 or rare canid habitat; 

20 (B) rare felid or rare canid population 

21 numbers and trends; and 

22 (C) the ecological characteristics and re23 quirements of populations of rare felids or rare 

24 canids for which there are little or no data; 


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1 (5) promote cooperative projects among govern2 ment entities, affected local communities, nongovern3 mental organizations, and other persons in the pri4 vate sector; or 

5 (6) funds will not be appropriated for the pur6 chase or lease of lands to be used as suitable habitat 

7 for felids or canids. 

8 (e) PROJECT SUSTAINABILITY.—In approving project 

9 proposals under this section, the Secretary shall give pref10 erence to conservation projects that are designed to ensure 

11 effective, long-term conservation of rare felids and rare 

12 canids and their habitats. 

13 (f) MATCHING FUNDS.—In determining whether to 

14 approve project proposals under this section, the Secretary 

15 shall give preference to projects for which there exists 

16 some measure of matching funds. 

17 (g) PROJECT REPORTING.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each person that receives 

19 assistance under this section for a project shall sub20 mit to the Secretary periodic reports (at such inter21 vals as the Secretary considers necessary) that in22 clude all information that the Secretary, after con23 sultation with other appropriate government offi24 cials, determines is necessary to evaluate the 

25 progress and success of the project for the purposes 


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1 of ensuring positive results, assessing problems, and 

2 fostering improvements. 

3 (2) AVAILABILITY TO THE PUBLIC.—Reports 

4 under paragraph (1), and any other documents re5 lating to projects for which financial assistance is 

6 provided under this Act, shall be made available to 

7 the public. 

8 (h) LIMITATIONS ON USE FOR CAPTIVE BREEDING

9 OR DISPLAY.—Amounts provided as a grant under this 

10 Act— 

11 (1) may not be used for captive breeding or dis12 play of rare felids and rare canids other than captive 

13 breeding for release into the wild; and 

14 (2) may be used for captive breeding of a spe15 cies for release into the wild only if no other con16 servation method for the species is biologically fea17 sible. 

18 (i) ADVISORY GROUP.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—To assist in carrying out 

20 this Act, the Secretary may convene an advisory 

21 group consisting of individuals representing public 

22 and private organizations actively involved in the 

23 conservation of felids and canids. 

24 (2) PUBLIC PARTICIPATION.— 


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1 (A) MEETINGS.—The advisory group 

2 shall— 

3 (i) ensure that each meeting of the 

4 advisory group is open to the public; and 

5 (ii) provide, at each meeting, an op6 portunity for interested persons to present 

7 oral or written statements concerning 

8 items on the agenda. 

9 (B) NOTICE.—The Secretary shall provide 

10 to the public timely notice of each meeting of 

11 the advisory group, including the meeting agen12 da. 

13 (C) MINUTES.—Minutes of each meeting 

14 of the advisory group shall be kept by the Sec15 retary and shall be made available to the public. 

16 (3) EXEMPTION FROM FEDERAL ADVISORY

17 COMMITTEE ACT.—The Federal Advisory Committee 

18 Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the advisory 

19 group. 

20 SEC. 5. GREAT CATS AND RARE CANIDS CONSERVATION 

21 FUND. 

22 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established, in the 

23 Multinational Species Conservation Fund established in 

24 title I of the Department of the Interior and Related 

25 Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999 under the heading 


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1 ‘‘MULTINATIONAL SPECIES CONSERVATION 

2 FUND’’, a separate account to be known as the ‘‘Great 

3 Cats and Rare Canids Conservation Fund’’, consisting 

4 of— 

5 (1) amounts transferred to the Secretary of the 

6 Treasury for deposit into such account under sub7 section (c); and 

8 (2) amounts appropriated to such account 

9 under section 7. 

10 (b) EXPENDITURES FROM FUND.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

12 upon request by the Secretary, the Secretary of the 

13 Treasury shall transfer from the Fund to the Sec14 retary, without further appropriation, such amounts 

15 as the Secretary determines are necessary to provide 

16 assistance under section 4. 

17 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Of the 

18 amounts in the Fund available for each fiscal year, 

19 the Secretary may expend not more than three per20 cent, or up to $100,000, whichever is greater, to pay 

21 the administrative expenses necessary to carry out 

22 this Act. 

23 (c) ACCEPTANCE AND USE OF DONATIONS.—The 

24 Secretary may accept and use donations to provide assist25 ance under section 4, and may make public on the Internet 


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1 website and in publications of the Department of the Inte2 rior that the Secretary is authorized to accept and use 

3 such donations. Amounts received by the Secretary in the 

4 form of such donations shall be transferred to the Sec5 retary of the Treasury for deposit into the Fund. 

6 SEC. 6. STUDY OF CONSERVATION STATUS OF FELID AND 

7 CANID SPECIES. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall initiate within 

9 three months after the date of the enactment of this Act 

10 a study of felid and canid species listed under the IUCN 

11 Red List that are not rare canids and rare felids (as those 

12 terms are defined in section 3), respectively, to deter13 mine— 

14 (1) the conservation status of such species in 

15 the wild, including identification of any such species 

16 that are critically endangered or endangered; and 

17 (2) any such species that should be made eligi18 ble for assistance under this Act. 

19 (b) REPORT.—Not later than two years after date of 

20 the enactment of this Act the Secretary shall report to 

21 the Congress the determinations made in the study, in22 cluding recommendations of additional felid species and 

23 canid species that should be made eligible for assistance 

24 under this Act. 


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1 SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OR APPROPRIATIONS. 

2 There are authorized to be appropriated— 

3 (1) to the Fund, $5,000,000 for each of fiscal 

4 years 2010 through 2014 to carry out this Act, 

5 other than section 6; and 

6 (2) such sums as are necessary to carry out 

7 section 6. 

Æ 


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