IB 

Union Calendar No. 164 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 615 

[Report No. 118–203, Part I] 

To prohibit the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture 

from prohibiting the use of lead ammunition or tackle on certain Federal 

land or water under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of the Interior 

and the Secretary of Agriculture, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 27, 2023 

Mr. WITTMAN (for himself, Mr. NEWHOUSE, Mrs. MILLER-MEEKS, Mrs. WAGNER, Mr. BERGMAN, Mr. GOSAR, Mr. GUEST, Mr. HUDSON, Mr. 

GROTHMAN, Mr. BIGGS, Mr. WEBSTER of Florida, Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT

of Georgia, Mr. BALDERSON, Mr. WALBERG, Mr. MOOLENAAR, Mr. 

STAUBER, Mr. BOST, Mr. NORMAN, Mr. CARTER of Georgia, Mr. 

EDWARDS, Mr. RESCHENTHALER, Mr. MCCLINTOCK, Mr. FULCHER, Mr. 

ROSENDALE, Mr. CRENSHAW, Mr. FINSTAD, and Ms. STEFANIK) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural 

Resources, and in addition to the Committee on Agriculture, for a period 

to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 

concerned 

SEPTEMBER 20, 2023 

Additional sponsors: Mr. JACKSON of Texas, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. OWENS, Ms. 

HAGEMAN, Mr. MOORE of Alabama, Ms. DE LA CRUZ, Mr. RUTHERFORD, Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania, Mrs. BOEBERT, Mr. DONALDS, 

Mr. AMODEI, Mr. GOOD of Virginia, Mr. CARTER of Texas, Mr. ZINKE, 

Mr. CARL, Mr. TIFFANY, Mr. PFLUGER, Mr. HARRIS, Mr. ROGERS of 

Alabama, Mr. TONY GONZALES of Texas, Mrs. SPARTZ, Mr. LAMBORN, 

Mrs. KIGGANS of Virginia, and Mr. FITZGERALD


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•HR 615 RH

SEPTEMBER 20, 2023 

Reported from the Committee on Natural Resources with an amendment 

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

SEPTEMBER 20, 2023 

Committee on Agriculture discharged; committed to the Committee of the 

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

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on January 27, 2023] 

A BILL 

To prohibit the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary 

of Agriculture from prohibiting the use of lead ammunition or tackle on certain Federal land or water under 

the jurisdiction of the Secretary of the Interior and the 

Secretary of Agriculture, and for other purposes. 


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•HR 615 RH

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 ‘‘Protecting Access for 

5 Hunters and Anglers Act of 2023’’. 

6 SEC. 2. PROTECTING ACCESS FOR HUNTERS AND ANGLERS 

7 ON FEDERAL LAND AND WATER. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in section 20.21 

9 or 20.108 of title 50, Code of Federal Regulations (as in 

10 effect on the date of enactment of this Act), and subsection 

11 (b), the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Direc12 tor of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service or the 

13 Director of the Bureau of Land Management, and the Sec14 retary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest 

15 Service (referred to in this section as the ‘‘applicable Sec16 retary’’), may not— 

17 (1) prohibit the use of lead ammunition or tackle 

18 on Federal land or water that is— 

19 (A) under the jurisdiction of the applicable 

20 Secretary; and 

21 (B) made available for hunting or fishing 

22 activities; or 

23 (2) issue regulations relating to the level of lead 

24 in ammunition or tackle to be used on Federal land 

25 or water described in paragraph (1). 


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•HR 615 RH

1 (b) EXCEPTION.—Subsection (a) shall not apply to a 

2 prohibition or regulations described in that subsection that 

3 are limited to a specific unit of Federal land or water, if 

4 the applicable Secretary determines that— 

5 (1) a decline in wildlife population at the spe6 cific unit of Federal land or water is primarily 

7 caused by the use of lead in ammunition or tackle, 

8 based on the field data from the specific unit of Fed9 eral land or water; and 

10 (2) the prohibition or regulations, as applicable, 

11 are— 

12 (A) consistent with the law of the State in 

13 which the specific Federal land or water is lo14 cated; 

15 (B) consistent with an applicable policy of 

16 the fish and wildlife department of the State in 

17 which the specific Federal land or water is lo18 cated; or 

19 (C) approved by the applicable fish and 

20 wildlife department of the State in which the 

21 specific Federal land or water is located. 

22 (c) FEDERAL REGISTER NOTICE.—The applicable Sec23 retary shall include in a Federal Register notice with re24 spect to any prohibition or regulations that meet the re25 quirements of paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (b) an 


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•HR 615 RH

1 explanation of how the prohibition or regulations, as appli2 cable, meet those requirements. 


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Union Calendar No. 164 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 615 

[Report No. 118–203, Part I] 

A BILL 

To prohibit the Secretary of the Interior and the 

culture, and for other purposes. retary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriland or water under the jurisdiction of the Secof lead ammunition or tackle on certain Federal Secretary of Agriculture from prohibiting the use 

SEPTEMBER 20, 2023 

Reported from the Committee on Natural Resources with 

an amendment 

SEPTEMBER 20, 2023 

Committee on Agriculture discharged; committed to the 

Union and ordered to be printed Committee of the Whole House on the State of the 


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