II 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1149 

To amend the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act to make supplemental funds available for management of fish and wildlife species of 

greatest conservation need as determined by State fish and wildlife agencies, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 30, 2023 

Mr. HEINRICH (for himself and Mr. TILLIS) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and 

Public Works 

A BILL 

To amend the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act 

to make supplemental funds available for management 

of fish and wildlife species of greatest conservation need 

as determined by State fish and wildlife agencies, and 

for other purposes. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Recovering America’s 

5 Wildlife Act of 2023’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE. 

2 The purpose of this Act is to extend financial and 

3 technical assistance to States, territories, the District of 

4 Columbia, and Indian Tribes, including under the Pitt5 man-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669 

6 et seq.), for the purpose of avoiding the need to list spe7 cies, or recovering species currently listed as a threatened 

8 species or an endangered species, under the Endangered 

9 Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) or under 

10 State law. 

11 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS RELATING TO OFFSETS. 

12 It is the sense of Congress that the costs of carrying 

13 out this Act, and the amendments made by this Act, shall 

14 be offset. 

15 TITLE I—WILDLIFE CONSERVA16 TION AND RESTORATION 

17 SEC. 101. WILDLIFE CONSERVATION AND RESTORATION 

18 SUBACCOUNT. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 3 of the Pittman-Robert20 son Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669b) is amended 

21 in subsection (c)— 

22 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as 

23 paragraphs (9) and (10); and 

24 (2) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the 

25 following: 

26 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT OF SUBACCOUNT.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—There is established in 

2 the fund a subaccount to be known as the 

3 ‘Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Sub4 account’ (referred to in this section as the ‘Sub5 account’). 

6 ‘‘(B) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts in the Sub7 account shall be available without further ap8 propriation, for each fiscal year, for apportion9 ment in accordance with this Act. 

10 ‘‘(C) DEPOSITS INTO SUBACCOUNT.—The 

11 Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer from 

12 the general fund of the Treasury to the Sub13 account— 

14 ‘‘(i) for fiscal year 2024, 

15 $850,000,000; 

16 ‘‘(ii) for fiscal year 2025, 

17 $1,100,000,000; 

18 ‘‘(iii) for fiscal year 2026, 

19 $1,200,000,000; and 

20 ‘‘(iv) for fiscal year 2027, and each 

21 fiscal year thereafter, $1,300,000,000. 

22 ‘‘(2) SUPPLEMENT NOT SUPPLANT.—Amounts 

23 transferred to the Subaccount shall supplement, but 

24 not replace, existing funds available to the States 

25 from— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the funds distributed pursuant to the 

2 Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration Act 

3 (16 U.S.C. 777 et seq.); and 

4 ‘‘(B) the fund. 

5 ‘‘(3) INNOVATION GRANTS.— 

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

7 distribute 10 percent of funds apportioned from 

8 the Subaccount through a competitive grant 

9 program to State fish and wildlife departments, 

10 the District of Columbia fish and wildlife de11 partment, fish and wildlife departments of terri12 tories, or to regional associations of fish and 

13 wildlife departments (or any group composed of 

14 more than 1 such entity). 

15 ‘‘(B) PURPOSE.—Such grants shall be pro16 vided for the purpose of catalyzing innovation 

17 of techniques, tools, strategies, or collaborative 

18 partnerships that accelerate, expand, or rep19 licate effective and measurable recovery efforts 

20 for species of greatest conservation need and 

21 species listed under the Endangered Species Act 

22 of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and the habi23 tats of such species. 


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1 ‘‘(C) REVIEW COMMITTEE.—The Secretary 

2 shall appoint a review committee comprised 

3 of— 

4 ‘‘(i) a State Director from each re5 gional association of State fish and wildlife 

6 departments; 

7 ‘‘(ii) the head of a department respon8 sible for fish and wildlife management in a 

9 territory; 

10 ‘‘(iii) one delegate from the United 

11 States Fish and Wildlife Service, for the 

12 purpose of providing technical assistance; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(iv) beginning in fiscal year 2024, 

15 four individuals representing four different 

16 nonprofit organizations each of which is 

17 actively participating in carrying out wild18 life conservation restoration activities using 

19 funds apportioned from the Subaccount. 

20 ‘‘(D) SUPPORT FROM UNITED STATES FISH

21 AND WILDLIFE SERVICE.—Using not more than 

22 3 percent of the amounts apportioned under 

23 subparagraph (A) to carry out a competitive 

24 grant program, the United States Fish and 

25 Wildlife Service shall provide any personnel or 


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1 administrative support services necessary for 

2 such committee to carry out its responsibilities 

3 under this Act. 

4 ‘‘(E) EVALUATION.—Such committee shall 

5 evaluate each proposal submitted under this 

6 paragraph and recommend projects for funding, 

7 giving preference to solutions that accelerate 

8 the recovery of species identified as priorities 

9 through regional scientific assessments of spe10 cies of greatest conservation need. 

11 ‘‘(4) USE OF FUNDS.—Funds apportioned from 

12 the Subaccount shall be used for purposes consistent 

13 with section 2 of the Recovering America’s Wildlife 

14 Act of 2023 and— 

15 ‘‘(A) shall be used to implement the Wild16 life Conservation Strategy of a State, territory, 

17 or the District of Columbia, as required under 

18 section 4(e), by carrying out, revising, or en19 hancing existing wildlife and habitat conserva20 tion and restoration programs and developing 

21 and implementing new wildlife conservation and 

22 restoration programs to recover and manage 

23 species of greatest conservation need and the 

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1 termined by the appropriate State fish and 

2 wildlife department; 

3 ‘‘(B) shall be used to develop, revise, and 

4 enhance the Wildlife Conservation Strategy of a 

5 State, territory, or the District of Columbia, as 

6 may be required by this Act; 

7 ‘‘(C) shall be used to assist in the recovery 

8 of species found in the State, territory, or the 

9 District of Columbia that are listed as endan10 gered species, threatened species, candidate spe11 cies or species proposed for listing, or species 

12 petitioned for listing under the Endangered 

13 Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) 

14 or under State law; 

15 ‘‘(D) may be used for wildlife conservation 

16 education and wildlife-associated recreation 

17 projects, especially in historically underserved 

18 communities; 

19 ‘‘(E) may be used to manage a species of 

20 greatest conservation need whose range is 

21 shared with another State, territory, Indian 

22 Tribe, or foreign government and for the con23 servation of the habitat of such species; 

24 ‘‘(F) may be used to manage, control, and 

25 prevent invasive species, disease, and other 


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1 risks to species of greatest conservation need; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(G) may be used for law enforcement ac4 tivities that are directly related to the protec5 tion and conservation of a species of greatest 

6 conservation need and the habitat of such spe7 cies. 

8 ‘‘(5) MINIMUM REQUIRED SPENDING FOR EN9 DANGERED SPECIES RECOVERY.—Not less than an 

10 average of 15 percent over a 5-year period of 

11 amounts apportioned to a State, territory, or the 

12 District of Columbia from the Subaccount shall be 

13 used for purposes described in paragraph (4)(C). 

14 The Secretary may reduce the minimum requirement 

15 of a State, territory, or the District of Columbia on 

16 an annual basis if the Secretary determines that the 

17 State, territory, or the District of Columbia is meet18 ing the conservation and recovery needs of all spe19 cies described in paragraph (4)(C). 

20 ‘‘(6) PUBLIC ACCESS TO PRIVATE LANDS NOT

21 REQUIRED.—Funds apportioned from the Sub22 account shall not be conditioned upon the provision 

23 of public access to private lands, waters, or holdings. 

24 ‘‘(7) REQUIREMENTS FOR MATCHING FUNDS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) For the purposes of the non-Federal 

2 fund matching requirement for a wildlife con3 servation or restoration program or project 

4 funded by the Subaccount, a State, territory, or 

5 the District of Columbia may use as matching 

6 non-Federal funds— 

7 ‘‘(i) funds from Federal agencies 

8 other than the Department of the Interior 

9 and the Department of Agriculture; 

10 ‘‘(ii) donated private lands and 

11 waters, including privately owned ease12 ments; 

13 ‘‘(iii) in circumstances described in 

14 subparagraph (B), revenue generated 

15 through the sale of State hunting and fish16 ing licenses; and 

17 ‘‘(iv) other sources consistent with 

18 part 80 of title 50, Code of Federal Regu19 lations, in effect on the date of enactment 

20 of the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act of 

21 2023. 

22 ‘‘(B) Revenue described in subparagraph 

23 (A)(iii) may only be used to fulfill the require24 ments of such non-Federal fund matching re25 quirement if— 


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1 ‘‘(i) no Federal funds apportioned to 

2 the State fish and wildlife department of 

3 such State from the Wildlife Restoration 

4 Program or the Sport Fish Restoration 

5 Program have been reverted because of a 

6 failure to fulfill such non-Federal fund 

7 matching requirement by such State dur8 ing the previous 2 years; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) the project or program being 

10 funded benefits the habitat of a hunted or 

11 fished species and a species of greatest 

12 conservation need. 

13 ‘‘(8) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, the fol14 lowing definitions apply: 

15 ‘‘(A) PARTNERSHIPS.—The term ‘partner16 ships’ may include collaborative efforts with 

17 Federal agencies, State agencies, local agencies, 

18 Indian Tribes, nonprofit organizations, aca19 demic institutions, industry groups, and private 

20 individuals to implement a State’s Wildlife Con21 servation Strategy. 

22 ‘‘(B) SPECIES OF GREATEST CONSERVA23 TION NEED.—The term ‘species of greatest con24 servation need’ may be fauna or flora, and may 

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1 brate species that are of low population, declin2 ing, rare, or facing threats and in need of con3 servation attention, as determined by each 

4 State fish and wildlife department, with respect 

5 to funds apportioned to such State. 

6 ‘‘(C) TERRITORY AND TERRITORIES.—The 

7 terms ‘territory’ and ‘territories’ mean the 

8 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, Amer9 ican Samoa, the Commonwealth of the North10 ern Mariana Islands, and the United States 

11 Virgin Islands. 

12 ‘‘(D) WILDLIFE.—The term ‘wildlife’ 

13 means any species of wild, freeranging fauna, 

14 including fish, and also fauna in captive breed15 ing programs the object of which is to reintro16 duce individuals of a depleted indigenous spe17 cies into previously occupied range.’’. 

18 (b) ALLOCATION AND APPORTIONMENT OF AVAIL19 ABLE AMOUNTS.—Section 4 of the Pittman-Robertson 

20 Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669c) is amended— 

21 (1) in subsection (d)— 

22 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

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

24 ‘‘to the District of Columbia and to the 


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1 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, each’’ and 

2 inserting ‘‘To the District of Columbia’’; 

3 (ii) in subparagraph (B)— 

4 (I) by striking ‘‘to Guam’’ and 

5 inserting ‘‘To Guam’’; and 

6 (II) by striking ‘‘not more than 

7 one-fourth of one percent’’ and insert8 ing ‘‘not less than one-third of one 

9 percent’’; and 

10 (iii) by adding at the end the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(C) To the Commonwealth of Puerto 

13 Rico, a sum equal to not less than 1 percent 

14 thereof.’’; 

15 (B) in paragraph (2)(A)— 

16 (i) by amending clause (i) to read as 

17 follows: 

18 ‘‘(i) one-half of which is based on the ratio 

19 to which the land and water area of such State 

20 bears to the total land and water area of all 

21 such States;’’; 

22 (ii) in clause (ii)— 

23 (I) by striking ‘‘two-thirds’’ and 

24 inserting ‘‘one-quarter’’; and 


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1 (II) by striking the period and 

2 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

3 (iii) by adding at the end the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(iii) one-quarter of which is based upon 

6 the ratio to which the number of species listed 

7 as endangered or threatened under the Endan8 gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et 

9 seq.) in such State bears to the total number of 

10 such species listed in all such States.’’; 

11 (C) by amending paragraph (2)(B) to read 

12 as follows: 

13 ‘‘(B) The amounts apportioned under this 

14 paragraph shall be adjusted equitably so that 

15 no such State, unless otherwise designated, 

16 shall be apportioned a sum which is less than 

17 1 percent or more than 5 percent of the amount 

18 available for apportionment under— 

19 ‘‘(i) subparagraph (A)(i); 

20 ‘‘(ii) subparagraph (A)(ii); and 

21 ‘‘(iii) the overall amount available for 

22 subparagraph (A).’’; and 

23 (D) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘3 per24 cent’’ and inserting ‘‘1.85 percent’’; 

25 (2) in subsection (e)(4)— 


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1 (A) by amending subparagraph (B) to read 

2 as follows: 

3 ‘‘(B) Not more than an average of 15 percent 

4 over a 5-year period of amounts apportioned to each 

5 State, territory, or the District of Columbia under 

6 this section for a wildlife conservation and restora7 tion program may be used for wildlife conservation 

8 education and wildlife-associated recreation.’’; and 

9 (B) by inserting after subparagraph (B), 

10 as so amended, the following: 

11 ‘‘(C) 5 percent of amounts apportioned to each 

12 State, each territory, or the District of Columbia 

13 under this section for a wildlife conservation and 

14 restoration program shall be reserved for States and 

15 territories that include plants among their species of 

16 greatest conservation need and in the conservation 

17 planning and habitat prioritization efforts of their 

18 Wildlife Conservation Strategy. Each eligible State, 

19 territory, or the District of Columbia shall receive an 

20 additional 5 percent of their apportioned amount. 

21 Any unallocated resources shall be allocated propor22 tionally among all States and territories under the 

23 formulas of this section.’’; and 

24 (3) by adding at the end following: 


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1 ‘‘(f) MINIMIZATION OF PLANNING AND REPORT2 ING.—Nothing in this Act shall be interpreted to require 

3 a State to create a comprehensive strategy related to con4 servation education or outdoor recreation. 

5 ‘‘(g) ACCOUNTABILITY.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not more than one year 

7 after the date of enactment of the Recovering Amer8 ica’s Wildlife Act of 2023 and every 3 years there9 after, each State fish and wildlife department shall 

10 submit a 3-year work plan and budget for imple11 menting its Wildlife Conservation Strategy and a re12 port describing the results derived from activities ac13 complished under subsection (e) during the previous 

14 3 years to the United States Fish and Wildlife Serv15 ice for review, which shall summarize such findings 

16 and submit a report to— 

17 ‘‘(A) the Committee on Environment and 

18 Public Works of the Senate; and 

19 ‘‘(B) the Committee on Natural Resources 

20 of the House of Representatives. 

21 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—The format of the 3- 

22 year work plans, budgets, and reports required 

23 under paragraph (1) shall be established by the 

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1 tion with the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agen2 cies. 

3 ‘‘(3) GAO STUDY.—Not later than 7 years after 

4 the date of enactment of the Recovering America’s 

5 Wildlife Act of 2023, the Comptroller General of the 

6 United States shall conduct a study to examine the 

7 progress of States, territories, the District of Colum8 bia, and Indian Tribes towards achieving the pur9 pose described in section 2 of that Act.’’. 

10 SEC. 102. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS. 

11 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 2 of the Pittman-Robert12 son Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669a) is amend13 ed— 

14 (1) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘including 

15 fish,’’; and 

16 (2) in paragraph (9), by inserting ‘‘Indian 

17 Tribes, academic institutions,’’ before ‘‘wildlife con18 servation organizations’’. 

19 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—The Pittman-Rob20 ertson Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669 et seq.) 

21 is amended— 

22 (1) in section 3— 

23 (A) in subsection (a)— 


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1 (i) by striking ‘‘(1) An amount equal 

2 to’’ and inserting ‘‘An amount equal to’’; 

3 and 

4 (ii) by striking paragraph (2); 

5 (B) in subsection (c)— 

6 (i) in paragraph (9), as redesignated 

7 by section 101(a)(1), by striking ‘‘or an 

8 Indian tribe’’; and 

9 (ii) in paragraph (10), as redesignated 

10 by section 101(a)(1), by striking ‘‘Wildlife 

11 Conservation and Restoration Account’’ 

12 and inserting ‘‘Subaccount’’; and 

13 (C) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘Wildlife 

14 Conservation and Restoration Account’’ and in15 serting ‘‘Subaccount’’; 

16 (2) in section 4 (16 U.S.C. 669c)— 

17 (A) in subsection (d)— 

18 (i) in the heading, by striking ‘‘AC19 COUNT’’ and inserting ‘‘SUBACCOUNT’’; 

20 and 

21 (ii) by striking ‘‘Account’’ each place 

22 it appears and inserting ‘‘Subaccount’’; 

23 and 

24 (B) in subsection (e)(1), by striking ‘‘Ac25 count’’ and inserting ‘‘Subaccount’’; and 


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1 (3) in section 8 (16 U.S.C. 669g), in subsection 

2 (a), by striking ‘‘Account’’ and inserting ‘‘Sub3 account’’. 

4 SEC. 103. SAVINGS CLAUSE. 

5 The Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act (16 

6 U.S.C. 669 et seq.) is amended— 

7 (1) by redesignating section 14 as section 16; 

8 and 

9 (2) by inserting after section 13 the following: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 14. SAVINGS CLAUSE. 

11 ‘‘Nothing in this Act shall be construed to enlarge 

12 or diminish the authority, jurisdiction, or responsibility of 

13 a State to manage, control, or regulate fish and wildlife 

14 under the law and regulations of the State on lands and 

15 waters within the State, including on Federal lands and 

16 waters. 

17 ‘‘SEC. 15. STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION WITH RESPECT TO 

18 ALASKA. 

19 ‘‘If any conflict arises between any provision of this 

20 Act and any provision of the Alaska National Interest 

21 Lands Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 3101 et seq.) or the 

22 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et 

23 seq.), then the provision in the Alaska National Interest 

24 Lands Conservation Act or the Alaska Native Claims Set25 tlement Act shall prevail.’’. 


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1 TITLE II—TRIBAL WILDLIFE 

2 CONSERVATION AND RES3 TORATION 

4 SEC. 201. INDIAN TRIBES. 

5 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

6 (1) ACCOUNT.—The term ‘‘Account’’ means the 

7 Tribal Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Ac8 count established by subsection (b)(1). 

9 (2) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ 

10 has the meaning given such term in section 4 of the 

11 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

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

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

14 the Secretary of the Interior. 

15 (4) TRIBAL SPECIES OF GREATEST CONSERVA16 TION NEED.—The term ‘‘Tribal species of greatest 

17 conservation need’’ means any species identified by 

18 an Indian Tribe as requiring conservation manage19 ment because of declining population, habitat loss, 

20 or other threats, or because of their biological or cul21 tural importance to such Tribe. 

22 (5) WILDLIFE.—The term ‘‘wildlife’’ means— 

23 (A) any species of wild flora or fauna in24 cluding fish and marine mammals; 


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1 (B) flora or fauna in a captive breeding, 

2 rehabilitation, and holding or quarantine pro3 gram, the object of which is to reintroduce indi4 viduals of a depleted indigenous species into 

5 previously occupied range or to maintain a spe6 cies for conservation purposes; and 

7 (C) does not include game farm animals. 

8 (b) TRIBAL WILDLIFE CONSERVATION AND RES9 TORATION ACCOUNT.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is established in the 

11 Treasury an account to be known as the ‘‘Tribal 

12 Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Account’’. 

13 (2) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts in the Account 

14 shall be available for each fiscal year without further 

15 appropriation for apportionment in accordance with 

16 this title. 

17 (3) DEPOSITS INTO ACCOUNT.—Beginning in 

18 fiscal year 2024, and for each fiscal year thereafter, 

19 the Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer 

20 $97,500,000 from the general fund of the Treasury 

21 to the Account. 

22 (c) DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS TO INDIAN TRIBES.— 

23 Each fiscal year, the Secretary of the Treasury shall de24 posit funds into the Account and distribute such funds 

25 through a noncompetitive application process according to 


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1 guidelines and criteria, and reporting requirements deter2 mined by the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the 

3 Director of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, in consultation 

4 with Indian Tribes. Such funds shall remain available 

5 until expended. 

6 (d) WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT RESPONSIBILITIES.— 

7 The distribution guidelines and criteria described in sub8 section (c) shall be based, in part, upon an Indian Tribe’s 

9 wildlife management responsibilities. Any funding allo10 cated to an Indian Tribe in Alaska may only be used in 

11 a manner consistent with the Alaska Native Claims Settle12 ment Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), the Alaska National 

13 Interest Lands Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 3101 et seq.), 

14 and Public Law 85–508 (commonly known as the ‘‘Alaska 

15 Statehood Act’’) (48 U.S.C. note prec. 21). Alaska Native 

16 Corporations or Tribes may enter into cooperative agree17 ments with the State of Alaska on conservation projects 

18 of mutual concern. 

19 (e) USE OF FUNDS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para21 graph (2), the Secretary may distribute funds from 

22 the Account to an Indian Tribe for any of the fol23 lowing purposes: 

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1 grams to manage Tribal species of greatest con2 servation need and the habitats of such species, 

3 as determined by the Indian Tribe. 

4 (B) To assist in the recovery of species 

5 listed as an endangered or threatened species 

6 under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 

7 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). 

8 (C) For wildlife conservation education and 

9 wildlife-associated recreation projects. 

10 (D) To manage a Tribal species of greatest 

11 conservation need and the habitat of such spe12 cies, the range of which may be shared with a 

13 foreign country, State, or other Indian Tribe. 

14 (E) To manage, control, and prevent 

15 invasive species as well as diseases and other 

16 risks to wildlife. 

17 (F) For law enforcement activities that are 

18 directly related to the protection and conserva19 tion of wildlife. 

20 (G) To develop, revise, and implement 

21 comprehensive wildlife conservation strategies 

22 and plans for such Tribe. 

23 (H) For the hiring and training of wildlife 

24 conservation and restoration program staff. 

25 (2) CONDITIONS ON THE USE OF FUNDS.— 


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1 (A) REQUIRED USE OF FUNDS.—In order 

2 to be eligible to receive funds under subsection 

3 (c), a Tribe’s application must include a pro4 posal to use funds for at least one of the pur5 poses described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) 

6 of paragraph (1). 

7 (B) IMPERILED SPECIES RECOVERY.—In 

8 distributing funds under this section, the Sec9 retary shall distribute not less than 15 percent 

10 of the total funds distributed to proposals to 

11 fund the recovery of a species, subspecies, or 

12 distinct population segment listed as a threat13 ened species, endangered species, or candidate 

14 species under the Endangered Species Act of 

15 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) or Tribal law. 

16 (C) LIMITATION.—In distributing funds 

17 under this section, the Secretary shall distribute 

18 not more than 15 percent of all funds distrib19 uted under this section for the purpose de20 scribed in paragraph (1)(C). 

21 (f) NO MATCHING FUNDS REQUIRED.—No Indian 

22 Tribe shall be required to provide matching funds to be 

23 eligible to receive funds under this section. 

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1 tion Account shall not be conditioned upon the provision 

2 of public or non-Tribal access to Tribal or private lands, 

3 waters, or holdings. 

4 (h) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Of the funds depos5 ited under subsection (b)(3) for each fiscal year, not more 

6 than 3 percent shall be used by the Secretary for adminis7 trative costs. 

8 (i) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—Nothing in this section shall 

9 be construed as modifying or abrogating a treaty with any 

10 Indian Tribe, or as enlarging or diminishing the authority, 

11 jurisdiction, or responsibility of an Indian Tribe to man12 age, control, or regulate wildlife. 

13 (j) STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION WITH RESPECT TO

14 ALASKA.—If any conflict arises between any provision of 

15 this section and any provision of the Alaska National In16 terest Lands Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 3101 et seq.) 

17 or the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 

18 1601 et seq.), then the provision in the Alaska National 

19 Interest Lands Conservation Act or the Alaska Native 

20 Claims Settlement Act shall prevail. 


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1 TITLE III—ENDANGERED SPE2 CIES RECOVERY AND HABI3 TAT CONSERVATION LEGACY 

4 FUND 

5 SEC. 301. ENDANGERED SPECIES RECOVERY AND HABITAT 

6 CONSERVATION LEGACY FUND. 

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

8 Treasury of the United States a fund, to be known as the 

9 ‘‘Endangered Species Recovery and Habitat Conservation 

10 Legacy Fund’’ (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Fund’’). 

11 (b) FUNDING.—For each of fiscal years 2024 

12 through 2027, the Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer 

13 from the general fund of the Treasury to the Fund 

14 $187,500,000. 

15 (c) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Amounts in the Fund 

16 shall be available to the Secretary of the Interior, acting 

17 through the Director of the United States Fish and Wild18 life Service (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Secretary’’), 

19 as provided in subsection (e), without further appropria20 tion or fiscal year limitation. 

21 (d) INVESTMENT OF AMOUNTS.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may request 

23 the Secretary of the Treasury to invest any portion 

24 of the Fund that is not, as determined by the SecVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:02 Apr 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1149.IS S1149

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1 retary, required to meet the current needs of the 

2 Fund. 

3 (2) REQUIREMENT.—An investment requested 

4 under paragraph (1) shall be made by the Secretary 

5 of the Treasury in a public debt security— 

6 (A) with a maturity suitable to the needs 

7 of the Fund, as determined by the Secretary; 

8 and 

9 (B) bearing interest at a rate determined 

10 by the Secretary of the Treasury, taking into 

11 consideration current market yields on out12 standing marketable obligations of the United 

13 States of comparable maturity. 

14 (3) CREDITS TO FUND.—The income on invest15 ments of the Fund under this subsection shall be 

16 credited to, and form a part of, the Fund. 

17 (e) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts in the Fund shall be 

18 used for recovering the species managed under the Endan19 gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), in 

20 addition to amounts otherwise available for such purposes, 

21 as follows: 

22 (1) ENDANGERED SPECIES RECOVERY GRANT

23 PROGRAM.—$75,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

24 2024 through 2027, to remain available until ex25 pended, shall be used to establish and implement a 


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1 grant and technical assistance program, to be known 

2 as the ‘‘Endangered Species Recovery Grant Pro3 gram’’, to provide competitive matching grants for 

4 the purpose of recovering species listed as a threat5 ened species or an endangered species under section 

6 4 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 

7 1533) by addressing the backlog in the development 

8 of recovery plans, and implementing the backlog of 

9 activities identified in existing recovery plans, under 

10 subsection (f) of that section (16 U.S.C. 1533(f)). 

11 The Secretary shall enter into an agreement with 

12 the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to estab13 lish and cooperatively manage the Endangered Spe14 cies Recovery Grant Program in accordance with the 

15 Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et 

16 seq.) and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation 

17 Establishment Act (16 U.S.C. 3701 et seq.). 

18 (2) INTERAGENCY CONSULTATION RESPON19 SIBILITIES.—$75,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

20 2024 through 2027, to remain available until ex21 pended, shall be used for the United States Fish and 

22 Wildlife Service to address interagency consultation 

23 responsibilities under section 7 of the Endangered 

24 Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1536). 


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1 (3) CONSERVATION ACTIVITIES.—$28,125,000 

2 for each of fiscal years 2024 through 2027, to re3 main available until expended, shall be used for the 

4 United States Fish and Wildlife Service to work 

5 with non-Federal entities, including through, but not 

6 limited to, the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Pro7 gram, the Coastal Program, and the North Amer8 ican Wetlands Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 4401 et 

9 seq.)— 

10 (A) to conserve at risk species, species that 

11 are candidates or proposed for listing, and spe12 cies that are listed as threatened or endangered 

13 species under section 4 of the Endangered Spe14 cies Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1533), including 

15 through rescue and rehabilitation efforts; and 

16 (B) to conserve wildlife habitat. 

17 (4) VOLUNTARY CONSERVATION AGREE18 MENTS.—$9,375,000 for each of fiscal years 2024 

19 through 2027, to remain available until expended, 

20 shall be used for the United States Fish and Wildlife 

21 Service to address the development and permitting 

22 of voluntary conservation agreements under section 

23 10 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 

24 U.S.C. 1539). 


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1 (f) SUPPLEMENT, NOT SUPPLANT.—Amounts made 

2 available under this section shall supplement and not sup3 plant any other Federal amounts made available to carry 

4 out activities described in this section in an annual appro5 priations Act of Congress. 

6 (g) SUBMISSION OF SPECIES LISTS TO CONGRESS.— 

7 (1) PRIORITY LIST OF SPECIES.—Not later 

8 than 90 days after the date of enactment of this 

9 Act, the Secretary, shall submit to the Committees 

10 on Environment and Public Works and Appropria11 tions of the Senate and the Committees on Natural 

12 Resources and Appropriations of the House of Rep13 resentatives a list of threatened species and endan14 gered species for which recovery plans described in 

15 subsection (e)(1) will be developed or implemented 

16 for fiscal year 2024. 

17 (2) ANNUAL LIST OF SPECIES.—Until the date 

18 on which all of the amounts in the Fund are ex19 pended, the President shall annually submit to Con20 gress, together with the annual budget of the United 

21 States, a list of threatened species and endangered 

22 species for which recovery plans described in sub23 section (e)(1) will be developed or implemented with 

24 amounts from the Fund. 

25 (h) PUBLIC DONATIONS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may accept 

2 public cash donations that advance efforts— 

3 (A) to address the backlog in the develop4 ment and implementation of recovery plans; and 

5 (B) to encourage relevant public-private 

6 partnerships. 

7 (2) CREDITS TO FUND.—Any cash donations 

8 accepted under paragraph (1) shall be credited to, 

9 and form a part of, the Fund. 

10 (3) REJECTION OF DONATIONS.—The Secretary 

11 may reject a donation under this section when the 

12 rejection is in the interest of the Federal Govern13 ment, as determined by the Secretary. 

14 (i) ALLOCATION AUTHORITY.— 

15 (1) SUBMISSION OF COST ESTIMATES.—The 

16 President shall submit to Congress detailed alloca17 tions by program element of the amount rec18 ommended for allocation in a fiscal year from 

19 amounts made available under subsection (c), con20 sistent with the use of funds under subsection (e), 

21 as follows: 

22 (A) For fiscal year 2024, not later than 90 

23 days after the date of enactment of this Act. 

24 (B) For each fiscal year thereafter, until 

25 the date on which all of the amounts in the 


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1 Fund are allocated, as part of the annual budg2 et submission of the President under section 

3 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code. 

4 (2) ALTERNATE ALLOCATION.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Committees on 

6 Appropriations of the Senate and House of 

7 Representatives may provide for alternate allo8 cation of amounts recommended for allocation 

9 in a given fiscal year from amounts made avail10 able under subsection (c), consistent with the 

11 use of funds under subsection (e), including al12 locations by program element. 

13 (B) ALLOCATION BY PRESIDENT.— 

14 (i) NO ALTERNATE ALLOCATIONS.—If 

15 Congress has not enacted legislation estab16 lishing alternate allocations, including by 

17 program, by the date on which the Act 

18 making full-year appropriations for the De19 partment of the Interior, Environment, 

20 and Related Agencies for the applicable fis21 cal year is enacted into law, only then shall 

22 amounts recommended for allocation for 

23 that fiscal year from amounts made avail24 able under subsection (c), consistent with 

25 the use of funds under subsection (e), be 


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1 allocated by the President or apportioned 

2 or allotted by program pursuant to title 

3 31, United States Code. 

4 (ii) INSUFFICIENT ALTERNATE ALLO5 CATION.—If Congress enacts legislation es6 tablishing alternate allocations, including 

7 by program, for amounts recommended for 

8 allocation in a given fiscal year from 

9 amounts made available under subsection 

10 (c), consistent with the use of funds under 

11 subsection (e), that are less than the full 

12 amount recommended for allocation for 

13 that fiscal year, the difference between the 

14 amount recommended for allocation and 

15 the alternate allocation shall be allocated 

16 by the President and apportioned and al17 lotted by program pursuant to title 31, 

18 United States Code. 

19 (j) PROHIBITIONS.—No amounts from the Fund shall 

20 be used— 

21 (1) to make any listing determination relating 

22 to the endangered or threatened status of any spe23 cies pursuant to section 4(a) of the Endangered Spe24 cies Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1533(a)); 


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1 (2) on any experimental population (as defined 

2 in paragraph (1) of section 10(j) of the Endangered 

3 Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1539(j))) of a 

4 threatened or endangered species that is determined 

5 to be nonessential under that section; 

6 (3) outside of the United States (as defined in 

7 section 3 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 

8 U.S.C. 1532)); and 

9 (4) to acquire any Federal land. 

Æ 


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