I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3742 

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 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 12, 2019 

Mrs. DINGELL (for herself, Mr. FORTENBERRY, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Mr. VELA, 

Ms. LEE of California, Mr. CRIST, Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. 

AMODEI, Mr. ROUZER, Mr. FITZPATRICK, Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Ms. ESHOO, Ms. BONAMICI, Ms. KUSTER of New Hampshire, 

Mr. HILL of Arkansas, Mr. HASTINGS, Mr. SCHRADER, Ms. DEAN, Ms. 

JACKSON LEE, Mr. KILMER, Mr. QUIGLEY, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. COLE, Mr. GAETZ, Mr. VEASEY, Mr. 

CARBAJAL, Mr. UPTON, Mr. PAPPAS, Mrs. AXNE, Mr. MICHAEL F. 

DOYLE of Pennsylvania, Mr. SOTO, Mr. COURTNEY, Mrs. RADEWAGEN, 

Mr. MAST, Mr. CUELLAR, Mr. SIMPSON, Mr. COOPER, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. MARSHALL, Mr. RUTHERFORD, Mr. BROWN of Maryland, 

Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI, Ms. DELBENE, Mr. RASKIN, Mr. BUDD, Mr. 

LUJA ́N, Mr. STIVERS, Ms. HAALAND, Mr. COHEN, Mr. RUSH, Mr. 

FLEISCHMANN, Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. LARSON of Connecticut, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. NORTON, Miss GONZA ́LEZ-COLO ́N of Puerto Rico, Mr. LONG, 

Mr. KILDEE, Mr. CARTWRIGHT, and Ms. TLAIB) introduced the following 

bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in 

addition to the Committee on the Budget, 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 

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 


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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 2019’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) The populations of several species of wildlife 

9 across America are in crisis. The Nation’s efforts to 

10 recover at-risk wildlife populations are not keeping 

11 pace with the increased demand for natural re12 sources and threats to native wildlife, including dis13 ease, invasive species, habitat loss and fragmenta14 tion, shifts in temperature ranges, and extreme 

15 weather. More than 150 species are presumed ex16 tinct, another 500 are likely extinct, and more than 

17 12,000 species are designated as species of greatest 

18 conservation need, including more than 700 wildlife 

19 species in the United States that are already listed 

20 as threatened or endangered under the Endangered 

21 Species Act. An assessment of the best-known 

22 groups of United States wildlife and plants indicates 

23 that one-third of America’s species are vulnerable to 


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1 extinction and one-fifth imperiled and at high-risk of 

2 extinction. 

3 (2) A diverse array of species of fish and wild4 life is of significant value to the United States for 

5 aesthetic, ecological, educational, cultural, rec6 reational, economic, and scientific reasons. 

7 (3) More than 100 million citizens of the 

8 United States participate in outdoor recreation 

9 through hunting, fishing, birding, and other wildlife10 dependent recreation, all of which have significant 

11 value to the citizens who engage in those activities 

12 and provide economic benefits to local communities. 

13 (4) It is in the interest of the United States— 

14 (A) to retain for present and future gen15 erations the opportunity to hunt, fish, observe, 

16 understand, and appreciate a wide variety of 

17 fish and wildlife; 

18 (B) to recover species of fish and wildlife 

19 listed as threatened species or endangered spe20 cies under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 

21 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and to prevent fish 

22 and wildlife species from declining to the point 

23 of requiring Federal protection under such Act; 

24 and 


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1 (C) to support collaborative and proactive 

2 conservation that will sustain the diverse fish 

3 and wildlife populations of the United States. 

4 (5) The first nongovernmental conservation or5 ganizations to instill fish and wildlife conservation 

6 values in hunters, anglers, bird watchers, and all 

7 citizens were founded during the 1880s to 1890s at 

8 the behest of hunters and anglers, including Theo9 dore Roosevelt and naturalist George Bird Grinnell, 

10 who were alarmed that game and sportfish could not 

11 sustain unregulated harvest and that avifauna need12 ed protection from commercial take. 

13 (6) At the turn of the 20th century, the 

14 States— 

15 (A) realized the need to regulate the har16 vest of game and sportfish for sustainable use; 

17 (B) required hunters and anglers to obtain 

18 licenses and established regulations for game 

19 seasons, bag and creel limits, and legal means 

20 of take for game and sportfish; and 

21 (C) used the funds received for such li22 censes largely for enforcement of such regula23 tions. 

24 (7) In 1937, an alliance between hunters and 

25 conservation organizations, States, the Federal GovVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:39 Jul 23, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3742.IH H3742

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1 ernment, and the shooting sports industry convinced 

2 Congress to transfer to the States receipts from an 

3 existing Federal excise tax on sporting arms and 

4 ammunition, matched by State hunting license dol5 lars, for the management of wildlife and conserva6 tion of habitat under the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife 

7 Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669 et seq.), which 

8 greatly enhanced the States’ ability to move from 

9 primarily enforcing game seasons and bag limits to 

10 science-based research and management of wildlife. 

11 (8) In 1951, an alliance between anglers and 

12 conservation organizations, States, the Federal Gov13 ernment, and the sportfishing industry convinced 

14 Congress to impose a Federal excise tax on fishing 

15 equipment under the Dingell-Johnson Sportfish Res16 toration Act (16 U.S.C. 777 et seq.) and to transfer 

17 to the States such receipts, matched by State fishing 

18 license revenues, to manage sportfish and conserve 

19 aquatic habitats, enhancing the State fish and wild20 life department’s ability to use science-based re21 search and management of fish species. 

22 (9) Such user-pay, public-benefits means of 

23 funding fish and wildlife conservation are unique in 

24 the world, having been started in the United States 

25 by sportsmen and sportswomen who were willing to 


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1 pay these fees to ensure dedicated funds went to fish 

2 and wildlife conservation delivered by the States. 

3 (10) Such user-pay funds (licenses and excise 

4 taxes)— 

5 (A) have benefitted not only hunters and 

6 anglers, but all citizens of the United States by 

7 providing abundant fish and wildlife (including 

8 both game and nongame species), clean water, 

9 outdoor recreation, healthy activities, and qual10 ity of life; and 

11 (B) provide, and will continue to provide, 

12 a majority of the funds that are available to 

13 State fish and wildlife departments for science14 based research and management of fish and 

15 wildlife. 

16 (11) State fish and wildlife agencies are respon17 sible for the conservation and management of all 

18 fish and wildlife in the State, but are grossly under19 funded because there are few funds available at the 

20 State level for fish and wildlife conservation, except 

21 those driven by hunting and fishing license revenues 

22 and Federal excise tax revenues. 

23 (12) Congress created a subaccount known as 

24 the Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Sub25 account under section 3(a)(2) of the Pittman-RobVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:39 Jul 23, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3742.IH H3742

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1 ertson Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 

2 669b(a)(2)) to support the full array of fish and 

3 wildlife conservation needs identified by State fish 

4 and wildlife departments, including for species that 

5 are not hunted or fished, but only authorized appro6 priations for the Subaccount for one year. 

7 (13) While some appropriated funds have been 

8 made available through related programs, the lack of 

9 assured and sufficient dedicated funding for the 

10 Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Subaccount 

11 has left unrealized the goals of the Subaccount, 

12 thereby allowing fish and wildlife populations to con13 tinue to decline across the United States and result14 ing in hundreds of species being listed as threatened 

15 species or endangered species under the Endangered 

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

17 (14) Under the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife 

18 Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669 et seq.), each State 

19 and territory is required to seek public input and 

20 produce a comprehensive fish and wildlife conserva21 tion strategy, otherwise known as a State Wildlife 

22 Action Plan, to guide the State-led conservation of 

23 the full array of fish, wildlife, and their habitats. 

24 (15) Providing assured and sufficient dedicated 

25 funding to the Wildlife Conservation and Restoration 


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1 Subaccount will advance the national interest by as2 suring sustainable populations of fish and wildlife 

3 species are available for the use and enjoyment of 

4 citizens of the United States through implementing 

5 the comprehensive fish and wildlife conservation 

6 strategy of each State, territory, and the District of 

7 Columbia. 

8 TITLE I—WILDLIFE CONSERVA9 TION AND RESTORATION 

10 SEC. 101. WILDLIFE CONSERVATION AND RESTORATION 

11 SUBACCOUNT. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 3 of the Pittman-Robert13 son Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669b) is amended 

14 in subsection (c)— 

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

16 paragraphs (9) and (10); and 

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

18 following: 

19 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT OF SUBACCOUNT.— 

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

21 the fund a subaccount to be known as the 

22 ‘Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Sub23 account’ (referred to in this section as the ‘Sub24 account’). 


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1 ‘‘(B) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts in the Sub2 account shall be available without further ap3 propriation, for each fiscal year, for apportion4 ment in accordance with this Act. 

5 ‘‘(C) DEPOSITS INTO SUBACCOUNT.—Be6 ginning in fiscal year 2020, the Secretary of the 

7 Treasury shall transfer $1,300,000,000 from 

8 the general fund of the treasury each fiscal year 

9 to the fund for deposit in the Subaccount. 

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

11 transferred to the Subaccount shall supplement, but 

12 not replace, existing funds available to the States 

13 from— 

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

15 Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration Act 

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

17 ‘‘(B) the fund. 

18 ‘‘(3) INNOVATION GRANTS.— 

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

20 distribute 10 percent of funds apportioned from 

21 the Subaccount through a competitive grant 

22 program to State fish and wildlife departments, 

23 the District of Columbia fish and wildlife de24 partment, fish and wildlife departments of terri25 tories, or to regional associations of fish and 


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1 wildlife departments (or any group composed of 

2 more than 1 such entity). 

3 ‘‘(B) PURPOSE.—Such grants shall be pro4 vided for the purpose of catalyzing innovation 

5 of techniques, tools, strategies, or collaborative 

6 partnerships that accelerate, expand, or rep7 licate effective and measurable recovery efforts 

8 for species of greatest conservation need and 

9 species listed under the Endangered Species Act 

10 of 1973 (15 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and the habi11 tats of such species. 

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

13 shall appoint a review committee comprised 

14 of— 

15 ‘‘(i) a State Director from each re16 gional association of State fish and wildlife 

17 departments; 

18 ‘‘(ii) the head of a department respon19 sible for fish and wildlife management in a 

20 territory; and 

21 ‘‘(iii) four individuals representing 

22 four different nonprofit organizations each 

23 of which is actively participating in car24 rying out wildlife conservation restoration 


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1 activities using funds apportioned from the 

2 Subaccount. 

3 ‘‘(D) SUPPORT FROM UNITED STATES FISH

4 AND WILDLIFE SERVICE.—The United States 

5 Fish and Wildlife Service shall provide any per6 sonnel or administrative support services nec7 essary for such Committee to carry out its re8 sponsibilities under this Act. 

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

10 evaluate each proposal submitted under this 

11 paragraph and recommend projects for funding. 

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

13 the Subaccount— 

14 ‘‘(A) shall be used to carry out, revise, or 

15 enhance existing wildlife and habitat conserva16 tion and restoration programs and to develop 

17 and implement new wildlife conservation and 

18 restoration programs to recover and manage 

19 species of greatest conservation need and the 

20 key habitats and plant community types essen21 tial to the conservation of those species as de22 termined by the appropriate State fish and 

23 wildlife department; 


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

2 implement a wildlife conservation strategy of 

3 the State as may be required by this Act; 

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

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

6 the case of funds received by the District of Co7 lumbia, the District of Columbia that are listed 

8 as endangered or threatened under the Endan9 gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et 

10 seq.) or under State law; 

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

12 education and wildlife-associated recreation 

13 projects; 

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

15 greatest conservation need whose range is 

16 shared with another State, territory, Indian 

17 Tribe, or foreign government and for the con18 servation of the habitat of such species; 

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

20 prevent invasive and nuisance species, disease, 

21 and other risks to species of greatest conserva22 tion need; and 

23 ‘‘(G) may be used for law enforcement ac24 tivities that are directly related to the protec25 tion and conservation of a species of greatest 


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1 conservation need and the habitat of such spe2 cies. 

3 ‘‘(5) MINIMUM REQUIRED SPENDING FOR SPE4 CIES RECOVERY.—Not less than 10 percent of funds 

5 apportioned to a State or territory from the Sub6 account shall be used for purposes described in para7 graph (4)(C). 

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

9 REQUIRED.—Funds apportioned from the Sub10 account shall not be conditioned upon the provision 

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

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

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

14 fund matching requirement for a wildlife con15 servation or restoration program or project 

16 funded by the Subaccount, a State may use as 

17 matching non-Federal funds— 

18 ‘‘(i) funds from Federal agencies 

19 other than the Department of the Interior 

20 and the Department of Agriculture; 

21 ‘‘(ii) donated private lands and 

22 waters, including privately owned ease23 ments; 

24 ‘‘(iii) in circumstances described in 

25 subparagraph (B), revenue generated 


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1 through the sale of State hunting and fish2 ing licenses; and 

3 ‘‘(iv) other sources consistent with 

4 part 80 of title 50, Code of Federal Regu5 lations, in effect on the date of enactment 

6 of the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act of 

7 2019. 

8 ‘‘(B) Revenue described in subparagraph 

9 (A)(iii) may only be used to fulfill the require10 ments of such non-Federal fund matching re11 quirement if— 

12 ‘‘(i) no Federal funds apportioned to 

13 the State fish and wildlife department of 

14 such State from the Wildlife Restoration 

15 Program or the Sport Fish Restoration 

16 Program have been reverted because of a 

17 failure to fulfill such non-Federal fund 

18 matching requirement by such State dur19 ing the previous 2 years; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) the project or program being 

21 funded benefits the habitat of a hunted or 

22 fished species and a species of greatest 

23 conservation need. 

24 ‘‘(8) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, the fol25 lowing definitions apply: 


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1 ‘‘(A) SPECIES OF GREATEST CONSERVA2 TION NEED.—The term ‘species of greatest con3 servation need’ has the meaning given to it by 

4 each State fish and wildlife department, with 

5 respect to funds apportioned to such State. 

6 ‘‘(B) 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 ‘‘(C) 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) by redesignating the second subsection (c), 

22 relating to the apportionment of the Wildlife Con23 servation and Restoration Account, and subsection 

24 (d) as subsections (d) and (e) respectively; 

25 (2) in subsection (d), as redesignated— 


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1 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

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

3 ‘‘to the District of Columbia and to the 

4 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, each’’ and 

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

6 (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

7 ‘‘to Guam’’ and inserting ‘‘To Guam’’; and 

8 (iii) by adding at the end the fol9 lowing: 

10 ‘‘(C) To the Commonwealth of Puerto 

11 Rico, a sum equal to not more than 1 percent 

12 thereof.’’; 

13 (B) in paragraph (2)(A), as redesignated— 

14 (i) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘one15 third’’ and inserting ‘‘one-half’’; and 

16 (ii) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘two17 thirds’’ and inserting ‘‘one-half’’; and 

18 (C) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘3 per19 cent’’ and inserting ‘‘1.85 percent’’; 

20 (3) by amending subsection (e)(4)(B), as redes21 ignated, to read as follows: 

22 ‘‘(B) Not more than an average of 15 per23 cent over a 5-year period of amounts appor24 tioned to each State under this section for a 

25 State’s wildlife conservation and restoration 


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1 program may be used for wildlife conservation 

2 education and wildlife-associated recreation.’’; 

3 and 

4 (4) by adding at the end following: 

5 ‘‘(f) MINIMIZATION OF PLANNING AND REPORT6 ING.—Nothing in this Act shall be interpreted to require 

7 a State to create a comprehensive strategy related to con8 servation education or outdoor recreation. 

9 ‘‘(g) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not more than five 

10 years after the date of enactment of the Recovering Amer11 ica’s Wildlife Act of 2019 and every 5 years thereafter, 

12 each State fish and wildlife department shall submit a re13 port describing the results derived from activities accom14 plished under paragraph (3) to— 

15 ‘‘(1) the Committee on Environment and Public 

16 Works of the Senate; and 

17 ‘‘(2) the Committee on Natural Resources of 

18 the House of Representatives.’’. 

19 SEC. 102. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS. 

20 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 2 of the Pittman-Robert21 son Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669a) is amend22 ed— 

23 (1) by striking paragraph (5); 

24 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (6) through 

25 (9) as paragraphs (5) through (8), respectively; and 


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1 (3) in paragraph (6), as redesignated by para2 graph (2), by inserting ‘‘Indian Tribes, academic in3 stitutions,’’ before ‘‘wildlife conservation organiza4 tions’’. 

5 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—The Pittman-Rob6 ertson Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669a et seq.) 

7 is amended— 

8 (1) in section 3— 

9 (A) in subsection (a)— 

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

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

12 and 

13 (ii) by striking paragraph (2); 

14 (B) in subsection (c)— 

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

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

17 Indian tribe’’; and 

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

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

20 Conservation and Restoration Account’’ 

21 and inserting ‘‘Subaccount’’; and 

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

23 Conservation and Restoration Account’’ and in24 serting ‘‘Subaccount’’; 

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


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1 (A) in subsection (d), as redesignated— 

2 (i) in the heading, by striking ‘‘AC3 COUNT’’ and inserting ‘‘SUBACCOUNT’’; 

4 and 

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

6 it appears and inserting ‘‘Subaccount’’; 

7 and 

8 (B) in subsection (e)(1), as redesignated, 

9 by striking ‘‘Account’’ and inserting ‘‘Sub10 account’’; and 

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

12 (a), by striking ‘‘Account’’ and inserting ‘‘Sub13 account’’. 

14 SEC. 103. SAVINGS CLAUSE. 

15 The Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act (16 

16 U.S.C. 669 et seq.) is amended— 

17 (1) by redesignating section 13 as section 15; 

18 and 

19 (2) by inserting after section 12 the following: 

20 ‘‘SEC. 13. SAVINGS CLAUSE. 

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

22 or diminish the authority, jurisdiction, or responsibility of 

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

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


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1 waters within the State, including on Federal lands and 

2 waters. 

3 ‘‘SEC. 14. STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION WITH RESPECT TO 

4 ALASKA. 

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

6 Act and any provision of the Alaska National Interest 

7 Lands Conservation Act (Public Law 46–487, 16 U.S.C. 

8 3101 et seq.), then the provision in the Alaska National 

9 Interest Lands Conservation Act shall prevail.’’. 

10 SEC. 104. EXCLUSION FROM PAYGO SCORECARDS. 

11 (a) STATUTORY PAY-AS-YOU-GO SCORECARDS.—The 

12 budgetary effects of this Act shall not be entered on any 

13 PAYGO scorecard maintained pursuant to section 4(d) of 

14 the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010. 

15 (b) SENATE PAYGO SCORECARDS.—The budgetary 

16 effects of this Act shall not be entered on any PAYGO 

17 scorecard maintained for purposes of section 4106 of H. 

18 Con. Res. 71 (115th Congress), the concurrent resolution 

19 on the budget for fiscal year 2018. 

20 TITLE II—TRIBAL WILDLIFE 

21 CONSERVATION AND RES22 TORATION 

23 SEC. 201. INDIAN TRIBES. 

24 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 


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1 (1) Indian Tribes are responsible for conserva2 tion and management of all fish, wildlife, and flora 

3 on lands within their jurisdiction; 

4 (2) however, their efforts remain grossly under5 funded; 

6 (3) Tribes do not benefit from Federal excise 

7 tax revenues; 

8 (4) Tribal lands and waters provide vital habi9 tat for hundreds of federally listed, sensitive, eco10 nomically important and culturally significant spe11 cies; and 

12 (5) a stable and consistent funding source that 

13 supports Tribal wildlife conservation and manage14 ment will benefit the well-being of Tribes and the 

15 species they protect and conserve. 

16 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

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

18 Tribal Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Ac19 count established by subsection (c)(1). 

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

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

22 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

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

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

25 the Secretary of the Interior. 


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1 (4) TRIBAL SPECIES OF GREATEST CONSERVA2 TION NEED.—The term ‘‘Tribal species of greatest 

3 conservation need’’ means any species identified by 

4 an Indian Tribe as requiring conservation manage5 ment because of declining population, habitat loss, 

6 or other threats, or because of their biological or cul7 tural importance to such Tribe. 

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

9 (A) any species of wild flora or fauna in10 cluding fish and marine mammals; 

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

12 rehabilitation, and holding or quarantine pro13 gram, the object of which is to reintroduce indi14 viduals of a depleted indigenous species into 

15 previously occupied range or to maintain a spe16 cies for conservation purposes; and 

17 (C) does not include game farm animals. 

18 (c) TRIBAL WILDLIFE CONSERVATION AND RES19 TORATION ACCOUNT.— 

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

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

22 Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Account’’. 

23 (2) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts in the Account 

24 shall be available for each fiscal year without further 


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1 appropriation for apportionment in accordance with 

2 this title. 

3 (3) DEPOSITS.—Beginning in fiscal year 2020, 

4 and each fiscal year thereafter, the Secretary of the 

5 Treasury shall transfer $97,500,000 to the Account. 

6 (d) DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS TO INDIAN TRIBES.— 

7 Each fiscal year, the Secretary of the Treasury shall de8 posit funds into the Account and distribute such funds 

9 through a noncompetitive application process according to 

10 guidelines and criteria determined by the Secretary of the 

11 Interior, acting through the Director of the Bureau of In12 dian Affairs, in consultation with Indian Tribes. Such 

13 funds shall remain available until expended. 

14 (e) WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT RESPONSIBILITIES.— 

15 The distribution guidelines and criteria described in sub16 section (d) shall be based, in part, upon Indian Tribes’ 

17 wildlife management responsibilities. 

18 (f) USE OF FUNDS.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para20 graph (2), the Secretary may distribute funds from 

21 the Account to an Indian Tribe for any of the fol22 lowing purposes: 

23 (A) To develop, carry out, revise, or en24 hance wildlife conservation and restoration pro25 grams to manage Tribal species of greatest conVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:39 Jul 23, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3742.IH H3742

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1 servation need and the habitats of such species 

2 as determined by the such Indian Tribe. 

3 (B) To assist in the recovery of species 

4 listed as an endangered or threatened species 

5 under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 

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

7 (C) For wildlife conservation education and 

8 wildlife-associated recreation projects. 

9 (D) To manage a Tribal species of greatest 

10 conservation need and the habitat of such spe11 cies, the range of which may be shared with a 

12 foreign country, State, or other Indian Tribe. 

13 (E) To manage, control, and prevent 

14 invasive species as well as diseases and other 

15 risks to wildlife. 

16 (F) For law enforcement activities that are 

17 directly related to the protection and conserva18 tion of wildlife. 

19 (G) To develop, revise, and implement 

20 comprehensive wildlife conservation strategies 

21 and plans for such Tribe. 

22 (H) For the hiring and training of wildlife 

23 conservation and restoration program staff. 

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


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•HR 3742 IH

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

2 to be eligible to receive funds under subsection 

3 (d), 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 (g) NO MATCHING FUNDS REQUIRED.—No Indian 

22 Tribe shall be required to provide matching funds to be 

23 eligible to receive funds under this Act. 

24 (h) PUBLIC ACCESS NOT REQUIRED.—Funds appor25 tioned from the Tribal Wildlife Conservation and RestoraVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:39 Jul 23, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3742.IH H3742

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•HR 3742 IH

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 (i) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Of the funds deposited 

5 under subsection (c)(3) for each fiscal year, not more than 

6 3 percent shall be used by the Secretary for administrative 

7 costs. 

8 (j) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—Nothing in this Act shall be 

9 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. 

Æ 


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