II 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3552 

To conserve the United States fish and aquatic communities through partnerships that foster fish habitat conservation and improve the quality of 

life for the people of the United States, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 24 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 17), 2008 

Mr. LIEBERMAN (for himself, Mr. BOND, Mr. VOINOVICH, and Mrs. CLINTON) 

introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 

Committee on Environment and Public Works 

A BILL 

To conserve the United States fish and aquatic communities 

through partnerships that foster fish habitat conservation 

and improve the quality of life for the people of the 

United States, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘National Fish Habitat Conservation Act’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 


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Sec. 2. Findings; purposes. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 

Sec. 4. National Fish Habitat Board. 

Sec. 5. Fish Habitat Conservation Partnerships. 

Sec. 6. Fish habitat conservation projects. 

Sec. 7. National Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership Office. 

Sec. 8. Conservation of aquatic habitat for fish and other aquatic organisms on 

Federal land. 

Sec. 9. Coordination with States. 

Sec. 10. Accountability and reporting. 

Sec. 11. Regulations. 

Sec. 12. Construction. 

Sec. 13. Applicability of Federal Advisory Committee Act. 

Sec. 14. Funding. 

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSES. 

2 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find3 ings: 

4 (1) Healthy populations of fish and other 

5 aquatic organisms depend on the conservation, pro6 tection, restoration, and enhancement of aquatic 

7 habitats in the United States. 

8 (2) Aquatic habitats, including wetlands, 

9 streams, rivers, lakes, estuaries, coastal and marine 

10 ecosystems, and associated riparian upland habitats 

11 that buffer those areas from external factors, per12 form numerous valuable environmental functions 

13 which sustain environmental, social, and cultural val14 ues, including recycling nutrients, purifying water, 

15 attenuating floods, augmenting and maintaining 

16 stream flows, recharging ground water, acting as 

17 primary producers in the food chain, and providing 

18 essential and significant habitat for plants, fish and 

19 wildlife, and other dependent species. 


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1 (3) The extensive and diverse aquatic habitat 

2 resources of the United States are of enormous sig3 nificance to the economy of the United States, pro4 viding recreation for 44,000,000 anglers, more than 

5 1,000,000 jobs and approximately $125,000,000,000 

6 in economic impact each year related to recreational 

7 fishing, and approximately 500,000 jobs and an ad8 ditional $35,000,000,000 in economic impact from 

9 commercial fishing each year. 

10 (4) At least 40 percent of all threatened and 

11 endangered species in the United States are directly 

12 dependent upon aquatic habitats. 

13 (5) Certain fish species are considered to be ec14 ological indicators of aquatic habitat quality, such 

15 that the presence of such species in an aquatic eco16 system reflects high-quality habitat for other fish. 

17 (6) Loss and degradation of aquatic habitat, ri18 parian habitat, water quality, and water volume 

19 caused by activities such as alteration of water20 courses, stream blockages, water withdrawals and di21 versions, erosion, pollution, sedimentation, and de22 struction or modification of wetlands have caused 

23 significant declines in fish populations throughout 

24 the United States, especially declines in native fish 


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1 populations, and result in economic losses to the 

2 United States. 

3 (7) Providing for the conservation and sustain4 ability of fish and other aquatic organisms has not 

5 been fully realized despite federally funded fish and 

6 wildlife restoration programs and other activities in7 tended to conserve aquatic resources. Such conserva8 tion and sustainability may be significantly advanced 

9 through a renewed commitment and sustained, coop10 erative efforts that are complementary to existing 

11 fish and wildlife restoration programs and clean 

12 water programs. 

13 (8) The National Fish Habitat Action Plan pro14 vides a framework for maintaining and restoring 

15 aquatic habitats to ensure perpetuation of popu16 lations of fish and other aquatic organisms. 

17 (9) The United States can achieve significant 

18 progress toward providing aquatic habitats for the 

19 conservation and restoration of fish and other aquat20 ic organisms through a voluntary, nonregulatory, in21 centive program that is based on technical and fi22 nancial assistance provided by the Federal Govern23 ment. 

24 (10) Creation of partnerships between local citi25 zens, Indian tribes, Alaska Native organizations, 


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1 corporations, nongovernmental organizations, and 

2 Federal, State, and Indian tribal agencies is critical 

3 to the success of activities to restore aquatic habi4 tats and ecosystems. 

5 (11) The Federal Government has numerous 

6 regulatory and land and water management agen7 cies, including the United States Fish and Wildlife 

8 Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Na9 tional Park Service, the Bureau of Reclamation, the 

10 Bureau of Indian Affairs, the National Marine Fish11 eries Service, the Forest Service, the Fishery Man12 agement Councils, the Environmental Protection 

13 Agency, and the several interjurisdictional fishery 

14 commissions that are critical to the implementation 

15 of the National Fish Habitat Action Plan. 

16 (12) The United States Fish and Wildlife Serv17 ice, the Forest Service, and the National Marine 

18 Fisheries Service each play a vital role in the protec19 tion, restoration, and enhancement of the fish com20 munities and aquatic habitats in the United States 

21 and the development, operation, and long-term suc22 cess of fish habitat partnerships and project imple23 mentation. 

24 (13) The United States Geological Survey plays 

25 a vital role in scientific evaluation, data collection, 


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1 and mapping for fishery resources in the United 

2 States. 

3 (14) Many of the programs for conservation on 

4 private farmland, ranchland, and forestland that are 

5 carried out by the Secretary of Agriculture, includ6 ing the Natural Resources Conservation Service and 

7 the State and Private Forestry programs of the For8 est Service, are able to significantly contribute to the 

9 implementation of the National Fish Habitat Action 

10 Plan through the engagement of private landowners. 

11 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are to en12 courage partnerships among public agencies and other in13 terests consistent with the mission and goals of the Na14 tional Fish Habitat Action Plan— 

15 (1) to protect and maintain intact and healthy 

16 aquatic habitats; 

17 (2) to prevent further degradation of aquatic 

18 habitats that have been adversely affected; 

19 (3) to reverse declines in the quality and quan20 tity of aquatic habitats to improve the overall health 

21 of fish and other aquatic organisms; 

22 (4) to increase the quality and quantity of 

23 aquatic habitats that support a broad natural diver24 sity of fish and other aquatic species; 


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1 (5) to improve fisheries habitat, thereby improv2 ing the annual economic output from recreational, 

3 subsistence, and commercial fishing; 

4 (6) to ensure coordination and facilitation of ac5 tivities carried out by agencies or departments of the 

6 United States under the leadership of the Director 

7 of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the 

8 Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere of the 

9 Department of Commerce, and the Director of the 

10 United States Geological Survey; and 

11 (7) to achieve other purposes in accordance 

12 with the mission and goals of the National Fish 

13 Habitat Action Plan. 

14 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

15 In this Act: 

16 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT17 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com18 mittees’’ means the Committee on Commerce, 

19 Science and Transportation and the Committee on 

20 Environment and Public Works of the Senate and 

21 the Committee on Natural Resources of the House 

22 of Representatives. 

23 (2) AQUATIC HABITAT.—The term ‘‘aquatic 

24 habitat’’— 


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1 (A) means any area upon which aquatic 

2 organisms depend, directly or indirectly, to 

3 carry out the life processes of such organisms, 

4 including an area used by such organisms for 

5 spawning, incubation, nursery, rearing, growth 

6 to maturity, food supply, or migration; and 

7 (B) includes an area adjacent to an aquat8 ic environment if such adjacent area— 

9 (i) contributes elements, such as the 

10 input of detrital material or the promotion 

11 of planktonic and insect populations pro12 viding food, which make fish life possible; 

13 (ii) protects the quality and quantity 

14 of water sources; 

15 (iii) provides public access for the use 

16 of fishery resources; or 

17 (iv) serves as a buffer protecting the 

18 aquatic environment. 

19 (3) ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR.—The term 

20 ‘‘Assistant Administrator’’ means the Assistant Ad21 ministrator for Fisheries of the National Marine 

22 Fisheries Service. 

23 (4) CONSERVATION; CONSERVE; MANAGE; MAN24 AGEMENT.—The terms ‘‘conservation’’, ‘‘conserve’’, 

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1 tain and, where appropriate, restore and enhance, 

2 healthy populations of fish, wildlife, and plant life, 

3 as well as the habitats that are required to sustain 

4 fish, wildlife, and plant life, as well as the habitats 

5 that are required to sustain fish, wildlife, and plant 

6 life productivity by utilizing methods and procedures 

7 associated with modern scientific resource programs, 

8 including protection, research, census, law enforce9 ment, habitat management, propagation, live trap10 ping and transplantation, and regulated taking. 

11 (5) DIRECTOR.—Except as otherwise provided, 

12 the term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director of the 

13 United States Fish and Wildlife Service. 

14 (6) FISH.—The term ‘‘fish’’ means any fresh15 water, diadromous, estuarine, or marine finfish or 

16 shellfish, including the egg, spawn, spat, larval, and 

17 other juvenile stages of such an organism. 

18 (7) FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION PARTNER19 SHIP; PARTNERSHIP.—The terms ‘‘Fish Habitat 

20 Conservation Partnership’’ and ‘‘Partnership’’ mean 

21 an entity designated by the Board as a Fish Habitat 

22 Conservation Partnership pursuant to section 5(c). 

23 (8) FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION PROJECT; 

24 PROJECT.—The terms ‘‘fish habitat conservation 

25 project’’ and ‘‘project’’ mean a project submitted to 


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1 the Board by a Fish Habitat Conservation Partner2 ship and approved by the Secretary under section 6 

3 that provides for the conservation or management of 

4 aquatic habitat and that may include— 

5 (A) the provision of technical assistance to 

6 a State, Indian tribe, or local community by the 

7 National Fish Habitat Partnerships Office or 

8 other agency to facilitate the development of 

9 strategies and priorities for the conservation of 

10 aquatic habitats; or 

11 (B) the obtaining of a real property inter12 est in land or waters, including water rights, if 

13 the obtaining of such interest is subject to 

14 terms and conditions that will ensure that the 

15 real property will be administered for the long16 term conservation of such lands and waters and 

17 the fish dependent thereon. 

18 (9) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ 

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

20 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

21 Act (25 U.S.C. 450b). 

22 (10) NATIONAL FISH HABITAT ACTION PLAN; 

23 PLAN.—The terms ‘‘National Fish Habitat Action 

24 Plan’’ and ‘‘Plan’’ mean the National Fish Habitat 


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1 Action Plan dated April 24, 2006, and any subse2 quent revision or amendment to that Plan. 

3 (11) NATIONAL FISH HABITAT BOARD; 

4 BOARD.—Except as otherwise provided, the terms 

5 ‘‘National Fish Habitat Board’’ and ‘‘Board’’ mean 

6 the National Fish Habitat Board established in sec7 tion 4(a). 

8 (12) REAL PROPERTY INTEREST.—The term 

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

10 in land or waters, including water rights, or a build11 ing or object that is permanently affixed to the land. 

12 (13) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

13 means the Secretary of the Interior. 

14 (14) STATE AGENCY.—The term ‘‘State agen15 cy’’ means the fish and wildlife agency of a State, 

16 or any department, or division of a department or 

17 agency of a State that is empowered by statute or 

18 by the constitution of the State to manage in the 

19 public trust the inland or marine fishery resources 

20 of the State. 

21 SEC. 4. NATIONAL FISH HABITAT BOARD. 

22 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is established a Na24 tional Fish Habitat Board— 


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1 (A) to promote, oversee, and coordinate the 

2 implementation of this Act and the National 

3 Fish Habitat Action Plan; and 

4 (B) to review and recommend fish habitat 

5 conservation projects. 

6 (2) MEMBERSHIP.—The members of the Board 

7 shall be as follows: 

8 (A) The Director. 

9 (B) The Assistant Administrator. 

10 (C) The Chief of the Natural Resources 

11 Conservation Service. 

12 (D) The Director of the Watershed, Fish, 

13 Wildlife, Air & Rare Plants program of the For14 est Service. 

15 (E) The Assistant Administrator for Water 

16 of the Environmental Protection Agency. 

17 (F) The President of the Association of 

18 Fish and Wildlife Agencies. 

19 (G) The Secretary of the Board of Direc20 tors of the National Fish and Wildlife Founda21 tion appointed pursuant to section 3(g)(2)(B) 

22 of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation 

23 Establishment Act (16 U.S.C. 3702(g)(2)(B)). 

24 (H) Four representatives of State agencies, 

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1 gions Associations of Fish and Wildlife Agen2 cies (Northeast, Southeast, Midwest, and West3 ern). 

4 (I) One representative of the American 

5 Fisheries Society. 

6 (J) Two representatives of Indian tribes, 1 

7 of whom shall represent Indian tribes from 

8 Alaska and 1 of whom shall represent Indian 

9 tribes from the other States. 

10 (K) One member who represents the Re11 gional Fishery Management Councils estab12 lished under section 302 of the Magnuson-Ste13 vens Fishery Conservation and Management 

14 Act (16 U.S.C. 1852). 

15 (L) One member who represents the Ma16 rine Fisheries Commissions (the Atlantic States 

17 Marine Fisheries Commission, the Gulf States 

18 Marine Fisheries Commission, and the Pacific 

19 States Marine Fisheries Commission). 

20 (M) One representative from the 

21 Sportfishing and Boating Partnership Council. 

22 (N) Eleven members each of whom rep23 resents the interests of 1 of the following: 

24 (i) The recreational sportfishing in25 dustry. 


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1 (ii) The commercial sportfishing in2 dustry. 

3 (iii) Subsistence fishermen. 

4 (iv) Marine recreational anglers. 

5 (v) Freshwater recreational anglers. 

6 (vi) Terrestrial resource conservation 

7 organizations. 

8 (vii) Aquatic resource conservation or9 ganizations. 

10 (viii) The livestock and poultry pro11 duction industry. 

12 (ix) The housing development indus13 try. 

14 (x) The row crop industry. 

15 (xi) Natural resource commodity in16 terests, such as petroleum or mineral ex17 traction. 

18 (3) COMPENSATION.—Members of the Board 

19 shall serve without compensation for that service. 

20 (b) APPOINTMENT AND TERMS.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise pro22 vided in this subsection, a member of the Board de23 scribed in subparagraphs (H) through (N) of sub24 section (a)(2) shall serve for a term of 3 years. 


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1 (2) INITIAL BOARD MEMBERSHIP.—Not later 

2 than 6 months after the date of the enactment of 

3 this Act, the representatives of the National Fish 

4 Habitat Board established by the Plan shall appoint 

5 the initial members of the Board described in sub6 paragraphs (H) through (N) of subsection (a)(2). 

7 (3) TRANSITIONAL TERMS.—The initial ap8 pointments of the members of the Board described 

9 in subparagraph (N) of subsection (a)(2) shall be for 

10 terms as follows: 

11 (A) Four shall be appointed for a term of 

12 1 year. 

13 (B) Four shall be appointed for a term of 

14 2 years. 

15 (C) Three shall be appointed for a term of 

16 3 years. 

17 (4) VACANCIES.—A vacancy of a member of the 

18 Board described in subparagraphs (H) through (N) 

19 of subsection (a)(2) shall be filled by an appointment 

20 made by the remaining members of the Board. 

21 (5) CONTINUATION OF SERVICE.—An individual 

22 whose term of service as a member of the Board ex23 pires may continue to serve on the Board until a 

24 successor is appointed. 


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1 (6) REMOVAL.—If a member of the Board de2 scribed in subparagraphs (H) through (N) of sub3 section (a)(2) misses 3 consecutive regularly sched4 uled Board meetings, the members of the Board 

5 may vote to remove that member and appoint an6 other individual in accordance with paragraph (4). 

7 (c) CHAIR.— 

8 (1) ELECTION.—A Chair of the Board shall be 

9 elected by the Board from among its members. 

10 (2) TERM.—The Chair of the Board shall serve 

11 for a term of 3 years. 

12 (d) MEETINGS.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall meet at the 

14 call of the Chair but in no case less often than twice 

15 a year. 

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

17 Board shall be open to the public. 

18 (e) BOARD PROCEDURES.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall establish 

20 procedures to carry out the business of the Board 

21 that include the following: 

22 (A) A requirement that a quorum of the 

23 members of the Board be present to transact 

24 business. 


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1 (B) A requirement that no recommenda2 tions may be adopted by the Board, except by 

the vote of 2 3 ⁄3 of all members present and vot4 ing. 

5 (C) Procedures for setting national goals 

6 and priorities for aquatic habitat conservation 

7 for the purposes of this Act. 

8 (D) Procedures for designating Fish Habi9 tat Conservation Partnerships under section 5. 

10 (E) Procedures for reviewing, evaluating, 

11 and recommending fish habitat conservation 

12 projects. 

13 (2) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of 

14 the Board shall constitute a quorum. 

15 SEC. 5. FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION PARTNERSHIPS. 

16 (a) AUTHORITY TO DESIGNATE.—The Board is au17 thorized to designate Fish Habitat Conservation Partner18 ships. 

19 (b) APPLICATION.—An entity seeking to be des20 ignated as a Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership shall 

21 submit an application to the Board at such time and in 

22 such manner as the Board may reasonably require. 

23 (c) PURPOSES.—The purposes of a Partnership shall 

24 be— 


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1 (1) to coordinate implementation of the Plan at 

2 a regional level; and 

3 (2) to develop and carry out fish habitat con4 servation projects. 

5 (d) APPROVAL.—The Board may approve an applica6 tion for a Partnership submitted under subsection (b) if 

7 the Board determines that the applicant— 

8 (1) includes representatives of a diverse group 

9 of public and private partners, including Federal, 

10 State, or local governments, nonprofit entities, In11 dian tribes, or private individuals, that are focused 

12 on conservation of aquatic habitats to achieve results 

13 across jurisdictional boundaries and public and pri14 vate lands; 

15 (2) is organized to promote the health of impor16 tant aquatic habitats and distinct geographic areas, 

17 keystone fish species, or system types, including res18 ervoirs, natural lakes, or estuaries; 

19 (3) identifies strategic fish and aquatic habitat 

20 priorities for the Partnership area in the form of ge21 ographic focus areas or key stressors or impairments 

22 to facilitate strategic planning and decisionmaking; 

23 (4) is able to address issues and priorities at a 

24 nationally significant scale; 


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1 (5) includes governance structures that reflect 

2 the range of all partners and promotes joint stra3 tegic planning and decisionmaking by the applicant; 

4 (6) demonstrates completion of, or significant 

5 progress toward the development of, a strategic plan 

6 to address the causes of system decline in fish popu7 lations rather than simply treating symptoms in ac8 cordance with the Plan; and 

9 (7) ensures collaboration in developing a stra10 tegic vision and implementation program that is sci11 entifically sound and achievable. 

12 SEC. 6. FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION PROJECTS. 

13 (a) SUBMISSION TO THE BOARD.—A Partnership 

14 seeking funding for a fish habitat conservation project 

15 shall submit an application to the Board for such funding 

16 at such time and in such manner as the Board may rea17 sonably require. 

18 (b) RECOMMENDATIONS BY THE BOARD.—Not later 

19 than July 1 of each year, the Board shall submit to the 

20 Secretary a description, including estimated costs, of each 

21 fish habitat conservation project that the Board rec22 ommends that the Secretary approve and fund under this 

23 Act, in order of priority of the Board’s recommendations, 

24 for the following fiscal year. 


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1 (c) CONSIDERATIONS.—The Board shall select each 

2 project to be recommended to the Secretary under sub3 section (b)— 

4 (1) based on a recommendation of the Partner5 ship that is, or that will be, participating actively in 

6 carrying out the project; and 

7 (2) after consideration of— 

8 (A) the extent to which the project fulfills 

9 a purpose of this Act or a goal of the Plan; 

10 (B) the extent to which the project ad11 dresses the national priorities set by the Board; 

12 (C) the availability of sufficient non-Fed13 eral funds to match Federal contributions for 

14 the project, as required by subsection (e); 

15 (D) the extent to which the project— 

16 (i) increases fishing opportunities for 

17 the public; 

18 (ii) will be carried out through a coop19 erative agreement among Federal, State, 

20 and local governments, Indian tribes, and 

21 private entities; 

22 (iii) increases public access to land 

23 and waters; and 

24 (iv) advances the conservation of fish 

25 and wildlife species that are listed, or are 


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1 candidates to be listed, as threatened spe2 cies and endangered species under the En3 dangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 

4 1531 et seq.); and 

5 (E) the substantiality of the character and 

6 design of the project. 

7 (d) LIMITATIONS.— 

8 (1) REQUIREMENTS FOR MONITORING.—No 

9 fish habitat conservation project may be rec10 ommended by the Board under subsection (b) or 

11 provided financial assistance under this Act unless 

12 the project includes a monitoring plan designed to— 

13 (A) appropriately assess the results of the 

14 habitat protection, restoration, or enhancement 

15 activities carried out with such assistance; 

16 (B) recommend appropriate changes to the 

17 project if such assessment substantiates that 

18 the project objectives are not being met; and 

19 (C) report findings of such assessment to 

20 the Board. 

21 (2) ACQUISITION OF REAL PROPERTY INTER22 ESTS.— 

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—No fish habitat con24 servation project that will result in the acquisi25 tion by the Secretary, in whole or in part, of 


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1 any real property interest may be recommended 

2 by the Board under subsection (b) or provided 

3 financial assistance under this Act unless the 

4 project meets the requirements of subparagraph 

5 (B). 

6 (B) REQUIREMENTS.— 

7 (i) IN GENERAL.—Any real property 

8 interest described in subparagraph (A) 

9 may not be conveyed to a State, another 

10 public agency, or other entity unless— 

11 (I) the Secretary determines that 

12 such State, agency, or other entity is 

13 obligated to undertake the manage14 ment of the property being conveyed 

15 in accordance with the purposes of 

16 this Act; and 

17 (II) the deed or other instrument 

18 of transfer contains provisions for the 

19 reversion of title to the property to 

20 the United States if such State, agen21 cy, or other entity fails to manage the 

22 property in accordance with the pur23 poses of this Act. 

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1 scribed in subparagraph (A) conveyed as 

2 described in clause (i) shall be subject to 

3 such terms and conditions that will ensure 

4 that the interest will be administered for 

5 the long-term conservation and manage6 ment of the aquatic ecosystem and the fish 

7 and wildlife dependent thereon. 

8 (e) NON-FEDERAL CONTRIBUTION FOR PROJECTS.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para10 graph (2), no fish habitat conservation project may 

11 be recommended by the Board under subsection (b) 

12 or provided financial assistance under this Act un13 less at least 50 percent of the cost of the project will 

14 be funded with non-Federal funds. 

15 (2) PROJECTS ON FEDERAL LAND OR WA16 TERS.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), Federal 

17 funds may be used for payment of 100 percent of 

18 the costs of a project located on Federal land or wa19 ters, including the acquisition of inholdings within 

20 such land and waters. 

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

22 share of the cost of a project may not be derived 

23 from a Federal grant program, but may include in24 kind contributions and cash. 


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1 (4) SPECIAL RULE FOR ALASKA NATIVE ORGA2 NIZATIONS.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1) or any 

3 other provision of law, any funds made available to 

4 an Indian tribe pursuant to this Act may be consid5 ered non-Federal funds for the purpose of paragraph 

6 (1). 

7 (f) CONSIDERATION BY THE SECRETARY.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

9 after receiving the recommendations of the Board 

10 for fish habitat conservation projects under sub11 section (b), the Secretary shall approve, reject, or re12 order the priority of each such recommendation 

13 based on, to the greatest extent practicable, the cri14 teria described in subsection (c). 

15 (2) FUNDING.—If the Secretary approves a 

16 project, the Secretary shall use amounts made avail17 able pursuant to an authorization of appropriations 

18 in this Act to provide funds to carry out the project. 

19 (3) NOTIFICATION BY THE SECRETARY.—If the 

20 Secretary rejects or reorders the priority of any 

21 project recommended by the Board under subsection 

22 (b), the Secretary shall provide to the Board and the 

23 appropriate Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership 

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1 retary rejected or modified the priority of the 

2 project. 

3 SEC. 7. NATIONAL FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION PART4 NERSHIP OFFICE. 

5 (a) REQUIREMENT TO ESTABLISH.—Not later than 

6 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

7 Director shall create the National Fish Habitat Conserva8 tion Partnership Office within the United States Fish and 

9 Wildlife Service. 

10 (b) FUNCTIONS.—The National Fish Habitat Con11 servation Partnership Office shall— 

12 (1) provide funding for the operational needs of 

13 the Fish Habitat Conservation Partnerships, includ14 ing funding for activities such as planning, project 

15 development and implementation, coordination, mon16 itoring, communication, and outreach; 

17 (2) facilitate the cooperative development and 

18 approval of Partnerships; 

19 (3) support the development and implementa20 tion of fish habitat conservation projects that are 

21 identified as high priorities by the Board; 

22 (4) assist the Secretary and the Board in car23 rying out this Act; 

24 (5) assist the Secretary in carrying out the re25 quirements of section 9; 


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1 (6) facilitate communication, cohesiveness, and 

2 efficient operations for the benefit of the Partner3 ships and the Board; 

4 (7) facilitate, with assistance from the Director, 

5 the Assistant Administrator, and the President of 

6 the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, the 

7 consideration of projects by the Board; 

8 (8) provide support to the Director in the devel9 opment and implementation of the interagency oper10 ational plan required in subsection (c); 

11 (9) provide technical and scientific assistance 

12 pursuant to the technical and scientific assistance 

13 program required by subsection (d); and 

14 (10) coordinate and facilitate the resources and 

15 activities of the agencies and departments of the 

16 United States to carry out this Act in an efficient 

17 manner. 

18 (c) INTERAGENCY OPERATIONAL PLAN.—Not later 

19 than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act 

20 and every 5 years thereafter, the Director, in cooperation 

21 with the Assistant Administrator and the heads of other 

22 appropriate Federal agencies and departments, shall de23 velop an interagency operational plan for the National 

24 Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership Office that de25 scribes— 


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1 (1) the functional, operational, technical, sci2 entific and general staff, administrative, and mate3 rial needs of the Office; and 

4 (2) any interagency agreements between or 

5 among Federal agencies or departments to address 

6 such needs. 

7 (d) TECHNICAL AND SCIENTIFIC ASSISTANCE.—The 

8 Director, in coordination with the Assistance Adminis9 trator and the heads of the United States Geological Sur10 vey, the Forest Service, and other appropriate Federal 

11 agencies and departments, shall develop a technical and 

12 scientific assistance program within the National Fish 

13 Habitat Conservation Partnership Office— 

14 (1) to provide scientific and technical assistance 

15 to States, Indian tribes, regions, local communities, 

16 and nongovernmental organizations in the develop17 ment and implementation of Fish Habitat Conserva18 tion Partnerships; and 

19 (2) to ensure the availability of expertise to con20 duct scientifically based evaluation and reporting of 

21 results of fish habitat conservation projects to meet 

22 the reporting requirements described in section 10. 

23 (e) STAFF AND SUPPORT.— 

24 (1) DEPARTMENTS OF THE INTERIOR AND COM25 MERCE.—The Director and the Assistant AdminisVerDate Aug 31 2005 23:56 Sep 26, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3552.IS S3552

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1 trator shall each provide appropriate staff to support 

2 the National Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership 

3 Office. 

4 (2) STATES.—The States are encouraged to 

5 provide staff to support the National Fish Habitat 

6 Conservation Partnership Office. 

7 (3) DETAILEES AND CONTRACTORS.—The Na8 tional Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership Office 

9 may accept staff or other administrative support 

10 from other entities through interagency details or as 

11 contractors. 

12 (4) QUALIFICATIONS.—The members of the 

13 staff of the National Fish Habitat Conservation 

14 Partnership Office shall have education and experi15 ence in the principles of fish, wildlife, and aquatic 

16 habitat conservation. 

17 (f) REPORTING.—Not less frequently than once each 

18 year, the Director shall provide to the Board a report on 

19 the activities of the National Fish Habitat Conservation 

20 Partnership Office. 

21 SEC. 8. CONSERVATION OF AQUATIC HABITAT FOR FISH 

22 AND OTHER AQUATIC ORGANISMS ON FED23 ERAL LAND. 

24 The head of each Federal agency or department re25 sponsible for acquiring, managing, or disposing of Federal 


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1 land and waters shall, to the extent consistent with the 

2 mission of such agency or department and existing statu3 tory authorities, cooperate with the Assistant Adminis4 trator and the Director to conserve the aquatic habitats 

5 for fish and other aquatic organisms within the land and 

6 waters of each such agency. 

7 SEC. 9. COORDINATION WITH STATES. 

8 The Secretary shall notify and coordinate with the 

9 State agency of a State not later than 30 days prior to 

10 the date that any action is planned or carried out within 

11 the State related to the implementation of this Act. 

12 SEC. 10. ACCOUNTABILITY AND REPORTING. 

13 (a) IMPLEMENTATION REPORTS.— 

14 (1) REQUIREMENT FOR REPORTS.—Not later 

15 than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this 

16 Act, and every 2 years thereafter, the Board shall 

17 submit to the appropriate congressional committees 

18 a report on the implementation of this Act and of 

19 the Plan. 

20 (2) CONTENT.—Each report submitted under 

21 paragraph (1) shall include— 

22 (A) an estimate of the number of acres, 

23 stream miles, or acre feet of aquatic habitat, or 

24 other suitable measures of aquatic habitat, that 

25 was protected, restored, or enhanced under the 


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1 Plan by Federal, State, or local governments, 

2 Indian tribes, or other entities in the United 

3 States during the previous 2-year period; 

4 (B) a description of the public access to 

5 aquatic habitats protected, restored, or created 

6 under the Plan during such period; 

7 (C) a description of the opportunities for 

8 public fishing created under the Plan during 

9 such period; and 

10 (D) an assessment of the status of fish 

11 habitat conservation projects carried out with 

12 funds provided under this Act, disaggregated by 

13 year, including— 

14 (i) a description of the fish habitat 

15 conservation projects that the Board rec16 ommended under section 6(b); 

17 (ii) a description of each such project 

18 approved by the Secretary under section 

19 6(f), in order of priority of receiving such 

20 funding; 

21 (iii) a justification for the approval of 

22 each such project and for the order of pri23 ority for its funding; 

24 (iv) a justification for any rejection or 

25 reordering of the priority of each such 


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1 project recommended by the Board under 

2 section 6(b) that was based on factors 

3 other than the criteria set out in section 

4 6(c); and 

5 (v) an accounting of expenditures by 

6 Federal, State, or local governments, In7 dian tribes, or other entities in the United 

8 States to carry out such projects. 

9 (b) STATUS AND TRENDS REPORT.—Not later than 

10 December 31, 2010, and every 5 years thereafter, the 

11 Board shall submit to the appropriate congressional com12 mittees a report on the status of aquatic habitats in the 

13 United States. 

14 (c) REVISIONS TO THE PLAN.—Not later than De15 cember 31, 2011, and every 5 years thereafter, the Board 

16 shall undertake to revise the goals and other elements of 

17 the Plan after consideration of each report required by 

18 subsection (b). 

19 SEC. 11. REGULATIONS. 

20 The Secretary may promulgate regulations to carry 

21 out this Act. 

22 SEC. 12. CONSTRUCTION. 

23 (a) WATER RIGHTS.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this Act may be 

25 construed— 


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1 (A) to create a reserved water right, ex2 pressed or implied, in the United States for any 

3 purpose or to affect any water right in existence 

4 on the date of the enactment of this Act; or 

5 (B) to affect any Federal or State law in 

6 existence on the date of the enactment of the 

7 Act regarding water quality or water quantity. 

8 (2) AUTHORITY TO ACQUIRE WATER RIGHTS.— 

9 The Secretary may acquire, under State law, water 

10 rights that are needed to carry out this Act. 

11 (b) STATE AUTHORITY.—Nothing in this Act may be 

12 construed— 

13 (1) to affect the authority, jurisdiction, or re14 sponsibility of a State to manage, control, or regu15 late fish and wildlife under the laws and regulations 

16 of the State; or 

17 (2) to authorize the Secretary to control or reg18 ulate within a State the fishing or hunting of fish 

19 and wildlife within the State. 

20 (c) CONSTRUCTION WITH RESPECT TO RIGHTS OF

21 INDIAN TRIBES.—Nothing in this Act may be construed 

22 to abrogate, abridge, affect, modify, supersede, or alter 

23 any treaty-reserved right or other right of an Indian tribe 

24 as recognized by any other means, including agreements 


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1 with the United States, Federal law, Executive orders, 

2 statutes, and judicial decrees. 

3 (d) CONSTRUCTION WITH RESPECT TO SUITS FOR

4 ADJUDICATION OF WATER RIGHTS.—Nothing in this Act 

5 diminishes or affects the ability of the Secretary to join 

6 an adjudication of rights to the use of water pursuant to 

7 subsections (a), (b), and (c) of section 208 of the Depart8 ment of Justice Appropriation Act (43 U.S.C. 666). 

9 (e) CONSTRUCTION WITH RESPECT TO OTHER AU10 THORITIES.— 

11 (1) ACQUISITION OF LANDS AND WATERS.— 

12 Nothing in this Act may be construed to affect, 

13 alter, or modify the authorities, responsibilities, obli14 gations, or powers of the Secretary to acquire land 

15 or waters or interests therein under any other provi16 sion of law. 

17 (2) PRIVATE PROPERTY PROTECTION.—Nothing 

18 in this Act may be construed to permit funds made 

19 available to carry out this Act to be used to acquire 

20 any real property or any interest in any real prop21 erty without the written consent of each owner of 

22 that property or interest in property. 

23 (3) MITIGATION.—Nothing in this Act may be 

24 construed to permit funds made available to carry 

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1 tion purposes under the Federal Water Pollution 

2 Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.), the Fish and 

3 Wildlife Coordination Act (16 U.S.C. 661 et seq.), 

4 or the Water Resources Development Act of 1986 

5 (Public Law 99–662; 100 Stat. 4082). 

6 SEC. 13. APPLICABILITY OF FEDERAL ADVISORY COM7 MITTEE ACT. 

8 Any action taken to coordinate the carrying out of 

9 this Act with the personnel of a State agency shall not 

10 be subject to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 

11 U.S.C. App). 

12 SEC. 14. FUNDING. 

13 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

14 (1) FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION PROJECTS.— 

15 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec16 retary for each of the fiscal years 2009 through 

17 2013, $75,000,000 to provide funds for fish habitat 

18 conservation projects approved under section 6(f), of 

19 which 5 percent shall be made available each fiscal 

20 year for projects carried out by Indian tribes. 

21 (2) NATIONAL FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION

22 PARTNERSHIP OFFICE.—There are authorized to be 

23 appropriated to the Secretary for each of the fiscal 

24 years 2009 through 2013, $3,000,000 or 25 percent 

25 of the amount appropriated for each such fiscal year 


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1 pursuant to paragraph (1), whichever is greater, for 

2 the National Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership 

3 Office. 

4 (3) PLANNING, REPORTING, AND ADMINISTRA5 TIVE EXPENSES.—There are authorized to be appro6 priated to the Secretary for each of the fiscal years 

7 2009 through 2013, $300,000 or 4 percent of the 

8 amount appropriated for each such year under para9 graph (1), whichever is greater, for the Board, the 

10 Director, and the Assistant Administrator to utilize 

11 for planning and administrative expenses, and to 

12 carry out section 10. 

13 (4) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Funds made 

14 available pursuant to this subsection shall remain 

15 available until expended. 

16 (b) AGREEMENTS AND GRANTS.—The Secretary 

17 may— 

18 (1) upon the recommendation of the Board, and 

19 notwithstanding sections 6304 and 6305 of title 31, 

20 United States Code, or the Federal Financial Assist21 ance Management Improvement Act of 1999 (Public 

22 Law 106–107; 31 U.S.C. 6101 note) enter into a co23 operative agreement or contract with a Fish Habitat 

24 Conservation Partnership for fish habitat conserva25 tion, restoration, and enhancement projects; 


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1 (2) apply for, accept, and use grants from any 

2 person or entity to carry out the purposes of this 

3 Act; and 

4 (3) make funds available to any Federal agency 

5 or department to be used by that agency or depart6 ment to award grants for any fish habitat protec7 tion, restoration, and enhancement project that the 

8 Secretary determines to be consistent with this Act. 

9 (c) DONATIONS.— 

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

11 (A) enter into an agreement with any orga12 nization described in section 501(c)(3) of the 

13 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to solicit private 

14 donations to carry out the purposes and policies 

15 of this Act; and 

16 (B) accept donations of funds, property, 

17 and services for use in carrying out the pur18 poses and policies of this Act. 

19 (2) TREATMENT OF DONATIONS.—Donations 

20 accepted under this section shall be considered as 

21 gifts or bequests to, or for the use of, the United 

22 States and may be used directly by the Secretary or 

23 provided to other Federal agencies or departments 

24 through interagency agreements. 

Æ 


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