I 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4716 

To require the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture 

to provide certain Western States assistance in the development of statewide conservation and management plans for the protection and recovery 

of sage grouse species, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 22, 2014 

Mr. GARDNER (for himself, Mr. BISHOP of Utah, Mrs. LUMMIS, Mr. STEWART, Mr. CHAFFETZ, Mr. TIPTON, Mr. AMODEI, and Mr. DAINES) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural 

Resources 

A BILL 

To require the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary 

of Agriculture to provide certain Western States assistance in the development of statewide conservation and 

management plans for the protection and recovery of 

sage grouse species, 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 ‘‘Sage Grouse Protec5 tion and Conservation Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. GREATER SAGE-GROUSE PROTECTION AND CON2 SERVATION MEASURES. 

3 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

4 (1) COVERED WESTERN STATE.—The term 

5 ‘‘covered western State’’ means each of the States of 

6 California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, 

7 North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Wash8 ington, and Wyoming. 

9 (2) NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM LANDS.—The 

10 term ‘‘National Forest System lands’’ means the 

11 Federal lands within the National Forest System, as 

12 described in section 11(a) of the Forest and Range13 land Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16 

14 U.S.C. 1609(a)). 

15 (3) PUBLIC LANDS.—The term ‘‘public lands’’ 

16 has the meaning given that term in section 103(e) 

17 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 

18 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1702(e)). 

19 (4) SAGE GROUSE SPECIES.—The term ‘‘sage 

20 grouse species’’ means the greater sage-grouse 

21 (Centrocercus urophasianus) and the Gunnison sage22 grouse (Centrocercus minimus). 

23 (5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

24 means— 

25 (A) the Secretary of Agriculture, with re26 spect to National Forest System lands; and 


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1 (B) the Secretary of the Interior, with re2 spect to public lands. 

3 (6) STATEWIDE PLAN.—The term ‘‘statewide 

4 plan’’ means a statewide conservation and manage5 ment plan for the protection and recovery of sage 

6 grouse species within a covered western State. 

7 (b) SECRETARIAL PARTICIPATION IN STATE PLAN8 NING PROCESS.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days after 

10 receipt of notice from a covered western State that 

11 the State is initiating or has initiated development 

12 of a statewide conservation and management plan 

13 for the protection and recovery of the sage grouse 

14 species within the State, the Secretary shall provide 

15 to the Governor of that covered western State— 

16 (A) a commitment of the Secretary’s will17 ingness to participate in such development; 

18 (B) a list of designees from the Depart19 ment of the Interior or Department of Agri20 culture, as applicable, who shall represent the 

21 Secretary as a participant in such development; 

22 and 

23 (C) a list of other Federal departments 

24 that could be invited by the covered western 

25 State to participate. 


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1 (2) ACCESS TO INFORMATION.—Not later than 

2 60 days after receipt of such notice from the covered 

3 western State, the Secretary shall provide to the 

4 State all relevant scientific data, research, or infor5 mation regarding sage grouse species and habitat 

6 within the State for use by appropriate State per7 sonnel to assist the State in such development. 

8 (3) AVAILABILITY OF DEPARTMENT PER9 SONNEL.—The Secretary shall make personnel from 

10 Department of the Interior agencies or Department 

11 of Agriculture agencies, respectively, available, on at 

12 least a monthly basis, to meet with officials of the 

13 State to develop or implement such a plan. 

14 (c) CONTENTS OF NOTICE.—A notice under sub15 section (b) shall— 

16 (1) be submitted by a Governor of any covered 

17 western State; and 

18 (2) include— 

19 (A) an invitation for the Secretary to par20 ticipate in development of the statewide plan; 

21 and 

22 (B) a commitment that, not later than 2 

23 years after the submission of a notice under 

24 this section, the State shall present to the Sec25 retary for review a 10-year (or longer) sage 


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1 grouse species conservation and management 

2 plan for the entire State. 

3 (d) REVIEW OF STATE PLAN.—If the Secretary re4 ceives such a statewide plan from a covered western State 

5 not later than 2 years after receiving such notice from the 

6 State, the Secretary shall— 

7 (1) review the statewide plan using the best 

8 available science and data to determine if the state9 wide plan is likely to— 

10 (A) conserve the sage grouse species to the 

11 point at which the measures provided pursuant 

12 to the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 

13 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) are no longer necessary in 

14 the State; and 

15 (B) conserve the habitat essential to con16 serve the sage grouse species within the State; 

17 and 

18 (2) approve or endorse, or make comments on, 

19 the statewide plan not later than 120 days after it 

20 is submitted. 

21 (e) ACTIONS AFTER STATEWIDE PLAN IS SUB22 MITTED.— 

23 (1) HOLD ON CERTAIN ACTIONS.—Not later 

24 than 30 days after receipt of such a statewide conVerDate Mar 15 2010 01:04 May 29, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4716.IH H4716

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1 servation and management plan from a covered 

2 western State, the Secretary shall— 

3 (A) take necessary steps to place on hold— 

4 (i) all actions with respect to listing 

5 any sage grouse species in that State 

6 under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 

7 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), for a period of 

8 not less than 10 years; 

9 (ii) enforcement of any current listing 

10 of sage grouse species within that State 

11 under such Act; and 

12 (iii) designation of any critical habitat 

13 for any sage grouse species within that 

14 State under such Act; and 

15 (B) withdraw any land use planning activi16 ties related to Federal management of sage 

17 grouse on Federal lands within that State and 

18 take immediate steps to amend all Federal land 

19 use plans to comply with such plan with respect 

20 to that State, if— 

21 (i) the State presents to the Secretary 

22 its conservation and management plan not 

23 later than 2 years after the State submits 

24 notice to the Secretary under subsection 

25 (b); and 


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1 (ii) the State is implementing the 

2 plan. 

3 (2) ACTIONS PURSUANT TO NEPA.—Any pro4 posed action pursuant to the National Environ5 mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) 

6 that occurs within a covered western State may not 

7 be denied or restricted solely on the basis of sage8 grouse if such action is consistent with a statewide 

9 plan that has been submitted by the State to the 

10 Secretary. 

11 (f) EXISTING STATE PLANS.—The Secretary shall— 

12 (1) except as provided in paragraph (2), give ef13 fect to a statewide conservation and management 

14 plan for the protection and recovery of sage grouse 

15 species within a covered western State that is sub16 mitted by such State and approved or endorsed by 

17 the United States Fish and Wildlife Services before 

18 the date of the enactment of this Act, in accordance 

19 with the terms of approval or endorsement of the 

20 plan by the United States Fish and Wildlife Serv21 ices; and 

22 (2) for purposes of subsections (b)(3) and (e), 

23 treat such a plan as a plan referred to in each such 

24 subsection. 

Æ 


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