II 

Calendar No. 378 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1214 

[Report No. 111–190] 

To conserve fish and aquatic communities in the United States through 

partnerships that foster fish habitat conservation, to improve the quality 

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

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 9, 2009 

Mr. LIEBERMAN (for himself, Mr. CASEY, Mr. BOND, Ms. STABENOW, Mr. 

CARDIN, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, Mr. CRAPO, Mr. UDALL of 

Colorado, Ms. MURKOWSKI, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. BEGICH, Mr. BINGAMAN, and Mr. BENNET) introduced the following bill; which was read 

twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works 

MAY 17, 2010 

Reported by Mrs. BOXER, with an amendment 

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

A BILL 

To conserve fish and aquatic communities in the United 

States through partnerships that foster fish habitat conservation, to 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, 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 1214 RS

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

3 ‘‘National Fish Habitat Conservation Act’’. 

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

5 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings; purpose. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 

Sec. 4. National Fish Habitat Board. 

Sec. 5. Fish habitat partnerships. 

Sec. 6. Fish habitat conservation projects. 

Sec. 7. National Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership Office. 

Sec. 8. Technical and scientific assistance. 

Sec. 9. Conservation of aquatic habitat for fish and other aquatic organisms on 

Federal land. 

Sec. 10. Coordination with States and Indian tribes. 

Sec. 11. Accountability and reporting. 

Sec. 12. Regulations. 

Sec. 13. Effect of Act. 

Sec. 14. Nonapplicability of Federal Advisory Committee Act. 

Sec. 15. Funding. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSE. 

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 

8 (1) healthy populations of fish and other aquat9 ic organisms depend on the conservation, protection, 

10 restoration, and enhancement of aquatic habitats in 

11 the United States; 

12 (2) aquatic habitats (including wetlands, 

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

14 ecosystems, and associated riparian upland habitats 

15 that buffer those areas from external factors) per16 form numerous valuable environmental functions 

17 that sustain environmental, social, and cultural val18 ues, including recycling nutrients, purifying water, 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 1214 RS

1 attenuating floods, augmenting and maintaining 

2 stream flows, recharging ground water, acting as 

3 primary producers in the food chain, and providing 

4 essential and significant habitat for plants, fish, 

5 wildlife, and other dependent species; 

6 (3) the extensive and diverse aquatic habitat re7 sources of the United States are of enormous signifi8 cance to the economy of the United States, pro9 viding— 

10 (A) recreation for 44,000,000 anglers; 

11 (B) more than 1,000,000 jobs and approxi12 mately $125,000,000,000 in economic impact 

13 each year relating to recreational fishing; and 

14 (C) approximately 500,000 jobs and an ad15 ditional $35,000,000,000 in economic impact 

16 each year relating to commercial fishing; 

17 (4) at least 40 percent of all threatened species 

18 and endangered species in the United States are di19 rectly dependent on aquatic habitats; 

20 (5) certain fish species are considered to be eco21 logical indicators of aquatic habitat quality, such 

22 that the presence of those species in an aquatic eco23 system reflects high-quality habitat for other fish; 

24 (6) loss and degradation of aquatic habitat, ri25 parian habitat, water quality, and water volume 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 1214 RS

1 caused by activities such as alteration of water2 courses, stream blockages, water withdrawals and di3 versions, erosion, pollution, sedimentation, and de4 struction or modification of wetlands have— 

5 (A) caused significant declines in fish pop6 ulations throughout the United States, espe7 cially declines in native fish populations; and 

8 (B) resulted in economic losses to the 

9 United States; 

10 (7)(A) providing for the conservation and sus11 tainability of fish and other aquatic organisms has 

12 not been fully realized, despite federally funded fish 

13 and wildlife restoration programs and other activi14 ties intended to conserve aquatic resources; and 

15 (B) that conservation and sustainability may be 

16 significantly advanced through a renewed commit17 ment and sustained, cooperative efforts that are 

18 complementary to existing fish and wildlife restora19 tion programs and clean water programs; 

20 (8) the National Fish Habitat Action Plan pro21 vides a framework for maintaining and restoring 

22 aquatic habitats to ensure perpetuation of popu23 lations of fish and other aquatic organisms; 

24 (9) the United States can achieve significant 

25 progress toward providing aquatic habitats for the 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 1214 RS

1 conservation and restoration of fish and other aquat2 ic organisms through a voluntary, nonregulatory in3 centive program that is based on technical and fi4 nancial assistance provided by the Federal Govern5 ment; 

6 (10) the creation of partnerships between local 

7 citizens, Indian tribes, Alaska Native organizations, 

8 corporations, nongovernmental organizations, and 

9 Federal, State, and tribal agencies is critical to the 

10 success of activities to restore aquatic habitats and 

11 ecosystems; 

12 (11) the Federal Government has numerous 

13 regulatory and land and water management agencies 

14 that are critical to the implementation of the Na15 tional Fish Habitat Action Plan, including— 

16 (A) the United States Fish and Wildlife 

17 Service; 

18 (B) the Bureau of Land Management; 

19 (C) the National Park Service; 

20 (D) the Bureau of Reclamation; 

21 (E) the Bureau of Indian Affairs; 

22 (F) the National Marine Fisheries Service; 

23 (G) the Forest Service; 

24 (H) the Natural Resources Conservation 

25 Service; and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 1214 RS

1 (I) the Environmental Protection Agency; 

2 (12) the United States Fish and Wildlife Serv3 ice, the Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Manage4 ment, and the National Marine Fisheries Service 

5 each play a vital role in— 

6 (A) the protection, restoration, and en7 hancement of the fish communities and aquatic 

8 habitats in the United States; and 

9 (B) the development, operation, and long10 term success of fish habitat partnerships and 

11 project implementation; 

12 (13) the United States Geological Survey, the 

13 United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and the 

14 National Marine Fisheries Service each play a vital 

15 role in scientific evaluation, data collection, and 

16 mapping for fishery resources in the United States; 

17 and 

18 (14) many of the programs for conservation on 

19 private farmland, ranchland, and forestland that are 

20 carried out by the Secretary of Agriculture, includ21 ing the Natural Resources Conservation Service and 

22 the State and Private Forestry programs of the For23 est Service, are able to significantly contribute to the 

24 implementation of the National Fish Habitat Action 

25 Plan through the engagement of private landowners. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
7 

•S 1214 RS

1 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to encour2 age partnerships among public agencies and other inter3 ested parties consistent with the mission and goals of the 

4 National Fish Habitat Action Plan— 

5 (1) to protect and maintain intact and healthy 

6 aquatic habitats; 

7 (2) to prevent further degradation of aquatic 

8 habitats that have been adversely affected; 

9 (3) to reverse declines in the quality and quan10 tity of aquatic habitats to improve the overall health 

11 of fish and other aquatic organisms; 

12 (4) to increase the quality and quantity of 

13 aquatic habitats that support a broad natural diver14 sity of fish and other aquatic species; 

15 (5) to improve fisheries habitat in a manner 

16 that leads to improvement of the annual economic 

17 output from recreational, subsistence, and commer18 cial fishing; 

19 (6) to ensure coordination and facilitation of ac20 tivities carried out by Federal departments and 

21 agencies under the leadership of— 

22 (A) the Director of the United States Fish 

23 and Wildlife Service; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
8 

•S 1214 RS

1 (B) the Assistant Administrator for Fish2 eries of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

3 Administration; and 

4 (C) the Director of the United States Geo5 logical Survey; and 

6 (7) to achieve other purposes in accordance 

7 with the mission and goals of the National Fish 

8 Habitat Action Plan. 

9 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

10 In this Act: 

11 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT12 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com13 mittees’’ means— 

14 (A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

15 and Transportation and the Committee on En16 vironment and Public Works of the Senate; and 

17 (B) the Committee on Natural Resources 

18 of the House of Representatives. 

19 (2) AQUATIC HABITAT.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘aquatic 

21 habitat’’ means any area on which an aquatic 

22 organism depends, directly or indirectly, to 

23 carry out the life processes of the organism, in24 cluding an area used by the organism for 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
9 

•S 1214 RS

1 spawning, incubation, nursery, rearing, growth 

2 to maturity, food supply, or migration. 

3 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘aquatic 

4 habitat’’ includes an area adjacent to an aquat5 ic environment, if the adjacent area— 

6 (i) contributes an element, such as the 

7 input of detrital material or the promotion 

8 of a planktonic or insect population pro9 viding food, that makes fish life possible; 

10 (ii) protects the quality and quantity 

11 of water sources; 

12 (iii) provides public access for the use 

13 of fishery resources; or 

14 (iv) serves as a buffer protecting the 

15 aquatic environment. 

16 (3) ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR.—The term 

17 ‘‘Assistant Administrator’’ means the Assistant Ad18 ministrator for Fisheries of the National Oceanic 

19 and Atmospheric Administration. 

20 (4) BOARD.—The term ‘‘Board’’ means the Na21 tional Fish Habitat Board established by section 

22 4(a)(1). 

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

25 ‘‘manage’’, and ‘‘management’’ mean to protect, susVerDate Mar 15 2010 23:47 May 17, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1214.RS S1214

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
10 

•S 1214 RS

1 tain, and, where appropriate, restore and enhance, 

2 using methods and procedures associated with mod3 ern scientific resource programs (including protec4 tion, research, census, law enforcement, habitat 

5 management, propagation, live trapping and trans6 plantation, and regulated taking)— 

7 (A) a healthy population of fish, wildlife, 

8 or plant life; 

9 (B) a habitat required to sustain fish, wild10 life, or plant life; or 

11 (C) a habitat required to sustain fish, wild12 life, or plant life productivity. 

13 (6) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

14 the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife 

15 Service. 

16 (7) FISH.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘fish’’ means 

18 any freshwater, diadromous, estuarine, or ma19 rine finfish or shellfish. 

20 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘fish’’ in21 cludes the egg, spawn, spat, larval, and other 

22 juvenile stages of an organism described in sub23 paragraph (A). 

24 (8) FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION PROJECT.— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
11 

•S 1214 RS

1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘fish habitat 

2 conservation project’’ means a project that— 

3 (i) is submitted to the Board by a 

4 Partnership and approved by the Secretary 

5 under section 6; and 

6 (ii) provides for the conservation or 

7 management of an aquatic habitat. 

8 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘fish habitat 

9 conservation project’’ includes— 

10 (i) the provision of technical assist11 ance to a State, Indian tribe, or local com12 munity by the National Fish Habitat Con13 servation Partnership Office or any other 

14 agency to facilitate the development of 

15 strategies and priorities for the conserva16 tion of aquatic habitats; or 

17 (ii) the obtaining of a real property 

18 interest in land or water, including water 

19 rights, in accordance with terms and condi20 tions that ensure that the real property 

21 will be administered for the long-term con22 servation of— 

23 (I) the land or water; and 

24 (II) the fish dependent on the 

25 land or water. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
12 

•S 1214 RS

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

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

3 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

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

5 (10) NATIONAL FISH HABITAT ACTION PLAN.— 

6 The term ‘‘National Fish Habitat Action Plan’’ 

7 means the National Fish Habitat Action Plan dated 

8 April 24, 2006, and any subsequent revisions or 

9 amendments to that plan. 

10 (11) PARTNERSHIP.—The term ‘‘Partnership’’ 

11 means an entity designated by the Board as a Fish 

12 Habitat Conservation Partnership pursuant to sec13 tion 5(a). 

14 (12) REAL PROPERTY INTEREST.—The term 

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

16 in— 

17 (A) land; 

18 (B) water (including water rights); or 

19 (C) a building or object that is perma20 nently affixed to land. 

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

22 means the Secretary of the Interior. 

23 (14) STATE AGENCY.—The term ‘‘State agen24 cy’’ means— 

25 (A) the fish and wildlife agency of a State; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
13 

•S 1214 RS

1 (B) any department or division of a de2 partment or agency of a State that manages in 

3 the public trust the inland or marine fishery re4 sources of the State pursuant to State law or 

5 the constitution of the State; or 

6 (C) the fish and wildlife agency of the 

7 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Vir8 gin Islands, or any other territory or possession 

9 of the United States. 

10 SEC. 4. NATIONAL FISH HABITAT BOARD. 

11 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is established a board, 

13 to be known as the ‘‘National Fish Habitat 

14 Board’’— 

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

16 implementation of this Act and the National 

17 Fish Habitat Action Plan; 

18 (B) to establish national goals and prior19 ities for aquatic habitat conservation; 

20 (C) to designate Partnerships; and 

21 (D) to review and make recommendations 

22 regarding fish habitat conservation projects. 

23 (2) MEMBERSHIP.—The Board shall be com24 posed of 27 members, of whom— 

25 (A) 1 shall be the Director; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
14 

•S 1214 RS

1 (B) 1 shall be the Assistant Administrator; 

2 (C) 1 shall be the Chief of the Natural Re3 sources Conservation Service; 

4 (D) 1 shall be the Chief of the Forest 

5 Service; 

6 (E) 1 shall be the Assistant Administrator 

7 for Water of the Environmental Protection 

8 Agency; 

9 (F) 1 shall be the President of the Associa10 tion of Fish and Wildlife Agencies; 

11 (G) 1 shall be the Secretary of the Board 

12 of Directors of the National Fish and Wildlife 

13 Foundation appointed pursuant to section 

14 3(g)(2)(B) of the National Fish and Wildlife 

15 Foundation Establishment Act (16 U.S.C. 

16 3702(g)(2)(B)); 

17 (H) 4 shall be representatives of State 

18 agencies, 1 of whom shall be nominated by a re19 gional association of fish and wildlife agencies 

20 from each of the Northeast, Southeast, Mid21 west, and Western regions of the United States; 

22 (I) 1 shall be a representative of the Amer23 ican Fisheries Society; 

24 (J) 2 shall be representatives of Indian 

25 tribes, of whom— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
15 

•S 1214 RS

1 (i) 1 shall represent Indian tribes 

2 from the State of Alaska; and 

3 (ii) 1 shall represent Indian tribes 

4 from the other States; 

5 (K) 1 shall be a representative of the Re6 gional Fishery Management Councils estab7 lished under section 302 of the Magnuson-Ste8 vens Fishery Conservation and Management 

9 Act (16 U.S.C. 1852); 

10 (L) 1 shall be a representative of the Ma11 rine Fisheries Commissions, which is composed 

12 of— 

13 (i) the Atlantic States Marine Fish14 eries Commission; 

15 (ii) the Gulf States Marine Fisheries 

16 Commission; and 

17 (iii) the Pacific States Marine Fish18 eries Commission; 

19 (M) 1 shall be a representative of the 

20 Sportfishing and Boating Partnership Council; 

21 and 

22 (N) 10 shall be representatives selected 

23 from each of the following groups: 

24 (i) The recreational sportfishing in25 dustry. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
16 

•S 1214 RS

1 (ii) The commercial fishing industry. 

2 (iii) Marine recreational anglers. 

3 (iv) Freshwater recreational anglers. 

4 (v) Terrestrial resource conservation 

5 organizations. 

6 (vi) Aquatic resource conservation or7 ganizations. 

8 (vii) The livestock and poultry produc9 tion industry. 

10 (viii) The land development industry. 

11 (ix) The row crop industry. 

12 (x) Natural resource commodity inter13 ests, such as petroleum or mineral extrac14 tion. 

15 (3) COMPENSATION.—A member of the Board 

16 shall serve without compensation. 

17 (4) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—A member of the 

18 Board shall be allowed travel expenses, including per 

19 diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for 

20 an employee of an agency under subchapter I of 

21 chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, while 

22 away from the home or regular place of business of 

23 the member in the performance of the duties of the 

24 Board. 

25 (b) APPOINTMENT AND TERMS.— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
17 

•S 1214 RS

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise pro2 vided in this subsection, a member of the Board de3 scribed in any of subparagraphs (H) through (N) of 

4 subsection (a)(2) shall serve for a term of 3 years. 

5 (2) INITIAL BOARD MEMBERSHIP.—Not later 

6 than 180 days after the date of enactment of this 

7 Act, the representatives of the board established by 

8 the National Fish Habitat Action Plan shall appoint 

9 the initial members of the Board described in sub10 paragraphs (H) through (N) of subsection (a)(2). 

11 (3) TRANSITIONAL TERMS.—Of the members 

12 described in subsection (a)(2)(N) initially appointed 

13 to the Board— 

14 (A) 4 shall be appointed for a term of 1 

15 year; 

16 (B) 4 shall be appointed for a term of 2 

17 years; and 

18 (C) 3 shall be appointed for a term of 3 

19 years. 

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

21 Board described in any of subparagraphs (H) 

22 through (N) of subsection (a)(2) shall be filled by an 

23 appointment made by the remaining members of the 

24 Board. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
18 

•S 1214 RS

1 (5) CONTINUATION OF SERVICE.—An individual 

2 whose term of service as a member of the Board ex3 pires may continue to serve on the Board until a 

4 successor is appointed. 

5 (6) REMOVAL.—If a member of the Board de6 scribed in any of subparagraphs (H) through (N) of 

7 subsection (a)(2) misses 3 consecutive regularly 

8 scheduled Board meetings, the members of the 

9 Board may— 

10 (A) vote to remove that member; and 

11 (B) appoint another individual in accord12 ance with paragraph (4). 

13 (c) CHAIRPERSON.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall elect a 

15 member of the Board to serve as Chairperson of the 

16 Board. 

17 (2) TERM.—The Chairperson of the Board shall 

18 serve for a term of 3 years. 

19 (d) MEETINGS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall meet— 

21 (A) at the call of the Chairperson; but 

22 (B) not less frequently than twice each cal23 endar year. 

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

25 Board shall be open to the public. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
19 

•S 1214 RS

1 (e) PROCEDURES.— 

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

3 procedures to carry out the business of the Board, 

4 including— 

5 (A) a requirement that a quorum of the 

6 members of the Board be present to transact 

7 business; 

8 (B) a requirement that no recommenda9 tions may be adopted by the Board, except by 

the vote of 2 10 ⁄3 of all members present and vot11 ing; 

12 (C) procedures for establishing national 

13 goals and priorities for aquatic habitat con14 servation for the purposes of this Act; 

15 (D) procedures for designating Partner16 ships under section 5; and 

17 (E) procedures for reviewing, evaluating, 

18 and making recommendations regarding fish 

19 habitat conservation projects. 

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

21 the Board shall constitute a quorum. 

22 SEC. 5. FISH HABITAT PARTNERSHIPS. 

23 (a) AUTHORITY TO DESIGNATE.—The Board may 

24 designate Fish Habitat Partnerships in accordance with 

25 this section. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
20 

•S 1214 RS

1 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of a Partnership shall 

2 be— 

3 (1) to coordinate the implementation of the Na4 tional Fish Habitat Action Plan at a regional level; 

5 (2) to identify strategic priorities for fish habi6 tat conservation; 

7 (3) to recommend to the Board fish habitat 

8 conservation projects that address a strategic pri9 ority of the Board; and 

10 (4) to develop and carry out fish habitat con11 servation projects. 

12 (c) APPLICATIONS.—An entity seeking to be des13 ignated as a Partnership shall submit to the Board an 

14 application at such time, in such manner, and containing 

15 such information as the Board may reasonably require. 

16 (d) APPROVAL.—The Board may approve an applica17 tion for a Partnership submitted under subsection (c) if 

18 the Board determines that the applicant— 

19 (1) includes representatives of a diverse group 

20 of public and private partners, including Federal, 

21 State, or local governments, nonprofit entities, In22 dian tribes, and private individuals, that are focused 

23 on conservation of aquatic habitats to achieve results 

24 across jurisdictional boundaries on public and pri25 vate land; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
21 

•S 1214 RS

1 (2) is organized to promote the health of impor2 tant aquatic habitats and distinct geographical 

3 areas, keystone fish species, or system types, includ4 ing reservoirs, natural lakes, coastal and marine en5 vironments, and estuaries; 

6 (3) identifies strategic fish and aquatic habitat 

7 priorities for the Partnership area in the form of 

8 geographical focus areas or key stressors or impair9 ments to facilitate strategic planning and decision10 making; 

11 (4) is able to address issues and priorities on a 

12 nationally significant scale; 

13 (5) includes a governance structure that— 

14 (A) reflects the range of all partners; and 

15 (B) promotes joint strategic planning and 

16 decisionmaking by the applicant; 

17 (6) demonstrates completion of, or significant 

18 progress toward the development of, a strategic plan 

19 to address the causes of system decline in fish popu20 lations, rather than simply treating symptoms in ac21 cordance with the National Fish Habitat Action 

22 Plan; and 

23 (7) ensures collaboration in developing a stra24 tegic vision and implementation program that is sci25 entifically sound and achievable. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
22 

•S 1214 RS

1 SEC. 6. FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION PROJECTS. 

2 (a) SUBMISSION TO BOARD.—Not later than March 

3 31 of each calendar year, each Partnership shall submit 

4 to the Board a list of fish habitat conservation projects 

5 recommended by the Partnership for annual funding 

6 under this Act. 

7 (b) RECOMMENDATIONS BY BOARD.—Not later than 

8 July 1 of each calendar year, the Board shall submit to 

9 the Secretary a description, including estimated costs, of 

10 each fish habitat conservation project that the Board rec11 ommends that the Secretary approve and fund under this 

12 Act, in order of priority, for the following fiscal year. 

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

14 fish habitat conservation project to be recommended to the 

15 Secretary under subsection (b)— 

16 (1) based on a recommendation of the Partner17 ship that is, or will be, participating actively in car18 rying out the fish habitat conservation project; and 

19 (2) after taking into consideration— 

20 (A) the extent to which the fish habitat 

21 conservation project fulfills a purpose of this 

22 Act or a goal of the National Fish Habitat Ac23 tion Plan; 

24 (B) the extent to which the fish habitat 

25 conservation project addresses the national pri26 orities established by the Board; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
23 

•S 1214 RS

1 (C) the availability of sufficient non-Fed2 eral funds to match Federal contributions for 

3 the fish habitat conservation project, as re4 quired by subsection (e); 

5 (D) the extent to which the fish habitat 

6 conservation project— 

7 (i) increases fishing opportunities for 

8 the public; 

9 (ii) will be carried out through a coop10 erative agreement among Federal, State, 

11 and local governments, Indian tribes, and 

12 private entities; 

13 (iii) increases public access to land or 

14 water; 

15 (iv) advances the conservation of fish 

16 and wildlife species that are listed, or are 

17 candidates to be listed, as threatened spe18 cies or endangered species under the En19 dangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 

20 1531 et seq.); 

21 (v) where appropriate, advances the 

22 conservation of fish and fish habitats 

23 under the Magnuson-Stevens Act (16 

24 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.) and other relevant 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
24 

•S 1214 RS

1 Federal law and State wildlife action plans; 

2 and 

3 (vi) promotes resilience such that de4 sired biological communities are able to 

5 persist and adapt to environmental 

6 stressors such as climate change; and 

7 (E) the substantiality of the character and 

8 design of the fish habitat conservation project. 

9 (d) LIMITATIONS.— 

10 (1) REQUIREMENTS FOR EVALUATION.—No 

11 fish habitat conservation project may be rec12 ommended by the Board under subsection (b) or 

13 provided financial assistance under this Act unless 

14 the fish habitat conservation project includes an 

15 evaluation plan designed— 

16 (A) to appropriately assess the biological, 

17 ecological, or other results of the habitat protec18 tion, restoration, or enhancement activities car19 ried out using the assistance; 

20 (B) to reflect appropriate changes to the 

21 fish habitat conservation project if the assess22 ment substantiates that the fish habitat con23 servation project objectives are not being met; 

24 and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
25 

•S 1214 RS

1 (C) to require the submission to the Board 

2 of a report describing the findings of the assess3 ment. 

4 (2) ACQUISITION OF REAL PROPERTY INTER5 ESTS.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—No fish habitat con7 servation project that will result in the acquisi8 tion by the Secretary, in whole or in part, of 

9 any real property interest may be recommended 

10 by the Board under subsection (b) or provided 

11 financial assistance under this Act unless the 

12 project meets the requirements of subparagraph 

13 (B). 

14 (B) REQUIREMENTS.— 

15 (i) IN GENERAL.—A real property in16 terest acquired by the Secretary pursuant 

17 to a fish habitat conservation project may 

18 not be conveyed to a State, public agency, 

19 or other entity unless— 

20 (I) the Secretary determines that 

21 the State, agency, or other entity is 

22 obligated to undertake the manage23 ment of the property being conveyed 

24 in accordance with the purposes of 

25 this Act; and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
26 

•S 1214 RS

1 (II) the deed or other instrument 

2 of transfer contains provisions for the 

3 reversion to the United States of title 

4 to the property if the State, agency, 

5 or other entity fails to manage the 

6 property in accordance with the pur7 poses of this Act. 

8 (ii) ADDITIONAL CONVEYANCE CONDI9 TIONS.—Any real property interest ac10 quired by the Secretary pursuant to a fish 

11 habitat conservation project that is con12 veyed under clause (i) shall be subject to 

13 terms and conditions that ensure that the 

14 interest will be administered for the long15 term conservation and management of the 

16 aquatic ecosystem and the fish and wildlife 

17 dependent on that ecosystem. 

18 (e) NON-FEDERAL CONTRIBUTIONS.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para20 graph (2), no fish habitat conservation project may 

21 be recommended by the Board under subsection (b) 

22 or provided financial assistance under this Act un23 less at least 50 percent of the cost of the fish habi24 tat conservation project will be funded with non25 Federal funds. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
27 

•S 1214 RS

1 (2) PROJECTS ON FEDERAL LAND OR WATER.— 

2 Notwithstanding paragraph (1), Federal funds may 

3 be used for payment of 100 percent of the costs of 

4 a fish habitat conservation project located on Fed5 eral land or water, including the acquisition of 

6 inholdings within such land or water. 

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

8 share of the cost of a fish habitat conservation 

9 project— 

10 (A) may not be derived from a Federal 

11 grant program; but 

12 (B) may include in-kind contributions and 

13 cash. 

14 (4) SPECIAL RULE FOR INDIAN TRIBES.—Not15 withstanding paragraph (1) or any other provision of 

16 law, any funds made available to an Indian tribe 

17 pursuant to this Act may be considered to be non18 Federal funds for the purpose of paragraph (1). 

19 (f) CONSIDERATION BY SECRETARY.— 

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

21 after the date of receipt of the recommendations of 

22 the Board for fish habitat conservation projects 

23 under subsection (b), the Secretary shall approve, 

24 reject, or reorder the priority of each such recVerDate Mar 15 2010 23:47 May 17, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1214.RS S1214

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
28 

•S 1214 RS

1 ommendation based on, to the maximum extent 

2 practicable, the criteria described in subsection (c). 

3 (2) FUNDING.—If the Secretary approves a fish 

4 habitat conservation project under paragraph (1), 

5 the Secretary shall use amounts made available to 

6 carry out this Act to provide funds to carry out the 

7 fish habitat conservation project. 

8 (3) NOTIFICATION BY SECRETARY.—If the Sec9 retary rejects or reorders the priority of any fish 

10 habitat conservation project recommended by the 

11 Board under subsection (b), the Secretary shall pro12 vide to the Board and the appropriate Partnership 

13 a written statement of the reasons that the Sec14 retary rejected or modified the priority of the fish 

15 habitat conservation project. 

16 SEC. 7. NATIONAL FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION PART17 NERSHIP OFFICE. 

18 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 1 year after 

19 the date of enactment of this Act, the Director shall estab20 lish an office, to be known as the ‘‘National Fish Habitat 

21 Conservation Partnership Office’’, within the United 

22 States Fish and Wildlife Service. 

23 (b) FUNCTIONS.—The National Fish Habitat Con24 servation Partnership Office shall— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
29 

•S 1214 RS

1 (1) provide funding for the operational needs of 

2 the Partnerships, including funding for activities 

3 such as planning, project development and imple4 mentation, coordination, monitoring, evaluation, 

5 communication, and outreach; 

6 (2) provide funding to support the detail of 

7 State and tribal fish and wildlife staff to the Office; 

8 (3) facilitate the cooperative development and 

9 approval of Partnerships; 

10 (4) assist the Secretary and the Board in car11 rying out this Act; 

12 (5) assist the Secretary in carrying out the re13 quirements of sections 8 and 10; 

14 (6) facilitate communication, cohesiveness, and 

15 efficient operations for the benefit of Partnerships 

16 and the Board; 

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

18 the Assistant Administrator, and the President of 

19 the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, the 

20 consideration of fish habitat conservation projects by 

21 the Board; 

22 (8) provide support to the Director regarding 

23 the development and implementation of the inter24 agency operational plan under subsection (c); 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
30 

•S 1214 RS

1 (9) coordinate technical and scientific reporting 

2 as required by section 11; 

3 (10) facilitate the efficient use of resources and 

4 activities of Federal departments and agencies to 

5 carry out this Act in an efficient manner; and 

6 (11) provide support to the Board for national 

7 communication and outreach efforts that promote 

8 public awareness of fish habitat conservation. 

9 (c) INTERAGENCY OPERATIONAL PLAN.—Not later 

10 than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, and 

11 every 5 years thereafter, the Director, in cooperation with 

12 the Assistant Administrator and the heads of other appro13 priate Federal departments and agencies, shall develop an 

14 interagency operational plan for the National Fish Habi15 tat Conservation Partnership Office that describes— 

16 (1) the functional, operational, technical, sci17 entific, and general staff, administrative, and mate18 rial needs of the Office; and 

19 (2) any interagency agreements between or 

20 among Federal departments and agencies to address 

21 those needs. 

22 (d) STAFF AND SUPPORT.— 

23 (1) DEPARTMENTS OF INTERIOR AND COM24 MERCE.—The Director and the Assistant Adminis25 trator shall each provide appropriate staff to support 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
31 

•S 1214 RS

1 the National Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership 

2 Office, subject to the availability of funds under sec3 tion 15. 

4 (2) STATES AND INDIAN TRIBES.—Each State 

5 and Indian tribe is encouraged to provide staff to 

6 support the National Fish Habitat Conservation 

7 Partnership Office. 

8 (3) DETAILEES AND CONTRACTORS.—The Na9 tional Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership Office 

10 may accept staff or other administrative support 

11 from other entities— 

12 (A) through interagency details; or 

13 (B) as contractors. 

14 (4) QUALIFICATIONS.—The staff of the Na15 tional Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership Office 

16 shall include members with education and experience 

17 relating to the principles of fish, wildlife, and aquat18 ic habitat conservation. 

19 (5) WAIVER OF REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary 

20 may waive all or part of the non-Federal contribu21 tion requirement under section 6(e)(1) if the Sec22 retary determines that— 

23 (A) no reasonable means are available 

24 through which the affected applicant can meet 

25 the requirement; and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
32 

•S 1214 RS

1 (B) the probable benefit of the relevant 

2 fish habitat conservation project outweighs the 

3 public interest in meeting the requirement. 

4 (e) REPORTS.—Not less frequently than once each 

5 year, the Director shall provide to the Board a report de6 scribing the activities of the National Fish Habitat Con7 servation Partnership Office. 

8 SEC. 8. TECHNICAL AND SCIENTIFIC ASSISTANCE. 

9 The Director, the Assistant Administrator, and the 

10 Director of the United States Geological Survey, in coordi11 nation with the Forest Service and other appropriate Fed12 eral departments and agencies, shall provide scientific and 

13 technical assistance to the Partnerships, participants in 

14 fish habitat conservation projects, and the Board, includ15 ing by— 

16 (1) providing technical and scientific assistance 

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

18 and nongovernmental organizations in the develop19 ment and implementation of Partnerships; 

20 (2) providing technical and scientific assistance 

21 to Partnerships for habitat assessment, strategic 

22 planning, and prioritization; 

23 (3) supporting the development and implemen24 tation of fish habitat conservation projects that are 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
33 

•S 1214 RS

1 identified as high priorities by Partnerships and the 

2 Board; 

3 (4) supporting and providing recommendations 

4 regarding the development of science-based moni5 toring and assessment approaches for implementa6 tion through Partnerships; 

7 (5) supporting and providing recommendations 

8 for a national fish habitat assessment; and 

9 (6) ensuring the availability of experts to con10 duct scientifically based evaluation and reporting of 

11 the results of fish habitat conservation projects. 

12 SEC. 9. CONSERVATION OF AQUATIC HABITAT FOR FISH 

13 AND OTHER AQUATIC ORGANISMS ON FED14 ERAL LAND. 

15 To the extent consistent with the mission and author16 ity of the applicable department or agency, the head of 

17 each Federal department and agency responsible for ac18 quiring, managing, or disposing of Federal land or water 

19 shall cooperate with the Assistant Administrator and the 

20 Director to conserve the aquatic habitats for fish and 

21 other aquatic organisms within the land and water of the 

22 department or agency. 

23 SEC. 10. COORDINATION WITH STATES AND INDIAN TRIBES. 

24 The Secretary shall provide a notice to, and coordi25 nate with, the appropriate State agency or tribal agency, 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
34 

•S 1214 RS

1 as applicable, of each State and Indian tribe within the 

2 boundaries of which an activity is planned to be carried 

3 out pursuant to this Act by not later than 30 days before 

4 the date on which the activity is implemented. 

5 SEC. 11. ACCOUNTABILITY AND REPORTING. 

6 (a) IMPLEMENTATION REPORTS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after 

8 the date of enactment of this Act, and every 2 years 

9 thereafter, the Board shall submit to the appropriate 

10 congressional committees a report describing the im11 plementation of— 

12 (A) this Act; and 

13 (B) the National Fish Habitat Action 

14 Plan. 

15 (2) CONTENTS.—Each report submitted under 

16 paragraph (1) shall include— 

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

18 stream miles, or acre-feet (or other suitable 

19 measure) of aquatic habitat that was protected, 

20 restored, or enhanced under the National Fish 

21 Habitat Action Plan by Federal, State, or local 

22 governments, Indian tribes, or other entities in 

23 the United States during the 2-year period end24 ing on the date of submission of the report; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
35 

•S 1214 RS

1 (B) a description of the public access to 

2 aquatic habitats protected, restored, or estab3 lished under the National Fish Habitat Action 

4 Plan during that 2-year period; 

5 (C) a description of the opportunities for 

6 public fishing established under the National 

7 Fish Habitat Action Plan during that period; 

8 and 

9 (D) an assessment of the status of fish 

10 habitat conservation projects carried out with 

11 funds provided under this Act during that pe12 riod, disaggregated by year, including— 

13 (i) a description of the fish habitat 

14 conservation projects recommended by the 

15 Board under section 6(b); 

16 (ii) a description of each fish habitat 

17 conservation project approved by the Sec18 retary under section 6(f), in order of pri19 ority for funding; 

20 (iii) a justification for— 

21 (I) the approval of each fish 

22 habitat conservation project; and 

23 (II) the order of priority for 

24 funding of each fish habitat conserva25 tion project; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
36 

•S 1214 RS

1 (iv) a justification for any rejection or 

2 reordering of the priority of each fish habi3 tat conservation project recommended by 

4 the Board under section 6(b) that was 

5 based on a factor other than the criteria 

6 described in section 6(c); and 

7 (v) an accounting of expenditures by 

8 Federal, State, or local governments, In9 dian tribes, or other entities to carry out 

10 fish habitat conservation projects. 

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

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

13 Board shall submit to the appropriate congressional com14 mittees a report describing the status of aquatic habitats 

15 in the United States. 

16 (c) REVISIONS.—Not later than December 31, 2011, 

17 and every 5 years thereafter, the Board shall revise the 

18 goals and other elements of the National Fish Habitat Ac19 tion Plan, after consideration of each report required by 

20 subsection (b). 

21 SEC. 12. REGULATIONS. 

22 The Secretary may promulgate such regulations as 

23 the Secretary determines to be necessary to carry out this 

24 Act. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
37 

•S 1214 RS

1 SEC. 13. EFFECT OF ACT. 

2 (a) WATER RIGHTS.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this Act— 

4 (A) establishes any express or implied re5 served water right in the United States for any 

6 purpose; 

7 (B) affects any water right in existence on 

8 the date of enactment of this Act; or 

9 (C) affects any Federal or State law in ex10 istence on the date of enactment of the Act re11 garding water quality or water quantity. 

12 (2) AUTHORITY TO ACQUIRE WATER RIGHTS.— 

13 The Secretary may acquire, under State law, such 

14 water rights as the Secretary determines to be nec15 essary to carry out this Act. 

16 (b) STATE AUTHORITY.—Nothing in this Act— 

17 (1) affects the authority, jurisdiction, or respon18 sibility of a State to manage, control, or regulate 

19 fish and wildlife under the laws and regulations of 

20 the State; or 

21 (2) authorizes the Secretary to control or regu22 late within a State the fishing or hunting of fish and 

23 wildlife. 

24 (c) EFFECT ON INDIAN TRIBES.—Nothing in this 

25 Act abrogates, abridges, affects, modifies, supersedes, or 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
38 

•S 1214 RS

1 alters any right of an Indian tribe recognized by treaty 

2 or any other means, including— 

3 (1) an agreement between the Indian tribe and 

4 the United States; 

5 (2) Federal law (including regulations); 

6 (3) an Executive order; or 

7 (4) a judicial decree. 

8 (d) ADJUDICATION OF WATER RIGHTS.—Nothing in 

9 this Act diminishes or affects the ability of the Secretary 

10 to join an adjudication of rights to the use of water pursu11 ant to subsection (a), (b), or (c) of section 208 of the De12 partment of Justice Appropriation Act, 1953 (43 U.S.C. 

13 666). 

14 (e) EFFECT ON OTHER AUTHORITIES.— 

15 (1) ACQUISITION OF LAND AND WATER.—Noth16 ing in this Act alters or otherwise affects the au17 thorities, responsibilities, obligations, or powers of 

18 the Secretary to acquire land, water, or an interest 

19 in land or water under any other provision of law. 

20 (2) PRIVATE PROPERTY PROTECTION.—Nothing 

21 in this Act permits the use of funds made available 

22 to carry out this Act to acquire real property or a 

23 real property interest without the written consent of 

24 each owner of the real property or real property in25 terest. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
39 

•S 1214 RS

1 (3) MITIGATION.—Nothing in this Act permits 

2 the use of funds made available to carry out this Act 

3 for fish and wildlife mitigation purposes under— 

4 (A) the Federal Water Pollution Control 

5 Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.); 

6 (B) the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act 

7 (16 U.S.C. 661 et seq.); 

8 (C) the Water Resources Development Act 

9 of 1986 (Public Law 99–662; 100 Stat. 4082); 

10 or 

11 (D) any other Federal law or court settle12 ment. 

13 SEC. 14. NONAPPLICABILITY OF FEDERAL ADVISORY COM14 MITTEE ACT. 

15 The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) 

16 shall not apply to— 

17 (1) the Board; or 

18 (2) any Partnership. 

19 SEC. 15. FUNDING. 

20 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

21 (1) FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION PROJECTS.— 

22 There is authorized to be appropriated to the Sec23 retary $75,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2010 

24 through 2014 to provide funds for fish habitat con25 servation projects approved under section 6(f), of 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
40 

•S 1214 RS

1 which 5 percent shall be made available for each fis2 cal year for projects carried out by Indian tribes. 

3 (2) NATIONAL FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION

4 PARTNERSHIP OFFICE.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to 

6 be appropriated to the Secretary for each of fis7 cal years 2010 through 2014 for the National 

8 Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership Office, 

9 and to carry out section 11, an amount equal 

10 to the greater of— 

11 (i) $3,000,000; and 

12 (ii) 25 percent of the amount appro13 priated for the applicable fiscal year pursu14 ant to paragraph (1). 

15 (B) REQUIRED TRANSFERS.—The Sec16 retary shall transfer such percentage of the 

17 amounts made available pursuant to subpara18 graph (A) as is required under section 7 to sup19 port participation by other Federal departments 

20 and agencies in the National Fish Habitat Con21 servation Partnership Office. 

22 (3) TECHNICAL AND SCIENTIFIC ASSISTANCE.— 

23 There are authorized to be appropriated for each of 

24 fiscal years 2010 through 2014 to carry out, and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
41 

•S 1214 RS

1 provide technical and scientific assistance under, sec2 tion 8— 

3 (A) $10,000,000 to the Secretary for use 

4 by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service; 

5 (B) $10,000,000 to the Assistant Adminis6 trator for use by the National Oceanic and At7 mospheric Administration; and 

8 (C) $10,000,000 to the Secretary for use 

9 by the United States Geological Survey. 

10 (4) PLANNING AND ADMINISTRATIVE EX11 PENSES.—There is authorized to be appropriated to 

12 the Secretary for each of fiscal years 2010 through 

13 2014 for use by the Board, the Director, and the 

14 Assistant Administrator for planning and adminis15 trative expenses an amount equal to the greater of— 

16 (A) $300,000; and 

17 (B) 4 percent of the amount appropriated 

18 for the applicable fiscal year pursuant to para19 graph (1). 

20 (5) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Funds made 

21 available under this subsection shall remain available 

22 until expended. 

23 (b) AGREEMENTS AND GRANTS.—The Secretary 

24 may— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
42 

•S 1214 RS

1 (1) on the recommendation of the Board, and 

2 notwithstanding sections 6304 and 6305 of title 31, 

3 United States Code, and the Federal Financial As4 sistance Management Improvement Act of 1999 (31 

5 U.S.C. 6101 note; Public Law 106–107), enter into 

6 a grant agreement, cooperative agreement, or con7 tract with a Partnership or other entity for a fish 

8 habitat conservation project or restoration or en9 hancement project; 

10 (2) apply for, accept, and use a grant from any 

11 individual or entity to carry out the purposes of this 

12 Act; and 

13 (3) make funds available to any Federal depart14 ment or agency for use by that department or agen15 cy to provide grants for any fish habitat protection 

16 project, restoration project, or enhancement project 

17 that the Secretary determines to be consistent with 

18 this Act. 

19 (c) DONATIONS.— 

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

21 (A) enter into an agreement with any orga22 nization described in section 501(c)(3) of the 

23 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that is exempt 

24 from taxation under section 501(a) of that 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
43 

•S 1214 RS

1 Code to solicit private donations to carry out 

2 the purposes of this Act; and 

3 (B) accept donations of funds, property, 

4 and services to carry out the purposes of this 

5 Act. 

6 (2) TREATMENT.—A donation accepted under 

7 this section— 

8 (A) shall be considered to be a gift or be9 quest to, or otherwise for the use of, the United 

10 States; and 

11 (B) may be— 

12 (i) used directly by the Secretary; or 

13 (ii) provided to another Federal de14 partment or agency through an inter15 agency agreement. 

16 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

17 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Na18 tional Fish Habitat Conservation Act’’. 

19 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of this 

20 Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings; purpose. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 

Sec. 4. National Fish Habitat Board. 

Sec. 5. Fish habitat partnerships. 

Sec. 6. Fish habitat conservation projects. 

Sec. 7. National Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership Office. 

Sec. 8. Technical and scientific assistance. 

Sec. 9. Conservation of aquatic habitat for fish and other aquatic organisms on 

Federal land. 

Sec. 10. Coordination with States and Indian tribes. 

Sec. 11. Accountability and reporting. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
44 

•S 1214 RS

Sec. 12. Regulations. 

Sec. 13. Effect of Act. 

Sec. 14. Nonapplicability of Federal Advisory Committee Act. 

Sec. 15. Funding. 

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSE. 

2 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 

3 (1) healthy populations of fish and other aquatic 

4 organisms depend on the conservation, protection, res5 toration, and enhancement of aquatic habitats in the 

6 United States; 

7 (2) aquatic habitats (including wetlands, 

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

9 ecosystems, and associated riparian upland habitats 

10 that buffer those areas from external factors) perform 

11 numerous valuable environmental functions that sus12 tain environmental, social, and cultural values, in13 cluding recycling nutrients, purifying water, attenu14 ating floods, augmenting and maintaining stream 

15 flows, recharging ground water, acting as primary 

16 producers in the food chain, and providing essential 

17 and significant habitat for plants, fish, wildlife, and 

18 other dependent species; 

19 (3) the extensive and diverse aquatic habitat re20 sources of the United States are of enormous signifi21 cance to the economy of the United States, pro22 viding— 

23 (A) recreation for 44,000,000 anglers; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
45 

•S 1214 RS

1 (B) more than 1,000,000 jobs and approxi2 mately $125,000,000,000 in economic impact 

3 each year relating to recreational fishing; and 

4 (C) approximately 500,000 jobs and an ad5 ditional $35,000,000,000 in economic impact 

6 each year relating to commercial fishing; 

7 (4) at least 40 percent of all threatened species 

8 and endangered species in the United States are di9 rectly dependent on aquatic habitats; 

10 (5) certain fish species are considered to be eco11 logical indicators of aquatic habitat quality, such that 

12 the presence of those species in an aquatic ecosystem 

13 reflects high-quality habitat for other fish; 

14 (6) loss and degradation of aquatic habitat, ri15 parian habitat, water quality, and water volume 

16 caused by activities such as alteration of water17 courses, stream blockages, water withdrawals and di18 versions, erosion, pollution, sedimentation, and de19 struction or modification of wetlands have— 

20 (A) caused significant declines in fish popu21 lations throughout the United States, especially 

22 declines in native fish populations; and 

23 (B) resulted in economic losses to the 

24 United States; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
46 

•S 1214 RS

1 (7)(A) providing for the conservation and sus2 tainability of fish and other aquatic organisms has 

3 not been fully realized, despite federally funded fish 

4 and wildlife restoration programs and other activities 

5 intended to conserve aquatic resources; and 

6 (B) that conservation and sustainability may be 

7 significantly advanced through a renewed commit8 ment and sustained, cooperative efforts that are com9 plementary to existing fish and wildlife restoration 

10 programs and clean water programs; 

11 (8) the National Fish Habitat Action Plan pro12 vides a framework for maintaining and restoring 

13 aquatic habitats to ensure perpetuation of popu14 lations of fish and other aquatic organisms; 

15 (9) the United States can achieve significant 

16 progress toward providing aquatic habitats for the 

17 conservation and restoration of fish and other aquatic 

18 organisms through a voluntary, nonregulatory incen19 tive program that is based on technical and financial 

20 assistance provided by the Federal Government; 

21 (10) the creation of partnerships between local 

22 citizens, Indian tribes, Alaska Native organizations, 

23 corporations, nongovernmental organizations, and 

24 Federal, State, and tribal agencies is critical to the 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
47 

•S 1214 RS

1 success of activities to restore aquatic habitats and 

2 ecosystems; 

3 (11) the Federal Government has numerous regu4 latory and land and water management agencies that 

5 are critical to the implementation of the National 

6 Fish Habitat Action Plan, including— 

7 (A) the United States Fish and Wildlife 

8 Service; 

9 (B) the Bureau of Land Management; 

10 (C) the National Park Service; 

11 (D) the Bureau of Reclamation; 

12 (E) the Bureau of Indian Affairs; 

13 (F) the National Marine Fisheries Service; 

14 (G) the Forest Service; 

15 (H) the Natural Resources Conservation 

16 Service; and 

17 (I) the Environmental Protection Agency; 

18 (12) the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, 

19 the Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, 

20 and the National Marine Fisheries Service each play 

21 a vital role in— 

22 (A) the protection, restoration, and enhance23 ment of the fish communities and aquatic habi24 tats in the United States; and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
48 

•S 1214 RS

1 (B) the development, operation, and long2 term success of fish habitat partnerships and 

3 project implementation; 

4 (13) the United States Geological Survey, the 

5 United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Na6 tional Marine Fisheries Service each play a vital role 

7 in scientific evaluation, data collection, and mapping 

8 for fishery resources in the United States; and 

9 (14) many of the programs for conservation on 

10 private farmland, ranchland, and forestland that are 

11 carried out by the Secretary of Agriculture, including 

12 the Natural Resources Conservation Service and the 

13 State and Private Forestry programs of the Forest 

14 Service, are able to significantly contribute to the im15 plementation of the National Fish Habitat Action 

16 Plan through the engagement of private landowners. 

17 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to encourage 

18 partnerships among public agencies and other interested 

19 parties consistent with the mission and goals of the Na20 tional Fish Habitat Action Plan— 

21 (1) to protect and maintain intact and healthy 

22 aquatic habitats; 

23 (2) to prevent further degradation of aquatic 

24 habitats that have been adversely affected; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
49 

•S 1214 RS

1 (3) to reverse declines in the quality and quan2 tity of aquatic habitats to improve the overall health 

3 of fish and other aquatic organisms; 

4 (4) to increase the quality and quantity of 

5 aquatic habitats that support a broad natural diver6 sity of fish and other aquatic species; 

7 (5) to improve fisheries habitat in a manner that 

8 leads to improvement of the annual economic output 

9 from recreational, subsistence, and commercial fish10 ing; 

11 (6) to ensure coordination and facilitation of ac12 tivities carried out by Federal departments and agen13 cies under the leadership of— 

14 (A) the Director of the United States Fish 

15 and Wildlife Service; 

16 (B) the Assistant Administrator for Fish17 eries of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

18 Administration; and 

19 (C) the Director of the United States Geo20 logical Survey; and 

21 (7) to achieve other purposes in accordance with 

22 the mission and goals of the National Fish Habitat 

23 Action Plan. 

24 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

25 In this Act: 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
50 

•S 1214 RS

1 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT2 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional commit3 tees’’ means— 

4 (A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

5 and Transportation and the Committee on Envi6 ronment and Public Works of the Senate; and 

7 (B) the Committee on Natural Resources of 

8 the House of Representatives. 

9 (2) AQUATIC HABITAT.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘aquatic habi11 tat’’ means any area on which an aquatic orga12 nism depends, directly or indirectly, to carry out 

13 the life processes of the organism, including an 

14 area used by the organism for spawning, incuba15 tion, nursery, rearing, growth to maturity, food 

16 supply, or migration. 

17 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘aquatic habi18 tat’’ includes an area adjacent to an aquatic en19 vironment, if the adjacent area— 

20 (i) contributes an element, such as the 

21 input of detrital material or the promotion 

22 of a planktonic or insect population pro23 viding food, that makes fish life possible; 

24 (ii) protects the quality and quantity 

25 of water sources; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
51 

•S 1214 RS

1 (iii) provides public access for the use 

2 of fishery resources; or 

3 (iv) serves as a buffer protecting the 

4 aquatic environment. 

5 (3) ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘As6 sistant Administrator’’ means the Assistant Adminis7 trator for Fisheries of the National Oceanic and At8 mospheric Administration. 

9 (4) BOARD.—The term ‘‘Board’’ means the Na10 tional Fish Habitat Board established by section 

11 4(a)(1). 

12 (5) CONSERVATION; CONSERVE; MANAGE; MAN13 AGEMENT.—The terms ‘‘conservation’’, ‘‘conserve’’, 

14 ‘‘manage’’, and ‘‘management’’ mean to protect, sus15 tain, and, where appropriate, restore and enhance, 

16 using methods and procedures associated with modern 

17 scientific resource programs (including protection, re18 search, census, law enforcement, habitat management, 

19 propagation, live trapping and transplantation, and 

20 regulated taking)— 

21 (A) a healthy population of fish, wildlife, or 

22 plant life; 

23 (B) a habitat required to sustain fish, wild24 life, or plant life; or 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
52 

•S 1214 RS

1 (C) a habitat required to sustain fish, wild2 life, or plant life productivity. 

3 (6) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means the 

4 Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Serv5 ice. 

6 (7) FISH.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘fish’’ means 

8 any freshwater, diadromous, estuarine, or ma9 rine finfish or shellfish. 

10 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘fish’’ includes 

11 the egg, spawn, spat, larval, and other juvenile 

12 stages of an organism described in subparagraph 

13 (A). 

14 (8) FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION PROJECT.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘fish habitat 

16 conservation project’’ means a project that— 

17 (i) is submitted to the Board by a 

18 Partnership and approved by the Secretary 

19 under section 6; and 

20 (ii) provides for the conservation or 

21 management of an aquatic habitat. 

22 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘fish habitat 

23 conservation project’’ includes— 

24 (i) the provision of technical assistance 

25 to a State, Indian tribe, or local community 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
53 

•S 1214 RS

1 by the National Fish Habitat Conservation 

2 Partnership Office or any other agency to 

3 facilitate the development of strategies and 

4 priorities for the conservation of aquatic 

5 habitats; or 

6 (ii) the obtaining of a real property 

7 interest in land or water, including water 

8 rights, in accordance with terms and condi9 tions that ensure that the real property will 

10 be administered for the long-term conserva11 tion of— 

12 (I) the land or water; and 

13 (II) the fish dependent on the land 

14 or water. 

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

16 the meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian 

17 Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 

18 U.S.C. 450b). 

19 (10) NATIONAL FISH HABITAT ACTION PLAN.— 

20 The term ‘‘National Fish Habitat Action Plan’’ 

21 means the National Fish Habitat Action Plan dated 

22 April 24, 2006, and any subsequent revisions or 

23 amendments to that plan. 

24 (11) PARTNERSHIP.—The term ‘‘Partnership’’ 

25 means an entity designated by the Board as a Fish 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
54 

•S 1214 RS

1 Habitat Conservation Partnership pursuant to section 

2 5(a). 

3 (12) REAL PROPERTY INTEREST.—The term 

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

5 in— 

6 (A) land; 

7 (B) water (including water rights); or 

8 (C) a building or object that is permanently 

9 affixed to land. 

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

11 the Secretary of the Interior. 

12 (14) STATE AGENCY.—The term ‘‘State agency’’ 

13 means— 

14 (A) the fish and wildlife agency of a State; 

15 (B) any department or division of a depart16 ment or agency of a State that manages in the 

17 public trust the inland or marine fishery re18 sources or the habitat for those fishery resources 

19 of the State pursuant to State law or the con20 stitution of the State; or 

21 (C) the fish and wildlife agency of the Com22 monwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Is23 lands, or any other territory or possession of the 

24 United States. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
55 

•S 1214 RS

1 SEC. 4. NATIONAL FISH HABITAT BOARD. 

2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is established a board, 

4 to be known as the ‘‘National Fish Habitat Board’’— 

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

6 implementation of this Act and the National 

7 Fish Habitat Action Plan; 

8 (B) to establish national goals and prior9 ities for aquatic habitat conservation; 

10 (C) to designate Partnerships; and 

11 (D) to review and make recommendations 

12 regarding fish habitat conservation projects. 

13 (2) MEMBERSHIP.—The Board shall be composed 

14 of 27 members, of whom— 

15 (A) 1 shall be the Director; 

16 (B) 1 shall be the Assistant Administrator; 

17 (C) 1 shall be the Chief of the Natural Re18 sources Conservation Service; 

19 (D) 1 shall be the Chief of the Forest Serv20 ice; 

21 (E) 1 shall be the Assistant Administrator 

22 for Water of the Environmental Protection Agen23 cy; 

24 (F) 1 shall be the President of the Associa25 tion of Fish and Wildlife Agencies; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
56 

•S 1214 RS

1 (G) 1 shall be the Secretary of the Board of 

2 Directors of the National Fish and Wildlife 

3 Foundation appointed pursuant to section 

4 3(g)(2)(B) of the National Fish and Wildlife 

5 Foundation Establishment Act (16 U.S.C. 

6 3702(g)(2)(B)); 

7 (H) 4 shall be representatives of State agen8 cies, 1 of whom shall be nominated by a regional 

9 association of fish and wildlife agencies from 

10 each of the Northeast, Southeast, Midwest, and 

11 Western regions of the United States; 

12 (I) 1 shall be a representative of the Amer13 ican Fisheries Society; 

14 (J) 2 shall be representatives of Indian 

15 tribes, of whom— 

16 (i) 1 shall represent Indian tribes from 

17 the State of Alaska; and 

18 (ii) 1 shall represent Indian tribes 

19 from the other States; 

20 (K) 1 shall be a representative of the Re21 gional Fishery Management Councils established 

22 under section 302 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fish23 ery Conservation and Management Act (16 

24 U.S.C. 1852); 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
57 

•S 1214 RS

1 (L) 1 shall be a representative of the Marine 

2 Fisheries Commissions, which is composed of— 

3 (i) the Atlantic States Marine Fish4 eries Commission; 

5 (ii) the Gulf States Marine Fisheries 

6 Commission; and 

7 (iii) the Pacific States Marine Fish8 eries Commission; 

9 (M) 1 shall be a representative of the 

10 Sportfishing and Boating Partnership Council; 

11 and 

12 (N) 10 shall be representatives selected from 

13 each of the following groups: 

14 (i) The recreational sportfishing indus15 try. 

16 (ii) The commercial fishing industry. 

17 (iii) Marine recreational anglers. 

18 (iv) Freshwater recreational anglers. 

19 (v) Terrestrial resource conservation 

20 organizations. 

21 (vi) Aquatic resource conservation or22 ganizations. 

23 (vii) The livestock and poultry produc24 tion industry. 

25 (viii) The land development industry. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
58 

•S 1214 RS

1 (ix) The row crop industry. 

2 (x) Natural resource commodity inter3 ests, such as petroleum or mineral extrac4 tion. 

5 (3) COMPENSATION.—A member of the Board 

6 shall serve without compensation. 

7 (4) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—A member of the Board 

8 shall be allowed travel expenses, including per diem 

9 in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for an em10 ployee of an agency under subchapter I of chapter 57 

11 of title 5, United States Code, while away from the 

12 home or regular place of business of the member in 

13 the performance of the duties of the Board. 

14 (b) APPOINTMENT AND TERMS.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided 

16 in this subsection, a member of the Board described 

17 in any of subparagraphs (H) through (N) of sub18 section (a)(2) shall serve for a term of 3 years. 

19 (2) INITIAL BOARD MEMBERSHIP.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

21 after the date of enactment of this Act, the rep22 resentatives of the board established by the Na23 tional Fish Habitat Action Plan shall appoint 

24 the initial members of the Board described in 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
59 

•S 1214 RS

1 subparagraphs (H) through (I) and (K) through 

2 (N) of subsection (a)(2). 

3 (B) TRIBAL REPRESENTATIVES.—Not later 

4 than 180 days after the enactment of this Act, 

5 the Secretary shall provide to the board estab6 lished by the National Fish Habitat Action Plan 

7 a recommendation of not less than 4 tribal rep8 resentatives, from which that board shall appoint 

9 2 representatives pursuant to subparagraph (J) 

10 of subsection (a)(2). 

11 (3) TRANSITIONAL TERMS.—Of the members de12 scribed in subsection (a)(2)(N) initially appointed to 

13 the Board— 

14 (A) 4 shall be appointed for a term of 1 

15 year; 

16 (B) 4 shall be appointed for a term of 2 

17 years; and 

18 (C) 3 shall be appointed for a term of 3 

19 years. 

20 (4) VACANCIES.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—A vacancy of a member 

22 of the Board described in any of subparagraphs 

23 (H) through (I) or (K) through (N) of subsection 

24 (a)(2) shall be filled by an appointment made by 

25 the remaining members of the Board. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
60 

•S 1214 RS

1 (B) TRIBAL REPRESENTATIVES.—Following 

2 a vacancy of a member of the Board described in 

3 subparagraph (J) of subsection (a)(2), the Sec4 retary shall recommend to the Board not less 

5 than 4 tribal representatives, from which the re6 maining members of the Board shall appoint a 

7 representative to fill the vacancy. 

8 (5) CONTINUATION OF SERVICE.—An individual 

9 whose term of service as a member of the Board ex10 pires may continue to serve on the Board until a suc11 cessor is appointed. 

12 (6) REMOVAL.—If a member of the Board de13 scribed in any of subparagraphs (H) through (N) of 

14 subsection (a)(2) misses 3 consecutive regularly sched15 uled Board meetings, the members of the Board 

16 may— 

17 (A) vote to remove that member; and 

18 (B) appoint another individual in accord19 ance with paragraph (4). 

20 (c) CHAIRPERSON.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall elect a mem22 ber of the Board to serve as Chairperson of the Board. 

23 (2) TERM.—The Chairperson of the Board shall 

24 serve for a term of 3 years. 

25 (d) MEETINGS.— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
61 

•S 1214 RS

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall meet— 

2 (A) at the call of the Chairperson; but 

3 (B) not less frequently than twice each cal4 endar year. 

5 (2) PUBLIC ACCESS.—All meetings of the Board 

6 shall be open to the public. 

7 (e) PROCEDURES.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall establish pro9 cedures to carry out the business of the Board, includ10 ing— 

11 (A) a requirement that a quorum of the 

12 members of the Board be present to transact 

13 business; 

14 (B) a requirement that no recommendations 

15 may be adopted by the Board, except by the vote 

of 2 16 ⁄3 of all members present and voting; 

17 (C) procedures for establishing national 

18 goals and priorities for aquatic habitat conserva19 tion for the purposes of this Act; 

20 (D) procedures for designating Partnerships 

21 under section 5; and 

22 (E) procedures for reviewing, evaluating, 

23 and making recommendations regarding fish 

24 habitat conservation projects. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
62 

•S 1214 RS

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

2 Board shall constitute a quorum. 

3 SEC. 5. FISH HABITAT PARTNERSHIPS. 

4 (a) AUTHORITY TO DESIGNATE.—The Board may des5 ignate Fish Habitat Partnerships in accordance with this 

6 section. 

7 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of a Partnership shall 

8 be— 

9 (1) to coordinate the implementation of the Na10 tional Fish Habitat Action Plan at a regional level; 

11 (2) to identify strategic priorities for fish habitat 

12 conservation; 

13 (3) to recommend to the Board fish habitat con14 servation projects that address a strategic priority of 

15 the Board; and 

16 (4) to develop and carry out fish habitat con17 servation projects. 

18 (c) APPLICATIONS.—An entity seeking to be designated 

19 as a Partnership shall submit to the Board an application 

20 at such time, in such manner, and containing such infor21 mation as the Board may reasonably require. 

22 (d) APPROVAL.—The Board may approve an applica23 tion for a Partnership submitted under subsection (c) if the 

24 Board determines that the applicant— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
63 

•S 1214 RS

1 (1) includes representatives of a diverse group of 

2 public and private partners, including Federal, State, 

3 or local governments, nonprofit entities, Indian tribes, 

4 and private individuals, that are focused on conserva5 tion of aquatic habitats to achieve results across juris6 dictional boundaries on public and private land; 

7 (2) is organized to promote the health of impor8 tant aquatic habitats and distinct geographical areas, 

9 keystone fish species, or system types, including res10 ervoirs, natural lakes, coastal and marine environ11 ments, and estuaries; 

12 (3) identifies strategic fish and aquatic habitat 

13 priorities for the Partnership area in the form of geo14 graphical focus areas or key stressors or impairments 

15 to facilitate strategic planning and decisionmaking; 

16 (4) is able to address issues and priorities on a 

17 nationally significant scale; 

18 (5) includes a governance structure that— 

19 (A) reflects the range of all partners; and 

20 (B) promotes joint strategic planning and 

21 decisionmaking by the applicant; 

22 (6) demonstrates completion of, or significant 

23 progress toward the development of, a strategic plan 

24 to address the causes of system decline in fish popu25 lations, rather than simply treating symptoms in acVerDate Mar 15 2010 23:47 May 17, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00063 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1214.RS S1214

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
64 

•S 1214 RS

1 cordance with the National Fish Habitat Action 

2 Plan; and 

3 (7) ensures collaboration in developing a stra4 tegic vision and implementation program that is sci5 entifically sound and achievable. 

6 SEC. 6. FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION PROJECTS. 

7 (a) SUBMISSION TO BOARD.—Not later than March 31 

8 of each calendar year, each Partnership shall submit to the 

9 Board a list of fish habitat conservation projects rec10 ommended by the Partnership for annual funding under 

11 this Act. 

12 (b) RECOMMENDATIONS BY BOARD.—Not later than 

13 July 1 of each calendar year, the Board shall submit to 

14 the Secretary a description, including estimated costs, of 

15 each fish habitat conservation project that the Board rec16 ommends that the Secretary approve and fund under this 

17 Act, in order of priority, for the following fiscal year. 

18 (c) CONSIDERATIONS.—The Board shall select each fish 

19 habitat conservation project to be recommended to the Sec20 retary under subsection (b)— 

21 (1) based on a recommendation of the Partner22 ship that is, or will be, participating actively in car23 rying out the fish habitat conservation project; and 

24 (2) after taking into consideration— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
65 

•S 1214 RS

1 (A) the extent to which the fish habitat con2 servation project fulfills a purpose of this Act or 

3 a goal of the National Fish Habitat Action Plan; 

4 (B) the extent to which the fish habitat con5 servation project addresses the national priorities 

6 established by the Board; 

7 (C) the availability of sufficient non-Fed8 eral funds to match Federal contributions for the 

9 fish habitat conservation project, as required by 

10 subsection (e); 

11 (D) the extent to which the fish habitat con12 servation project— 

13 (i) increases fishing opportunities for 

14 the public; 

15 (ii) will be carried out through a coop16 erative agreement among Federal, State, 

17 and local governments, Indian tribes, and 

18 private entities; 

19 (iii) increases public access to land or 

20 water; 

21 (iv) advances the conservation of fish 

22 and wildlife species that are listed, or are 

23 candidates to be listed, as threatened species 

24 or endangered species under the Endangered 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
66 

•S 1214 RS

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

2 seq.); 

3 (v) where appropriate, advances the 

4 conservation of fish and fish habitats under 

5 the Magnuson-Stevens Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 

6 et seq.) and other relevant Federal law and 

7 State wildlife action plans; and 

8 (vi) promotes resilience such that de9 sired biological communities are able to per10 sist and adapt to environmental stressors 

11 such as climate change; and 

12 (E) the substantiality of the character and 

13 design of the fish habitat conservation project. 

14 (d) LIMITATIONS.— 

15 (1) REQUIREMENTS FOR EVALUATION.—No fish 

16 habitat conservation project may be recommended by 

17 the Board under subsection (b) or provided financial 

18 assistance under this Act unless the fish habitat con19 servation project includes an evaluation plan de20 signed— 

21 (A) to appropriately assess the biological, 

22 ecological, or other results of the habitat protec23 tion, restoration, or enhancement activities car24 ried out using the assistance; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
67 

•S 1214 RS

1 (B) to reflect appropriate changes to the fish 

2 habitat conservation project if the assessment 

3 substantiates that the fish habitat conservation 

4 project objectives are not being met; and 

5 (C) to require the submission to the Board 

6 of a report describing the findings of the assess7 ment. 

8 (2) ACQUISITION OF REAL PROPERTY INTER9 ESTS.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—No fish habitat conserva11 tion project that will result in the acquisition by 

12 the State, local government, or other non-Federal 

13 entity, in whole or in part, of any real property 

14 interest may be recommended by the Board 

15 under subsection (b) or provided financial assist16 ance under this Act unless the project meets the 

17 requirements of subparagraph (B). 

18 (B) REQUIREMENTS.— 

19 (i) IN GENERAL.—A real property in20 terest may not be acquired pursuant to a 

21 fish habitat conservation project by a State, 

22 public agency, or other non-Federal entity 

23 unless the State, agency, or other non-Fed24 eral entity is obligated to undertake the 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
68 

•S 1214 RS

1 management of the property being acquired 

2 in accordance with the purposes of this Act. 

3 (ii) ADDITIONAL CONDITIONS.—Any 

4 real property interest acquired by a State, 

5 local government, or other non-Federal enti6 ty pursuant to a fish habitat conservation 

7 project shall be subject to terms and condi8 tions that ensure that the interest will be 

9 administered for the long-term conservation 

10 and management of the aquatic ecosystem 

11 and the fish and wildlife dependent on that 

12 ecosystem. 

13 (e) NON-FEDERAL CONTRIBUTIONS.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para15 graph (2), no fish habitat conservation project may be 

16 recommended by the Board under subsection (b) or 

17 provided financial assistance under this Act unless at 

18 least 50 percent of the cost of the fish habitat con19 servation project will be funded with non-Federal 

20 funds. 

21 (2) PROJECTS ON FEDERAL LAND OR WATER.— 

22 Notwithstanding paragraph (1), Federal funds may 

23 be used for payment of 100 percent of the costs of a 

24 fish habitat conservation project located on Federal 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
69 

•S 1214 RS

1 land or water, including the acquisition of inholdings 

2 within such land or water. 

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

4 share of the cost of a fish habitat conservation 

5 project— 

6 (A) may not be derived from a Federal 

7 grant program; but 

8 (B) may include in-kind contributions and 

9 cash. 

10 (4) SPECIAL RULE FOR INDIAN TRIBES.—Not11 withstanding paragraph (1) or any other provision of 

12 law, any funds made available to an Indian tribe 

13 pursuant to this Act may be considered to be non14 Federal funds for the purpose of paragraph (1). 

15 (f) APPROVAL.— 

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

17 the date of receipt of the recommendations of the 

18 Board for fish habitat conservation projects under 

19 subsection (b), and based, to the maximum extent 

20 practicable, on the criteria described in subsection 

21 (c)— 

22 (A) the Secretary shall approve, reject, or 

23 reorder the priority of any fish habitat conserva24 tion project recommended by the Board that is 

25 not within a marine or estuarine habitat; and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
70 

•S 1214 RS

1 (B) the Secretary and the Secretary of Com2 merce shall jointly approve, reject, or reorder the 

3 priority of any fish habitat conservation project 

4 recommended by the Board that is within a ma5 rine or estuarine habitat. 

6 (2) FUNDING.—If the Secretary, or the Secretary 

7 and the Secretary of Commerce jointly, approves a 

8 fish habitat conservation project under paragraph (1), 

9 the Secretary, or the Secretary and the Secretary of 

10 Commerce jointly, shall use amounts made available 

11 to carry out this Act to provide funds to carry out 

12 the fish habitat conservation project. 

13 (3) NOTIFICATION.—If the Secretary, or the Sec14 retary and the Secretary of Commerce jointly, rejects 

15 or reorders the priority of any fish habitat conserva16 tion project recommended by the Board under sub17 section (b), the Secretary, or the Secretary and the 

18 Secretary of Commerce jointly, shall provide to the 

19 Board and the appropriate Partnership a written 

20 statement of the reasons that the Secretary, or the 

21 Secretary and the Secretary of Commerce jointly, re22 jected or modified the priority of the fish habitat con23 servation project. 

24 (4) LIMITATION.—If the Secretary, or the Sec25 retary and the Secretary of Commerce jointly, has not 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
71 

•S 1214 RS

1 approved, rejected, or reordered the priority of the rec2 ommendations of the Board for fish habitat conserva3 tion projects by the date that is 180 days after the 

4 date of receipt of the recommendations, the rec5 ommendations shall be considered to be approved. 

6 SEC. 7. NATIONAL FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION PART7 NERSHIP OFFICE. 

8 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 1 year after the 

9 date of enactment of this Act, the Director shall establish 

10 an office, to be known as the ‘‘National Fish Habitat Con11 servation Partnership Office’’, within the United States 

12 Fish and Wildlife Service. 

13 (b) FUNCTIONS.—The National Fish Habitat Con14 servation Partnership Office shall— 

15 (1) provide funding for the operational needs of 

16 the Partnerships, including funding for activities 

17 such as planning, project development and implemen18 tation, coordination, monitoring, evaluation, commu19 nication, and outreach; 

20 (2) provide funding to support the detail of State 

21 and tribal fish and wildlife staff to the Office; 

22 (3) facilitate the cooperative development and 

23 approval of Partnerships; 

24 (4) assist the Secretary and the Board in car25 rying out this Act; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
72 

•S 1214 RS

1 (5) assist the Secretary in carrying out the re2 quirements of sections 8 and 10; 

3 (6) facilitate communication, cohesiveness, and 

4 efficient operations for the benefit of Partnerships and 

5 the Board; 

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

7 the Assistant Administrator, and the President of the 

8 Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, the consid9 eration of fish habitat conservation projects by the 

10 Board; 

11 (8) provide support to the Director regarding the 

12 development and implementation of the interagency 

13 operational plan under subsection (c); 

14 (9) coordinate technical and scientific reporting 

15 as required by section 11; 

16 (10) facilitate the efficient use of resources and 

17 activities of Federal departments and agencies to 

18 carry out this Act in an efficient manner; and 

19 (11) provide support to the Board for national 

20 communication and outreach efforts that promote 

21 public awareness of fish habitat conservation. 

22 (c) INTERAGENCY OPERATIONAL PLAN.—Not later 

23 than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, and 

24 every 5 years thereafter, the Director, in cooperation with 

25 the Assistant Administrator and the heads of other approVerDate Mar 15 2010 23:47 May 17, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00072 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1214.RS S1214

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
73 

•S 1214 RS

1 priate Federal departments and agencies, shall develop an 

2 interagency operational plan for the National Fish Habitat 

3 Conservation Partnership Office that describes— 

4 (1) the functional, operational, technical, sci5 entific, and general staff, administrative, and mate6 rial needs of the Office; and 

7 (2) any interagency agreements between or 

8 among Federal departments and agencies to address 

9 those needs. 

10 (d) STAFF AND SUPPORT.— 

11 (1) DEPARTMENTS OF INTERIOR AND COM12 MERCE.—The Director and the Assistant Adminis13 trator shall each provide appropriate staff to support 

14 the National Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership 

15 Office, subject to the availability of funds under sec16 tion 15. 

17 (2) STATES AND INDIAN TRIBES.—Each State 

18 and Indian tribe is encouraged to provide staff to 

19 support the National Fish Habitat Conservation 

20 Partnership Office. 

21 (3) DETAILEES AND CONTRACTORS.—The Na22 tional Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership Office 

23 may accept staff or other administrative support from 

24 other entities— 

25 (A) through interagency details; or 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
74 

•S 1214 RS

1 (B) as contractors. 

2 (4) QUALIFICATIONS.—The staff of the National 

3 Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership Office shall 

4 include members with education and experience relat5 ing to the principles of fish, wildlife, and aquatic 

6 habitat conservation. 

7 (5) WAIVER OF REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary 

8 may waive all or part of the non-Federal contribution 

9 requirement under section 6(e)(1) if the Secretary de10 termines that— 

11 (A) no reasonable means are available 

12 through which the affected applicant can meet 

13 the requirement; and 

14 (B) the probable benefit of the relevant fish 

15 habitat conservation project outweighs the public 

16 interest in meeting the requirement. 

17 (e) REPORTS.—Not less frequently than once each 

18 year, the Director shall provide to the Board a report de19 scribing the activities of the National Fish Habitat Con20 servation Partnership Office. 

21 SEC. 8. TECHNICAL AND SCIENTIFIC ASSISTANCE. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director, the Assistant Admin23 istrator, and the Director of the United States Geological 

24 Survey, in coordination with the Forest Service and other 

25 appropriate Federal departments and agencies, shall proVerDate Mar 15 2010 23:47 May 17, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00074 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1214.RS S1214

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
75 

•S 1214 RS

1 vide scientific and technical assistance to the Partnerships, 

2 participants in fish habitat conservation projects, and the 

3 Board. 

4 (b) INCLUSIONS.—Scientific and technical assistance 

5 provided pursuant to subsection (a) may include— 

6 (1) providing technical and scientific assistance 

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

8 and nongovernmental organizations in the develop9 ment and implementation of Partnerships; 

10 (2) providing technical and scientific assistance 

11 to Partnerships for habitat assessment, strategic plan12 ning, and prioritization; 

13 (3) supporting the development and implementa14 tion of fish habitat conservation projects that are 

15 identified as high priorities by Partnerships and the 

16 Board; 

17 (4) supporting and providing recommendations 

18 regarding the development of science-based monitoring 

19 and assessment approaches for implementation 

20 through Partnerships; 

21 (5) supporting and providing recommendations 

22 for a national fish habitat assessment; and 

23 (6) ensuring the availability of experts to con24 duct scientifically based evaluation and reporting of 

25 the results of fish habitat conservation projects. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
76 

•S 1214 RS

1 SEC. 9. CONSERVATION OF AQUATIC HABITAT FOR FISH 

2 AND OTHER AQUATIC ORGANISMS ON FED3 ERAL LAND. 

4 To the extent consistent with the mission and author5 ity of the applicable department or agency, the head of each 

6 Federal department and agency responsible for acquiring, 

7 managing, or disposing of Federal land or water shall co8 operate with the Assistant Administrator and the Director 

9 to conserve the aquatic habitats for fish and other aquatic 

10 organisms within the land and water of the department or 

11 agency. 

12 SEC. 10. COORDINATION WITH STATES AND INDIAN TRIBES. 

13 The Secretary shall provide a notice to, and coordinate 

14 with, the appropriate State agency or tribal agency, as ap15 plicable, of each State and Indian tribe within the bound16 aries of which an activity is planned to be carried out pur17 suant to this Act by not later than 30 days before the date 

18 on which the activity is implemented. 

19 SEC. 11. ACCOUNTABILITY AND REPORTING. 

20 (a) IMPLEMENTATION REPORTS.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after 

22 the date of enactment of this Act, and every 2 years 

23 thereafter, the Board shall submit to the appropriate 

24 congressional committees a report describing the im25 plementation of— 

26 (A) this Act; and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
77 

•S 1214 RS

1 (B) the National Fish Habitat Action Plan. 

2 (2) CONTENTS.—Each report submitted under 

3 paragraph (1) shall include— 

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

5 stream miles, or acre-feet (or other suitable meas6 ure) of aquatic habitat that was protected, re7 stored, or enhanced under the National Fish 

8 Habitat Action Plan by Federal, State, or local 

9 governments, Indian tribes, or other entities in 

10 the United States during the 2-year period end11 ing on the date of submission of the report; 

12 (B) a description of the public access to 

13 aquatic habitats protected, restored, or estab14 lished under the National Fish Habitat Action 

15 Plan during that 2-year period; 

16 (C) a description of the opportunities for 

17 public fishing established under the National 

18 Fish Habitat Action Plan during that period; 

19 and 

20 (D) an assessment of the status of fish habi21 tat conservation projects carried out with funds 

22 provided under this Act during that period, 

23 disaggregated by year, including— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
78 

•S 1214 RS

1 (i) a description of the fish habitat 

2 conservation projects recommended by the 

3 Board under section 6(b); 

4 (ii) a description of each fish habitat 

5 conservation project approved by the Sec6 retary under section 6(f), in order of pri7 ority for funding; 

8 (iii) a justification for— 

9 (I) the approval of each fish habi10 tat conservation project; and 

11 (II) the order of priority for fund12 ing of each fish habitat conservation 

13 project; 

14 (iv) a justification for any rejection or 

15 reordering of the priority of each fish habi16 tat conservation project recommended by the 

17 Board under section 6(b) that was based on 

18 a factor other than the criteria described in 

19 section 6(c); and 

20 (v) an accounting of expenditures by 

21 Federal, State, or local governments, Indian 

22 tribes, or other entities to carry out fish 

23 habitat conservation projects. 

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

25 December 31, 2010, and every 5 years thereafter, the Board 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
79 

•S 1214 RS

1 shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a 

2 report describing the status of aquatic habitats in the 

3 United States. 

4 (c) REVISIONS.—Not later than December 31, 2011, 

5 and every 5 years thereafter, the Board shall revise the goals 

6 and other elements of the National Fish Habitat Action 

7 Plan, after consideration of each report required by sub8 section (b). 

9 SEC. 12. REGULATIONS. 

10 The Secretary may promulgate such regulations as the 

11 Secretary determines to be necessary to carry out this Act. 

12 SEC. 13. EFFECT OF ACT. 

13 (a) WATER RIGHTS.—Nothing in this Act— 

14 (1) establishes any express or implied reserved 

15 water right in the United States for any purpose; 

16 (2) affects any water right in existence on the 

17 date of enactment of this Act; or 

18 (3) affects any Federal or State law in existence 

19 on the date of enactment of the Act regarding water 

20 quality or water quantity. 

21 (b) STATE AUTHORITY.—Nothing in this Act— 

22 (1) affects the authority, jurisdiction, or respon23 sibility of a State to manage, control, or regulate fish 

24 and wildlife under the laws and regulations of the 

25 State; or 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
80 

•S 1214 RS

1 (2) authorizes the Secretary to control or regu2 late within a State the fishing or hunting of fish and 

3 wildlife. 

4 (c) EFFECT ON INDIAN TRIBES.—Nothing in this Act 

5 abrogates, abridges, affects, modifies, supersedes, or alters 

6 any right of an Indian tribe recognized by treaty or any 

7 other means, including— 

8 (1) an agreement between the Indian tribe and 

9 the United States; 

10 (2) Federal law (including regulations); 

11 (3) an Executive order; or 

12 (4) a judicial decree. 

13 (d) ADJUDICATION OF WATER RIGHTS.—Nothing in 

14 this Act diminishes or affects the ability of the Secretary 

15 to join an adjudication of rights to the use of water pursu16 ant to subsection (a), (b), or (c) of section 208 of the Depart17 ment of Justice Appropriation Act, 1953 (43 U.S.C. 666). 

18 (e) EFFECT ON OTHER AUTHORITIES.— 

19 (1) ACQUISITION OF LAND AND WATER.—Nothing 

20 in this Act alters or otherwise affects the authorities, 

21 responsibilities, obligations, or powers of the Sec22 retary to acquire land, water, or an interest in land 

23 or water under any other provision of law. 

24 (2) PRIVATE PROPERTY PROTECTION.—Nothing 

25 in this Act permits the use of funds made available 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
81 

•S 1214 RS

1 to carry out this Act to acquire real property or a 

2 real property interest without the written consent of 

3 each owner of the real property or real property in4 terest. 

5 (3) MITIGATION.—Nothing in this Act permits 

6 the use of funds made available to carry out this Act 

7 for fish and wildlife mitigation purposes under— 

8 (A) the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 

9 (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.); 

10 (B) the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act 

11 (16 U.S.C. 661 et seq.); 

12 (C) the Water Resources Development Act of 

13 1986 (Public Law 99–662; 100 Stat. 4082); or 

14 (D) any other Federal law or court settle15 ment. 

16 SEC. 14. NONAPPLICABILITY OF FEDERAL ADVISORY COM17 MITTEE ACT. 

18 The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) 

19 shall not apply to— 

20 (1) the Board; or 

21 (2) any Partnership. 

22 SEC. 15. FUNDING. 

23 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

24 (1) FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION PROJECTS.— 

25 There is authorized to be appropriated to the SecVerDate Mar 15 2010 23:47 May 17, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00081 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1214.RS S1214

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
82 

•S 1214 RS

1 retary $75,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2010 

2 through 2014 to provide funds for fish habitat con3 servation projects approved under section 6(f), of 

4 which 5 percent shall be made available for each fiscal 

5 year for projects carried out by Indian tribes. 

6 (2) NATIONAL FISH HABITAT CONSERVATION

7 PARTNERSHIP OFFICE.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be 

9 appropriated to the Secretary for each of fiscal 

10 years 2010 through 2014 for the National Fish 

11 Habitat Conservation Partnership Office, and to 

12 carry out section 11, an amount equal to the 

13 greater of— 

14 (i) $3,000,000; and 

15 (ii) 25 percent of the amount appro16 priated for the applicable fiscal year pursu17 ant to paragraph (1). 

18 (B) REQUIRED TRANSFERS.—The Secretary 

19 shall annually transfer to other Federal depart20 ments and agencies such percentage of the 

21 amounts made available pursuant to subpara22 graph (A) as is required to support participa23 tion by those departments and agencies in the 

24 National Fish Habitat Conservation Partnership 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
83 

•S 1214 RS

1 Office pursuant to the interagency operational 

2 plan under section 7(c). 

3 (3) TECHNICAL AND SCIENTIFIC ASSISTANCE.— 

4 There are authorized to be appropriated for each of 

5 fiscal years 2010 through 2014 to carry out, and pro6 vide technical and scientific assistance under, section 

7 8— 

8 (A) $10,000,000 to the Secretary for use by 

9 the United States Fish and Wildlife Service; 

10 (B) $10,000,000 to the Assistant Adminis11 trator for use by the National Oceanic and At12 mospheric Administration; and 

13 (C) $10,000,000 to the Secretary for use by 

14 the United States Geological Survey. 

15 (4) PLANNING AND ADMINISTRATIVE EX16 PENSES.—There is authorized to be appropriated to 

17 the Secretary for each of fiscal years 2010 through 

18 2014 for use by the Board, the Director, and the As19 sistant Administrator for planning and administra20 tive expenses an amount equal to the greater of— 

21 (A) $300,000; and 

22 (B) 4 percent of the amount appropriated 

23 for the applicable fiscal year pursuant to para24 graph (1). 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
84 

•S 1214 RS

1 (b) AGREEMENTS AND GRANTS.—The Secretary 

2 may— 

3 (1) on the recommendation of the Board, and 

4 notwithstanding sections 6304 and 6305 of title 31, 

5 United States Code, and the Federal Financial Assist6 ance Management Improvement Act of 1999 (31 

7 U.S.C. 6101 note; Public Law 106–107), enter into a 

8 grant agreement, cooperative agreement, or contract 

9 with a Partnership or other entity for a fish habitat 

10 conservation project or restoration or enhancement 

11 project; 

12 (2) apply for, accept, and use a grant from any 

13 individual or entity to carry out the purposes of this 

14 Act; and 

15 (3) make funds available to any Federal depart16 ment or agency for use by that department or agency 

17 to provide grants for any fish habitat protection 

18 project, restoration project, or enhancement project 

19 that the Secretary determines to be consistent with 

20 this Act. 

21 (c) DONATIONS.— 

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

23 (A) enter into an agreement with any orga24 nization described in section 501(c)(3) of the In25 ternal Revenue Code of 1986 that is exempt from 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
85 

•S 1214 RS

1 taxation under section 501(a) of that Code to so2 licit private donations to carry out the purposes 

3 of this Act; and 

4 (B) accept donations of funds, property, 

5 and services to carry out the purposes of this 

6 Act. 

7 (2) TREATMENT.—A donation accepted under 

8 this section— 

9 (A) shall be considered to be a gift or be10 quest to, or otherwise for the use of, the United 

11 States; and 

12 (B) may be— 

13 (i) used directly by the Secretary; or 

14 (ii) provided to another Federal de15 partment or agency through an interagency 

16 agreement. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
Calendar No. 378 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1214 

[Report No. 111–190] 

A BILL 

To conserve fish and aquatic communities in the 

for other purposes. of life for the people of the United States, and fish habitat conservation, to improve the quality United States through partnerships that foster 

MAY 17, 2010 

Reported with an amendment 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS