I

104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 3811

To provide incentives for the conservation and recovery of endangered species.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JULY 12, 1996

Mr. SHADEGG introduced the following bill; which was referred to the

Committee on Resources

A BILL

To provide incentives for the conservation and recovery of

endangered species.

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Endangered Species

5 Incentive Act of 1996’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

7 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds and declares the

8 following:

9 (1) The United States has a unique and re10 markable natural heritage rich in fish, wildlife, and

11 plants that the people of the United States wish to
2

•HR 3811 IH

1 conserve for the well-being and benefit of future gen2 erations.

3 (2) In numerous instances, we have successfully

4 demonstrated the ability to restore, improve, and ef5 fectively manage natural resources, including fish,

6 wildlife, plants, and habitat.

7 (3) The United States has done so because of

8 the creativity and ingenuity of our single greatest re9 source, our people.

10 (4) According to General Accounting Office re11 ports, most endangered species are found on private

12 land. Therefore, successful conservation programs

13 must encourage private stewardship through incen14 tive-based programs to enlist the cooperation of own15 ers of private property and invigorate their conserva16 tion ethic.

17 (5) Effective Federal conservation efforts shall

18 ensure the multiple use of the vast Federal estate

19 now designated as multiple use lands, to ensure a

20 continuous supply of resources critical to the people

21 of the United States while ensuring these resources

22 are available for future generations.

23 (6) Federal conservation actions should incur

24 the lowest cost possible to citizens and taxpayers
3

•HR 3811 IH

1 and ensure efficient use of scarce conservation re2 sources.

3 (7) The United States should provide incentives

4 for State, local, and private conservation efforts to

5 enable and assist States, local governments, and the

6 private sector to create, maintain, and implement ef7 fective endangered species programs, and should af8 firmatively intervene in fish, wildlife, and plant re9 covery conservation efforts where there is a direct

10 and substantial effect on interstate commerce and

11 State, local, and private efforts have proven ineffec12 tive.

13 (8) The costs of programs which benefit society

14 as a whole should not be borne by individuals, but

15 should be shared equally by the public which benefits

16 from those programs.

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

18 incentives for the recovery and conservation of endangered

19 species.

20 SEC. 3. PREVENTING ENDANGERMENT.

21 Section 6 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16

22 U.S.C. 1535) is amended—

23 (1) in the heading for the section, by striking

24 ‘‘WITH THE STATES’’; and
4

•HR 3811 IH

1 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub2 sections:

3 ‘‘(j) VOLUNTARY CONSERVATION AGREEMENTS.—(1)

4 The Secretary may enter into a voluntary conservation

5 agreement for up to 5 years with any State, Indian tribe,

6 or local government, if requested by the State, Indian

7 tribe, or local government to do so. The goal of the con8 servation agreement shall be to prevent endangerment.

9 The conservation agreement shall—

10 ‘‘(A) promote the conservation of a species for

11 which the Secretary has made a finding under sec12 tion 4(b)(3) that there is substantial information

13 that listing of the species may be warranted (here14 after in this Act referred to as a ‘candidate species’);

15 ‘‘(B) promote the conservation of other declin16 ing species which are dependent on the same eco17 system or located within the same habitat as a can18 didate species; or

19 ‘‘(C) promote the conservation of other species,

20 rare habitats, or regional biological diversity, as ap21 propriate.

22 ‘‘(2) Consideration of a conservation agreement

23 under this section may be initiated by the Secretary or

24 a State, Indian tribe, or local government.
5

•HR 3811 IH

1 ‘‘(3) Any State, Indian tribe, or local government or

2 coalition of States, Indian tribes, or local governments

3 may submit a proposed conservation agreement to the Sec4 retary for consideration. The Secretary may provide tech5 nical assistance or other assistance as appropriate for the

6 development of such an agreement.

7 ‘‘(4) Conservation agreements shall contain the fol8 lowing information:

9 ‘‘(A) Objective, measurable scientific criteria

10 which, if met, would prevent endangerment.

11 ‘‘(B) A description of site-specific management

12 actions to achieve the criteria required under sub13 paragraph (A) and a timetable for completing those

14 actions.

15 ‘‘(C) A description of actions that will be taken

16 to minimize adverse social or economic impacts (if

17 any) resulting from implementation of the agree18 ment.

19 ‘‘(D) Strategies that use existing Federal,

20 State, or other public lands to promote the conserva21 tion of the species or habitats that are the subject

22 of the agreement.

23 ‘‘(E) An identification of the specific areas or

24 circumstances in which the implementation of the
6

•HR 3811 IH

1 agreement would help to reduce conflicts (if any) be2 tween conservation of species and economic activity.

3 ‘‘(F) An identification of the opportunities for

4 cooperation among States, Indian tribes, local gov5 ernments, public utilities, and other interested per6 sons to undertake actions which would contribute to

7 the conservation of species or habitat.

8 ‘‘(G) A method of monitoring the success of the

9 conservation agreement in preventing endangerment

10 and compliance with its terms.

11 ‘‘(H) Any other information that the State, In12 dian tribe, local government, or the Secretary con13 siders appropriate.

14 ‘‘(5)(A) The Secretary shall, within 90 days after the

15 date of submission of any conservation agreement under

16 this subsection, determine whether the agreement will

17 achieve the goals required under paragraph (1).

18 ‘‘(B) If the conservation agreement is not approved

19 by the Secretary, the Secretary shall return the proposed

20 conservation agreement to the State, Indian tribe, or local

21 government (hereinafter referred to as an ‘agreement

22 party’) with suggestions for modification that would result

23 in approval of the conservation agreement.

24 ‘‘(6)(A) If a species covered by an approved conserva25 tion agreement continues to decline and, as a result of the
7

•HR 3811 IH

1 factors under section 4(a), becomes an endangered species

2 or threatened species, the agreement party may request

3 the Secretary to transfer management authority for that

4 species over to the agreement party through a written

5 amendment to the conservation agreement.

6 ‘‘(B) Such management authority shall consist of the

7 authority to grant permits under section 10, and to en8 force the provisions of section 9, consistent with the goals

9 and purposes of the Act.

10 ‘‘(C) The Secretary shall comply with a request under

11 this paragraph within 60 days if the Secretary finds—

12 ‘‘(i) the agreement party is able to conduct in13 vestigations to determine the status and require14 ments for survival and recovery of the species;

15 ‘‘(ii) the agreement party is able to establish

16 and enforce programs for the conservation of the

17 species consistent with the goals and purposes of the

18 Act; and

19 ‘‘(iii) the agreement party has committed to im20 plement and enforce sections 9 and 10 in a manner

21 consistent with the goals and purposes of the Act.

22 ‘‘(D) The Secretary may provide technical and other

23 assistance as appropriate to the agreement party to carry

24 out the provisions of this paragraph.
8

•HR 3811 IH

1 ‘‘(7) The agreement party shall submit an annual re2 port to the Secretary on the status of the species covered

3 by the conservation agreement. The Secretary shall review

4 the annual reports to determine whether the agreement

5 party is in compliance with the terms of the conservation

6 agreement. If the Secretary determines that the agree7 ment party is not in compliance, the Secretary shall imme8 diately notify the agreement party of that determination.

9 If the agreement party is unable to come into compliance

10 within 6 months after the date of such notification, the

11 conservation agreement shall be void.

12 ‘‘(8) During the time period specified in a conserva13 tion agreement, the Secretary may not specify additional

14 terms to the agreement unless the Secretary and the

15 agreement party determine that the species is likely to be16 come an endangered species or threatened species within

17 the area covered by the conservation agreement during

18 that time period and additional terms are necessary to

19 prevent endangerment.

20 ‘‘(9)(A) At the conclusion of the time period specified

21 under paragraph (6)(A) in a conservation agreement, the

22 Secretary and the agreement party shall review the terms

23 of the conservation agreement to determine whether the

24 conservation agreement is achieving the goal of preventing

25 endangerment. If the conservation agreement is achieving
9

•HR 3811 IH

1 that goal, the Secretary and the agreement party may ex2 tend the existing terms of the conservation agreement for

3 a period not to exceed 5 years, at which time the review

4 process shall be repeated. If the conservation agreement

5 is failing to achieve that goal, the Secretary and the agree6 ment party may—

7 ‘‘(i) revise or renew the terms of the agreement;

8 or

9 ‘‘(ii) choose not to renew the agreement, at

10 which time the authority for sections 9 and 10 shall

11 transfer back to the Secretary.

12 ‘‘(B) If a species is determined to be an endangered

13 species or threatened species within an area covered by

14 a conservation agreement during the time period specified

15 in the agreement, the terms of the conservation agreement

16 shall not remain in effect for that species unless the agree17 ment is amended pursuant to paragraph (6).

18 ‘‘(10) To assist the States in carrying out the pro19 gram under this subsection, the Secretary may utilize the

20 land acquisition and other authority under this Act.

21 ‘‘(11) For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘pre22 vent endangerment’ means to conserve a species by elimi23 nating, reducing, or controlling threats to the species

24 which are otherwise likely to result in a determination
10

•HR 3811 IH

1 under this Act that the species is a threatened species or

2 endangered species.

3 ‘‘(k) CONSISTENCY.—

4 ‘‘(1) Each Federal agency conducting, support5 ing, or permitting activities in the area covered by

6 an approved conservation agreement under sub7 section (j) shall do so in a manner which is, to the

8 maximum extent practicable, consistent with the

9 conservation agreement and the goals of this Act.

10 ‘‘(2)(A) After final approval by the Secretary of

11 a conservation agreement under subsection (j), any

12 applicant for a required Federal license, permit, or

13 support to conduct an activity affecting species with14 in the area covered by the conservation agreement

15 shall provide certification to the agency and the

16 agreement party that such activity will be conducted

17 in a manner consistent with the conservation agree18 ment.

19 ‘‘(B) Within 90 days after receipt of certifi20 cation, the agreement party shall notify the Federal

21 agency that it concurs with or objects to the appli22 cant’s certification. If the agreement party fails to

23 furnish the required notification within 90 days, the

24 agreement party’s concurrence with the certification

25 shall be conclusively presumed. No license, permit,
11

•HR 3811 IH

1 or other support shall be granted by the Federal

2 agency until the agreement party has concurred or

3 until, by the agreement party’s failure to act, the

4 concurrence is conclusively presumed, unless the

5 Secretary finds, after providing a reasonable oppor6 tunity for comments from the Federal agency and

7 from the agreement party, that the activity is con8 sistent with the conservation agreement or is other9 wise necessary in the interest of national security.

10 ‘‘(l) CONSERVATION ASSISTANCE FUND.—

11 ‘‘(1) The Secretary shall establish a Conserva12 tion Assistance Fund (hereafter referred to in this

13 subsection as the ‘Fund’), that shall consist of all

14 sums appropriated for providing grants and ad15 vances under this subsection, and that shall be ad16 ministered by the Secretary as a revolving fund.

17 ‘‘(2) The Secretary may make grants and inter18 est-free advances from the Fund to any State, In19 dian tribe, or local government to assist in the devel20 opment of a conservation agreement under this sec21 tion or a conservation plan under section 10.

22 ‘‘(3) In making grants and advances under

23 paragraph (2) with respect to an agreement or a

24 plan, the Secretary shall consider—
12

•HR 3811 IH

1 ‘‘(A) the number of species covered by the

2 agreement or plan;

3 ‘‘(B) the commitment to participate in the

4 planning process from a diversity of interests,

5 including local governmental, business, environ6 mental, and landowner interests;

7 ‘‘(C) the likelihood of success of the plan8 ning effort;

9 ‘‘(D) the availability of matching funds

10 from the State or local government or other

11 sources; and

12 ‘‘(E) other factors the Secretary considers

13 appropriate.

14 ‘‘(4) Sums advanced from the Fund shall be re15 paid by the earlier of—

16 ‘‘(A) 10 years after the date of the ad17 vance; or

18 ‘‘(B)(i) in the case of an advance for a

19 conservation agreement under subsection (j), 3

20 years after the date of the advance if no agree21 ment is developed and submitted to the Sec22 retary within 2 years after the date of the ad23 vance; or

24 ‘‘(ii) in the case of an advance for a con25 servation plan under section 10, 4 years after
13

•HR 3811 IH

1 the date of the advance if no permit is issued

2 under section 10(a)(1)(B) with respect to the

3 plan within 3 years after the date of the ad4 vance.

5 ‘‘(5) Sums received by the United States as re6 payment of advances from the Fund shall be cred7 ited to the Fund and available for further grants or

8 advances in accordance with this subsection without

9 further appropriation.’’.

10 SEC. 4. INCENTIVES FOR ENDANGERED SPECIES CON11 SERVATION ON PRIVATE PROPERTY.

12 Section 14 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973

13 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) is amended to read as follows:

14 ‘‘COOPERATION WITH PRIVATE LANDOWNERS

15 ‘‘SEC. 14. (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall

16 seek to work cooperatively with private landowners in the

17 conservation of threatened species and endangered species,

18 and shall seek to minimize adverse social and economic

19 consequences that may result from efforts to conserve

20 such species.

21 ‘‘(b) PRIORITIES.—In developing any recovery plan

22 under section 4(f) for the conservation of a threatened

23 species or endangered species, the Secretary shall, to the

24 maximum extent practicable, give priority to actions in the

25 following order:
14

•HR 3811 IH

1 ‘‘(1) Actions to conserve species on Federal

2 lands.

3 ‘‘(2) In cooperation with the appropriate State,

4 actions to conserve species on State lands.

5 ‘‘(3) In cooperation with the appropriate local

6 government, actions to conserve species on public

7 lands within the jurisdiction of that local govern8 ment.

9 ‘‘(4) Ensuring that federally subsidized activi10 ties on private lands are consistent with the objec11 tives of the recovery plan.

12 ‘‘(5) Ensuring that incentives to conserve spe13 cies on private lands under section 6(l) are used to

14 the maximum extent practicable.

15 ‘‘(6) Regulating activities on private lands in a

16 manner that will minimize adverse economic impacts

17 through the use of habitat conservation plans under

18 section 10 and other mechanisms as appropriate.

19 ‘‘(c) PUBLIC OUTREACH AND COMMUNITY ASSIST20 ANCE PROGRAMS.—(1) The Secretary shall establish a

21 Community Assistance Program to provide timely and ac22 curate information to local governments or property own23 ers.

24 ‘‘(2) Community Assistance Program employees shall

25 be located within each field office of the United States
15

•HR 3811 IH

1 Fish and Wildlife Service. Their duties shall include, but

2 not be limited to—

3 ‘‘(A) providing accurate, timely information on

4 local impacts of listings, recovery planning efforts,

5 and other actions under this Act;

6 ‘‘(B) providing assistance on obtaining permits

7 under section 10 and other provisions of this Act;

8 ‘‘(C) serving as a focal point for questions, re9 quests, complaints, and suggestions from property

10 owners and local governments concerning the poli11 cies and activities of the United States Fish and

12 Wildlife Service or other Federal agencies in the im13 plementation of this Act; and

14 ‘‘(D) training Federal personnel on public out15 reach efforts.

16 ‘‘(d) PRIVATE LANDOWNER COOPERATIVE AGREE17 MENT PROGRAM.—(1) The Secretary shall establish a pri18 vate landowner cooperative agreement program for the

19 purpose of encouraging the management, restoration, or

20 enhancement of habitats for endangered species or threat21 ened species on private lands in furtherance of the pur22 poses of this Act.

23 ‘‘(2) The Secretary may enter into written coopera24 tive agreements with participating private landowners pur25 suant to the program established by this subsection.
16

•HR 3811 IH

1 ‘‘(3) A cooperative agreement with a landowner under

2 this subsection shall—

3 ‘‘(A) describe the private lands which are sub4 ject to the agreement, and any technical or other as5 sistance which may be provided to the landowner by

6 the Secretary under the agreement, as appropriate;

7 ‘‘(B) describe, for the lands covered by the

8 agreement, as of the date the agreement is entered

9 into, the baseline population size and habitat, of en10 dangered species and threatened species that are

11 covered by the agreement;

12 ‘‘(C) provide the participating landowner with

13 volunteer status under the Fish and Wildlife Im14 provement Act of 1956 (16 U.S.C. 742f(c));

15 ‘‘(D) be effective for a period agreed to by the

16 parties to the agreement which is of sufficient dura17 tion to enhance the conservation of the species cov18 ered by the agreement, and be effective after that

19 period until revoked by the landowner by submission

20 of written notice to the Secretary;

21 ‘‘(E) describe those measures necessary to fur22 ther the recovery of each species covered by the

23 agreement through the management, restoration, or

24 creation of habitat upon which the species is depend25 ent; and
17

•HR 3811 IH

1 ‘‘(F) authorize, either during or after, or both,

2 the period the cooperative agreement is in effect, any

3 taking that—

4 ‘‘(i) is otherwise incidental to, and not the

5 purpose of, the carrying out of any otherwise

6 lawful activity on the lands covered by the

7 agreement;

8 ‘‘(ii) does not reduce for the lands covered

9 by the agreement the baseline population size or

10 habitat of the species covered by the agreement

11 below that described in the statement of the

12 Secretary under subparagraph (B); and

13 ‘‘(iii) does not have the effect of reducing

14 the total amount of habitat available to the

15 overall population to levels below those available

16 to the population prior to the effective date of

17 the agreement.

18 ‘‘(4) For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘base19 line population and habitat’ means the population size and

20 habitat of the species at the time the agreement is entered

21 into.

22 ‘‘(e) VOLUNTARY INCENTIVES FOR CONSERVING

23 SPECIES ON PRIVATE LANDS.—

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may estab25 lish voluntary incentive programs in accordance with
18

•HR 3811 IH

1 this subsection, and under those programs, enter

2 into written agreements with private landowners to

3 conserve endangered species or threatened species on

4 private lands consistent with the goals and purposes

5 of this Act.

6 ‘‘(2) SPECIES RESERVE PROGRAM.—(A) Subject

7 to appropriations, the Secretary may establish under

8 this subsection a species reserve program through

9 contracts to assist owners of important habitats for

10 endangered species or threatened species in conserv11 ing those habitats.

12 ‘‘(B) A contract under this paragraph shall set

13 forth—

14 ‘‘(i) the conservation measures and prac15 tices to be carried out by the landowner during

16 the term of the contract; and

17 ‘‘(ii) the commercial use, if any, to be per18 mitted on the land during such term.

19 ‘‘(C) A contract under this paragraph may in20 clude terms under which the Secretary shall—

21 ‘‘(i) share the cost of carrying out the con22 servation measures and practices set forth in

23 the contract for which the Secretary determines

24 that cost-sharing is appropriate and in the pub25 lic interest; and
19

•HR 3811 IH

1 ‘‘(ii) provide technical assistance to the

2 landowner.

3 ‘‘(3) AWARDS FOR ENDANGERED SPECIES CON4 SERVATION.—The Secretary may establish under

5 this subsection a program to recognize excellence in

6 non-Federal conservation of endangered species and

7 threatened species. Such program shall include, sub8 ject to the availability of appropriations, the annual

9 presentation of 3 Conservation Excellence Awards in

10 the amount of $5,000 each to private landowners for

11 voluntary efforts to conserve species.

12 ‘‘(4) LAND EXCHANGES.—Consistent with exist13 ing law, the Secretary and the Secretary of Agri14 culture are encouraged to undertake exchanges of

15 land within the jurisdiction of each Secretary (other

16 than units of the National Park System, the Na17 tional Wildlife Refuge System, National Wild and

18 Scenic Rivers, or the National Wilderness System)

19 for private lands for purposes of furthering the goals

20 of this Act.’’.

21 SEC. 5. IMPROVING HABITAT CONSERVATION PLANNING.

22 Section 10(a) is amended by adding at the end the

23 following new paragraphs:

24 ‘‘(3)(A) Habitat conservation plans developed pursu25 ant to this subsection may cover multiple species or habi-
20

•HR 3811 IH

1 tats. Any State, Indian tribe, local government, or other

2 person may develop and submit to the Secretary a habitat

3 conservation plan to conserve and manage multiple species

4 or habitats, including but not limited to any of the follow5 ing:

6 ‘‘(i) Species listed as endangered or threatened

7 under section 4(b) of this Act or under State endan8 gered or threatened species conservation programs.

9 ‘‘(ii) Species that are candidates for such list10 ing.

11 ‘‘(iii) Other rare or declining species whose

12 habitat is located within the same ecosystem as is

13 habitat of species under clause (i) or (ii).

14 ‘‘(B) The Secretary, in cooperation with the affected

15 State agencies and Indian tribes, shall issue standards and

16 guidelines for the development and approval of habitat

17 conservation plans under this subsection. Such standards

18 and guidelines shall include the development of a short,

19 simple, standardized form for private landowners whose

20 permit under this section applies to land in residential,

21 noncommercial use.

22 ‘‘(C) The Secretary shall approve a permit applica23 tion for a multiple species conservation plan within 180

24 days of receipt of the application if the Secretary finds,
21

•HR 3811 IH

1 in addition to the criteria under paragraph (2)(B) of this

2 subsection, that such a plan—

3 ‘‘(i) is consistent with the conservation of the

4 various species or habitats covered by the plan, or,

5 in the case of endangered or threatened species, is

6 consistent with the goals of recovery plans under

7 section 4(f) for those species; and

8 ‘‘(ii) is consistent with any voluntary conserva9 tion agreements approved under section 6.

10 ‘‘(D) Upon approval of a multiple species habitat con11 servation plan, otherwise lawful activities undertaken in

12 accordance with the approved plan shall be deemed to be

13 in compliance with the requirements of section 9.

14 ‘‘(E) Other Federal agencies shall manage lands

15 under their jurisdiction in a manner which is consistent

16 with the conservation goals of the habitat conservation

17 plan.

18 ‘‘(F) The Secretary may provide grants or interest19 free loans or other assistance to State, Indian tribes, local

20 governments, or other persons in support of the develop21 ment and implementation of habitat conservation plans

22 under this subsection.

23 ‘‘(G) If the Secretary, in cooperation with the permit24 tee under this subsection, decides that additional mitiga25 tion measures are required to prevent the extinction or
22

•HR 3811 IH

1 further decline of a species covered under the terms of

2 a habitat conservation plan, a plan permittee who is in

3 compliance with such a plan shall not be required to bear

4 the cost of such measures.

5 ‘‘(4)(A) If the Secretary receives a permit application

6 under this subsection for an activity on private property

7 which the Secretary, after consultation with the property

8 owner, finds does not meet the requirements established

9 under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall, at the request

10 of the applicant, prepare an analysis of the effect of such

11 finding on the use of private property in question. Such

12 analysis shall not be made available to the public without

13 the consent of the owner of the property.

14 ‘‘(B) For purposes of this paragraph, the term ‘pri15 vate property’ means real property.’’.

16 SEC. 6. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS.

17 Section 6 (16 U.S.C. 1535) is further amended by

18 adding at the end the following new subsection:

19 ‘‘(m) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.—The Sec20 retary shall initiate a technical assistance program to pro21 vide technical advice and assistance to non-Federal per22 sons who wish to participate in achieving the conservation

23 objectives for a species under this Act. The technical as24 sistance provided shall include information on habitat

25 needs of species, optimum management of habitat for spe-
23

•HR 3811 IH

1 cies, methods for propagation of species, feeding needs

2 and habits, predator controls, and any other information

3 which a non-Federal person may utilize or request for the

4 purpose of conserving a species determined to be an en5 dangered species or threatened species or proposed to be

6 determined as an endangered species or threatened spe7 cies.’’.

8 SEC. 7. ASSISTANCE TO SMALL PRIVATE LANDOWNERS AND

9 STATES AND LOCAL COMMUNITIES.

10 Section 16 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973

11 is amended to read as follows:

12 ‘‘ASSISTANCE TO SMALL PRIVATE LANDOWNERS AND

13 STATES AND LOCAL COMMUNITIES

14 ‘‘SEC. 16. (a) GUIDANCE TO STATE AND LOCAL COM15 MUNITIES.—The Secretary of the Interior shall prepare

16 and make publicly available a manual providing guidance,

17 in everyday language, to States and local communities re18 garding the establishment of a community-based recovery

19 planning process. The Secretary shall supplement the

20 manual with an introductory video and kit for training

21 members of community-based recovery committees. The

22 manual, video, and training materials shall be designed

23 to specifically encourage and prepare members of commu24 nity-based recovery committees to carry out effective pub25 lic information programs in their local communities.
24

•HR 3811 IH

1 ‘‘(b) INFORMATION REGARDING UPCOMING AC2 TIONS.—The Secretary shall publish, in the Federal Reg3 ister and through appropriate local news sources, reliable

4 and timely information regarding upcoming listings of spe5 cies, designations of critical habitat, and issuance of recov6 ery plans under this Act.

7 ‘‘(c) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.—

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall estab9 lish a program to provide, through field offices of

10 the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the

11 National Marine Fisheries Service and a toll free

12 telephone number, technical assistance and guidance

13 regarding—

14 ‘‘(A) how to conserve endangered species

15 and their habitats,

16 ‘‘(B) how this Act effects lands owners,

17 and

18 ‘‘(C) how to obtain permits under section

19 10(a)(1)(B) authorizing an incidental taking.

20 ‘‘(2) TRACKING SYSTEM.—The program estab21 lished under this subsection shall include a tracking

22 system to establish target response times that en23 sure that requests for assistance are handled in a

24 timely manner.
25

•HR 3811 IH

1 ‘‘(3) INFORMATION REGARDING ALTERNATIVE

2 DISPUTE RESOLUTION.—The program established

3 under this subsection shall include the provision of

4 information to landowners regarding their rights to

5 make claims in the United States Claims Court

6 through the alternative dispute resolution process.

7 ‘‘(d) CLARIFICATION OF PROHIBITED AND ALLOWED

8 ACTIVITIES.—Upon the inclusion of a species in a list of

9 endangered species under section 4, the Secretary shall,

10 to the extent practicable, identify and publish a list of

11 known activities affecting the species or its habitat that

12 are prohibited under this Act, and a list of known activi13 ties affecting the species or its habitat that are not prohib14 ited under this Act.’’.

Æ