I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2793 

To reauthorize the Highlands Conservation Act, to authorize States to use 

funds from that Act for administrative purposes, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 22, 2021 

Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY of New York (for himself, Ms. DEAN, Mr. 

FITZPATRICK, Mr. GOTTHEIMER, Mrs. HAYES, Ms. HOULAHAN, Mr. 

JONES, Mr. MALINOWSKI, Mr. MEUSER, Mr. MORELLE, Mr. NADLER, 

Mr. PAYNE, Mr. PASCRELL, Ms. SCANLON, Mr. SIRES, Mr. TONKO, Ms. 

VELA ́ZQUEZ, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, and Ms. WILD) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To reauthorize the Highlands Conservation Act, to authorize 

States to use funds from that Act for administrative 

purposes, and for other purposes. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Highlands Conserva5 tion Reauthorization Act of 2021’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. REAUTHORIZATION OF THE HIGHLANDS CON2 SERVATION ACT. 

3 The Highlands Conservation Act (Public Law 108– 

4 421; 118 Stat. 2375) is amended— 

5 (1) in section 3— 

6 (A) by amending paragraph (1) to read as 

7 follows: 

8 ‘‘(1) HIGHLANDS REGION.—The term ‘High9 lands region’ means— 

10 ‘‘(A) the area depicted on the map entitled 

11 ‘The Highlands Region’, dated June 2004, up12 dated after the date of enactment of the High13 lands Conservation Reauthorization Act of 2021 

14 to comprise each municipality included on the 

15 list of municipalities included in the Highlands 

16 region as of that date of enactment, and main17 tained in the headquarters of the Forest Service 

18 in Washington, District of Columbia; and 

19 ‘‘(B) a municipality approved by the Direc20 tor of the United States Fish and Wildlife Serv21 ice under section 4(e).’’; 

22 (B) in paragraph (3), by amending sub23 paragraph (B) to read as follows: 

24 ‘‘(B) identified by a Highlands State as 

25 having high conservation value using the best 


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1 available science and geographic information 

2 systems; and’’; 

3 (C) in paragraph (4)(A), by striking ‘‘; or’’ 

4 and inserting ‘‘, including a political subdivision 

5 thereof; or’’; and 

6 (D) by striking paragraphs (5) through 

7 (7); 

8 (2) in section 4— 

9 (A) in subsection (a)(1), by striking ‘‘in 

10 the Study’’ and all that follows through the end 

11 of the paragraph and inserting ‘‘using the best 

12 available science and geographic information 

13 systems; and’’; 

14 (B) in subsection (c), by amending para15 graph (5) to read as follows: 

16 ‘‘(5) provides that land conservation partner17 ship projects will be consistent with areas identified 

18 as having high conservation value in accordance with 

19 the purposes described in section 2 in the Highlands 

20 region.’’; 

21 (C) in subsection (e), by striking 

22 ‘‘$10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2005 

23 through 2021’’ and inserting ‘‘$20,000,000 for 

24 each of fiscal years 2022 through 2028’’; 


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1 (D) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub2 section (g); and 

3 (E) by inserting after subsection (d) the 

4 following: 

5 ‘‘(e) REQUEST FOR INCLUSION OF ADDITIONAL MU6 NICIPALITY.—The Director of the United States Fish and 

7 Wildlife Service may, at the request of a Highlands State, 

8 approve the inclusion of a municipality within the State 

9 as part of the Highlands region. 

10 ‘‘(f) LIMITATION ON ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.— 

11 ‘‘(1) FEDERAL ADMINISTRATION.—The Sec12 retary of the Interior may not expend more than 

13 $300,000 for the administration of this Act in each 

14 fiscal year. 

15 ‘‘(2) STATE ADMINISTRATION.—A State that 

16 receives funds under this section for a land con17 servation partnership project may not use more than 

18 5 percent of the funds to administer the land con19 servation partnership project.’’; 

20 (3) in section 5— 

21 (A) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘the 

22 Study, Update, and any future study that the 

23 Forest Service may undertake in’’; 

24 (B) in subsection (b)— 


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1 (i) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘, in2 cluding a Pennsylvania and Connecticut 

3 Update’’; and 

4 (ii) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘the 

5 findings’’ and all that follows through the 

6 end of the paragraph and inserting ‘‘with 

7 stakeholders regarding implementation of 

8 the program; and’’; and 

9 (C) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘2005 

10 through 2014’’ and inserting ‘‘2022 through 

11 2028’’; and 

12 (4) in section 6, by adding at the end the fol13 lowing: 

14 ‘‘(f) APPRAISAL METHODOLOGY.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to an ap16 praisal related to a land acquisition carried out 

17 under this Act, a Highlands State may use an ap18 praisal methodology approved by the Secretary of 

19 the Interior. 

20 ‘‘(2) ALTERNATIVE APPRAISAL METHOD21 OLOGY.—A Highlands State may petition the Sec22 retary of the Interior to consider an alternative ap23 praisal methodology when there is a conflict, in any 

24 Highlands State, between— 


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1 ‘‘(A) an appraisal methodology approved 

2 by the Secretary of the Interior under para3 graph (1); and 

4 ‘‘(B) applicable State law.’’. 

Æ 


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