Union Calendar No. 130

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1845

[Report No. 103–193, Parts I & II]

A BILL

To establish the Biological Survey in the

Department of the Interior.

SEPTEMBER 10, 1993

Committee on Science, Space and Technology discharged,

the State of the Union, and ordered to be printedcommitted to the Committee of the Whole House on
IB

Union Calendar No. 130

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1845

[Report No. 103–193, Parts I & II]

To establish the Biological Survey in the Department of the Interior.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

APRIL 22, 1993

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

Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries

JULY 27, 1993

Reported with an amendment and referred jointly to the Committees on Natural Resources and Science, Space, and Technology for a period ending not

later than July 30, 1993, for consideration of such provisions of the bill

and amendment as fall within the jurisdiction of those committees pursuant to clauses 1(n) and 1(r) of rule X

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

JULY 30, 1993

Referral to the Committees on Natural Resources and Science, Space, and

Technology extended for a period ending not later than September 10, 1993

SEPTEMBER 9, 1993

Reported from the Committee on Natural Resource with an amendment

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

SEPTEMBER 10, 1993

Committee on Science, Space and Technology discharged, committed to the

Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered

to be printed

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on April 22, 1993]
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A BILL

To establish the Biological Survey in the Department of

the Interior.

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 ‘‘National Biological Sur5 vey Act of 1993’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

7 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following:

8 (1) The Department of the Interior needs a co9 ordinated and comprehensive source of information

10 about the nation’s biological resources in order to ad11 dress national, regional, and local natural resource

12 conflicts and to avoid future natural resource prob13 lems.

14 (2) Research, information, and analysis are crit15 ical to the management of biological and natural re16 sources on an ecosystem basis.

17 (3) In recent years, the need for broader and

18 more timely biological information has been readily

19 apparent in the numerous controversies and potential

20 economic dislocations surrounding natural resource

21 management.
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1 (4) Presently, biological research, information,

2 and analysis are dispersed and fragmented among

3 different bureaus in the Department of the Interior.

4 (b) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this Act to establish

5 a National Biological Survey to provide a national focus

6 for research and monitoring of America’s biological and

7 natural resources on an ecosystem basis.

8 SEC. 3. NATIONAL BIOLOGICAL SURVEY.

9 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the De10 partment of the Interior an office which shall be known as

11 the National Biological Survey.

12 (b) DIRECTOR.—

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Survey shall be under the

14 supervision of the Director of the National Biological

15 Survey, who shall—

16 (A) be appointed by the President, by and

17 with the advice and consent of the Senate, from

18 among individuals having expertise in the bio19 logical sciences; and

20 (B) be compensated at the rate provided for

21 level V of the Executive Schedule.

22 (2) FUNCTIONS.—The Director, under the super23 vision of the Assistant Secretary and to the extent

24 practicable in cooperation with other Federal, State,

25 and local agencies, Tribal governments, private orga-
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1 nizations, and other entities, shall perform the follow2 ing functions:

3 (A) Conduct biological research to support

4 management of plants, fish, wildlife, and their

5 habitat.

6 (B) Evaluate and monitor methods by

7 which ecosystems are managed in order to im8 prove the capability of the Nation to conserve bi9 ological resources and diversity.

10 (C) Collect and analyze data and informa11 tion to determine and inventory the distribution,

12 abundance, health, and status and trends of bio13 logical resources and ecosystems.

14 (D) Develop methods for the consistent and

15 systematic collection and analysis of data on

16 ecosystems and their components.

17 (E) Disseminate information to resource

18 managers, scientists, and the public.

19 (F) Provide technical assistance within the

20 Department of the Interior and to other Federal

21 agencies, States, private organizations, and other

22 entities in support of legislative, regulatory, and

23 resource management decisions.
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1 (G) Perform international activities related

2 to the functions of the Director under this para3 graph.

4 (H) Establish, in cooperation with other

5 Federal, State, and local agencies, Tribal govern6 ments, private organizations, and other entities,

7 a network to assist in collecting and maintain8 ing data concerning the distribution, abundance,

9 health, status, and trends of Nation’s biological

10 resources.

11 (I) Perform biological research, inventory,

12 and monitoring and information transferring.

13 (J) After the date that is 90 days after the

14 date of the enactment of this Act, or such earlier

15 date as may be specified by the Secretary, per16 form functions under the National Wetlands In17 ventory Project that were performed before the

18 date of the enactment of this Act by the United

19 States Fish and Wildlife Service under section

20 401 of the Emergency Wetlands Resources Act of

21 1986 (16 U.S.C. 3931), except that this subpara22 graph shall not be considered to authorize the

23 Director to perform any such function that is

24 completed before that date of enactment.
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1 (c) POWERS.—In addition to such powers as may be

2 delegated to the Director by the Secretary, the Director shall

3 have the authority to—

4 (1) enter into contracts and cooperative agree5 ments with, and provide grants to, any appropriate

6 Federal, State, and local agencies, Tribal govern7 ments, private organizations, and other entities to

8 carry out any of the functions vested in the Director;

9 (2) accept lands, buildings, equipment, and other

10 contributions of real or personal property, either in

11 cash or in-kind, from public or private sources, and

12 to carry out projects in cooperation with other Fed13 eral, State, and local agencies, Tribal governments,

14 private organizations, and other entities; and

15 (3) accept the services of individuals in order to

16 carry out any of the functions vested in the Director.

17 Services accepted under paragraph (3) shall be subject to

18 the same authorities and restrictions as are applicable to

19 services accepted by the Secretary under the first section

20 and sections 2 and 3 of the Volunteers in the Park Act (16

21 U.S.C. 18g–18j).

22 SEC. 4. NATIONAL BIOLOGICAL SURVEY POLICY BOARD.

23 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a National

24 Biological Survey Policy Board to advise the Director on

25 appropriate biological science priorities and to offer guid-
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1 ance to the Director as to how biological science relates to

2 the various missions of the Department of the Interior and

3 as to how the Director and the other bureaus within the

4 Department of the Interior can avoid duplication of

5 activities.

6 (b) MEMBERS.—The Policy Board shall consist of—

7 (1) the head of each agency in the Department

8 of the Interior that has a need for biological research

9 or survey activities; and

10 (2) such other senior officials as may be ap11 pointed by the Secretary from other agencies within

12 the Department.

13 (c) COCHAIRPERSONS.—The Policy Board shall have

14 2 cochairpersons, consisting of—

15 (1) the Director of the United States Fish and

16 Wildlife Service; and

17 (2) another member of the Policy Board who is

18 designated as cochairperson by the Secretary.

19 SEC. 5. NATIONAL BIOLOGICAL SURVEY SCIENCE COUNCIL.

20 There is established a National Biological Survey

21 Science Council to advise the Director on structuring ap22 propriate collaborative relationships for biological science.

23 The Science Council shall consist of representatives ap24 pointed by the Secretary from Federal, State, and local

25 agencies, Tribal governments, private organizations, re-
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1 search institutions, and other institutions, all of whom shall

2 serve without compensation. Section 14 of the Federal Advi3 sory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the

4 Science Council established under this section.

5 SEC. 6. SURVEY ACTIVITIES ON PRIVATE AND OTHER NON6 FEDERAL LANDS.

7 (a) COMPLIANCE WITH STATE LAWS.—The Survey

8 shall comply with applicable State laws, including laws re9 lating to private property rights and privacy.

10 (b) Consent and Notice Requirements.—

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Survey shall not enter

12 non-Federal real property for the purpose of collecting

13 information regarding the property, unless the owner

14 of the property has—

15 (A) consented in writing to that entry;

16 (B) after providing that consent, been pro17 vided notice of that entry; and

18 (C) been notified that any raw data col19 lected from the property must be made available

20 at no cost, if requested by the land owner.

21 (2) LIMITATION.—Paragraph (1) does not pro22 hibit entry of property for the purpose of obtaining

23 consent or providing notice as required by that para24 graph.
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1 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—On January 1, 1995,

2 and January 1, 1996, and biennially thereafter, the Sec3 retary shall provide a report to the Committee on Merchant

4 Marine and Fisheries in the House of Representatives and

5 the Committee on Environment and Public Works in the

6 Senate. The report shall identify all activities of the Survey

7 on non-Federal lands and shall certify compliance with sub8 section (b)(1).

9 (d) SURVEY POLICY ON ACCESS TO PRIVATE AND

10 NON-FEDERAL LANDS.—Within six months of enactment,

11 the Director shall develop a policy for Survey employees

12 and agents to follow in order to help ensure compliance with

13 subsection (b)(1). The Director shall provide this policy to

14 the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries in the

15 House of Representatives and the Committee on Environ16 ment and Public Works in the Senate.

17 (e) SURVEY DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘Sur18 vey’’ includes any person that is an officer, employee, or

19 agent of the Survey, including any such person acting pur20 suant to a contract or cooperative agreement with or any

21 grant from the Survey.

22 SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.

23 As used in this Act—

24 (1) the term ‘‘Assistant Secretary’’ means the As25 sistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife of the Depart-
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1 ment of the Interior established under section 3 of the

2 Fish and Wildlife Act of 1956 (16 U.S.C. 742b);

3 (2) the term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director of the

4 National Biological Survey appointed under section

5 3(b);

6 (3) the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of

7 the Interior;

8 (4) the term ‘‘Survey’’ means the National Bio9 logical Survey established under this Act; and

10 (5) the term ‘Biological Resources’ means plants,

11 fish, invertebrates, and wildlife inhabiting terrestrial,

12 aquatic, and marine ecosystems.

13 SEC. 8. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

14 (a) TITLE 5.—Section 5316 of title 5, United States

15 Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to

16 the Director, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, De17 partment of the Interior, the following:

18 ‘‘Director of the National Biological Survey, De19 partment of the Interior.’’.

20 (b) NATIONAL WETLANDS INVENTORY.—Section

21 401(a) of the Emergency Wetlands Resources Act of 1986

22 (16 U.S.C. 3931(a)) is amended—

23 (1) by striking ‘‘the United States Fish and

24 Wildlife Service’’ and inserting ‘‘the National Biologi25 cal Survey’’; and
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1 (2) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘the Service’’

2 and inserting ‘‘the National Biological Survey’’.

3 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by sub4 section (b) shall take effect on the date that is 90 days after

5 the date of the enactment of this Act, or such earlier date

6 as is specified by the Secretary for purposes of section

7 3(b)(2)(J).

8 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

9 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Bi10 ological Survey Act of 1993’’.

11 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

12 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the fol13 lowing:

14 (1) The Department of the Interior

15 needs a coordinated and comprehensive

16 source of information about the nation’s

17 biological resources in order to address

18 national, regional, and local natural re19 source conflicts and to avoid future natu20 ral resource problems.

21 (2) Research, information, and analy22 sis are critical to the management of bio23 logical and natural resources on an eco24 system basis.
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1 (3) In recent years, the need for

2 broader and more timely biological infor3 mation has been readily apparent in the

4 numerous controversies and potential

5 economic dislocations surrounding natu6 ral resource management.

7 (4) Presently, biological research, in8 formation, and analysis are dispersed

9 and fragmented among different bureaus

10 in the Department of the Interior.

11 (b) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this Act

12 to establish a National Biological Survey to

13 provide a national focus for research and

14 monitoring of America’s biological and natu15 ral resources on an ecosystem basis.

16 SEC. 3. NATIONAL BIOLOGICAL SURVEY.

17 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established

18 in the Department of the Interior an office

19 which shall be known as the National Biologi20 cal Survey.

21 (b) DIRECTOR.—

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Survey shall be

23 under the supervision of the Director of

24 the National Biological Survey, who

25 shall—
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1 (A) be appointed by the President,

2 by and with the advice and consent of

3 the Senate, from among individuals

4 having expertise in the biological

5 sciences; and

6 (B) be compensated at the rate

7 provided for level V of the Executive

8 Schedule.

9 (2) FUNCTIONS.—The Director, under

10 the supervision of the Assistant Secretary

11 and to the extent practicable in coopera12 tion with other Federal, State, and local

13 agencies, Tribal governments, private or14 ganizations, and other entities, shall per15 form the following functions:

16 (A) Conduct biological research to

17 support management of plants, fish,

18 wildlife, and their habitat.

19 (B) Monitor methods by which

20 ecosystems are managed in order to

21 improve the capability of the Nation

22 to conserve biological resources and

23 diversity.

24 (C) Collect and analyze data and

25 information to determine and inven-
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1 tory the distribution, abundance,

2 health, and status and trends of bio3 logical resources and ecosystems.

4 (D) Develop methods for the con5 sistent and systematic collection and

6 analysis of data on ecosystems and

7 their components.

8 (E) Disseminate information to re9 source managers, scientists, and the

10 public.

11 (F) Provide technical assistance

12 within the Department of the Interior

13 and to other Federal agencies, States,

14 Tribal governments, private organiza15 tions, and other entities in support of

16 legislative, regulatory, and resource

17 management decisions.

18 (G) Perform international activi19 ties related to the functions of the Di20 rector under this paragraph.

21 (H) Establish, in cooperation with

22 other Federal, State, and local agen23 cies, Tribal governments, private or24 ganizations, and other entities, a net25 work to assist in collecting and main-
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1 taining data concerning the distribu2 tion, abundance, health, status, and

3 trends of the Nation’s biological re4 sources.

5 (I) Perform biological research,

6 inventory, and monitoring and infor7 mation transferring.

8 (J) After the date that is 90 days

9 after the date of the enactment of this

10 Act, or such earlier date as may be

11 specified by the Secretary, perform

12 functions under the National Wet13 lands Inventory Project that were

14 performed before the date of the en15 actment of this Act by the United

16 States Fish and Wildlife Service

17 under section 401 of the Emergency

18 Wetlands Resources Act of 1986 (16

19 U.S.C. 3931), except that this subpara20 graph shall not be considered to au21 thorize the Director to perform any

22 such function that is completed be23 fore that date of enactment.

24 (c) POWERS.—In addition to such powers

25 as may be delegated to the Director by the
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1 Secretary, the Director shall have the author2 ity to—

3 (1) enter into contracts and coopera4 tive agreements with, and provide grants

5 to, any appropriate Federal, State, and

6 local agencies, Tribal governments, pri7 vate organizations, and other entities to

8 carry out any of the functions vested in

9 the Director;

10 (2) accept lands, buildings, equip11 ment, and other contributions of real or

12 personal property, either in cash or in13 kind, from public or private sources, and

14 to carry out projects in cooperation with

15 other Federal, State, and local agencies,

16 Tribal governments, private organiza17 tions, and other entities; and

18 (3) accept the services of individuals

19 in order to carry out any of the functions

20 vested in the Director.

21 Services accepted under paragraph (3) shall

22 be subject to the same authorities and restric23 tions as are applicable to services accepted by

24 the Secretary under the first section and sec-
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1 tions 2 and 3 of the Volunteers in the Park Act

2 (16 U.S.C. 18g–18j).

3 (d) PEER REVIEW.—The Director shall pro4 vide for appropriate peer review as to the va5 lidity and reliability of the research under6 taken for the purpose of carrying out the

7 functions outlined in subsection (b)(2).

8 (e) COMPLIANCE WITH FEDERAL AND STATE

9 LAWS.—Any officer, employee, or agent of the

10 Survey shall comply with all applicable Fed11 eral and State laws, including laws relating to

12 private property rights and privacy in carry13 ing out the functions specified by subsection

14 (b)(2).

15 SEC. 4. NATIONAL BIOLOGICAL SURVEY POLICY BOARD.

16 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established

17 a National Biological Survey Policy Board to

18 advise the Director on appropriate biological

19 science priorities and to offer guidance to the

20 Director as to how biological science relates

21 to the various missions of the Department of

22 the Interior and as to how the Director and

23 the other bureaus within the Department of

24 the Interior can avoid duplication of activi25 ties.
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1 (b) MEMBERS.—The Policy Board shall con2 sist of—

3 (1) the head of each agency in the De4 partment of the Interior that has a need

5 for biological research or survey activi6 ties; and

7 (2) such other senior officials as may

8 be appointed by the Secretary from other

9 agencies within the Department of the In10 terior.

11 (c) COCHAIRPERSONS.—The Policy Board

12 shall have 2 cochairpersons, consisting of—

13 (1) the Director of the United States

14 Fish and Wildlife Service; and

15 (2) another member of the Policy

16 Board who is designated as cochairper17 son by the Secretary.

18 SEC. 5. NATIONAL BIOLOGICAL SURVEY SCIENCE COUNCIL.

19 There is established a National Biological

20 Survey Science Council to advise the Director

21 on structuring appropriate collaborative rela22 tionships for biological science. The Science

23 Council shall consist of representatives ap24 pointed by the Secretary from Federal, State,

25 and local agencies, Tribal governments, pri-
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1 vate organizations, research institutions, and

2 other entities, all of whom shall serve without

3 compensation. Section 14 of the Federal Advi4 sory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not

5 apply to the Science Council established

6 under this section.

7 SEC. 6. FISH AND WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT.

8 The establishment and operations of the

9 Survey shall not be construed to enlarge or di10 minish the authorities or responsibilities of

11 the States, territories, or possessions of the

12 United States for the management of fish and

13 wildlife and their habitats or to diminish

14 funding for scientific research on fish and

15 wildlife and their habitats conducted by State

16 and private agencies and entities with funds

17 or personnel provided, in whole or in part, by

18 Federal agencies.

19 SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.

20 As used in this Act—

21 (1) the term ‘‘Assistant Secretary’’

22 means the Assistant Secretary for Fish

23 and Wildlife of the Department of the In24 terior established under section 3 of the
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1 Fish and Wildlife Act of 1956 (16 U.S.C.

2 742b);

3 (2) the term ‘‘biological resources’’

4 means plants, fish, invertebrates, and

5 wildlife inhabiting terrestrial, aquatic,

6 and marine ecosystems;

7 (3) the term ‘‘Director’’ means the Di8 rector of the National Biological Survey

9 appointed under section 3(b);

10 (4) the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the

11 Secretary of the Interior;

12 (5) the term ‘‘Survey’’ means the Na13 tional Biological Survey established

14 under this Act; and

15 (6) the term ‘‘Tribal government’’

16 means the government of any Indian

17 tribe, band, nation, or other organized

18 group or community, including any Alas19 ka Native village or regional corporation

20 as defined in or established pursuant to

21 the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act

22 (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), which is recog23 nized as eligible for the special programs

24 and services provided by the United
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1 States to Indians because of their status

2 as Indians.

3 SEC. 8. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

4 (a) TITLE 5.—Section 5316 of title 5, United

5 States Code, is amended by inserting after the

6 item relating to the Director, United States

7 Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the

8 Interior, the following:

9 ‘‘Director of the National Biological

10 Survey, Department of the Interior.’’.

11 (b) NATIONAL WETLANDS INVENTORY.—Sec12 tion 401(a) of the Emergency Wetlands Re13 sources Act of 1986 (16 U.S.C. 3931(a)) is

14 amended—

15 (1) by striking ‘‘the United States Fish

16 and Wildlife Service’’ and inserting ‘‘the

17 National Biological Survey’’; and

18 (2) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘the

19 Service’’ and inserting ‘‘the National Bio20 logical Survey’’.

21 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments

22 made by subsection (b) shall take effect on the

23 date that is 90 days after the date of the enact24 ment of this Act, or such earlier date as is
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1 specified by the Secretary for purposes of sec2 tion 3(b)(2)(J).

3 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION AND REPORTS.

4 (a) CURRENT AUTHORIZATIONS.—(1) For the

5 fiscal year 1994, there are hereby authorized

6 to be appropriated not to exceed $180,000,000

7 in order to carry out the purposes and provi8 sions of this Act.

9 (2) For fiscal years 1995, 1996, and 1997,

10 there are hereby authorized to be appro11 priated such sums as may be necessary to

12 carry out the purposes and provisions of this

13 Act.

14 (b) FUTURE AUTHORIZATIONS.—After Janu15 ary 1, 1998, no amounts shall be appropriated

16 to carry out any program, function, or activity

17 of the National Biological Survey under this

18 or any other Act unless such amounts have

19 been authorized to be appropriated by one or

20 more Acts of Congress enacted after the date

21 of enactment of this Act.

22 (c) PERIODIC REPORTS AND PROPOSALS.—(1)

23 At the time that the President submits to the

24 Congress an annual budget proposal, the Sec25 retary shall submit to the appropriate com-
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1 mittees of the House of Representatives and

2 the Senate a report concerning the utilization

3 of amounts previously appropriated for pro4 grams, functions, and activities of the Na5 tional Biological Survey and the proposed uti6 lization of such appropriated amounts during

7 the following fiscal year.

8 (2) Beginning on January 1, 1997, and not

9 later than January 1 of each second odd-num10 bered year thereafter, the Secretary shall sub11 mit to the Speaker of the House of Represent12 atives and the President of the Senate a pro13 posal for any requested further authorization

14 of appropriations for all programs, functions,

15 and activities of the National Biological Sur16 vey to be carried out during the 4 full fiscal

17 years beginning on October 1 of the calendar

18 year following the calendar year in which

19 such proposal is submitted.

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