103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 2684

AN ACT

To reauthorize and amend the National Fish and

other purposes.Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act, and for
103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 2684

AN ACT

To reauthorize and amend the National Fish and Wildlife

Foundation Establishment Act, 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 TITLE I—AMENDMENTS TO NA4 TIONAL FISH AND WILDLIFE

5 FOUNDATION ESTABLISH6 MENT ACT

7 SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE.

8 This title may be cited as the ‘‘National Fish and

9 Wildlife Foundation Improvement Act of 1993’’.
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1 SEC. 102. COOPERATIVE PROGRAMS WITH NATIONAL OCE2 ANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION.

3 Section 2(b) of the National Fish and Wildlife Foun4 dation Establishment Act (16 U.S.C. 3701) is amended

5 by inserting ‘‘and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric

6 Administration’’ after ‘‘the United States Fish and Wild7 life Service’’.

8 SEC. 103. MEMBERSHIP OF BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF

9 FOUNDATION.

10 (a) CONSULTATIONS REGARDING APPOINTMENTS.—

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 3(b) of the National

12 Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act (16

13 U.S.C. 3702(b)) is amended by adding at the end

14 the following: ‘‘The Secretary of the Interior shall

15 consult with the Under Secretary of Commerce for

16 Oceans and Atmosphere before appointing any Di17 rector of the Board.’’.

18 (2) APPLICATION.—The amendment made by

19 paragraph (1) shall apply to appointments of Direc20 tors of the Board of Directors of the National Fish

21 and Wildlife Foundation made after the date of the

22 enactment of this Act.

23 (b) EXPANSION OF BOARD.—Section 3(a) of the Na24 tional Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act

25 (16 U.S.C. 3702(a)) is amended—
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1 (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1) by

2 striking ‘‘nine’’ and inserting ‘‘15’’; and

3 (2) in paragraph (2) by striking ‘‘three’’ and in4 serting ‘‘4’’.

5 (c) INITIAL TERMS.—Of the Directors on the Board

6 of Directors of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation

7 first appointed pursuant to the amendment made by sub8 section (b)(1), notwithstanding the second sentence of sec9 tion 3(b) of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation

10 Establishment Act (16 U.S.C. 3702(b))—

11 (1) 2 shall be appointed to a term of 2 years;

12 (2) 2 shall be appointed to a term of 4 years;

13 and

14 (3) 2 shall be appointed to a term of 6 years;

15 as specified by the Secretary of the Interior at the time

16 of appointment.

17 (d) COMPLETION OF APPOINTMENTS.—The Sec18 retary of the Interior shall appoint the additional members

19 of the Board of Directors of the National Fish and Wild20 life Foundation authorized by the amendment made by

21 subsection (a), by not later than 60 days after the date

22 of the enactment of this Act.

23 (e) AUTHORITY OF BOARD NOT AFFECTED.—The

24 authority of the Board of Directors of the National Fish

25 and Wildlife Foundation to take any action otherwise au-
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1 thorized by law shall not be affected by reason of the Sec2 retary of the Interior not having completed the appoint3 ment of Directors of the Board of Directors of the Na4 tional Fish and Wildlife Foundation pursuant to the

5 amendment made by subsection (b)(1).

6 SEC. 104. REAUTHORIZATION OF NATIONAL FISH AND

7 WILDLIFE FOUNDATION ESTABLISHMENT

8 ACT.

9 (a) REAUTHORIZATION.—Section 10 of the National

10 Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act (16

11 U.S.C. 3709) is amended—

12 (1) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘not to exceed

13 $15,000,000’’ and all that follows through the end

14 of the sentence and inserting ‘‘$25,000,000 for each

15 of fiscal years 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, and 1998.’’;

16 and

17 (2) by adding at the end the following:

18 ‘‘(c) ADDITIONAL AUTHORIZATION.—The amounts

19 authorized to be appropriated under this section are in

20 addition to any amounts provided or available to the

21 Foundation under any other Federal law.’’.

22 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—Section 10(b)(1) of the

23 National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act

24 (16 U.S.C. 3709(b)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘para25 graphs (2) and (3),’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph (2),’’.
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1 SEC. 105. CONVEYANCE OF SENECAVILLE NATIONAL FISH

2 HATCHERY.

3 (a) CONVEYANCE AUTHORIZED.—Notwithstanding

4 any other provision of law and within 180 days after the

5 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the

6 Interior shall convey to the State of Ohio without reim7 bursement all right, title, and interest of the United States

8 in and to the property known as the Senecaville National

9 Fish Hatchery, located in Senecaville, Ohio, including—

10 (1) all easements and water rights relating to

11 that property, and

12 (2) all land, improvements, and related personal

13 property comprising that hatchery.

14 (b) USE OF PROPERTY.—All property and interests

15 conveyed under this section shall be used by the Ohio De16 partment of Natural Resources for the Ohio fishery re17 sources management program.

18 (c) REVERSIONARY INTEREST.—All right, title, and

19 interest in and to all property and interests conveyed

20 under this section shall revert to the United States on any

21 date on which any of the property or interests are used

22 other than for the Ohio fishery resources management

23 program.
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1 TITLE II—BROWNSVILLE

2 WETLANDS POLICY CENTER

3 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE.

4 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Brownsville Wetlands

5 Policy Act of 1993’’.

6 SEC. 202. ESTABLISHMENT OF WETLANDS POLICY CENTER

7 AT THE PORT OF BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS.

8 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF CENTER.—For purposes of

9 utilizing grants made by the United States Fish and Wild10 life Service there may be established in accordance with

11 this title, on property owned or held in trust by the

12 Brownsville Navigation District at the Port of Browns13 ville, Texas, a wetlands policy center which shall be known

14 as the ‘‘Brownsville Wetlands Policy Center at the Port

15 of Brownsville, Texas’’ (in this title referred to as the

16 ‘‘Center’’). The Center shall be operated and maintained

17 by the Port of Brownsville with programs to be adminis18 tered by the University of Texas at Brownsville.

19 (b) MISSION OF THE CENTER.—The primary mission

20 of the Center shall be to utilize the unique wetlands prop21 erty at the Port of Brownsville and adjacent waters of

22 South Texas to focus on wetland matters for the purposes

23 of protecting, restoring, and maintaining the Lagoon

24 Ecosystems of the Western Gulf of Mexico Region.
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1 (c) BOARD OF DIRECTORS.—The Center shall be gov2 erned by a Board of Directors to oversee the management

3 and financial affairs of the Center. The Board of Directors

4 shall be cochaired by the Port of Brownsville, the Univer5 sity of Texas at Brownsville, and the designee of the Di6 rector of the Fish and Wildlife Service, and shall include

7 as members other representatives considered appropriate

8 by those cochairs.

9 (d) OVERSIGHT OF THE CENTER.—

10 (1) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Board of Directors

11 of the Center shall prepare an annual report and

12 submit it through the Director of the United States

13 Fish and Wildlife Service to the Congress.

14 (2) CONTENTS.—Annual reports under this

15 subsection shall cover the programs, projects, activi16 ties, and accomplishments of the Center. The reports

17 shall include a review of the budget of the Center,

18 including all sources of funding received to carry out

19 Center operations.

20 (3) AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION.—The

21 Board of Directors of the Center shall make avail22 able all pertinent information and records to allow

23 preparation of annual reports under this subsection.

24 (4) GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE.—The

25 Comptroller General of the United States shall peri-
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1 odically submit to the Congress reports on the oper2 ations of the Center.

3 SEC. 203. GRANTS.

4 The Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife

5 Service shall, subject to the availability of appropriations,

6 make grants to the Center for use for carrying out activi7 ties of the Center.

8 SEC. 204. LEASE.

9 The Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife

10 Service, subject to the availability of appropriations, may

11 enter into a long-term lease with the Port of Brownsville

12 for use by the Center of wetlands property owned by the

13 Port of Brownsville. Terms of the lease shall be nego14 tiated, and the lease shall be signed by both parties, prior

15 to the disposal of any Federal funds pursuant to this title.

16 The lease shall include a provision authorizing the Direc17 tor to terminate the lease at any time.

18 SEC. 205. OTHER REQUIREMENTS.

19 As conditions of receiving assistance under this

20 title—

21 (1) the University of Texas at Brownsville shall

22 make available to the Center for fiscal years 1994,

23 1995, 1996, and 1997—

24 (A) administrative office space;

25 (B) classroom space; and
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1 (C) other in-kind contributions for the

2 Center, including overhead and personnel; and

3 (2) the Port of Brownsville shall make available

4 up to 7,000 acres of Port Property for the pro5 grams, projects, and activities of the Center.

6 The Board of Directors of the Center shall include in their

7 annual report under section 202(d) a statement of wheth8 er these conditions have been met.

9 SEC. 206. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

10 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Direc11 tor of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service

12 $5,000,000 for fiscal year 1994, $4,000,000 for fiscal year

13 1995, $4,000,000 for fiscal year 1996; and such sums as

14 may be necessary for fiscal year 1997, for making grants

15 to the Center under section 203, including for use for the

16 establishment, operation, maintenance, and management

17 of the Center.

18 SEC. 207. RELATIONSHIP OF CENTER WITH THE CENTER

19 FOR ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES AND SERV20 ICES, CORPUS CHRISTI, TEXAS.

21 None of the funds appropriated pursuant to this title

22 may be used to relocate any of the administrative oper23 ations of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service from

24 the Center for Environmental Studies and Services Build25 ing on the campus of Corpus Christi State University, to
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1 the Brownsville Wetlands Policy Center at the Port of

2 Brownsville, Texas, established pursuant to this title.

3 TITLE III—WALTER B. JONES

4 CENTER FOR THE SOUNDS AT

5 THE POCOSIN LAKES NA6 TIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE

7 SEC. 301. FINDINGS.

8 The Congress finds the following:

9 (1) The Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Ref10 uge, located in northeastern North Carolina, pro11 vides unique opportunities for observing and inter12 preting the biological richness of the region’s estu13 aries and wetlands.

14 (2) Although there are 10 national wildlife ref15 uges in eastern North Carolina, not one has an edu16 cational or interpretative center for visitors.

17 (3) The State of North Carolina, Tyrrell Coun18 ty, the town of Columbia, the Conservation Fund,

19 and private citizens have proposed to enter into a

20 partnership with the United States Fish and Wildlife

21 Service to establish an educational and interpretative

22 facility to be known as the Center for the Sounds.

23 (4) Establishment of the Center for the Sounds

24 would bestow economic benefits upon Tyrrell County

25 and the town of Columbia.
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1 (5) The Federal Government has designated the

2 Albemarle-Pamlico estuary system of northeastern

3 North Carolina as an estuary of national concern.

4 (6) Throughout his congressional career, the

5 Honorable Walter B. Jones was a strong supporter

6 of the National Wildlife Refuge System.

7 (7) During his years of service in the House of

8 Representatives, Walter B. Jones supported the es9 tablishment and expansion of National Wildlife Ref10 uges in eastern North Carolina; these include 6 new

11 National Wildlife Refuges established in his district,

12 including the Alligator River National Wildlife Ref13 uge and the Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge,

14 which are respectively the third largest and fifth

15 largest National Wildlife Refuges east of the Mis16 sissippi River.

17 (8) Walter B. Jones helped increase refuge

18 acreage in his district by over 303,000 acres, thus

19 ensuring the protection of these lands for wildlife

20 habitat and public recreation.

21 (9) Walter B. Jones’ support for reintroducing

22 endangered red wolves into the wild at Alligator

23 River National Wildlife Refuge was a major factor

24 in securing public acceptance of, and support for,
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1 this first successful effort to reintroduce endangered

2 predators into formerly occupied habitat.

3 (10) Walter B. Jones devoted much of his con4 gressional career, including his years as Chairman of

5 the Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee, to

6 the conservation of fish and wildlife, for the benefit

7 of the Nation and the people of North Carolina.

8 (11) Walter B. Jones should most appropriately

9 be recognized for his work on behalf of fish and

10 wildlife conservation by having the Center for the

11 Sounds at the Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Ref12 uge System named in his honor.

13 SEC. 302. AUTHORITY TO CONSTRUCT AND OPERATE FA14 CILITY.

15 The Secretary of the Interior may, subject to the

16 availability of appropriations, construct and operate a fa17 cility at the Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge in

18 Tyrrell County, North Carolina, which shall be known as

19 the ‘‘Walter B. Jones Center for the Sounds’’, for the fol20 lowing purposes:

21 (1) Providing public opportunities, facilities,

22 and resources to study the natural history and natu23 ral resources of northeastern North Carolina.

24 (2) Offering a variety of environmental edu25 cational programs and interpretive exhibits.
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1 (3) Fostering an awareness and understanding

2 of the interactions among wildlife, estuarine and

3 wetland ecosystems, and human activities.

4 (4) Providing office space and facilities for ref5 uge administration, research, education, and related

6 activities.

7 SEC. 303. DESIGN.

8 The Secretary of the Interior shall ensure that the

9 design, size, and location of a facility constructed under

10 this title are consistent with the cultural and natural his11 tory of the area with which the facility will be concerned.

12 SEC. 304. COST SHARING.

13 The Secretary of the Interior may accept contribu14 tions of funds from non-Federal sources to pay the costs

15 of operating and maintaining the facility authorized under

16 this title, and shall take appropriate steps to seek to ob17 tain such contributions.

18 SEC. 305. REPORT.

19 Not later than 6 months after the date of the enact20 ment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall submit

21 a report to the Congress on progress made in designing

22 and constructing a facility under this title, including steps

23 taken under section 304 to obtain contributions and any
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1 such contributions that have been pledged to or received

2 by the United States.

Passed the House of Representatives November 3,

1993.

Attest:

Clerk.