Lesser Prairie Chicken Voluntary Recovery Act of 2015

To reverse the Department of the Interior’s listing of the lesser prairie chicken as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, to prevent further consideration of listing of such species as a threatened species or endangered species under that Act pending implementation of the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies’ Lesser Prairie-Chicken Range-Wide Conservation Plan and other conservation measures, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Lesser Prairie Chicken Voluntary Recovery Act of 2015 2. Implementation of Lesser Prairie-Chicken Range-Wide Conservation Plan and other conservation measures (a) Prohibition on treatment as threatened or endangered species (1) In general Notwithstanding any prior action by the Secretary of the Interior, the lesser prairie chicken shall not be treated as a threatened species or endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 ( 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq. (2) Prohibition on proposal On and after January 31, 2020, the lesser prairie chicken may not be treated as a threatened species or endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 ( 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq. (b) Monitoring of progress of conservation programs The Secretary shall monitor and annually report to the Congress on progress in conservation of the Lesser Prairie Chicken under the Range-Wide Plan and all related Candidate Conservation Agreements and Candidate and Conservation Agreements With Assurances, other Federal conservation programs administered by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the Department of Agriculture, State conservation programs, and private conservation efforts. (c) Definitions In this section: (1) Candidate Conservation Agreements Each of the terms Candidate Conservation Agreement Candidate and Conservation Agreement With Assurances (A) the Announcement of Final Policy for Candidate Conservation Agreements with Assurances published by the Department of the Interior and the Department of Commerce on June 17, 1999 (64 Fed. Reg. 32726); and (B) sections 17.22(d) and 17.32(d) of title 50, Code of Federal Regulations. (2) Range-Wide Plan The term Range-Wide Plan

Summary: Lesser Prairie Chicken Voluntary Recovery Act of 2015 This bill removes the Department of the Interior's listing of the lesser prairie chicken as threatened under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 and prohibits further treatment of the species as threatened or endangered before January 31, 2020. Interior must monitor and submit an annual report on progress in the conservation of the lesser prairie chicken under: the Lesser Prairie-Chicken Range-Wide Conservation Plan of the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, all related Candidate Conservation Agreements (agreements to voluntarily undertake measures to conserve a covered species), Candidate Conservation Agreements With Assurances (agreements to voluntarily undertake measures to conserve a covered species with assurances that additional measures will not be imposed if the species becomes listed in the future), conservation programs administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and the Department of Agriculture (USDA), state conservation programs, and private conservation efforts. The lesser prairie chicken may not be treated as threatened or endangered beginning on January 31, 2020, unless Interior publishes a determination that conservation efforts under the Range-Wide Plan, agreements, programs, and efforts have not achieved the Plan's conservation goals.