I
103D CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 833
To amend the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966
to improve the management of the National Wildlife Refuge System,
and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 4, 1993
Mr. GIBBONS (for himself, Mr. SYNAR, Mr. BACCHUS of Florida, Mr. BER-
MAN, Mr. BROWN of California, Mrs. BYRNE, Mr. COLEMAN, Mr. DICKS,
Mr. FROST, Mr. JEFFERSON, Mrs. MALONEY, Mrs. MEEK, Mr. NEAL of
Massachusetts, Ms. PELOSI, Mr. RAVENEL, Mr. SABO, Mr. SCHUMER,
Ms. SLAUGHTER, Mr. STOKES, Mr. TOWNS, Mr. WELDON, and Mr.
YATES) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Commit-
tee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries
A BILL
To amend the National Wildlife Refuge System Administra-
tion Act of 1966 to improve the management of the
National Wildlife Refuge System, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Wildlife Ref-
uge System Management and Policy Act of 1993’’.
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SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds and declares
that—
(1) the National Wildlife Refuge System (here-
after in this section referred to as the ‘‘System’’)
was established under the National Wildlife Refuge
System Administration Act of 1966 (16 U.S.C.
668dd et seq.);
(2) the National Wildlife Refuge System Ad-
ministration Act of 1966 consolidates the authorities
related to lands, waters, and interests in such lands
and waters administered by the Secretary of the In-
terior (hereafter in this section referred to as the
‘‘Secretary’’), for the purpose of conservation of fish
and wildlife;
(3) the System provides opportunities for indi-
viduals to participate in wildlife-oriented recreation,
and to learn, understand, and appreciate the value
of and need for conserving fish and wildlife, wild
lands, and naturally productive ecological commu-
nities, types, and systems;
(4) the System is the only complex of Federal
lands devoted primarily to preserving, restoring, and
managing fish and wildlife and the habitats of fish
and wildlife;
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(5) National Wildlife Refuges provide habitat
for many endangered and threatened species, and
for species that may become endangered or threat-
ened, as well as for other fish, wildlife, and plants;
(6) the well-being and abundance of such fish,
wildlife, and plants would be diminished without
such protected habitat;
(7) activities are occurring on a significant
number of National Wildlife Refuges that result in
harm to the fish and wildlife resources the System
was designed to conserve; and
(8) improvements are needed in the administra-
tion and management of the System to ensure that
sound and effective conservation programs for the
System are developed, implemented, and enforced.
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are as fol-
lows:
(1) To reaffirm the provisions of the Act com-
monly known as the Refuge Recreation Act (16
U.S.C. 460k et seq.) that authorizes the Secretary
of the Interior (hereafter in this subsection referred
to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) to permit compatible fish and
wildlife-oriented public recreation, such as hunting,
fishing, and wildlife observation on refuges.
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(2) To improve the administration and manage-
ment of the System.
(3) To establish purposes for the System.
(4) To improve the compatibility determination
process for National Wildlife Refuges.
(5) To establish comprehensive planning for the
System and individual wildlife refuges of the System.
(6) To provide for interagency coordination in
maintaining refuge resources.
SEC. 3 DEFINITIONS.
Section 5 of the National Wildlife Refuge System Ad-
ministration Act of 1966 (16 U.S.C. 668ee) is amended—
(1) by redesignating subsections (a) through (c)
as subsections (g) through (i); and
(2) by inserting the following new subsections
before subsection (h) (as so redesignated):
‘‘(a) The term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary of the
Interior (except as the context implies otherwise).
‘‘(b) The term ‘Director’ means the Director of the
United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
‘‘(c) The term ‘System’ means the National Wildlife
Refuge System.
‘‘(d) The term ‘refuge’ means a unit of the National
Wildlife Refuge System, except that such term shall not
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include State-managed wildlife management areas (com-
monly known as ‘coordination areas’).
‘‘(e) The terms ‘fish’, ‘wildlife’ and ‘fish and wildlife’
mean any native member of the animal kingdom in a wild,
unconfined state, including the parts, products, or eggs
of such animals.
‘‘(f) The term ‘plant’ means any native member of
the plant kingdom in a wild, unconfined state, including
plant communities, seeds, roots, and other parts thereof.’’.
SEC. 4. PURPOSES AND ADMINISTRATION OF THE SYSTEM.
Subsection (a) of section 4 of the National Wildlife
Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 (16 U.S.C.
668dd(a)) is amended—
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as
paragraphs (5) and (6); and
(2) by inserting after paragraph (1) the follow-
ing new paragraphs:
‘‘(2) The purposes of the System are as follows:
‘‘(A) To provide a national network of lands
and waters with respect to which the size, variety,
and location are designed to protect the wealth of
fish, wildlife, and plants of this Nation and their
habitats for present and future generations.
‘‘(B) To provide healthy, naturally productive,
and enduring food, water, and shelter to fish, wild-
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life, and plant communities and to ensure naturally
diverse, healthy, and abundant populations of fish,
wildlife, and plant species in perpetuity.
‘‘(C) To serve in the fulfillment of international
treaty obligations of the United States with respect
to fish, wildlife, and plants, and their habitats.
‘‘(3) If the Secretary finds that a conflict exists be-
tween any purpose set forth in the law or order that estab-
lished a refuge and any purpose set forth in paragraph
(2), the Secretary shall resolve the conflict in a manner
that fulfills the purpose set forth in the law or order that
established the refuge, and, to the extent possible, achieves
all of the purposes set forth in paragraph (2).
‘‘(4) In the administration of the System for the pur-
poses described in paragraph (2), the Secretary, acting
through the Director, shall—
‘‘(A) ensure that the purposes of the System
described in paragraph (2) of this subsection and
the purposes of each refuge are carried out;
‘‘(B) protect the System and the components of
the System from threats to the ecological integrity
of such System and components;
‘‘(C) to the extent authorized by law, ensure
adequate water quantity and water quality to fulfill
the purposes of the System and of each refuge; and
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‘‘(D) plan, propose, and direct expansion of the
System in a manner best designed to—
‘‘(i) accomplish the purposes of the System
and of each refuge in the System;
‘‘(ii) protect and aid recovery of any spe-
cies listed as endangered or threatened (and
any species that is a candidate for such listing);
and
‘‘(iii) conserve other fish, wildlife, and
plants, the habitats of such fish, wildlife, and
plants, and other elements of natural diver-
sity.’’.
SEC. 5. COMPATIBILITY STANDARDS AND PROCEDURES.
Paragraph (1) of section 4(d) of the National Wildlife
Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 (16 U.S.C.
668dd(d)(1)), is amended by adding at the end of the
paragraph the following new subparagraphs:
‘‘(C) Except as provided in subparagraph (E)
of this paragraph, the Secretary shall not initiate or
permit a new use of a refuge or expand, renew, or
extend an existing use unless the Secretary finds, in
consultation with the Director, pursuant to sub-
section (e) of this section, that such use is compat-
ible with the purposes of the System and of the ref-
uge. The Secretary shall make no determination of
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such compatibility, nor initiate a proposed new use
or permit a proposed, continued, or expanded use,
unless the Secretary does the following:
‘‘(i) States the time, location, manner, and
purpose of such use.
‘‘(ii) Evaluates the direct, indirect, and cu-
mulative biological, ecological, and other effects
that the Secretary determines to be appropriate
of such use.
‘‘(iii) Makes a determination, on the basis
of the evaluation required under clause (ii) of
this subparagraph, that such use will contribute
to the fulfillment of the purposes of the System
and the refuge or will not have a detrimental
effect upon fulfillment of the purposes of the
System or the refuge.
‘‘(iv) Makes a determination that funds are
available for the development, operation, and
maintenance of such use.
‘‘(D) Unless the Secretary, in consultation with
the Director, determines that there is sufficient in-
formation available to make a reasoned judgment
that a proposed, continued, or expanded use of a ref-
uge is compatible with the purposes of the System
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and the refuge, the Secretary shall not permit the
use.
‘‘(E)(i) Except as provided in clause (ii), uses
of refuge system lands in effect on the date of the
enactment of the National Wildlife Refuge System
Management and Policy Act of 1993 that, before
such date, have been determined to be compatible
under this section or the Act entitled ‘An Act to as-
sure continued fish and wildlife benefits from the
national fish and wildlife conservation areas by au-
thorizing their appropriate incidental or secondary
use for public recreation to the extent that such use
is compatible with the primary purposes of such
areas, and for other purposes’, commonly referred to
as the ‘Refuge Recreation Act’ (16 U.S.C. 460k et
seq.) may be continued pursuant to the terms and
conditions of existing special use permits, and appli-
cable law, for the period of time specified in the per-
mit.
‘‘(ii) Not later than 5 years after the date of
the enactment of the National Wildlife Refuge Sys-
tem Management and Policy Act of 1993, any use
described in clause (i) shall cease and permits for
such uses be revoked unless the Secretary, in con-
sultation with the Director of the United States Fish