H. R. 3378
One Hundred Eighth Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE SECOND SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
the twentieth day of January, two thousand and four
An Act
To assist in the conservation of marine turtles and the nesting habitats of marine
turtles in foreign countries.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Marine Turtle Conservation
Act of 2004’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—
(1) marine turtle populations have declined to the point
that the long-term survival of the loggerhead, green, hawksbill,
Kemp’s ridley, olive ridley, and leatherback turtle in the wild
is in serious jeopardy;
(2) 6 of the 7 recognized species of marine turtles are
listed as threatened or endangered species under the Endan-
gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), and all
7 species have been included in Appendix I of CITES;
(3) because marine turtles are long-lived, late-maturing,
and highly migratory, marine turtles are particularly vulner-
able to the impacts of human exploitation and habitat loss;
(4) illegal international trade seriously threatens wild popu-
lations of some marine turtle species, particularly the hawksbill
turtle;
(5) the challenges facing marine turtles are immense, and
the resources available have not been sufficient to cope with
the continued loss of nesting habitats caused by human activi-
ties and the consequent diminution of marine turtle popu-
lations;
(6) because marine turtles are flagship species for the eco-
systems in which marine turtles are found, sustaining healthy
populations of marine turtles provides benefits to many other
species of wildlife, including many other threatened or endan-
gered species;
(7) marine turtles are important components of the eco-
systems that they inhabit, and studies of wild populations
of marine turtles have provided important biological insights;
(8) changes in marine turtle populations are most reliably
indicated by changes in the numbers of nests and nesting
females; and
(9) the reduction, removal, or other effective addressing
of the threats to the long-term viability of populations of marine
turtles will require the joint commitment and effort of—
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(A) countries that have within their boundaries marine
turtle nesting habitats; and
(B) persons with expertise in the conservation of
marine turtles.
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to assist in the con-
servation of marine turtles and the nesting habitats of marine
turtles in foreign countries by supporting and providing financial
resources for projects to conserve the nesting habitats, conserve
marine turtles in those habitats, and address other threats to
the survival of marine turtles.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) CITES.—The term ‘‘CITES’’ means the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and
Flora (27 UST 1087; TIAS 8249).
(2) CONSERVATION.—The term ‘‘conservation’’ means the
use of all methods and procedures necessary to protect nesting
habitats of marine turtles in foreign countries and of marine
turtles in those habitats, including—
(A) protection, restoration, and management of nesting
habitats;
(B) onsite research and monitoring of nesting popu-
lations, nesting habitats, annual reproduction, and species
population trends;
(C) assistance in the development, implementation, and
improvement of national and regional management plans
for nesting habitat ranges;
(D) enforcement and implementation of CITES and
laws of foreign countries to—
(i) protect and manage nesting populations and
nesting habitats; and
(ii) prevent illegal trade of marine turtles;
(E) training of local law enforcement officials in the
interdiction and prevention of—
(i) the illegal killing of marine turtles on nesting
habitat; and
(ii) illegal trade in marine turtles;
(F) initiatives to resolve conflicts between humans and
marine turtles over habitat used by marine turtles for
nesting;
(G) community outreach and education; and
(H) strengthening of the ability of local communities
to implement nesting population and nesting habitat con-
servation programs.
(3) FUND.—The term ‘‘Fund’’ means the Marine Turtle
Conservation Fund established by section 5.
(4) MARINE TURTLE.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘marine turtle’’ means any
member of the family Cheloniidae or Dermochelyidae.
(B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘marine turtle’’ includes—
(i) any part, product, egg, or offspring of a turtle
described in subparagraph (A); and
(ii) a carcass of such a turtle.
(5) MULTINATIONAL
SPECIES
CONSERVATION
FUND.—The
term ‘‘Multinational Species Conservation Fund’’ means the
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fund established under the heading ‘‘multinational species con-
servation fund’’ in title I of the Department of the Interior
and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999 (16 U.S.C.
4246).
(6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary
of the Interior.
SEC. 4. MARINE TURTLE CONSERVATION ASSISTANCE.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the availability of funds and in
consultation with other Federal officials, the Secretary shall use
amounts in the Fund to provide financial assistance for projects
for the conservation of marine turtles for which project proposals
are approved by the Secretary in accordance with this section.
(b) PROJECT PROPOSALS.—
(1) ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.—A proposal for a project for the
conservation of marine turtles may be submitted to the Sec-
retary by—
(A) any wildlife management authority of a foreign
country that has within its boundaries marine turtle
nesting habitat if the activities of the authority directly
or indirectly affect marine turtle conservation; or
(B) any other person or group with the demonstrated
expertise required for the conservation of marine turtles.
(2) 
REQUIRED
ELEMENTS.—A 
project 
proposal 
shall
include—
(A) a statement of the purposes of the project;
(B) the name of the individual with overall responsi-
bility for the project;
(C) a description of the qualifications of the individuals
that will conduct the project;
(D) a description of—
(i) methods for project implementation and out-
come assessment;
(ii) staff and community management for the
project; and
(iii) the logistics of the project;
(E) an estimate of the funds and time required to
complete the project;
(F) evidence of support for the project by appropriate
governmental entities of the countries in which the project
will be conducted, if the Secretary determines that such
support is required for the success of the project;
(G) information regarding the source and amount of
matching funding available for the project; and
(H) any other information that the Secretary considers
to be necessary for evaluating the eligibility of the project
for funding under this Act.
(c) PROJECT REVIEW AND APPROVAL.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall—
(A) not later than 30 days after receiving a project
proposal, provide a copy of the proposal to other Federal
officials, as appropriate; and
(B) review each project proposal in a timely manner
to determine whether the proposal meets the criteria speci-
fied in subsection (d).
(2) CONSULTATION; APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL.—Not later
than 180 days after receiving a project proposal, and subject