I 
118TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION H. R. 10037 
To direct the Secretary of the Interior to establish the Invasive Species 
Rapid Response Program. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 25, 2024 
Mr. CASE (for himself and Mr. MOYLAN) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 
A BILL 
To direct the Secretary of the Interior to establish the 
Invasive Species Rapid Response Program. 
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 ‘‘Invasive Species Re-
sponse Act’’. 
SEC. 2. INVASIVE SPECIES STRIKE TEAM PROGRAM. 
(a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to legisla-
tively authorize programs within the Department of the 
Interior to control and eradicate invasive species impact-
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ing Federal lands through prevention, early detection, and 
rapid response. 
(b) INVASIVE SPECIES STRIKE TEAM PROGRAM.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 
a program to identify and respond to priority 
invasive species threats within the National Wildlife 
Refuge System in collaboration with Federal, State, 
local, and Tribal governments, nongovernmental in-
stitutions, nonprofit organizations, and private indi-
viduals and entities with expertise in invasive species 
management, to be known as the ‘‘Invasive Species 
Strike Team Program’’. 
(2) REQUIREMENTS.—In carrying out the Pro-
gram, the Secretary shall— 
(A) 
establish 
species 
response 
teams 
trained in rapid response and invasive species 
management for multiple taxa, including Inci-
dent Command System trainings and table-top 
exercises, to assist with priority invasive species 
response; 
(B) establish at least 1 species response 
team within each region of the United States 
Fish and Wildlife Service; 
(C) develop a set of consistent taxonomy 
standards 
and 
implement 
such 
standards 
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among all Department of Interior databases; 
and 
(D) develop and utilize unified reporting 
platforms, including— 
(i) the National Agricultural Pest In-
formation System; 
(ii) the National Data Repository of 
the National Plant Diagnostic Network; 
(iii) the Early Detection and Distribu-
tion Mapping System (EDDMapS); 
(iv) the Nonindigenous Aquatic Spe-
cies Database of the United States Geo-
logical Survey; 
(v) iMapInvasives; and 
(vi) State databases. 
(3) PROVISION
OF
ASSISTANCE.—In carrying 
out the Program, the Secretary is authorized to— 
(A) conduct outreach to Federal, State, 
local, and Tribal governments, nongovernmental 
institutions, nonprofit organizations, and pri-
vate individuals and entities to address the 
management of property in the vicinity of, or 
ecologically related to, a unit of the National 
Wildlife Refuge System, including providing or 
entering into, upon request— 
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(i) financial assistance, including di-
rect expenditures and grants; 
(ii) technical assistance; 
(iii) contracts; and 
(iv) cooperative agreements; and 
(B) upon the request of another Federal 
department or agency, enter into an agreement 
with such department or agency to provide to 
such department or agency the expertise and 
use of species response teams established under 
paragraph (2) to respond to invasive species 
under the jurisdiction of such department or 
agency. 
(4) COORDINATION
OF
MANAGEMENT
AC-
TIONS.—The Secretary shall encourage each unit of 
the National Wildlife Refuge System to coordinate 
the management actions of each such unit with each 
State within which each such unit is located. 
(5) ANNUAL REPORT.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year 
after the date of the enactment of this section, 
and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall 
submit to the Committees on Appropriations 
and Natural Resources of the House of Rep-
resentatives and the Committees on Appropria-
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tions and Energy and Natural Resources of the 
Senate, and make available to the public on the 
website of the United States Fish and Wildlife 
Service, a report regarding the Program. 
(B) CONTENTS OF REPORT.—Each report 
submitted under subparagraph (A) shall in-
clude— 
(i) an assessment of each priority 
invasive species within the National Wild-
life Refuge System; and 
(ii) progress made by the Program to-
ward the eradication of each priority 
invasive species. 
(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry 
out this section $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2025 
through 2029. 
(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) INVASIVE
SPECIES.—The term ‘‘invasive 
species’’ means a non-native species to the ecosystem 
whose introduction causes or is likely to cause eco-
nomic harm, environmental harm or harm to human 
health. 
(2) PRIORITY
INVASIVE
SPECIES.—The term 
‘‘priority invasive species’’ means an invasive species 
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that is a major concern and necessary to map, mon-
itor and manage based on the following factors: po-
tential impact on other native species, ability to alter 
habitats, ability to harm human health and severity 
of economic impact. 
(3) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘Program’’ means 
the Invasive Species Strike Team Program estab-
lished under subsection (b)(1). 
(4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Di-
rector of the United States Fish and Wildlife Serv-
ice. 
(5) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 
the several States, the District of Columbia, the 
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth 
of the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, 
Guam, the Virgin Islands, and any other territory or 
possession of the United States. 
Æ 
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