I 
112TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1643 
To amend title 40, United States Code, to direct the Administrator of General 
Services to incorporate bird-safe building materials and design features 
into public buildings, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 15, 2011 
Mr. QUIGLEY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
A BILL 
To amend title 40, United States Code, to direct the Admin-
istrator of General Services to incorporate bird-safe 
building materials and design features into public build-
ings, 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 ‘‘Federal Bird-Safe 
Buildings Act of 2011’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds that— 
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(1) a multi-agency report issued in 2009, enti-
tled ‘‘The State of the Birds, United States of 
America’’, provides the most comprehensive assess-
ment to date on the status of bird populations; 
(2) the multi-agency report concludes that near-
ly one-third of the Nation’s 800 bird species are en-
dangered, threatened, or in significant decline; 
(3) death from collisions with man-made struc-
tures is one of the most serious sources of avian 
mortality, and it is increasing; 
(4) not only are birds beautiful and interesting 
creatures that are eagerly welcomed by millions of 
Americans into their backyards every year, but birds 
also have an impact on the United States economy; 
(5) the United States Fish and Wildlife Service 
has reported that birdwatchers contribute $36 billion 
annually to the United States economy, and birds 
naturally provide billions of dollars worth of pest 
control, benefitting farmers and consumers alike; 
(6) the U.S. Green Building Council has added 
bird-friendly language to the Leadership in Energy 
and Environmental Design (LEED) Reference 
Guide, which will have the impact of recognizing 
bird-friendly design in awarding LEED credits; 
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(7) bird-safe design features can be incor-
porated into new construction and major renovation 
projects at no extra cost, and existing buildings may 
be made bird-safe through the use of simple, low- 
cost adaptations; 
(8) the General Services Administration is obli-
gated, under Executive Order 13186, to ‘‘support 
the conservation intent of the migratory bird conven-
tions by integrating bird conservation principles, 
measures, and practices into agency activities and by 
avoiding or minimizing, to the extent practicable, ad-
verse impacts on migratory bird resources when con-
ducting agency actions’’; and 
(9) the General Services Administration has al-
ready constructed many award-winning, bird-friendly 
buildings, including the San Francisco Federal 
Building, the Suitland Census Complex, the United 
States courthouse in Eugene, Oregon, the Beltsville 
ATF Laboratory Center, and the United States 
courthouse in Buffalo, New York. 
SEC. 3. USE OF BIRD-SAFE BUILDING MATERIALS AND DE-
SIGN FEATURES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 33 of title 40, United 
States Code, is amended— 
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(1) by redesignating sections 3314, 3315, and 
3316 as sections 3315, 3316, and 3317, respectively; 
and 
(2) by inserting after section 3313 the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘§ 3314. Use of bird-safe building materials and de-
sign features 
‘‘(a) CONSTRUCTION, ALTERATION, AND ACQUISI-
TION OF PUBLIC BUILDINGS.—Each public building con-
structed, altered, or acquired by the Administrator of Gen-
eral Services shall incorporate, to the maximum extent 
feasible as determined by the Administrator, bird-safe 
building materials and design features. 
‘‘(b) EXISTING BUILDINGS AND LIGHTING.—The Ad-
ministrator, where practicable, shall— 
‘‘(1) incorporate bird-safe building materials 
and design features into existing public buildings; 
and 
‘‘(2) address interior and exterior lighting’s im-
pacts on native bird species. 
‘‘(c) BIRD-SAFE BUILDING MATERIALS DEFINED.— 
In this section, the term ‘bird-safe building materials and 
design features’ includes the materials and features rec-
ommended by— 
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‘‘(1) the city of Chicago’s ‘Bird-Safe Building 
Design Guide for New Construction and Renova-
tion’; 
‘‘(2) the city of Toronto’s ‘Bird-Friendly Devel-
opment Guidelines’; and 
‘‘(3) the American Bird Conservancy and New 
York City Audubon’s ‘Bird-Safe Building Guide-
lines’.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for such 
chapter is amended by striking the items relating to sec-
tions 3314, 3315, and 3316 and inserting the following: 
‘‘3314. Use of bird-safe building materials and design features. 
‘‘3315. Delegation. 
‘‘3316. Report to Congress. 
‘‘3317. Certain authority not affected.’’. 
Æ 
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