I 
114TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4431 
To direct the Attorney General to reimburse State and local law enforcement 
agencies for costs incurred in carrying out law enforcement activities 
associated with the armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife 
Refuge, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 2, 2016 
Mr. BLUMENAUER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To direct the Attorney General to reimburse State and local 
law enforcement agencies for costs incurred in carrying 
out law enforcement activities associated with the armed 
occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, 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. REIMBURSEMENT FOR STATE AND LOCAL LAW 
ENFORCEMENT 
ACTIVITIES 
AT 
THE 
MALHEUR NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General 
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shall make payments to State and local law enforcement 
agencies to reimburse such agencies for costs incurred in 
carrying out law enforcement activities associated with the 
armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge 
in Harney County, Oregon, beginning on January 2, 2016, 
and ending on the date on which the occupation ends, as 
determined by the Attorney General. 
(b) APPLICATIONS.—A State or local law enforce-
ment agency seeking reimbursement under this section 
shall submit to the Attorney General an application at 
such time and in such manner as the Attorney General 
may reasonably require, which shall include the amount 
requested, and a description of how such amounts were 
expended by the agency in response to the situation de-
scribed in subsection (a). 
(c) AMOUNT.—A payment under this section shall be 
in the amount that the State or local law enforcement 
agency expended in excess of the agency’s budget for re-
sponding to a situation described in subsection (a). The 
Attorney General shall determine the amount of a pay-
ment under this section based on the information provided 
in the application by the State or local law enforcement 
agency. 
(d) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec-
tion limits the recovery to which a State or local law en-
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forcement agency may be entitled in a civil action arising 
out of a situation described in subsection (a). 
(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec-
essary to carry out this section. 
SEC. 2. CIVIL ACTION. 
If the Attorney General makes a payment under sec-
tion 1, the Attorney General may bring a civil action 
against an individual who was a participant in the armed 
occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in 
Harney County, Oregon, during the time period described 
in subsection (a) in the appropriate district court of the 
United States in order to recover the costs of that pay-
ment. 
Æ 
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