I 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1907 
To authorize the acquisition of land and interests in land from willing sellers 
to improve the conservation of, and to enhance the ecological values 
and functions of, coastal and estuarine areas to benefit both the environ-
ment and the economies of coastal communities, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 18, 2007 
Mr. SAXTON (for himself and Mrs. CAPPS) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 
A BILL 
To authorize the acquisition of land and interests in land 
from willing sellers to improve the conservation of, and 
to enhance the ecological values and functions of, coastal 
and estuarine areas to benefit both the environment and 
the economies of coastal communities, and for other pur-
poses. 
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 ‘‘Coastal and Estuarine 
Land Protection Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) Coastal and estuarine areas provide impor-
tant nursery habitat for two-thirds of the Nation’s 
commercial fish and shellfish, provide nesting and 
foraging habitat for coastal birds, harbor significant 
natural plant communities, and serve to facilitate 
coastal flood control and pollutant filtration. 
(2) The Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 
(16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.) recognizes the national im-
portance of these areas and their ecological vulner-
ability to anthropogenic activities by establishing a 
comprehensive Federal-State partnership for pro-
tecting natural reserves and managing growth in 
these areas. 
(3) The National Estuarine Research Reserve 
system established under that Act relies on the pro-
tection of pristine designated areas for long-term 
protection and for the conduct of education and re-
search critical to the protection and conservation of 
coastal and estuarine resources. 
(4) Intense development pressures within the 
coastal watershed are driving the need to provide 
coastal managers with a wider range of tools to pro-
tect and conserve important coastal and estuarine 
areas, including protection of ecologically degraded 
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areas with potential for restoration for ecological or 
recreational purposes. 
(5) Protection of undeveloped coastal lands 
through the acquisition of interests in property from 
a willing seller are a cost-effective means of pro-
viding these areas with permanent protection from 
development. 
(6) Permanent protection of lands in the coast-
al zone is a necessary component of any program to 
maintain and enhance coastal and estuarine areas 
for the benefit of the Nation. 
(7) Coastal and estuarine areas, in both urban 
and rural settings, provide significant opportunities 
for recreational and educational activities, including 
hunting and fishing, boating, swimming, bird watch-
ing, wildlife observation, restoration, and other ac-
tivities. 
(8) Federal-State-nongovernmental organization 
pilot land acquisition projects have already substan-
tially contributed to the long-term health and viabil-
ity of coastal and estuarine systems. 
(9) Enhanced protection of estuarine and coast-
al areas can be attained through watershed-based 
acquisition strategies coordinated through Federal, 
State, regional, and local efforts. 
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(10) Conserving coastal and estuarine lands can 
support the traditional economic and natural re-
source bases of communities in the coastal water-
shed, including well-managed forests that dem-
onstrate outstanding ecological, recreational, histor-
ical, and aesthetic attributes. 
SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF COASTAL AND ESTUARINE 
LAND PROTECTION PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Commerce shall 
establish a Coastal and Estuarine Land Protection Pro-
gram, in cooperation with appropriate State, regional, and 
other units of government, for the purposes of protecting 
the environmental integrity of important coastal and estu-
arine areas, including wetlands and forests, that have sig-
nificant conservation, recreation, ecological, historical, 
aesthetic, or watershed protection values, and that are 
threatened by conversion from their natural, undeveloped, 
or recreational state to other uses or could be managed 
or restored to effectively conserve, enhance, or restore eco-
logical function. The program shall be administered by the 
National Ocean Service of the National Oceanic and At-
mospheric Administration through the Office of Ocean 
and Coastal Resource Management. 
(b) PROPERTY ACQUISITION GRANTS.—The Sec-
retary shall make grants under the program to coastal 
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States with approved coastal zone management plans or 
National Estuarine Research Reserve units for the pur-
pose of acquiring property or interests in property de-
scribed in subsection (a) that will further the goals of— 
(1) a Coastal Zone Management Plan or Pro-
gram approved under the Coastal Zone Management 
Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.); 
(2) a National Estuarine Research Reserve 
management plan; or 
(3) a regional or State watershed protection 
plan involving coastal States with approved coastal 
zone management plans. 
(c) GRANT PROCESS.—The Secretary shall allocate 
funds to coastal States or National Estuarine Research 
Reserves under this section through a competitive grant 
process in accordance with guidelines that meet the fol-
lowing requirements: 
(1) The Secretary shall consult with the State’s 
coastal zone management program, any National Es-
tuarine Research Reserve in that State, and the lead 
agency designated by the Governor for coordinating 
the implementation of this Act (if different from the 
coastal zone management program). 
(2) Each participating State, after consultation 
with nongovernmental and local governmental enti-
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ties, shall identify priority conservation needs within 
the State, the values to be protected by inclusion of 
lands in the program, and the threats to those val-
ues that should be avoided. 
(3) Each participating State shall evaluate how 
the acquisition of property or easements might im-
pact working waterfront needs. 
(4) The applicant shall identify the values to be 
protected by inclusion of the lands in the program, 
management activities that are planned and the 
manner in which they may affect the values identi-
fied, and any other information from the landowner 
relevant to administration and management of the 
land. 
(5) Awards shall be based on demonstrated 
need for protection and ability to successfully lever-
age funds among participating entities, including 
Federal programs, regional organizations, State and 
other governmental units, landowners, corporations, 
or private organizations. 
(6) The governor, or the lead agency designated 
by the governor for coordinating the implementation 
of this Act, shall determine that the application is 
consistent with the State’s or territory’s approved 
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coastal zone plan, program and policies prior to sub-
mittal to the Secretary. 
(7) Priority shall be given to lands described in 
subsection (a) that can be effectively managed and 
protected and that have significant ecological or wa-
tershed protection value. 
(8) In developing guidelines under this section, 
the Secretary shall consult with other Federal agen-
cies and non-governmental entities with expertise in 
land acquisition and conservation procedures. 
(9) Eligible States or National Estuarine Re-
search Reserves may allocate grants to local govern-
ments or agencies eligible for assistance under sec-
tion 306A(e) of the Coastal Zone Management Act 
of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1455a) and may acquire lands 
in cooperation with nongovernmental entities and 
Federal agencies. 
(10) The Secretary shall develop measures that 
will ensure that property or interests in property ac-
quired in whole or in part through the use of funds 
under the program are acquired only from willing 
sellers. 
(11) The Secretary shall develop performance 
measures that the Secretary shall use to evaluate 
and report on the program’s effectiveness in accom-
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plishing its purposes, and shall submit such evalua-
tions to Congress trienially. 
(d) MATCHING REQUIREMENTS.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary may not 
make a grant under the program unless the Federal 
funds are matched by non-Federal funds in accord-
ance with this subsection. 
(2) MAXIMUM FEDERAL SHARE.— 
(A) 75 PERCENT
FEDERAL
FUNDS.—No 
more than 75 percent of the funding for any 
project under this section shall be derived from 
Federal sources, unless such requirement is 
specifically waived by the Secretary. 
(B) WAIVER OF REQUIREMENT.—The Sec-
retary may grant a waiver of the limitation in 
subparagraph (A) for underserved communities, 
communities that have an inability to draw on 
other sources of funding because of the small 
population or low income of the community, or 
for other reasons the Secretary deems appro-
priate. 
(3) OTHER FEDERAL FUNDS.—Where financial 
assistance awarded under this section represents 
only a portion of the total cost of a project, funding 
from other Federal sources may be applied to the 
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cost of the project. Each portion shall be subject to 
match requirements under the applicable provision 
of law. 
(4) SOURCE OF MATCHING COST SHARE.—For 
purposes of paragraph (2)(A), the non-Federal cost 
share for a project may be determined by taking into 
account the following: 
(A) The value of land or a conservation 
easement may be used as non-Federal match if 
the lands are identified in project plans and ac-
quired within 3 years prior to the submission of 
the project application or after the submission 
of a project application until the project grant 
is closed (not to exceed 3 years). The appraised 
value of the land at the time of project closing 
will be considered the non-Federal cost share. 
The value of land that is held by a nongovern-
mental organization may be used for such pur-
pose if it is held in perpetuity by a qualified 
conservation organization, as determined by the 
Secretary. 
(B) Costs associated with land acquisition, 
land management planning, remediation, res-
toration, and enhancement may be used as non- 
Federal match if the activities are identified in 
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the plan and expenses are incurred within the 
period of the grant award, or, for lands de-
scribed in (A), within the same time limits de-
scribed therein. These costs may include either 
cash or in-kind contributions. 
(e) RESERVATION OF FUNDS FOR NATIONAL ESTUA-
RINE RESEARCH RESERVE SITES.—No less than 15 per-
cent of funds made available under this section shall be 
available for acquisitions benefiting National Estuarine 
Research Reserves. 
(f) LIMIT ON ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—No more 
than 5 percent of the funds made available to the Sec-
retary under this section shall be used by the Secretary 
for planning or administration of the program. The Sec-
retary shall provide a report to Congress with an account 
of all expenditures under this section for fiscal year 2008 
and triennially thereafter. 
(g) TITLE AND MANAGEMENT OF ACQUIRED PROP-
ERTY.—If any property is acquired in whole or in part 
with funds made available through a grant under this sec-
tion, the grant recipient shall provide such assurances as 
the Secretary may require that— 
(1) the title to the property will be held by the 
grant recipient or another appropriate public agency 
designated by the recipient in perpetuity; 
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(2) the property will be managed in a manner 
that is consistent with the purposes for which the 
land entered into the program and shall not convert 
such property to other uses; and 
(3) if the property or interest in land is sold, 
exchanged, or divested, funds equal to the correct 
value will be returned to the Secretary in accordance 
with applicable Federal law for redistribution in the 
grant process. 
(h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) 
COASTAL
STATE.—The 
term 
‘‘coastal 
State’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘coastal 
state’’ by section 304(4) of the Coastal Zone Man-
agement Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1453(4)). 
(2) CONSERVATION
EASEMENT.—The term 
‘‘conservation easement’’ includes an easement or re-
striction, recorded deed, or a reserve interest deed 
where the grantee acquires all rights, title, and in-
terest in a property, that do not conflict with the 
goals of this Act except those rights, title, and inter-
ests that may run with the land that are expressly 
reserved by a grantor and are agreed to at the time 
of purchase. 
(3) INTEREST IN PROPERTY.—The term ‘‘inter-
est in property’’ includes a conservation easement. 
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