I 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3850 
To provide for the eradication and control of nutria in Maryland, Louisiana, 
and other coastal States. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 20, 2009 
Mr. KRATOVIL (for himself and Mr. BOUSTANY) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 
A BILL 
To provide for the eradication and control of nutria in 
Maryland, Louisiana, and other coastal States. 
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 ‘‘Nutria Eradication 
and Control Act of 2009’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSE. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 
(1) wetland and tidal marshes in the Chesa-
peake Bay, the State of Louisiana, and other coastal 
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States provide significant cultural, economic, and ec-
ological benefits to the United States; 
(2) the South American nutria (Myocastor 
coypus) is directly contributing to substantial marsh 
loss on Federal, State, and private land in the 
States of Maryland and Louisiana and other coastal 
States; 
(3) the Nutria Eradication and Control Act of 
2003 (Public Law 108–16; 117 Stat. 621) author-
ized the Maryland Nutria Project, which has suc-
cessfully eradicated nutria from more than 130,000 
acres of Chesapeake Bay wetland in the State of 
Maryland; 
(4) the Nutria Eradication and Control Act of 
2003 (Public Law 108–16; 117 Stat. 621) and the 
Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection, and Restora-
tion Act (16 U.S.C. 3951 et seq.) authorized the 
Coastwide Nutria Control Program, which has re-
duced nutria-impacted wetland acres in the State of 
Louisiana from 80,000 acres to 23,141 acres; and 
(5) proven techniques developed under the Nu-
tria Eradication and Control Act of 2003 (Public 
Law 108–16; 117 Stat. 621) that are eradicating 
nutria from the State of Maryland and are reducing 
the acres of nutria-impacted wetland in Louisiana, 
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should be applied to nutria eradication or control 
programs in other nutria-infested coastal States. 
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to author-
ize the Secretary of the Interior to provide financial assist-
ance to the States of Maryland, Louisiana, Delaware, Or-
egon, Virginia, and Washington to carry out activities— 
(1) to eradicate or control nutria; and 
(2) to restore nutria damaged wetland. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) 
COASTAL
STATE.—The 
term 
‘‘coastal 
State’’ means each of the States of Delaware, Or-
egon, Virginia, and Washington. 
(2) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘program’’ means 
the nutria eradication program established by sec-
tion 4(a). 
(3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of the Interior. 
SEC. 4. NUTRIA ERADICATION PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—There is established a nutria 
eradication program under which the Secretary may, sub-
ject to the availability of appropriations, provide financial 
assistance to the States of Maryland and Louisiana and 
the coastal States to implement measures— 
(1) to eradicate or control nutria; and 
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(2) to restore wetland damaged by nutria. 
(b) GOALS.—The goals of the program shall be— 
(1) to eradicate nutria in the State of Mary-
land; 
(2) to eradicate or control nutria in the State 
of Louisiana and the coastal States; and 
(3) to restore wetland damaged by nutria. 
(c) ACTIVITIES IN THE STATE OF MARYLAND.—The 
Secretary shall require that the program carried out in 
the State of Maryland consist of management, research, 
and public education activities carried out in accordance 
with the document published by the United States Fish 
and Wildlife Service entitled ‘‘Eradication Strategies for 
Nutria in the Chesapeake and Delaware Bay Water-
sheds’’, dated March 2002, and updated March 2009. 
(d) COST-SHARING REQUIREMENT.— 
(1) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of 
the total cost of the program may not exceed 75 per-
cent. 
(2) IN-KIND
CONTRIBUTIONS.—The non-Fed-
eral share of the total cost of the program may be 
provided in the form of in-kind contributions of ma-
terials or services. 
(e) LIMITATION ON ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.— 
Not more that 5 percent of the financial assistance pro-
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vided by the Secretary under the program may be used 
for administrative expenses. 
SEC. 5. REPORT. 
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary and the National Invasive Spe-
cies Council shall— 
(1) for purposes of the program, give consider-
ation to— 
(A) the 2002 report for the Louisiana De-
partment of Wildlife and Fisheries entitled 
‘‘Nutria in Louisiana’’; and 
(B) the March 2009 update of the docu-
ment entitled ‘‘Eradication Strategies for the 
Nutria in the Chesapeake and Delaware Bay 
Watersheds’’ and dated March 2002; 
(2) continue, in cooperation with the State of 
Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and 
the State of Maryland Department of Natural Re-
sources, a long-term nutria control or eradication 
program, as appropriate, with the objective to sig-
nificantly reduce and restore the damage nutria 
cause to coastal wetland in the States of Louisiana 
and Maryland; and 
(3) develop, in cooperation with the State of 
Delaware Department of Natural Resources and En-
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vironmental Control, the State of Virginia Depart-
ment of Game and Inland Fisheries, the State of Or-
egon Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the 
State of Washington Department of Fish and Wild-
life, long-term nutria control or eradication pro-
grams, as appropriate, with the objective to signifi-
cantly reduce and restore the damage nutria cause 
to coastal wetland in the coastal States. 
SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
retary for each of fiscal years 2010 through 2014— 
(1) $4,000,000 to provide financial assistance 
under the program to each of the States of Mary-
land and Louisiana; and 
(2) $1,000,000 to provide financial assistance 
under the program to each of the coastal States. 
Æ 
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