HR 3824 RFS 
SEC. 8. SECRETARIAL GUIDELINES; STATE COMMENTS. 
Section 4 (16 U.S.C. 1533) is amended— 
(1) by striking subsections (f) and (g) and re-
designating subsections (h) and (i) as subsections (f) 
and (g), respectively; 
(2) in subsection (f), as redesignated by para-
graph (1) of this subsection— 
(A) in the heading by striking ‘‘AGENCY’’ 
and inserting ‘‘SECRETARIAL’’; 
(B) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), 
by striking ‘‘the purposes of this section are 
achieved’’ and inserting ‘‘this section is imple-
mented’’; 
(C) by redesignating paragraph (4) as 
paragraph (5); 
(D) in paragraph (3) by striking ‘‘and’’ 
after the semicolon at the end, and by inserting 
after paragraph (3) the following: 
‘‘(4) the criteria for determining best available 
scientific data pursuant to section 3(2); and’’; and 
(E) in paragraph (5), as redesignated by 
subparagraph (C) of this paragraph, by striking 
‘‘subsection (f) of this section’’ and inserting 
‘‘section 5’’; 
(3) in subsection (g), as redesignated by para-
graph (1) of this section—
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(A) by inserting ‘‘COMMENTS.—’’ before 
the first sentence; 
(B) by striking ‘‘a State agency’’ the first 
place it appears and inserting ‘‘a Governor, 
State agency, county (or equivalent jurisdic-
tion), or unit of local government’’; 
(C) by striking ‘‘a State agency’’ the sec-
ond place it appears and inserting ‘‘a Governor, 
State agency, county (or equivalent jurisdic-
tion), or unit of local government’’; 
(D) by striking ‘‘the State agency’’ and in-
serting ‘‘the Governor, State agency, county (or 
equivalent jurisdiction), or unit of local govern-
ment, respectively’’; and 
(E) by striking ‘‘agency’s’’. 
SEC. 9. RECOVERY PLANS AND LAND ACQUISITIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 5 (16 U.S.C. 1534) is 
amended— 
(1) by redesignating subsections (a) and (b) as 
subsections (k) and (l), respectively; 
(2) in subsection (l), as redesignated by para-
graph (1) of this section, by striking ‘‘subsection (a) 
of this section’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (k)’’; and
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(3) by striking so much as precedes subsection 
(k), as redesignated by paragraph (1) of this section, 
and inserting the following: 
‘‘RECOVERY PLANS AND LAND ACQUISITION 
‘‘SEC. 5. (a) RECOVERY PLANS.—The Secretary 
shall, in accordance with this section, develop and imple-
ment a plan (in this subsection referred to as a ‘recovery 
plan’) for the species determined under section 4(a)(1) to 
be an endangered species or a threatened species, unless 
the Secretary finds that such a plan will not promote the 
conservation and survival of the species. 
‘‘(b) DEVELOPMENT
OF RECOVERY PLANS.—(1) 
Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), the Secretary, in devel-
oping recovery plans, shall, to the maximum extent prac-
ticable, give priority to those endangered species or threat-
ened species, without regard to taxonomic classification, 
that are most likely to benefit from such plans, particu-
larly those species that are, or may be, in conflict with 
construction or other development projects or other forms 
of economic activity. 
‘‘(2)(A) In the case of any species determined to be 
an endangered species or threatened species after the date 
of the enactment of the Threatened and Endangered Spe-
cies Recovery Act of 2005, the Secretary shall publish a 
final recovery plan for a species within 2 years after the 
date the species is listed under section 4(c).
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‘‘(B) Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed 
to affect the authority of the Secretary to issue any emer-
gency regulation pursuant to section 4(b)(6). 
‘‘(3)(A) For those species that are listed under sec-
tion 4(c) on the date of enactment of the Threatened and 
Endangered Species Recovery Act of 2005 and are de-
scribed in subparagraph (B) of this paragraph, the Sec-
retary, after providing for public notice and comment, 
shall— 
‘‘(i) not later than 1 year after such date, pub-
lish in the Federal Register a priority ranking sys-
tem for preparing or revising such recovery plans 
that is consistent with paragraph (1) and takes into 
consideration the scientifically based needs of the 
species; and 
‘‘(ii) not later than 18 months after such date, 
publish in the Federal Register a list of such species 
ranked in accordance with the priority ranking sys-
tem published under clause (i) for which such recov-
ery plans will be developed or revised, and a ten-
tative schedule for such development or revision. 
‘‘(B) A species is described in this subparagraph if— 
‘‘(i) a recovery plan for the species is not pub-
lished under this Act before the date of enactment 
of the Threatened and Endangered Species Recovery