108TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3378
AN ACT
To assist in the conservation of marine turtles and
the nesting habitats of marine turtles in foreign
countries.
108TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3378
AN ACT
To assist in the conservation of marine turtles and the
nesting habitats of marine turtles in foreign countries.
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 ‘‘Marine Turtle Con-
servation Act of 2004’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—
(1) marine turtle populations have declined to
the point that the long-term survival of the logger-
head, green, hawksbill, Kemp’s ridley, olive ridley,
and leatherback turtle in the wild is in serious jeop-
ardy;
(2) 6 of the 7 recognized species of marine tur-
tles are listed as threatened or endangered species
under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16
U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), and all 7 species have been in-
cluded in Appendix I of CITES;
(3) because marine turtles are long-lived, late-
maturing, and highly migratory, marine turtles are
particularly vulnerable to the impacts of human ex-
ploitation and habitat loss;
(4) illegal international trade seriously threat-
ens wild populations of some marine turtle species,
particularly the hawksbill turtle;
(5) the challenges facing marine turtles are im-
mense, and the resources available have not been
sufficient to cope with the continued loss of nesting
habitats caused by human activities and the con-
sequent diminution of marine turtle populations;
(6) because marine turtles are flagship species
for the ecosystems in which marine turtles are
found, sustaining healthy populations of marine tur-
tles provides benefits to many other species of wild-
life, including many other threatened or endangered
species;
(7) marine turtles are important components of
the ecosystems that they inhabit, and studies of wild
populations of marine turtles have provided impor-
tant biological insights;
(8) changes in marine turtle populations are
most reliably indicated by changes in the numbers of
nests and nesting females; and
(9) the reduction, removal, or other effective
addressing of the threats to the long-term viability
of populations of marine turtles will require the joint
commitment and effort of—
(A) countries that have within their bound-
aries marine turtle nesting habitats; and
(B) persons with expertise in the conserva-
tion of marine turtles.
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to assist
in the conservation of marine turtles and the nesting habi-
tats of marine turtles in foreign countries by supporting
and providing financial resources for projects to conserve
the nesting habitats, conserve marine turtles in those habi-
tats, and address other threats to the survival of marine
turtles.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) CITES.—The term ‘‘CITES’’ means the
Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (27 UST 1087;
TIAS 8249).
(2) CONSERVATION.—The term ‘‘conservation’’
means the use of all methods and procedures nec-
essary to protect nesting habitats of marine turtles
in foreign countries and of marine turtles in those
habitats, including—
(A) protection, restoration, and manage-
ment of nesting habitats;
(B) onsite research and monitoring of
nesting populations, nesting habitats, annual
reproduction, and species population trends;
(C) assistance in the development, imple-
mentation, and improvement of national and re-
gional management plans for nesting habitat
ranges;
(D) enforcement and implementation of
CITES and laws of foreign countries to—
(i) protect and manage nesting popu-
lations and nesting habitats; and
(ii) prevent illegal trade of marine
turtles;
(E) training of local law enforcement offi-
cials in the interdiction and prevention of—
(i) the illegal killing of marine turtles
on nesting habitat; and
(ii) illegal trade in marine turtles;
(F) initiatives to resolve conflicts between
humans and marine turtles over habitat used by
marine turtles for nesting;
(G) community outreach and education;
and
(H) strengthening of the ability of local
communities to implement nesting population
and nesting habitat conservation programs.
(3) FUND.—The term ‘‘Fund’’ means the Ma-
rine Turtle Conservation Fund established by section
5.
(4) MARINE TURTLE.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘marine tur-
tle’’ 
means 
any 
member 
of 
the 
family
Cheloniidae or Dermochelyidae.
(B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘marine tur-
tle’’ includes—
(i) any part, product, egg, or offspring
of a turtle described in subparagraph (A);
and
(ii) a carcass of such a turtle.
(5) MULTINATIONAL
SPECIES
CONSERVATION
FUND.—The term ‘‘Multinational Species Conserva-
tion Fund’’ means the fund established under the
heading ‘‘multinational species conservation fund’’ in
title I of the Department of the Interior and Related
Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999 (16 U.S.C.
4246).
(6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
the Secretary of the Interior.
SEC. 4. MARINE TURTLE CONSERVATION ASSISTANCE.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the availability of
funds and in consultation with other Federal officials, the
Secretary shall use amounts in the Fund to provide finan-
cial assistance for projects for the conservation of marine
turtles for which project proposals are approved by the
Secretary in accordance with this section.
(b) PROJECT PROPOSALS.—
(1) ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.—A proposal for a
project for the conservation of marine turtles may be
submitted to the Secretary by—
(A) any wildlife management authority of
a foreign country that has within its boundaries
marine turtle nesting habitat if the activities of
the authority directly or indirectly affect marine
turtle conservation; or
(B) any other person or group with the
demonstrated expertise required for the con-
servation of marine turtles.
(2) REQUIRED ELEMENTS.—A project proposal
shall include—
(A) a statement of the purposes of the
project;
(B) the name of the individual with overall
responsibility for the project;
(C) a description of the qualifications of
the individuals that will conduct the project;
(D) a description of—
(i) methods for project implementa-
tion and outcome assessment;
(ii) staff and community management
for the project; and
(iii) the logistics of the project;
(E) an estimate of the funds and time re-
quired to complete the project;
(F) evidence of support for the project by
appropriate governmental entities of the coun-
tries in which the project will be conducted, if
the Secretary determines that such support is
required for the success of the project;
(G) information regarding the source and
amount of matching funding available for the
project; and
(H) any other information that the Sec-
retary considers to be necessary for evaluating
the eligibility of the project for funding under
this Act.
(c) PROJECT REVIEW AND APPROVAL.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall—
(A) not later than 30 days after receiving
a project proposal, provide a copy of the pro-
posal to other Federal officials, as appropriate;
and
(B) review each project proposal in a time-
ly manner to determine whether the proposal
meets the criteria specified in subsection (d).
(2) 
CONSULTATION; 
APPROVAL
OR
DIS-
APPROVAL.—Not later than 180 days after receiving
a project proposal, and subject to the availability of
funds, the Secretary, after consulting with other
Federal officials, as appropriate, shall—
(A) consult on the proposal with the gov-
ernment of each country in which the project is
to be conducted;
(B) after taking into consideration any
comments resulting from the consultation, ap-
prove or disapprove the project proposal; and
(C) provide written notification of the ap-
proval or disapproval to the person that sub-
mitted the project proposal, other Federal offi-
cials, and each country described in subpara-
graph (A).
(d) CRITERIA FOR APPROVAL.—The Secretary may
approve a project proposal under this section if the project
will help recover and sustain viable populations of marine
turtles in the wild by assisting efforts in foreign countries
to implement marine turtle conservation programs.
(e) PROJECT SUSTAINABILITY.—To the maximum
extent practicable, in determining whether to approve
project proposals under this section, the Secretary shall
give preference to conservation projects that are designed
to ensure effective, long-term conservation of marine tur-
tles and their nesting habitats.
(f) MATCHING FUNDS.—In determining whether to
approve project proposals under this section, the Secretary
shall give preference to projects for which matching funds
are available.
(g) PROJECT REPORTING.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Each person that receives
assistance under this section for a project shall sub-
mit to the Secretary periodic reports (at such inter-
vals as the Secretary may require) that include all
information that the Secretary, after consultation
with other government officials, determines is nec-
essary to evaluate the progress and success of the
project for the purposes of ensuring positive results,
assessing problems, and fostering improvements.
(2) AVAILABILITY
TO
THE
PUBLIC.—Reports
under paragraph (1), and any other documents re-
lating to projects for which financial assistance is
provided under this Act, shall be made available to
the public.
SEC. 5. MARINE TURTLE CONSERVATION FUND.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the
Multinational Species Conservation Fund a separate ac-
count to be known as the ‘‘Marine Turtle Conservation
Fund’’, consisting of—
(1) amounts transferred to the Secretary of the
Treasury for deposit into the Fund under subsection
(e);
(2) amounts appropriated to the Fund under
section 6; and
(3) any interest earned on investment of
amounts in the Fund under subsection (c).
(b) EXPENDITURES FROM FUND.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), on
request by the Secretary, the Secretary of the Treas-
ury shall transfer from the Fund to the Secretary,
without further appropriation, such amounts as the
Secretary determines are necessary to carry out sec-
tion 4.
(2) 
ADMINISTRATIVE
EXPENSES.—Of 
the
amounts in the account available for each fiscal
year, the Secretary may expend not more than 3
percent, or up to $80,000, whichever is greater, to
pay the administrative expenses necessary to carry
out this Act.
(c) INVESTMENT OF AMOUNTS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Treas-
ury shall invest such portion of the Fund as is not,
in the judgment of the Secretary of the Treasury,
required to meet current withdrawals. Investments
may be made only in interest-bearing obligations of
the United States.
(2) ACQUISITION
OF
OBLIGATIONS.—For the
purpose of investments under paragraph (1), obliga-
tions may be acquired—
(A) on original issue at the issue price; or
(B) by purchase of outstanding obligations
at the market price.
(3) SALE OF OBLIGATIONS.—Any obligation ac-
quired by the Fund may be sold by the Secretary of
the Treasury at the market price.
(4) CREDITS TO FUND.—The interest on, and
the proceeds from the sale or redemption of, any ob-
ligations held in the Fund shall be credited to and
form a part of the Fund.
(d) TRANSFERS OF AMOUNTS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The amounts required to be
transferred to the Fund under this section shall be
transferred at least monthly from the general fund
of the Treasury to the Fund on the basis of esti-
mates made by the Secretary of the Treasury.
(2) ADJUSTMENTS.—Proper adjustment shall
be made in amounts subsequently transferred to the
extent prior estimates were in excess of or less than
the amounts required to be transferred.
(e) ACCEPTANCE AND USE OF DONATIONS.—The
Secretary may accept and use donations to provide assist-
ance under section 4. Amounts received by the Secretary
in the form of donations shall be transferred to the Sec-
retary of the Treasury for deposit in the Fund.
SEC. 6. ADVISORY GROUP.
(a) IN GENERAL.—To assist in carrying out this Act,
the Secretary may convene an advisory group consisting
of individuals representing public and private organiza-
tions actively involved in the conservation of marine tur-
tles.
(b) PUBLIC PARTICIPATION.—
(1) MEETINGS.—The Advisory Group shall—
(A) ensure that each meeting of the advi-
sory group is open to the public; and
(B) provide, at each meeting, an oppor-
tunity for interested persons to present oral or
written statements concerning items on the
agenda.
(2) NOTICE.—The Secretary shall provide to
the public timely notice of each meeting of the advi-
sory group.