‘‘(ii) A description of such site-specific or other 
measures that would achieve the criteria established 
under clause (i), including such intermediate meas-
ures as are warranted to effect progress toward 
achievement of the criteria. 
‘‘(iii) Estimates of the time required and the 
costs to carry out those measures described under 
clause (ii), including, to the extent practicable, esti-
mated costs for any recommendations, by the recovery 
team, or by the Secretary if no recovery team is se-
lected, that any of the areas identified under clause 
(iv) be acquired on a willing seller basis. 
‘‘(iv) An identification of those specific areas 
that are of special value to the conservation of the 
species. 
‘‘(B) Those members of any recovery team appointed 
pursuant to subsection (d) with relevant scientific expertise, 
or the Secretary if no recovery team is appointed, shall, 
based solely on the best available scientific data, establish 
the objective, measurable criteria required under subpara-
graph (A)(i). 
‘‘(C)(i) If the recovery team, or the Secretary if no re-
covery team is appointed, determines in the recovery plan 
that insufficient best available scientific data exist to deter-
mine criteria or measures under subparagraph (A) that
could achieve a determination to remove the species from 
the lists published under section 4(c), the recovery plan shall 
contain interim criteria and measures that are likely to im-
prove the status of the species. 
‘‘(ii) If a recovery plan does not contain the criteria 
and measures provided for by clause (i) of subparagraph 
(A), the recovery team for the plan, or by the Secretary if 
no recovery team is appointed, shall review the plan at in-
tervals of no greater than 5 years and determine if the plan 
can be revised to contain the criteria and measures required 
under subparagraph (A). 
‘‘(iii) If the recovery team or the Secretary, respec-
tively, determines under clause (ii) that a recovery plan can 
be revised to add the criteria and measures provided for 
under subparagraph (A), the recovery team or the Sec-
retary, as applicable, shall revise the recovery plan to add 
such criteria and measures within 2 years after the date 
of the determination. 
‘‘(D) In specifying measures in a recovery plan under 
subparagraph (A), a recovery team or the Secretary, as ap-
plicable, shall— 
‘‘(i) whenever possible include alternative meas-
ures; and 
‘‘(ii) in developing such alternative measures, the 
Secretary shall seek to identify, among such alter-
native measures of comparable expected efficacy, the 
alternative measures that are least costly. 
‘‘(E) Estimates of time and costs pursuant to subpara-
graph (A)(iii), and identification of the least costly alter-
natives pursuant to subparagraph (D)(ii), are not required 
to be based on the best available scientific data. 
‘‘(2) Any area that, immediately before the enactment 
of the Threatened and Endangered Species Recovery Act of 
2005, is designated as critical habitat of an endangered spe-
cies or threatened species shall be treated as an area de-
scribed in subparagraph (A)(iv) until a recovery plan for 
the species is developed or the existing recovery plan for 
the species is revised pursuant to subsection (b)(3). 
‘‘(d) RECOVERY TEAMS.—(1) The Secretary shall pro-
mulgate regulations that provide for the establishment of 
recovery teams for development of recovery plans under this 
section. 
‘‘(2) Such regulations shall— 
‘‘(A) establish criteria and the process for select-
ing the members of recovery teams, and the process 
for preparing recovery plans, that ensure that each 
team— 
‘‘(i) is of a size and composition to enable 
timely completion of the recovery plan; and
‘‘(ii) includes sufficient representation from 
constituencies with a demonstrated direct inter-
est in the species and its conservation or in the 
economic and social impacts of its conservation 
to ensure that the views of such constituencies 
will be considered in the development of the plan; 
‘‘(B) include provisions regarding operating pro-
cedures of and recordkeeping by recovery teams; 
‘‘(C) ensure that recovery plans are scientifically 
rigorous and that the evaluation of costs required by 
paragraphs (1)(A)(iii) and (1)(D) of subsection (c) 
are economically rigorous; and 
‘‘(D) provide guidelines for circumstances in 
which the Secretary may determine that appointment 
of a recovery team is not necessary or advisable to de-
velop a recovery plan for a specific species, including 
procedures to solicit public comment on any such de-
termination. 
‘‘(3) The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 App. 
U.S.C.) shall not apply to recovery teams appointed in ac-
cordance with regulations issued by the Secretary under 
this subsection. 
‘‘(e) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—(1) The Secretary shall 
report every two years to the Committee on Resources of 
the House of Representatives and the Committee on Envi-
ronment and Public Works of the Senate on the status of 
all domestic endangered species and threatened species and 
the status of efforts to develop and implement recovery plans 
for all domestic endangered species and threatened species. 
‘‘(2) In reporting on the status of such species since 
the time of its listing, the Secretary shall include— 
‘‘(A) an assessment of any significant change in 
the well-being of each such species, including— 
‘‘(i) changes in population, range, or 
threats; and 
‘‘(ii) the basis for that assessment; and 
‘‘(B) for each species, a measurement of the de-
gree of confidence in the reported status of such spe-
cies, based upon a quantifiable parameter developed 
for such purposes. 
‘‘(f) PUBLIC NOTICE AND COMMENT.—The Secretary 
shall, prior to final approval of a new or revised recovery 
plan, provide public notice and an opportunity for public 
review and comment on such plan. The Secretary shall con-
sider all information presented during the public comment 
period prior to approval of the plan. 
‘‘(g) STATE COMMENT.—The Secretary shall, prior to 
final approval of a new or revised recovery plan, provide 
a draft of such plan and an opportunity to comment on 
such draft to the Governor of, and State agency in, any
State to which such draft would apply. The Secretary shall 
include in the final recovery plan the Secretary’s response 
to the comments of the Governor and the State agency. 
‘‘(h) CONSULTATION TO ENSURE CONSISTENCY WITH 
DEVELOPMENT PLAN.—(1) The Secretary shall, prior to 
final approval of a new or revised recovery plan, consult 
with any pertinent State, Indian tribe, or regional or local 
land use agency or its designee. 
‘‘(2) For purposes of this Act, the term ‘Indian tribe’ 
means— 
‘‘(A) with respect to the 48 contiguous States, 
any federally recognized Indian tribe, organized band, 
pueblo, or community; and 
‘‘(B) with respect to Alaska, the Metlakatla In-
dian Community. 
‘‘(i) USE OF PLANS.—(1) Each Federal agency shall 
consider any relevant best available scientific data con-
tained in a recovery plan in any analysis conducted under 
section 102 of the National Environmental Policy Act of 
1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332). 
‘‘(2)(A)(i) The head of any Federal agency may enter 
into an agreement with the Secretary specifying the meas-
ures the agency will carry out to implement a recovery 
plan.
‘‘(ii) Each such agreement shall be published in draft 
form with notice and an opportunity for public comment. 
‘‘(iii) Each such final agreement shall be published, 
with responses by the head of the Federal agency to any 
public comments submitted on the draft agreement. 
‘‘(B) Nothing in a recovery plan shall be construed to 
establish regulatory requirements. 
‘‘(j) MONITORING.—(1) The Secretary shall implement 
a system in cooperation with the States to monitor effec-
tively for not less than five years the status of all species 
that have recovered to the point at which the measures pro-
vided pursuant to this Act are no longer necessary and that, 
in accordance with this section, have been removed from 
the lists published under section 4(c). 
‘‘(2) The Secretary shall make prompt use of the au-
thority under section 4(b)(7) to prevent a significant risk 
to the well-being of any such recovered species.’’. 
(b) RECOVERY PLANS FOR SPECIES OCCUPYING MORE 
THAN ONE STATE.—Section 6 (16 U.S.C. 1535) is amended 
by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(j) RECOVERY
PLANS
FOR
SPECIES
OCCUPYING 
MORE THAN ONE STATE.—Any recovery plan under sec-
tion 5 for an endangered species or a threatened species that 
occupies more than one State shall identify criteria and ac-
tions pursuant to subsection (c)(1) of section 5 for each