I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2416
To provide for the protection of paleontological resources on Federal lands, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 11, 2003
Mr. MCGOVERN (for himself, Mr. MCINNIS, Mr. GILCHREST, Mr. GEORGE 
MILLER of California, Ms. LEE, Mr. BEREUTER, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. 
MORAN of Virginia, Mr. ENGLISH, Mr. REHBERG, and Mr. UDALL of 
Colorado) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Resources, and in addition to the Committee on Agriculture, 
for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case 
for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
committee concerned 
A BILL 
To provide for the protection of paleontological resources 
on Federal lands, and for other purposes.
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 ‘‘Paleontological Re-
sources Preservation Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds the following:
(1) Paleontological resources are nonrenewable. 
Such resources on Federal lands are an accessible 
and irreplaceable part of the heritage of the United 
States and offer significant educational opportunities 
to all citizens. 
(2) Existing Federal laws, statutes, and other 
provisions that manage paleontological resources are 
not articulated in a unified national policy for Fed-
eral land management agencies and the public. Such 
a policy is needed to improve scientific under-
standing, to promote responsible stewardship, and to 
facilitate the enhancement of responsible paleon-
tological collecting activities on Federal lands. 
(3) Consistent with the statutory provisions ap-
plicable to each Federal land management system, 
reasonable access to paleontological resources on 
Federal lands should be provided for scientific, edu-
cational, and recreational purposes. 
SEC. 3. PURPOSE. 
The purpose of this Act is to establish a comprehen-
sive national policy for preserving and managing paleon-
tological resources on Federal lands. 
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 
As used in this Act:
(1) CASUAL COLLECTING.—The term ‘‘casual 
collecting’’ means the collecting of a reasonable 
amount of common invertebrate and plant paleon-
tological resources for personal, scientific, edu-
cational or recreational use, either by surface collec-
tion or using non-powered hand tools resulting in 
only negligible disturbance to the Earth’s surface 
and other resources. 
(2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of the Interior with respect to lands 
administered by the Secretary of the Interior or the 
Secretary of Agriculture with respect to National 
Forest System Lands administered by the Secretary 
of Agriculture. 
(3) FEDERAL
LANDS.—The term ‘‘Federal 
lands’’ means lands administered by the Secretary of 
the Interior, except Indian lands, or National Forest 
System Lands administered by the Secretary of Ag-
riculture. 
(4) INDIAN LANDS.—The term ‘‘Indian Lands’’ 
means lands of Indian tribes, or Indian individuals, 
which are either held in trust by the United States 
or subject to a restriction against alienation imposed 
by the United States.
(5) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the fifty 
States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth 
of Puerto Rico, and any other territory or possession 
of the United States. 
(6) PALEONTOLOGICAL RESOURCE.—The term 
‘‘paleontological resource’’ means any fossilized re-
mains, traces, or imprints of organisms, preserved in 
or on the earth’s crust, that are of paleontological 
interest and that provide information about the his-
tory of life on earth, except that the term does not 
include—
(A) any materials associated with an ar-
chaeological resource (as defined in section 3(1) 
of the Archaeological Resources Protection Act 
of 1979 (16 U.S.C. 470bb(1))); or 
(B) any cultural item (as defined in section 
2 of the Native American Graves Protection 
and Repatriation Act (25 U.S.C. 3001)). 
(7) COMMON INVERTEBRATE AND PLANT PALE-
ONTOLOGICAL RESOURCES.—The term ‘‘common in-
vertebrate and plant paleontological resources’’ 
means fossils that are not significant. 
(8) SIGNIFICANT.—The term ‘‘significant’’ is a 
fossil that meets scientific significance criteria as de-
termined by the Secretary in the promulgation of 
uniform rules and regulations under this Act. 
(9) QUALIFIED APPLICANT.—The term ‘‘quali-
fied applicant’’ is someone who possesses a graduate 
degree in paleontology or related topics; or the 
equivalent experience with one who meets that 
standard. 
SEC. 5. MANAGEMENT. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall manage and 
protect paleontological resources on Federal lands using 
scientific principles and expertise. The Secretary shall de-
velop appropriate plans for inventory, monitoring, and the 
scientific and educational use of paleontological resources, 
in accordance with applicable agency laws, regulations, 
and policies. These plans shall emphasize interagency co-
ordination and collaborative efforts where possible with 
non-Federal partners, the scientific community, and the 
general public. 
(b) COORDINATION OF IMPLEMENTATION.—To the 
extent possible, the Secretary of the Interior and the Sec-
retary of Agriculture shall coordinate in the implementa-
tion of this Act.
SEC. 6. PUBLIC AWARENESS AND EDUCATION PROGRAM. 
The Secretary shall establish a program to increase 
public awareness about the significance of paleontological 
resources. 
SEC. 7. COLLECTION OF PALEONTOLOGICAL RESOURCES. 
(a) PERMIT REQUIREMENT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in this 
Act, a paleontological resource may not be collected 
from Federal lands without a permit issued under 
this Act by the Secretary. 
(2) CASUAL
COLLECTING
EXCEPTION.—The 
Secretary may allow casual collecting without a per-
mit on Federal lands administered by the Bureau of 
Land Management, the Bureau of Reclamation, and 
the U.S. Forest Service, where such collection is not 
inconsistent with the laws governing the manage-
ment of those Federal lands and this Act. 
(3) PREVIOUS PERMIT EXCEPTION.—Nothing in 
this section shall affect a valid permit issued prior 
to the date of enactment of this Act. 
(b) CRITERIA FOR ISSUANCE OF A PERMIT.—The 
Secretary may issue a permit for the collection of a paleon-
tological resource pursuant to an application if the Sec-
retary determines that—
(1) the permitted activity shall be carried out 
by a qualified applicant;
(2) the permitted activity is undertaken for the 
purpose of furthering paleontological knowledge or 
for public education; 
(3) the permitted activity is consistent with any 
management plan applicable to the Federal lands 
concerned; and 
(4) the proposed methods of collecting will not 
threaten significant natural or cultural resources. 
(c) PERMIT SPECIFICATIONS.—A permit for the col-
lection of a paleontological resource issued under this sec-
tion shall contain such terms and conditions as the Sec-
retary deems necessary to carry out the purposes of this 
Act. Every permit shall include requirements that—
(1) the paleontological resource that is collected 
from Federal lands under the permit will remain the 
property of the United States; 
(2) the paleontological resource and copies of 
associated records will be preserved for the public in 
an approved repository, to be made available for sci-
entific research and public education; and 
(3) specific locality data will not be released by 
the permittee or repository without the written per-
mission of the Secretary. 
(d) MODIFICATION, SUSPENSION, AND REVOCATION 
OF PERMITS.—
(1) The Secretary may modify, suspend, or re-
voke a permit issued under this section—
(A) for resource, safety, or other manage-
ment considerations; or 
(B) when there is a violation of term or 
condition of a permit issued pursuant to this 
section. 
(2) The permit shall be revoked if any person 
working under the authority of the permit is con-
victed under section 9 or is assessed a civil penalty 
under section 10. 
SEC. 8. CURATION OF RESOURCES. 
Any paleontological resource, and any data and 
records associated with the resource, collected under a per-
mit, shall be deposited in an approved repository. The Sec-
retary may enter into agreements with non-Federal reposi-
tories regarding the curation of these resources, data, and 
records. 
SEC. 9. PROHIBITED ACTS; PENALTIES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—A person may not—
(1) excavate, remove, damage, or otherwise 
alter or deface or attempt to excavate, remove, dam-
age, or otherwise alter or deface any paleontological 
resources located on Federal lands unless such activ-
ity is conducted in accordance with this Act;
(2) exchange, transport, export, receive, or offer 
to exchange, transport, export, or receive any pale-
ontological resource if, in the exercise of due care, 
the person knew or should have known such resource 
to have been excavated, removed, exchanged, trans-
ported, or received from Federal lands in violation of 
any provisions, rule, regulation, law, ordinance, or 
permit in effect under Federal law, including this 
Act; or 
(3) sell or purchase or offer to sell or purchase 
any paleontological resource if, in the exercise of due 
care, the person knew or should have known such re-
source to have been excavated, removed, sold, pur-
chased, exchanged, transported, or received from 
Federal lands. 
(b) FALSE LABELING OFFENSES.—A person may not 
make or submit any false record, account, or label for, 
or any false identification of, any paleontological resource 
excavated or removed from Federal lands. 
(c) PENALTIES.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graphs (2) and (3), a person who knowingly violates 
or counsels, procures, solicits, or employs another 
person to violate subsection (a) or (b) shall, upon 
conviction, be guilty of a class A misdemeanor.
(2) DAMAGE OVER $1,000.—If the sum of the 
scientific or fair market value of the paleontological 
resources involved and the cost of restoration and 
repair of such resources exceeds the sum of $1,000, 
such person shall, upon conviction, be guilty of a 
class E felony. 
(3) MULTIPLE OFFENSES.—In the case of a 
second or subsequent such violation, such person 
shall, upon conviction, be guilty of a class D felony. 
(d) GENERAL EXCEPTION.—Nothing in subsection 
(a) shall apply to any person with respect to any paleon-
tological resource which was in the lawful possession of 
such person prior to the date of the enactment of this Act. 
SEC. 10. CIVIL PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS OF REGULA-
TIONS OR PERMIT CONDITIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—
(1) HEARING.—A person who violates any pro-
hibition contained in an applicable regulation or per-
mit issued under this Act may be assessed a penalty 
by the Secretary after the person is given notice and 
opportunity for a hearing with respect to the viola-
tion. Each violation shall be considered a separate 
offense for purposes of this section. 
(2) AMOUNT
OF
PENALTY.—The amount of 
such penalty assessed under paragraph (1) shall be
determined under regulations promulgated pursuant 
to this Act, taking into account the following factors: 
(A) The scientific or fair market value, 
whichever is greater, of the paleontological re-
source involved. 
(B) The cost of response, restoration, and 
repair of the resource and the paleontological 
site involved. 
(C) Any other factors considered relevant 
by the Secretary assessing the penalty. 
(3) MULTIPLE OFFENSES.—In the case of a 
second or subsequent violation by the same person, 
the amount of a penalty assessed under paragraph 
(2) may be doubled. 
(4) LIMITATION.—The amount of any penalty 
assessed under this subsection for any one violation 
shall not exceed an amount equal to double the cost 
of response, restoration, and repair of resources and 
paleontological site damage plus double the scientific 
or fair market value of resources destroyed or not 
recovered. 
(b) PETITION FOR JUDICIAL REVIEW; COLLECTION 
OF UNPAID ASSESSMENTS.—Any person against whom an 
order is issued assessing a penalty under subsection (a) 
may file a petition for judicial review of the order with
an appropriate Federal district court within the 30-day 
period beginning on the date the order making the assess-
ment was issued. The court shall hear the action on the 
record made before the Secretary and shall sustain his ac-
tion if it is supported by substantial evidence on the record 
considered as a whole. 
(c) HEARINGS.—Hearings held during proceedings 
instituted under subsection (a) shall be conducted in ac-
cordance with section 554 of title 5, United States Code. 
(d) USE OF RECOVERED AMOUNTS.—Any penalties 
collected under this section shall be available to the Sec-
retary and without further appropriation may be used only 
as follows: 
(1) To protect, restore, or repair the paleon-
tological resources and sites which were the subject 
of the action, or to acquire sites with equivalent re-
sources, and to protect, monitor, and study the re-
sources and sites. Any acquisition shall be subject to 
any limitations contained in the organic legislation 
for such Federal lands. 
(2) To provide educational materials to the 
public about paleontological resources and sites. 
(3) To provide for the payment of Rewards as 
provided in section 11.