Salmon FISH Act
Bill: H.R.6491 | Sponsor: Rep. Huffman, Jared (D-CA)
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources

Summary:
Salmon Focused Investments in Sustainable Habitats Act or the Salmon FISH Act
This bill addresses identifying, restoring, and protecting salmon conservation areas and salmon strongholds in the United States.
Specifically, the bill

To require the identification of salmon conservation areas and salmon 
                  strongholds, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Salmon Focused Investments in 
Sustainable Habitats Act'' or the ``Salmon FISH Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Pacific and Atlantic salmon are important for food, 
        culture, ecology, and the economy.
            (2) Salmon are especially important to Indian tribes, many 
        of which consider salmon to be sacred and central to their 
        culture, ceremonies, and subsistence.
            (3) Such Indian tribes have significant leadership and 
        expertise with respect to salmon.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian tribe'' has the 
        meaning given the term in section 4(e) of the Indian Self-
        Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304(e)).
            (2) Salmon.--The term ``salmon'' means any of the wild 
        anadromous Oncorhynchus species that occur in the Western 
        United States, including--
                    (A) Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar);
                    (B) chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta);
                    (C) pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha);
                    (D) sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka);
                    (E) chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha);
                    (F) coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch); and
                    (G) steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss).
            (3) Salmon conservation area.--The term ``salmon 
        conservation area'' means a watershed, a portion of a 
        watershed, mutliple watersheds, or other defined spatial unit 
        that--
                    (A) is identified as a salmon conservation area 
                under section 4(b);
                    (B) at the time of the identification described in 
                subparagraph (A), meets the biological criteria (as 
                identified by the Administrator of the National Oceanic 
                and Atmospheric Administration and the Director of the 
                Fish and Wildlife Service in coordination with the 
                relevant Federal agency with jurisdiction over such 
                salmon conservation area) for abundance, productivity, 
                diversity (genetic and life history), habitat quality, 
                or other biological attributes important to sustaining 
                viable populations of salmon throughout the range of 
                such salmon; and
                    (C) is regionally significant for the conservation 
                of salmon.
            (4) Salmon stronghold.--The term ``salmon stronghold'' 
        means a salmon conservation area that--
                    (A) is identified as a salmon conservation area 
                under section 4(b); and
                    (B) at the time of the identification described in 
                subparagraph (A), has--
                            (i) relatively high anadromous salmonid 
                        abundance, productivity, and diversity (life 
                        history and run timing), as well as habitat 
                        quality or other biological attributes 
                        important to sustaining viable populations of 
                        wild salmon throughout the range of such 
                        salmon;
                            (ii) populations of salmon that are strong 
                        and diverse; and
                            (iii) salmon habitats that have a high 
                        intrinsic potential to support a particular 
                        species or suite of species.
            (5) Relevant federal ageny.--The term ``relevant Federal 
        agency'' means--
                    (A) the Forest Service;
                    (B) the Bureau of Land Management;
                    (C) the National Park Service; and
                    (D) the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

SEC. 4. IDENTIFICATION OF SALMON CONSERVATION AREAS AND SALMON 
              STRONGHOLDS.

    (a) Guidance.--Not later than 120 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration and the Director of the Fish and Wildlife 
Service shall jointly issue guidance on the process and biological 
criteria required to identify salmon conservation areas and salmon 
strongholds.
    (b) Publication.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the National 
        Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Director of the 
        Fish and Wildlife Service, in cooperation with relevant Federal 
        agencies shall publish a list of salmon conservation areas and 
        salmon strongholds.
            (2) Revision.--The Administrator of the National Oceanic 
        and Atmospheric Administration and the Director of the Fish and 
        Wildlife Service, in cooperation with each relevant Federal 
        agency shall not less frequently than once every 5 years after 
        the date of the enactment of this Act, revise the list under 
        paragraph (1)--
                    (A) to add subsequently identified salmon 
                conservation areas and salmon strongholds in accordance 
                with subsection (d); and
                    (B) to remove from such list any areas that no 
                longer qualify as salmon conservation areas or salmon 
                strongholds.
    (c) Consultation.--In identifying salmon conservation areas and 
salmon strongholds under subsection (b), the Administrator of the 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Director of the 
Fish and Wildlife Service, in cooperation with each relevant Federal 
agency--
            (1) shall consult with--
                    (A) the State in which such a salmon conservation 
                area or salmon stronghold under consideration are 
                located; and
                    (B) Indian tribes that have land, fishing rights, 
                or cultural ties to the area in which the salmon 
                conservation area or salmon strongholds will be 
                prospectively located; and
            (2) may consult with--
                    (A) nongovernmental organizations;
                    (B) non-Federal scientists; and
                    (C) members of the public.
    (d) Subsequent Identification and Revision.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 90 days after the date 
        described in subsection (b)(1), an entity described in 
        paragraph (1) or paragraph (2) subsection (c) may nominate to 
        the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
        Administration and the Director of the Fish and Wildlife 
        Service a salmon conservation area or salmon stronghold for 
        identification under subsection (b).
            (2) Review.--In the case of a nomination described in 
        paragraph (1), not later than 180 days after receiving such 
        nomination, the Administrator of the National Oceanic and 
        Atmospheric Administration and the Director of the Fish and 
        Wildlife Service shall jointly determine if the nominated 
        watershed is a salmon conservation area or salmon stronghold 
        and provide to the entity that provided the nomination under 
        paragraph (1) a written explanation with respect to such 
        determination.
    (e) Watershed Management and Restoration Identification.--The 
Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 
and the Director of the Fish and Wildlife Service, in cooperation with 
the Secretary of Agriculture shall use watershed evaluations conducted 
under the Watershed Condition Framework under section 304 of the 
Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6543) and other 
relevant watershed analyses to support the identification of salmon 
conservation areas and salmon strongholds under this section.
    (f) Essential Fish Habitat.--The Administrator of the National 
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Director of the Fish and 
Wildlife Service shall use the analyses conducted by the Administrator 
under section 305(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1855(b)) to identify, map, and designate 
essential fish habitat to support the identification of salmon 
conservation areas and salmon strongholds under this section.

SEC. 5. EFFECT OF IDENTIFICATION.

    (a) Priority for Forest Road Decommissioning.--The Secretary of 
Agriculture--
            (1) shall give priority to forest road decommissioning (as 
        defined in section 212.1 of title 36, Code of Federal 
        Regulations) and fish passage projects within or directly 
        affecting a salmon conservation area or salmon stronghold; and
            (2) may not carry out the forest road decommissioning or 
        fish passage projects described in paragraph (1) unless the 
        Secretary of Agriculture has, with respect to ensuring that the 
        habitats of salmon conservation areas and salmon strongholds 
        are not degraded, consulted with the--
                    (A) entities described in paragraphs (1) and (2) of 
                section 4(c);
                    (B) Administrator of the National Oceanic and 
                Atmospheric Administration, acting through the 
                Administrator of the National Marine Fisheries Service; 
                and
                    (C) Director of the Fish and Wildlife Service;
    (b) Transboundary Pollution.--
            (1) Notification of secretary of state.--If any salmon 
        conservation area or salmon stronghold is determined by a 
        Federal agency to be negatively impacted by transboundary 
        pollution or other international actions originating in Canada, 
        the head of the Federal agency shall notify the Secretary of 
        State.
            (2) Action required.--Not later than 30 days after 
        receiving a notification under paragraph (1), the Secretary of 
        State shall consult with representatives from Canada to resolve 
        the issue for which the Secretary of State was notified under 
        such paragraph.
            (3) Referral to international joint commission.--If the 
        issue for which the Secretary of State was notified under 
        paragraph (1) is not resolved on a date that is 6 months after 
        the date of notification under such paragraph--
                    (A) the Secretary of State shall request to submit 
                a joint referral to the International Joint Commission 
                with Canada to research and provide recommendations to 
                resolve such issue; and
                    (B) if a joint referral under subparagraph (A) is 
                not submitted, the Secretary of State shall refer such 
                issue to the International Joint Commission.

SEC. 6. WATERSHED MANAGEMENT AND RESTORATION PROGRAM.

    Section 304 of the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 (16 
U.S.C. 6543) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--
            ``(1) In general.--There is authorized to be appropriated 
        to carry out this section and the purpose described in 
        paragraph (2), $40,000,000 for fiscal year 2023 and each of the 
        4 fiscal years thereafter.
            ``(2) Preserve salmon habitat watersheds.--The Secretary 
        shall use a portion of the funds appropriated pursuant to 
        paragraph (1) to provide funds to programs that preserve 
        watersheds that are salmon habitats.
            ``(3) Additional watershed permissible.--Notwithstanding 
        any other provision of this section, the Secretary may use 
        funds appropriated under this subsection to identify additional 
        priority watersheds in each National Forest if such watersheds, 
        or portions of, are determined by the Secretary to be salmon 
        conservation areas or salmon strongholds (as such terms are 
        defined in section 3 of the Salmon FISH Act).''.

SEC. 7. GRANT PROGRAM.

    (a) Authorization.--
            (1) In general.--The Director of the Fish and Wildlife 
        Service shall, in collaboration with the Administrator of the 
        National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, carry out a 
        grant program, to be known as the ``Salmon Conservation Area 
        Grant Program'', to make grants to carry out the purposes 
        described in subsection (b).
            (2) Duration.--A grant under this section shall have a 
        duration of not more than 5 years.
            (3) Priority.--In making grants under this section, the 
        administrator of the grant program shall give priority to an 
        eligible entity that demonstrates that the eligible entity--
                    (A) will carry out a project under this section on 
                a salmon stronghold;
                    (B) has considered the durability of the project 
                and how the project contributes to the long-term 
                conservation of salmon;
                    (C) has coordinated with other stakeholders to 
                carry out the project; and
                    (D) has considered how the project will work with 
                other salmon restoration projects.
            (4) Matching requirement.--
                    (A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph 
                (B), each eligible entity that receives a grant under 
                this section shall provide, in cash or through in-kind 
                contributions from non-Federal sources, matching funds 
                to carry out the activities funded by the grant in an 
                amount equal to not less than 25 percent of the cost of 
                the activities.
                    (B) Exceptions.--
                            (i) Indian tribes.--Subparagraph (A) shall 
                        not apply to an eligible entity that is an 
                        Indian Tribe.
                            (ii) Discretionary exceptions.--The 
                        administrator of the grant program under this 
                        section may reduce or waive the matching 
                        requirement under subparagraph (A) if--
                                    (I) an eligible entity submits a 
                                written request to the administrator 
                                for a waiver with a justification as to 
                                why the eligible entity cannot meet the 
                                matching requirement; and
                                    (II) the administrator determines 
                                such justification is sufficient to 
                                waive such requirement.
            (5) Administration.--
                    (A) In general.--The Director of the Fish and 
                Wildlife Service may enter into an agreement to 
                administer the grant program with the National Fish and 
                Wildlife Foundation or a similar organization that 
                offers grant administration services.
                    (B) Funding.--If the Director of the Fish and 
                Wildlife Service enters into an agreement under 
                subparagraph (A), the organization selected shall--
                            (i) for each fiscal year, receive amounts 
                        made available to carry out this section in an 
                        advance payment of the entire amounts on 
                        October 1 of that fiscal year, or as soon as 
                        practicable thereafter;
                            (ii) invest and reinvest those amounts for 
                        the benefit of the grant program; and
                            (iii) otherwise administer the grant 
                        program to support partnerships between the 
                        public and private sectors in accordance with 
                        this Act.
                    (C) Requirements.--If the Secretary enters into an 
                agreement with the Foundation under subparagraph (A), 
                any amounts received by the Foundation under this 
                section shall be subject to the National Fish and 
                Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act (16 U.S.C. 3701 
                et seq.), excluding section 10(a) of that Act (16 
                U.S.C. 3709(a)).
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of the grants under this section are--
            (1) to protect or maintain salmon conservation area or 
        salmon stronghold features and projects that are focused on 
        conservation and restoration within salmon conservation areas 
        or salmon stronghold; and
            (2) to carry out at least one of the following:
                    (A) To address factors threatening to limit 
                abundance, productivity, diversity, habitat quality, or 
                other biological attributes important to sustaining 
                viable salmon populations.
                    (B) To restore or maintain ecological functions and 
                processes related to salmon productivity and diversity 
                at watershed or subwatershed scales.
                    (C) To improve the resilience of salmon populations 
                in response to acute events such as fires, landslides, 
                and earthquakes.
                    (D) To improve the resilience of salmon populations 
                to climate change and prepare populations for other 
                future changes.
                    (E) To provide co-benefits to fish and wildlife, in 
                particular where salmon can be used as indicator 
                species for habitat quality.
                    (F) To implement focused, prioritized protection 
                and restoration in watersheds.
                    (G) To improve conservation area or salmon 
                stronghold resilience both downstream and upstream.
    (c) Applications.--To be eligible to receive a grant under this 
section, an eligible entity shall submit an application to the 
administrator of the grant program at such time, in such manner, and 
containing such information as such administrator may require.
    (d) Use of Funds.--
            (1) In general.--An eligible entity that receives a grant 
        under this section shall use the grant funds to carry out 
        activities consistent with the purposes described in subsection 
        (b), which include--
                    (A) subject to subsection (e), land acquisition, 
                conservation easements, and land exchanges;
                    (B) purchasing mining rights;
                    (C) the improvement of fish passages and removal of 
                fish passage barriers and dams;
                    (D) habitat restoration and rehabilitation;
                    (E) outreach and local engagement;
                    (F) purchasing water rights related to leasing, 
                consumption, and use;
                    (G) groundwater recharge projects (including ponds 
                and forbearance);
                    (H) water efficiency projects;
                    (I) regional planning or development of a focused, 
                prioritized protection and restoration action plan for 
                the watershed; or
                    (J) monitoring and research, including monitoring 
                the status of salmon populations in watersheds within 
                conservation areas before and after the removal of a 
                dam.
            (2) Prohibition.--None of the funds made available under 
        this section may be used--
                    (A) to carry out litigation; or
                    (B) carry out lethal intentional takings.
    (e) Acquisition and Transfer of Real Property Interests.--
            (1) Use of real property.--No project that will result in 
        the acquisition by the Administrator of the National Oceanic 
        and Atmospheric Administration, the Director of the Fish and 
        Wildlife Service, a relevant Federal agency, or eligible entity 
        of interest in land, in whole or in part, may receive funds 
        under this section unless the project is consistent with the 
        purposes of this section.
            (2) Private property protection.--No Federal funds made 
        available to carry out this section may be used to acquire any 
        real property or any interest in any real property without the 
        written consent of each owner of the property or interest in 
        property.
            (3) Transfer of real property.--No land or interest in 
        land, acquired in whole or in part by the Administrator of the 
        National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Director 
        of the Fish and Wildlife Service, a relevant Federal agency, or 
        eligible entity with funds made available under this section 
        may be transferred to a State, other public agency, or other 
        entity unless--
                    (A) the Administrator of the National Oceanic and 
                Atmospheric Administration, the National Fish and 
                Wildlife Foundation, the relevant Federal agency, or 
                eligible entity with jurisdiction over such land 
                determines that the State, agency, or other entity is 
                committed to manage, in accordance with this section 
                and the purposes of this section, the property being 
                transferred; and
                    (B) the deed or other instrument of transfer 
                contains provisions for the reversion of the title to 
                the property to the United States if the State, agency, 
                or entity fails to manage the property as a salmon 
                conservation area or salmon stronghold in accordance 
                with this section and the purposes of this section.
            (4) Requirement.--Any real property interest conveyed under 
        paragraph (3) shall be subject to such terms and conditions as 
        will ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, that the 
        interest will be administered in accordance with this section 
        and the purposes of this section.
    (f) Reports.--Not later than 5 years after the date on which the 
first grant is made under this section, the administrator of the grant 
program shall submit a report to the Committee on Commerce, Science, 
and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources 
of the House of Representatives that includes--
            (1) an evaluation of the results of each project with 
        recommendations on strategies and approaches focusing on salmon 
        conservation actions projected to have the greatest positive 
        impacts on abundance, productivity, or diversity in salmon 
        conservation areas and salmon strongholds;
            (2) conclusions and recommendations on appropriate metrics 
        to measure and evaluate the efficacy of salmon conservation 
        efforts, including key indicators for habitat and aquatic 
        health and recommendations on quantifying such benefits;
            (3) an analysis of the status and trends for wild salmon 
        abundance, diversity and productivity in each salmon 
        conservation area and salmon stronghold;
            (4) an analysis of the social and economic effects 
        resulting from salmon conservation area and salmon stronghold 
        conservation; and
            (5) an assessment of threats imposed by changing ocean 
        conditions on marine survival.
    (g) Eligible Entity Defined.--In this section, the term ``eligible 
entity'' means an Indian tribe, nongovernmental organization, State or 
local agency, or institution of higher education (as defined in section 
101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)) that has 
approval to carry out a project with respect to a salmon conservation 
area or salmon stronghold under this section from each entity that has 
jurisdiction over such salmon conservation area or salmon stronghold.
    (h) Appropriations.--There is authorized to be appropriated to 
carry out this section $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2023 and each of the 
4 fiscal years thereafter.

SEC. 8. LIMITATIONS.

    Nothing in this Act, and no action to implement this Act, may be 
construed--
            (1) to create a reserved water right, express or implied, 
        in the United States for any purpose, or affect the management 
        or priority of water rights under State law;
            (2) to affect existing water rights under Federal or State 
        law;
            (3) to affect any Federal or State law in existence on the 
        date of enactment of this Act regarding water quality or water 
        quantity;
            (4) to abrogate, abridge, affect, modify, supersede, or 
        otherwise alter any right of an Indian tribe under any 
        applicable treaty, or Federal or tribal law or regulation;
            (5) to diminish or affect the ability of the Administrator 
        of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the 
        Director of the Fish and Wildlife Service, or head of a 
        relevant Federal Agency to join the adjudication of rights to 
        the use of water pursuant to subsection (a), (b), or (c) of 
        section 208 of the Department of Justice Appropriation Act, 
        1953 (43 U.S.C. 666); or
            (6) to diminish or affect any program or activity by an 
        Indian tribe that does not impact salmonid habitat.
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