jiayi-li23/proxann_data huggingface dataset:
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Animals
Date: 2014-04-08 00:00:00

Sage-Grouse and Endangered Species Conservation and Protection Act - Amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to extend to five years the deadlines for determining whether there is substantial evidence in support of a petition to add or remove a species from the list of endangered or threatened species and the petition is warranted. Prohibits a petition from being considered for 10 years after either a determination is made that the petition is not warranted or a regulation to list a species is withdrawn.

Requires the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Commerce as appropriate (the Secretary) to make publicly available a cost-benefit analysis of listing the species when a petition is found to be warranted.

Prohibits the Secretary from adding to the list a species in a state in which the majority of lands are managed by the federal government, unless specified information is provided to the state.

Requires conservation measures to be conducted on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land and National Forest System lands to address the habitat and viability of: (1) endangered or threatened species, and (2) other species to alleviate the need to list a species under such Act. Establishes a program to sell certain public land parcels to generate revenues for such measures.

Requires activities on BLM or forest land parcels of 10,000 acres or less and that are related to threats to protected species to be: (1) categorically excluded from the requirements relating to environmental assessments or environmental impact statements under the National Environmental Policy Act, and (2) exempt from the Archaeological Resources Protection Act of 1979 and related requirements.

Requires the Secretary to use the best scientific and economic data available in conducting the five-year reviews of the status of listed species.

Deems a designation of critical habitat that restricts the uses of land to be a regulatory taking of property.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Animals
Date: 2014-04-30 00:00:00

Animal Emergency Planning Act of 2014 - Amends the Animal Welfare Act to require research facilities, dealers, exhibitors, intermediate handlers, and carriers (covered persons) to develop, document, and follow a contingency plan to provide for the humane handling, treatment, transportation, housing, and care of their animals in the event of an emergency or disaster.

Requires the plan to:

 identify situations that the covered person might experience, including natural disasters and emergencies, that would trigger the need to implement the measures identified in the plan; outline tasks to be carried out in response to emergencies or disasters, including animal evacuation or shelter-in-place instructions and provisions for providing backup sources of food and water as well as sanitation, ventilation, bedding, and veterinary care; establish a chain of command and identify the individuals responsible for fulfilling the tasks; and address how response and recovery will be handled in terms of materials, resources, and training needed. Requires covered persons to review their plan at least annually to ensure compliance with this Act, and train personnel in their roles and responsibilities as outlined in the plan, and promptly provide training when the plan changes.

Prohibits this Act from preempting state law that provides greater protection for animals.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Animals
Date: 2014-05-22 00:00:00

Sage Grouse Protection and Conservation Act - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) or the Secretary of the Interior to give effect to a statewide conservation and management plan for the protection and recovery of the greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) and the Gunnison sage-grouse (Centrocercus minimus) from either California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, or Wyoming. Requires the appropriate Secretary to:

 hold for at least 10 years actions to list the species as endangered or threatened, the enforcement of the listing, and the designation of critical habitat for the species in that state; withdraw any land use planning activities related to federal management of the species on National Forest System lands and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land within the state; and amend federal land use plans with respect to that state to comply with a state plan. Applies these requirements to states that submit a plan or have a plan previously endorsed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Requires the appropriate Secretary to: (1) review statewide plans to determine if they are likely to conserve the species to the point at which the measures provided pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of 1973 are no longer necessary; (2) approve or endorse, or make comments on, statewide plans; and (3) provide states with information and make personnel available to help with plans.

Prohibits any proposed action pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) that occurs within one of those states from being denied or restricted solely on the basis of such sage-grouse if the action is consistent with a state plan that has been submitted to the appropriate Secretary.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Transportation and public works
Date: 2014-05-30 00:00:00

Highways Bettering the Economy and Environment Pollinator Protection Act - Authorizes as an eligible project cost for the construction of a federal-aid highway the cost of improving habitat and forage for pollinators (i.e. bees, birds, bats, Monarch butterflies, and other butterflies) on rights-of-way adjacent to such highways.

Directs the Secretary of Transportation (DOT), in conjunction with willing states, to carry out programs that encourage: (1) integrated vegetation management practices on roadsides and other transportation rights-of-ways, including reduced mowing; (2) the development of habitat and forage for pollinators through planting of native forbs and grasses, including noninvasive, native milkweed species; and (3) research and demonstration projects on economic and environmental benefits and best practices for integrated vegetation management, reduced mowing, and planting of native forbs and grasses for pollinator habitat, forage, and migratory way stations for Monarch butterflies and other migrating pollinators.

Authorizes the use of federal funds for the provision of habitat, forage, and migratory way stations for Monarch butterflies, other native pollinators, and honey bees that is related to a federally-funded transportation project.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Animals
Date: 2014-06-02 00:00:00

Clarification of Legal Enforcement Against Non-criminal Energy Producers Act of 2014 or the CLEAN Energy Producers Act of 2014 - Amends the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act to require the Secretary of the Interior to issue or deny an eagle permit that authorizes the taking of a bald eagle or golden eagle that is incidental to, but not the purpose of, an otherwise lawful activity. Deems the permit as issued if the Secretary fails to act within a reasonable time (not exceeding one year).

Amends the Migratory Bird Treaty Act to add an intent element to criminal liability for the taking, killing, or other harm to a migratory bird that is accidental or incidental to the presence or operation of an otherwise lawful activity.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Animals
Date: 2014-06-12 00:00:00

Lesser Prairie Chicken Voluntary Recovery Act of 2014 - Removes the Department of the Interior's listing of the lesser prairie chicken as threatened under the Endangered Species Act of 1973. Prohibits further treatment of the species as threatened or endangered before January 31, 2020.

Requires Interior to monitor and submit an annual report on progress in the conservation of the lesser prairie chicken under:

 the Lesser Prairie-Chicken Range-Wide Conservation Plan of the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, all related Candidate Conservation Agreements (agreements to voluntarily undertake measures to conserve a covered species), Candidate Conservation Agreements With Assurances (agreements to voluntarily undertake measures to conserve a covered species with assurances that additional measures will not be imposed if the species becomes listed in the future), conservation programs administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and the Department of Agriculture (USDA), state conservation programs, and private conservation efforts. Prohibits the lesser prairie chicken from being treated as threatened or endangered beginning on January 31, 2020, unless Interior publishes a determination that conservation efforts under the Range-Wide Plan, agreements, programs, and efforts have not achieved the Plan's conservation goals.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Animals
Date: 2014-07-10 00:00:00

Lawful Ivory Protection Act of 2014 - Amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to prohibit any regulation that goes in effect after February 24, 2014, from:

 prohibiting or restricting the possession, sale, delivery, receipt, shipping, or transportation of elephant ivory that has been lawfully imported; changing any methods of, or standards for, determining if ivory has been lawfully imported; or prohibiting or restricting the importation or possession of ivory that was lawfully importable or possessable on that date.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Date: 2014-07-10 00:00:00

Wild Horse Oversight Act - Amends the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act to direct the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture (USDA), at the request of a state or an Indian tribe, to allow the state or tribe to assume all management and protection functions under the Act with regard to wild free-roaming horses and burros on land within the boundaries of the state or tribe.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Animals
Date: 2014-07-10 00:00:00

(This measure has not been amended since it was passed by the House on November 17, 2014. The summary of that version is repeated here.)

Federal Duck Stamp Act of 2014 - (Sec. 2) Amends the Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp Act to increase the price of duck stamps, which are required to hunt migratory waterfowl, from $15 to $25.

Authorizes the Department of the Interior to reduce the price of stamps for a hunting year if the increase in the stamp price resulted in a reduction in revenues deposited in the Migratory Bird Conservation Fund.

Establishes a subaccount in the Fund to be used by Interior to acquire easements for the conservation of migratory birds. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to transfer all amounts in excess of $15 from the sale of each stamp to the subaccount.

(Sec. 3) Requires Interior to include in an annual report of the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission an assessment of the status of wetlands conservation projects for migratory bird conservation purposes, including an accounting of all expenditures made for acquisition of federal lands and an analysis of whether refuge lands are opened or closed for hunting and fishing.

(Sec. 4) Allows rural Alaska residents to take migratory waterfowl for subsistence uses without a duck stamp.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Animals
Date: 2014-07-17 00:00:00

Wildlife Disease Emergency Act of 2014 - Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with governors of potentially affected states, to declare a wildlife disease emergency for any wildlife disease occurring within the United States or, if outside the United States, with the potential to enter the United States.

Defines "wildlife disease emergency" as the occurrence of a non-zoonotic pathological condition in a wildlife population that:

 is infectious and caused by a newly discovered pathogen or is a known infectious wildlife disease that is expanding in range or other impacts, or poses significant threats to the sustainability of wildlife or to the overall health of a functioning ecosystem. Directs the Secretary, upon making such a declaration, to lead a coordinated response to the emergency.

 Directs the Secretary to implement a grant program to provide funding to state wildlife agencies and Indian tribes to address wildlife disease emergencies.

 Establishes in the Treasury a Wildlife Disease Emergency Fund.

 Allows the Secretary to establish a Wildlife Disease Committee to assist the Secretary in increasing the level of preparedness needed to address emerging wildlife diseases.

 Authorizes the Secretary to convene rapid response teams to address any particular wildlife disease emergency.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Environmental protection
Date: 2014-07-31 00:00:00

Accountable Recovery Act - Amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to direct the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Commerce as appropriate to make recovery plans for the conservation and survival of a species publicly available at the time of a determination that the species is endangered or threatened. Requires the plans to incorporate objective numerical recovery goals for removal of species from the endangered and threatened species list.

Gives the appropriate Secretary 30 days to deny a petition stating that the numerical recovery goal has been achieved for a species. Removes a species from the endangered and threatened species list if the Secretary has not acted on a petition.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Date: 2014-07-31 00:00:00

Amends the National Marine Sanctuaries Act to prohibit the Secretary of Commerce from designating as a national marine sanctuary an area of the marine environment off the coast of Alaska seaward of the high tide line unless an Act of Congress requires the Secretary to make the designation and prescribes the boundaries of the designated area.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Date: 2014-09-18 00:00:00

Marine Disease Emergency Act of 2014 - Authorizes the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to declare and respond to a marine disease emergency (an event that affects the marine environment, is caused by a marine disease or environmental stressor, is likely to threaten the sustainability of a marine species or the health of a marine ecosystem, and is likely to expand in geographic scope).

Requires NOAA to designate an individual to coordinate the response to each emergency and develop and publish a response plan for each emergency within 21 days of the declaration.

Terminates the emergency when NOAA declares that the emergency no longer exists or 120 days after the declaration was made, whichever occurs first. Authorizes NOAA to renew a declaration.

Establishes the Marine Disease Emergency Working Group in NOAA to provide advice on assessing, declaring, and responding to those emergencies.

Establishes the Marine Disease Emergency Fund for responding to those emergencies.

Requires NOAA to establish a National Data Repository for Marine Diseases Research and Services to collect, store, and disseminate information on marine diseases and related data and facilitate the development and rapid dissemination of research on marine diseases.

Deems sea star wasting syndrome, a marine mortality event affecting species of sea stars, to be a marine disease emergency.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Animals
Date: 2014-12-10 00:00:00

Rare Cats and Canids Act of 2014

This bill establishes a Rare Cats and Canids Conservation Fund as a separate account within the Multinational Species Conservation Fund. The Department of the Interior must use amounts in the fund to provide assistance for the conservation of rare felids and rare canids. Grant amounts may not be used for captive breeding unless it is a part of an accredited reintroduction or restoration program.

Rare felids or rare canids are any population in the family Felidae (cats) or Canidae (dogs), respectively, that are listed in the Red List of Threatened Species Maintained by the World Conservation Union as near-threatened, vulnerable, endangered, or critically endangered, excluding any population native to the United States or Canada. Tigers are not considered to be rare felids.

 Interior may convene an advisory group of individuals representing organizations actively involved in the conservation of felids and canids.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Environmental protection
Date: 2014-12-11 00:00:00

Guarding Our Great Lakes Act - Requires the Chief of Engineers, the Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Director of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and each other applicable federal agency to take actions to prevent the transfer of aquatic invasive species, with a focus on Asian carp species, through the Brandon Road Lock and Dam on the Illinois River.

Directs the Chief to: (1) construct measures to prevent the upstream transfer of swimming aquatic invasive species through the Lock and Dam; and (2) submit a cost estimate for, and schedule for completion of, measures to be constructed.

Requires the Director of the USFWS to implement all appropriate measures in compliance with applicable state and federal law around the Lock and Dam to prevent the upstream and downstream transfer of swimming and floating aquatic invasive species, with a focus on Asian carp species.

Authorizes the Chief, the Director of the USFWS, and the Director of the USGS to acquire real estate to carry out this Act.

Directs the EPA Administrator, acting through the Great Lakes Interagency Task Force, to coordinate with the governor of Illinois, the city of Chicago, and the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago to carry out engineering and construction of flood mitigation and water quality measures on the Chicago Area Waterway System related to permanent prevention of the transfer of aquatic nuisance species between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins. Permits the federal share of the cost of a project to be up to 100%.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Environmental protection
Date: 2013-02-27 00:00:00

Amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to require the Secretary of the Interior, within 30 days after being served with a complaint in an action alleging a failure to perform an act or duty related to an endangered species or threatened species determination, to publish the complaint. Prohibits the failure of the Secretary to meet such deadline from being the basis for such an action. Sets forth requirements concerning the intervention in such actions by affected parties and referral to a mediation program.

Authorizes the court, in issuing any final order in such an action, to award litigation costs to any party. Prohibits the court from: (1) awarding litigation costs in any proposed covered settlement, (2) granting a motion that is based on a proposed covered settlement or other consent decree that includes payment for litigation costs, (3) approving a proposed covered settlement unless each state and county in which the Secretary believes a species occurs approves it, or (4) granting a motion that is based on a proposed covered settlement unless such settlement is approved by each such state and county. Requires the courts to ensure that such a settlement is approved by each such state and county. Requires the Secretary to provide notice of a proposed covered settlement to each such state and county. Authorizes a court to approve such a settlement or grant such a motion if, within 45 days of notification: (1) a state or county fails to respond, and (2) each state or county that responds approves the covered settlement, or (3) all of the states and counties fail to respond.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Environmental protection
Date: 2013-01-22 00:00:00

(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary has been expanded because action occurred on the measure.)

National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Reauthorization Act of 2013 - Reauthorizes through FY2019 and revises the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act.

 Increases from 23 to 28 the number of directors appointed by the Secretary of the Interior to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation's Board of Directors. Makes uniform the experience required of each such appointee. Requires the Foundation to have an Executive Director who is appointed by the Board and is knowledgeable and experienced in matters relating to fish and wildlife conservation.

Gives the Foundation the power to receive and administer restitution and community service payments, amounts for mitigation of impacts to natural resources, and other amounts arising from legal, regulatory, or administrative proceedings, as long as the funds are used for the conservation and management of fish, wildlife, plants, and other natural resources.

Repeals provisions authorizing the Foundation to establish a national whale conservation endowment fund.

Authorizes the Foundation to: (1) assess and collect fees for the management of amounts received from federal agencies; and (2) use such federal funds for matching contributions made by private persons, state and local agencies, and other entities (current law requires such use).

Authorizes the Foundation to perform functions that the National Park Foundation is authorized to conduct, unless exclusive authority is given to the National Park Foundation.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Animals
Date: 2013-01-23 00:00:00

Migratory Bird Treaty Amendment Act of 2013 - Amends the Migratory Bird Treaty Act to allow an agricultural producer, or a hunter with the producer's permission, to take migratory game birds by the aid of baiting, if: (1) the manipulation occurs on the producer's land on which a crop was not harvestable during the current or immediately preceding crop year due to a natural disaster, and (2) a local representative of the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) confirms that the crop has been destroyed and that it would not be economically practicable to harvest the crop.
Topic: Environment — Species & Forest
Subject: Government operations and politics
Date: 2013-02-07 00:00:00

(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary of that version is repeated here.) Multinational Species Conservation Funds Semipostal Stamp Reauthorization Act of 2013 - Amends the Multinational Species Conservation Funds Semipostal Stamp Act of 2010 to require such stamp to be made available to the public for an additional four years.