Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act of 2006
PL 109-326 (S.2430), enacted 10/11/2006

120 STAT. 1761
PUBLIC LAW 109–326—OCT. 11, 2006
Public Law 109–326
109th Congress
An Act
To amend the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act of 1990 to provide
for implementation of recommendations of the United States Fish and Wildlife
Service contained in the Great Lakes Fishery Resources Restoration Study.
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 ‘‘Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife
Restoration Act of 2006’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that—
(1) the Great Lakes have fish and wildlife communities
that are structurally and functionally changing;
(2) successful fish and wildlife management focuses on
the lakes as ecosystems, and effective management requires
the coordination and integration of efforts of many partners;
(3) it is in the national interest to undertake activities
in the Great Lakes Basin that support sustainable fish and
wildlife resources of common concern provided under the rec-
ommendations of the Great Lakes Regional Collaboration
authorized under Executive Order 13340 (69 Fed. Reg. 29043;
relating to the Great Lakes Interagency Task Force);
(4) additional actions and better coordination are needed
to protect and effectively manage the fish and wildlife resources,
and the habitats upon which the resources depend, in the
Great Lakes Basin;
(5) as of the date of enactment of this Act, actions are
not funded that are considered essential to meet the goals
and objectives in managing the fish and wildlife resources,
and the habitats upon which the resources depend, in the
Great Lakes Basin; and
(6) the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act
(16 U.S.C. 941 et seq.) allows Federal agencies, States, and
tribes to work in an effective partnership by providing the
funding for restoration work.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
Section 1004 of the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration
Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 941b) is amended—
(1) by striking paragraphs (1), (4), and (12);
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (2), (3), (5), (6), (7), (8),
(9), (10), (11), (13), and (14) as paragraphs (1), (2), (3), (4),
(5), (6), (7), (9), (10), (11), and (12), respectively;
16 USC 941 note.
16 USC 941 note.
Great Lakes Fish
and Wildlife
Restoration Act
of 2006.
Oct. 11, 2006
[S. 2430]
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120 STAT. 1762
PUBLIC LAW 109–326—OCT. 11, 2006
(3) in paragraph (4) (as redesignated by paragraph (2)),
by inserting before the semicolon at the end the following:
‘‘, and that has Great Lakes fish and wildlife management
authority in the Great Lakes Basin’’; and
(4) by inserting after paragraph (7) (as redesignated by
paragraph (2)) the following:
‘‘(8) the term ‘regional project’ means authorized activities
of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service related to fish
and wildlife resource protection, restoration, maintenance, and
enhancement impacting multiple States or Indian Tribes with
fish and wildlife management authority in the Great Lakes
basin;’’.
SEC. 4. IDENTIFICATION, REVIEW, AND IMPLEMENTATION OF PRO-
POSALS.
Section 1005 of the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration
Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 941c) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘SEC. 1005. IDENTIFICATION, REVIEW, AND IMPLEMENTATION OF PRO-
POSALS AND REGIONAL PROJECTS.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b)(2), the Director—
‘‘(1) shall encourage the development and, subject to the
availability of appropriations, the implementation of fish and
wildlife restoration proposals and regional projects based on
the results of the Report; and
‘‘(2) in cooperation with the State Directors and Indian
Tribes, shall identify, develop, and, subject to the availability
of appropriations, implement regional projects in the Great
Lakes Basin to be administered by Director in accordance with
this section.
‘‘(b) IDENTIFICATION OF PROPOSALS AND REGIONAL PROJECTS.—
‘‘(1) REQUEST
BY
THE
DIRECTOR.—The Director shall
annually request that State Directors and Indian Tribes, in
cooperation or partnership with other interested entities and
in accordance with subsection (a), submit proposals or regional
projects for the restoration of fish and wildlife resources.
‘‘(2) 
REQUIREMENTS
FOR
PROPOSALS
AND
REGIONAL
PROJECTS.—A proposal or regional project under paragraph (1)
shall be—
‘‘(A) submitted in the manner and form prescribed
by the Director; and
‘‘(B) consistent with—
‘‘(i) the goals of the Great Lakes Water Quality
Agreement, as amended;
‘‘(ii) the 1954 Great Lakes Fisheries Convention;
‘‘(iii) the 1980 Joint Strategic Plan for Management
of Great Lakes Fisheries, as revised in 1997, and Fish
Community Objectives for each Great Lake and con-
necting water as established under the Joint Strategic
Plan;
‘‘(iv) the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Preven-
tion and Control Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 4701 et seq.);
‘‘(v) the North American Waterfowl Management
Plan and joint ventures established under the plan;
and
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120 STAT. 1763
PUBLIC LAW 109–326—OCT. 11, 2006
‘‘(vi) the strategies outlined through the Great
Lakes Regional Collaboration authorized under Execu-
tive Order 13340 (69 Fed. Reg. 29043; relating to the
Great Lakes Interagency Task Force).
‘‘(3) SEA LAMPREY AUTHORITY.—The Great Lakes Fishery
Commission shall retain authority and responsibility to formu-
late and implement a comprehensive program to eradicate or
minimize sea lamprey populations in the Great Lakes Basin.
‘‘(c) REVIEW OF PROPOSALS.—
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMITTEE.—There is established
the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Proposal Review
Committee, which shall operate under the guidance of the
United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
‘‘(2) MEMBERSHIP AND APPOINTMENT.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Committee shall consist of 2
representatives of each of the State Directors and Indian
Tribes, of whom—
‘‘(i) 1 representative shall be the individual
appointed by the State Director or Indian Tribe to
the Council of Lake Committees of the Great Lakes
Fishery Commission; and
‘‘(ii) 1 representative shall have expertise in wild-
life management.
‘‘(B) APPOINTMENTS.—Each representative shall serve
at the pleasure of the appointing State Director or Tribal
Chair.
‘‘(C) OBSERVER.—The Great Lakes Coordinator of the
United States Fish and Wildlife Service shall participate
as an observer of the Committee.
‘‘(D) RECUSAL.—A member of the Committee shall
recuse himself or herself from consideration of proposals
that the member, or the entity that the member represents,
has submitted.
‘‘(3) FUNCTIONS.—The Committee shall—
‘‘(A) meet at least annually;
‘‘(B) review proposals and regional projects developed
in accordance with subsection (b) to assess the effectiveness
and appropriateness of the proposals and regional projects
in fulfilling the purposes of this title; and
‘‘(C) recommend to the Director any of those proposals
and regional projects that should be funded and imple-
mented under this section.
‘‘(d) 
IMPLEMENTATION
OF
PROPOSALS
AND
REGIONAL
PROJECTS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—After considering recommendations of
the Committee and the goals specified in section 1006, the
Director shall—
‘‘(A) select proposals and regional projects to be imple-
mented; and
‘‘(B) subject to the availability of appropriations and
subsection (e), fund implementation of the proposals and
regional projects.
‘‘(2) SELECTION CRITERIA.—In selecting and funding pro-
posals and regional projects, the Director shall take into account
the effectiveness and appropriateness of the proposals and
regional projects in fulfilling the purposes of other laws
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120 STAT. 1764
PUBLIC LAW 109–326—OCT. 11, 2006
applicable to restoration of the fish and wildlife resources and
habitat of the Great Lakes Basin.
‘‘(e) COST SHARING.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in paragraphs (2)
and (4), not less than 25 percent of the cost of implementing
a proposal selected under subsection (d) (excluding the cost
of establishing sea lamprey barriers) shall be paid in cash
or in-kind contributions by non-Federal sources.
‘‘(2) REGIONAL PROJECTS.—Regional projects selected under
subsection (d) shall be exempt from cost sharing if the Director
determines that the authorization for the project does not
require a non-Federal cost-share.
‘‘(3) EXCLUSION
OF
FEDERAL
FUNDS
FROM
NON-FEDERAL
SHARE.—The Director may not consider the expenditure,
directly or indirectly, of Federal funds received by any entity
to be a contribution by a non-Federal source for purposes of
this subsection.
‘‘(4) EFFECT ON CERTAIN INDIAN TRIBES.—Nothing in this
subsection affects an Indian tribe affected by an alternative
applicable cost sharing requirement under the Indian Self-
Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450
et seq.).’’.
SEC. 5. GOALS OF UNITED STATES FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE PRO-
GRAMS RELATED TO GREAT LAKES FISH AND WILDLIFE
RESOURCES.
Section 1006 of the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration
Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 941d) is amended by striking paragraph
(1) and inserting the following:
‘‘(1) Restoring and maintaining self-sustaining fish and
wildlife resources.’’.
SEC. 6. ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICES.
Section 1007 of the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration
Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 941e) is amended—
(1) by striking subsection (a) and inserting the following:
‘‘(a) GREAT LAKES COORDINATION OFFICE.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall establish a centrally
located facility for the coordination of all United States Fish
and Wildlife Service activities in the Great Lakes Basin, to
be known as the ‘Great Lakes Coordination Office’.
‘‘(2) FUNCTIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES.—The functional respon-
sibilities of the Great Lakes Coordination Office shall include—
‘‘(A) intra- and interagency coordination;
‘‘(B) information distribution; and
‘‘(C) public outreach.
‘‘(3) REQUIREMENTS.—The Great Lakes Coordination Office
shall—
‘‘(A) ensure that information acquired under this Act
is made available to the public; and
‘‘(B) report to the Director of Region 3, Great Lakes
Big Rivers.’’;
(2) in subsection (b)—
(A) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘The Director’’
and inserting the following:
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director’’;.
(B) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘The office’’
and inserting the following:
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120 STAT. 1765
PUBLIC LAW 109–326—OCT. 11, 2006
‘‘(2) NAME AND LOCATION.—The office’’; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(3) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The responsibilities of the Lower
Great Lakes Fishery Resources Office shall include operational
activities of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service related
to fishery resource protection, restoration, maintenance, and
enhancement in the Lower Great Lakes.’’; and
(3) in subsection (c)—
(A) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘The Director’’
and inserting the following:
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director’’;.
(B) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘Each of the
offices’’ and inserting the following:
‘‘(2) NAME AND LOCATION.—Each of the offices’’; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(3) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The responsibilities of the Upper
Great Lakes Fishery Resources Offices shall include operational
activities of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service related
to fishery resource protection, restoration, maintenance, and
enhancement in the Upper Great Lakes.’’.
SEC. 7. REPORTS.
Section 1008 of the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration
Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 941f) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘SEC. 1008. REPORTS.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than December 31, 2011, the
Director shall submit to the Committee on Resources of the House
of Representatives and the Committee on Environment and Public
Works of the Senate a report that describes—
‘‘(1) actions taken to solicit and review proposals under
section 1005;
‘‘(2) the results of proposals implemented under section
1005; and
‘‘(3) progress toward the accomplishment of the goals speci-
fied in section 1006.
‘‘(b) PUBLIC ACCESS TO DATA.—For each of fiscal years 2007
through 2012, the Director shall make available through a public
access website of the Department information that describes—
‘‘(1) actions taken to solicit and review proposals under
section 1005;
‘‘(2) the results of proposals implemented under section
1005;
‘‘(3) progress toward the accomplishment of the goals speci-
fied in section 1006;
‘‘(4) the priorities proposed for funding in the annual budget
process under this title; and
‘‘(5) actions taken in support of the recommendations of
the Great Lakes Regional Collaboration authorized under
Executive Order 13340 (69 Fed. Reg. 29043; relating to the
Great Lakes Interagency Task Force).
‘‘(c) REPORT.—Not later than June 30, 2007, the Director shall
submit to the Committee on Environment and Public Works of
the Senate and the Committee on Resources of the House of Rep-
resentatives the 2002 report required under this section as in
effect on the day before the date of enactment of the Great Lakes
Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act of 2006.’’.
Deadline.
Website.
Deadline.
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120 STAT. 1766
PUBLIC LAW 109–326—OCT. 11, 2006
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY—S. 2430:
SENATE REPORTS: No. 109–270 (Comm. on Environment and Public Works).
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 152 (2006):
July 11, considered and passed Senate.
Sept. 27, considered and passed House, amended.
Sept. 29, Senate concurred in House amendment.
SEC. 8. CONTINUED MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT OF STUDY
FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS.
The Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service—
(1) shall continue to monitor the status, and the assess-
ment, management, and restoration needs, of the fish and
wildlife resources of the Great Lakes Basin; and
(2) may reassess and update, as necessary, the findings
and recommendations of the report entitled ‘‘Great Lakes
Fishery Resources Restoration Study’’, submitted to the Presi-
dent of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representa-
tives on September 13, 1995.
SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
Section 1009 of the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration
Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 941g) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘SEC. 1009. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to the Director for
each of fiscal years 2007 through 2012—
‘‘(1) $14,000,000 to implement fish and wildlife restoration
proposals as selected by the Director under section 1005(e),
of which—
‘‘(A) not more than the lesser of 33 1/3 percent or
$4,600,000 may be allocated to implement regional projects
by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, as selected
by the Director under section 1005(e); and
‘‘(B) the lesser of 5 percent or $700,000 shall be allo-
cated to the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to
cover costs incurred in administering the proposals by any
entity; and
‘‘(2) $2,000,000, which shall be allocated for the activi-
ties of the Great Lakes Coordination Office in East Lansing,
Michigan, of the Upper Great Lakes Fishery Resources
Office, and the Lower Great Lakes Fishery Resources Office
under section 1007.’’.
Approved October 11, 2006.
16 USC 941 note.
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