zli12321/Bills huggingface dataset:
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.

Date: 2014-07-17
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Animals
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.

Date: 2014-07-31
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection
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.

Date: 2014-07-31
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
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.

Date: 2014-09-18
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
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.

Date: 2014-12-10
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Animals
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%.

Date: 2014-12-11
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection
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.

Date: 2013-02-27
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection
(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.

Date: 2013-01-22
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection
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.

Date: 2013-01-23
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Animals
(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.

Date: 2013-02-07
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Upper Mississippi Conservation and River Protection Act of 2013 or the Upper Mississippi CARP Act - Directs the Chief of Engineers to study the feasibility of: (1) temporarily closing the lock at the Upper St. Anthony Falls Lock and Dam (located on Mississippi River mile 853.9 in Minneapolis, Minnesota) to manage the threat of Asian carp traveling up the Mississippi River in Minnesota, and (2) implementing control measures at such lock and Lock and Dam 1 (located on Mississippi River mile 847.8 in Minneapolis, Minnesota), including permanently closing the locks, modifying lock operations, or using an alternative technology barrier, to manage such threat. Requires the Chief to assess the potential impacts, including environmental and economic impacts: (1) of temporary closure of such lock and of continuing to operate it, and (2) of implementing each of such control measures and of not implementing such measures.

Authorizes the Chief to close such lock upon determining that closure is justified based on the assessment of potential impacts. Requires the Chief to close such lock upon determining that a live adult Asian carp has been captured above Lock and Dam 2 (located on Mississippi River mile 815.2 upstream of Hastings, Minnesota) or that a juvenile Asian carp has been captured above Lock and Dam 4 (located on Mississippi River mile 752.8 in Alma, Wisconsin). Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, upon determining that an Asian carp has been captured at such a location, to submit to the Chief a petition for closure of such lock. Allows the Chief to reopen the lock upon determining that adequate measures are in place to manage the threat.

Directs the Council on Environmental Quality to incorporate the Upper Mississippi River and tributaries, the Minnesota River, and the St. Croix River into the Asian Carp Control Strategy Framework of the Council.

 Expresses the sense of Congress that federal agencies researching Asian carp control technologies should partner with state and local shareholders, giving priority to collaborative partnerships in which such shareholders contribute to the cost of the research.

Date: 2013-02-14
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection
Rhode Island Fishermen's Fairness Act - Amends the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to add Rhode Island to the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council and increase Council membership from 21 to 23 members, including: (1) the principal Rhode Island official with marine fishery management responsibility, and (2) a member appointed by the Secretary of Commerce from a list of individuals submitted by the governor of Rhode Island.

Date: 2013-04-11
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Permanent Electronic Duck Stamp Act of 2013 - Grants the Secretary of the Interior permanent authority to authorize any state to issue electronic duck stamps.

Sets forth state electronic duck stamp application requirements.

Date: 2013-04-16
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Animals
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary of that version is repeated here.)

 Multispecies Habitat Conservation Plan Implementation Act - Amends P.L. 99-548, commonly known as the Mesquite Lands Act of 1986, to require proceeds from sales of parcels of public lands in Mesquite, Nevada, to be used for the implementation of a multispecies habitat conservation plan for the Virgin River in Clark County, Nevada, including any associated groundwater monitoring plan.

Amends the Lincoln County Land Act of 2000 to require implementation of a multispecies habitat conservation plan in Lincoln County, Nevada.

Extends, until November 29, 2021, withdrawal and purchase authority with respect to the fifth and sixth areas.

Date: 2013-04-17
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Polar Bear Conservation and Fairness Act of 2013 - Amends the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to direct the Secretary of the Interior to issue a permit for the importation of any polar bear part (other than an internal organ) from a polar bear taken in a sport hunt in Canada to any person who submits proof that the polar bear was legally harvested before May 15, 2008 (currently by February 18, 1997), when polar bears were listed as a threatened species by the Department of the Interior.

Date: 2013-04-25
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Animals
(This measure has not been amended since it was passed by the Senate on December 2, 2014. The summary of that version is repeated here.)

Chesapeake Bay Accountability and Recovery Act of 2014 - (Sec. 3) Requires the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to submit to Congress a financial report on restoration activities in the Chesapeake Bay watershed by September 30 of each year. Requires the report to contain:

 an interagency crosscut budget for federal and state restoration activities that protect, conserve, or restore living resources, habitat, water resources, or water quality in the Chesapeake Bay watershed; an accounting of funds received and obligated by each federal agency for restoration activities during the current and preceding fiscal years; an accounting from Maryland, West Virginia, Delaware, New York, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and the District of Columbia of all funds received and obligated from a federal agency for restoration activities during the current and preceding fiscal years; and a description of each of the proposed federal and state restoration activities to be carried out in the succeeding fiscal year. Requires the report to describe only restoration activities that have funding amounts of at least $300,000 for the first three years and restoration activities that have funding amounts of at least $100,000 thereafter.

(Sec. 4) Establishes an Independent Evaluator for the Chesapeake Bay watershed to review and report to Congress every two years on restoration activities and related topics that are suggested by the Chesapeake Executive Council. Sets forth the process for appointment of the Independent Evaluator and the qualifications for the position.

(Sec. 5) Provides that no additional funds are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act.

Date: 2013-05-21
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Preserve the Waters of the United States Act - Prohibits the Secretary of the Army and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from: (1) finalizing the proposed guidance described in the notice of availability and request for comments entitled "EPA and Army Corps of Engineers Guidance Regarding Identification of Waters Protected by the Clean Water Act"; or (2) using such guidance, or any substantially similar guidance, as the basis for any decision regarding the scope of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) or any rulemaking. Provides that the use of such guidance as the basis for any rule shall be grounds for vacation of such rule.

Date: 2013-05-22
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection
Infrastructure Facilitation and Habitat Conservation Act of 2013 - Requires the Secretary of the Treasury (Secretary) to establish a program to provide loans and loan guarantees to enable state political subdivisions  to acquire interests in real property pursuant to habitat conservation plans approved by the Secretary of the Interior under the Endangered Species Act of 1973. Requires the Secretary to: (1) submit loan applications for the Secretary of the Interior's review, which shall include a determination that the subdivision has adopted a complementary plan for sustainable infrastructure development that provides for the mitigation of environmental impacts; and (2) give preference to such subdivisions located in biologically rich regions in which rapid growth and development threaten successful implementation of approved habitat conservation plans.

Date: 2013-06-18
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection
Big Cats and Public Safety Protection Act - Amends the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 to prohibit any person from importing, exporting, transporting, selling, receiving, acquiring, purchasing in interstate or foreign commerce, breeding, or possessing any prohibited wildlife species (current law prohibits importing, exporting, transporting, selling, receiving, acquiring, or purchasing such a species in interstate or foreign commerce). Includes among exemptions to such prohibition the breeding transportation, or possession of such species by authorized persons.

Defines "breeding" as facilitating the propagation or reproduction (whether intentionally or negligently), or failing to prevent the propagation or reproduction, of a prohibited wildlife species or other animal.

Removes from the list of persons authorized to import, export, transport, sell, receive, acquire, purchase, breed, or possess such species a person that is licensed or registered, and inspected, by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) or any other federal agency with respect to such species. Includes in such list:

 an institution accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) or certified related facilities that coordinate with an AZA Species Survival Plan for breeding of species listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973; a wildlife sanctuary that cares for such species, is a tax exempt corporation, does not commercially trade in or propagate such species, does not allow direct contact between the public and animals, and does not allow the transportation and display of such species off-site; a person that is in possession of animals of such species that were born before the date of this Act's enactment and that are registered with APHIS within 180 days after such regulations are promulgated; and a traveling circus that regularly travels in interstate commerce to conduct performances featuring live prohibited wildlife species and multiple trained human entertainers, that does not allow members of the public to be in direct contact with or unsafe proximity to a prohibited wildlife species of any age, and that, during the three years preceding this Act's enactment, has not been determined by the Secretary of Agriculture to have violated the Animal Welfare Act by reason of jeopardizing the health and well-being of a prohibited wildlife species. Establishes civil and criminal penalties and forfeiture requirements for violations of this Act.

Date: 2013-07-29
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Animals
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary has been expanded because action occurred on the measure.)

Captive Primate Safety Act - (Sec. 2) Amends the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 to: (1) make nonhuman primates a prohibited wildlife species; and (2) make it unlawful to import, export, transport, sell, receive, acquire, or purchase them in interstate or foreign commerce.

(Sec. 3) Modifies exceptions to restrictions on such transactions in prohibited wildlife species, making them inapplicable to a person who: (1) is a licensed and inspected person only if the person does not allow direct contact between the public and prohibited wildlife species, or (2) is transporting under certain conditions a single primate of the genus Cebus that was obtained from and trained by a charitable organization to assist a permanently disabled individual with a severe mobility impairment. Removes state-licensed wildlife rehabilitators from the list of entities exempted from the restrictions.

Sets forth civil and criminal penalties for violations of the requirements of this Act.

Date: 2013-08-01
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Animals
Water Infrastructure Resiliency and Sustainability Act of 2013 - Requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to: (1) establish the Water Infrastructure Resiliency and Sustainability Program to provide grants to owners or operators of water systems for programs or projects to increase the resiliency or adaptability of the systems to any ongoing or forecasted changes to the hydrologic conditions of a U.S. region, and (2) give priority to owners or operators of water systems that are at the greatest and most immediate risk of facing significant negative impacts due to changing hydrologic conditions.

Requires the Administrator to ensure that the list of grant applications funded includes a substantial number that propose to utilize innovative approaches that meet at least one of these goals: (1) promote more efficient water use, water conservation, water reuse, or recycling; (2) use decentralized, low-impact development technologies and nonstructural approaches, including practices that use, enhance, or mimic the natural hydrological cycle or protect natural flows; (3) reduce stormwater runoff or flooding by protecting or enhancing natural ecosystem functions; (4) modify, upgrade, enhance, or replace existing water system infrastructure in response to changing hydrologic conditions; (5) improve water quality or quantity for agricultural and municipal uses, including through salinity reduction; and (6) provide multiple benefits, including to water supply enhancement or demand reduction, water quality protection or improvement, increased flood protection, and ecosystem protection or improvement.

Date: 2013-09-17
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Water resources development
Timber Revitalization and Economic Enhancement Act of 2013 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the reduced tax rate on the net timber gains of corporations, to: (1) adjust the formula for calculating such rate, and (2) make such reduced rate permanent.

Date: 2013-09-24
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Taxation
CHIMP Act Amendments of 2013 - Amends the Public Health Service Act, with respect to the lifetime care of chimpanzees used in federally conducted or supported medical research, to: (1) require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to reserve appropriations through FY2023 for the sanctuary system and other compliant facilities, and (2) allow reservation of funds beyond a total of $30 million if the Secretary determines that doing so would enable the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to operate more efficiently and economically by decreasing the overall federal cost of supporting and maintaining chimpanzees from FY2014-FY2023. Requires such a determination to be reported to Congress and include biennial updates regarding the care and maintenance of the chimpanzees and related costs.

Removes construction and renovation of sanctuary system facilities as a purpose of expenditure of the reserved funds. Requires the use of funds for other compliant facilities to be determined by the Secretary (rather than, as under current law, by the board of directors of the nonprofit entity operating the facility).

Requires the Comptroller General (GAO) to evaluate: (1) the research status of NIH-owned or supported chimpanzees, (2) the cost for the care and maintenance of such chimpanzees, (3) the extent to which requirements that a nonprofit private entity match funding have been met, and (4) any options for cost savings for support and maintenance that may be identified.

Date: 2013-09-30
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Health
Hunter and Farmer Protection Act of 2013 - Amends the Migratory Bird Treaty Act to permit the taking of any migratory game bird, including waterfowl, coots, and cranes, on or over land that: (1) is not a baited area; and (2) contains a standing crop (including an aquatic crop), standing, flooded, or manipulated natural vegetation, flooded harvested cropland, or an area on which seed or grain has been scattered solely as the result of a normal agricultural practice.

Date: 2013-10-31
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Animals
Amends the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 to designate a portion of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) in Alaska as a component of the National Wilderness Preservation System under the Wilderness Act.

Date: 2013-11-13
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Migratory Bird Habitat Investment and Enhancement Act - Amends the Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp Act to allow the Department of the Interior every five years to set the cost for Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamps, commonly known as Duck Stamps and required to hunt migratory waterfowl. Limits the cost of the stamp to $25 for the first five years and $30 after that.

Permits Interior to waive stamp requirements for certain individuals if it will have a minimal adverse effect on the funds collected.

Date: 2013-12-19
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Animals
Community Protection Act of 2014 - Amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973, with respect to critical habitat designations, to exclude an area from critical habitat upon a determination that the benefits of exclusion outweigh the benefits of including the area, unless the failure to designate such area as critical habitat will result in the extinction of the species concerned. (Under current law, such exclusion is permitted, not required.)

Requires the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Commerce, at the time a proposed rule to designate critical habitat is published, to publish and make available for public comment a draft quantitative analysis that examines the economic effects of the proposed designation, including any effects on possible uses of land and property values, employment, and state and local revenues.

Date: 2014-03-05
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection
Bipartisan Sportsmen's Act of 2014 - Revises a variety of existing programs to expand access to, and opportunities for, hunting, fishing, and recreational shooting.

Reauthorizes the Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act, the North American Wetlands Conservation Act, and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act.

Gives the Secretary of the Interior permanent authority to permit states to issue temporary electronic duck stamps (federal licenses required for hunting migratory waterfowl).

Exempts components of firearms and ammunition and sport fishing equipment and its components (such as lead sinkers) from regulations of chemical substances under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).

Increases the proportion of funding from the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act that states may use for public target ranges.

Requires the Secretary to issue permits for the importation of polar bear parts taken in sports hunts in Canada before May 15, 2008 (when the species was listed as threatened).

Revises standards for determining what a baited area is for purposes of the prohibition on taking migratory game birds.

Directs federal public land management officials to facilitate hunting, fishing, and recreational shooting on federal public land. Makes land under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) or the Forest Service open for hunting, fishing, and recreational shooting unless the managing agency acts to close the lands.

Allocates funds from the Land and Water Conservation Fund for priority projects that secure public access to federal public lands that have significantly restricted access for hunting, fishing, and other recreational purposes.

Date: 2014-05-20
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
National Bison Legacy Act - Adopts the North American bison as the national mammal of the United States.

Date: 2014-06-11
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Protecting Water and Property Rights Act of 2014 - Prohibits the Secretary of the Army and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from: (1) finalizing the proposed rule entitled "Definition of `Waters of the United States' Under the Clean Water Act"; or (2) using the proposed rule, or any substantially similar proposed rule or guidance, as the basis for any rulemaking or any decision regarding the scope or enforcement of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act).

Provides that the use of the proposed rule, or any substantially similar proposed rule or guidance, as the basis for any rulemaking or any decision regarding the scope or enforcement of the Clean Water Act shall be grounds for vacating the final rule, decision, or enforcement action.

Date: 2014-06-19
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection
Protecting Lakes Against Quaggas Act of 2014 or the PLAQ Act of 2014 - Amends the federal criminal code to prohibit the importation into or shipment within the United States of the species of mussels of the genus Dreissena (thus covering quagga mussels). (Currently, the prohibition applies to only the zebra mussel of the species Dreissena polymorpha.)

Makes this Act inapplicable to: (1) the importation or transportation of prohibited species through the operation of a public water system or a related facility, or (2) the possession or conveyance of water supplies containing such species by a public water system operator.

Date: 2014-06-25
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
United States Fish and Wildlife Service Resource Protection Act - Authorizes the Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to seek compensation from individuals or entities for costs or damages for destroying, causing the loss of, or injuring any living, nonliving, historical, cultural, or archaeological resource on land managed by the USFWS, or for causing the USFWS to carry out actions to prevent, minimize, or abate such destruction, loss, or injury.

Requires amounts recovered as a result of such destruction, loss, or injury to be made available to USFWS to: (1) reimburse response costs and damage assessments; (2) restore, replace, or acquire the equivalent of a resource that was destroyed, lost, or injured; or (3) monitor and study those resources.

Date: 2014-06-26
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Federal Duck Stamp Act of 2014 - 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.

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.

Date: 2014-07-17
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Animals
Prohibits the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) or the Secretary of the Interior from implementing or limiting any modification to a public or private land-related policy or subsurface mineral right-related policy or practice that is in effect on enactment of this Act relating to the listing of the lesser prairie chicken as a threatened species or endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973.

Date: 2014-07-17
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
State, Tribal, and Local Species Transparency and Recovery Act - Amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to require the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Commerce, as appropriate, to provide to affected states all data that is used as the basis of a determination on whether a species is an endangered species or a threatened species before making a determination.

Requires the appropriate Secretary to use data submitted by a state, tribal, or county government in making such a determination.

Date: 2014-07-17
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection
21st Century Endangered Species Transparency Act - Amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to require the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Commerce, as appropriate, to make publicly available on the Internet the best scientific and commercial data available that are the basis for the determination of whether a species is an endangered species or a threatened species, including each proposed regulation for the listing of a species.

Prohibits the Secretary from making the information publicly available when: (1) the public disclosure of the information is prohibited by state law relating to the protection of personal information, and (2) the state makes a request to the Secretary to withhold the information.

Date: 2014-07-22
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection
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), all related 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.

Date: 2014-07-29
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Animals
American Burying Beetle Relief Act of 2014 - Removes the United States Fish and Wildlife Service's listing of the American burying beetle as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act. Prohibits the beetle from being listed as a threatened or endangered species.

Date: 2014-07-29
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Animals
Private Landowner Protection Act of 2014 - Amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to require the Department of the Interior or the Department of Commerce through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to exclude an area from designation as a critical habitat to conserve an endangered or threatened species if the benefits of exclusion outweigh the benefits of including the area, unless the failure to designate the area as critical habitat will result in the extinction of the species.

Requires the appropriate department to make available for public comment with any proposed rule to designate a critical habitat an analysis that: (1) examines the economic effects of all actions that are related to a critical habitat designation or the protection of the species, (2) is quantitative and qualitative, and (3) examines the incremental effects of the critical habitat designation and the cumulative economic effects of both the critical habitat designation and the listing determination.

Prohibits the analysis from effecting the determination to list a species.

Applies the requirements to any critical habitat designation proposed or promulgated on or after October 30, 2013. Requires any designation finalized on or after that date to be reopened for analysis within 30 days of this Act's enactment.

Date: 2014-07-31
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection
Endangered Species Recovery Transparency Act - Amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA) to require the Secretary of the Interior to make available online a searchable database detailing federal expenditures for civil actions brought under the ESA containing claims that are based on the actions of the Department of the Interior, the Forest Service, the National Marine Fisheries Service, the Bonneville Power Administration, the Western Area Power Administration, the Southwestern Power Administration, or the Southeastern Power Administration. Requires the Secretary to submit an annual report to Congress including this information.

Date: 2014-07-31
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection
Great Lakes and Fresh Water Algal Bloom Information Act - Requires the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to create an online database of research and information on the causes and corrective actions being taken with regard to algal blooms in the Great Lakes, their tributaries, and other surface fresh waters. Requires NOAA to include relevant chemical, physical, and biological data that have been collected by an accredited university, association or organization, research group, federal agency, state, or local government in the United States or Canada.

Declares that this Act does not authorize NOAA to require the submission of additional data.

Date: 2014-09-11
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection
Sage-Grouse Habitat Conservation and Restoration Act of 2014 - Provides a categorical exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) for a vegetation management project by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) or the Forest Service involving removal or treatment of any Pinyon or Juniper tree to conserve or restore the habitat of the greater sage-grouse.

(Under NEPA a categorical exclusion is a category of actions which do not individually or cumulatively have a significant effect on the human environment and which have been found to have no such effect in procedures adopted by a federal agency in implementing environmental regulations and for which, therefore, neither an Environmental Assessment nor an Environmental Impact Statement is required.)

Date: 2014-12-12
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection
Sage-Grouse Accountability and Private Conservation Act of 2014 - Directs the Department of the Interior to report on the status of the greater sage-grouse conservation efforts by December 15, 2014. Requires the report to include a description of: (1) public (federal and state) and private programs and expenditures, (2) existing state management plans as well as plans that have been announced but not yet implemented, and (3) plans by land management agencies.

Authorizes the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to provide funding under its agricultural land easements program for a conservation easement in an amount that is up to 75% of the value of land with greater or Gunnison sage-grouse habitat of special environmental significance. Adds maximizing the protection of that habitat as a consideration when ranking applications to the program.

Date: 7/9/2014
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary has been expanded because action occurred on the measure.)

Corolla Wild Horses Protection Act

 Directs the Department of the Interior to enter into an agreement with the Corolla Wild Horse Fund, Currituck County, North Carolina, and the state of North Carolina to provide for the management of free-roaming wild horses in and around the Currituck National Wildlife Refuge.

Requires that such agreement: (1) allow a herd of between 110 and 130 free-roaming wild horses in and around the Refuge; (2) provide for cost-effective management of such horses while ensuring that natural resources within the Refuge are not adversely impacted; (3) provide for the introduction of a small number of free-roaming wild horses from the herd at Cape Lookout National Seashore as is necessary to maintain the genetic viability of the herd in and around the Refuge; and (4) require such Fund to pay the costs of inspecting the health of the horses, maintaining records, coordinating the removal and placement of such horses, and administering a viable population control plan for the horses.

Prohibits the removal of any horse from the Seashore for introduction at the Refuge except with the approval of the Foundation for Shackleford Horses Inc. and consistent with the memorandum of understanding between the National Park Service and the Foundation and the management plan for the Shackleford Banks Horse Herd.

 Declares that nothing in this Act shall be construed as creating liability of the United States for any damages caused by the free-roaming wild horses to any person or property located inside or outside the boundaries of the Refuge.

Date: 2015-01-06
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Udall-Eisenhower Arctic Wilderness Act

 Designates approximately 1,559,538 acres of land within Alaska in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) as wilderness and components of the National Wilderness Preservation System.

Date: 2015-01-09
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Restoration of the U.S.-Russia Polar Bear Conservation Fund Act of 2015

This bill amends the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to allow the importation of polar bear parts taken legally in sport hunts in Canada.

Date: 2015-01-13
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Animals
Polar Bear Conservation and Fairness Act of 2015

This bill amends the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to direct Department of the Interior to issue a permit for the importation of a polar bear part (other than an internal organ) from a bear taken in a sport hunt in Canada to any permit applicant who has submitted proof that the polar bear was: (1) legally harvested by the applicant before the May 15, 2008, listing of the polar bear as threatened, and (2) harvested from an approved polar bear population. Interior must issue these permits without regard to limits on importing marine mammals with depleted populations.

Date: 2015-01-13
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Animals
This bill amends the National Marine Sanctuaries Act to prohibit the Department 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 Commerce to make the designation and prescribes the boundaries of the designated area.

Date: 2015-01-13
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Clarification of Legal Enforcement Against Non-criminal Energy Producers Act of 2015 or the CLEAN Energy Producers Act of 2015

This bill amends the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act to require the Department of the Interior to issue or deny an eagle permit for no less than 30 years that authorizes the taking of a bald eagle or golden eagle that is incidental to, but not the purpose of, an otherwise lawful activity. If Interior fails to act on a permit within a reasonable time (not exceeding one year), the permit is deemed issued.

This bill amends the Migratory Bird Treaty Act to exempt from criminal liability any taking, killing, or other harm to a migratory bird that is accidental or incidental to the presence or operation of an otherwise lawful activity.

Date: 2015-01-22
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Animals
This bill amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to revise provisions governing citizen suits against the Department of the Interior or the Department of Commerce, as appropriate, that allege a failure of the relevant department to perform an act or duty related to an endangered species or threatened species. Interior must publish the complaint in a citizen suit within 30 days of being served. Affected parties shall be given a reasonable opportunity to intervene in the suit. If affected parties intervene, the court must refer the action to a mediation program or magistrate judge to facilitate settlement discussions.

The court is prohibited from: (1) awarding litigation costs in a citizen suit that is settled by a consent decree, or (2) awarding litigation costs to a plaintiff in a citizen suit that is settled.

Interior must provide notice of a proposed settlement to each state or county in which an affected species occurs. A settlement can only be approved if states or counties approve the settlement or fail to respond.

Date: 2015-01-28
Topic: Environment (Species & Forest)
Subject: Environmental protection