THIS SEARCH     THIS DOCUMENT     THIS CR ISSUE     GO TO
Next Hit        Forward           Next Document     New CR Search
Prev Hit        Back              Prev Document     HomePage
Hit List        Best Sections     Daily Digest      Help
                Doc Contents      

   (e) CONVERSION.--Section 1010 of the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act (16 U.S.C. §2509) is amended by striking the first sentence and inserting the following: ``No property acquired or improved or developed under this title shall, without the approval of the Secretary, be converted to other than public recreation uses. The Secretary shall approve such conversion only if the grantee demonstrates no prudent or feasible alternative exists (with the exception of those properties that are no longer a viable recreation facility due to changes in demographics or must be abandoned because of environmental contamination which endanger public health and safety). Any conversion must satisfy any conditions the Secretary deems necessary to assure the substitution of other recreation properties of at least equal fair market value, or reasonably equivalent usefulness and location and which are in accord with the current recreation recovery action program.''

   (f) REPEAL.--Section 1014 of the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act (16 U.S.C. 2513) is repealed.

   SEC. 301. SHORT TITLE.

   This title may be cited as the ``Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Act of 1998''.

   SEC. 302. FINDINGS.

   The Congress finds and declares that--

   (1) a diverse array of species of fish and wildlife is of significant value to the Nation for many reasons: aesthetic, ecological, educational, cultural, recreational, economic, and scientific;

   (2) it should be the objective of the United States to retain for present and future generations the opportunity to observe, understand, and appreciate a wide variety of wildlife;

   (3) millions of citizens participate in outdoor recreation through hunting, fishing, and wildlife observation, all of which have significant value to the citizens who engage in these activities;

   (4) providing sufficient and properly maintained wildlife associated recreational opportunities is important to enhancing public appreciation of a diversity of wildlife and the habitats upon which they depend;

   (5) lands and waters which contain species classified neither as game nor identified as endangered or threatened also can provide opportunities for wildlife associated recreation and education such as hunting and fishing permitted by applicable State or Federal law;

   (6) hunters and anglers have for more than 60 years willingly paid user fees in the form of Federal excise taxes on hunting and fishing equipment to support wildlife diversity and abundance, through enactment of the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (commonly referred to as the Pittman-Robertson Act) and the Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration (commonly referred to as the Dingell-Johnson/Wallop-Breaux Act);

   (7) State programs, adequately funded to conserve a broader array of wildlife in an individual State and conducted in coordination with Federal State, tribal, and private landowners and interested organizations, would continue to serve as a vital link in a nationwide effort to restore game and nongame wildlife, and the essential elements of such programs should include conservation measures which manage for a diverse variety of populations of wildlife; and

   (8) it is proper for Congress to bolster and extend this highly successful program to aid game and nongame wildlife in supporting the health and diversity of habitat, as well as providing funds for conservation education.

   SEC. 303. PURPOSES.

   The purposes of this title are--

   (1) to extend financial and technical assistance to the States u nder the Federal Aid to Wildlife Restoration Act for the benefit of a diverse array of wildlife and associated habitats, including species that are not hunted or fished, to fulfill unmet needs of wildlife within the States while recognizing the mandate of the States to conserve all wildlife;

   (2) to assure sound conservation policies through the development, revision and implementation of wildlife associated recreation and wildlife associated education and wildlife conservation law enforcement;

   (3) to encourage State fish and wildlife agencies to create partnerships between the Federal Government, other State agencies, wildlife conservation organizations, and outdoor recreation and conservation interests through cooperative planning and implementation of this title; and

   (4) to encourage State fish and wildlife agencies to provide for public involvement in the process of development and implementation of a wildlife conservation and restoration program.

   SEC. 304. DEFINITIONS.

   (a) REFERENCE TO LAW.--In this title, the term ``Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act'' means the Act of September 2, 1937 (16 U.S.C. 669 et seq.), commonly referred to as the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act or the Pittman-Robertson Act.

   (b) WILDLIFE CONSERVATION AND RESTORATION PROGRAM.--Section 2 of the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669a) is amended by inserting after ``shall be construed'' in the first place it appears the following: ``to include the wildlife conservation and restoration program and''.

   (c) STATE AGENCIES.--Section 2 of the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669a) is amended by inserting ``or State fish and wildlife department'' after ``State fish and game department''.

   (d) CONSERVATION.--Section 2 is amended by striking the period at the end thereof, substituting a semicolon, and adding the following: ``the term `conservation' shall be construed to mean the use of methods and procedures necessary or desirable to sustain healthy populations of wildlife including all activities associated with scientific resources management such as research, census, monitoring of populations, acquisition, improvement and management of habitat, live trapping and transplantation, wildlife damage management, and periodic or total protection of a species or population as well as the taking of individuals within wildlife stock or population if permitted by applicable State and Federal law; the term `wildlife conservation and restoration program' shall be construed to mean a program developed by a State fish and wildlife department that the Secretary determines meets the criteria in section 6(d), the projects that constitute such a program, which may be implemented in whole or part through grants and contracts by a State to other State, Federal, or local agencies wildlife conservation organizations and outdoor recreation and conservation education entities from funds apportioned under this title, and maintenance of such projects; the term `wildlife' shall be construed to mean any species of wild, free-

[Page: S419]  GPO's PDF

   (e) 7 PERCENT.--Subsection 3(a) of the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669b(a)) is amended in the first sentence by--

   (1) inserting ``(1)'' after ``(beginning with the fiscal year 1975)''; and

   (2) inserting after ``Internal Revenue Code of 1954'' the following: ``, and (2) from 7 percent of the revenues, as that term is defined in the Conservation and Reinvestment Act of 1999,''.

   SEC. 305. SUBACCOUNTS AND REFUNDS.

   Section 3 of the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669b) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsections:

   ``(c) A subaccount shall be established in the Federal aid to wildlife restoration fund in the Treasury to be known as the `wildlife conservation and restoration account' and the credits to such account shall be equal to the 7 percent of revenues referred to in subsection (a)(2). Amounts in such account shall be invested by the Secretary of the Treasury as set forth in subsection (b) and shall be made available without further appropriation, together with interest, for apportionment at the beginning of fiscal year 2000 and each fiscal year thereafter to carry out State wildlife conservation and restoration programs.

   ``(d) Funds covered into the wildlife conservation and restoration account shall supplement, but not replace, existing funds available to the States from the sport fish restoration and wildlife restoration accounts and shall be used for the development, revision, and implementation of wildlife conservation and restoration programs and should be used to address the unmet needs for a diverse array of wildlife and associated habitats, including species that are not hunted or fished, for wildlife conservation, wildlife conservation education, and wildlife-associated recreation projects: Provided, That such funds may be used for new programs and projects as well as to enhance existing programs and projects.

   ``(e) Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b) of this Act, with respect to the wildlife conservation and restoration account so much of the appropriation apportioned to any State for any fiscal year as remains unexpended at the close thereof is authorized to be made available for expenditure in that State until the close of the fourth succeeding fiscal year. Any amount apportioned to any State under this subsection that is unexpended or unobligated at the end of the period during which it is available for expenditure on any project is authorized to be reapportioned to all States during the succeeding fiscal year.

   ``(f) In those instances where through judicial decision, administrative review, arbitration, or other means there are royalty refunds owed to entities generating revenues available for purposes of this Act, 7 percent of such refunds shall be paid from amounts available under subsection (a)(2).''.

   SEC. 306. ALLOCATION OF SUBACCOUNT RECEIPTS.

   Section 4 of the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669c) is amended by adding the following new subsection:

   ``(c)(1) Notwithstanding subsection (a), an amount, not to exceed 2 percent, of the revenues covered into the wildlife conservation and restoration account in each fiscal year as the Secretary of the Interior may estimate to be necessary for expenses in the administration and execution of programs carried out under the wildlife conservation and restoration account shall be deducted for that purpose, and such amount is authorized to be made available therefor until the expiration of the next succeeding fiscal year. Within 60 days after the close of such fiscal year, the Secretary of the Interior shall apportion any portion thereof as remains unexpended, if any, on the same basis and in the same manner as is provided under paragraphs (2) and (3).

   ``(2) The Secretary of the Interior, after making the deduction under paragraph (1), shall make the following apportionment from the amount remaining in the wildlife conservation and restoration account:

   ``(A) to the District of Columbia and to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, each a sum equal to not more than 1/2 of 1 percent thereof; and

   ``(B) to Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, each a sum equal to not more than 1/6 of 1 percent thereof.

   ``(3) The Secretary of the Interior, after making the deduction under paragraph (1) and the apportionment under paragraph (2), shall apportion the remaining amount in the wildlife conservation and restoration account for each year among the States in the following manner:

   ``(A) 1/3 of which is based on the ratio to which the land area of such State bears to the total land area of all such States; and

   ``(B) 2/3 of which is based on the ratio to which the population of such State bears to the total population of all such States.

   ``The amounts apportioned under this paragraph shall be adjusted equitably so that no such State shall be apportioned a sum which is less than 1/2 of 1 percent of the amount available for apportionment under this paragraph for any fiscal year or more than 5 percent of such amount.''.

   ``(d) WILDLIFE CONSERVATION AND RESTORATION PROGRAMS.--Any State, through its fish and wildlife department, may apply to the Secretary for approval of a wildlife conservation and restoration program or for funds to develop a program, which shall--

   ``(1) contain provision for vesting in the fish and wildlife department of overall responsibility and accountability for development and implementation of the program; and

   ``(2) contain provision for development and implementation of--

   ``(A) wildlife conservation projects which expand and support existing wildlife programs to meet the needs of a diverse array of wildlife species,

   ``(B) wildlife associated recreation programs, and

   ``(C) wildlife conservation education projects.

   If the Secretary of the Interior finds that an application for such program contains the elements specified in paragraphs (1) and (2), the Secretary shall approve such application and set aside from the apportionment to the State made pursuant to section 4(c) an amount that shall not exceed 90 percent of the estimated cost of developing and implementing segments of the program for the first 5 fiscal years following enactment of this subsection and not to exceed 75 percent thereafter. Not more than 10 percent of the amounts apportioned to each State from the subaccount for the State's wildlife conservation and restoration program may be used for law enforcement. Following approval, the Secretary may make payments on a project that is a segment of the State's wildlife conservation and restoration program as the project progresses but such payments, including previous payments on the project, if any, shall not be more than the United States pro rata share of such project. The Secretary, under such regulations as he may prescribe, may advance funds representing the United States pro rata share of a project that is a segment of a wildlife conservation and restoration program, including funds to develop such program. For purposes of this subsection, the term `State' shall include the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.''.

   (b) FACA.--Coordination with State fish and wildlife department personnel or with personnel of other State agencies pursuant to the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act or the Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration Act shall not be subject to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.). Except for the preceding sentence, the provisions of this title relate solely to wildlife conservation and restoration programs as defined in this title and shall not be construed to affect the provisions of the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act relating to wildlife restoration projects or the provisions of the Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration Act relating to fish restoration and management projects.

   SEC. 307. LAW ENFORCEMENT AND PUBLIC RELATIONS.

   The third sentence of subsection (a) of section 8 of the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669g) is amended by inserting before the period at the end thereof: ``, except that funds available from this subaccount for a State wildlife conservation and restoration program may be used for law enforcement and public relations''.

   SEC. 308. PROHIBITION AGAINST DIVERSION.

   No designated State agency shall be eligible to receive matching funds under this Act if sources of revenue available to it on January 1, 1998, for conservation of wildlife are diverted for any purpose other than the administration of the designated State agency, it being the intention of Congress that funds available to States under this Act be added to revenues from existing State sources and not serve as a substitute for revenues from such sources. Such revenues shall include interest, dividends, or other income earned on the foregoing.

   Mr. MURKOWKSI. Mr. President, I rise today, along with a bipartisan group of Senators, to introduce the Conservation and Reinvestment Act of 1999.

   This important piece of legislation remedies a tremendous inequity in the distribution of revenues generated by offshore oil and gas production by directing that a portion of those moneys be allocated to coastal States and comm unities who shoulder the responsibility for energy development activity off their coastlines. It also provides a secure funding source for state recreation and wildlife conservation programs.

   By reinvesting revenues from offshore oil and gas production into a variety of important conservation, recreation and environmental programs,

[Page: S420]  GPO's PDF

   This bill is the start of a process. It is a bipartisan bill. And, like any bipartisan bill reflects choices and compromises. It contains provisions which need to be examined in detail as the legislative process moves forward. I also anticipate a series of amendments from both sides of the aisle to the bill. I know there are amendments I intend to offer to make this bill a better bill for my constituents. That is what the legislative process is all about. As Chairman of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, I promise to devote the time necessary to flesh these issues out and to give all parties which have interest in this bill an opportunity to be heard. This bill warrants nothing less.

   Title 1 of the bill, which provides for coastal impact assistan ce, is similar to legislation I have introduced in prior Congresses and is an issue I have worked on for my entire Senate career.

   Title 1 is based on a Minerals Management Service advisory committee report. It directs that 27 percent of the revenues generated from oil and natural gas production on the Outer Continental Shelf--or OCS--be returned to coastal States and comm unities that share the burdens of exploration and production off their coastlines. Offshore oil and gas production generates $3 to $4 billion in revenues annually for the U.S. Treasury. Yet, unlike mineral receipts from onshore Federal lands, OCS oil and gas revenues are not directly returned to the States in which production occurs.

THIS SEARCH     THIS DOCUMENT     THIS CR ISSUE     GO TO
Next Hit        Forward           Next Document     New CR Search
Prev Hit        Back              Prev Document     HomePage
Hit List        Best Sections     Daily Digest      Help
                Doc Contents