[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 322 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 322

  To amend the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 to ensure 
 sufficient funding for Federal and State projects and for maintenance 
  and security needs, to encourage multipurpose acquisitions, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

             February 4 (legislative day, January 5), 1993

 Mr. DeConcini introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
       referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 to ensure 
 sufficient funding for Federal and State projects and for maintenance 
  and security needs, to encourage multipurpose acquisitions, and for 
                            other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Land and Water Conservation Fund 
Amendments of 1993''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS, PURPOSES, AND POLICY.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 (16 
        U.S.C. 460l-4 et seq.) was enacted to assist in preserving, 
        developing, and assuring accessibility to all citizens of the 
        United States of the present and future generations, such 
        quality and quantity of outdoor recreation resources as are 
        desirable for individual active participation in recreation and 
        to strengthen the health and vitality of the citizens.
            (2) In order to accomplish the purposes of such Act, 
        Congress authorized funding to assist variously in the 
        planning, acquisition, and development of necessary land and 
        water areas by government agencies.
            (3) The States and local governments occupy a pivotal role 
        in accomplishing the purposes of such Act.
            (4) Restoration of the existing recreation infrastructure 
        and expansion of State and local recreation resources to meet 
        population increases and demographic changes require a secure 
        and predictable base of funding.
            (5) In order for adequate public recreation uses to 
        continue, Federal, State, and local resources are in need of 
        maintenance, rehabilitation, and construction.
            (6) The continuing decay of public structures and systems 
        necessary for recreation uses has now reached emergency 
        proportions across the United States and necessitates immediate 
        corrective action by Congress.
            (7) Congress intended that outdoor recreation investments 
        in public lands and waters and selected facilities be funded 
        through the Land and Water Conservation Fund from--
                    (A) receipts produced from those investments;
                    (B) revenue produced from Outer Continental Shelf 
                leases and royalties, which reflects the depletion of a 
                nonrenewable natural resource; and
                    (C) proceeds from sales of surplus Federal 
                property.
            (8) Congress intended that the revenue produced from 
        offshore oil and gas leases and royalties and the depletion of 
        the nonrenewable natural resource result in a legacy of public 
        places accessible for public recreation use and benefit from 
        resources belonging to all people, of all generations, and the 
        enhancement of the most precious and most renewable natural 
        resource of any nation--healthy and active citizens.
            (9) The Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 (16 
        U.S.C. 460l-4 et seq.) originally provided an equitable 
        proportion of funds guaranteeing the States, and through the 
        States, local governments, 60 percent of available funds in 
        recognition of their pivotal role in providing realistically 
        available public outdoor recreation.
            (10) The original intention of such Act has not been 
        carried forward in practice.
            (11) Subsequent amendments to such Act have resulted in a 
        significant reduction in the proportion of funds allocated to 
        the States relative to the proportion available for Federal 
        purposes.
            (12) The States have not received an equitable proportion 
        of funds sufficient to encourage the public recreational 
        partnership envisioned by Congress or consistent with the State 
        and local pivotal roles in providing public outdoor recreation.
            (13) It is necessary to rectify apportionment of available 
        funds in order to carry forward the original intention of such 
        Act, for States to receive their full share, and to avoid a 
        long-term national deficit of recreation investment.
            (14) Sufficient revenue is produced annually from the 
        sources identified for the Land and Water Conservation Fund to 
        provide for equitably proportioned funds for the Federal, 
        State, and local outdoor recreation uses originally intended by 
        Congress without the need to resort to other funding or to 
        impact one use at the expense of the others.
            (15) In addition to the benefits of recreation to public 
        health, recreation and the availability of recreation resources 
        are effective in lowering vandalism and juvenile crime, and 
        provide healthy environments for public accommodation, 
        enjoyment, and exercise.
            (16) Urban and land use planners urgently recommend the 
        increased use of ``green spaces'' in urbanized areas in order 
        to mitigate environmental and population impacts and to protect 
        surface and subsurface waters and wetlands that occur in or 
        near large populated areas.
            (17) The population of the United States continues to 
        expand while access to open space continues to decrease in many 
        regions of the United States, especially in and near 
        metropolitan areas.
            (18) State governments and local communities are 
        increasingly hard-pressed to provide adequate funds for 
        recreation and for environmental protection and resource 
        conservation.
            (19) The recreation and open space needs of States and 
        local communities represent a more dynamic and fluid 
        environment that requires greater flexibility in the ways in 
        which Federal funds can be used by States and communities.
            (20) Sound environmental practices, urban planning and 
        emergency preparedness, and recreation are compatible and 
        consistent uses of public lands and resources and should be 
        actively encouraged in the planning, development, and 
        acquisition of lands and waters for public access and for 
        recreation.
    (b) Purpose.--The purposes of this Act are--
            (1) to strengthen the dedication of the United States to 
        the goal of providing adequate recreation opportunities to all 
        citizens; and
            (2) to ensure that--
                    (A) adequate facilities are created and maintained 
                on public lands and waters to facilitate recreation 
                opportunities consistent with the purposes for which 
                the lands and waters are acquired;
                    (B) whenever possible multipurpose planning occurs 
                to coordinate between the Federal Government and the 
                States the expenditures of public funds for both wise 
                acquisition and use of lands and waters for recreation 
                uses and compliance with laws protecting the 
                environment and public health; and
                    (C) the public lands and waters acquired for 
                recreation are preserved, conserved, and maintained for 
                present and future uses of citizens of the United 
                States.
    (c) Policy.--It is the policy of Congress that--
            (1) funds covered into the Land and Water Conservation Fund 
        should to the extent possible be fully appropriated within the 
        authorization for each fiscal year;
            (2) all funds appropriated should be disbursed in 
        accordance with the formula established in section 6(b) of the 
        Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 (16 U.S.C. 460l-
        8(b)) so that the State and local governments receive an 
        equitable portion of funds in recognition of their pivotal role 
        in establishing, maintaining, and preserving meaningful 
        recreation opportunities for all citizens; and
            (3) in expending funds for recreation purposes, both the 
        Federal Government and the States should--
                    (A) to the greatest extent possible recognize that 
                lands and waters appropriate for recreation can 
                simultaneously serve other necessary and desirable 
                environmental or public health or safety purposes; and
                    (B) accord a priority to the acquisition of lands 
                and waters that serve these multipurpose uses.

SEC. 3. APPROPRIATIONS FROM AND ALLOCATION OF FUND.

    Section 5 of the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 (16 
U.S.C. 460l-7) is amended--
            (1) by designating the first and second sentences as 
        subsection (a);
            (2) by designating the third through last sentences as 
        subsection (b); and
            (3) by striking subsection (a) (as so designated) and 
        inserting the following new subsection:
    ``(a)(1) There shall be submitted with the annual budget of the 
United States a comprehensive statement of the estimated requirements 
during the ensuing fiscal year for appropriations from the fund for 
land acquisition by eligible Federal agencies pursuant to section 7 and 
for land acquisition by States and local governments pursuant to 
section 6.
    ``(2) For each fiscal year, there shall be made available from the 
fund an amount that is not less than twice the amount that was made 
available to carry out section 7(a)(1) for fiscal year 1992.
    ``(3)(A) Subject to subparagraph (B), and in each fiscal year, 50 
percent of the estimated requirements referred to in paragraph (1) 
shall be designated for, and 50 percent of the amounts made available 
from the fund shall be used to carry out, Federal purposes as described 
in section 7.
    ``(B) If the requirement of subparagraph (A) with respect to 
amounts made available from the fund is not met, funds made available 
for Federal purposes as described in section 7 shall be reduced and 
funds made available for financial assistance to States pursuant to 
section 6 shall be increased so that the amounts are equal.''.

SEC. 4. FUNDS FOR INDIAN TRIBES.

    Section 6(b)(5) of the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 
(16 U.S.C. 460l-8(b)(5)) is amended--
            (1) by inserting ``(A)'' after ``(5)''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
            ``(B)(i)(I) For the purposes of paragraph (1), all 
        federally recognized Indian tribes and Alaska Native Village 
        Corporations (as defined in section 3(j) of the Alaska Native 
        Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1602(j)) (except for those 
        tribes and Village Corporations that enter into agreements 
        pursuant to clause (ii)) shall be treated collectively as one 
        State and shall receive shares of the apportionment under 
        paragraph (1) in accordance with a competitive grant program 
        established by the Secretary by rule in accordance with 
        subclause (II).
            ``(II) The rule shall ensure that in each fiscal year no 
        single tribe or Village Corporation receives more than 10 
        percent of the total amount made available to all tribes and 
        Village Corporations pursuant to the apportionment under 
        paragraph (1).
            ``(III) Funds received by an Indian tribe or Village 
        Corporation under this clause may be expended only for the 
        purposes specified in paragraphs (1) and (3) of subsection (a).
            ``(ii)(I) In each fiscal year, in lieu of receiving funds 
        under clause (i), a tribe or Village Corporation may establish 
        by written agreement with the State in which the tribe is 
        located the right of the tribe or Village Corporation to 
        compete for a portion of the funds made available to the State 
        pursuant to this section.
            ``(II) Each State's comprehensive statewide outdoor 
        recreation plan shall describe any agreement entered into 
        pursuant to subclause (I).''.

SEC. 5. MULTIPURPOSE ACQUISITIONS BY STATES.

    Section 6 of the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 (16 
U.S.C. 460l-8) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (c)--
                    (A) in the first sentence, by striking ``Payments'' 
                and inserting ``(1) Except as provided in paragraph 
                (2), payments''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
    ``(2)(A) Notwithstanding subsection (f)(3), payments to a State 
shall cover not more than 80 percent of the cost of each acquisition 
project undertaken by the State that--
            ``(i) is a multipurpose project in that the lands or waters 
        to be protected are identified in a State or local recreation 
        resource plan prepared pursuant to subsection (d), or a 
        comparable public document, as appropriate for multiple public 
        purposes in accordance with subparagraph (B); and
            ``(ii) is granted a high priority in the State's 
        comprehensive statewide outdoor recreation plan prepared 
        pursuant to subsection (d).
    ``(B) A project is appropriate for multiple public purposes if the 
project provides public recreation use and--
            ``(i) provides a natural or landscaped alternative 
        transportation route;
            ``(ii) provides wildlife habitat;
            ``(iii) results in the improvement of air and water 
        quality;
            ``(iv) results in increased flood control;
            ``(v) results in enhanced social, aesthetic, or 
        environmental conditions in a neighborhood or community;
            ``(vi) provides other attributes of recreation space 
        important to human health and welfare;
            ``(vii) enables the State or unit of local government to 
        comply with a Federal, State, or local law that serves an 
        environmental, public health, or public safety purpose; or
            ``(viii) meets more than one of the conditions described in 
        clauses (i) through (vii).''; and
            (2) in subsection (e)(1)--
                    (A) by designating the first and second sentences 
                as subparagraphs (A) and (C), respectively; and
                    (B) by inserting after subparagraph (A) (as so 
                designated) the following new subparagraph:
            ``(B) Notwithstanding subsection (b)(2), in providing 
        financial assistance for acquisitions, the Secretary shall give 
        highest priority to projects described in subsection (c)(2).''.

SEC. 6. MAINTENANCE AND SECURITY NEEDS AND SHELTERED FACILITIES FOR 
              STATES.

    Section 6 of the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 (16 
U.S.C. 460l-8) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``or (3) development'' 
        and inserting ``(3) development, (4) planning, (5) maintenance, 
        or (6) security''; and
            (2) in subsection (e)--
                    (A) in paragraph (2), by striking ``: Provided,'' 
                and all that follows through the end of the paragraph 
                and inserting a period; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraphs:
            ``(3) Planning, maintenance, security, and sheltered 
        facilities.--(A) Subject to subparagraph (B)--
                    ``(i) for planning and maintenance of facilities 
                acquired and developed with financial assistance 
                provided pursuant to this section;
                    ``(ii) for costs of law enforcement and security 
                personnel and other security measures that are 
                necessary to ensure safe public access to and 
                recreation use of lands and waters acquired with 
                financial assistance provided pursuant to this section, 
                except that not more than 10 percent of the funds used 
                to carry out this clause may be used for personnel 
                costs; and
                    ``(iii) for development of sheltered facilities for 
                public health or safety in connection with projects 
                otherwise eligible for assistance under this section, 
                including facilities for swimming pools and ice skating 
                rinks in areas where the Secretary determines that the 
                severity of climatic conditions and the increased 
                public use made possible by the facilities justifies 
                the construction of the facilities.
            ``(B) In each fiscal year, the Secretary may allocate not 
        more than 30 percent of the total amount of financial 
        assistance provided to each State for the purposes described in 
        subparagraph (A).''.

SEC. 7. PAYMENTS TO PRIVATE NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS.

    Section 6(f)(2) of the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 
(16 U.S.C. 460l-8(f)(2)) is amended--
            (1) by designating the first and second sentences as 
        subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
    ``(C)(i) If consistent with an approved project, the State, 
political subdivision, or other appropriate public agency receiving 
funds pursuant to this paragraph may transfer funds to be used in 
accordance with clauses (ii) and (iii) to a private nonprofit 
organization that meets the requirements of clause (iv).
    ``(ii) Funds received pursuant to clause (i)--
            ``(I) may be used for projects approved in writing by the 
        grantor of the funds and only in association with--
                    ``(aa) the acquisition of lands or interests in 
                lands; and
                    ``(bb) the development of recreation facilities; 
                and
            ``(II) may not be used for administrative expenses.
    ``(iii) A private nonprofit organization that uses funds for 
acquisition shall itself hold, or shall convey in perpetuity in a 
timely manner, for public benefit, such interest as it may acquire to a 
recipient determined to be appropriate by the grantor of the funds.
    ``(iv) A private nonprofit organization may receive funds pursuant 
to clause (i) if the organization--
            ``(I) is qualified for exemption from income taxes under 
        section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986;
            ``(II) includes among its purposes the conservation of 
        recreation resources or the providing of, or enhancement or 
        protection of, outdoor recreation opportunities;
            ``(III) meets and complies with such guidelines for the 
        receipt and use of the funds as are established by the 
        Secretary; and
            ``(IV) provides full accountability for the use of the 
        funds.
    ``(v) It is the intent of Congress that funds transferred and 
utilized by a private nonprofit organization pursuant to this 
subparagraph will result in a greater public benefit than would the 
utilization of the funds exclusively by a governmental entity.''.

SEC. 8. MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.

    (a) States.--Section 6(f) of the Land and Water Conservation Fund 
Act of 1965 (16 U.S.C. 460l-8(f)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following new paragraph:
    ``(9) The Secretary may not provide financial assistance to a State 
under this Act unless the State agrees to maintain the expenditures of 
the State for purposes other than acquisition at a level equal to not 
less than 80 percent of the average level of the expenditures 
maintained for the 5 fiscal years preceding the fiscal year for which 
the financial assistance is provided.''.
    (b) Federal Recipients.--Section 7 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 460l-9) 
is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(d) Maintenance of Effort.--In utilizing funds received under 
this Act, each Federal recipient shall maintain the expenditures of the 
Federal recipient for purposes other than acquisition at a level equal 
to not less than the level of the expenditures maintained for the 
fiscal year preceding the fiscal year for which the funds are 
received.''.

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