[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1675 Introduced in House (IH)]







104th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1675

To amend the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 
 to improve the management of the National Wildlife Refuge System, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 18, 1995

    Mr. Young of Alaska (for himself, Mr. Dingell, Mr. Hansen, Mr. 
   Brewster, Mr. Doolittle, Mr. Tauzin, Mr. Pete Geren of Texas, Mr. 
    Gallegly, Mr. Hayes, Mr. Calvert, Mr. Ortiz, Mrs. Lincoln, Mr. 
Hayworth, Mr. Cremeans, Mrs. Cubin, Mr. Cooley, Mr. Shadegg, Mr. Watts 
 of Oklahoma, and Mr. Thornberry) introduced the following bill; which 
               was referred to the Committee on Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 
 to improve the management of the National Wildlife Refuge System, 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; REFERENCES.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``National Wildlife 
Refuge Improvement Act of 1995''.
    (b) References.--Whenever in this Act an amendment or repeal is 
expressed in terms of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other 
provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to a section or 
provision of the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 
1966 (16 U.S.C. 688dd et seq.).
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    (a) In General.--Section 5 (16 U.S.C. 668ee) is amended to read as 
follows:

``SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

    ``For purposes of this Act:
            ``(1) The term `compatible use' means a use that will not 
        have a materially detrimental effect on the fulfillment of the 
        purposes of a refuge or the purposes of the System specified in 
        section 4(a)(3), as determined by sound resource management, 
        and based on reliable scientific information.
            ``(2) The terms `conserving', `conservation', `manage', 
        `managing', and `management', when used with respect to fish 
        and wildlife, mean to use, in accordance with applicable 
        Federal and State laws, methods and procedures associated with 
        modern scientific resource programs including protection, 
        research, census, law enforcement, habitat management, 
        propagation, live trapping and transplantation, and regulated 
        taking.
            ``(3) The term `Director' means the Director of the United 
        States Fish and Wildlife Service.
            ``(4) The terms `fish', `wildlife', and `fish and wildlife' 
        mean any wild member of the animal kingdom whether alive or 
        dead, and regardless of whether the member was bred, hatched, 
        or born in captivity, including a part, product, egg, or 
        offspring of the member.
            ``(5) The term `person' means any individual, partnership, 
        corporation or association.
            ``(6) The term `plant' means any member of the plant 
        kingdom in a wild, unconfined state, including any plant 
        community, seed, root, or other part of a plant.
            ``(7) The terms `purposes of the refuge' and `purposes of 
        each refuge' mean the purposes specified in or derived from the 
        law, proclamation, executive order, agreement, public land 
        order, donation document, or administrative memorandum 
        establishing, authorizing, or expanding a refuge, refuge unit, 
        or refuge subunit.
            ``(8) The term `refuge' means a designated area of land, 
        water, or an interest in land or water within the System, but 
        does not include navigational servitudes.
            ``(9) The term `Secretary' means the Secretary of the 
        Interior.
            ``(10) The terms `State' and `United States' mean the 
        several States of the United States, Puerto Rico, American 
        Samoa, the Virgin Islands, and Guam.
            ``(11) The term `System' means the National Wildlife Refuge 
        System designated under section 4(a)(1).
            ``(12) The terms `take', `taking', or `taken' mean to 
        pursue, hunt, shoot, capture, collect, or kill, or to attempt 
        to pursue, hunt, shoot, capture, collect, or kill.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 4 (16 U.S.C. 668dd) is amended 
by striking ``Secretary of the Interior'' each place it appears and 
inserting ``Secretary''.

SEC. 3. MISSION AND PURPOSES OF THE SYSTEM.

    Section 4(a) (16 U.S.C. 668dd(a)) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as paragraphs 
        (5) and (6), respectively;
            (2) in clause (i) of paragraph (6) (as so redesignated), by 
        striking ``paragraph (2)'' and inserting ``paragraph (5)''; and
            (3) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following new 
        paragraphs:
    ``(2) The overall mission of the System is to conserve and manage 
fish, wildlife, and plants and their habitats within the System for the 
benefit of present and future generations of the people of the United 
States.
    ``(3) The purposes of the System are equally--
            ``(A) to provide a national network of lands and waters 
        designed to conserve and manage fish, wildlife, and plants and 
        their habitats;
            ``(B) to conserve, manage, and where appropriate restore 
        fish and wildlife populations, plant communities, and refuge 
        habitats within the System;
            ``(C) to conserve and manage migratory birds, anadromous or 
        interjurisdictional fish species, and marine mammals within the 
        System;
            ``(D) to provide opportunities as appropriate for fish- and 
        wildlife-dependent recreation, including fishing and hunting, 
        wildlife observation, and environmental education;
            ``(E) to preserve, restore, and recover fish, wildlife, and 
        plants within the System that are listed or are candidates for 
        threatened species or endangered species under section 4 of the 
        Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1533) and the 
        habitats on which these species depend; and
            ``(F) to fulfill as appropriate international treaty 
        obligations of the United States with respect to fish, 
        wildlife, and plants, and their habitats.''.
SEC. 4. ADMINISTRATION OF THE SYSTEM.

    (a) Administration, Generally.--Section 4(a) (16 U.S.C. 668dd(a)) 
(as amended by section 3 of this Act) is further amended by inserting 
after new paragraph (3) the following new paragraph:
            ``(4) In administering the System, the Secretary shall--
                    ``(A) ensure that the mission and purposes of the 
                System described in paragraphs (2) and (3), 
                respectively, and the purposes of each refuge are 
                carried out, except that if a conflict exists between 
                the purposes of a refuge and any purpose of the System, 
                the conflict shall be resolved in a manner that first 
                protects the purposes of the refuge, and, to the extent 
                practicable, that also achieves the purposes of the 
                System;
                    ``(B) provide for conservation of fish and wildlife 
                and their habitats within the System by ensuring 
                effective coordination, interaction, and cooperation 
                with owners of land adjoining refuges and the fish and 
                wildlife agency of the States in which the units of the 
                System are located;
                    ``(C) assist in the maintenance of adequate water 
                quantity and water quality to fulfill the purposes of 
                the System and the purposes of each refuge;
                    ``(D) acquire under State law through purchase, 
                exchange, or donation water rights that are needed for 
                refuge purposes; and
                    ``(E) plan, propose, and direct appropriate 
                expansion of the System in the manner that is best 
                designed to accomplish the purposes of the System and 
                the purposes of each refuge and to complement efforts 
                of States and other Federal agencies to conserve fish 
                and wildlife and their habitats.''.
    (b) Powers.--Section 4(b) (16 U.S.C. 668dd(b)) is amended--
            (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1) by striking 
        ``authorized--'' and inserting ``authorized to take the 
        following actions:'';
            (2) in paragraph (1) by striking ``to enter'' and inserting 
        ``Enter'';
            (3) in paragraph (2)--
                    (A) by striking ``to accept'' and inserting 
                ``Accept''; and
                    (B) by striking ``, and'' and inserting a period;
            (4) in paragraph (3) by striking ``to acquire'' and 
        inserting ``Acquire''; and
            (5) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(4) Enter into cooperative agreements with State fish and 
        wildlife agencies, pursuant to standards established by the 
        Director, for the management of all or parts of a unit or units 
        within the System consistent with this Act.''.

SEC. 5. COMPATIBILITY STANDARDS AND PROCEDURES.

    Section 4(d) (16 U.S.C. 668dd(d)) is amended by adding at the end 
the following new paragraph:
            ``(3)(A)(i) On and after the date that is 3 years after the 
        date of the enactment of the National Wildlife Refuge 
        Improvement Act of 1995, the Secretary shall not initiate or 
        permit a new use of a refuge or expand, renew, or extend an 
        existing use of a refuge, unless the Secretary has determined 
        that the use is compatible with the purposes of the refuge and 
        the purposes of the System specified in subsection (a)(3).
            ``(ii) On lands added to the System after the date of the 
        enactment of the National Wildlife Refuge Improvement Act of 
        1995 existing uses of any refuge, including fishing and 
        hunting, shall be permitted to continue on an interim basis 
        until the Secretary determines that these uses are not 
        compatible with the purposes of the refuge or with the purposes 
        of the System specified in subsection (a)(3) or are otherwise 
        inconsistent with this Act.
            ``(iii) The Secretary shall permit fishing and hunting on a 
        refuge if the Secretary determines that the activities are 
        consistent with the principles of sound fish and wildlife 
        management, are compatible with the purposes of the refuge and 
        the purposes of the System specified in subsection (a)(3), and 
        are consistent with public safety. No other determinations or 
        findings, except the determination of consistency with State 
        laws and regulations provided for in subsection (m), are 
        required to be made for fishing and hunting to occur. The 
        Secretary may make the determination referred to in this 
        paragraph for a refuge concurrently with the development of a 
        conservation plan for the refuge under subsection (e).
            ``(B) Not later than 24 months after the date of the 
        enactment of the National Wildlife Refuge Improvement Act of 
        1995, the Secretary shall issue final regulations establishing 
        the process for determining a compatible use under subparagraph 
        (A) that--
                    ``(i) designate the refuge officer responsible for 
                making initial compatibility determinations;
                    ``(ii) require an estimate of the timeframe, 
                location, manner, and purpose of each use;
                    ``(iii) identify the effects of each use on refuge 
                resources and purposes of each refuge;
                    ``(iv) require that compatibility determinations be 
                made in writing;
                    ``(v) provide for the expedited consideration of 
                uses that will likely have no materially detrimental 
                effect on the fulfillment of the purposes of a refuge 
                or the purposes of the System specified in subsection 
                (a)(3);
                    ``(vi) provide for the elimination or modification 
                of any use as expeditiously as practicable after a 
                determination is made that the use is not compatible;
                    ``(vii) require, after an opportunity for public 
                comment, reevaluation of each existing use, other than 
                those uses specified in clause (viii), when conditions 
                under which the use is permitted change significantly 
                or when there is significant new information regarding 
                the effects of the use, but not less frequently than 
                once every 4 years, to ensure that the use remains 
                compatible with the purposes of the refuge and the 
                purposes of the System specified in subsection (a)(3);
                    ``(viii) require reevaluation of each fish and 
                wildlife-dependent recreational use when conditions 
                under which the use is permitted change significantly 
                or when there is significant new information regarding 
                the effects of the use, but not less frequently than in 
                conjunction with each preparation or revision of a 
                conservation plan under subsection (e) or at least 
                every 15 years;
                    ``(ix) provide an opportunity for public review and 
                comment on each evaluation of a use, unless an 
                opportunity for public review and comment on the 
                evaluation of the use has already been provided during 
                the development or revision of a conservation plan for 
                the refuge under subsection (e) or has otherwise been 
                provided during routine, periodic determinations of 
                compatibility for fish- and wildlife-dependent 
                recreational uses; and
                    ``(x) provide that when managed in accordance with 
                principles of sound fish and wildlife management, 
                fishing and hunting in a refuge are generally 
                compatible with the conservation
                 of fish and wildlife and plants and their habitats and 
have no materially detrimental effect on the fulfillment of the 
purposes of the refuge and the purposes of the System.
            ``(4) The provisions of this Act relating to determinations 
        of the compatibility of a use shall not apply to--
                    ``(A) overflights within the airspace of a refuge, 
                except as otherwise provided by law or a memorandum of 
                understanding with the Secretary;
                    ``(B)(i) a Federal navigation or communication aid 
                that exists on any refuge on the date of the enactment 
                of the National Wildlife Refuge Improvement Act of 1995 
                or on lands at the time the lands are added to the 
                System; or
                    ``(ii) the routine maintenance of established 
                access to, and replacement of, such an aid, if 
                replacement of the aid has no greater impact on 
                wildlife resources than the original aid and utilizes 
                no more land;
                    ``(C) a highway right-of-way in existence within 
                any refuge on the date of enactment of the National 
                Wildlife Refuge Improvement Act of 1995 and routine 
                maintenance of the right-of-way, if to the maximum 
                extent practicable the right-of-way is managed and 
                maintained so as to be compatible with the purposes of 
                the refuge; and
                    ``(D) activities authorized, funded, or conducted 
                by a Federal agency (other than the United States Fish 
                and Wildlife Service) which has primary jurisdiction 
                over the refuge or a portion of the refuge, if the 
                management of those activities is in accordance with a 
                memorandum of understanding between the Secretary and 
                the head of the Federal agency with primary 
                jurisdiction over the refuge governing the use of the 
                refuge.''.

SEC. 6. REFUGE CONSERVATION PLANNING PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--Section 4 (16 U.S.C. 668dd) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsections (e) through (i) as 
        subsections (f) through (j), respectively; and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the following new 
        subsection:
    ``(e)(1)(A) Except with respect to refuge lands in Alaska (which 
shall be governed by the refuge planning provisions of the Alaska 
National Interest Lands Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 3101 et seq.)), the 
Secretary shall--
            ``(i) propose a comprehensive conservation plan for each 
        refuge or related complex of refuges (referred to in this 
        subsection as a `planning unit') in the System;
            ``(ii) publish a notice of opportunity for public comment 
        in the Federal Register on each proposed conservation plan;
            ``(iii) issue a final conservation plan for each planning 
        unit consistent with the provisions of this Act and with fish 
        and wildlife conservation plans of the State in which the 
        refuge is located; and
            ``(iv) not less frequently than 15 years after the date of 
        issuance of a conservation plan under clause (iii) and every 15 
        years thereafter, revise the conservation plan as may be 
        necessary.
    ``(B) The Secretary shall prepare a comprehensive conservation plan 
under this subsection for each refuges within 15 years after the date 
of enactment of the National Wildlife Refuge Improvement Act of 1995.
    ``(C)(i) The Secretary shall manage each refuge or planning unit 
under plans in effect on the date of enactment of the National Wildlife 
Refuge Improvement Act of 1995, to the extent such plans are consistent 
with this Act, until such plans are revised or superseded by new 
comprehensive conservation plans issued under this subsection.
    ``(D) Uses or activities consistent with this Act may occur on any 
refuge or planning unit before existing plans are revised or new 
comprehensive conservation plans are issued under this subsection.
    ``(E) Upon completion of a comprehensive conservation plan under 
this subsection for a refuge or planning unit, the Secretary shall 
manage the refuge or planning unit in a manner consistent with the plan 
and shall revise the plan at any time if the Secretary determines that 
conditions that affect the refuge or planning unit have changed 
significantly.
    ``(2) In developing each comprehensive conservation plan under this 
subsection for a planning unit, the Secretary, acting through the 
Director, shall identify and describe--
            ``(A) the purposes of each refuge comprising the planning 
        unit and the purposes of the System applicable to those 
        refuges;
            ``(B) the distribution, migration patterns, and abundance 
        of fish, wildlife, and plant populations and related habitats 
        within the planning unit;
            ``(C) the archaeological and cultural values of the 
        planning unit;
            ``(D) such areas within the planning unit that are suitable 
        for use as administrative sites or visitor facilities;
            ``(E) significant problems that may adversely affect the 
        populations and habitats of fish, wildlife, and plants within 
        the planning unit and the actions necessary to correct or 
        mitigate such problems; and
            ``(F) the opportunities for fish- and wildlife-dependent 
        recreation, including fishing and hunting, environmental 
        education, interpretation of the resources and values of the 
        planning unit, and other uses that may contribute to refuge 
        management.
    ``(3) In preparing each comprehensive conservation plan under this 
subsection, and any revision to such a plan, the Secretary, acting 
through the Director, shall, to the maximum extent practicable and 
consistent with this Act--
            ``(A) consult with adjoining Federal, State, local, and 
        private landowners and affected State conservation agencies; 
        and
            ``(B) coordinate the development of the conservation plan 
        or revision of the plan with relevant
         State conservation plans for fish and wildlife and their 
habitats.
    ``(4)(A) In accordance with subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall 
develop and implement a process to ensure an opportunity for active 
public involvement in the preparation and revision of comprehensive 
conservation plans under this subsection. At a minimum, the Secretary 
shall require that publication of any final plan shall include a 
summary of the comments made by States, adjacent or potentially 
affected landowners, local governments, and any other affected parties, 
together with a statement of the disposition of concerns expressed in 
those comments.
    ``(B) Prior to the adoption of each comprehensive conservation plan 
under this subsection, the Secretary shall issue public notice of the 
draft proposed plan, make copies of the plan available at the affected 
field and regional offices of the United States Fish and Wildlife 
Service, and provide opportunity for public comment.''.

SEC. 7. EMERGENCY POWER; STATE AUTHORITY; WATER RIGHTS; COORDINATION; 
              AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    Section 4 (16 U.S.C. 668dd) is further amended by adding at the end 
the following new subsections:
    ``(k) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act the Secretary 
may temporarily suspend, allow, or initiate any activity in a refuge in 
the System in the event of any emergency that constitutes an imminent 
danger to the health and safety of the public or any fish or wildlife 
population.
    ``(l) Nothing in this Act shall be construed to authorize the 
Secretary to control or regulate hunting or fishing of fish and 
resident wildlife on lands or waters not within the System.
    ``(m) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as affecting the 
primary authority, jurisdiction, or responsibility of the several 
States to manage, control, or regulate fish and resident wildlife under 
State law or regulations in any area within the System. Regulations 
permitting hunting or fishing of fish and resident wildlife within the 
System shall be, to the extent practicable, consistent with State fish 
and wildlife laws and regulations.
    ``(n)(1) Nothing in this Act shall create a reserved water right, 
express or implied, in the United States for any purpose. This Act does 
not affect any Federal or State law in existence on the date of the 
enactment of this Act regarding water quality or water quantity.
    ``(2) Adjudication of water rights, if any, that may exist 
appurtenant to refuge units shall be pursued initially in available 
State administrative or judicial forums.
    ``(o) Coordination with State fish and wildlife agency personnel or 
with personnel of other affected State agencies pursuant to this Act 
shall not be subject to the Federal Advisory Committee Act.''.

SEC. 8. CONFORMING AMENDMENT.

    Section 4(a)(3)(i) (16 U.S.C. 668dd(a)(3)(i)) is amended by 
striking ``paragraph (2)'' and inserting ``paragraph (5)''.
                                 <all>
HR 1675 IH----2