[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 512 Referred in Senate (RFS)]

  2d Session
                                H. R. 512


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 20, 1998

 Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and 
                              Public Works

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
 To establish requirements relating to the designation of new units of 
                  the National Wildlife Refuge System.

    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 ``New Wildlife Refuge Authorization 
Act''.

SEC. 2. REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO DESIGNATION OF NEW REFUGES.

    (a) Limitation on Appropriations from Land and Water Conservation 
Fund.--
            (1) In general.--No funds are authorized to be appropriated 
        from the land and water conservation fund for designation of a 
        unit of the National Wildlife Refuge System, unless the 
        Secretary of the Interior has--
                    (A) completed all actions pertaining to 
                environmental review that are required for that 
                designation under the National Environmental Policy Act 
                of 1969;
                    (B) provided notice to each Member of and each 
                Delegate and Resident Commissioner to the Congress 
                elected to represent an area included in the boundaries 
                of the proposed unit, upon the completion of the 
                preliminary project proposal for the designation; and
                    (C) provided a copy of each final environmental 
                impact statement or each environmental assessment 
                resulting from that environmental review, and a summary 
                of all public comments received by the Secretary on the 
                proposed unit, to--
                            (i) the Committee on Resources and the 
                        Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
                        Representatives;
                            (ii) the Committee on Environment and 
                        Public Works and the Committee on 
                        Appropriations of the Senate; and
                            (iii) each Member of or Delegate or 
                        Resident Commissioner to the Congress elected 
                        to represent an area included in the boundaries 
                        of the proposed unit.
            (2) Limitation on application.--Paragraph (1) shall not 
        apply to appropriation of amounts for a unit of the National 
        Wildlife Refuge System that is designated, or specifically 
        authorized to be designated, by law.
    (b) Notice of Scoping.--The Secretary shall publish a notice of 
each scoping meeting held for the purpose of receiving input from 
persons affected by the designation of a proposed unit of the National 
Wildlife Refuge System. The notice shall be published in a newspaper 
distributed in each county in which the refuge will be located, by not 
later than 15 days before the date of the meeting. The notice shall 
clearly state that the purpose of the meeting is to discuss the 
designation of a new unit of the National Wildlife Refuge System.
    (c) Limitation on Application of Federal Land Use Restrictions.--
Land located within the boundaries (or proposed boundaries) of a unit 
of the National Wildlife Refuge System designated after the date of the 
enactment of this Act shall not be subject to any restriction on use of 
the lands under Federal law or regulation based solely on a 
determination of the boundaries, until an interest in the land has been 
acquired by the United States.

            Passed the House of Representatives May 19, 1998.

            Attest:

                                                ROBIN H. CARLE,

                                                                 Clerk.