[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1018 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1018

  To amend the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act to improve the 
management and long-term health of wild free-roaming horses and burros, 
                        and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 12, 2009

  Mr. Rahall (for himself and Mr. Grijalva) introduced the following 
     bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act to improve the 
management and long-term health of wild free-roaming horses and burros, 
                        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. REFERENCE.

    Except as otherwise expressly provided, 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 other provision of the Act of December 15, 1971 
(commonly known as the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act; 16 
U.S.C. 1331 et seq.).

SEC. 2. POLICY.

    The first section is amended by striking ``in the area where 
presently found, as''.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    Section 2 (16 U.S.C. 1332) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (c), by striking ``which does not exceed 
        their known territorial limits,''
            (2) in paragraph (d), by striking ``and'' after the 
        semicolon;
            (3) in paragraph (e), by striking the period and inserting 
        a semicolon;
            (4) by amending paragraph (f) to read as follows:
            ``(f) ``excess animals'' means wild free-roaming horses or 
        burros which must be removed from an area, in accordance with 
        section 3(d), in order to preserve and maintain a thriving 
        natural ecological balance and multiple use relationship in 
        that area.''.

SEC. 4. INVENTORY AND DETERMINATIONS.

    Section 3 (16 U.S.C. 1333) is amended to read as follows:
    ``Sec. 3.  (a) All wild free-roaming horses and burros are hereby 
declared to be under the jurisdiction of the Secretary for the purpose 
of management and protection in accordance with the provisions of this 
Act. The Secretary shall--
            ``(1) protect and manage wild free-roaming horses and 
        burros as components of the public lands;
            ``(2) designate and maintain specific ranges on public 
        lands as sanctuaries for the protection and preservation of 
        wild free-roaming horses and burros, where the Secretary, after 
        consultation with the wildlife agency of the State where any 
        such range is proposed and with the Advisory Board established 
        in section 7, considers such action desirable.
            ``(3) manage wild free-roaming horses and burros in a 
        manner that is designed to achieve and maintain a thriving 
        natural ecological balance on the public lands;
            ``(4) consider the recommendations of qualified scientists 
        in the field of biology and ecology, some of whom shall be 
        independent of both Federal and State agencies and may include 
        members of the Advisory Board established in section 7;
            ``(5) ensure that management activities related to wild 
        free-roaming horses and burros are at the minimal feasible 
        level and carried out in consultation with the relevant State 
        wildlife agency in order to protect the natural ecological 
        balance of all wildlife species, particularly endangered 
        wildlife species; and
            ``(6) ensure that any adjustments in forage allocations are 
        made after taking into consideration the needs of other 
        wildlife species.
    ``(b) In order to determine if an overpopulation of wild free-
roaming horses and burros exists, the Secretary shall--
            ``(1) maintain an inventory of wild free-roaming horses and 
        burros on the public lands;
            ``(2) update the inventory annually; and
            ``(3) make the inventory by herd management area available 
        to the public on the Website of the Bureau of Land Management 
        at no cost.
    ``(c) In order to better manage wild free-roaming horses and 
burros, the Secretary, not later than one year after the date of the 
enactment of this section, shall take the following actions:
            ``(1) Adopt and employ the best scientific, peer-reviewed 
        methods to accurately estimate wild free-roaming horse and 
        burro populations on public lands.
            ``(2) Employ scientifically sound methods to develop a 
        policy for setting consistent, appropriate management levels.
            ``(3) Provide a public process, including a period for 
        notice and comment, for finalizing appropriate management level 
        standards.
            ``(4) Publish and distribute these standards to each field 
        office so that the methodology for estimating population and 
        determining appropriate management levels is consistent across 
        public lands.
            ``(5) Train Bureau of Land Management personnel on the use 
        of these standard techniques to estimate population and 
        determine appropriate management levels.
            ``(6) Consult with--
                    ``(A) the United States Fish and Wildlife Service;
                    ``(B) wildlife agencies of the State or States 
                where wild free-roaming horses and burros are located;
                    ``(C) individuals independent of Federal and State 
                governments who have been recommended by the National 
                Academy of Sciences; and
                    ``(D) individuals who the Secretary determines to 
                have scientific expertise and special knowledge of wild 
                horse and burro protection, wildlife management, and 
                animal husbandry related to rangeland management.
            ``(7) Identify new, appropriate rangelands for wild free-
        roaming horses and burros, including use of land acquisitions, 
        exchanges, conservation easements, and voluntary grazing 
        buyouts, and negotiate with private landowners to allow for the 
        federally supervised protection of wild horses and burros on 
        private lands.
            ``(8) Establish sanctuaries or exclusive use areas; and
            ``(9) Research, develop, and implement enhanced surgical or 
        immunocontraception sterilization or other safe methods of 
        fertility control.
    ``(d) If the Secretary has exhausted all practicable options of 
maintaining populations of wild free-roaming horses and burros on the 
range, the Secretary may provide that excess wild free-roaming horses 
and burros are humanely captured and removed for private maintenance 
and care, so long as the Secretary has determined an adoption demand 
exists by qualified individuals and the Secretary can ensure humane 
treatment and care by requiring that--
            ``(1) no more than four wild free-roaming horses and burros 
        may be adopted per year by any individual, unless the Secretary 
        determines, in writing, that the individual is capable of 
        humanely caring for more than four wild free-roaming horses and 
        burros, including the transportation of such animals by the 
        adopting party;
            ``(2) each individual adopter shall execute an appropriate 
        attestation, pursuant to section 1001 of title 18, United 
        States Code, affirming that adopted animals shall not be used 
        for purposes of slaughter for human consumption;
            ``(3) methods for removing wild horses and burros shall not 
        include the use of helicopters or any other airborne devices; 
        and
            ``(4) wild horses and burros shall not be contained in 
        corrals or other holding facilities for more than 6 months, 
        while awaiting disposition.
    ``(e) When an excess wild free-roaming horse or burro has been 
transferred to a qualified individual for adoption and private 
maintenance pursuant to this Act and the Secretary determines that such 
individual has provided humane conditions, treatment, and care for such 
animal for one year, the Secretary may, upon application by the 
transferee, grant the transferee title to that animal.
    ``(f) Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of 
this subsection, for the purposes of carrying out a successful wild 
free-roaming horse and burro adoption program the Secretary shall--
            ``(1) implement creative and more aggressive marketing 
        strategies for the adoption program, including the use of the 
        Internet or other media to showcase horses and burros and the 
        adoption program;
            ``(2) explore public outreach opportunities, including 
        agreements with local and State organizations that are using 
        horses and burros for rehabilitation, therapy, or prisoner 
        programs;
            ``(3) provide resources to properly screen and train 
        potential adopters;
            ``(4) conduct tours of Bureau of Land Management facilities 
        for interested parties; and
            ``(5) develop volunteer mentor and compliance check 
        programs for assisting the agency in facilitating successful 
        adoptions.
    ``(g) The Secretary may not destroy or authorize the destruction of 
wild free-roaming horses or burros unless the Secretary--
            ``(1) determines that the wild free-roaming horse or burro 
        is terminally ill; and
            ``(2) ensures that the terminally ill wild free-roaming 
        horse or burro will be destroyed in the most humane manner.
    ``(h) If the immediate health or safety of wild free-roaming horses 
or burros is threatened, such as in severe drought conditions, the 
Secretary shall temporarily remove animals from the range.
    ``(i) Except in cases of removal under subsection (g) or subsection 
(h), if the Secretary removes wild free-roaming horses or burros from 
the range or decreases the range of the wild horses and burros, the 
Secretary shall provide a public notice on the Website of the Bureau of 
Land Management 30 days prior to the planned removal.
    ``(j) The Secretary shall--
            ``(1) track the number of wild free-roaming horses and 
        burros injured during gathering or holding in a centralized 
        database system;
            ``(2) determine what information on the treatment of 
        gathered wild free-roaming horses and burros in holding and 
        adopted wild free-roaming horse and burros could be provided to 
        the public to help inform the public about the treatment of 
        wild free-roaming horse and burros; and
            ``(3) ensure that such information is easily accessible on 
        the Website of the Bureau of Land Management.''.

SEC. 5. PRIVATE MAINTENANCE.

    Section 4 (16 U.S.C. 1334) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``animals removed'' and inserting ``animals 
        returned to public lands''; and
            (2) by striking ``In no event shall such wild free-roaming 
        horses and burros be destroyed except by the agents of the 
        Secretary.''.

SEC. 6. COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.

    Section 6 (16 U.S.C. 1336) is amended by inserting ``and other 
private entities'' after ``landowners''.

SEC. 7. JOINT ADVISORY BOARD.

    Section 7 (16 U.S.C. 1337) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``nine members'' and inserting ``12 
        members'';
            (2) by striking ``Governments'' and all that follows 
        ``management.'' and inserting ``Governments and shall include 
        at a minimum three representatives of the livestock industry; 
        three representatives of the environmental community; three 
        representatives of the humane community; and three scientists 
        with doctorate degrees who have expertise in wildlife 
        management.''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new sentence: 
        ``Selection of members of the board shall be conducted by 
        notice and comment rulemaking in accordance with the 
        Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. et seq.) shall be for a 
        term of four years. No individual shall serve more then two 
        consecutive terms.''.

SEC. 8. CRIMINAL PROVISIONS.

    Section 8(a)(4) (16 U.S.C. 1338(a)(4)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``3(e)'' and inserting ``3(d)'';
            (2) by inserting ``, transports for processing,'' after 
        ``processes''; and
            (3) by striking ``the remains of'' and inserting ``a live 
        or deceased''.

SEC. 9. TRANSPORTATION OF CAPTURED ANIMALS.

    Section 9 (16 U.S.C. 1338a) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``helicopters or, for the purpose of 
        transporting captured animals, motor vehicles.'' and inserting 
        ``motor vehicles for the purpose of transporting captured 
        animals.''; and
            (2) by striking ``The provisions of section 47(a) of title 
        18 shall not be applicable to such use.''.

SEC. 10. LIMITATION OF AUTHORITY.

    Strike section 10 (16 U.S.C. 1339) and redesignate section 11 as 
section 10.

SEC. 11. REPORTS.

    Amend section 10 (as so redesignated by section 10 of this Act) as 
follows:
            (1) Insert ``(a)(1)'' before ``After the expiration''.
            (2) Insert ``(2)'' before ``The Secretary of the 
        Interior''.
            (3) Add at the end the following:
    ``(b)(1) Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of 
this subsection and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to 
the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives and 
the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate a report 
that contains the following:
            ``(A) The number of acres managed by the Bureau of Land 
        Management for wild free-roaming horses and burros.
            ``(B) The appropriate management levels on public 
        rangelands.
            ``(C) A description of the methods used to determine the 
        appropriate management levels and whether it was applied 
        consistently across the agency;
            ``(D) the number of wild free-roaming horses and burros on 
        public lands;
            ``(E) a description of the methods used to determine the 
        wild free-roaming horse and burro population;
            ``(F) any land acquisitions, exchanges, conservation 
        easements, and voluntary grazing buyouts that the Bureau of 
        Land Management has acquired or pursued for wild free-roaming 
        horses and burros;
            ``(G) any sanctuaries or exclusive use areas established 
        for wild free-roaming horses and burros;
            ``(H) programs established for enhanced surgical or 
        immunocontraception sterilization research and development;
            ``(I) the extent to which fertility control is being used 
        by the Bureau of Land Management to control the population of 
        wild free-roaming horses and burros;
            ``(J) the percentage of the Bureau of Land Management 
        budget devoted to contraception annually;
            ``(K) the ratio of horses the agency has contracepted and 
        put back on the range; and
            ``(L) which herds contraception has been administered and 
        with what results.
    ``(2) Each report submitted under paragraph (1) shall be made 
available to the public on the Website of the Bureau of Land 
Management.''.
                                 <all>