[Senate Report 109-125]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                       Calendar No. 196
109th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session                                                    109-125

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AMEND THE PITTMAN-ROBERTSON WILDLIFE RESTORATION ACT TO EXTEND THE DATE 
   AFTER WHICH SURPLUS FUNDS IN THE WILDLIFE RESTORATION FUND BECOME 
                      AVAILABLE FOR APPORTIONMENT.

                                _______
                                

                August 31, 2005.--Ordered to be printed

   Filed, under authority of the order of the Senate of July 29, 2005

                                _______
                                

    Mr. Inhofe, from the Committee on Environment and Public Works, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 1340]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Environment and Public Works, to which was 
referred a bill (S. 1340) to amend the Pittman-Robertson 
Wildlife Restoration Act to extend the date after which surplus 
funds in the wildlife restoration fund become available for 
apportionment, having considered the same, reports favorably 
thereon without amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.

                    General Statement and Background

    Section 7 of the North American Wetlands Conservation Act 
of 1989 (NAWCA) amended the Pittman-Robertson Act to provide 
the authority to invest in interest-bearing obligations of the 
United States, and to use the realized interest to fund 
projects carried out under NAWCA. The authority to use these 
funds to support NAWCA is set to expire on September 30, 2005, 
unless extended.
    Although NAWCA itself was most recently reauthorized in 
2002, this funding provision was not addressed at that time, or 
during any other NAWCA reauthorization since 1989, because it 
did not affect whether the NAWCA program itself could be 
reauthorized, but rather specifies a particular source of 
funding to support the program and had not yet reached its 
expiration date. Since the original 1989 Act specified that the 
use of interest provision continued through the end of fiscal 
year 2005, Congress has needed to address an extension of this 
specific provision before this time. Through 2005, this funding 
source has provided $235 million, or approximately one-third of 
the Federal funds that have been devoted to NAWCA. This $235 
million has attracted another $634 million in matching funds 
from other sources.

                     Objectives of the Legislation

    S. 1340 will extend the existing authority to spend 
interest from the Pittman-Robertson fund to support NAWCA 
projects through fiscal year 2016.

                      Section-by-Section Analysis


Section 1. Availability of Surplus Funds in Wildlife Restoration Fund.

    This section changes the date in the Pittman-Robertson 
Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669b(b)(2)(C)) from 
``2006'' to ``2016''.

                          Legislative History

    On June 30, 2005, Senator James M. Inhofe introduced S. 
1340, which was cosponsored by Senator James Jeffords and 
Senator Mike Crapo. The bill was referred to the Senate 
Committee on Environment and Public Works. On July 20, 2005, 
the full committee held a business meeting and unanimously 
ordered S. 1340 to be favorably reported without amendment to 
the full Senate.

                                Hearings

    No committee hearings were held on S. 1340.

                             Rollcall Votes

    The Committee on Environment and Public Works met to 
consider S. 1340 on July 20, 2005. The committee approved S. 
1340 by unanimous consent.

                      Regulatory Impact Statement

    In compliance with section 11(b) of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the committee finds that S. 1340 
does not create any additional regulatory burdens, nor will it 
cause any adverse impact on the personal privacy of 
individuals.

                          Mandates Assessment

    In compliance with the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 
(Public Law 104-4), the committee finds that S. 1340 would not 
impose Federal intergovernmental unfunded mandates on State, 
local, or tribal governments.

                          Cost of Legislation

    Section 403 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment 
Control Act requires that a statement of the cost of the 
reported bill, prepared by the Congressional Budget Office, be 
included in the report. That statement follows:
                              ----------                              


S. 1340, A bill to amend the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration 
        Act, to extend the date after which surplus funds in the 
        wildlife restoration fund become available for apportionment, 
        As ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Environment and 
        Public Works on July 20, 2005

    S. 1340 would extend through fiscal year 2016 the authority 
to use certain amounts in the Federal aid to wildlife 
restoration fund (known as the P-R fund) for waterfowl 
conservation grants carried out under the North American 
Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA). Enacting S. 1340 would have 
no effect on the Federal budget because the amounts that the 
bill would make available for NAWCA grants (estimated to be 
between $10 million and $30 million annually over the next 10 
years) will be spent for other grant programs in the absence of 
this legislation.
    Under the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act 
(Pittman-Robertson Act), excise taxes collected on certain 
hunting equipment are deposited into the P-R fund and are 
available without further appropriation for grants to States. 
The Pittman-Robertson Act requires that interest earned through 
fiscal year 2005 on balances in that fund be used to finance 
waterfowl conservation projects authorized under NAWCA. After 
2005, such earnings will become available for wildlife 
conservation grants under the Pittman-Robertson Act; S. 1340 
would make them available, instead, for waterfowl conservation 
grants. Because the interest earnings will be spent without 
further appropriation action for one grant program or the 
other, CBO estimates that enacting this legislation would have 
no net effect on Federal spending. Enacting S. 1340 would not 
affect other direct spending programs or revenues.
    The bill contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would impose no costs on State, local, or tribal governments.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis. 
This estimate was approved by Robert A. Sunshine, Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.

                        Changes in Existing Law

    In compliance with section 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 
Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by the bill 
as reported are shown as follows: Existing law proposed to be 
omitted is enclosed in [black brackets], new matter is printed 
in italic, existing law in which no change is proposed is shown 
in roman:
                              ----------                              


                       [16 U.S.C. 669B(B)(2)(C)]

                         TITLE 16--CONSERVATION


                    CHAPTER 5B--WILDLIFE RESTORATION


SEC. 669B. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS

    (a) In General.-- * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

    (b) Investment of Unexpended Amounts.--
            (1) The Secretary of the Treasury shall invest in 
        interest-bearing obligations of the United States such 
        portion of the fund as is not, in his judgment, 
        required for meeting a current year's withdrawals. For 
        purposes of such investment, the Secretary of the 
        Treasury may--
                    (A) acquire obligations at the issue price 
                and purchase outstanding obligations at the 
                market price; and
                    (B) sell obligations held in the fund at 
                the market price.
            (2) The interest on obligations held in the fund--
                    (A) shall be credited to the fund;
                    (B) constitute the sums available for 
                allocation by the Secretary under section 4407 
                of this title;
                    (C) shall become available for 
                apportionment under this chapter at the 
                beginning of fiscal year [2006] 2016.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                                  
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