Greater Sage Grouse Protection and Recovery Act of 2016
This bill delays findings by the Department of the Interior with respect to the greater sage grouse under the Endangered Species Act until September 30, 2026.
Additionally, Interior and the Department of Agriculture (USDA) are prohibited from amending any federal resource management plans that affect the greater sage grouse in a state in which the governor has notified Interior or USDA that a state management plan is in place.
[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4739 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
114th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 4739
To provide for the conservation and preservation of the Greater Sage
Grouse by facilitating State recovery plans.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 15, 2016
Mr. Bishop of Utah (for himself, Mr. Simpson, Mrs. Lummis, Mr. Amodei,
Mr. Bridenstine, Mr. Weber of Texas, Mr. Gosar, Mr. Duncan of South
Carolina, Mr. Lamborn, Mr. Stewart, Mr. Hardy, Mr. Zinke, Mr. Hurd of
Texas, Mr. Cook, and Mr. Chaffetz) introduced the following bill; which
was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for the conservation and preservation of the Greater Sage
Grouse by facilitating State recovery plans.
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 ``Greater Sage Grouse Protection and
Recovery Act of 2016''.
SEC. 2. PROTECTION AND RECOVERY OF GREATER SAGE GROUSE.
(a) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Federal resource management plan.--The term ``Federal
resource management plan'' means--
(A) a land use plan prepared by the Bureau of Land
Management for public lands pursuant to section 202 of
the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43
U.S.C. 1712); or
(B) a land and resource management plan prepared by
the Forest Service for National Forest System lands
pursuant to section 6 of the Forest and Rangeland
Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C.
1604).
(2) Greater sage grouse.--The term ``Greater Sage Grouse''
means a sage grouse of the species Centrocercus urophasianus.
(3) State management plan.--The term ``State management
plan'' means a State-approved plan for the protection and
recovery of the Greater Sage Grouse.
(b) Purpose.--The purpose of this section is--
(1) to facilitate implementation of State management plans
over a period of multiple, consecutive Greater Sage Grouse life
cycles; and
(2) to demonstrate the efficacy of the State management
plans for the protection and recovery of the Greater Sage
Grouse.
(c) Delay in Making Endangered Species Act of 1973 Finding.--
(1) Delay required.--In the case of any State with a State
management plan, the Secretary of the Interior may not make a
finding under clause (i), (ii), or (iii) of section 4(b)(3)(B)
of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1533(b)(3)(B))
with respect to the Greater Sage Grouse in that State before
September 30, 2026.
(2) Effect on other laws.--The delay imposed by paragraph
(1) is, and shall remain, effective without regard to any other
statute, regulation, court order, legal settlement, or any
other provision of law or in equity.
(3) Effect on conservation status.--Until the date
specified in paragraph (1), the conservation status of the
Greater Sage Grouse shall remain not warranted for listing
under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et
seq.).
(d) Coordination of Federal Land Management and State Management
Plans.--
(1) Prohibition on withdrawals and modifications of federal
resource management plans.--In order to foster coordination
between a State management plan and Federal resource management
plans that affect the Greater Sage Grouse, upon notification by
the Governor of a State with a State management plan, the
Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture, as
applicable, may not exercise authority under section 204 of the
Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1714)
to make, modify, or extend any withdrawal, nor amend or
otherwise modify any Federal resource management plan
applicable to Federal land in the State, in a manner
inconsistent with the State management plan for a period, to be
specified by the Governor in the notification, of at least five
years beginning on the date of the notification.
(2) Retroactive effect.--In the case of any State that
provides notification under paragraph (1), if any withdrawal
was made, modified, or extended or if any amendment or
modification of a Federal resource management plan applicable
to Federal lands in the State was issued during the three-year
period preceding the date of the notification and the
withdrawal, amendment, or modification altered management of
the Greater Sage Grouse or its habitat, implementation and
operation of the withdrawal, amendment, or modification shall
be stayed to the extent that the withdrawal, amendment, or
modification is inconsistent with the State management plan.
The Federal resource management plan, as in effect immediately
before the amendment or modification, shall apply instead with
respect to management of the Greater Sage Grouse and its
habitat, to the extent consistent with the State management
plan.
(3) Determination of inconsistency.--Any disagreement
regarding whether a withdrawal, or an amendment or other
modification of a Federal resource management plan, is
inconsistent with a State management plan shall be resolved by
the Governor of the affected State.
(e) Relation to National Environmental Policy Act of 1969.--With
regard to any major Federal action consistent with a State management
plan, any findings, analyses, or conclusions regarding the Greater Sage
Grouse or its habitat under section 102(2)(C) of the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)) shall not have
a preclusive effect on the approval or implementation of the major
Federal action in that State.
(f) Reporting Requirement.--Not later than one year after the date
of the enactment of this Act and annually thereafter through 2026, the
Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture shall
jointly submit to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the
Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of
Representatives a report on the Secretaries' implementation and
effectiveness of systems to monitor the status of Greater Sage Grouse
on Federal lands under their jurisdiction.
(g) Judicial Review.--Notwithstanding any other provision of
statute or regulation, the requirements and implementation of this
section, including determinations made under subsection (d)(3), are not
subject to judicial review.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
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