Extinction Prevention Act of 2021

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3396 To create dedicated funds to conserve butterflies in North America, plants in the Pacific Islands, freshwater mussels in the United States, and desert fish in the Southwest United States, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MAY 20, 2021 Mr. GRIJALVA (for himself, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. CASE, Mr. COHEN, Mrs. DINGELL, Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. SABLAN, Mr. SIRES, Mr. SOTO, and Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources A BILL To create dedicated funds to conserve butterflies in North America, plants in the Pacific Islands, freshwater mus- sels in the United States, and desert fish in the South- west United States, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 4 ‘‘Extinction Prevention Act of 2021’’. 5 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 6 this Act is as follows: 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Jul 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3396.IH H3396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 3396 IH Sec. 1. Short title. TITLE I—NORTH AMERICA BUTTERFLY CONSERVATION ACT OF 2021 Sec. 101. Short title. Sec. 102. Purposes. Sec. 103. Definitions. Sec. 104. North America butterfly conservation assistance. Sec. 105. North America Butterfly Conservation Fund. Sec. 106. Authorization of appropriations. Sec. 107. Report to congress. TITLE II—PACIFIC ISLANDS PLANT CONSERVATION FUND ACT OF 2021 Sec. 201. Short title. Sec. 202. Purposes. Sec. 203. Definitions. Sec. 204. Pacific islands plant conservation assistance. Sec. 205. Pacific islands plant conservation fund. Sec. 206. Authorization of appropriations. Sec. 207. Report to congress. TITLE III—FRESHWATER MUSSEL CONSERVATION FUND ACT OF 2021 Sec. 301. Short title. Sec. 302. Purposes. Sec. 303. Definitions. Sec. 304. Freshwater mussel conservation assistance. Sec. 305. Freshwater Mussels Conservation Fund. Sec. 306. Authorization of appropriations. Sec. 307. Report to Congress. TITLE IV—SOUTHWEST DESERT FISH CONSERVATION FUND ACT OF 2021 Sec. 401. Short title. Sec. 402. Purposes. Sec. 403. Definitions. Sec. 404. Southwest desert fish conservation assistance. Sec. 405. Southwest Desert Fish Conservation Fund. Sec. 406. Authorization of appropriations. Sec. 407. Report to Congress. VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Jul 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H3396.IH H3396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 3396 IH TITLE I—NORTH AMERICA BUT- 1 TERFLY CONSERVATION ACT 2 OF 2021 3 SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE. 4 This title may be cited as the ‘‘North America But- 5 terfly Conservation Fund Act of 2021’’. 6 SEC. 102. PURPOSES. 7 The purposes of this title are— 8 (1) to perpetuate healthy populations of butter- 9 flies in North America; 10 (2) to assist in the conservation of threatened 11 and endangered butterflies by supporting conserva- 12 tion initiatives in North America; and 13 (3) to provide financial resources and to foster 14 international cooperation for those initiatives. 15 SEC. 103. DEFINITIONS. 16 In this title: 17 (1) CONSERVATION.—The term ‘‘conservation’’ 18 means the use of all methods and procedures nec- 19 essary to protect habitats of butterflies in North 20 America and of butterflies in those habitats, includ- 21 ing— 22 (A) protection, restoration, and manage- 23 ment of habitats; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Jul 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3396.IH H3396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 3396 IH (B) onsite research and monitoring of pop- 1 ulations, habitats, annual reproduction, and 2 butterfly species population trends; 3 (C) assistance in the development, imple- 4 mentation, and improvement of national and re- 5 gional management plans; 6 (D) enforcement and implementation of 7 applicable conservation laws; and 8 (E) community outreach and education. 9 (2) FUND.—The term ‘‘Fund’’ means the 10 North America Butterfly Conservation Fund estab- 11 lished by section 105. 12 (3) BUTTERFLY.—The terms ‘‘butterfly’’ and 13 ‘‘butterflies’’ mean any member of the order Lepi- 14 doptera. 15 (4) NORTH AMERICA.—The term ‘‘North Amer- 16 ica’’ means the United States, Canada, Mexico, An- 17 tigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, 18 Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, 19 El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, 20 Jamaica, Nicaragua, Panama, Saint Kitts and 21 Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grena- 22 dines, and Trinidad and Tobago. 23 (5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 24 the Secretary of the Interior. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Jul 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3396.IH H3396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 3396 IH SEC. 104. NORTH AMERICA BUTTERFLY CONSERVATION AS- 1 SISTANCE. 2 (a) ASSISTANCE.— 3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the availability of 4 funds and in consultation with other Federal offi- 5 cials, the Secretary shall use amounts in the Fund 6 to provide financial assistance for projects for the 7 conservation of butterflies for which project pro- 8 posals are approved by the Secretary in accordance 9 with this section. 10 (2) USE OF EXISTING AUTHORITIES.—Assist- 11 ance provided under this section shall be carried out 12 in a manner consistent with authorities available to 13 the Secretary under the Endangered Species Act of 14 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). 15 (b) PROJECT PROPOSALS.— 16 (1) ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.—A proposal for a 17 project for the conservation of butterflies may be 18 submitted to the Secretary by— 19 (A) a relevant State or Tribal agency, re- 20 search institution, nonprofit organization, or 21 wildlife management authority in North Amer- 22 ica that— 23 (i) has within its boundaries butterfly 24 habitat; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Jul 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3396.IH H3396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 3396 IH (ii) directly or indirectly affects but- 1 terfly conservation; or 2 (B) any other individual or entity, as de- 3 termined appropriate by the Secretary, with the 4 demonstrated expertise required for the con- 5 servation of butterflies in North America. 6 (2) FEDERAL PARTNERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES.— 7 A Federal agency may not be a lead entity or receive 8 funding for a project under this section, but may be 9 included as a partner or collaborator on a project 10 that receives such funding. 11 (3) REQUIRED ELEMENTS.—A project proposal 12 shall include— 13 (A) a statement of the purposes of the 14 project; 15 (B) the name of the entity or individual 16 with overall responsibility for the project; 17 (C) a description of— 18 (i) the qualifications of the entity or 19 individuals that will conduct the project; 20 (ii) methods for project implementa- 21 tion and outcome assessment; 22 (iii) staffing and stakeholder engage- 23 ment for the project; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Jul 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3396.IH H3396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 3396 IH (iv) the logistics of the project, includ- 1 ing cost estimates and timelines; 2 (v) anticipated outcomes; and 3 (vi) mechanisms to encourage ade- 4 quate local public participation in project 5 development and implementation; 6 (D) assurances that the project will be im- 7 plemented in consultation with relevant wildlife 8 management authorities, Tribes, and other ap- 9 propriate government officials; 10 (E) evidence of free, informed, and prior 11 consent by indigenous communities in the areas 12 the project will be conducted, if the Secretary 13 determines that such consent is required for the 14 success of the project; 15 (F) demonstrated sensitivity to local his- 16 toric and cultural resources and compliance 17 with applicable laws; 18 (G) information that demonstrates the po- 19 tential of the project to contribute to the con- 20 servation of butterfly populations in North 21 America; 22 (H) evidence of support for the project by 23 appropriate governmental entities of the coun- 24 tries, Tribes, and indigenous communities in 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Jul 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3396.IH H3396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 3396 IH which the project will be conducted, if the Sec- 1 retary determines that such support is required 2 for the success of the project; 3 (I) information regarding the source and 4 amount of matching funding available for the 5 project; and 6 (J) such other information as the Sec- 7 retary may require. 8 (c) PROJECT REVIEW AND APPROVAL.— 9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall— 10 (A) not later than 30 days after receiving 11 a project proposal, provide a copy of the pro- 12 posal to other Federal officials, as appropriate; 13 and 14 (B) review each project proposal in a time- 15 ly manner to determine whether the proposal 16 meets the criteria specified in subsection (d). 17 (2) CONSULTATION; APPROVAL OR DIS- 18 APPROVAL.—Not later than 180 days after receiving 19 a project proposal, and subject to the availability of 20 funds, the Secretary, after consulting with other 21 Federal officials, as appropriate, shall— 22 (A) consult on the proposal with the gov- 23 ernment of each country in which the project is 24 to be conducted; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Jul 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3396.IH H3396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 3396 IH (B) after taking into consideration any 1 comments resulting from the consultation, ap- 2 prove or disapprove the project proposal; and 3 (C) provide written notification of the ap- 4 proval or disapproval to the person that sub- 5 mitted the project proposal, such other Federal 6 officials, and each country described in sub- 7 paragraph (A). 8 (d) CRITERIA FOR APPROVAL.— 9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may approve 10 a project proposal under this section if the project 11 will help recover and sustain viable populations of 12 butterflies in the wild by assisting efforts in North 13 America to implement butterfly conservation pro- 14 grams. 15 (2) PRIORITY.—In selecting projects for assist- 16 ance, the Secretary shall give preference to projects 17 that conserve threatened and endangered species 18 protected by the Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 19 1531 et seq.). 20 (3) PROJECT SUSTAINABILITY.—To the max- 21 imum extent practicable, in determining whether to 22 approve project proposals under this section, the 23 Secretary shall give preference to conservation 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Jul 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3396.IH H3396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 3396 IH projects that are designed to ensure effective, long- 1 term conservation of butterflies and their habitats. 2 (4) MATCHING FUNDS.—In determining wheth- 3 er to approve project proposals under this section, 4 the Secretary shall give preference to projects for 5 which matching funds are available. 6 (5) WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive the ap- 7 plication of paragraphs (2), (3), and (4) if the Sec- 8 retary finds that such waiver is necessary to support 9 a conservation project that the Secretary has identi- 10 fied as of high priority. 11 (e) PROJECT REPORTING.— 12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each person that receives 13 assistance under this section for a project shall sub- 14 mit to the Secretary periodic reports (at such inter- 15 vals as the Secretary may require) that include all 16 information that the Secretary, after consultation 17 with other government officials, determines is nec- 18 essary to evaluate the progress and success of such 19 project for the purposes of ensuring positive results, 20 assessing problems, and fostering improvements. 21 (2) AVAILABILITY TO THE PUBLIC.—Reports 22 under paragraph (1), and any other documents re- 23 lating to projects for which financial assistance is 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Jul 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3396.IH H3396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 3396 IH provided under this title, shall be made available to 1 the public. 2 SEC. 105. NORTH AMERICA BUTTERFLY CONSERVATION 3 FUND. 4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 5 Treasury a separate account, to be known as the ‘‘North 6 America Butterfly Conservation Fund’’, consisting of— 7 (1) amounts transferred to the Secretary of the 8 Treasury for deposit into the Fund under subsection 9 (e); 10 (2) amounts appropriated to the Fund under 11 section 106; and 12 (3) any interest earned on investment of 13 amounts in the Fund under subsection (c). 14 (b) EXPENDITURES FROM FUND.— 15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), at 16 the request of the Secretary, the Secretary of the 17 Treasury shall transfer from the Fund to the Sec- 18 retary, without further appropriation, such amounts 19 as the Secretary determines are necessary to carry 20 out section 104. 21 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Of the 22 amounts in the account available for each fiscal 23 year, the Secretary may expend not more than 3 24 percent, or up to $80,000, whichever is greater, to 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Jul 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3396.IH H3396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 3396 IH pay the administrative expenses necessary to carry 1 out this title. 2 (c) INVESTMENT OF AMOUNTS.— 3 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Treas- 4 ury shall invest such portion of the Fund as is not, 5 in the judgment of the Secretary of the Treasury, 6 required to meet current withdrawals. Investments 7 may be made only in interest-bearing obligations of 8 the United States. 9 (2) ACQUISITION OF OBLIGATIONS.—For the 10 purpose of investments under paragraph (1), obliga- 11 tions may be acquired— 12 (A) on original issue at the issue price; or 13 (B) by purchase of outstanding obligations 14 at market price. 15 (3) SALE OF OBLIGATIONS.—Any obligation ac- 16 quired by the Fund may be sold by the Secretary of 17 the Treasury at market price. 18 (4) CREDITS TO FUND.—The interest on, and 19 the proceeds from the sale or redemption of, any ob- 20 ligations held in the Fund shall be credited to and 21 form a part of the Fund. 22 (d) TRANSFERS OF AMOUNTS.— 23 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amounts required to be 24 transferred to the Fund under this section shall be 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Jul 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3396.IH H3396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 13 [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]