S 1149 — Recovering America’s Wildlife Act of 2023

As used in this chapter— (1) the term “conservation” means the use of methods and procedures necessary or desirable to sustain healthy populations of wildlife, including all activities associated with scientific resources management such as research, census, monitoring of populations, acquisition, improvement and management of habitat, live trapping and transplantation, wildlife damage management, and periodic or total protection of a species or population, as well as the taking of individuals within wildlife stock or population if permitted by applicable State and Federal law; (2) for the purposes of determining the number of paid hunting-license holders in a State, the term “fiscal year” means the fiscal year or license year of the State; (3) the term “hunter recruitment and recreational shooter recruitment” means any activity or project to recruit or retain hunters and recreational shooters, including by— (A) outreach and communications as a means— (i) to improve communications with hunters, recreational shooters, and the general public with respect to hunting and recreational shooting opportunities; (ii) to reduce barriers to participation in these activities; (iii) to advance the adoption of sound hunting and recreational shooting practices; (iv) to promote conservation and the responsible use of the wildlife resources of the United States; and (v) to further safety in hunting and recreational shooting; (B) providing education, mentoring, and field demonstrations; (C) enhancing access for hunting and recreational shooting, including through range construction; and (D) providing education to the public about the role of hunting and recreational shooting in funding wildlife conservation; (4) the term “public target range” means a specific location that— (A) is identified by a governmental agency for recreational shooting; (B) is open to the public; (C) may be supervised; and (D) may accommodate archery or rifle, pistol, or shotgun shooting; (5) the term “Secretary” means the Secretary of the Interior; (6) the term “State fish and game department” or “State fish and wildlife department” means any department or division of department of another name, or commission, or official or officials, of a State empowered under its laws to exercise the functions ordinarily exercised by a State fish and game department or State fish and wildlife department.1 (7) the term “wildlife” means any species of wild, free-ranging fauna including fish, and also fauna in captive breeding programs the object of which is to reintroduce individuals of a depleted indigenous species into previously occupied range; (8) the term “wildlife-associated recreation” means projects intended to meet the demand for outdoor activities associated with wildlife including, but not limited to, hunting and fishing, wildlife observation and photography, such projects as construction or restoration of wildlife viewing areas, observation towers, blinds, platforms, land and water trails, water access, field trialing, trail heads, and access for such projects; (9) the term “wildlife conservation and restoration program” means a program developed by a State fish and wildlife department and approved by the Secretary under section 669c(d) 2 of this title, the projects that constitute such a program, which may be implemented in whole or part through grants and contracts by a State to other State, Federal, or local agencies (including those that gather, evaluate, and disseminate information on wildlife and their habitats), wildlife conservation organizations, and outdoor recreation and conservation education entities from funds apportioned under this chapter,2 and maintenance of such projects; (10) the term “wildlife conservation education” means projects, including public outreach, intended to foster responsible natural resource stewardship; and (11) the term “wildlife-restoration project” includes the wildlife conservation and restoration program and means the selection, re...

(a) In general (1) An amount equal to all revenues accruing each fiscal year (beginning with the fiscal year 1975) from any tax imposed on specified articles by sections 4161(b) and 4181 of title 26, shall, subject to the exemptions in section 4182 of such title, be covered into the Federal aid to wildlife restoration fund in the Treasury (hereinafter referred to as the “fund”) and is authorized to be appropriated and made available until expended to carry out the purposes of this chapter. So much of such appropriations apportioned to any State for any fiscal year as remains unexpended at the close thereof is authorized to be made available for expenditure in that State until the close of the succeeding fiscal year. Any amount apportioned to any State under the provisions of this chapter which is unexpended or unobligated at the end of the period during which it is available for expenditure on any project is authorized to be made available for expenditure by the Secretary of the Interior in carrying out the provisions of the Migratory Bird Conservation Act [16 U.S.C. 715 et seq.]. (2) There is established in the Federal aid to wildlife restoration fund a subaccount to be known as the “Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Account”. There are authorized to be appropriated for the purposes of the Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Account $50,000,000 in fiscal year 2001 for apportionment in accordance with this chapter to carry out State wildlife conservation and restoration programs. Further, interest on amounts transferred shall be treated in a manner consistent with 16 U.S.C. 669(b)(1)).1 (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; and (C) shall become available for apportionment under this chapter at the beginning of fiscal year 2033. (c) Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Account (1) Amounts transferred to the Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Account shall supplement, but not replace, existing funds available to the States from the sport fish restoration account and wildlife restoration account and shall be used for the development, revision, and implementation of wildlife conservation and restoration programs and should be used to address the unmet needs for a diverse array of wildlife and associated habitats, including species that are not hunted or fished, for wildlife conservation, wildlife conservation education, and wildlife-associated recreation projects. Such funds may be used for new programs and projects as well as to enhance existing programs and projects. (2) Funds may be used by a State or an Indian tribe for the planning and implementation of its wildlife conservation and restoration program and wildlife conservation strategy, as provided in sections 669c(d) and (e) of this title, including wildlife conservation, wildlife conservation education, and wildlife-associated recreation projects. Such funds may be used for new programs and projects as well as to enhance existing programs and projects. (3) Priority for funding from the Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Account shall be for those species with the greatest conservation need as defined by the State wildlife conservation and restoration program. (d) Obligation of amounts in State Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b) of this section, with respect to amounts transferred to the Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Account, so much of ...

(a) Set-aside for expenses for administration of this chapter (1) In general (A) Set-aside For fiscal year 2001 and each fiscal year thereafter, of the revenues (excluding interest accruing under section 669b(b) of this title) covered into the fund for the fiscal year, the Secretary of the Interior may use not more than the available amount specified in subparagraph (B) for the fiscal year for expenses for administration incurred in implementation of this chapter, in accordance with this subsection and section 669h of this title. (B) Available amounts The available amount referred to in subparagraph (A) is— (i) for the fiscal year that includes November 15, 2021, the product obtained by multiplying— (I) $12,786,434; and (II) the change, relative to the preceding fiscal year, in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers published by the Department of Labor; and (ii) for each fiscal year thereafter, the sum obtained by adding— (I) the available amount specified in this subparagraph for the preceding fiscal year; and (II) the product obtained by multiplying— (aa) the available amount specified in this subparagraph for the preceding fiscal year; and (bb) the change, relative to the preceding fiscal year, in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers published by the Department of Labor. (2) Period of availability; apportionment of unobligated amounts (A) Period of availability For each fiscal year, the available amount under paragraph (1) shall remain available for obligation for use under that paragraph until the end of the subsequent fiscal year. (B) Apportionment of unobligated amounts (i) In general Not later than 60 days after the end of a fiscal year, the Secretary of the Interior shall apportion among the States any of the available amount under paragraph (1) that remained available for obligation pursuant to subparagraph (A) during that fiscal year and remains unobligated at the end of that fiscal year. (ii) Requirement The available amount apportioned under clause (i) shall be apportioned on the same basis and in the same manner as other amounts made available under this chapter were apportioned among the States for the fiscal year in which the amount was originally made available. (b) Apportionment to States The Secretary of the Interior, after deducting the available amount under subsection (a), the amount apportioned under subsection (c), any amount apportioned under section 669g–1 of this title, and amounts provided as grants under sections 669h–1 and 669h–2 of this title, shall apportion the remainder of the revenue in said fund for each fiscal year among the several States in the following manner: One-half in the ratio which the area of each State bears to the total area of all the States, and one-half in the ratio which the number of paid hunting-license holders of each State in the second fiscal year preceding the fiscal year for which such apportionment is made, as certified to said Secretary by the State fish and game departments, bears to the total number of paid hunting-license holders of all the States. Such apportionments shall be adjusted equitably so that no State shall receive less than one-half of 1 per centum nor more than 5 per centum of the total amount apportioned. The term fiscal year as used in this chapter shall be a period of twelve consecutive months from October 1 through the succeeding September 30, except that the period for enumeration of paid hunting-license holders shall be a State’s fiscal or license year. (c) Apportionment of revenues from pistols, revolvers, bows, and arrows (1) In general Subject to paragraph (2), ½ of the revenues accruing to the fund under this chapter each fiscal year (beginning with the fiscal year 1975) from any tax imposed on pistols, revolvers, bows, and arrows shall be apportioned among the States in proportion to the ratio that the population of each State bears to the population of all the States. (2) Condition The amount apportioned to each S...