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HR 844 EHRFS
111th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 844
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 3, 2009
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
AN ACT
To amend the provisions of law relating to the John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Grant Program, 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. SHORT TITLE.
SEC. 2. STRANDING AND ENTANGLEMENT RESPONSE.
(a) Collection and Updating of Information- Section 402(b)(1)(A) of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1421a(b)(1)(A)) is amended by inserting ‘or entangled’ after ‘stranded’.
(b) Entanglement Response Agreements-
(1) IN GENERAL- Section 403 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 1421b) is amended--
‘SEC. 403. STRANDING OR ENTANGLEMENT RESPONSE AGREEMENTS.’;
and
(2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT- The table of contents at the end of the first section is amended by striking the item relating to section 403 and inserting the following:
‘Sec. 403. Stranding or entanglement response agreements.’.
(c) Liability- Section 406(a) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 1421e(a)) is amended by inserting ‘or entanglement’ after ‘stranding’.
(d) Entanglement Defined-
(1) IN GENERAL- Section 410 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 1421h) is amended--
(A) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (6) in order as paragraphs (2) through (7); and
(B) by inserting before paragraph (2) (as so redesignated) the following:
‘(1) The term ‘entanglement’ means an event in the wild in which a living or dead marine mammal has gear, rope, line, net, or other material wrapped around or attached to it and is--
‘(A) on a beach or shore of the United States; or
‘(B) in waters under the jurisdiction of the United States.’.
(2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT- Section 408(a)(2)(B)(i) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 1421f-1(a)(2)(B)(i)) is amended by striking ‘section 410(6)’ and inserting ‘section 410(7)’.
(e) John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Grant Program-
(1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR GRANT PROGRAM- Section 408(h) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 1421f-1(h)) is amended--
(A) by striking ‘$5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2003’ and inserting ‘$7,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2010 through 2013’; and
(B) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘$4,000,000’ and inserting ‘$6,000,000’.
(2) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS AND EXPENSES- Section 408 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 1421f-1) is amended--
(A) by adding at the end of subsection (a)(1) the following: ‘All funds available to implement this section shall be distributed to eligible stranding network participants for the purposes set forth in this paragraph and paragraph (2), except as provided in subsection (f).’; and
(B) by amending subsection (f) to read as follows:
‘(f) Administrative Costs and Expenses- Of the amounts available each fiscal year to carry out this section, the Secretary may expend not more than 6 percent or $80,000, whichever is greater, to pay the administrative costs and administrative expenses to implement the grant program under subsection (a). Any such funds retained by the Secretary for a fiscal year for such costs and expenses that are not used for such costs and expenses before the end of the fiscal year shall be provided as grants under subsection (a).’.
(3) EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE- Section 408 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 1421f-1) is amended--
(A) in subsection (a) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3), and by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
‘(2) Subject to the availability of appropriations, the Secretary may also enter into cooperative agreements, contracts, or such other agreements or arrangements as the Secretary considers appropriate to address stranding events requiring emergency assistance.’;
‘(2) Funding for emergency stranding projects shall not be subject to the funding limit established in paragraph (1).’;
(C) in subsection (e)--
(i) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘The non-Federal’ and inserting ‘Except as provided in paragraph (2), the non-Federal’;
(ii) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3); and
(iii) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
‘(2) EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE- No non-Federal contribution shall be required for funding for a response to an emergency stranding event.’; and
(D) in subsection (g) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3) and inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
‘(2) EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE- The term ‘emergency assistance’ means assistance provided for a stranding event that--
‘(A) is not an unusual mortality event as defined in section 409(6);
‘(B) leads to an immediate increase in required costs for stranding response, recovery, or rehabilitation in excess of regularly scheduled costs;
‘(C) may be cyclical or endemic; and
‘(D) may involve out-of-habitat animals.’.
(4) CONTRIBUTIONS- Section 408 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 1421f-1) is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘(i) Contributions- For purposes of carrying out this section, the Secretary may solicit, accept, receive, hold, administer, and use gifts, devises, and bequests.’.
(f) Authorization of Appropriations for Marine Mammal Unusual Mortality Event Fund- Section 409(3) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 1421g(3)) is amended by striking ‘fiscal year 1993’ and inserting ‘each of fiscal years 2010 through 2013’.
Passed the House of Representatives March 2, 2009.
Attest:
Clerk.
111th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 844
AN ACT
To amend the provisions of law relating to the John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Grant Program, and for other purposes
LORRAINE C. MILLER,
Clerk.
U.S. Congress - Text of H.R.844 as Referred in Senate Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Amendments of 2009
