OLD CARA HR 701
PASSED BY HOUSE 5/11/00

NEW CARA HR 701
INTRODUCED 2/14/01

SEC. 601. PURPOSE.

The purpose of this title is to provide a dedicated source of funding for a coordinated program on Federal and Indian lands to restore degraded lands, protect resources that are threatened with degradation, and protect public health and safety.

SEC. 602. TREATMENT OF AMOUNTS TRANSFERRED FROM CONSERVATION AND REINVESTMENT ACT FUND; ALLOCATION.

(a) In General.--Amounts transferred to the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture under section 5(b)(6) of this Act in a fiscal year shall be available without further appropriation to carry out this title. 

(b) Allocation.--Amounts referred to in subsection (a) year shall be allocated and available as follows: 

(1) Department of the interior.--Sixty percent shall be allocated and available to the Secretary of the Interior to carry out the purpose of this title on lands within the National Park System, lands within the National Wildlife Refuge System, and public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management. 

(2) Department of agriculture.--Thirty percent shall be allocated and available to the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out the purpose of this title on lands within the National Forest System. 

(3) Indian tribes.--Ten percent shall be allocated and available to the Secretary of the Interior for competitive grants to qualified Indian tribes under section 603(b).

SEC. 603. AUTHORIZED USES OF TRANSFERRED AMOUNTS.

(a) In General.--Funds made available to carry out this title shall be used solely for restoration of degraded lands, resource protection, maintenance activities related to resource protection, or protection of public health or safety. 

(b) Competitive Grants to Indian Tribes.-- 

(1) Grant authority.--The Secretary of the Interior shall administer a competitive grant program for Indian tribes, giving priority to projects based upon the protection of significant resources, the severity of damages or threats to resources, and the protection of public health or safety. 

(2) Limitation.--The amount received for a fiscal year by a single Indian tribe in the form of grants under this subsection may not exceed 10 percent of the total amount available for that fiscal year for grants under this subsection. 

(c) Priority List.--The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture shall each establish priority lists for the use of funds available under this title. Each list shall give priority to projects based upon the protection of significant resources, the severity of damages or threats to resources, and the protection of public health or safety. 

(d) Compliance With Applicable Plans.--Any project carried out on Federal lands with amounts provided under this title shall be carried out in accordance with all management plans that apply under Federal law to the lands. 

(e) Tracking Results.--Not later than the end of the first full fiscal year for which funds are available under this title, the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture shall jointly establish a coordinated program for-- 

(1) tracking the progress of activities carried out with amounts made available by this title; and 

(2) determining the extent to which demonstrable results are being achieved by those activities.

SEC. 604. INDIAN TRIBE DEFINED.

In this title, the term ``Indian tribe'' means an Indian or Alaska Native tribe, band, nation, pueblo, village, or community that the Secretary of the Interior recognizes as an Indian tribe under section 104 of the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 479a-1).

SEC. 601. PURPOSE.

The purpose of this title is to provide a dedicated source of funding for a coordinated program on Federal and Indian lands to restore degraded lands, protect resources that are threatened with degradation, and protect public health and safety.

SEC. 602. TREATMENT OF AMOUNTS TRANSFERRED FROM CONSERVATION AND REINVESTMENT ACT FUND; ALLOCATION.

(a) IN GENERAL- Amounts transferred to the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture under section 5(b)(6) of this Act in a fiscal year shall be available without further appropriation to carry out this title.

(b) ALLOCATION- Amounts referred to in subsection (a) year shall be allocated and available as follows:

(1) DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR- Sixty percent shall be allocated and available to the Secretary of the Interior to carry out the purpose of this title on lands within the National Park System, lands within the National Wildlife Refuge System, and public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management.

(2) DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE- Thirty percent shall be allocated and available to the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out the purpose of this title on lands within the National Forest System.

(3) INDIAN TRIBES- Ten percent shall be allocated and available to the Secretary of the Interior for competitive grants to qualified Indian tribes under section 603(b).

SEC. 603. AUTHORIZED USES OF TRANSFERRED AMOUNTS.

(a) IN GENERAL- Funds made available to carry out this title shall be used solely for restoration of degraded lands, resource protection, maintenance activities related to resource protection, or protection of public health or safety.

(b) COMPETITIVE GRANTS TO INDIAN TRIBES-

(1) GRANT AUTHORITY- The Secretary of the Interior shall administer a competitive grant program for Indian tribes, giving priority to projects based upon the protection of significant resources, the severity of damages or threats to resources, and the protection of public health or safety.

(2) LIMITATION- The amount received for a fiscal year by a single Indian tribe in the form of grants under this subsection may not exceed 10 percent of the total amount available for that fiscal year for grants under this subsection.

(c) PRIORITY LIST- The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture shall each establish priority lists for the use of funds available under this title. Each list shall give priority to projects based upon the protection of significant resources, the severity of damages or threats to resources, and the protection of public health or safety.

(d) COMPLIANCE WITH APPLICABLE PLANS- Any project carried out on Federal lands with amounts provided under this title shall be carried out in accordance with all management plans that apply under Federal law to the lands.

(e) TRACKING RESULTS- Not later than the end of the first full fiscal year for which funds are available under this title, the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture shall jointly establish a coordinated program for--

(1) tracking the progress of activities carried out with amounts made available by this title; and

(2) determining the extent to which demonstrable results are being achieved by those activities.

SEC. 604. INDIAN TRIBE DEFINED.

In this title, the term `Indian tribe'--

(1) except as provided in paragraph (2), means any federally recognized Indian tribe; and

(2) in the case of Alaska, means only a Native corporation, as that term is defined in section 3 of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1602).

Subtitle A--Farmland Protection Program

SEC. 701. ADDITIONAL FUNDING AND ADDITIONAL AUTHORITIES UNDER FARMLAND PROTECTION PROGRAM.

Section 388 of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-127; 16 U.S.C. 3830 note) is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 388. FARMLAND PROTECTION PROGRAM.

``(a) Establishment and Purpose.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall carry out a farmland protection program for the purpose of protecting farm, ranch, and forest lands with prime, unique, or other productive uses by limiting the nonagricultural uses of the lands. Under the program, the Secretary may provide matching grants to eligible entities described in subsection (d) to facilitate their purchase of-- 

``(1) permanent conservation easements in such lands; or 

``(2) conservation easements or other interests in such lands when the lands are subject to a pending offer from a State or local government. 

``(b) Conservation Plan.--Any highly erodible land for which a conservation easement or other interest is purchased using funds made available under this section shall be subject to the requirements of a conservation plan that requires, at the option of the Secretary of Agriculture, the conversion of the cropland to less intensive uses. 

``(c) Maximum Federal Share.--The Federal share of the cost of purchasing a conservation easement described in subsection (a)(1) may not exceed 50 percent of the total cost of purchasing the easement. 

``(d) Eligible Entity Defined.--In this section, the term `eligible entity' means any of the following: 

``(1) An agency of a State or local government. 

``(2) A federally recognized Indian tribe. 

``(3) Any organization that is organized for, and at all times since its formation has been operated principally for, one or more of the conservation purposes specified in clause (i), (ii), or (iii) of section 170(h)(4)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and-- 

``(A) is described in section 501(c)(3) of the Code;

  ``(B) is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of the Code; and 

``(C) is described in paragraph (2) of section 509(a) of the Code, or paragraph (3) of such section, but is controlled by an organization described in paragraph (2) of such section. 

``(e) Title; Enforcement.--Any eligible entity may hold title to a conservation easement purchased using grant funds provided under subsection (a)(1) and enforce the conservation requirements of the easement. 

``(f) State Certification.--As a condition of the receipt by an eligible entity of a grant under subsection (a)(1), the attorney general of the State in which the conservation easement is to be purchased using the grant funds shall certify that the conservation easement to be purchased is in a form that is sufficient, under the laws of the State, to achieve the purposes of the farmland protection program and the terms and conditions of the grant. 

``(g) Technical Assistance.--To provide technical assistance to carry out this section, the Secretary of Agriculture may not use more than 10 percent of the amount made available for any fiscal year under section 702 of the Conservation and Reinvestment Act of 2000.''.

SEC. 702. FUNDING.

Amounts transferred to the Secretary of Agriculture under section 5(b)(7) of this Act in a fiscal year shall be available to the Secretary of Agriculture, without further appropriation, to carry out-- 

(1) the farmland protection program under section 388 of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-127; 16 U.S.C. 3830 note); 

(2) the Forest Legacy Program under section 7 of the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2103c); and 

(3) the Urban and Community Forestry Assistance Program established under section 9 of the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2105).