SEC. 701. PURPOSE.

• The purpose of this subtitle is to provide a dedicated source of funding to the Secretary of the Interior for programs to provide matching grants to certain eligible entities to facilitate the purchase of permanent conservation easements in order to--

• • (1) protect the ability of these lands to maintain their traditional uses; and

• • (2) prevent the loss of their value to the public because of development that is inconsistent with their traditional uses.

SEC. 702. TREATMENT OF AMOUNTS TRANSFERRED FROM CONSERVATION AND REINVESTMENT ACT FUND.

• Amounts transferred to the Secretary of the Interior under section 5(b)(7)(A) in a fiscal year shall be available to the Secretary of the Interior without further appropriation, in that fiscal year, to carry out this subtitle.

SEC. 703. AUTHORIZED USES OF TRANSFERRED AMOUNTS.

• The Secretary of the Interior may use the amounts available under section 702 for the Conservation Easement Program established by section 704.

SEC. 704. CONSERVATION EASEMENT PROGRAM.

• (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED; PURPOSE- The Secretary the Interior shall establish and carry out a program, to be known as the `Conservation Easement Program', under which the Secretary shall provide grants to eligible entities described in subsection (c) to provide the Federal share of the cost of purchasing permanent conservation easements in land with prime, unique, or other productive uses.

  (b) FEDERAL SHARE- The Federal share of the cost of purchasing a conservation easement described in subsection (a) may not exceed 50 percent of the total cost of purchasing the easement.

  (c) 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.

• (d) TITLE; ENFORCEMENT- Any eligible entity may hold title to a conservation easement described in subsection (a) and enforce the conservation requirements of the easement.

  (e) STATE CERTIFICATION- As a condition of the receipt by an eligible entity of a grant under subsection (a), 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 conservation purpose of the Conservation Easement Program and the terms and conditions of the grant.

  (f) CONSERVATION PLAN- Any land for which a conservation easement is purchased under this section shall be subject to the requirements of a conservation plan to the extent that the plan does not negate or adversely affect the restrictions contained in the easement.

  (g) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE- The Secretary of the Interior may not use more than 10 percent of the amount that is made available for any fiscal year under this program to provide technical assistance to carry out this section.