Making appropriations for the Department of the Interior, environment, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2017, and for other purposes.
Highlights:
This bill provides FY2017 appropriations for the Department of the Interior, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and related agencies.
The bill provides annual appropriations for most of the Department of the Interior, including:
It does not include funding for the Bureau of Reclamation, which is considered in the Energy and Water Development appropriations bill.
Related agencies funded in the bill include the Department of Agriculture's Forest Service, the Department of Health and Human Service's Indian Health Service (IHS), the Smithsonian Institution, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Humanities.
The bill decreases appropriations for the Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies below FY2016 levels. Compared to FY2016 funding levels, the bill increases funding for Interior, the IHS, and the Smithsonian Institution, while decreasing funding for the EPA and the Forest Service.
Within the Interior budget, the bill increases funding for the NPS, the USGS, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs and Indian Education. The bill decreases funding for the BLM and the USFWS.
The bill also includes several provisions that affect policies in areas such as greenhouse gas emissions, air and water quality, endangered species, and water policy in California.
Full Summary:
Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2017
Provides FY2017 appropriations for the Department of the Interior, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and related agencies.
TITLE I--DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Provides appropriations to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for:
Prohibits appropriations provided by this bill from being used for: (1) the destruction of healthy, unadopted, wild horses and burros in the care of the BLM or its contractors; or (2) the sale of wild horses and burros that results in their destruction for processing into commercial products.
Requires the BLM to approve any use of a right-of-way granted pursuant to the General Railroad Right-of-Way Act of 1875 if the use would have been considered to be within the scope of a railroad's authority under department policy as of the day before the effective date of the department's Solicitor's Opinion M-37025, issued on November 4, 2011.
Provides appropriations to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) for:
Provides appropriations to the National Park Service (NPS) for:
Rescinds FY2017 contract authority provided by the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965.
Permits the NPS to retain specified funds authorized to be disbursed under the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006 for the costs of administration of the Land and Water Conservation Fund grants authorized by the Act.
Permits NPS funds to be transferred to the Federal Highway Administration for the Federal Lands Access Program, which was established to improve transportation facilities that provide access to, are adjacent to, or are located within federal lands.
Provides appropriations to the U.S. Geological Survey for Surveys, Investigations, and Research.
Provides appropriations to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management for Ocean Energy Management.
Provides appropriations to the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement for: (1) Offshore Safety and Environmental Enforcement, and (2) Oil Spill Research.
Provides appropriations to the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement for: (1) Regulation and Technology, and (2) the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund.
Provides appropriations to the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) for:
Permits the BIA to contract for services for the Power Division of the San Carlos Irrigation Project.
Limits the use of funds for contracts, grants, compacts, or cooperative agreements with the BIA under the Indian Self-Determination Act or the Tribal Self-Governance Act of 1994.
Permits tribes to return appropriated funds without diminishing the federal government's trust responsibilities, the government-to-government relationship with the tribe, or the tribe's ability to access future appropriations.
Prohibits the use of BIE funds, other than funds provided for assistance to public schools, for the operation of elementary or secondary schools in Alaska.
Limits the number of schools and the expansion of grade levels in individual schools in the BIE school system.
Specifies the distribution of indirect and administrative costs to certain tribes.
Provides appropriations for Departmental Offices, including:
Provides appropriations for Department-Wide Programs, including:
(Sec. 101) Permits the transfer of funds within bureaus and offices for specified emergencies if: (1) the Secretary of the Interior approves the transfer, (2) funds provided to Interior for emergencies have been exhausted, and (3) funds used under this section are replenished by a supplemental appropriation requested as promptly as possible.
(Sec. 102) Provides for the department-wide expenditure or transfer of funds by Interior in the event of specified emergencies.
(Sec. 103) Permits Interior to use appropriations provided in this title for:
(Sec. 104) Permits the transfer of funds between the BIA, the BIE, and the Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians for Indian trust management and reform activities, provided that total funding for historical accounting activities does not exceed funding provided by this bill for that purpose.
(Sec. 105) Permits Interior to redistribute tribal priority allocation and tribal base funds to alleviate funding inequities to address identified unmet needs, dual enrollment, overlapping service areas, or inaccurate distribution methodologies.
(Sec. 106) Authorizes the acquisition of lands and waters for the purpose of operating and maintaining facilities that support visitors to Ellis, Governors, and Liberty Islands in New Jersey and New York.
(Sec. 107) Requires Interior to collect specified Outer Continental Shelf inspection fees.
(Sec. 108) Permits Interior to transfer funds to implement the reorganization of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement, subject to reprogramming guidelines.
(Sec. 109) Permits Interior to enter into multiyear cooperative agreements and contracts with nonprofits and other entities for the long-term care and maintenance of excess wild horses and burros on private land.
(Sec. 110) Directs the USFWS, in carrying out responsibilities to protect threatened and endangered species of salmon, to implement a system of mass marking of salmonid stocks intended for harvest that are released from federally operated or financed hatcheries.
(Sec. 111) Amends the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2012 to make permanent the requirement that a person exhaust administrative hearings and appeal procedures prior to bringing a civil action challenging BLM decisions concerning grazing on public lands.
(Sec. 112) Prohibits funds from being used to implement, administer, or enforce Secretarial Order No. 3310, which requires the BLM to inventory and protect public lands with wilderness characteristics.
(Sec. 113) Permits the BIA and the BIE in carrying out work involving cooperation with state, local, and tribal governments, to record obligations against accounts receivable from the entities, provided that total obligations at the end of the fiscal year do not exceed total budgetary resources.
(Sec. 114) Prohibits the use of funds to: (1) review or change the status of the greater sage-grouse under the Endangered Species Act (ESA); (2) make, modify, or extend a withdrawal of public lands in any Sagebrush Focal Area in a manner inconsistent with a state management plan for the protection and recovery of the greater sage-grouse; or (3) implement, amend or modify any federal resource management plan in a state with a state management plan, in a manner inconsistent with the state management plan.
(Sec. 115) Prohibits Interior from using funds to review, require approval of, or withhold approval for use of a right-of-way granted pursuant to the General Railroad Right-of-Way Act of 1875 if authorization of the use would have been considered under department policy to be within the scope of a railroad's authority as of the day before the effective date of the department's Solicitor's Opinion M-37025, issued on November 4, 2011.
(Sec. 116) Amends the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act to reconstitute the National Fund for Excellence in American Indian Education for the purposes of supplementing annual appropriations to the Bureau of Indian Education with other federal and private funds.
(Sec. 117) Increases the authorizations of appropriations for the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area and the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor.
(Sec. 118) Requires Interior to expand the use of conservation fish hatchery programs to enhance, supplement, and rebuild delta smelt and other species listed as endangered or threatened species under the USFWS biological opinion regarding the effects of the coordinated operations of the Central Valley Project and the State Water Project in California.
(Sec. 119) Requires Interior to reissue two final rules removing recovered gray wolves in Wyoming and the Great Lakes from the endangered species list. Exempts the reissuances from judicial review.
(Sec. 120) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used for the proposed Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement rule entitled "Stream Protection Rule." (The proposal rule would address the impacts of coal mining on surface water, groundwater, fish, wildlife, and other natural resources by limiting the mining of coal in or through streams, placement of waste in streams, and the generation of mining waste.)
Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to develop, carry out, or implement any guidance, policy, or directive to reinterpret or change the historic interpretation of "material damage to the hydrologic balance outside the permit area" in the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 and specified regulations.
(Sec. 121) Prohibits the NPS from using funds provided by this bill to implement, administer, or enforce a policy to eliminate the sale of water in disposable, recyclable plastic bottles in national parks.
(Sec. 122) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used for the BLM's proposed rule regarding Waste Prevention, Production Subject to Royalties, and Resource Conservation published February 8, 2016. (The proposed rule would require operators to take various actions to reduce the waste of natural gas from venting, flaring, and leaks during oil and natural gas production activities on onshore federal and Indian leases. The rule also specifies when produced gas lost through venting, flaring, or leaks is subject to royalties, and when oil and gas production used on site would be royalty-free.)
(Sec. 123) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to take any action to designate a federal property for inclusion on, or to add a federal property to, the National Register of Historic Places, or to operate or maintain a property on that registry, if the managing agency of the federal property objects to the designation or inclusion.
Specifies that the prohibition does not apply to actions related to a managing agency request for expedited removal of federal property from the National Register of Historic Places for reasons of national security.
(Sec. 124) Prohibits funds from being used to develop, adopt, implement, administer, or enforce any change to regulations and guidance in effect on April 1, 2015, pertaining to drilling margins or static downhole mud weight.
(Sec. 125) Prohibits Interior from using funds for the final rule entitled "Federal Acknowledgment of American Indian Tribes" published on July 1, 2015. (The rule revises the process and criteria that Interior uses to acknowledge an Indian tribe.)
(Sec. 126) Amends federal regulations to include echinoderms commonly known as sea urchins and sea cucumbers in the shellfish and fishery products imported for human or animal consumption or taken in U.S. waters or on the high seas for recreational purposes that may enter or exit at any customs port.
(Sec. 127) Prohibits the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management from using funds to issue, finalize, or implement any final regulations addressing any subject of the proposed rule entitled "Air Quality Control, Reporting, and Compliance" until it:
Requires Interior, prior to issuing the final regulations to: (1) repropose the regulations, (2) provide a comment period of at least 180 days, and (3) delay the effective date of the regulation for at least 180 days after the regulations are published.
TITLE II--ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
Provides appropriations to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for:
Permits the EPA to award cooperative agreements to Indian tribes or intertribal consortia to carry out the agency's function to implement federal environmental programs required or authorized by law in the absence of an acceptable tribal program.
Authorizes the EPA to collect and spend pesticide registration service fees.
Permits the EPA to: (1) transfer funds from the Environmental Programs and Management account to other federal agencies to support the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, and (2) enter into interagency agreements and provide grants to certain entities to support the effort.
Permits specified funds to be used for the construction, alteration, repair, rehabilitation, and renovation of facilities.
Requires the EPA to base policies and actions regarding air emissions from forest biomass on the principle that forest biomass emissions do not increase overall carbon dioxide accumulations in the atmosphere when USDA Forest Inventory and Analysis data show that forest carbon stocks in the United States are stable or increasing on a national scale, or when forest biomass is derived from mill residuals, harvest residuals, or forest management activities.
Requires the EPA to use specified criteria and procedures for reviewing and making decisions regarding aquifer exemptions under the EPA's Underground Injection Control regulations.
Permits the EPA to use funds to make grants to federally recognized Indian tribes notwithstanding certain provisions of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act).
TITLE III--RELATED AGENCIES
Provides appropriations to the Department of Agriculture for the Forest Service, including for:
Permits Forest Service appropriations to be used for:
Permits Forest Service appropriations to be transferred to the Wildland Fire Management account for forest fire fighting, emergency rehabilitation of burned-over or damaged lands or waters, and fire preparedness due to severe burning conditions, provided that USDA notifies Congress that all fire suppression funds will be obligated within 30 days. Requires funds used to be replenished by a supplemental appropriation requested as promptly as possible.
Permits Forest Service appropriations to be used for forest and rangeland research, technical information, and related forestry and natural resources activities in foreign countries.
Permits Forest Service appropriations to be transferred to the BLM for removal, preparation, and adoption of excess wild horses and burros from National Forest System lands, and for surveys to designate the boundaries of the lands.
Prohibits Forest Service appropriations from being transferred using authority provided in several specified statutory provisions.
Prohibits Forest Service appropriations from being reprogrammed except with prior approval of Congress and in accordance with procedures contained in the report accompanying this bill.
Limits transfers to the USDA Working Capital Fund and to USDA for Department Reimbursable Programs (commonly referred to as Greenbook charges).
Limits the use of funds to support the Youth Conservation Corps and the Public Lands Corps.
Permits the Chief of the Forest Service to use specified funds for official reception and representation expenses.
Provides matching funds to aid conservation projects of the National Forest Foundation and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.
Permits funds to be used to provide technical assistance to rural communities and natural resource-based businesses for sustainable rural development purposes.
Permits Forest Service appropriations to be used for payments to counties within the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area.
Permits Forest Service appropriations to be used to meet the non-federal share requirement included in a provision of the Older Americans Act of 1965 related to the older American community service employment program.
Permits specified funds to be assessed for the purpose of performing fire, administrative, and other facilities maintenance and decommissioning.
Permits specified funds to be used to reimburse the USDA Office of the General Counsel for travel and related expenses incurred as a result of assistance or participation requested by the Forest Service at meetings, training sessions, management reviews, land purchase negotiations, and similar non-litigation related matters.
Permits an individual employed under any project funded under Title V of the Older Americans Act of 1965 to be considered a federal employee.
Requires the Forest Service to provide quarterly reports to Congress regarding unobligated balances.
Permits funds provided to the Forest Service to be used to categorically exclude certain forest management activities from documentation in an environmental assessment or an environmental impact statement under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969.
Provides appropriations to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for the Indian Health Service (IHS) including:
Provides appropriations to HHS for: (1) the National Institutes of Health for the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, and (2) the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.
Provides appropriations to Other Related Agencies, including:
TITLE IV--GENERAL PROVISIONS
Sets forth permissible, restricted, and prohibited uses for funds provided by this and other appropriations Acts.
(Sec. 401) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to promote public support or opposition to any legislative proposal before Congress.
(Sec. 402) Prohibits any appropriation contained in this bill from remaining available for obligation beyond the current fiscal year unless expressly permitted in this bill.
(Sec. 403) Restricts administrative assessments and specifies requirements for reprogramming, disclosure of administrative expenses, land acquisitions and exchanges, and operating plans.
(Sec. 404) Prohibits funds from being used to accept or process applications for a patent for any mining or mill site claim located under the general mining laws, subject to exceptions.
(Sec. 405) Extends limits on the use of FY1994-FY2013 and FY2014 funds for contract support costs on Indian contracts.
(Sec. 406) Limits the use of FY2017 funds for contract support costs on Indian contracts.
(Sec. 407) Permits Forest Service land management plans that are more than 15 years old if USDA is acting in good faith to update the plans.
(Sec. 408) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to conduct preleasing, leasing, and related activities under either the Mineral Leasing Act or the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act within the boundaries of a National Monument.
(Sec. 409) Restricts land acquisition funds provided by this bill from being used for declarations of taking or complaints in condemnation without the approval of Congress. Includes an exception for funds provided to implement the Everglades National Park Protection and Expansion Act of 1989, or for Florida to acquire lands for Everglades restoration.
(Sec. 410) Sets forth requirements regarding the sale of timber from a specified region in Alaska.
(Sec. 411) Prohibits no-bid contracts and grants except under certain circumstances where a contract is authorized by federal law or was awarded prior to the date of enactment of this bill.
(Sec. 412) Requires agencies receiving funds in this bill to post on their public websites any report required to be submitted by Congress if it serves the national interest. Includes exceptions for national security or proprietary information.
(Sec. 413) Establishes grant guidelines for the NEA.
(Sec. 414) Establishes priorities for programs administered by the NEA.
(Sec. 415) Directs Interior, the EPA, the Forest Service, and the IHS to provide Congress with quarterly reports on the status of balances of appropriations.
(Sec. 416) Directs the President to submit a comprehensive report to Congress detailing all federal agency funding for climate change programs, projects, and activities in FY2016 and FY2017.
(Sec. 417) Prohibits funds from being used to promulgate or implement any regulation requiring the issuance of permits under the Clean Air Act for carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, water vapor, or methane emissions resulting from biological processes associated with livestock production.
(Sec. 418) Prohibits the use of any funds to implement any provision in a rule that requires mandatory reporting of greenhouse gas emissions from manure management systems.
(Sec. 419) Amends the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2000 to extend the Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission. Prohibits the Commission from issuing a solicitation or contract for construction of the memorial for FY2017.
(Sec. 420) Prohibits funds from being used to regulate the lead content of ammunition, ammunition components, or fishing tackle under the Toxic Substances Control Act or any other law.
(Sec. 421) Extends the authority of the Forest Service to renew certain grazing permits.
(Sec. 422) Amends the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act to extend the authority of federal agencies to establish, collect, and retain fees on federal recreational lands and waters.
(Sec. 423) Amends the Healthy Forest Restoration Act of 2003 to make technical corrections to provisions regarding stewardship contracting.
(Sec. 424) Prohibits the use of funds to maintain or establish a computer network unless the network blocks pornography. Includes an exception for a law enforcement agency or other entity carrying out criminal investigations, prosecution, or adjudication activities.
(Sec. 425) Prohibits the EPA from using funds to develop, adopt, implement, administer, or enforce any change to the regulations in effect on October 1, 2012, pertaining to the definition of the terms "fill material" or "discharge of fill material" for the purposes of the Clean Water Act.
(Sec. 426) Prohibits the EPA from using funds to require a permit under the Clean Water Act for the discharge of dredged or fill material for certain agriculture activities.
(Sec. 427) Prohibits funds from being used to develop, adopt, implement, administer, or enforce any change to the regulations and guidance in effect on October 1, 2012, pertaining to the definition of waters under the jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act including specified rules pertaining to the jurisdiction.
(Sec. 428) Prohibits funds from being used to prohibit the use or access to federal land for hunting, fishing, or recreational shooting except for public safety.
(Sec. 429) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to implement or enforce provisions within the EPA's Lead Renovation, Repair, and Painting Rule until the EPA has approved a commercially available lead test kit or solicits public comment on alternatives.
(Sec. 430) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to implement or enforce any regulation that would establish new financial responsibility requirements pursuant to the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA).
(Sec. 431) Prohibits EPA from using funds provided by this bill to develop, issue, implement, or enforce any greenhouse gas New Source Performance Standards on any new or existing source that is an electric utility generating unit.
(Sec. 432) Requires Interior and USDA to make vacant grazing allotments available to holders of grazing permits or leases if lands covered by the permits or leases or other grazing lands used by the holder are unusable because of drought or wildfire.
(Sec. 433) Prohibits funds from being used to require the transfer of a water right as a condition for the issuance, renewal, amendment, or extension of any permit, approval, license, lease, allotment, easement, right-of-way, or other land use or occupancy agreement.
Prohibits funds from being used to require any water user to apply for or acquire a water right in the name of the United States under state law as a condition of the issuance, renewal, amendment, or extension of any permit, approval, license, lease, allotment, easement, right-of-way, or other land use or occupancy agreement.
(Sec. 434) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used for regulations or guidance under the Clean Air Act that changes the status of any hydrofluorocarbon used as a refrigerant or in foam blowing agents, applications, or uses from acceptable to unacceptable for purposes of the Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) program. (The SNAP program is EPA's program to evaluate and regulate substitutes for ozone-depleting chemicals that are being phased out under the stratospheric ozone protection provisions of the Clean Air Act.)
(Sec. 435) Prohibits any funds made available by a drinking water treatment revolving loan fund as authorized by the Safe Drinking Water Act from being used for a project for the construction, alteration, maintenance, or repair of a public water system or treatment works unless all of the iron and steel products used in the project are produced in the United States, subject to specified exceptions and waiver procedures.
(Sec. 436) Prohibits funds from being used to incorporate the social cost of carbon into any rulemaking or guidance document until a new Interagency Working Group makes specified revisions to the estimates.
(Sec. 437) Prohibits funds from being used to implement or enforce, or to require states to implement enforce, regulations permitting a designated representative of a worker or handler to request access to certain pesticide application and hazard information.
(Sec. 438) Specifies requirements for the implementation of national ambient air quality standards for ozone.
(Sec. 439) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used for:
(Sec. 440) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to implement any changes to royalty rates or product valuation regulations under federal coal, oil, and gas leasing programs.
(Sec. 441) Terminates the requirement for the BLM to complete a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement analyzing potential leasing and management reforms to the federal coal program after the earlier of: (1) September 30, 2017; or (2) the publication of a notice indicating that the statement has been completed.
(Sec. 442) Revises the definition of the National Gallery of Art's (NGA's) buildings and grounds commensurate with the NGA's geographic boundaries.
(Sec. 443) Prohibits the BLM from using funds for a specified rule that revises procedures used to prepare, revise, or amend land use plans until it provides an additional 90-day public comment period and holds public meetings on the proposed rule in specified states.
(Sec. 444) Permits Interior to transfer excess wild horses or burros that have been removed from the public lands to other federal, state, and local agencies for use as work animals. Specifies that any animal transferred loses its status as a wild free-roaming horse or burro. Prohibits any agency receiving the animals from destroying, selling, or otherwise transferring them in a way that results in their destruction for processing into commercial products.
(Sec. 445) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to treat the lesser prairie chicken as an endangered species or threatened species, or a candidate for listing as such a species, under the ESA.
(Sec. 446) Requires the Indian Health Service (IHS), after receiving a request from a tribe or tribes served by a hospital operated by the IHS, to establish a governance board to approve, oversee the implementation of, and evaluate metrics of quality care, patient safety and satisfaction, and finance for the hospital. Requires the board to be comprised of IHS senior executives, elected tribal officials, and hospital administration experts outside of the IHS system.
(In response to the drought in California, Sec. 447 and Sec. 448 require the Bureau of Reclamation to alter pumping restrictions related to certain endangered species. The restrictions govern how much water the federal Central Valley Project [CVP] and the California State Water Project [SWP] can send south of the Sacramento/San Joaquin Delta.)
(Sec. 447) Sets the reverse flow rate of the Old and Middle Rivers (OMR) at -5,000 cubic feet per second unless Reclamation concludes, using the best scientific and commercial data available, that a lower flow rate (less pumping) is necessary to avoid a significant negative impact on the long-term survival of certain species of smelt and salmon.
(Sec. 448) Requires Reclamation and the Department of Commerce to authorize the CVP and the SWP, combined, to operate at levels that result in negative OMR flows at -7,500 cubic feet per second to capture peak flows during storm events unless the action would jeopardize the long-term survival of certain species of smelt and salmon.
(Sec. 449) Sets forth requirements for protecting certain water rights and allocating water if California revokes its consistency determination under California environmental laws between the SWP and the CVP as a result of the provisions of this bill. (A consistency determination applies to threatened and endangered species protected under both federal and California law and determines whether federal actions are consistent with state laws.)
(Sec. 450) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to implement the San Joaquin River Restoration Settlement Agreement.
(Sec. 451) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to purchase water in California to supplement instream flow within a river basin that has suffered a drought within the last two years.
(Sec. 452) Requires Reclamation to work with local water and irrigation districts in the Stanislaus River Basin to ascertain the water storage made available by the Draft Plan of Operations in New Melones Reservoir to maximize water storage and ensure the beneficial use of the water resources in the Stanislaus River Basin.
(Sec. 453) Prohibits funds provided by this bill for the designation of national monuments in specified counties within several states.
(Sec. 454) Establishes a spending reduction account for the amount by which spending proposed in this bill exceeds the subcommittee's allocation under the Congressional Budget Act of 1974. Specifies that the amount is $0. (Under the Rules of the House of Representatives, any savings included in the spending reduction account are not available for further appropriation during consideration of the bill.)
(Sec. 455) Prohibits the EPA from using funds provided by this bill for specified regulations, as proposed to be revised under the proposed rule entitled "Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Fuel Efficiency Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles-Phase 2," with respect to glider kits and glider vehicles.
(Sec. 456) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used for any rule or guidance of the same substance as: (1) the proposed Bureau of Ocean Energy Management rule regarding Risk Management, Financial Assurance and Loss Prevention; or (2) the National Notice to Lessees and Operators of Federal Oil and Gas and Sulphur Leases issued by the bureau.
(Sec. 457) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to enter into a cooperative agreement with or make any grant or loan to establish a national heritage area, national heritage corridor, national heritage canal way, national heritage tour route, national historic district, or cultural heritage corridor within specified counties in Colorado.
(Sec. 458) Prohibits the EPA from using funds provided by this bill to use specified pay authorities provided by the Public Health Service Act to hire or pay the salary of any EPA officer or employee who is not already receiving pay under one of the authorities on the date of enactment of this bill. (The authorities permit certain consultants and scientists to be appointed without regard to civil service laws.)
(Sec. 459) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to propose or develop legislation to redirect specified funds allocated to Gulf producing states (Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas) under the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006.
(Sec. 460) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used for the USFWS rule entitled "Management of Non-Federal Oil and Gas Rights."
(Sec. 461) Prohibits the EPA from using funds provided by this bill to enforce oil pollution prevention requirements with respect to any farm.
(Sec. 462) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used in contravention of provisions under current law that prohibit appropriations from being used for lobbying.
(Sec. 463) Reduces the funds provided by this bill for the EPA's Environmental Programs and Management account and prohibits funds provided for the account from being used for the EPA's Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations.
(Sec. 464) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used for the draft technical report entitled "Protecting Aquatic Life from Effects of Hydrologic Alteration" published by the EPA and the USGS.
(Sec. 465) Prohibits the EPA from using funds provided by this bill for any rule under specified Clean Air Act provisions related to hazardous air pollutants that applies to glass manufacturers that do not use continuous furnaces.
(Sec. 466) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used for the final BLM rule entitled "Hydraulic Fracturing on Federal and Indian Lands."
(Sec. 467) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used for the proposed EPA rule entitled "Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Fuel Efficiency Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles-Phase 2," with respect to trailers.
(Sec. 468) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used for the EPA's proposed rule entitled "Health and Environmental Protection Standards for Uranium and Thorium Mill Tailings."
(Sec. 469) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from be used to enforce certain permit requirements with respect to the export of squid, octopus, and cuttlefish products.
(Sec. 470) Prohibits the EPA from using funds provided by this bill to issue any regulation under the Solid Waste Disposal Act that applies to an animal feeding operation.
(Sec. 471) Reduces the funding provided by this bill for the EPA's Environmental Programs and Management account and provides the funds to the USFWS to reinstate the wolf-livestock loss demonstration program.
(Sec. 472) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used for the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement rule entitled "Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf-Blowout Preventer Systems and Well Control."
(Sec. 473) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from be used for Executive Order No. 13547 (Stewardship of the Ocean, Our Coasts, and the Great Lakes), including the National Ocean Policy developed under the executive order.
(Sec. 474) Prohibits the EPA from using funds provided by this bill to take specified actions in response to the development or implementation of a state's Watershed Implementation Plan for the restoration of the Chesapeake Bay.
(Sec. 475) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to implement or enforce the threatened species or endangered species listing of any plant or wildlife that has not undergone a review at least every five years, as required by the ESA.
(Sec. 476) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to implement or enforce the threatened species listing of the Preble's meadow jumping mouse under the ESA.
(Sec. 477) Prohibits Interior from using funds provided by this bill to treat any gray wolf in any of the 48 contiguous states or the District of Columbia as an endangered species or threatened species under the ESA after June 13, 2017.
(Sec. 478) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used treat the New Mexico meadow jumping mouse as an endangered species under the ESA.
(Sec. 479) Prohibits the EPA from using funds provided by this bill to give formal notification under, or prepare, propose, implement, administer, or enforce any rule or recommendation pursuant to specified provisions of the Clean Air Act regarding air pollution emitted in the United States that may endanger public health or welfare in foreign countries.
(Sec. 480) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used for the proposed EPA rule entitled "Accidental Release Prevention Requirements: Risk Management Programs Under the Clean Air Act."
(Sec. 481) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to carry out any major rule that is issued after the enactment of this bill if the Office of Management and Budget's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs finds that the rule has resulted in or is likely to result in an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more.
(Sec. 482) Prohibits the EPA from using funds provided by this bill to make certain environmental education grants pursuant to National Environmental Education Act.
(Sec. 483) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to destroy any buildings or structures on Midway Island.
(Sec. 484) Prohibits Interior from using funds provided by this bill to destroy any records regarding, related to, or generated by the Inorganic Section of the USGS Energy Geochemistry Laboratory in Lakewood, Colorado.
(Sec. 485) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to consult the National Science Foundation regarding certain requirements under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 or the Endangered Species Act of 1973, with respect to any Environmental Impact Statement prepared pursuant to the "Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement and Initiate Section 106 Consultation for Proposed Changes to Arecibo Observatory Operations, Arecibo, Puerto Rico and Notice of Public Scoping Meetings and Comment Period."
(Sec. 486) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to enforce the decision in Civil Action No. 14-1807 (JDB), U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, issued March 29, 2016. (The court held that the USFWS failed to comply with certain requirements under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1974 in reissuing orders that authorize the killing of double-crested cormorants in certain states.)
(Sec. 487) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used for the proposed rule entitled "Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations on the Outer Continental Shelf-Requirements for Exploratory Drilling on the Arctic Outer Continental Shelf."
(Sec. 488) Prohibits the USFWS from using funds provided by this bill to: (1) issue a final rule for the proposed regulations entitled "Non-Subsistence Take of Wildlife, and Public Participation and Closure Procedures, on National Wildlife Refuges in Alaska," or (2) to implement the final rule entitled "Alaska; Hunting and Trapping in National Preserves."
(Sec. 489) Prohibits Interior from using funds provided by this bill to require changes to an existing placer mining plan of operations with regard to reclamation activities, including revegetation, or to modify the bond requirements for the mining operation.
(Sec. 490) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to lease or purchase new light duty vehicles except in accordance with a specific Presidential Memorandum related to federal fleet performance.
(Sec. 491) Prohibits funds provided by this bill for the National Park Service's National Recreation and Preservation account from being used in contravention of policies under current law for the preservation of historic sites, buildings, and objects of national significance for public use.
(Sec. 492) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to eliminate the Urban Wildlife Refuge Partnership.
(Sec. 493) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to limit outreach programs administered by the Smithsonian Institution.
(Sec. 494) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to: (1) treat the Mexican wolf as an endangered species or threatened species under the ESA, or (2) implement a recovery plan for the species that applies in any area outside the historic range of the species.
(Sec. 495) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used for the proposed EPA rule entitled "Clean Energy Incentive Program Design Details."
(Sec. 496) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to pay legal fees pursuant to a settlement in any case in which the federal government is a party and that arises under the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, or the ESA.
(Sec. 497) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to implement the Final Comprehensive Conservation Plan for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska
(Sec. 498) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to remove Arctic Sales 255, 258, and 262 from the 2017-2022 Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Proposed Program.
(Sec. 499) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to declare national monuments in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the United States established by Presidential Proclamation Numbered 5030, dated March 10, 1983. (An EEZ is the zone where the United States and other coastal nations have jurisdiction over natural resources. A country's EEZ includes waters extending up to 200 nautical miles from its land territory.)
(Sec. 500) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used by a state in contravention of the interstate compact regarding water resources in the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin consented to and approved by Congress.
(Sec. 501) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used for the proposed NPS rule entitled "Special Regulations, Areas of the National Park Service, Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Dog Management."
(Sec. 502) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used to implement, administer, or enforce the modification to boating restrictions contained in the USFWS news release dated May 20, 2015, and entitled ''Minor Modification to Boating Restrictions at Havasu Wildlife Refuge.''
(Sec. 503) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used in contravention of specified provisions of the Clean Air Act that require the EPA to conduct continuing evaluations of the employment effects that may result from certain administrative and enforcement actions.
(Sec. 504) Prohibits funds provided by this bill from being used for a contract with companies convicted, indicted, or charged with certain crimes or that have more than $3,000 in delinquent taxes within a three-year period surrounding the contract.
Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 521.
Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
DEBATE - Pursuant to the provisions of H. Res. 820, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Polis amendment No. 116.
DEBATE - Pursuant to the provisions of H. Res. 820, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Gosar amendment No. 119.
DEBATE - Pursuant to the provisions of H.Res. 820, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Weber amendment No. 120.
DEBATE - Pursuant to the provisions of H. Res. 820, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Gallego amendment No. 122.
POSTPONED PROCEEDINGS - At the conclusion of debate on the Gallego amendment No. 122, the Chair put the question on adoption of the amendment and by voice vote announced that the ayes had prevailed. Mr. Gallego demanded a recorded vote and the Chair postponed further proceedings on the question of adoption of the amendment until a time to be announced.
DEBATE - Pursuant to the provisions of H. Res. 820, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Grayson amendment No. 123.
DEBATE - Pursuant to the provisions of H. Res. 820, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Polis amendment No. 130.
Mr. Calvert moved that the Committee rise.
On motion that the Committee rise Agreed to by voice vote.
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Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union rises leaving H.R. 5538 as unfinished business.
Considered as unfinished business. (consideration: CR H4966-4973)
The House resolved into Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union for further consideration.
The House rose from the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union to report H.R. 5538.
The previous question was ordered pursuant to the rule.
The House adopted the amendment as agreed to by the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union.
Passed/agreed to in House: On passage Passed by the Yeas and Nays: 231 - 196 (Roll no. 477).
Roll Call #477 (House)On passage Passed by the Yeas and Nays: 231 - 196 (Roll no. 477).
Roll Call #477 (House)Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
CHAIR ANNOUNCEMENT - The Chair announced a correction to Roll Call number 472, the yeas were 191 and the nays were 236.
Received in the Senate. Read twice. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 587.