H.R. 1829 – Nutria Eradication and Control Act of 2011

112th CONGRESS

1st Session

H. R. 1829

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

May 11, 2011

Mr. Boustany introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources

A BILL

To provide for the eradication and control of nutria.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Nutria Eradication and Control Act of 2011.

Findings; purpose

Section 2 of the Nutria Eradication and Control Act of 2003 (Public Law 108–16; 117 Stat. 621) is amended—

(1)

in subsection (a)—

(A)

in paragraph (1), by striking and in Louisiana and inserting , the State of Louisiana, and other coastal States;

(B)

in paragraph (2), by striking in Maryland and Louisiana on Federal, State, and private land and inserting on Federal, State, and private land in the States of Maryland and Louisiana and in other coastal States; and

(C)

by striking paragraphs (3) and (4) and inserting the following:

(3)

This Act authorizes the Maryland Nutria Project, which has successfully eradicated nutria from more than 130,000 acres of Chesapeake Bay wetlands in the State of Maryland and facilitated the creation of voluntary, public-private partnerships and more than 406 cooperative landowner agreements.

(4)

This Act and the Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection, and Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 3951 et seq.) authorize the Coastwide Nutria Control Program, which has reduced nutria-impacted wetland acres in the State of Louisiana from 80,000 acres to 23,141 acres.

(5)

The proven techniques developed under this Act that are eradicating nutria in the State of Maryland and reducing the acres of nutria-impacted wetlands in the State of Louisiana should be applied to nutria eradication or control programs in other nutria-infested coastal States

; and

(2)

by striking subsection (b) and inserting the following:

(b)

Purpose

The purpose of this Act is to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to provide financial assistance to the States of Delaware, Louisiana, Maryland, North Carolina, Oregon, Virginia, and Washington to carry out activities—

(1)

to eradicate or control nutria; and

(2)

to restore nutria damaged wetlands.

Definitions

The Nutria Eradication and Control Act of 2003 (Public Law 108–16; 117 Stat. 621) is amended—

(1)

by redesignating sections 3 and 4 as sections 4 and 5, respectively; and

(2)

by inserting after section 2 the following:

Definitions

In this Act:

(1)

Coastal State

The term coastal State means each of the States of Delaware, Oregon, North Carolina, Virginia, and Washington.

(2)

Program

The term program means the nutria eradication program established by section 4(a).

(3)

Public-private partnership

The term public-private partnership means a voluntary, cooperative project undertaken by governmental entities or public officials and affected communities, local citizens, nongovernmental organizations, or other entities or persons in the private sector.

(4)

Secretary

The term Secretary means the Secretary of the Interior.

Nutria eradication program

Section 4 of the Nutria Eradication and Control Act of 2003 (Public Law 108–16; 117 Stat. 621) (as redesignated by section 3) is amended—

(1)

by striking subsection (a) and inserting the following:

(a)

In general

The Secretary may, subject to the availability of appropriations, provide financial assistance to the States of Maryland and Louisiana and the coastal States to implement measures—

(1)

to eradicate or control nutria; and

(2)

to restore wetlands damaged by nutria.

;

(2)

in subsection (b)—

(A)

in paragraph (1), by inserting the State of before Maryland;

(B)

in paragraph (2), by striking other States and inserting the coastal States; and

(C)

in paragraph (3), by striking marshland and inserting wetlands;

(3)

in subsection (c)—

(A)

by striking (c) Activities and inserting (c) Activities in the State of Maryland; and

(B)

by inserting , and updated in March 2009 before the period at the end;

(4)

in subsection (e), by striking financial assistance provided by the Secretary under this section and inserting the amounts made available under subsection (f) to carry out the program; and

(5)

by striking subsection (f) and inserting the following:

(f)

Authorization of appropriations

Subject to subsection (e), for each of fiscal years 2012 through 2016, there are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry out the program such sums as are necessary.

Report

Section 5 of the Nutria Eradication and Control Act of 2003 (Public Law 108–16; 117 Stat. 621) (as redesignated by section 3) is amended—

(1)

in paragraph (1), by striking 2002 document entitled Eradication Strategies for Nutria in the Chesapeake and Delaware Bay Watersheds; and and inserting March 2009 update of the document entitled Eradication Strategies for Nutria in the Chesapeake and Delaware Bay Watersheds and originally dated March 2002;;

(2)

in paragraph (2)—

(A)

by striking develop and inserting continue; and

(B)

by striking the period at the end and inserting ; and; and

(3)

by adding after paragraph (2) the following:

(3)

develop, in cooperation with the State of Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, the State of Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, the State of Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, the State of North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources, and the State of Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, long-term nutria control or eradication programs, as appropriate, with the objective of—

(A)

significantly reducing and restoring the damage nutria cause to coastal wetlands in the coastal States; and

(B)

promoting voluntary, public-private partnerships to eradicate or control nutria and restoring nutria-damaged wetlands in the coastal States.

Nutria Eradication and Control Act of 2011

Legislative Activity

Bill Text