16 U.S.C. § 715s — Participation of local governments in rev-

Page 1275 TITLE 16—CONSERVATION § 715s 1 So in original. Probably should be ‘‘carcasses,’’. Executive Documents TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS Transfer of functions of Secretary of Agriculture to Secretary of the Interior by Reorg. Plan No. II of 1939, see Transfer of Functions note set out under section 715a of this title. § 715q. Expenses of commission; authorization of appropriations A sum sufficient to pay the necessary expenses of the commission and its members, not to ex- ceed an annual expenditure of $7,500, is author- ized to be appropriated out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated. Said ap- propriation shall be paid out on the audit and order of the chairman of said commission, which audit and order shall be conclusive and binding upon the Government Accountability Office as to the correctness of the accounts of said com- mission. (Feb. 18, 1929, ch. 257, § 18, 45 Stat. 1225; Pub. L. 87–812, Oct. 15, 1962, 76 Stat. 922; Pub. L. 108–271, § 8(b), July 7, 2004, 118 Stat. 814.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2004—Pub. L. 108–271 substituted ‘‘Government Ac- countability Office’’ for ‘‘General Accounting Office’’. 1962—Pub. L. 87–812 increased annual expenditures from not more than $5,000 to not more than $7,500 and corrected a misspelling of ‘‘commission’’. § 715r. Partial invalidity; validity of remainder If any provision of this subchapter or the ap- plication thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid the validity of the remainder of this subchapter and of the application of such provision to other persons and circumstances shall not be affected thereby. (Feb. 18, 1929, ch. 257, § 19, 45 Stat. 1226.) § 715s. Participation of local governments in rev- enue from areas administered by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (a) Separate fund in the United States Treasury; availability of funds until expended; ‘‘Na- tional Wildlife Refuge System’’ defined Beginning with the next full fiscal year and for each fiscal year thereafter, all revenues re- ceived by the Secretary of the Interior from the sale or other disposition of animals, salmonoid carcassas,1 timber, hay, grass, or other products of the soil, minerals, shells, sand, or gravel, from other privileges, or from leases for public accommodations or facilities incidental to but not in conflict with the basic purposes for which those areas of the National Wildlife Refuge Sys- tem were established, during each fiscal year in connection with the operation and management of those areas of the National Wildlife Refuge System, National Fish Hatcheries, or other areas, that are solely or primarily administered by him, through the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, shall be covered into the United States Treasury and be reserved in a sep- arate fund for disposition as hereafter pre- scribed. Amounts in the fund shall remain avail- able until expended, and may be expended by the Secretary without further appropriation in the manner hereafter prescribed. The National Wild- life Refuge System (hereafter referred to as the ‘‘System’’) includes those lands and waters ad- ministered by the Secretary as wildlife refuges, lands acquired or reserved for the protection and conservation of fish and wildlife that are listed pursuant to section 1533 of this title as endan- gered species or threatened species, wildlife ranges, game ranges, wildlife management areas, and waterfowl production areas estab- lished under any law, proclamation, Executive, or public land order. (b) Deduction of expenses The Secretary may pay from the fund any nec- essary expenses incurred by him in connection with the revenue-producing and revenue-sharing measures. (c) Payment to counties (1) The Secretary shall pay out the fund, for each fiscal year beginning with the fiscal year ending September 30, 1979, to each county in which is situated any fee area whichever of the following amounts is greater: (A) An amount equal to the product of 75 cents multiplied by the total acreage of that portion of the fee area which is located within such county. (B) An amount equal to three-fourths of 1 per centum of the fair market value, as deter- mined by the Secretary, of that portion of the fee area (excluding any improvements thereto made after the date of Federal acquisition) which is located within such county. (C) An amount equal to 25 per centum of the net receipts collected by the Secretary in con- nection with the operation and management of such fee area during such fiscal year; but if a fee area is located in two or more counties, the amount each such county is entitled to shall be the amount which bears to such 25 per centum the same ratio as that portion of the fee area acreage which is within such county bears to the total acreage of such fee area. (2) At the end of each fiscal year the Secretary shall pay out of the fund for such fiscal year to each county in which any reserve area is situ- ated, an amount equal to 25 per centum of the net receipts collected by the Secretary in con- nection with the operation and management of such area during such fiscal year: Provided, That when any such area is situated in more than one county the distributive share to each county from the aforesaid receipts shall be proportional to its acreage of such reserve area. (3) For purposes of this section, the Common- wealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Virgin Is- lands shall each be treated as a county. (4)(A) For purposes of determining the fair market value of fee areas under paragraph (1)(B), the Secretary shall— (i) appraise before September 30, 1979, all fee areas for which payments under this section were not authorized for fiscal years occurring before October 1, 1977; and (ii) appraise all other fee areas, within five years after October 17, 1978, in the order in Page 1276 TITLE 16—CONSERVATION § 715s which such areas were first established by the Service. After initial appraisal under clause (i) or (ii), each fee area shall thereafter be reappraised by the Secretary at least once during each five- year period occurring after the date of the ini- tial appraisal. Until any fee area referred to in clause (ii) is initially appraised under this sub- paragraph, the fair market value of such area shall be deemed to be that adjusted cost of the area which was used to determine payments under this subsection for fiscal year 1977; and in no case may the amount of any payment to any local government under paragraph (1)(B) with respect to any fee area be less than the amount paid under paragraph (2)(A) of this subsection (as in effect on September 30, 1977) with respect to such area. (B) The Secretary shall make the determina- tions required under this subsection in such manner as the Secretary considers to be equi- table and in the public interest. All such deter- minations shall be final and conclusive. (5)(A) Each county which receives payments under paragraphs (1) and (2) with respect to any fee area or reserve area shall distribute, under guidelines established by the Secretary, such payments on a proportional basis to those units of local government (including, but not limited to, school districts and the county itself in ap- propriate cases) which have incurred the loss or reduction of real property tax revenues by rea- son of the existence of such area. In any case in which a unit of local government other than the county acts as the collecting and distributing agency for real property taxes, the payments under paragraphs (1) and (2) shall be made to such other unit which shall distribute the pay- ments in accordance with the guidelines. (B) The Secretary may prescribe regulations under which payments under this paragraph may be made to units of local government in cases in which subparagraph (A) will not effect the purposes of this paragraph. (C) Payments received by units of local gov- ernment under this subsection may be used by such units for any governmental purpose. (d) Authorization of appropriations equal to dif- ference between amount of net receipts and aggregate amount of required payments If the net receipts in the fund which are at- tributable to revenue collections for any fiscal year do not equal the aggregate amount of pay- ments required to be made for such fiscal year under subsection (c) to counties, there are au- thorized to be appropriated to the fund an amount equal to the difference between the total amount of net receipts and such aggregate amount of payments. (e) Transfer and use of excess of net receipts over aggregate amount of required payments If the net receipts in the fund which are at- tributable to revenue collections for any fiscal year exceed the aggregate amount of payments required to be made for such fiscal year under subsection (c) to counties, the amount of such excess shall be transferred to the Migratory Bird Conservation Fund for use in the acquisition of suitable areas for migratory bird refuges under the provisions of the Migratory Bird Conserva- tion Act (16 U.S.C. 715–715r). (f) Terms, conditions, and regulations for execu- tion of revenue producing activities; disposal of animals The Secretary shall carry out any revenue producing activity referred to in subsection (a)(1), (2), and (3) within any fee area or reserve area subject to such terms, conditions, or regu- lations, including sales in the open markets, as the Secretary determines to be in the best inter- est of the United States. The Secretary may, in accordance with such regulations as the Sec- retary may prescribe, dispose of animals which are surplus to any such area by exchange of the same or other kinds, gift or loan to public insti- tutions for exhibition or propagation purposes, and for the advancement of knowledge and the dissemination of information relating to the conservation of wildlife. (g) Definitions As used in this section— (1) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Sec- retary of the Interior. (2) The term ‘‘fee area’’ means any area which was acquired in fee by the United States and is administered, either solely or pri- marily, by the Secretary through the Service. (3) The term ‘‘reserve area’’ means any area of land withdrawn from the public domain and administered, either solely or primarily, by the Secretary through the Service. (4) The term ‘‘Service’’ means the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. (5) The term ‘‘county’’ means any county, parish, or organized or unorganized borough. (June 15, 1935, ch. 261, title IV, § 401, 49 Stat. 383; 1939 Reorg. Plan No. II, § 4(f), eff. July 1, 1939, 4 F.R. 2731, 53 Stat. 1433; 1940 Reorg. Plan No. III, § 3, eff. June 30, 1940, 5 F.R. 2108, 54 Stat. 1232; Oct. 31, 1951, ch. 654, § 2(13), 65 Stat. 707; Pub. L. 88–523, Aug. 30, 1964, 78 Stat. 701; Pub. L. 89–669, § 8(b), Oct. 15, 1966, 80 Stat. 930; Pub. L. 93–205, § 13(b), Dec. 28, 1973, 87 Stat. 902; Pub. L. 93–509, § 4, Dec. 3, 1974, 88 Stat. 1603; Pub. L. 95–469, § 1(a), Oct. 17, 1978, 92 Stat. 1319; Pub. L. 97–258, § 5(b), Sept. 13, 1982, 96 Stat. 1068.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT Beginning with the next full fiscal year and for each fiscal year thereafter, referred to in subsec. (a), prob- ably means the next full fiscal year following Aug. 30, 1964, the date of enactment of Pub. L. 88–523, which amended this section. The Migratory Bird Conservation Act, referred to in subsec. (e), is act Feb. 18, 1929, ch. 257, 45 Stat. 1222, which is classified generally to this subchapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see sec- tion 715 of this title and Tables. CODIFICATION The reference in subsec. (f) to ‘‘revenue producing ac- tivity referred to in subsection (a)(1), (2), and (3) of this section’’, enacted as an amendment to subsec. (f) by section 1(a)(3) of Pub. L. 95–469, is a reference to the proposed amendment as set out on pg. 1 of House Re- port No. 95–1197 of the 95th Congress, 2d Session, May 15, 1978, and reading in part: ‘‘(a) All revenues received during each fiscal year by the Secretary in connection with the operation and management of fee areas and reserve areas from— Page 1277 TITLE 16—CONSERVATION § 715s ‘‘(1) the sale or disposition of animals, salmonoid carcasses, products of the soil (including, but not lim- ited to, timber, hay, and grass), minerals (including, but not limited to, crude petroleum and natural gas), shells, sand, and gravel; ‘‘(2) leases for public accommodations or facilities incidental to, but not in conflict with, the major pur- poses of such areas; and ‘‘(3) other privileges; shall be covered’’ which was not enacted by the Con- gress but subsec. (a) was amended as provided in the 1978 Amendment note below. Section was not enacted as part of the ‘‘Migratory Bird Conservation Act’’ which comprises this sub- chapter. AMENDMENTS 1982—Subsec. (h). Pub. L. 97–258 struck out subsec. (h) which had provided for administration of payments to local governments for entitlement lands, reserve areas as entitlement lands, and payments received by any unit of local government to be deemed payments under specified provisions. See sections 6901 and 6903 of Title 31, Money and Finance. 1978—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 95–469, § 1(a)(1), authorized the separate fund in the United States Treasury to in- clude revenues from sale or other disposition of salmonoid carcasses and extended the operation and management provision to areas of National Fish Hatch- eries and other areas administered by the Secretary. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 95–469, § 1(a)(2), substituted ‘‘rev- enue-producing and revenue-sharing measures’’ for ‘‘revenue-producing measures set forth in subsection (a) of this section’’. Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 95–469, § 1(a)(3), in revising subsec. (c), substituted pars. (1) to (5) for prior text consisting of: introductory text authorizing expenditures solely for benefit of public schools and roads, now covered in par. (5)(C); par. (1) of first sentence, now included in par. (2); par. (2) of first sentence, now covered in pars. (1)(B), (C) and (4) in part; and second sentence now in- corporated in par. (4)(B). Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 95–469, § 1(a)(3), substituted provi- sion for authorization of appropriations equal to dif- ference between amount of net receipts and aggregate amount of required payments for prior provision lim- iting amount payable to the counties to amount of net receipts in the fund for any fiscal year and a propor- tionate reduction of payments when net receipts are in- sufficient for aggregate amount of payments for any fiscal year. Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 95–469, § 1(a)(3), in revising subsec. (e), substituted provision authorizing use of surplus funds for acquisition of suitable areas for migratory bird refuges for prior provision making remaining funds available for such land acquisition and elimi- nated provision prohibiting funds available for the Management of the National Wildlife Refuge System or for enforcement of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act from being diminished by the amendments made by Pub. L. 93–509 to this subsection unless by specific congres- sional enactment. Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 95–469, § 1(a)(3), substituted ‘‘The Secretary shall carry out any revenue producing activ- ity referred to in subsection (a)(1), (2), and (3) within any fee area or reserve area subject to such terms, con- ditions, or regulations, including sales in the open mar- kets, as the Secretary determines to be in the best in- terest of the United States.’’ for ‘‘The disposition or sale of surplus animals, minerals, and other products, the grant of privileges, and the carrying out of any other activities that result in the collection of reve- nues within any areas of the System may be accom- plished upon such terms, conditions, or regulations, in- cluding sale in the open markets, as the Secretary shall determine to be in the best interest of the United States.’’ and reenacted substance of second sentence, setting out provision for regulations at beginning rath- er than end of sentence. Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 95–469, § 1(a)(3), substituted defini- tions of certain terms for prior provision for super- sedure by Pub. L. 88–523 of repealed paragraph of ‘‘Man- agement of National Wildlife Refuges’’ in the General Appropriation Act, 1951, approved Sept. 6, 1950 (64 Stat. 595, 693 to 694). Subsec. (h). Pub. L. 95–469, § 1(a)(4), added subsec. (h). 1974—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 93–509 substituted provisions that moneys remaining in the fund after all payments under this section are made for any fiscal year shall be transferred to the Migratory Bird Conservation Fund and shall be available for land acquisition under the Migratory Bird Conservation Act with exception that the funds available for the management of the National Wildlife Refuge System or for enforcement of the Mi- gratory Bird Treaty Act shall not be diminished for provisions that moneys remaining in the fund after all payments are made for any fiscal year may be used by the Secretary thereafter for management of the Sys- tem, including but not limited to the construction, im- provement, repair, and alteration of buildings, roads, and other facilities, and for enforcement of the Migra- tory Bird Treaty Act. 1973—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 93–205 substituted ‘‘listed pursuant to section 1533 of this title as endangered spe- cies or threatened species,’’ for ‘‘threatened with ex- tinction,’’. 1966—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 89–669 defined the National Wildlife Refuge System to include lands acquired or re- served for the protection and conservation of fish and wildlife that are threatened with extinction. 1964—Pub. L. 88–523 substituted provisions designated as subsecs. (a) to (g) for former provisions constituting one paragraph consisting of a first clause with three provisos and a second clause; required in subsec. (a) all receipts from the National Wildlife Refuge System to be covered into a separate fund in the United States Treasury, made the fund available until expended, pro- vided for expenditures without further appropriation, and defined the National Wildlife Refuge System; in- corporated the third proviso of the first clause and the second clause in subsec. (b) and the parenthetical mat- ter of subsec. (c); incorporated in the reserved public lands provision of subsec. (c)(1) the formula of the first clause for returning twenty-five per centum of the net revenues from the System to the counties in which the producing refuges are located for the benefit of the pub- lic schools and roads therein; incorporated the first proviso of the first clause in subsec. (c)(1) proviso; sub- stituted subsec. (c)(2) providing an option plan for pay- ment of either 25 per centum of the net receipts from lands acquired in fee by the United States to the coun- ties in which such acquired lands are located or three- fourths of 1 per centum of the adjusted cost of the ac- quired lands, whichever is higher, for the formula of the first clause for returning 25 per centum of the reve- nues; inserted provisions of subsecs. (d), (e), and (g); and incorporated the second proviso of the first clause in subsec. (f). 1951—Act Oct. 31, 1951, in second proviso, inserted ref- erence to application regulations of the Federal Prop- erty and Administrative Services Act of 1949, as amend- ed, and, in third proviso, inserted reference to section 485 of Title 40. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1978 AMENDMENT; FISCAL YEAR OF AVAILABILITY OF APPROPRIATION AUTHORIZATION Pub. L. 95–469, § 2, Oct. 17, 1978, 92 Stat. 1321, provided that: ‘‘The amendments made by this Act [amending this section and sections 1603, 1605 and 1606 of former Title 31, Money and Finance], shall apply with respect to payments made to counties under title IV of the Act of June 15, 1935 [this section], for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1979, and for fiscal years thereafter; ex- cept that the amendments made to such title IV [this section] which amend section 401(a) and (g), add para- graph (4) to section 401(c) [subsecs. (a) and (g), and (c)(4) of this section], and amend the title heading [of this section] shall take effect on the date of the enact- Page 1278 TITLE 16—CONSERVATION § 718 ment of this Act [Oct. 17, 1978]. No authorization for ap- propriation shall be available under this Act before the fiscal year ending September 30, 1980.’’ EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1973 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 93–205 effective Dec. 28, 1973, see section 16 of Pub. L. 93–205, set out as an Effective Date note under section 1531 of this title. REFUGE REVENUE SHARING Pub. L. 105–83, title I, § 132, Nov. 14, 1997, 111 Stat. 1570, provided that: ‘‘Notwithstanding any other provi- sion of law, hereafter the United States Fish and Wild- life Service may disburse to local entities impact fund- ing pursuant to Refuge Revenue Sharing that is associ- ated with Federal real property transferred to the United States Geological Survey from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.’’ Executive Documents TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS For transfer of functions of other officers, employees, and agencies of Department of the Interior, with cer- tain exceptions, to Secretary of the Interior, with power to delegate, see Reorg. Plan No. 3 of 1950, §§ 1, 2, eff. May 24, 1950, 15 F.R. 3174, 64 Stat. 1262, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employees. Reorg. Plan No. III of 1940, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, consolidated Bureau of Fisheries and Bureau of Biological Survey, with their respective functions, into one agency in Department of the Interior to be known as the Fish and Wildlife Service. Transfer of functions of Secretary of Agriculture to Secretary of the Interior by Reorg. Plan No. II of 1939, see Transfer of Functions note set out under section 715a of this title. SUBCHAPTER IV—HUNTING AND CONSERVATION STAMP TAX § 718. Repealed. Pub. L. 109–266, § 10(h), Aug. 3, 2006, 120 Stat. 677 Section, act Mar. 16, 1934, ch. 71, § 9, 48 Stat. 452, de- fined subchapter terms. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries SHORT TITLE OF 2014 AMENDMENT Pub. L. 113–264, § 1, Dec. 18, 2014, 128 Stat. 2939, pro- vided that: ‘‘This Act [amending sections 718a, 718b, and 718d of this title] may be cited as the ‘Federal Duck Stamp Act of 2014’.’’ SHORT TITLE OF 2006 AMENDMENT Pub. L. 109–266, § 1, Aug. 3, 2006, 120 Stat. 670, provided that: ‘‘This Act [enacting sections 718g to 718j of this title, amending sections 718a to 718f of this title, re- pealing this section and former sections 718g, 718h, and 718j of this title, and enacting provisions set out as notes under this section] may be cited as the ‘Elec- tronic Duck Stamp Act of 2005’.’’ SHORT TITLE OF 1998 AMENDMENT Pub. L. 105–269, § 1, Oct. 19, 1998, 112 Stat. 2381, pro- vided that: ‘‘This Act [amending section 718d of this title] may be cited as the ‘Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp Promotion Act’.’’ SHORT TITLE Act Mar. 16, 1934, ch. 71, § 11, as added by Pub. L. 109–266, § 10(h), Aug. 3, 2006, 120 Stat. 679, provided that: ‘‘This Act [enacting this subchapter] may be cited as the ‘Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp Act’.’’ ELECTRONIC DUCK STAMP PILOT PROGRAM Pub. L. 109–266, §§ 2–9, Aug. 3, 2006, 120 Stat. 670–673, provided that: ‘‘SEC. 2. FINDINGS. ‘‘Congress finds that— ‘‘(1) on March 16, 1934, Congress passed and Presi- dent Roosevelt signed the Act of March 16, 1934 (16 U.S.C. 718a [718] et seq.) (popularly known as the ‘Duck Stamp Act’), which requires all migratory wa- terfowl hunters 16 years of age or older to buy a Fed- eral migratory bird hunting and conservation stamp annually; ‘‘(2) the Federal Duck Stamp program has become one of the most popular and successful conservation programs ever initiated; ‘‘(3) because of that program, the United States again is teeming with migratory waterfowl and other wildlife that benefit from wetland habitats; ‘‘(4) as of the date of enactment of this Act [Aug. 3, 2006], 1,700,000 migratory bird hunting and conserva- tion stamps are sold each year; ‘‘(5) as of 2003, those stamps have generated more than $600,000,000 in revenue that has been used to pre- serve more than 5,000,000 acres of migratory water- fowl habitat in the United States; and ‘‘(6) many of the more than 540 national wildlife ref- uges have been paid for wholly or partially with that revenue. ‘‘SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. ‘‘In this Act [see Short Title of 2006 Amendment note above]: ‘‘(1) ACTUAL STAMP.—The term ‘actual stamp’ means a Federal migratory-bird hunting and con- servation stamp required under the Act of March 16, 1934 (16 U.S.C. 718a [718] et seq.) (popularly known as the ‘Duck Stamp Act’), that is printed on paper and sold through a means in use immediately before the date of enactment of this Act [Aug. 3, 2006]. ‘‘(2) AUTOMATED LICENSING SYSTEM.— ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘automated licensing system’ means an electronic, computerized licens- ing system used by a State fish and wildlife agency to issue hunting, fishing, and other associated li- censes and products. ‘‘(B) INCLUSION.—The term ‘automated licensing system’ includes a point-of-sale, Internet, or tele- phonic system used for a purpose described in sub- paragraph (A). ‘‘(3) ELECTRONIC STAMP.—The term ‘electronic stamp’ means an electronic version of an actual stamp that— ‘‘(A) is a unique identifier for the individual to whom it is issued; ‘‘(B) can be printed on paper; ‘‘(C) is issued through a State automated licens- ing system that is authorized, under State law and by the Secretary under this Act, to issue electronic stamps; ‘‘(D) is compatible with the hunting licensing sys- tem of the State that issues the electronic stamp; and ‘‘(E) is described in the State application ap- proved by the Secretary under section 4(b). ‘‘(4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary of the Interior. ‘‘SEC. 4. ELECTRONIC DUCK STAMP PILOT PRO- GRAM. ‘‘(a) REQUIREMENT TO CONDUCT PROGRAM.—The Sec- retary shall conduct a 3-year pilot program under which up to 15 States authorized by the Secretary may issue electronic stamps. ‘‘(b) COMMENCEMENT AND DURATION OF PROGRAM.—The Secretary shall— ‘‘(1) use all means necessary to expeditiously imple- ment this section by the date that is 1 year after the beginning of the first full Federal migratory water- fowl hunting season after the date of enactment of this Act [Aug. 3, 2006]; and ‘‘(2) carry out the pilot program for 3 Federal mi- gratory waterfowl hunting seasons. ‘‘(c) CONSULTATION.—The Secretary shall carry out the program in consultation with State management agencies.