16 U.S.C. § 2201 — Emergency conservation program

Page 2174 TITLE 16—CONSERVATION § 2114 Subsec. (b)(1)(A). Pub. L. 115–334, § 8624(b)(2)(A), in- serted ‘‘or county’’ after ‘‘Governor’’. Subsec. (b)(2)(A). Pub. L. 115–334, § 8624(b)(2)(B), sub- stituted ‘‘good neighbor agreement’’ for ‘‘cooperative agreement or contract entered into under subsection (a)’’. Subsec. (b)(2)(C). Pub. L. 115–334, § 8624(c), added sub- par. (C). Subsec. (b)(3). Pub. L. 115–334, § 8624(b)(2)(C), inserted ‘‘or county’’ after ‘‘Governor’’. Subsec. (b)(4). Pub. L. 115–334, § 8624(b)(2)(D), added par. (4). § 2114. Administration (a) In general The Secretary shall administer this chapter in accordance with regulations that the Secretary shall develop. (b) Guidelines The regulations promulgated under this chap- ter shall include guidelines for the administra- tion of this chapter at the Federal and State levels and shall identify the measures and ac- tivities that are eligible for cost sharing under this chapter. (c) Existing mechanisms Existing mechanisms shall be used to the ex- tent possible to make payments and deliver services to the landowner under this chapter. (d) Land grant universities The Secretary, in consultation with State for- esters or equivalent State officials, may provide assistance directly to other State and local nat- ural resource management agencies and land grant universities in implementing this chapter in cases in which the State foresters or equiva- lent State officials are not able to make fund transfers to other State and local agencies. (Pub. L. 95–313, § 20, as added Pub. L. 101–624, title XII, § 1223, Nov. 28, 1990, 104 Stat. 3542.) CHAPTER 42—EMERGENCY CONSERVATION PROGRAM Sec. 2201. Emergency conservation program. 2202. Payments to agricultural producers for car- rying out water conservation or water en- hancing measures; criteria. 2202a. Cost-share requirement. 2202b. Payment limitation. 2203. Emergency watershed program. 2204. Funding and administration. 2205. Regulations for implementation of provi- sions. 2206. Emergency forest restoration program. § 2201. Emergency conservation program (a) In general The Secretary of Agriculture (referred to in this chapter as the ‘‘Secretary’’) is authorized to make payments to agricultural producers who carry out emergency measures to control wind erosion on farmlands or to rehabilitate farm- lands damaged by wind erosion, floods, hurri- canes, wildfires, or other natural disasters when, as a result of the foregoing, new conservation problems have been created that (1) if not treat- ed, will impair or endanger the land, (2) materi- ally affect the productive capacity of the land, (3) represent damage that is unusual in char- acter and, except for wind erosion, is not the type that would recur frequently in the same area, and (4) will be so costly to rehabilitate that Federal assistance is or will be required to return the land to productive agricultural use. (b) Repair or replacement of fencing (1) In general With respect to a payment to an agricultural producer under subsection (a) for the repair or replacement of fencing, the Secretary shall give the agricultural producer the option of receiving not more than 25 percent of the pay- ment, determined by the Secretary based on the applicable percentage of the fair market value of the cost of the repair or replacement, before the agricultural producer carries out the repair or replacement. (2) Return of funds If the funds provided under paragraph (1) are not expended by the end of the 60-day period beginning on the date on which the agricul- tural producer receives those funds, the funds shall be returned within a reasonable time- frame, as determined by the Secretary. (Pub. L. 95–334, title IV, § 401, Aug. 4, 1978, 92 Stat. 433; Pub. L. 115–334, title II, § 2403(a)(1), Dec. 20, 2018, 132 Stat. 4571.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2018—Pub. L. 115–334 inserted section catchline, des- ignated existing provisions as subsec. (a), inserted heading, substituted ‘‘The Secretary of Agriculture (re- ferred to in this chapter as the ‘Secretary’)’’ for ‘‘The Secretary of Agriculture’’, inserted ‘‘wildfires,’’ after ‘‘hurricanes,’’, and added subsec. (b). Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Pub. L. 95–334, title IV, § 406, Aug. 4, 1978, 92 Stat. 434, provided that: ‘‘The provisions of this title [enacting this chapter] shall become effective October 1, 1978.’’ § 2202. Payments to agricultural producers for carrying out water conservation or water en- hancing measures; criteria The Secretary is authorized to make pay- ments to agricultural producers who carry out emergency water conservation or water enhanc- ing measures (including measures carried out to assist confined livestock) during periods of se- vere drought as determined by the Secretary. (Pub. L. 95–334, title IV, § 402, Aug. 4, 1978, 92 Stat. 434; Pub. L. 101–82, title V, § 502, Aug. 14, 1989, 103 Stat. 586; Pub. L. 115–334, title II, § 2403(a)(2)(A), Dec. 20, 2018, 132 Stat. 4571.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2018—Pub. L. 115–334 substituted ‘‘The Secretary is’’ for ‘‘The Secretary of Agriculture is’’. 1989—Pub. L. 101–82, § 502(1), inserted ‘‘(including measures carried out to assist confined livestock)’’. Pub. L. 101–82, § 502(2), temporarily substituted ‘‘any fiscal year in which there is a period of severe drought’’ for ‘‘periods of severe drought’’. See Effective and Ter- mination Dates of 1989 Amendment note below.