[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 60 (Tuesday, April 9, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H2152-H2153]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
{time} 1515
MIGRATORY BIRDS OF THE AMERICAS CONSERVATION ENHANCEMENTS ACT OF 2023
Ms. HAGEMAN. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 4389) to amend the Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation
Act to make improvements to that Act, and for other purposes, as
amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 4389
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Migratory Birds of the
Americas Conservation Enhancements Act of 2023''.
SEC. 2. NEOTROPICAL MIGRATORY BIRD CONSERVATION ACT
AMENDMENTS.
(a) Federal Share.--Section 5(e)(1) of the Neotropical
Migratory Bird Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 6104(e)(1)) is
amended by striking ``25 percent'' and inserting ``33.3
percent''.
(b) Cooperation.--Section 7 of the Neotropical Migratory
Bird Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 6106) is amended by adding
at the end the following:
``(c) Report to Congress.--Not later than 180 days after
the date of the enactment of the Migratory Birds of the
Americas Conservation Enhancements Act of 2023, the Secretary
shall submit to the Committee on Environment and Public Works
of the Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources of the
House of Representatives a report describing the
implementation of subsection (b) by the Secretary, which
shall include, if applicable, a description of the
composition of the advisory group convened under paragraph
(1) of that subsection.''.
(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 10(a) of the
Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act (16 U.S.C.
6109(a)) is amended by striking ``2023'' and inserting
``2028''.
(d) Technical Corrections.--
(1) Definitions.--Section 4 of the Neotropical Migratory
Bird Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 6103) is amended--
(A) by striking paragraph (1); and
(B) by redesignating paragraphs (2) through (5) as
paragraphs (1) through (4), respectively.
(2) Cooperation.--Section 7(b)(1) of the Neotropical
Migratory Bird Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 6106(b)(1)) is
amended in the second sentence by adding a period at the end.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from
Wyoming (Ms. Hageman) and the gentlewoman from New Mexico (Ms. Leger
Fernandez) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Wyoming.
General Leave
Ms. HAGEMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to
include extraneous material on H.R. 4389, as amended, the bill now
under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Valadao). Is there objection to the
request of the gentlewoman from Wyoming?
There was no objection.
Ms. HAGEMAN. Mr. Speaker I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 4389, sponsored by
Congresswoman Salazar from Florida. This legislation reauthorizes the
Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act, which includes a grant
program and research efforts designed to help conserve nearly 400
different species of birds that migrate between North America in the
summer months and Latin America and the Caribbean in the winter months.
Protecting the habitat of these species is not only a good
conservation policy but also good for economic activity. A U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service study found that roughly 96 million people
participated in bird-watching activities, including maintaining habitat
to benefit bird species. This includes individuals who participate in
these activities in their local communities and those who travel to do
so.
Encouraging habitat conservation efforts, such as those reauthorized
by this bill, is a win for the environment, recreational activity, and
local economies.
I thank the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Salazar) for her leadership
on this important issue. I urge my colleagues to support this
legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. LEGER FERNANDEZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today also in support of H.R. 4389, the Migratory
Birds of the Americas Conservation Enhancements Act, which would help
ensure the long-term protection of neotropical migratory birds.
More than half of our Nation's birds travel thousands of miles to
spend winters south of the tropics, but habitat destruction has led to
the loss of more than one in four of these birds since 1970. Imagine, a
quarter of these birds have been lost.
This bipartisan bill will protect habitats along these migratory
routes by reauthorizing the Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation
program.
This program has already benefited 5 million acres of migratory bird
habitat in over 40 countries, and this bill will provide additional
Federal support for these efforts.
This funding will facilitate multinational partnerships, conservation
projects in habitat conservation, research, monitoring, and community
outreach and education.
The bill will also address stakeholders' concerns and program
inequities by easing matching requirements and enabling more high-
quality projects to compete for grants.
These efforts will provide long-term protection for our beloved bird
species and the habitats they rely on.
Our world is facing a biodiversity crisis with impacts that we are
only just beginning to understand. I am pleased that we are working
together across the aisle in a bipartisan manner today to address at
least a part, but a very important part, of that serious challenge.
We all want to be able to continue to listen to the birdsong, to look
up and marvel at the fact that these birds have traveled so far and are
so essential to our entire habitat. I am very grateful for this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I reserve
the balance of my time.
Ms. HAGEMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from
Florida (Ms. Salazar).
Ms. SALAZAR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to urge passage of H.R. 4389,
the Migratory Birds of the Americas Conservation Enhancements Act of
2023.
Bird populations have declined by over 3 million since 1970, and the
iconic birds that we know and love must be actively protected.
Birds like the Baltimore oriole, wood stork, great blue heron, and
snowy egret are not just beautiful to look at, they are vital to our
environment and our economy.
Many of the migratory birds we see at home spend their winter months
in Latin America and the Caribbean, but they are threatened by habitat
loss along their journey back and forth. Federal efforts like H.R. 4389
are key to conserving these species.
My bill reauthorizes and improves the Neotropical Migratory Bird
Conservation Grant program. These government programs provide
competitive grants for them to find refuge along the way, and,
thankfully, they are matched 2 to 1 by private-sector investments who
also care about the environment. The good news is that they pay major
dividends.
Over the last two decades, almost $90 million invested by the United
States in bird conservation produced almost $350 million from other
countries who were partners in the Western Hemisphere.
Since 2002, these programs have supported 700 projects across dozens
of Latin American countries, benefiting more than 5 million acres of
habitat.
Protecting these beautiful birds is also highly important for my
constituents in the city of Miami. The Florida
[[Page H2153]]
Everglades serves as a critical natural habitat for birds migrating and
is one of the top bird-watching spots in the country, including for
ibis, egrets, and herons.
In 2022, more than 96 million people across this country participated
in bird-watching, generating more than $100 billion in economic
benefits for the country. If we protect these migratory birds, we are
protecting the Everglades and we are protecting the ecosystem. If we
are the ecosystem, we are bolstering our economy. It is a clear
bipartisan win for everybody.
I thank Chairman Bruce Westerman, Congressman Rick Larsen,
Congressman David Joyce, and Congresswoman Mary Peltola for co-leading
this bill with me.
As a champion of animal welfare and strong protector of the
Everglades, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 4389.
Ms. LEGER FERNANDEZ. Mr. Speaker, I really do commend the sponsor of
the bill. As she noted, this bill is supported on a bipartisan basis by
some of our most illustrious colleagues. I remember this bill when it
was introduced last session as well, and the work that Representative
Salazar and Ranking Member Larsen have done on this bill is
commendable.
Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman
from Washington (Mr. Larsen).
Mr. LARSEN of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R.
4389, the Migratory Birds of the Americas Conservation Enhancements
Act.
For more than two decades, the Neotropical Migratory Bird
Conservation Act has been an essential tool to protect migratory bird
habitat in the Pacific Northwest and across the Western Hemisphere.
Since 2002, the NMBCA has awarded more than $89 million in grants to
over 700 conservation projects in the U.S., Canada, Central and South
America, and the Caribbean, protecting more than 5 million acres of
bird habitat.
The law has also been a critical tool in the fight to reverse the
downward global trend in bird population over the past 50 years, which
can be attributed to challenges like pesticide use, deforestation, and
the lack of adequate environmental protection abroad.
This bipartisan bill reauthorizes the only Federal grant initiative
for migratory birds through fiscal year 2028.
It also gives smaller organizations greater access to grants by
lowering the cost-sharing requirement for grant recipients from 3 to 1
to 2 to 1, meaning for every $2 organizations contribute, the Federal
Government matches with $1. That is great news for the organizations in
the North Puget Sound, where I am from, doing important work to protect
bird habitat and Washington State's environment.
More than 350 migratory bird species rely on the Pacific Northwest as
their flyway, including: the western tanager, the violet-green swallow,
Swainson's thrush, rufous hummingbird, western sandpiper, and the
osprey; All of which but one I have had an opportunity to take photos
of.
These migratory birds pollinate plants, control pests, and add to the
diversity of local ecosystems. They also attract millions of birders to
places like Skagit Bay, Padilla Bay, Port Susan Bay, Spencer Island,
Wiser Lake, Deception Pass, and the San Juan Islands, just to name a
few places in my district.
I have had the opportunity to meet with birders and go birding with
them, folks from the Audubon Societies of Washington, Pilchuck, Skagit,
North Cascades, Whidbey, and San Juan Islands in my district. These
dedicated birders provide a boost to local and regional economies. They
are ambassadors to the great outdoors. They sponsor great events, like
the Snow Goose and Birding Festival in February every year in Stanwood,
Washington, where thousands of people come from all over the country to
go birding.
Success has many parents. I thank Representative Maria Elvira Salazar
for leading the charge to reintroduce this bill, as well as
Representatives Mary Peltola and David Joyce for co-leading the bill.
I thank the many partner organizations that made this happen, like
the National Audubon Society, the American Bird Conservancy, and the
aforementioned local organizations. I thank the taxpayers who are
providing the critical funding needed to protect migratory birds.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill and to keep
bipartisan momentum going to protect migratory birds.
Ms. LEGER FERNANDEZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my
time for closing.
As noted, this bill is bipartisan. It brings such joy as well as
economic vibrancy to our communities. Listening to the lists of birds
that have benefited from this bill, I cannot help but think about those
amazing rufous hummingbirds that fly around and pollinate our flowers
and bring smiles and joy to all of our lives in our small gardens.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the legislation, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. HAGEMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time for
closing.
Many of us in this Chamber come from communities where being outdoors
is part of our way of life and communities with vibrant ecosystems,
particularly in places that serve as a home for migratory species.
We know that habitat conservation is critical to their long-term
health. H.R. 4389 will help further conservation efforts by providing
resources to those who are dedicated to advancing habitat restoration
efforts and encouraging collaborative research efforts.
I thank Ms. Salazar once again for her leadership in reauthorizing
this program, and I ask my colleagues to support this effort. I urge
adoption of this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentlewoman from Wyoming (Ms. Hageman) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 4389, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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