,i #aacth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #bgje ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,july #ag1 #bjac ,mr4 ,denham introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,natural ,resources ,a ,,bill ,to develop a pilot program to remove non-native predator fishes from the ,stanislaus ,river to protect the native anadromous fishery resources affected by the operation of the ,new ,melones ,unit of the ,east ,side ,division of the ,central ,valley ,project1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,stanislaus ,river ,native ,anadromous ,fish ,improvement ,act4 #b4 ,pilot program to protect anadromous fish in the stanislaus river 7a7 ,establishment of non-,native predator fish removal program ,the ,commissioner and districts1 in consultation with the ,national ,marine ,fisheries ,service1 the ,united ,states ,fish and ,wildlife ,service1 and the ,california ,department of ,fish and ,wildlife1 shall jointly develop and conduct a pilot non-native predator fish removal program to remove non-native striped bass1 smallmouth bass1 largemouth bass1 black bass1 and other non-native predator fishes from the ,stanislaus ,river4 ,the pilot program shall-- 7#a7 be scientifically based2 7#b7 include methods to quantify the number and size of predator fishes removed each year1 the impact of such removal on the overall abundance of predator fishes1 and the impact of such removal on the populations of juvenile anadromous fish found in the ,stanislaus ,river by1 among other things1 evaluating the number of juvenile anadromous fish that migrate past the rotary screw trap located at ,caswell2 7#c7 use wire fyke trapping1 portable resistance board weirs1 and boat electrofishing1 which are the most effective predator collection techniques that minimize affects to native anadromous fish2 7#d7 be developed1 including the application for all necessary scientific research and species enhancement permits under section #aj7;a77#a7 of the ,endangered ,species ,act of #aigc 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #aeci7;a77#a771 for the performance of the pilot program1 not later than #f months after the date of the enactment of this ,act2 7#e7 be implemented on the first business day of the calendar year following the issuance of all necessary scientific research and species enhancement permits needed to begin the pilot program2 and 7#f7 be implemented for a period of five consecutive calendar years4 7b7 ,management ,the management of the pilot program shall be the joint responsibility of the ,commissioner and the districts4 ,such parties shall work collaboratively to insure the performance of the pilot program1 and shall discuss and agree upon1 among other things1 changes in the structure1 management1 personnel1 techniques1 strategy1 data collection1 reporting1 and conduct of the pilot program4 7c7 ,conduct 7#a7 ,in general ,at the election of the districts1 the pilot program may be conducted by their own personnel1 qualified private contractors hired by the districts1 personnel of1 on loan to1 or otherwise assigned to the ,bureau of ,reclamation1 or a combination thereof4 7#b7 ,participation by bureau of reclamation ,in the event the districts elect to conduct the program using their own personnel or qualified private contractors hired by them1 the ,commissioner has the option to assign an employee of1 on loan to1 or otherwise assigned to the ,bureau of ,reclamation1 to be present for all activities performed in the field4 ,such presence shall insure compliance with the agreed upon elements specified in subsection 7b74 ,the districts shall pay #ajj percent of the cost of such participation as specified in subsection 7d74 7#c7 ,timing of ,election ,the districts shall notify the ,commissioner of their election on or before ,october #ae of each calendar year of the pilot program1 which election shall apply to the work performed in the subsequent calendar year4 7d7 ,funding 7#a7 ,annual funding ,the districts shall be responsible for #ajj percent of the cost of the pilot program4 ,on or before ,december #a of each year of the pilot program1 the ,commissioner shall submit to the districts an estimate of the cost to be incurred by the ,bureau of ,reclamation in the following calendar year1 if any1 including the cost of any data collection and posting under subsection 7e74 ,if an amount equal to the estimate is not provided to the reclamation fund identified in section #c of the ,act of ,february #ba1 #aiaa 7#dc ,u4,s4,c4 #ebe71 by the districts on or before ,december #ca of each year-- 7,a7 the ,bureau of ,reclamation shall have no obligation to conduct the pilot program activities otherwise scheduled until full payment is made by the districts2 and 7,b7 the districts shall be prohibited from conducting any aspect of the pilot program until full payment is made by the districts4 7#b7 ,accounting ,on or before ,september #a of each calendar year1 the ,commissioner shall provide an accounting of the prior calendar year's expenses to the districts4 ,if the estimate paid by the districts was less than the actual costs incurred by the ,bureau of ,reclamation1 the districts shall have until ,september #cj of that calendar year to pay the difference to the reclamation fund4 ,if the estimate paid by the districts was greater than the actual costs incurred by the ,bureau of ,reclamation1 then a credit shall be provided to the districts1 which shall be deducted from the estimate payment the districts must make for the work performed by the ,bureau of ,reclamation1 if any1 in the next calendar year4 7e7 ,reporting and evaluation 7#a7 ,in general ,on or before the #aeth day of each month1 the ,commissioner shall post on the ,web site of the ,bureau of ,reclamation a tabular summary of the raw data collected in the prior month4 7#b7 ,report ,on or before ,june #cj of the calendar year following the completion of the program1 the ,commissioner and districts shall jointly publish a peer reviewed report that-- 7,a7 discusses the findings and conclusions of the pilot program2 7,b7 synthesizes the data collected under paragraph 7#a72 and 7,c7 makes recommendations for further study and action4 7f7 ,permits process 7#a7 ,not later than #ahj days after filing of an application by the ,commissioner and the districts1 the ,secretary of the ,interior1 the ,secretary of ,commerce1 or both1 as appropriate1 shall issue all necessary scientific research and species enhancement permits under section #aj7;a77#a7 of the ,endangered ,species ,act 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #aec7i77;a77#a771 for the performance of the pilot program4 7#b7 ,any permit application that is not approved by the ,secretary of the ,interior1 ,secretary of ,commerce1 or both1 as appropriate1 for any reason1 within #ahj days after receiving the application1 shall be deemed approved4 7#c7 ,all permits issued shall be in the name of the ,bureau of ,reclamation and the districts4 7#d7 ,districts may delegate the authority to administer the permit authority to any qualified private contractor retained in accordance with subsection 7c74 7#e7 ,the pilot program1 including amendments thereto by the appropriate ,federal and ,state agencies1 shall constitute a conservation plan that complies with the requirements of section #aj7;a77#b7 of the ,endangered ,species ,act of #aigc 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #aeci7;a77#b774 7g7 ,,nepa ,section #ajb7b77;,c7 of the ,national ,environmental ,policy ,act of #aifi 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #dccb7b77;,c77 shall not apply with respect to section #b and the issuance of any permit under this subsection during the seven-year period beginning on the date of the implementation of the pilot program4 #c4 ,restrictions ,any restriction imposed under ,california law on the catch1 take1 or harvest of any non-native or introduced aquatic or terrestrial species that preys upon anadromous fish and that occupies or is found in the ,stanislaus ,river is hereby void and is preempted4 #d4 ,definitions ,for the purposes of this ,act3 7#a7 ,anadromous fish 7,a7 ,the term anadromous fish as applied to the ,stanislaus ,river and the operation of ,new ,melones-- 7i7 means those native stocks of salmon 7including steelhead7 that-- 7,i7 as of ,october #cj1 #aiib1 were present in and had not been extirpated from the ,stanislaus ,river2 and 7,,ii7 which ascend the ,stanislaus ,river to reproduce after maturing in ,san ,francisco ,bay or the ,pacific ,ocean2 and 7ii7 does not mean any stock1 strain or member of ,american shad1 sockeye salmon1 or striped bass4 7,b7 ,the definition of anadromous fish provided in section #cdjc7;a7 of the ,central ,valley ,project ,improvement ,act 7,public ,law #ajb-ege7 shall not apply to the operation of ,new ,melones ,dam and ,reservoir1 or to any ,federal action in the ,stanislaus ,river4 7#b7 ,commissioner ,the term ,commissioner means the ,commissioner of the ,bureau of ,reclamation4 7#c7 ,districts ,the term districts means the ,oakdale ,irrigation ,district and the ,south ,san ,joaquin ,irrigation ,district4 7#d7 ,pilot program ,the term pilot program means the pilot non-native predator removal program established under section #b7;b74 #e4 ,sunset ,this ,act and the authorities provided under this ,act shall expire #g years after implementation of the pilot program begins4