H.R. 344 — Introduced in House

I 115th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 344 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES January 5, 2017Ms. Stefanik introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture A BILL To amend the Forest Legacy Program of the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 to authorize States to allow certain entities to acquire, hold, and manage conservation easements under the program. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Forest Legacy Management Flexibility Act. 2. Authority of States to allow qualified organizations to acquire, hold, and manage conservation easements under the Forest Legacy Program Section 7(l) of the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2103c) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph: (4) State authorization (A) In general At the request of a State acting through the State Lead Agency, the Secretary shall authorize the State to allow qualified organizations, as defined in section 170(h)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, and organized for one or more of the purposes described in section 170(h)(4)(A) of that Code, to acquire, hold, and manage conservation easements, using funds granted to the State under this subsection, for purposes of the Forest Legacy Program in the State. (B) Eligibility To be eligible to acquire and manage conservation easements under this paragraph, a qualified organization described in subparagraph (A) must demonstrate to the Secretary the abilities necessary to acquire, monitor, and enforce interests in forestland consistent with the Forest Legacy Program and the assessment of need for the State. (C) Reversion If the Secretary, or a State acting through the State Lead Agency, makes any of the determinations described in subparagraph (D) with respect to a conservation easement acquired by a qualified organization under the authority of subparagraph (A)— (i) all right, title, and interest of the qualified organization in and to the conservation easement shall terminate; and (ii) all right, title, and interest in and to the conservation easement shall revert to the State or other qualified designee as approved by the State. (D) Determinations The determinations required for operation of the reversionary interest retained in subparagraph (C) are that— (i) the qualified organization is unable to carry out its responsibilities under the Forest Legacy Program in the State with respect to the conservation easement; (ii) the conservation easement has been modified in a way that is inconsistent with the purposes of the Forest Legacy Program or the assessment of need for the State; or (iii) the conservation easement has been conveyed to another person (other than a qualified organization approved by the State and the Secretary). .