,i  #aaith ,,congress  #ast ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #deia  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,july #bb1 #bjbe,mrs4
 ,fischbach 7for herself1 ,mr4          
,la,malfa1 and ,mr4 ,thompson of        
,california7 introduced the following   
bill2 which was referred to the         
,committee on ,natural ,resources  ,a   
,,bill  ,to establish grant programs to 
sustain populations of species of       
migratory waterfowl through the         
deployment of tools and practices that  
complement habitat conservation1 and for
 other purposes4  #a4 ,short title ,this
 ,act may be cited as the ,habitat      
,enhancement ,now ,act4  #b4 ,grant     
programs to sustain populations of      
species of migratory waterfowl  7a7     
,findings ,congress finds that--  7#a7  
the maintenance of healthy populations  
of migratory birds in ,north ,america is
 largely dependent on the protection1   
restoration1 and management of wetland  
ecosystems and other habitats1 as       
identified in the ,implementation ,plans

 of ,joint ,ventures authorized under   
the ,north ,american ,waterfowl         
,management ,plan2  7#b7 duck           
populations in ,north ,america are being
 threatened by the loss in the quantity 
and quality of breeding habitat1 which  
leads to declining nest success2  7#c7  
low nest success has been widely        
documented to be the key annual driver  
in duck populations2  7#d7 additional   
tools can be employed to increase nest  
success to complement the private1      
,state1 and ,federal habitat            
conservation programs and efforts in    
order to sustain healthy waterfowl      
populations2  7#e7 relatively modest    
investments in management can make      
meaningful impacts towards supplementing
 waterfowl production in areas where    
waterfowl production outcomes have not  
been fully met2  7#f7 numerous studies  
have made it clear that nesting         
structures1 in particular hen houses1   
are the most efficient and              
cost-effective tool for increasing nest 

success2 and  7#g7 providing incentives 
to private landowners to establish      
nesting cover1 create or restore brood  
ponds1 and provide brood water is a     
priority to enhance production of       
mallards1 gadwalls1 and other breeding  
ducks in ,california4  7b7 ,definitions 
,in this section3  7#a7 ,eligible entity
 ,the term eligible entity means-- 7,a7 
a ,state1 local1 or ,tribal government2 
7,b7 a nonprofit organization2 and  7,c7
 an individual4  7#b7 ,hen house ,the   
term hen house means a type of          
cylindrical nest structure installed on 
a post in a prairie pothole4  7#c7      
,prairie pothole ,the term prairie      
pothole means a depressional wetland1   
including a freshwater marsh1 that      
provides vital habitat to species of    
nesting waterfowl and other species4    
7#d7 ,prairie pothole region ,the term  
prairie pothole region means the primary
 nesting grounds of the majority of     
,north ,american ducks4  7#e7 ,secretary
 ,the term ,secretary means the         

,secretary of the ,interior4  7c7 ,grant
 programs  7#a7 ,hen house grant program
  7,a7 ,in general ,not later than #ahj 
days after the date of enactment of this
 ,act1 the ,secretary shall establish a 
competitive grant program to award      
amounts to eligible entities to         
strategically place1 build1 and maintain
 hen houses in the prairie pothole      
region for the purpose of improving the 
nesting success rates of populations of 
species of migratory waterfowl4  7,b7   
,applications ,to be eligible to receive
 a grant under this paragraph1 an       
eligible entity shall submit to the     
,secretary an application in such form1 
at such time1 and containing such       
information as the ,secretary determines
 appropriate4  7#b7 ,breeding habitat   
grant program  7,a7 ,in general ,not    
later than #ahj days after the date of  
enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary  
shall establish a competitive grant     
program to award amounts to eligible    
entities to develop breeding habitat for

 species of migratory waterfowl within  
,california for the purpose of enhancing
 the breeding success rates of          
populations of species of migratory     
waterfowl1 including by-- 7i7           
establishing nesting cover2  7ii7       
creating brood ponds2 and  7iii7        
providing incentives to willing         
landowners to carry out the activities  
described in this subparagraph on land  
under the control of those landowners   
within ,california4  7,b7 ,applications 
,to be eligible to receive a grant under
 this paragraph1 an eligible entity     
shall submit to the ,secretary an       
application in such form1 at such time1 
and containing such information as the  
,secretary determines appropriate4  7d7 
,funding ,for each of fiscal years #bjbf
 through #bjcj1 of the amounts          
appropriated or otherwise made available
 to the ,department of the              
,interior--,office of the               
,secretary--,departmental ,operations   
account for each such fiscal year--     

7#a7 #c1ejj1jjj shall be made available 
to carry out subsection 7c77#a72 and    
7#b7 #c1ejj1jjj shall be made available 
to carry out subsection 7c77#b74