[116th Congress Public Law 152]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
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GREAT AMERICAN OUTDOORS ACT
[[Page 134 STAT. 682]]
Public Law 116-152
116th Congress
An Act
To amend title 54, United States Code, to establish, fund, and provide
for the use of amounts in a National Parks and Public Land Legacy
Restoration Fund to address the maintenance backlog of the National Park
Service, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land
Management, the Forest Service, and the Bureau of Indian Education, and
to provide permanent, dedicated funding for the Land and Water
Conservation Fund, and for other purposes. <<NOTE: Aug. 4, 2020 - [H.R.
1957]>>
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled, <<NOTE: Great American
Outdoors Act.>>
SECTION 1. <<NOTE: 54 USC 100101 note.>> SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Great American Outdoors Act''.
SEC. 2. NATIONAL PARKS AND PUBLIC LAND LEGACY RESTORATION FUND.
(a) In General.--Subtitle II of title 54, United States Code, is
amended by inserting after chapter 2003 the following:
``CHAPTER 2004-- <<NOTE: 54 USC 200401 prec.>> NATIONAL PARKS AND PUBLIC
LAND LEGACY RESTORATION FUND
``Sec.
``200401. Definitions.
``200402. National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund.
``Sec. 200401. <<NOTE: 54 USC 200401.>> Definitions
``In this chapter:
``(1) Asset.--The term `asset' means any real property,
including any physical structure or grouping of structures,
landscape, trail, or other tangible property, that--
``(A) has a specific service or function; and
``(B) is tracked and managed as a distinct,
identifiable entity by the applicable covered agency.
``(2) Covered agency.--The term `covered agency' means--
``(A) the Service;
``(B) the United States Fish and Wildlife Service;
``(C) the Forest Service;
``(D) the Bureau of Land Management; and
``(E) the Bureau of Indian Education.
``(3) Fund.--The term `Fund' means the National Parks and
Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund established by section
200402(a).
``(4) Project.--The term `project' means any activity to
reduce or eliminate deferred maintenance of an asset, which
[[Page 134 STAT. 683]]
may include resolving directly related infrastructure
deficiencies of the asset that would not by itself be classified
as deferred maintenance.
``Sec. 200402. <<NOTE: 54 USC 200402.>> National Parks and Public
Land Legacy Restoration Fund
``(a) Establishment.--There is established in the Treasury of the
United States a fund to be known as the `National Parks and Public Land
Legacy Restoration Fund'.
``(b) Deposits.--
``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), for
each of fiscal years 2021 through 2025, there shall be deposited
in the Fund an amount equal to 50 percent of all energy
development revenues due and payable to the United States from
oil, gas, coal, or alternative or renewable energy development
on Federal land and water credited, covered, or deposited as
miscellaneous receipts under Federal law in the preceding fiscal
year.
``(2) Maximum amount.--The amount deposited in the Fund
under paragraph (1) shall not exceed $1,900,000,000 for any
fiscal year.
``(3) Effect on other revenues.--Nothing in this section
affects the disposition of revenues that--
``(A) are due to the United States, special funds,
trust funds, or States from mineral and energy
development on Federal land and water; or
``(B) have been otherwise appropriated--
``(i) under Federal law, including--
``(I) the Gulf of Mexico Energy
Security Act of 2006 (43 U.S.C. 1331
note; Public Law 109-432); and
``(II) the Mineral Leasing Act (30
U.S.C. 181 et seq.); or
``(ii) from--
``(I) the Land and Water
Conservation Fund established under
chapter 2003; or
``(II) the Historic Preservation
Fund established under chapter 3031.
``(c) Availability of Funds.--Amounts deposited in the Fund shall be
available to the Secretary and the Secretary of Agriculture, as provided
in subsection (e), without further appropriation or fiscal year
limitation.
``(d) <<NOTE: Determination.>> Investment of Amounts.--
``(1) <<NOTE: Consultation.>> In general.--The Secretary
may request the Secretary of the Treasury to invest any portion
of the Fund that is not, as determined by the Secretary, in
consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, required to meet
the current needs of the Fund.
``(2) Requirement.--An investment requested under paragraph
(1) shall be made by the Secretary of the Treasury in a public
debt security--
``(A) with a maturity suitable to the needs of the
Fund, as determined by the Secretary; and
``(B) bearing interest at a rate determined by the
Secretary of the Treasury, taking into consideration
current market yields on outstanding marketable
obligations of the United States of comparable maturity.
[[Page 134 STAT. 684]]
``(3) Credits to fund.--The income on investments of the
Fund under this subsection shall be credited to, and form a part
of, the Fund.
``(e) Use of Funds.--
``(1) In general.--Amounts deposited in the Fund for each
fiscal year shall be used for priority deferred maintenance
projects in the System, in the National Wildlife Refuge System,
on public land administered by the Bureau of Land Management,
for the Bureau of Indian Education schools, and in the National
Forest System, as follows:
``(A) 70 percent of the amounts deposited in the
Fund for each fiscal year shall be allocated to the
Service.
``(B) 15 percent of the amounts deposited in the
Fund for each fiscal year shall be allocated to the
Forest Service.
``(C) 5 percent of the amounts deposited in the Fund
for each fiscal year shall be allocated to the United
States Fish and Wildlife Service.
``(D) 5 percent of the amounts deposited in the Fund
for each fiscal year shall be allocated to the Bureau of
Land Management.
``(E) 5 percent of the amounts deposited in the Fund
for each fiscal year shall be allocated to the Bureau of
Indian Education.
``(2) Limitations.--
``(A) Non-transportation projects.--Over the term of
the Fund, within each covered agency, not less than 65
percent of amounts from the Fund shall be allocated for
non-transportation projects.
``(B) Transportation projects.--The amounts
remaining in the Fund after the allocations required
under subparagraph (A) may be allocated for
transportation projects of the covered agencies,
including paved and unpaved roads, bridges, tunnels, and
paved parking areas.
``(C) Plan.--Any priority deferred maintenance
project funded under this section shall be consistent
with an applicable transportation, deferred maintenance,
or capital improvement plan developed by the applicable
covered agency.
``(f) Prohibited Use of Funds.--No amounts in the Fund shall be
used--
``(1) for land acquisition;
``(2) to supplant discretionary funding made available for
annually recurring facility operations, maintenance, and
construction needs; or
``(3) for bonuses for employees of the Federal Government
that are carrying out this section.
``(g) <<NOTE: Deadline.>> Submission of Priority List of Projects
to Congress.--Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this
section, the Secretary and the Secretary of Agriculture shall submit to
the Committees on Energy and Natural Resources and Appropriations of the
Senate and the Committees on Natural Resources and Appropriations of the
House of Representatives a list of projects to be funded for fiscal year
2021 that--
``(1) are identified by the Secretary and the Secretary of
Agriculture as priority deferred maintenance projects; and
``(2) as of the date of the submission of the list, are
ready to be implemented.
[[Page 134 STAT. 685]]
``(h) <<NOTE: President.>> Submission of Annual List of Projects to
Congress.--Until the date on which all of the amounts in the Fund are
expended, the President shall annually submit to Congress, together with
the annual budget of the United States, a list of projects to be funded
from the Fund that includes a detailed description of each project,
including the estimated expenditures from the Fund for the project for
the applicable fiscal year.
``(i) Alternate Allocation.--
``(1) In general.--Appropriations Acts may provide for
alternate allocation of amounts made available under this
section, consistent with the allocations to covered agencies
under subsection (e)(1).
``(2) Allocation by president.--
``(A) No alternate allocations.--If Congress has not
enacted legislation establishing alternate allocations
by the date on which the Act making full-year
appropriations for the Department of the Interior,
Environment, and Related Agencies for the applicable
fiscal year is enacted into law, amounts made available
under subsection (c) shall be allocated by the
President.
``(B) Insufficient alternate allocation.--If
Congress enacts legislation establishing alternate
allocations for amounts made available under subsection
(c) that are less than the full amount appropriated
under that subsection, the difference between the amount
appropriated and the alternate allocation shall be
allocated by the President.
``(j) Public Donations.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary and the Secretary of
Agriculture may accept public cash or in-kind donations that
advance efforts--
``(A) to reduce the deferred maintenance backlog;
and
``(B) to encourage relevant public-private
partnerships.
``(2) Credits to fund.--Any cash donations accepted under
paragraph (1) shall be--
``(A) credited to, and form a part of, the Fund; and
``(B) allocated to the covered agency for which the
donation was made.
``(3) Other allocations.--Any donations allocated to a
covered agency under paragraph (2)(B) shall be allocated to the
applicable covered agency independently of the allocations under
subsection (e)(1).
``(k) Required Consideration for Accessibility.--In expending
amounts from the Fund, the Secretary and the Secretary of Agriculture
shall incorporate measures to improve the accessibility of assets and
accommodate visitors and employees with disabilities in accordance with
applicable law.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of chapters for subtitle II of
title 54, United States Code, <<NOTE: 54 USC 100101 prec.>> is amended
by inserting after the item relating to chapter 2003 the following:
``2004. National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund200401''.
(c) <<NOTE: Deadline.>> GAO Study.--Not later than 5 years after the
date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United
States shall--
(1) conduct a study on the implementation of this section
and the amendments made by this section, including whether
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this section and the amendments made by this section have
effectively reduced the priority deferred maintenance backlog of
the covered agencies (as that term is defined in section 200401
of title 54, United States Code); and
(2) <<NOTE: Reports.>> submit to Congress a report that
describes the results of the study under paragraph (1).
SEC. 3. PERMANENT FULL FUNDING OF THE LAND AND WATER CONSERVATION
FUND.
(a) In General.--Section 200303 of title 54, United States Code, is
amended to read as follows:
``Sec. 200303. Availability of funds
``(a) In General.--Any amounts deposited in the Fund under section
200302 for fiscal year 2020 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be
made available for expenditure for fiscal year 2021 and each fiscal year
thereafter, without further appropriation or fiscal year limitation, to
carry out the purposes of the Fund (including accounts and programs made
available from the Fund pursuant to the Further Consolidated
Appropriations Act, 2020 (Public Law 116-94; 133 Stat. 2534)).
``(b) Additional Amounts.--Amounts made available under subsection
(a) shall be in addition to amounts made available to the Fund under
section 105 of the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006 (43 U.S.C.
1331 note; Public Law 109-432) or otherwise appropriated from the Fund.
``(c) Allocation Authority.--
``(1) <<NOTE: President.>> Submission of cost estimates.--
The President shall submit to Congress detailed account,
program, and project allocations of the full amount made
available under subsection (a)--
``(A) <<NOTE: Deadline.>> for fiscal year 2021, not
later than 90 days after the date of enactment of the
Great American Outdoors Act; and
``(B) for each fiscal year thereafter, as part of
the annual budget submission of the President.
``(2) Alternate allocation.--
``(A) In general.--Appropriations Acts may provide
for alternate allocation of amounts made available under
subsection (a), including allocations by account,
program, and project.
``(B) Allocation by president.--
``(i) No alternate allocations.--If Congress
has not enacted legislation establishing alternate
allocations by the date on which the Act making
full-year appropriations for the Department of the
Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies for
the applicable fiscal year is enacted into law,
amounts made available under subsection (a) shall
be allocated by the President.
``(ii) Insufficient alternate allocation.--If
Congress enacts legislation establishing alternate
allocations for amounts made available under
subsection (a) that are less than the full amount
appropriated under that subsection, the difference
between the amount appropriated and the alternate
allocation shall be allocated by the President.
[[Page 134 STAT. 687]]
``(3) Recreational public access.--Amounts expended from the
Fund under this section shall be consistent with the
requirements for recreational public access for hunting,
fishing, recreational shooting, or other outdoor recreational
purposes under section 200306(c).
``(4) <<NOTE: President.>> Annual report.--The President
shall submit to Congress an annual report that describes the
final allocation by account, program, and project of amounts
made available under subsection (a), including a description of
the status of obligations and expenditures.''.
(b) Conforming Amendments.--
(1) Section 200302(c) of title 54, United States Code, is
amended by striking paragraph (3).
(2) Section 200306(a)(2)(B) of title 54, United States Code,
is amended by striking clause (iii).
(c) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for chapter 2003 of
title 54, United States Code <<NOTE: 54 USC 200301 prec.>> , is amended
by striking the item relating to section 200303 and inserting the
following:
``200303. Availability of funds.''.
Approved August 4, 2020.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY--H.R. 1957:
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HOUSE REPORTS: No. 116-39, Pt. 1 (Comm. on Ways and Means).
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 165 (2019):
Apr. 9, considered and passed House.
June 10-12, 15-17, considered and passed Senate, amended.
July 21, 22, House considered and concurred in Senate
amendments.
DAILY COMPILATION OF PRESIDENTIAL DOCUMENTS (2019):
Aug. 4, Presidential remarks.
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