America’s Conservation Enhancement Reauthorization Act of 2024

Summary of Changes

The reported version makes three substantive policy changes to the introduced version:

1. Black Vulture Program Eligibility: Expands who can hold statewide depredation permits from "1 public entity per State" to "1 public entity or Farm Bureau organization per State," allowing agricultural organizations to participate in the program.

2. National Fish Habitat Board Composition: Adds two new board seats for Indian Tribes (one representing Alaska tribes and one representing tribes in other states) and restructures the regional fishery council/marine commission seats, increasing the board from 26 to 28 members with new provisions for tribal representation.

3. Fish Habitat Partnership Funding: Clarifies that partnership funding can support "Partnership operations" and adds language specifying that funds support both habitat conservation projects and partnership operational costs.

Additionally, a minor technical change modifies quorum language on the Fish Habitat Board from "all members" to "members present."

Summary of Changes

The main substantive change is in the black vulture livestock protection program. The previous version allowed "1 public entity per State" to hold a depredation permit, while the current version expands this to "1 public entity or Farm Bureau organization per State." This broadens eligibility for the permit by explicitly including Farm Bureau organizations as potential permit holders alongside government entities. All other provisions regarding wildlife protections, funding levels for wetlands and Chesapeake Bay programs, fish habitat partnerships, and extension deadlines to 2030 remain identical between versions.

Summary of Key Changes

The House version makes several substantive modifications to the Senate-passed bill:

Chronic Wasting Disease Task Force (Section 103): The House adds language removing the requirement that Task Force efforts be contingent on completing a study, instead requiring certain actions within 90 days of enactment rather than 180 days.

Chesapeake Bay Program funding (Section 108): The House reduces annual funding from $100 million to $92 million for fiscal years 2026-2030.

Fish Habitat Partnerships (Section 202): The House adds a new subsection establishing a congressional approval process where Partnership designations are automatically approved unless Congress passes a joint resolution of disapproval within 90 days—replacing the previous reporting requirement with an expedited legislative procedure.

Fish Habitat Funding (Section 206): The House removes provisions for $400,000 to the Bureau of Land Management and deletes the $1 million authorization for the National Fish Habitat Assessment, while also removing language about funding partnership operations and instead only using the word "habitat."

Summary of Changes

Both versions are substantively identical; the only difference is formatting and presentation. The Engrossed Amendment House version presents the bill in traditional legislative text format with explicit amendment language (e.g., "by striking...and inserting..."), while the Enrolled Bill version displays the same content in a simplified outline structure showing the final amended text directly. The policy content—extending wildlife and conservation program authorizations from 2025 to 2030, establishing a black vulture livestock protection program, expanding the National Fish Habitat Board from 26 to 28 members, and implementing a 90-day congressional disapproval process for partnership designations—remains completely unchanged between the two versions.