16 U.S.C. § 1011a — Watershed agreements

(a) Watershed restoration and enhancement agreements. For fiscal year 2006 and each later fiscal year, if funds are otherwise available, Forest Service appropriations may be used by the Agriculture Secretary for cooperative agreements with willing Federal, Tribal, State, and local governments; private and nonprofit entities; and landowners. The agreements may protect, restore, or improve fish and wildlife habitat and other resources on public or private land, reduce natural-disaster risk where public safety is threatened, or do both, when the actions benefit resources within the watershed. (b) Direct and indirect agreements. The Secretary may make an agreement (1) directly with a willing private landowner, or (2) indirectly through a State, local, or Tribal government, another public entity, an educational institution, or a private nonprofit organization. (c) Terms. The agreement must (A) include terms mutually agreed to by the Secretary and the landowner, State or local government, or private or nonprofit entity; (B) improve and otherwise benefit fish, wildlife, and other resources on national forest lands in the watershed; (C) authorize the Secretary’s technical help in planning management activities; (D) provide for costs to be shared by the Federal Government, landowners, and other entities as the affected parties agree; and (E) ensure that the Secretary determines each expenditure to be in the public interest. The Secretary may require other terms needed to protect the public investment on non-Federal lands, but those terms must be mutually agreed to by the Secretary and the other landowners or State or local governments. (d) Applicable law. Chapter 63 of title 31 does not apply to (1) an agreement under this section or (2) an agreement under section 565a-1 of this title. (e) Reports. By December 31, 1999, the Secretary must report to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. The report must briefly describe each project, including its purpose, location on Federal and non-Federal land, main activities, and all agreement parties, and must state the funding or other contributions provided by each party for each project.