16 U.S.C. § 6303 — Great ape conservation assistance

(a) In general. Subject to available funds and consultation with appropriate Federal officials, the Secretary^* must use Fund^* amounts to provide financial assistance for great-ape conservation^* projects whose proposals the Secretary approves under this section.

(b) Project proposals. (1) Eligible applicants. A proposal may be submitted by (A) a wildlife-management authority of a country containing any part of a great ape’s range, if its activities directly or indirectly affect a great-ape population; (B) the CITES^* Secretariat; or (C) a person or group with demonstrated expertise needed for great-ape conservation. (2) Required elements. A proposal must state the project’s purposes; name the person responsible; describe the conductors’ qualifications; concisely describe implementation and outcome-assessment methods, staff and community management, and logistics; estimate the money and time needed; include support from appropriate governments where the Secretary decides that support is needed for success; identify the source and amount of available matching funds; and include other information the Secretary considers necessary to evaluate funding eligibility.

(c) Project review and approval. (1) Within 30 days after receiving a proposal, the Secretary must give a copy to appropriate Federal officials and timely review it against subsection (d)’s criteria. (2) Within 180 days after receiving it, subject to available funds and after consulting those officials, the Secretary must consult each country where the project will occur, consider the comments, approve or disapprove the proposal, and give written notice to the submitter, the officials, and each country.

(d) Criteria for approval. The Secretary may approve a proposal if it improves great-ape conservation by helping to: (1) carry out conservation programs; (2) address human–great ape^* conflicts caused by competition for the same habitat; (3) improve compliance with CITES and other laws restricting the taking or trade of great apes or regulating their habitat; (4) develop reliable scientific information about, or monitoring methods for, (A) habitat condition and health, (B) population numbers and trends, or (C) current and projected threats to habitat, numbers, or trends; (5) promote cooperative projects on those issues among governments, affected communities, nongovernmental organizations, or private-sector persons; or (6) address root causes of threats in range states, including illegal bushmeat trade, disease, inadequate regional or local conservation capacity, and habitat loss from natural disasters.

(e) Project sustainability. When deciding whether to approve proposals, the Secretary must, as far as practicable, favor projects designed for effective, long-term conservation of great apes and their habitats.

(f) Matching funds. The Secretary must favor projects for which matching funds are available.

(g) Project reporting. (1) Each recipient must send periodic reports at intervals the Secretary considers necessary. After consulting appropriate government officials, the Secretary decides what information is needed to evaluate progress and success, ensure positive results, assess problems, and encourage improvements. (2) The reports and other project documents relating to financially assisted projects must be available to the public.

(h) Captive-breeding limits. A grant under this chapter (1) may not pay for captive breeding except captive breeding for release into the wild; and (2) may pay for breeding a species for release into the wild only when no other conservation method for that species is biologically feasible.

(i) Panel. (1) Beginning no later than 1 year after March 12, 2019, and every 5 years afterward, the Secretary may convene great-ape experts to identify the greatest conservation needs and priorities. (2) As far as practicable, the Secretary must include at least one representative from every country in the natural range of great apes and people with great-ape conservation expertise. (3) The panel must consider relevant conservation plans or strategies, including research and findings about conservation needs and priorities, regional or species-specific plans, strategies developed or begun by the Secretary, and other applicable plans or strategies. (4) Subject to available appropriations, the Secretary may pay the costs of convening and facilitating panel meetings. (5) Title 5, chapter 10 does not apply to a panel convened under paragraph (1).

(j) Multiyear grants. (1) The Secretary may award an otherwise eligible person a grant lasting up to 5 years for a project the person shows is an effective, long-term strategy for conserving great apes and their habitat. (2) This subsection does not prevent the Secretary from awarding a grant one year at a time.