7 U.S.C. § 8355 — Losses of livestock due to depredation by federally protected species

(a) Definitions. (1) "Depredation" (A) means actual death, injury, or destruction of livestock caused by a federally protected species. (B) It does not include damage to other property — such as other animals, vegetation, motor vehicles, or structures — or diseases, lost profits, or other consequential damages. (2) "Federally protected species" means a species that is, or previously was, protected under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, the Endangered Species Act of 1973, or the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. (3) "Indian Tribe" has the meaning given in section 5304 of title 25. (4) (A) "Livestock" means horses, mules and asses, rabbits, llamas, cattle, bison, swine, sheep, goats, poultry, bees, honey and beehives, or any other animal generally used for food or for producing food or fiber. (B) It also includes guard animals that actively protect that livestock. (5) "Program" means the grant program created under subsection (b)(1). (6) "Secretaries" means (A) the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and (B) the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. (b) Grant program for losses of livestock due to depredation by federally protected species. (1) The Secretaries must create a program of grants to states and Indian Tribes, to add to what states, tribes, or state agencies already spend under their own programs — including programs started after October 30, 2020. These grants must: (A) help livestock producers carry out (i) proactive, nonlethal steps to reduce the risk of livestock loss on federal, state, private, or tribal land, and (ii) research related to those steps; and (B) compensate livestock producers for livestock losses on federal, state, private, or tribal land. (2) (A) By September 30 of each year, a state or tribe wanting a grant must report to the Secretaries the livestock losses on the relevant land during the year ending that date. (B) The Secretaries must allocate the available funding for a one-year period among states and tribes, based on the losses reported for the previous one-year period. (3) To be eligible for a grant, a state or tribe must: (A) designate an agency to administer the programs the grant supplements; (B) set up one or more accounts to receive the grant money; (C) keep files of every claim received and paid under the grant-funded programs, with supporting documentation; and (D) submit to the Secretaries annual reports summarizing claims, expenditures, and actions taken, plus any other reports the Secretaries need to judge how effective the assisted activities are. (c) Sense of Congress. Congress's view — not a binding requirement — is that: (1) no state or Indian Tribe has to take part in the program; and (2) the program adds to state compensation programs, and does not replace or take their place. (d) Authorization of appropriations. Congress may spend up to $15,000,000 a year for this section, for each fiscal year from 2021 through 2030. Of that amount: (1) $5,000,000 must go to grants for the nonlethal-prevention and research purposes in subsection (b)(1)(A); and (2) $10,000,000 must go to grants for the loss-compensation purpose in subsection (b)(1)(B).