§4104 State Projects

Summary

States may send the Secretary a project proposal through their State agency or an interstate commission. The proposal must include full plans, specifications, and cost estimates. Costs for engineering, planning, inspection, and unexpected contingencies for construction work cannot be more than 10% of the construction cost, and the State must pay that 10% as part of its share. No federal money under the related program can be committed until a proposal is submitted and approved. The Secretary will review each proposal for sound design, likely results, avoiding duplicate work, good project management, how success will be measured, consistency with the program’s goals, and any other rules the Secretary sets. Normally the federal government will pay up to 75% of a project’s cost, unless the State has an interstate fishery plan for the resource or has adopted regulations that match any federal fishery plan for that species. The Secretary must give written approval or denial quickly and must explain reasons if a proposal is denied. Funds count as obligated in the year the written approval is given. Money from the program can only be spent on approved projects, except up to $25,000 per year may be used for State–Federal enforcement agreements. If the State uses those funds for something else, it must repay them before getting more program money. When a project is finished or when the Secretary decides, the federal share will be paid to the State authority or to the interstate commission’s account if the State asks; any payment to a commission is charged to that State’s allotment.