cial fisheries of the concerned Regional Office of the National Marine Fisheries Service.

§ 401.4 Activities prohibited.

Law enforcement, public relations, harvesting, marketing and processing activities, construction of fisherman use facilities, and activities concerned with landlocked anadromous fish populations (except fish in the Great Lakes that ascend streams to spawn) may not be financed under the Act. 8401.5 Coordination with States.

The Secretary will approve an Application For Federal Assistance only after he has coordinated the application with the State office established to review applications under Executive Order 12372 (if the State has established such an office and wishes to review these applications) and other non-Federal entities which have management authority over the resource to be affected.

[48 FR 29137, June 24, 1983]

(a) Project work shall be carried through to a state of completion acceptable to the Secretary with reasonable promptness. Failure to render satisfactory performance reports or failure to complete the project to the satisfaction of the Secretary shall be cause for suspension of Federal assistance for the project until the project provisions are satisfactorily met. Federal assistance may be terminated upon determination by the Secretary that satisfactory progress has not been maintained. The Secretary shall have the right to inspect and review work at any time.

(b) Research and development work shall be continuously coordinated by the Cooperator with studies conducted by others to avoid unnecessary duplication.

(c) All work shall be performed in accordance with applicable local laws, except when in conflict with Federal laws or regulations, in which case Federal laws or regulations shall prevail.

§ 401.7 General information for the Secretary.

Before any Federal funds may be obligated for any project an applicant shall furnish to the Secretary, upon his request, information regarding the laws affecting anadromous fish and the authority of the applicant to participate in the benefits of the Act.

(a) Document signature. Individuals authorized to sign project documents under the Commercial Fisheries Research and Development Act of 1964 (78 Stat. 197, as amended), 16 U.S.C. 779 through 779f, or the Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration Act (64 Stat. 430, amended), 16 U.S.C. 777 through 777f, may likewise sign project documents contemplated in this part.

as

(b) Program information. The Secretary may, from time to time, request, and the Cooperators shall furnish, information relating to the administration and maintenance of any project established under the Act.

§ 401.8 Availability of funds.

The period of availability of funds to the States or other non-Federal interests for obligation shall be established by the administering Federal agency.

§ 401.9 Payments to cooperators.

Payments shall be made to Cooperators in accordance with provisions of grant-in-aid awards or project agreements.

§ 401.10 Request for payment.

Request for payment shall be on forms provided by the Secretary, certified as therein prescribed, and submitted to the Regional Director by the Cooperator.

§ 401.11 Property as matching funds.

The non-Federal share of the cost of projects may be in the form of real or personal property. Specific procedures to be used by grantees in placing the value on real or personal property for matching funds are set forth in Attachment F of Federal Management Circular 74-7.

§ 401.12 Ownership of property.

When real property is acquired pursuant to the provisions of the Act, title to such property, or interests therein, shall be vested in the United States, and the conveying instrument shall recite the United States of America as the grantee. However, if the Secretary determines that under the terms of the application for Federal assistance and

grant-in-aid award or project agreement, the intent and purpose of the Act may be better served by other ownership of such property, an appropriate transfer may be made. When real or personal property is utilized as matching funds, title to such property shall be in the Cooperator unless otherwise specified in the grant-in-aid award or project agreement.

or

The regulations of the Secretary of Labor applicable to contractors and subcontractors (29 CFR Part 3), made pursuant to the Copeland "Anti-Kickback" Act (18 U.S.C. 874), as amended, are made a part of the regulations in this part by reference. The Cooperator will comply with the regulations in this part and any amendments modifications thereof, and the Cooperator's prime contractor will be responsible for the submission of statements required of subcontractors thereunder. The foregoing shall apply except as the Secretary of Labor may specifically provide for reasonable limitation, variations, tolerances, and exemptions.

(a) This part interprets and implements sections 7(a)-(d) [16 U.S.C. 1536(a)-(d)] of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended ("Act"). Section 7(a) grants authority to and imposes requirements upon Federal agencies regarding endangered or threatened species of fish, wildlife, or plants ("listed species") and habitat of such species that has been designated as critical ("critical habitat"). Section 7(a)(1) of the Act directs Federal agencies, in consultation with and with the assistance of the Secretary of the Interior or of Commerce, as appropriate, to utilize their authorities to further the purposes of the Act by carrying out conservation programs for listed species. Such affirmative conservation programs must comply with applicable permit requirements (50 CFR Parts 17, 220, 222, and 227) for listed species and should be coordinated with the appropriate Secretary. Section 7(a)(2) of the Act requires every Federal agency, in consultation with and with the assistance of the Secretary, to insure that any action it authorizes, funds, or carries out, in the United States or upon the high seas, is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of any listed species or results in the destruction or adverse modification of critical habitat. Section 7(a)(3) of the Act authorizes a prospective permit or license applicant to request the issuing Federal agency to enter into early consultation with the Service on a proposed action to determine whether such action is likely to jeopardize the

continued existence of listed species or result in the destruction or adverse modification of critical habitat. Section 7(a)(4) of the Act requires Federal agencies to confer with the Secretary on any action that is likely to jeopardize the continued existence of proposed species or result in the destruction or adverse modification of proposed critical habitat. Section 7(b) of the Act requires the Secretary, after the conclusion of early or formal consultation, to issue a written statement setting forth the Secretary's opinion detailing how the agency action affects listed species or critical habitat Biological assessments are required under section 7(c) of the Act if listed species or critical habitat may be present in the area affected by any major construction activity as defined in § 404.02. Section 7(d) of the Act prohibits Federal agencies and applicants from making any irreversible or irretrievable commitment of

resources

which has the effect of foreclosing the formulation or implementation of reasonable and prudent alternatives which would avoid jeopardizing the continued existence of listed species or resulting in the destruction or adverse modification of critical habitat. Section 7(e)-(o)(1) of the Act provide procedures for granting exemptions from the requirements of section 7(a)(2). Regulations governing the submission of exemption applications are found at 50 CFR Part 451, and regulations governing the exemption process are found at 50 CFR Parts 450, 452, and 453.

(b) The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) share responsibilities for administering the Act. The Lists of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants are found in 50 CFR 17.11 and 17.12 and the designated critical habitats are found in 50 CFR 17.95 and 17.96 and 50 CFR Part 226. Endangered or threatened species under the jurisdiction of the NMFS are located in 50 CFR 222.23(a) and 227.4. If the subject species is cited in 50 CFR 222.23(a) or 22.4, the Federal agency shall contact the NMFS. For all other listed species the Federal Agency shall contact the FWS.

"Act" means the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended, 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.

"Action" means all activities or programs of any kind authorized, funded, or carried out, in whole or in part, by Federal agencies in the United States or upon the high seas. Examples inIclude, but are not limited to: (a) actions intended to conserve listed species or their habitat; (b) the promulgation of regulations; (c) the granting of licenses, contracts, leases, easements, rights-of-way, permits, or grants-inaid; or (d) actions directly or indirectly causing modifications to the land, water, or air.

"Action area” means all areas to be affected directly or indirectly by the Federal action and not merely the immediate area involved in the action.

"Applicant" refers to any person, as defined in section 3(13) of the Act, who requires formal approval or authorization from a Federal agency as a prerequisite to conducting the action.

"Biological assessment” refers to the information prepared by or under the direction of the Federal agency concerning listed and proposed species and designated and proposed critical habitat that may be present in the action area and the evaluation potential effects of the action on such species and habitat.

"Biological opinion" is the document that states the opinion of the Service as to whether or not the Federal action is likely to jeopardize the continued existence of listed species or result in the destruction or adverse modification of critical habitat.

“Conference" is a process which involves informal discussions between a Federal agency and the Service under section 7(a)(4) of the Act regarding the impact of an action on proposed species or proposed critical habitat and recommendations to minimize or avoid the adverse effects.

"Critical habitat" refers to an area designated as critical habitat listed in 50 CFR Parts 17 or 226.

"Cumulative effects" are those effects of future State or private activities, not involving Federal activities, that are reasonably certain to occur within the action area of the Federal action subject to consultation.

"Designated non-Federal representative" refers to a person designated by the Federal agency as its representative to conduct informal consultation and/or to prepare any biological assessment.

'Destruction or adverse modification" means a direct or indirect alteration that appreciably diminishes the value of critical habitat for both the survival and recovery of a listed species. Such alterations include, but are not limited to, alterations adversely modifying any of those physical or biological features that were the basis for determining the habitat to be critical.

"Director" refers to the Assistant Administrator for Fisheries for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or his authorized representative; or the Fish and Wildlife Service regional director, or his authorized representative, for the region where the action would be carried out. "Early consultation" is a process requested by a Federal agency on behalf of a prospective applicant under section 7(a)(3) of the Act.

"Effects of the action" refers to the direct and indirect effects of an action on the species or critical habitat, together with the effects of other activities that are interrelated or interdependent with that action, that will be added to the environmental baseline. The environmental baseline includes the past and present impacts of all Federal, State, or private actions and other human activities in the action area, the anticipated impacts of all proposed Federal projects in the action area that have already undergone formal or early section 7 consultation, and the impact of State or private actions which are contemporaneous with the consultation in process. Indirect effects are those that are caused by the proposed action and are later in time, but still are reasonably

certain to occur. Interrelated actions are those that are part of a larger action and depend on the larger action for their justification. Interdependent actions are those that have no independent utility apart from the action under consideration.

"Formal consultation" is a process between the Service and the Federal agency that commences with the Federal agency's written request for consultation under section 7(a)(2) of the Act and concludes with the Service's issuance of the biological opinion under section 7(b)(3) of the Act.

"Incidental take" refers to takings that result from, but are not the purpose of, carrying out an otherwise lawful activity conducted by the Federal agency or applicant.

"Informal consultation" is an optional process that includes all discussions, correspondence, etc., between the Service and the Federal agency or the designated non-Federal representative prior to formal consultation, if required.

'Jeopardize the continued existence of' means to engage in an action that reasonably would be expected, directly or indirectly, to reduce appreciably the likelihood of both the survival and recovery of a listed species in the wild by reducing the reproduction, numbers, or distribution of that species.

"Listed species" means any species of fish, wildlife, or plant which has been determined to be endangered or threatened under section 4 of the Act. Listed species are found in 50 CFR 17.11-17.12.

"Major construction activity" is a construction project (or other undertaking having similar physical impacts) which is a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment as referred to in the National Environmental Policy Act [NEPA, 42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)].

"Preliminary biological opinion" refers to an opinion issued as a result of early consultation.

"Proposed critical habitat" means habitat proposed in the FEDERAL REGISTER to be designated or revised as critical habitat under section 4 of the Act for any listed or proposed species.

"Proposed species" means any species of fish, wildlife, or plant that is