12 2 STA T . 2 04 4 PUBLIC LA W 110 – 24 6—J U NE 1 8, 2008 ‘ ‘ (6)SECR E TA R Y.—Thet e rm ‘Se c ret a r y’ mea ns the Secretary ofAg r i c ul ture , acting through the C hief of the F orest Ser v ice. ‘‘( b ) ES TA BLI S HM E N T.—The Secretary shall establish a p rogram, to be k no w n as the ‘community forest an d open space conservation program’. ‘‘(c) G RANT P R OG RAM.— ‘‘( 1 ) I N GENERAL.—The Secretary may award grants to eligible entities to ac q uire private forest land, to be owned in fee simple, that— ‘‘(A) are threatened by conversion to nonforest uses
and ‘‘( B ) provide public benefits to communities, including— ‘‘(i) economic benefits through sustainable forest management; ‘‘(ii) environmental benefits, including clean water and wildlife habitat; ‘‘(iii) benefits from forest - based educational pro- grams, including vocational education programs in for- estry; ‘‘(iv) benefits from serving as models of effective forest stewardship for private landowners; and ‘‘(v) recreational benefits, including hunting and fishing. ‘‘( 2 )FE D ERAL COST SHARE.—An eligible entity may receive a grant under the Program in an amount equal to not more than 50 percent of the cost of acquiring 1 or more parcels, as determined by the Secretary. ‘‘( 3 ) N ON- F EDERAL SHARE.—As a condition of receipt of the grant, an eligible entity that receives a grant under the Pro- gram shall provide, in cash, donation, or in kind, a non-Federal matching share in an amount that is at least equal to the amount of the grant received. ‘‘( 4 )A P PRAISAL OF PARCELS.—To determine the non-Federal share of the cost of a parcel of privately-owned forest land under paragraph (2), an eligible entity shall require appraisals of the land that comply with the U niform Appraisal Standards for Federal L and Acquisitions developed by the Interagency Land Acquisition Conference. ‘‘(5) APPLICATION.—An eligible entity that seeks to receive a grant under the Program shall submit to the State forester or equivalent official (or in the case of an Indian tribe, an equivalent official of the Indian tribe) an application that includes— ‘‘(A) a description of the land to be acquired; ‘‘(B) a forest plan that provides— ‘‘(i) a description of community benefits to be achieved from the acquisition of the private forest land; and ‘‘(ii) an e x planation of the manner in which any private forest land to be acquired using funds from the grant will be managed; and ‘‘(C) such other relevant information as the Secretary may require. ‘‘(6) EFFECT ON TR U ST LAND.— ‘‘(A) INELIGIBILITY.—The Secretary shall not provide a grant under the Program for any pro j ect on land held
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