seaturtle.org : MTN : ARCHIVES : Sign In
The MTCA is the sixth multinational species bill passed by the US Congress since 1988 to promote the conservation of endangered species in foreign countries. The legislation recognizes the endangered status of the world’s marine turtles, the immense challenges these species face, and the importance of marine turtles to the ecosystems in which they are found. Like its predecessors to conserve African elephants, rhinos and tigers, Asian elephants, great apes and neo-tropical birds, funds for the MTCA will be appropriated annually by Congress and administered by the Office of International Affairs within the US Fish and Wildlife Service. The multinational species funds are authorized for $5 million each (the rhino-tiger bill is authorized for $10 million). Thus far, yearly appropriations have been significantly less, but as Congressional interest in these programs grows, funding has steadily increased. In Fiscal Year 2004 each fund received $1.4 million, up from the initial appropriation of $300,000 for African elephants in 1990.
The US Congress has learned the value of the multinational species bills in making a significant difference for species conservation overseas. Dollar for dollar, these funds provide excellent value, supporting and bolstering critical conservation activities and leveraging additional contributions. In addition to $35 million appropriated by Congress for the funds since their inception, the existing funds have generated $110 million in direct or in-kind aid from host and donor nations, nongovernmental organizations and others. Using the other species bills as our guide, we anticipate that individual MTCA grants will range from $10,000 to $100,000.
Specific requirements for MTCA proposals should be available in the near future. In the interim, groups interested in drafting proposals should follow the guidelines presented in the legislation. Required proposal elements include a statement of project purpose; name of individual with overall responsibility; description of the qualifications of the individuals who will conduct the project; description of methods for project implementation and outcome assessment; staff and community management for the project; project logistics; an estimate of the funds and time required to complete the project; if deemed necessary, evidence of support for the project by appropriate government authorities; information about the source and amount of matching funding; and other information deemed necessary for project evaluation. Eligible applicants include wildlife management authorities of foreign countries as well as any other person or group with demonstrated expertise in sea turtle conservation.
As interest in this program is the key to its future success, groups are urged to develop and submit project proposals. The sea turtle conservation community should be inspired by the early success of the neo-tropical migratory bird - as a result of an outpouring of early demand for funds, appropriations for the neo-tropical migratory bird fund have soared to $5 million in just a few years.
Passage of this legislation is the culmination of several years of effort by the US Congress and the conservation community. Although the US Senate passed the bill in 2002, the House did not approve it in the waning days of the 107th Congress (each Congress convenes for two years; legislation that fails to pass both Houses must make a fresh start in the next Congress). S. 1210, the Marine Turtle Conservation Act of 2003, was re-introduced in the US Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on June 9, 2003 by Ranking member Jim Jeffords. Co-sponsored by Committee Chairman James Inhofe and members George Voinovich, Joseph Lieberman, and Ron Wyden, the bill received full Committee support during markup on July 28th and passed the Senate by Unanimous Consent on October 31, 2003.
Congressman Wayne Gilchrest introduced a nearly identical bill (H.R. 3378) to the House Committee on Resources on October 28, 2003. A hearing on the bill was held in Mr. Gilchrest’s Subcommittee on Fisheries Conservation, Wildlife and Oceans on Earth Day, April 22, 2004, with supporting testimony by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, National Marine Fisheries Service, World Wildlife Fund, Wildlife Conservation Society, American Zoo and Aquarium Association, National Fisheries Institute and the Ocean Conservancy. The bill reported out of the subcommittee and was sent to the full Resources Committee. By the time the bill was reviewed by the Resources Committee, it had 44 Democratic and Republican co-sponsors. It reported out on May 5th with an important endorsement from Committee Chairman, Richard Pombo (only about 15% of introduced bills make it out of committee). After H.R. 3378 passed the House of Representatives on June 14, the Senate subsequently passed it again, on June 18th , to resolve small differences between the House and Senate versions. The MTCA was signed into law by the President in early July.
We are especially grateful to our Senate and House champions who provided invaluable bipartisan support for this bill. As noted above, Senators Jeffords (VT), Inhofe (OK), Voinovich (OH), Lieberman (CT), and Wyden (OR) co-sponsored the bill in the Senate. In the House the co-sponsors were Representatives Gilchrest (MD), Saxton (NJ), Greenwood (PA), Shaw (FL), Ros-Lehtinen (FL), Gallegly (CA), L. Diaz-Balart (FL), D. Weldon (FL), Goss (FL), Crenshaw (FL), Pallone (NJ), Abercrombie (HI), Faleomavaega (A. Samoa), Olver (MA), Van Hollen (MD), Case (HI), Frank (MA), Bordallo (GU), Markey (MA), Deutsch (FL), Capps (CA), McCollum (MN), A. Hastings (FL), Honda (CA), Serrano (NY), T. Udall (NM), Weiner (NY), Wexler (FL), Owens (NY), Miller (CA), Filner (CA), Kildee (MI), Moran (VA), Napolitano (CA), S. Davis (CA), Allen (ME), DeFazio (OR), Inslee (WA), Grijalva (AZ), Norton (DC), Rangel (NY), Blumenauer (OR), Engel (NY), and Sanders (VT).
From the groups that worked to make the bill a reality to the individuals who contacted their elected representatives, the sea turtle conservation community has given the MTCA tremendous support. Several groups overseas made valuable contributions by providing letters of support to demonstrate the need for this legislation. The Ocean Conservancy and the World Wildlife Fund deserve special acknowledgement for the commitment of staff and resources to this endeavor since 2002. The Caribbean Conservation Corporation, American Zoo and Aquarium Association, and Wildlife Conservation Society provided critical assistance in generating key Congressional support this year. Most importantly, the continued support of sea turtle conservationists and activists everywhere will be crucial to the program’s future success in attracting Congressional appropriations. The text of the MTCA (H.R. 3378) can be found at <http://Thomas.loc.gov> and it is proposed to have it hosted on SEATURTLE.org in the near future.