Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 118.djvu/2352

 118 STAT. 2322 PUBLIC LAW 108–412—OCT. 30, 2004 ‘‘(2) Other activities to control or eradicate noxious weeds or promote control or eradication of noxious weeds. ‘‘(e) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive assistance under this section, a weed management entity shall prepare and submit to the Secretary an application containing such information as the Secretary shall by regulation require. ‘‘(f) SELECTION OF PROJECTS.—Projects funded under this sec tion shall be selected by the Secretary on a competitive basis, taking into consideration the following: ‘‘(1) The severity of the noxious weed problem or potential problem addressed by the project. ‘‘(2) The likelihood that the project will prevent or resolve the problem, or increase knowledge about resolving similar problems. ‘‘(3) The extent to which the Federal funds will leverage non Federal funds to address the noxious weed problem addressed by the project. ‘‘(4) The extent to which the program will improve the overall capacity of the United States to address noxious weed control and management. ‘‘(5) The extent to which the weed management entity has made progress in addressing noxious weed problems. ‘‘(6) The extent to which the project will provide a com prehensive approach to the control or eradication of noxious weeds. ‘‘(7) The extent to which the project will reduce the total population of noxious weeds. ‘‘(8) The extent to which the project promotes cooperation and participation between States that have common interests in controlling and eradicating noxious weeds. ‘‘(9) Other factors that the Secretary determines to be rel evant. ‘‘(g) REGIONAL, STATE, AND LOCAL INVOLVEMENT.—In deter mining which projects receive funding under this section, the Sec retary shall, to the maximum extent practicable— ‘‘(1) rely on technical and merit reviews provided by regional, State, or local weed management experts; and ‘‘(2) give priority to projects that maximize the involvement of State, local and, where applicable, Indian Tribe governments. ‘‘(h) SPECIAL CONSIDERATION.—The Secretary shall give special consideration to States with approved weed management entities established by Indian Tribes and may provide an additional alloca tion to a State to meet the particular needs and projects that the weed management entity plans to address. ‘‘SEC. 455. AGREEMENTS. ‘‘(a) CONSULTATION AND CONSENT.—In carrying out an agree ment under this section, the Secretary shall— ‘‘(1) if the activities funded under the agreement will take place on Federal land, consult with the heads of the Federal agencies having jurisdiction over the land; or ‘‘(2) obtain the written consent of the non Federal land owner. ‘‘(b) APPLICATION OF OTHER LAWS.—The Secretary may enter into agreements under this section with weed management entities notwithstanding sections 6301 through 6309 of title 31, United 7 USC 7784. Regulations.

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