16 U.S.C. § 669: Cooperation of Secretary of the Interior with States; conditions

The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to cooperate with the States, through their respective State fish and game departments, in wildlife-restoration projects as hereinafter in this chapter set forth; but no money apportioned under this chapter to any State shall be expended therein until its legislature, or other State agency authorized by the State constitution to make laws governing the conservation of wildlife, shall have assented to the provision of this chapter and shall have passed laws for the conservation of wildlife which shall include a prohibition against the diversion of license fees paid by hunters for any other purpose than the administration of said State fish and game department, except that, until the final adjournment of the first regular session of the legislature held after September 2, 1937 , the assent of the Governor of the State shall be sufficient. The Secretary of the Interior and the State fish and game department of each State accepting the benefits of this chapter, shall agree upon the wildlife-restoration projects to be aided in such State under the terms of this chapter and all projects shall conform to the standards fixed by the Secretary of the Interior. One of the purposes of this chapter is to provide financial and technical assistance to the States for the promotion of hunting and recreational shooting. to extend financial and technical assistance to the States under the Federal Aid to [in] Wildlife Restoration Act [ 16 U.S.C. 669 et seq.] for the benefit of a diverse array of wildlife and associated habitats, including species that are not hunted or fished, to fulfill unmet needs of wildlife within the States in recognition of the primary role of the States to conserve all wildlife; to assure sound conservation policies through the development, revision, and implementation of a comprehensive wildlife conservation and restoration plan; to encourage State fish and wildlife agencies to participate with the Federal Government, other State agencies, wildlife conservation organizations and outdoor recreation and conservation interests through cooperative planning and implementation of this title [enacting section 1356a of Title 43 , Public Lands, amending sections 669a, 669b, 669c, 669g, and 4406 of this title, and enacting provisions set out as notes under this section]; and to encourage State fish and wildlife agencies to provide for public involvement in the process of development and implementation of a wildlife conservation and restoration program. In this section, the term ‘Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act’ means the Act of September 2, 1937 ( 16 U.S.C. 669 et seq.), commonly referred to as the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act or the Pittman-Robertson Act.”