Migratory birds conservation bill offered by Salazar, Joyce advances to Senate

The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday advanced bipartisan legislation led by U.S. Reps. María Elvira Salazar (R-FL) and Dave Joyce (R-OH) to reauthorize the Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act, which provides financial assistance for projects to promote the conservation of neotropical migratory birds.

The U.S. Senate on April 10 received the Migratory Birds of the Americas Conservation Enhancements Act, H.R. 4389 — which Rep. Salazar sponsored in June 2023 with three original cosponsors, including Rep. Joyce and U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen (D-WA) — and referred it for consideration to the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

“Migratory birds provide innumerable ecological, economic, and recreational benefits to Miami and the Everglades, and this legislation will protect these iconic birds for generations to come,” Rep. Salazar said. “By passing H.R. 4389, the House is making a commitment to the protection of our South Florida ecosystem while also boosting our wildlife recreation sector.”

“With the passage of this critical bill in the House, we are one step closer to reauthorizing the successful Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act program,” said Rep. Joyce. “In doing so, we will continue to conserve bird habitats and support healthy bird populations, which are critical to our outdoor recreation economy.”

If enacted, H.R. 4389 would reauthorize the Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act through fiscal year 2028 to continue providing competitive grants for habitat conservation, research and monitoring, and community outreach and education projects in the Western Hemisphere that have a positive impact on migratory birds, according to a bill summary provided by the lawmakers.

“I am glad to see our migratory bird bill soar through the House,” said Rep. Larsen. “This bipartisan bill will help protect these diverse bird populations and their habitats in the Pacific Northwest and across the Western Hemisphere and provide a significant boost to the outdoor economy.”

The American Bird Conservancy supports the measure.