(a) The Target Practice and Marksmanship Training Support Act (Pub. L. 116-17, March 10, 2019) amended the Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669 et seq.) to include activities for acquiring land for, expanding, or constructing public target ranges but does not authorize any new sources of funding. The law became effective for States beginning October 1, 2019.

(b) When a State fish and wildlife agency allocates funds to activities for acquiring land for, expanding, or constructing public target ranges under this law, it may apply a 90 percent Federal/10 percent non-Federal cost share and funds are available for obligation up to 5 years, beginning October 1 of the year the funds first become available. We abbreviate this funding method as “90/10/5.”

(c) An agency may allocate annually apportioned funds for 90/10/5 activities from the Traditional Wildlife Restoration program (not to exceed 10 percent), Basic Hunter Education and Safety subprogram (any amount from 0 up to 100 percent), and/or Enhanced Hunter Education and Safety program (any amount from 0 up to 100 percent) to projects for acquiring land for, expanding, or constructing public target ranges. There is no requirement for States to allocate any amount of funds to 90/10/5 activities.

(d) When using up to 10 percent of annually apportioned Traditional Wildlife Restoration program funds for 90/10/5 activities, the funds must be allocated to the designated subaccount and must be used only for eligible 90/10/5 purposes. Some amount of available Enhanced Hunter Education and Safety program funds, at least $1, must be combined with the Traditional Wildlife Restoration program funds allocated to 90/10/5 activities.

(e) An agency must allocate funds to a 90/10/5 subaccount within the FFY that funds are first apportioned. Funds allocated to a 90/10/5 subaccount during a prior FFY must remain in that 90/10/5 subaccount for obligation during the period of availability and until expended.

(f) Acquiring land for, expanding, or constructing public target ranges may also be accomplished, in total or when combined with 90/10/5 funds, using funds under the Basic Hunter Education and Safety subprogram, the Enhanced Hunter Education and Safety program, or both, but the agency must apply cost share and period of availability according to table 1 to § 80.61.

Table 1 to § 80.61 describes the sources of funding available for public target range projects and identifies their subaccount number. The Service uses subaccounts in the Department of the Interior's financial management system, the Financial and Business Management System or FBMS, to administer the specific use requirements for program and subprogram funding sources under the Acts. A State fish and wildlife agency may combine funds from multiple sources within the Act for eligible public target range activities. Your Regional OCI staff Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program Office can provide technical assistance on best practices for allocating costs to multiple eligible funding sources.

(a) The following are eligible 90/10/5 activities:

(1) Acquiring real property suitable or capable of being made suitable for constructing or expanding public target ranges (see subpart J of this part).

(2) Acquiring title to real property with an existing target range when the acquisition will increase public access or includes construction or expansion activities on the existing target range.

(3) Constructing a public target range on land owned or under management control of the State fish and wildlife agency. Construction may occur on land when title is held by a third party provided the agency holds a lease or other third-party binding agreement under State law that ensures the terms and conditions of the award will be met.

(4) Constructing or acquiring a mobile public target range.

(5) Expanding the physical footprint or configuration of an existing public target range in a manner that increases range capacity to accommodate more participants, provides additional range activities or functions, or physically modifies to accommodate all participants, regardless of ability. Examples include adding more lanes at a range, adding structures that provide access that is compliant with the Americans With Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), and expanding the facility to provide new opportunities that did not exist before, such as adding an archery range to a former firearm-only facility.

(6) Coordinating 90/10/5 awards that directly support acquiring land for, constructing, or expanding public target ranges through necessary activities that address planning, compliance, appraisals, engineering, and administering a project.

(7) Auxiliary activities and amenities that support the primary project and are necessary to the public's ability to fully utilize the public target range. Examples include public restrooms, storage facilities, protective bunkers and barriers, signs and markers, roads and parking areas, and utilities.

(8) Improvements may be approved if they are needed to prevent a public target range facility from becoming inoperable or suffering from significant diminished capacity. Consult with your Regional Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program Office.

(9) Constructing or expanding public target range projects on federally owned land.

(b) The following are ineligible 90/10/5 activities:

(1) Operations at a public target range.

(2) Maintenance at a public target range, unless necessary for completing a project for constructing or expanding a public target range.

(3) Construction that is not to build a new or expand an existing public target range. This includes auxiliary activities and amenities not associated with an approved new or expansion project.

(4) Long-term monitoring of a public target range facility.

(5) Activities that do not provide or support new or increased physical capacity for public target ranges.

(a) If Basic Hunter Education and Safety program funds are fully obligated for activities listed at § 80.50(b)(1) (see 16 U.S.C. 669g(b)), the State fish and wildlife agency may use Enhanced Hunter Education and Safety program funds for Enhanced Hunter Education and Safety program eligible activities or may allocate any portion of that FFY's Enhanced Hunter Education and Safety program funds to any eligible activity under the Wildlife Restoration Act.

(b) If Basic Hunter Education and Safety program funds are used for R3 activities listed at § 80.50(b)(2), the exception set forth at paragraph (a) of this section does not apply and Enhanced Hunter Education and Safety program funds must be used for Enhanced Hunter Education and Safety program activities.

The requirements of this section apply to allocating and obligating funds for the Recreational Boating Access subprogram.

(a) A State fish and wildlife agency must allocate funds from annual apportionments under the Sport Fish Restoration Act for use in the subprogram.

(b) Over each 5-year period, the total allocation for the subprogram in each of the Service's geographic regions must average at least 15 percent of the Sport Fish Restoration funds apportioned to the States in that Region. If this requirement is met, an individual State fish and wildlife agency may allocate more or less than 15 percent of its annual apportionment.

(c) The Regional Director calculates regional allocation averages for separate 5-year periods that coincide with FFYs 2023-2027, 2028-2032, 2033-2037, and each subsequent 5-year period.

(d) If the total regional allocation for a 5-year period is less than 15 percent, the State agencies may, in a memorandum of understanding, agree among themselves which of them will make the additional allocations to eliminate the regional shortfall.

(e) The regulations in this paragraph (e) apply if State fish and wildlife agencies in a Service region do not agree on which of them will make additional allocations to bring the average regional allocation to at least 15 percent over a 5-year period. If the agencies do not agree:

(1) The Regional Director may require States in the region to make changes needed to achieve the minimum 15-percent regional average before the end of the fifth year; and

(2) The Regional Director must not require a State to increase or decrease its allocation if the State has allocated at least 15 percent over the 5-year period.

(f) A Federal obligation of these allocated funds must occur by the end of the fourth consecutive FFY after the FFY in which the funds first became available for allocation.

(g) If the agency's application to use these funds has not led to a Federal obligation by that time, these allocated funds become available for reapportionment among the State fish and wildlife agencies for the following FFY.

The limitations in this section apply to State fish and wildlife agency spending on the Aquatic Resource Education and State Outreach and Communications subprograms.

(a) Each State's fish and wildlife agency may spend a maximum of 15 percent of the annual amount apportioned to the State from the Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund for activities in both subprograms. The 15-percent maximum applies to both subprograms as if they were one.

(b) The 15-percent maximum for the subprograms does not apply to the Commonwealths of Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands, the District of Columbia, and the Territories of Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and American Samoa. These jurisdictions may spend more than 15 percent of their annual apportionments for both subprograms with the approval of the Regional Director.

A grant-funded project or facility is multipurpose if it carries out the purposes of:

(1) A single grant program under the Acts; and

(2) Another grant program, subprogram, a different funding source under the Acts, a grant program not under the Acts, or an activity unrelated to awards.

In accordance with 2 CFR 200.405, a State fish and wildlife agency must allocate costs in multipurpose projects based on eligible activities authorized, sources of funding, and the uses or benefits for each purpose that will result from the completed project or facility. The agency must describe the method used to allocate costs in multipurpose projects or facilities in the project statement included in the award application.

Yes. Each coastal State's fish and wildlife agency must equitably allocate the funds apportioned under the Sport Fish Restoration Act between projects with benefits for marine fisheries and projects with benefits for freshwater fisheries.

(a) The subprograms authorized by the Sport Fish Restoration Act do not have to allocate funding in the same manner if the State fish and wildlife agency allocates Sport Fish Restoration funds equitably between marine and freshwater fisheries.

(b) The coastal States for purposes of this allocation are:

(1) Alabama, Alaska, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, and Washington;

(2) The Commonwealths of Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands; and

(3) The Territories of Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and American Samoa.

The requirements of this section apply to allocation of funds between marine and freshwater fisheries projects.

(a) When a State fish and wildlife agency allocates funds, it must meet the following requirements:

(1) The ratio of total funds allocated for marine fisheries projects to total funds allocated for marine and freshwater fisheries projects combined must equal the ratio of resident marine anglers to the total number of resident anglers in the State; and

(2) The ratio of total funds allocated for freshwater fisheries projects to total funds allocated for marine and freshwater fisheries projects combined must equal the ratio of resident freshwater anglers to the total number of resident anglers in the State.

(b) A resident angler is one who fishes for recreational purposes in the same State where that person maintains legal residence.

(c) Agencies must determine the relative distribution of resident anglers in the State between those who fish in marine environments and those who fish in freshwater environments. Agencies must use the National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation, or another statistically reliable survey or technique approved by the Regional Director, for this purpose.

(d) If an agency uses statistical sampling to determine the relative distribution of resident anglers in the State between those who fish in marine environments and those who fish in freshwater environments, the sampling must be complete by the earlier of the following:

(1) Five years after the last statistical sample; or

(2) Before completing the first certification following any change in the licensing system that could affect the number of sportfishing license holders.

(e) The amounts allocated from each year's apportionment do not necessarily have to result in an equitable allocation for each year. However, the amounts allocated over a variable period, not to exceed 3 years, must result in an equitable allocation between marine and freshwater fisheries projects.

(f) Agencies that fail to allocate funds equitably between marine and freshwater fisheries projects may become ineligible to use Sport Fish Restoration program funds. These agencies must remain ineligible until corrective action is taken and the funds have been allocated equitably.

A State fish and wildlife agency may use funds from more than one annual apportionment to finance projects, such as construction or acquisition of lands or interests in lands, including water rights. An agency may use funds in this manner, according to a plan approved by the Regional Director and subject to the availability of funds, in either of the following ways:

(a) Finance the entire cost of the acquisition or construction from a non-Federal funding source. The Service will reimburse funds to the agency in succeeding apportionment years.

(b) Negotiate an installment purchase or contract in which the agency pays periodic and specified amounts to the seller or contractor according to a plan that schedules either reimbursements or advances of funds immediately before need.

The following conditions apply to financing an activity from more than one annual apportionment:

(a) A State fish and wildlife agency must agree to complete the project even if Federal funds are not available. If an agency does not complete the project, the agency must recover any expended Federal funds that did not result in commensurate wildlife or sport-fishery benefits. The agency must then reallocate the recovered funds to approved projects in the same program.

(b) The project statement included with the application must have a complete schedule of payments to finish the project.

(c) Interest and other financing costs may be allowable subject to the restrictions in the applicable Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (2 CFR part 200).