H.R. 4062 — MONARCH Act of 2025

This section states congressional findings on the western monarch butterfly population's imminent extinction risk, including a more than 99% decline over three decades due to drought, habitat loss, and climate change; historic lows of 1,914 butterflies in 2020 and fewer than 10,000 in 2024; likely extinction within two decades without action; and the importance of restoring and protecting milkweed, nectar plants, overwintering, and pollinator habitats to aid monarchs and other pollinators.

This section defines key terms for purposes of the Act, including "(1) conservation," meaning methods to protect habitats of western monarch butterflies and other pollinators (including habitat protection, restoration, and management; assistance for conservation plans; and community outreach); "(2) Fund," meaning the Western Monarch Butterfly Rescue Fund established by section 5(a); "(3) Secretary," meaning the Secretary of the Interior; "(4) Tribal government," meaning the governing body of a federally recognized Indian tribe; and "(5) western monarch butterfly," meaning the monarch butterfly population that overwinters along the California coast and breeds across California, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Utah.

This section establishes a grant program under which the Secretary—subject to the availability of funds deposited in the Fund and in consultation with other federal agencies—provides grants to eligible entities for projects conserving western monarch butterflies and other pollinators within their range. Eligible entities include relevant local or Tribal government agencies, research institutions, and nonprofit organizations with requisite expertise (or other entities as determined appropriate by the Secretary); State and federal agencies may partner or collaborate but may not lead projects or receive grants. Project proposals must detail purposes, responsible entities and qualifications, implementation methods and outcomes, consultations with relevant authorities, compatibility with food safety measures, and potential contributions to conservation, among other elements as required by the Secretary. The Secretary must annually solicit and review proposals on an expedited timeline, approving those demonstrating a likelihood of aiding wild western monarch butterfly populations (which have declined precipitously in recent decades). The Secretary must provide technical assistance to grantees, who must submit progress reports as required; such reports must be shared with requesting state legislatures and made publicly available.

This section establishes the Western Monarch Butterfly Rescue Fund in the Treasury of the United States, authorizes appropriations of $12,500,000 for deposit into the Fund for each of FY2026 through FY2030 (to remain available until expended), and permits the Secretary to expend up to 3% of amounts available in the Fund each fiscal year for administrative expenses necessary to carry out the Act.

This section directs the Secretary to enter into an agreement with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) pursuant to the NFWF Establishment Act (16 U.S.C. 3701 et seq.) to facilitate updating and implementing the Western Monarch Butterfly Conservation Plan prepared by the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (dated January 2019); waives the matching requirement and prohibition on administrative expenses of NFWF Establishment Act §10(a) (16 U.S.C. 3709(a)) with respect to such agreement and funds (thus, these funds need not be matched on a 1-to-1 basis by non-federal sources and may cover NFWF administrative costs); and authorizes appropriations of $12,500,000 to the Secretary for each of fiscal years 2026 through 2030.

This section directs the Secretary to submit to Congress by January 31 each year a report on the status of western monarch butterflies for the prior year, including (1) a summary and evaluation of projects funded under section 4, and (2) a summary of projects funded through the Western Monarch Butterfly Conservation Plan prepared by the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies in January 2019.