1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the “America Mitigating and Achieving Zero-emissions Originating from Nature for the 21st Century Act” or the “AMAZON21 Act”.
America Mitigating and Achieving Zero-emissions Originating from Nature for the 21st Century Act
A BILL
To establish an international terrestrial carbon sequestration program and provide international technical assistance for carbon market development, and for other purposes.
2. International Terrestrial Carbon Sequestration Program
In general— The Secretary shall establish a program, to be known as the “International Terrestrial Carbon Sequestration Program”, to provide results-based payments for eligible projects in developing countries that reduce emissions and enhance carbon sequestration from forests and other terrestrial ecosystems.
Goals— In carrying out the program established pursuant to subsection (a), the Secretary shall work with the governments of developing countries and appropriate local partners in developing countries to identify, develop, and implement eligible projects that—
will help developing countries meet their international greenhouse gas mitigation commitments; and
have the potential to contribute to cooperative efforts—
to conserve and restore forests and other terrestrial ecosystems;
to provide a counterbalance to investments from countries of concern in cooperating developing countries;
to reduce illegal deforestation; and
to mitigate and sequester carbon dioxide.
Results-Based payments—
In general— An eligible project shall qualify for results-based payments under the program established pursuant to subsection (a) if—
in the determination of the Secretary, the host developing country or appropriate local partner will be able to fulfill its obligations under any agreement with respect to the funding of the eligible project through the program established pursuant to subsection (a), including (as applicable) with respect to—
host country standards of governance and respect for rule of law;
environmental and social safeguards; and
potential for corruption or misuse of payments made by the Secretary;
the eligible project is appropriately designed to use results-based payments;
the host developing country or appropriate local partner, as applicable, agrees—
to abide by transparency requirements with respect to the use of funds received under the program established pursuant to subsection (a);
to fulfill measuring, reporting, and verification requirements, including independent third-party verification, necessary to provide results-based payments;
to report publicly any data with respect to emissions reductions achieved under such program, linking such data to reporting requirements of or commitments made by a host country under relevant international agreements;
to count the verified emission reductions associated with the eligible project solely towards any of the relevant international commitments of the host developing country;
to ensure that women, indigenous communities, and other local stakeholders, as applicable, are empowered and enabled to meaningfully participate in the development, implementation, and potential benefits of the eligible project; and
to disclose any debt the applicant may owe to any entity known to be owned or controlled by a country of concern, including loan amounts, duration, rates, and contractual provisions; and
with respect to subparagraph (C)(vi), the host developing country or appropriate local partner agrees that payments may not be used to amortize any loan principal owed to any entity known to be owned or controlled by the country of concern.
Additional forms of qualification for results based payments— Notwithstanding paragraph (1), an eligible project may qualify for results-based payments under this subsection if—
the eligible project includes a combination or aggregation of existing terrestrial carbon mitigation projects such that the total of such projects contributes to the full national or, on an interim basis, subnational territory in the host developing country; or
the eligible project is nested into the accounting and reporting of an existing national or sub-national terrestrial carbon mitigation program in the host developing country, including with regard to safeguard requirements and any transfer of credits, without regard to whether the eligible project is below the sub-national level or scale.
Multi-Year agreements—
In general— Upon determining that an eligible project qualifies for results-based payments, the Secretary is authorized to enter into multi-year agreements to provide results-based payments to a host developing country or appropriate local partners in the host developing country, including in the form of grants from the International Forestry Carbon Mitigation Fund established in subsection (g), to carry out such eligible project.
Prioritization— The Secretary is encouraged to consider any project for which the execution of such project would directly or indirectly combat illegal deforestation or counter malicious influence from countries of concern in a particular developing country.
Third-party leverage of funds— The Secretary is encouraged to prioritize projects that include terms that leverage funding from non-profits, businesses, other developed countries, and multilateral financing and development agencies.
Partnerships with multilateral programs— The Secretary may partner with multilateral or multi-donor programs to fund grants for any eligible project that qualifies for results based payments under subsection (c).
Reciprocal commitment— The Secretary shall take steps to ensure that the host developing country or appropriate local partners in the host developing country, as applicable, reciprocates the commitments to achieving the goals described in subsection (b).
Periodic reviews— The Secretary shall periodically review and evaluate the progress of eligible projects—
to ensure that eligible projects are proceeding successfully and appropriately maintained;
to account for and adapt to externalities that could prevent an eligible project from meeting its objectives; and
to assist proponents of an eligible projects in planning and executing the eligible project in accordance with this Act.
Termination— An agreement under this subsection may be unilaterally terminated by the Secretary if the Secretary determines that—
the host developing country or a appropriate local partner is failing or has failed to uphold the terms and conditions established for the eligible project; or
the eligible project is not in the national interest of the United States.
Double counting of payments— The Secretary shall take such steps as may be necessary—
to prevent the double counting of, or double payment for, emissions reduction or carbon sequestration results from eligible projects that also may receive funds from other sources, including in accordance with international guidelines and rules on carbon markets; and
to ensure that the payments and eligible projects are interoperable and do not supplant or compete with international transferred mitigation outcomes.
Transparency— The Secretary shall make publicly available a list of funds made available under the program established by subsection (a) and shall update on an annual basis the progress or any lack of progress in the implementation of the corresponding eligible projects and the achievement of the goals described in subsection (b).
Agency coordination— In carrying out the program under this section, the Secretary shall consult as appropriate with the heads of other relevant Federal departments and agencies, including—
with respect to terrestrial carbon sequestration, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of the Interior, the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Chief Forester of the Forest Service, the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency;
with respect to project monitoring, reporting, and verification, the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, the Director of the United States Geological Survey, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Secretary of Agriculture, and the Chief Forester of the Forest Service; and
with respect to avoiding duplicative foreign aid efforts, particularly for conservation funds, the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development.
Trust fund— There is established in the Treasury of the United States a fund to be known as the “International Terrestrial Carbon Sequestration Fund”, which shall consist of—
amounts appropriated pursuant to the authorization in subsection (h)(1) to carry out this section; and
such gifts, bequests, or devises of property for the benefit of, or in connection with carrying out this section as the Secretary may accept in the form of donations by individuals or entities, including private entities, non-profit entities, other developed countries, and multinational entities.
Authorization of appropriations—
Authorization— There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section—
$1,125,000,000 for fiscal year 2022;
$1,125,000,000 for fiscal year 2023;
$1,125,000,000 for fiscal year 2024; and
$1,125,000,000 for fiscal year 2025.
Availability— Amounts appropriated to carry out this section are authorized to remain available until expended and shall be used solely for the purposes of this section.
Salaries and expenses— Of the amounts made available for any fiscal year pursuant to the authorization under paragraph (1), not more than $10,000,000 is authorized to be made available for the salaries and expenses of employees to carry out this section.
Emissions baseline for eligible projects—
Proposals for emissions baseline—
In general— To receive results-based payments under this section for an eligible project qualified to receive results-based payments pursuant to subsection (c), a developing country or appropriate local partner shall submit to the Secretary a proposal for an emissions baseline that—
is credible, transparent, accurate, and conservatively evaluates the reduction of carbon emission of an eligible project; and
meets the criteria established by the Secretary under paragraph (2).
Determination by Secretary—
In general— After receipt of a proposal under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall determine whether the emission baseline meets the criteria under paragraph (2).
Provision of results-based payments approved emissions baseline— If the Secretary determines under clause (i) that the emissions baseline meets the criteria under paragraph (2), the Secretary may provide results-based payments for such eligible project to the developing country or appropriate local partner in accordance with this section.
Failure to meet criteria—
In general— If the Secretary determines under clause (i) that the emissions baseline does not meet the criteria under paragraph (2), the Secretary may negotiate with the developing country or appropriate local partner to reach an agreement on an emissions baseline for the eligible project.
Provision of results-based payments for agreed emissions baseline— Once an agreement has been reached under subclause (I), the Secretary may provide results-based payments for the eligible project to the developing country or appropriate local partner in accordance with this section.
Baseline criteria— The Secretary shall establish criteria for each emissions baseline proposed, which shall include requirements that the emissions baseline—
is used to account for net emissions reductions achieved from the eligible project;
is national, or subnational on an interim basis, in scope;
is consistent with mitigation commitments, targets, or actions that are appropriate for the developing country with respect to deforestation or loss of terrestrial ecosystems, taking into consideration—
the average annual historical emissions and removals from forests, and other terrestrial ecosystems, as applicable, during a period of at least 5 years; and
the use of the relevant 2006 IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories published by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to determine applicable drivers of deforestation and land use conversion;
establishes a trajectory that would result in zero net deforestation by not later than 10 years after the date on which the baseline is established;
is updated not less frequently than once every 5 years to account for changing circumstances in the developing country;
includes emissions and removals from—
remaining forest land;
conversions of other lands to or from forest land;
conversions between land-use categories other than forest land that, cumulatively with the conversions described in clause (i) amount to 90 percent of the absolute level of the total greenhouse gas emissions and removals associated with all land-use conversions; and
any other land-use category estimated to contribute at least 10 percent of agriculture, forestry, and other land use (AFOLU) emissions in the project area; and
takes into consideration existing or planned terrestrial carbon mitigation projects as identified in subsection (c)(2) in a developing country and the effect those projects might have in establishing an emissions baseline for eligible projects funded under this Act.
3. Technical assistance for scaling nature-based solutions in developing countries
In general— The Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, in consultation with the Secretary, shall conduct a program to provide resources and technical assistance to developing countries and appropriate local partners to conserve, manage, and restore forests and other terrestrial ecosystems, to support nature-based carbon sequestration as a means of addressing a changing climate, including by providing such resources and assistance with respect to projects for the goals described in section 2(b). Projects under such program shall be directed in developing countries meeting each of the following criteria:
The country contains globally significant forests or other terrestrial ecosystems—
that are threatened with destruction, degradation, or fragmentation; or
where the degradation of forests or terrestrial ecosystems impairs development and significantly drives greenhouse gas emissions.
Legitimate land owners or customary use rights holders in the developing country are permitted—
to sell carbon credits to voluntary and carbon compliance markets;
to receive benefits from the sale of such carbon credits by the government; and
to participate in results-based payments transactions.
The country has developed, or is in the process of developing, comprehensive policies to monitor, report, and verify the environmental, social, and financial quality and integrity of any such projects, including, if applicable, policies to ensure that the host country avoids double-counting the resulting reductions greenhouse gas emissions.
The country presently contains large reserves of forests and terrestrial ecosystems that cannot be recuperated once lost.
Technical support prioritization— In conducting the program described in subsection (a), the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development shall prioritize technical support for and investment in the following activities:
Reducing greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation, fragmentation, and forest degradation.
Enhancing greenhouse gas sequestration through carbon sinks by restoring natural forests and other terrestrial and ecosystems as well as building resilience.
Monitoring, reporting, and verification of the environmental, social, and financial quality and integrity of the project as an important component of the work.
Assisting governments, willing, legitimate land owners, or willing customary use rights holders in developing projects to engage in carbon markets through—
carbon credits sold to buyers on existing carbon compliance markets or voluntary carbon markets; or
projects providing results-based payments.
Developing domestic infrastructure and capacity building for creating and tracking carbon credits, such as registries or projects eligible for results-based payments, and preparing countries to implement nature-based solution initiatives.
Ensuring that women, Indigenous Communities, and other local stakeholders are empowered and enabled to meaningfully participate and share in the potential benefits of activities funded under this section.
Ensuring the additionality of projects, programs, and other activities made possible by funding provided pursuant to this section.
Authorization— There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section.
4. Definitions
In this Act:
Additionality— The term additionality means reductions to greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries that would not have occurred but for activities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries funded and made possible by funding provided pursuant to section 3.
Appropriate local partner— The term appropriate local partner means any relevant subnational government, local authority, indigenous community, non-governmental entity, or private landowner in a developing country committed to and capable of achieving the goals described in section 2(b).
Country of concern— The term country of concern means the government or ruling party of any of the following countries:
The Russian Federation.
The People’s Republic of China.
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
The Islamic Republic of Iran.
The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
The Republic of Cuba.
Deforestation— The term deforestation means a change in land use, including forest fragmentation and forest degradation, from a forest to any other land use.
Developing country— The term developing country means—
a country eligible to receive official development assistance according to the income guidelines of the Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development; or
any other country identified by the Secretary with globally significant forests or terrestrial ecosystems the loss of which is, or has the potential to, significantly contribute to the changing climate.
Eligible project— The term eligible project means a verifiable and measurable national or subnational activity developed or executed by the central government, subnational government, local authority, indigenous community, non-governmental entity, private landowner, or any group of such persons in a developing country that—
reduces a quantity of greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and loss of terrestrial ecosystems that is calculated by measuring actual emissions against an eligible project baseline, in accordance with subsection (i); or
is directed at preserving or enhancing terrestrial ecosystems that might, absent such activity, be lost through conversion to other uses.
Emissions reductions— The term emissions reductions means greenhouse gas emissions reductions and increased sequestration achieved from—
reduced, or avoided deforestation;
reforestation;
preservation of terrestrial ecosystems; or
enhancements to terrestrial ecosystems that will result in the increased sequestration of greenhouse gas emissions.
Forest degradation— The term forest degradation means any reduction in the carbon stock of a forest due to the effects of human land-use activities, including land-use changes driven by human activity.
International transferred mitigation outcomes— The term “international transferred mitigation outcomes” means the units from the mechanisms that bestow carbon mitigation credits for use in international carbon markets.
Nature-based solution— The term nature-based solution means an activity within a developing country to conserve, restore, or better manage forests and terrestrial ecosystems to sequester greenhouse gas emissions from the atmosphere.
Results-based payment— The term results-based payment means a mechanism for the provision of United States assistance in which—
a developing country, or appropriate local partner in a developing country, assumes responsibility for achieving measurable results in the reduction of emissions through an eligible project;
such measurable results are defined in advance of the obligation of assistance by the United States for the eligible project; and
such assistance is expended in the form of payments to such developing country or appropriate local partner only upon independent verification of such pre-defined results.
Terrestrial ecosystem—
In general— The term “terrestrial ecosystem” means naturally occurring grasslands, forests, tropical rainforests, mangroves, peatlands, or wetlands comprised of native species generated and maintained primarily through natural ecological and evolutionary processes.
Exclusion— The term “terrestrial ecosystem” does not include tree plantations, such as crops of trees planted by humans primarily for the purposes of harvesting.
Secretary— The term “Secretary” means the Secretary of State.