The Secretary is authorized to issue permits for the collection and removal of cave resources under such terms and conditions as the Secretary may impose, including the posting of bonds to insure compliance with the provisions of any permit:
Any permit issued under this section shall be revoked by the Secretary upon a determination by the Secretary that the permittee has violated any provision of this chapter, or has failed to comply with any other condition upon which the permit was issued. Any such permit shall be revoked by the Secretary upon assessment of a civil penalty against the permittee pursuant to section 4307 of this title or upon the permittee's conviction under section 4306 of this title. The Secretary may refuse to issue a permit under this section to any person who has violated any provision of this chapter or who has failed to comply with any condition of a prior permit.
Permits issued under this chapter are not transferable.
No action specifically authorized by a permit under this section shall be treated as a violation of section 4306 of this title.
16 U.S.C. § 4305
- Indian lands
- The term "Indian lands" means lands of Indian tribes or Indian individuals which are either held in trust by the United States for the benefit of an Indian tribe or subject to a restriction against alienation imposed by the United States.
- Indian tribe
- The term "Indian tribe" means any Indian tribe, band, nation, or other organized group or community of Indians, including any Alaska Native village or regional or village corporation as defined in, or established pursuant to, the Alaska Native Claims settlement1 Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.).
- Secretary
- The term "Secretary" means the Secretary of Agriculture or the Secretary of the Interior, as appropriate.
- cave resource
- The term "cave resource" includes any material or substance occurring naturally in caves on Federal lands, such as animal life, plant life, paleontological deposits, sediments, minerals, speleogens, and speleothems.
- cave
- The term "cave" means any naturally occurring void, cavity, recess, or system of interconnected passages which occurs beneath the surface of the earth or within a cliff or ledge (including any cave resource therein, but not including any vug, mine, tunnel, aqueduct, or other manmade excavation) and which is large enough to permit an individual to enter, whether or not the entrance is naturally formed or manmade. Such term shall include any natural pit, sinkhole, or other feature which is an extension of the entrance.