Sec. 152. Wilderness designation procedures
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/bill/113/hr/3895/ih/section-152A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
The Secretary of the Interior may not designate or issue a recommendation to designate a wilderness or wilderness study area as Wild Lands , Wilderness , or any other protective designation on lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management before the last day of the 30-day period beginning on the date on which the Secretary provides a description and map of the land proposed to be so designated to Congress and to the Governor of each State with jurisdiction over parcels of land located within the boundaries of the area proposed to be designated.
Subject to subparagraph (D), not later than 90 days after the date on which the Secretary of the Interior issues a recommendation under subsection (a), the Secretary shall hold not fewer than one public hearing within a county (or comparable unit of local government) located wholly or in part within the boundaries of the proposed wilderness or wilderness study area. The Secretary shall ensure that all interested individuals are afforded an opportunity to participate in a hearing held under this paragraph.
The Secretary of the Interior shall solicit comments from the public at a hearing held under subparagraph (A), and shall enter all comments received at or related to such hearing into the record of the hearing. The Secretary of the Interior shall promptly make the record of a hearing held under subparagraph (A), including a transcript of the hearing, available to the public on the Internet or by other electronic means. The Secretary shall ensure that any components of the record that are completed before the entire record is finalized are made available upon their completion.
The Secretary of the Interior may decline to hold a public hearing under subparagraph
(A)if each unit of local government located wholly or in part within the boundaries of the national monument expressly waives the right to such hearing. Not later than 30 days after the date on which Secretary of the Interior issues a recommendation under subsection (a), the Secretary shall initiate a notice and comment period to receive comments from the public regarding the recommendation. Not later than one year after issuing a recommendation to designate a wilderness or wilderness study area under subsection (a), the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report containing the following: An analysis of the economic impact of the designation on the communities within 100 miles of the boundaries of the proposed wilderness or wilderness study area, including an estimate of the tax revenues that will be lost to, or gained for, the Federal, State, and local governments as a result of the designation. An analysis of the impact the designation will have on the Nation’s energy security, including the effects of the loss of sites to produce wind, geothermal, or solar energy, and the number of barrels of oil, tons of coal, or cubic feet of natural gas that will become unavailable as a result of the designation. The projected impact of the designation on interests, rights, and uses associated with the parcels of land within the boundaries of the monument, including water rights, hunting, recreational shooting, grazing, timber production, vegetation manipulation to maintain forest health, off-road vehicle use, hiking, horseback riding, and mineral and energy leases, claims, and permits. The record of any hearings held under paragraph (1). Any written comments received during the notice and comment period conducted under paragraph (2). The Secretary of the Interior shall ensure that— a report submitted to Congress under subparagraph
(A)is published on the Department of the Interior Web site upon completion; and any components of the report that are completed before the entire report is finalized and submitted to Congress are published on the Department of the Interior Web site upon their completion. The Secretary of the Interior, in cooperation with the States, shall develop and publish guidelines to provide for the implementation of subsection. A designation issued under subsection
(a)shall cease to be effective following the last day of the 2-year period beginning on the date on which the Secretary of the Interior issued the designation, unless the report is approved by an Act of Congress on or before that last day. During the period between the issuance of the report described in subsection (b)(3) and congressional approval described above, the Secretary of the Interior shall ensure that any restriction placed on land and interests, rights, or uses associated with the parcels of land designated as a national monument, including water rights, hunting, recreational shooting, grazing, timber production, vegetation manipulation to maintain forest health, off-road vehicle use, hiking, horseback riding, and mineral and energy leases, claims, and permits, is narrowly tailored and essential to the proper care and management of the objects to be protected. If Congress does not approve the report, any reservation of land made by the report, and any restriction imposed as a result of the report on interests, rights, or uses associated with the parcels of land, shall cease to be effective following the last day of the 2-year period referred to in paragraph (1).