Federal

Arctic Refuge Protection Act of 2023

Source: Congress.gov · 347 words in original text

What This Bill Does

This bill designates a portion of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska as wilderness. The designated area comprises approximately 1,559,538 acres shown on a specific map dated October 20, 2015. The designated land becomes part of the National Wilderness Preservation System under the Wilderness Act.

Who It Affects

The bill directly affects the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. The Secretary (the government official responsible for managing the refuge) is named as responsible for the designation.

Key Provisions

• Designates approximately 1,559,538 acres of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska as wilderness, as shown on the map labeled "Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Coastal Plain Proposed Wilderness" dated October 20, 2015, with Map ID 03-0172. (Sec. 2) • Makes the designated land a component of the National Wilderness Preservation System under the Wilderness Act. (Sec. 2) • States this designation overrides any other provision of the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966. (Sec. 2)

What Changes

If this bill becomes law, the specified 1,559,538 acres of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge would officially become designated wilderness under federal law and be added to the National Wilderness Preservation System.

Important Definitions

None defined in this bill text.

II 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 282 To designate a portion of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as wilderness. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES FEBRUARY 7, 2023 Mr. MARKEY (for himself, Mr. BENNET, Ms. CANTWELL, Mr. HEINRICH, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. BOOKER, Mr. CARPER, Mr. CASEY, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. LUJA´N, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. PETERS, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, Mr. WYDEN, Ms. WARREN, Mr. WELCH, Mrs. MURRAY, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Ms. BALDWIN, Ms. DUCKWORTH, and Ms. STABENOW) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works A BILL To designate a portion of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as wilderness. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Arctic Refuge Protec- 4 tion Act of 2023’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:53 Feb 16, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S282.IS S282 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •S 282 IS SEC. 2. DESIGNATION OF PORTION OF ARCTIC NATIONAL 1 WILDLIFE REFUGE AS WILDERNESS. 2 Section 4 of the National Wildlife Refuge System Ad- 3 ministration Act of 1966 (16 U.S.C. 668dd) is amended 4 by adding at the end the following: 5 ‘‘(p) DESIGNATION OF CERTAIN LAND AS WILDER- 6 NESS.—Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, 7 a portion of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska 8 comprising approximately 1,559,538 acres, as generally 9 depicted on the map entitled ‘Arctic National Wildlife Ref- 10 uge, Coastal Plain Proposed Wilderness’, dated October 11 20, 2015, labeled with Map ID 03–0172, and available 12 for inspection in the offices of the Secretary, is designated 13 as a component of the National Wilderness Preservation 14 System under the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et 15 seq.).’’. 16 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:53 Feb 16, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S282.IS S282 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS

Important: This plain English summary was generated by AI and is provided for informational purposes only. It is not legal advice. Always consult the official bill text on Congress.gov or a qualified attorney for legal matters.