SOAR Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1665 To modify the procedures for issuing special recreation permits for certain public land units, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MAY 23 (legislative day, MAY 22), 2019 Mr. HEINRICH (for himself, Mrs. CAPITO, Mr. KING, Mr. ROUNDS, Mr. BEN- NET, Mr. GARDNER, Mr. WYDEN, Ms. MCSALLY, Mr. TESTER, Mr. RISCH, Ms. SINEMA, and Mr. DAINES) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Nat- ural Resources A BILL To modify the procedures for issuing special recreation permits for certain public land units, and for other purposes. 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 ‘‘Simplifying Outdoor 4 Access for Recreation Act’’ or the ‘‘SOAR Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 6 In this Act: 7 (1) ASSOCIATED AGENCY.—The term ‘‘associ- 8 ated agency’’ means the Federal land management 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:27 Jun 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1665.IS S1665 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •S 1665 IS agency, other than the lead agency, that manages a 1 public land unit that is the subject of a single joint 2 special recreation permit under section 7(a). 3 (2) FEDERAL LAND MANAGEMENT AGENCY.— 4 The term ‘‘Federal land management agency’’ has 5 the meaning given the term in section 802 of the 6 Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act (16 7 U.S.C. 6801). 8 (3) LEAD AGENCY.—With respect to a single 9 joint special recreation permit application submitted 10 under section 7(a), the term ‘‘lead agency’’ means 11 the Federal land management agency designated to 12 administer the single joint special recreation permit 13 under section 7(a)(2). 14 (4) LONG-TERM SPECIAL RECREATION PER- 15 MIT.—The term ‘‘long-term special recreation per- 16 mit’’ means— 17 (A) for a public land unit managed by the 18 Forest Service, a priority use permit; and 19 (B) for a public land unit managed by the 20 Bureau of Land Management, a multiyear spe- 21 cial recreation permit. 22 (5) MULTIJURISDICTIONAL TRIP.—The term 23 ‘‘multijurisdictional trip’’ means a trip that— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:27 Jun 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1665.IS S1665 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •S 1665 IS (A) uses two or more public land units; 1 and 2 (B) is under the jurisdiction of two or 3 more Federal land management agencies. 4 (6) PUBLIC LAND UNIT.—The term ‘‘public 5 land unit’’ means— 6 (A) a unit of the National Forest System; 7 (B) a unit of the National Park System; 8 (C) a unit of the National Wildlife Refuge 9 System; 10 (D) a district of the Bureau of Land Man- 11 agement; and 12 (E) a project of the Bureau of Reclama- 13 tion. 14 (7) SECRETARY CONCERNED.—The term ‘‘Sec- 15 retary concerned’’ means— 16 (A) the Secretary of Agriculture, with re- 17 spect to a public land unit described in para- 18 graph (6)(A); and 19 (B) the Secretary of the Interior, with re- 20 spect to a public land unit described in sub- 21 paragraph (B), (C), (D), or (E) of paragraph 22 (6). 23 (8) SPECIAL RECREATION PERMIT.—The term 24 ‘‘special recreation permit’’ has the meaning given 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:27 Jun 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1665.IS S1665 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •S 1665 IS the term in section 802 of the Federal Lands Recre- 1 ation Enhancement Act (16 U.S.C. 6801). 2 SEC. 3. SPECIAL RECREATION PERMIT AND FEE. 3 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 802 of the Federal Lands 4 Recreation Enhancement Act (16 U.S.C. 6801) is amend- 5 ed— 6 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘section 3(f)’’ 7 and inserting ‘‘803(f)’’; 8 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘section 3(g)’’ 9 and inserting ‘‘section 803(g)’’; 10 (3) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘section 5’’ 11 and inserting ‘‘section 805’’; 12 (4) in paragraph (9), by striking ‘‘section 5’’ 13 and inserting ‘‘section 805’’; 14 (5) in paragraph (12), by striking ‘‘section 7’’ 15 and inserting ‘‘section 807’’; 16 (6) in paragraph (13), by striking ‘‘section 17 3(h)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 803(h)’’; 18 (7) by redesignating paragraphs (1), (3), (4), 19 (5), (6), (7), (8), (9), (10), (11), and (13) as para- 20 graphs (15), (1), (3), (4), (5), (6), (7), (8), (11), 21 (10), and (14), respectively, and moving the para- 22 graphs so as to appear in numerical order; 23 (8) by inserting after paragraph (8) (as so re- 24 designated) the following: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:27 Jun 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1665.IS S1665 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •S 1665 IS ‘‘(9) RECREATION SERVICE PROVIDER.—The 1 term ‘recreation service provider’ means an indi- 2 vidual or entity that— 3 ‘‘(A) provides outfitting, guiding, or other 4 recreation services; or 5 ‘‘(B) conducts recreational or competitive 6 events, including incidental sales.’’; and 7 (9) by inserting after paragraph (12) the fol- 8 lowing: 9 ‘‘(13) SPECIAL RECREATION PERMIT.—The 10 term ‘special recreation permit’ means— 11 ‘‘(A) with respect to the Forest Service, an 12 outfitting and guiding special use permit; 13 ‘‘(B) with respect to the National Park 14 Service, a commercial use authorization for out- 15 fitting and guiding issued under— 16 ‘‘(i) this Act; or 17 ‘‘(ii) section 101925 of title 54, 18 United States Code; 19 ‘‘(C) with respect to the United States 20 Fish and Wildlife Service, a special use permit 21 for recreational, sport fishing, or hunting outfit- 22 ting and guiding; 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:27 Jun 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1665.IS S1665 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •S 1665 IS ‘‘(D) with respect to the Bureau of Land 1 Management, a special recreation permit for 2 commercial outfitting and guiding; and 3 ‘‘(E) with respect to the Bureau of Rec- 4 lamation, a use authorization for guiding, out- 5 fitting, or other recreational services.’’. 6 (b) SPECIAL RECREATION PERMIT AND FEE.—Sec- 7 tion 803 of the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement 8 Act (16 U.S.C. 6802) is amended— 9 (1) in subsection (b)(5), by striking ‘‘section 10 4(d)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 804(d)’’; and 11 (2) by striking subsection (h) and inserting the 12 following: 13 ‘‘(h) SPECIAL RECREATION PERMIT AND FEE.— 14 ‘‘(1) SPECIAL RECREATION PERMIT.—The Sec- 15 retary may issue a special recreation permit for spe- 16 cialized individual or group uses of Federal rec- 17 reational lands and waters, including— 18 ‘‘(A) for outfitting, guiding, or other recre- 19 ation services; 20 ‘‘(B) for recreation or competitive events, 21 which may include incidental sales; 22 ‘‘(C) for the use of— 23 ‘‘(i) a special area; or 24 ‘‘(ii) an area in which use is allocated; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:27 Jun 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1665.IS S1665 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •S 1665 IS ‘‘(D) for motorized recreational vehicle use; 1 and 2 ‘‘(E) for a group activity or event. 3 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL RECREATION PERMIT FEE.— 4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 5 charge a special recreation permit fee in con- 6 nection with the issuance of a special recreation 7 permit under paragraph (1). 8 ‘‘(B) FEES FOR CERTAIN LANDS.— 9 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to clauses 10 (ii) and (iii), a special recreation permit fee 11 under subparagraph (A) for use of Federal 12 recreational lands and waters managed by 13 the Forest Service, the Bureau of Land 14 Management, the Bureau of Reclamation, 15 or the United States Fish and Wildlife 16 Service shall not exceed the difference be- 17 tween— 18 ‘‘(I) the sum of— 19 ‘‘(aa) 3 percent of the an- 20 nual gross revenue of the recre- 21 ation service provider for all ac- 22 tivities authorized by the special 23 recreation permit; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:27 Jun 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1665.IS S1665 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •S 1665 IS ‘‘(bb) any applicable revenue 1 addition; and 2 ‘‘(II) any applicable revenue ex- 3 clusion. 4 ‘‘(ii) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN REVE- 5 NUES AND PAYMENTS.—In calculating the 6 amount of a fee for a special recreation 7 permit under clause (i), the Secretary con- 8 cerned shall exclude— 9 ‘‘(I) revenue from goods, services, 10 souvenirs, merchandise, gear, food, 11 and activities provided or sold by a 12 special recreation permit holder in a 13 location other than the Federal rec- 14 reational lands and waters covered by 15 the permit, including transportation 16 costs, lodging, and any other service 17 before or after a trip; and 18 ‘‘(II) revenue from any rec- 19 reational services provided by a spe- 20 cial recreation permit holder for ac- 21 tivities on Federal recreational lands 22 and waters for which a separate per- 23 mit is issued. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:27 Jun 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1665.IS S1665 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •S 1665 IS ‘‘(iii) ALTERNATIVE PER-PERSON 1 FEE.— 2 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—For Federal 3 recreational lands and waters man- 4 aged by the Forest Service, the Bu- 5 reau of Land Management, the Bu- 6 reau of Reclamation, or the United 7 States Fish and Wildlife Service, the 8 Secretary may charge a per-person fee 9 in connection with the issuance of a 10 special recreation permit under para- 11 graph (1). 12 ‘‘(II) AMOUNT OF FEE.—The 13 total amount charged by the Secretary 14 in connection with the issuance of a 15 special recreation permit under para- 16 graph (1) using a per-person fee 17 under subclause (I) shall be com- 18 parable to the amount the Secretary 19 may charge for a special recreation 20 permit fee under subparagraph (A) 21 and clauses (i) and (ii). 22 ‘‘(iv) EFFECT.—Nothing in this sub- 23 paragraph affects any fee for a commercial 24 use authorization for use of Federal rec- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:27 Jun 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1665.IS S1665 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •S 1665 IS reational lands and waters managed by the 1 National Park Service. 2 ‘‘(C) DISCLOSURE OF FEES.—A special 3 recreation permit holder may inform customers 4 of any fee charged by the Secretary under this 5 section. 6 ‘‘(3) REPORTS.— 7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 8 make available to holders of special recreation 9 permits under paragraph (1) and the public an 10 annual report describing the use of fees col- 11 lected by the Secretary under paragraph (2). 12 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS.—The report under 13 subparagraph (A) shall include a description of 14 how the fees are used in each public land unit 15 (as defined in section 2 of the SOAR Act) ad- 16 ministered by the Secretary, including an iden- 17 tification of the amounts used for specific ac- 18 tivities within the public land unit.’’. 19 (c) USE OF SPECIAL RECREATION PERMIT REV- 20 ENUE.—Section 808 of the Federal Lands Recreation En- 21 hancement Act (16 U.S.C. 6807) is amended— 22 (1) in subsection (a)(3)(F), by striking ‘‘section 23 6(a)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 806(a)’’; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:27 Jun 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1665.IS S1665 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •S 1665 IS (2) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘section 5’’ 1 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘section 805’’; 2 (3) by redesignating subsections (b) through (d) 3 as subsections (c) through (e), respectively; and 4 (4) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol- 5 lowing: 6 ‘‘(b) USE OF SPECIAL RECREATION PERMIT FEE 7 REVENUE.—Revenue from a special recreation permit fee 8 may be used for— 9 ‘‘(1) the purposes described in subsection (a); 10 and 11 ‘‘(2) expenses— 12 ‘‘(A) associated with processing applica- 13 tions for special recreation permits; and 14 ‘‘(B) incurred in the improvement of the 15 operation of the special recreation permit sys- 16 tem.’’. 17 (d) PERMANENT AUTHORIZATION.—Section 810 of 18 the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act (16 19 U.S.C. 6809) is amended— 20 (1) by striking ‘‘The authority’’ and inserting 21 the following: 22 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 23 (b), the authority’’; and 24 (2) by adding at the end the following: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:27 Jun 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1665.IS S1665 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •S 1665 IS ‘‘(b) APPLICABILITY.—Subsection (a) shall not apply 1 to— 2 ‘‘(1) section 802; 3 ‘‘(2) subsection (d)(2) or (h) of section 803; or 4 ‘‘(3) subsection (a) or (b) of section 808.’’. 5 SEC. 4. PERMITTING PROCESS IMPROVEMENTS. 6 (a) IN GENERAL.—To simplify the process of the 7 issuance and renewal of special recreation permits and re- 8 duce the cost of administering special recreation permits, 9 the Secretary concerned shall— 10 (1) not later than 180 days after the date of 11 enactment of this Act— 12 (A) evaluate the special recreation permit- 13 ting process; and 14 (B) identify opportunities— 15 (i) to eliminate duplicative processes; 16 (ii) to reduce costs; and 17 (iii) to decrease processing times; and 18 (2) not later than 180 days after the date on 19 which the Secretary concerned completes the evalua- 20 tion and identification processes under paragraph 21 (1), revise, as necessary, relevant agency regulations 22 and policy statements to implement the improve- 23 ments identified under paragraph (1)(B). 24 (b) ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:27 Jun 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1665.IS S1665 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 13 •S 1665 IS (1) IN GENERAL.—In issuing or renewing a 1 special recreation permit, the Secretary concerned 2 may, in compliance with the National Environmental 3 Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.)— 4 (A) use a programmatic environmental re- 5 view; and 6 (B) adopt or incorporate material from a 7 previous environmental impact statement or en- 8 vironmental assessment. 9 (2) RULEMAKING.—Not later than 1 year after 10 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary con- 11 cerned shall promulgate such regulations as are nec- 12 essary to carry out this subsection. 13 (c) CATEGORICAL EXCLUSIONS.— 14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 15 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary con- 16 cerned shall— 17 (A) evaluate whether one or more addi- 18 tional categorical exclusions developed in com- 19 pliance with the National Environmental Policy 20 Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) would re- 21 duce processing times or costs for the issuance 22 or renewal of special recreation permits without 23 significantly aff [Text truncated for display. 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