San Gabriel Mountains Protection Act

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3681 To modify the boundaries of the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument in the State of California to include additional National Forest System land, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MAY 25, 2023 Ms. CHU (for herself, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Mr. BERA, Ms. BROWNLEY, Mr. CARBAJAL, Mr. CA´RDENAS, Mr. DESAULNIER, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. GARAMENDI, Mr. ROBERT GARCIA of California, Mr. GOMEZ, Mr. HUFFMAN, Ms. KAMLAGER-DOVE, Mr. KHANNA, Ms. LEE of Cali- fornia, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. MULLIN, Ms. PORTER, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. SWALWELL, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Mr. TAKANO, Ms. WATERS, and Mr. NADLER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources A BILL To modify the boundaries of the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument in the State of California to include additional National Forest System land, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 4 ‘‘San Gabriel Mountains Protection Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:10 Jun 20, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3681.IH H3681 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2 •HR 3681 IH (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 1 this Act is as follows: 2 Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. Sec. 2. Definitions. Sec. 3. National monument boundary modification. Sec. 4. Designation of wilderness areas and additions. Sec. 5. Administration of wilderness areas and additions. Sec. 6. Designation of wild and scenic rivers. Sec. 7. Water rights. Sec. 8. Reauthorization of existing water facilities in Pleasant View Ridge Wil- derness. SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 3 In this Act: 4 (1) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 5 the Secretary of Agriculture. 6 (2) WILDERNESS AREA OR ADDITION.—The 7 term ‘‘wilderness area or addition’’ means any wil- 8 derness area or wilderness addition designated by 9 section 4(a). 10 SEC. 3. NATIONAL MONUMENT BOUNDARY MODIFICATION. 11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The San Gabriel Mountains Na- 12 tional Monument established by Presidential Proclamation 13 9194 (54 U.S.C. 320301 note) (referred to in this section 14 as the ‘‘Monument’’) is modified to include the approxi- 15 mately 109,167 acres of additional National Forest Sys- 16 tem land depicted as the ‘‘Proposed San Gabriel Moun- 17 tains National Monument Expansion’’ on the map entitled 18 ‘‘Proposed San Gabriel Mountains National Monument 19 Expansion’’ and dated June 26, 2019. 20 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:10 Jun 20, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3681.IH H3681 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 3 •HR 3681 IH (b) ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary shall admin- 1 ister the Monument (including the land added to the 2 Monument by subsection (a)), in accordance with— 3 (1) Presidential Proclamation Number 9194 4 (79 Fed. Reg. 62303); 5 (2) the laws generally applicable to the Monu- 6 ment; and 7 (3) this Act. 8 (c) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—Not later than 3 years 9 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 10 consult with the State, local governments, and interested 11 members of the public to update the San Gabriel Moun- 12 tains National Monument Plan to provide management di- 13 rection and protection for the land added to the Monu- 14 ment by subsection (a). 15 SEC. 4. DESIGNATION OF WILDERNESS AREAS AND ADDI- 16 TIONS. 17 (a) DESIGNATION.—In accordance with the Wilder- 18 ness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.), the following parcels 19 of National Forest System land in the State are des- 20 ignated as wilderness and as components of the National 21 Wilderness Preservation System: 22 (1) CONDOR PEAK WILDERNESS.—Certain Fed- 23 eral land in the Angeles National Forest, comprising 24 approximately 8,207 acres, as generally depicted on 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:10 Jun 20, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3681.IH H3681 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 4 •HR 3681 IH the map entitled ‘‘Condor Peak Wilderness—Pro- 1 posed’’ and dated June 6, 2019, which shall be 2 known as the ‘‘Condor Peak Wilderness’’. 3 (2) SAN GABRIEL WILDERNESS ADDITIONS.— 4 Certain Federal land in the Angeles National Forest, 5 comprising approximately 2,032 acres, as generally 6 depicted on the map entitled ‘‘San Gabriel Wilder- 7 ness Additions’’ and dated June 6, 2019, which is 8 incorporated in, and considered to be a part of, the 9 San Gabriel Wilderness designated by Public Law 10 90–318 (16 U.S.C. 1132 note; 82 Stat. 131). 11 (3) SHEEP MOUNTAIN WILDERNESS ADDI- 12 TIONS.—Certain Federal land in the Angeles Na- 13 tional Forest, comprising approximately 13,726 14 acres, as generally depicted on the map entitled 15 ‘‘Sheep Mountain Wilderness Additions’’ and dated 16 June 6, 2019, which is incorporated in, and consid- 17 ered to be a part of, the Sheep Mountain Wilderness 18 designated by section 101(a)(29) of the California 19 Wilderness Act of 1984 (16 U.S.C. 1132 note; Pub- 20 lic Law 98–425; 98 Stat. 1623). 21 (4) YERBA BUENA WILDERNESS.—Certain Fed- 22 eral land in the Angeles National Forest, comprising 23 approximately 6,694 acres, as generally depicted on 24 the map entitled ‘‘Yerba Buena Wilderness—Pro- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:10 Jun 20, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3681.IH H3681 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 5 •HR 3681 IH posed’’ and dated June 6, 2019, which shall be 1 known as the ‘‘Yerba Buena Wilderness’’. 2 (b) MAP AND LEGAL DESCRIPTION.— 3 (1) IN GENERAL.—As soon as practicable after 4 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 5 shall file a map and a legal description of the wilder- 6 ness areas and additions with— 7 (A) the Committee on Energy and Natural 8 Resources of the Senate; and 9 (B) the Committee on Natural Resources 10 of the House of Representatives. 11 (2) FORCE OF LAW.—The map and legal de- 12 scription filed under paragraph (1) shall have the 13 same force and effect as if included in this Act, ex- 14 cept that the Secretary may correct any clerical or 15 typographical error in the map or legal description. 16 (3) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The map and legal 17 description filed under paragraph (1) shall be on file 18 and available for public inspection in the appropriate 19 offices of the Forest Service. 20 SEC. 5. ADMINISTRATION OF WILDERNESS AREAS AND AD- 21 DITIONS. 22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to valid existing rights, 23 the wilderness areas and additions shall be administered 24 by the Secretary in accordance with this section and the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:10 Jun 20, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3681.IH H3681 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 6 •HR 3681 IH Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.), except that any 1 reference in that Act to the effective date of that Act shall 2 be considered to be a reference to the date of enactment 3 of this Act. 4 (b) FIRE MANAGEMENT AND RELATED ACTIVI- 5 TIES.— 6 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may carry out 7 such activities in a wilderness area or addition as 8 are necessary for the control of fire, insects, or dis- 9 eases in accordance with— 10 (A) section 4(d)(1) of the Wilderness Act 11 (16 U.S.C. 1133(d)(1)); and 12 (B) House Report 98–40 of the 98th Con- 13 gress. 14 (2) FUNDING PRIORITIES.—Nothing in this Act 15 limits funding for fire or fuels management in a wil- 16 derness area or addition. 17 (3) REVISION AND DEVELOPMENT OF LOCAL 18 FIRE MANAGEMENT PLANS.—As soon as practicable 19 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec- 20 retary shall amend, as applicable, any local fire man- 21 agement plan that applies to a wilderness area or 22 addition. 23 (4) ADMINISTRATION.—In accordance with 24 paragraph (1) and any other applicable Federal law, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:10 Jun 20, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3681.IH H3681 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 7 •HR 3681 IH to ensure a timely and efficient response to a fire 1 emergency in a wilderness area or addition, the Sec- 2 retary shall— 3 (A) not later than 1 year after the date of 4 enactment of this Act, establish agency ap- 5 proval procedures (including appropriate delega- 6 tions of authority to the Forest Supervisor, Dis- 7 trict Manager, or other agency officials) for re- 8 sponding to fire emergencies; and 9 (B) enter into agreements with appropriate 10 State or local firefighting agencies. 11 (c) GRAZING.—The grazing of livestock in a wilder- 12 ness area or addition, if established before the date of en- 13 actment of this Act, shall be administered in accordance 14 with— 15 (1) section 4(d)(4) of the Wilderness Act (16 16 U.S.C. 1133(d)(4)); and 17 (2) the guidelines contained in Appendix A of 18 the report of the Committee on Interior and Insular 19 Affairs of the House of Representatives accom- 20 panying H.R. 2570 of the 101st Congress (H. Rept. 21 101–405). 22 (d) FISH AND WILDLIFE.— 23 (1) IN GENERAL.—In accordance with section 24 4(d)(7) of the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:10 Jun 20, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3681.IH H3681 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 8 •HR 3681 IH 1133(d)(7)), nothing in this Act affects the jurisdic- 1 tion or responsibility of the State with respect to 2 fish or wildlife on public land in the State. 3 (2) MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES.— 4 (A) IN GENERAL.—In support of the pur- 5 poses and principles of the Wilderness Act (16 6 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.), the Secretary may con- 7 duct any management activity that the Sec- 8 retary determines to be necessary to maintain 9 or restore a fish or wildlife population or habi- 10 tat in a wilderness area or addition, if the activ- 11 ity is conducted in accordance with— 12 (i) applicable wilderness management 13 plans; and 14 (ii) appropriate policies, such as the 15 policies established in Appendix B of the 16 report of the Committee on Interior and 17 Insular Affairs of the House of Represent- 18 atives accompanying H.R. 2570 of the 19 101st Congress (H. Rept. 101–405). 20 (B) INCLUSIONS.—A management activity 21 under subparagraph (A) may include the occa- 22 sional and temporary use of motorized vehicles, 23 if the use, as determined by the Secretary, 24 would maintain or improve wilderness char- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:10 Jun 20, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3681.IH H3681 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 9 •HR 3681 IH acter, is impossible to accomplish by non- 1 motorized methods, and is in accordance with 2 memoranda of understanding between the Fed- 3 eral agencies and the California State Depart- 4 ment of Fish and Wildlife. 5 (C) EXISTING ACTIVITIES.—In accordance 6 with section 4(d)(1) of the Wilderness Act (16 7 U.S.C. 1133(d)(1)) and other appropriate poli- 8 cies (such as the policies established in Appen- 9 dix B of the report of the Committee on Inte- 10 rior and Insular Affairs of the House of Rep- 11 resentatives accompanying H.R. 2570 of the 12 101st Congress (H. Rept. 101–405)), the State 13 may use aircraft (including helicopters) in a 14 wilderness area or addition to survey, capture, 15 transplant, monitor, or provide water for a wild- 16 life population, including bighorn sheep, if the 17 activity, as determined by the Secretary is im- 18 possible to accomplish without use of aircraft, 19 and is in accordance with memoranda of under- 20 standing between the Federal agencies and the 21 California State Department of Fish and Wild- 22 life. 23 (e) BUFFER ZONES.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:10 Jun 20, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3681.IH H3681 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 10 •HR 3681 IH (1) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this Act estab- 1 lishes any protective perimeter or buffer zone around 2 a wilderness area or addition. 3 (2) ACTIVITIES OR USES UP TO BOUNDARIES.— 4 The fact that a nonwilderness activity or use can be 5 seen or heard from within a wilderness area or addi- 6 tion shall not preclude the activity or use up to the 7 boundary of the wilderness area or addition. 8 (f) MILITARY ACTIVITIES.—Nothing in this Act pre- 9 cludes— 10 (1) low-level overflights of military aircraft over 11 a wilderness area or addition; 12 (2) the designation of a new unit of special air- 13 space over a wilderness area or addition; or 14 (3) the use or establishment of a military flight 15 training route over a wilderness area or addition. 16 (g) HORSES.—Nothing in this Act precludes horse- 17 back riding in, or the entry of recreational or commercial 18 saddle or pack stock into, a wilderness area or addition— 19 (1) in accordance with section 4(d)(5) of the 20 Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1133(d)(5)); and 21 (2) subject to such terms and conditions as the 22 Secretary determines to be necessary. 23 (h) LAW ENFORCEMENT.—Nothing in this Act pre- 24 cludes any law enforcement or drug interdiction effort 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:10 Jun 20, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3681.IH H3681 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 11 •HR 3681 IH within a wilderness area or addition, in accordance with 1 the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.). 2 (i) WITHDRAWAL.—Subject to valid existing rights, 3 the wilderness areas and additions are withdrawn from— 4 (1) all forms of entry, appropriation, and dis- 5 posal under the public land laws; 6 (2) location, entry, and patent under the mining 7 laws; and 8 (3) operation of the mineral materials and geo- 9 thermal leasing laws. 10 (j) INCORPORATION OF ACQUIRED LAND AND INTER- 11 ESTS.—Any land within the boundary of a wilderness area 12 or addition that is acquired by the United States shall— 13 (1) become part of the wilderness area or addi- 14 tion in which the land is located; and 15 (2) be managed in accordance with this section, 16 the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.), and 17 any other applicable law (including regulations). 18 (k) CLIMATOLOGICAL DATA COLLECTION.—In ac- 19 cordance with the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.) 20 and subject to such terms and conditions as the Secretary 21 may prescribe, the Secretary may authorize the installa- 22 tion and maintenance of hydrologic, meteorologic, or cli- 23 matological collection devices in a wilderness area or addi- 24 tion if the Secretary determines that the device and access 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:10 Jun 20, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3681.IH H3681 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 12 •HR 3681 IH to the device is essential to a flood warning, flood control, 1 or water reservoir operation activity. 2 [Text truncated for display. 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