H.R. 6492 — what changed
Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Experiences Act
From Reported in House to Engrossed in House. 7 sections amended between Reported in House and Engrossed in House.
Sec. 112 Identifying opportunities for recreation
Inventory and assessments—
In general— The Secretary concerned shall—
conduct an inventory and assessment of recreation resources for Federal recreational lands and waters;
develop the inventory and assessment with support from public comment; and
update the inventory and assessment as the Secretary concerned determines appropriate.
Unique recreation values— An inventory and assessment conducted under paragraph (1) shall—
recognize—
any unique recreation values and recreation opportunities; and
areas of concentrated recreational use; and
identify, list, and map recreation resources by—
type of recreation opportunity and type of natural or artificial recreation infrastructure;
to the extent available, the level of use of the recreation resource as of the date of the inventory; and
changed
identify, identifying, to the extent practicable, any trend relating to recreation opportunities or use at a recreation resource identified under subparagraph (A).
Assessments— For any recreation resource inventoried under paragraph (1), the Secretary concerned shall assess—
the maintenance needs of, and expenses necessary to administer, the recreation resource;
the suitability for developing, expanding, or enhancing the recreation resource; and
the adequacy of the current management of the recreation resource.
Existing efforts— To the extent practicable, the Secretary concerned shall use or incorporate existing applicable research and planning decisions and processes in carrying out this section.
Conforming amendments— Section 200103 of title 54, United States Code, is amended—
by striking subsection (d); and
by redesignating subsections (e), (f), (g), (h), and (i) as subsections (d), (e), (f), (g), and (h), respectively.
Sec. 131 Gateway communities
changed
Assessment of impacts and needs in gateway communities— Using existing funds available to the Secretaries, the The Secretaries—
shall collaborate with State and local governments, Indian Tribes, housing authorities, applicable trade associations, nonprofit organizations, private entities, and other relevant stakeholders to identify needs and economic impacts in gateway communities, including—
housing shortages;
demands on existing municipal infrastructure;
accommodation and management of sustainable visitation; and
the expansion and diversification of visitor experiences by bolstering the visitation at—
existing developed locations that are underutilized on nearby Federal recreational lands and waters that are suitable for developing, expanding, or enhancing recreation use, as identified by the Secretaries; or
existing developed and suitable lesser-known recreation sites, as identified under section 5(b)(1)(B), on nearby land managed by a State agency or a local agency; and
may address a need identified under paragraph (1) by—
providing financial or technical assistance to a gateway community under an existing program;
changed
entering into a lease, an agreement, right-of-way, or easement, in accordance with applicable laws; or
issuing an entity referred to in paragraph (1) a special use permit (other than a special recreation permit (as defined in section 802 of the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act (16 U.S.C. 6801)), in accordance with applicable laws.
Technical and financial assistance to businesses—
In general— The Secretary of Agriculture (acting through the Administrator of the Rural Business-Cooperative Service), in coordination with the Secretary and the Secretary of Commerce, shall provide to businesses in gateway communities the assistance described in paragraph (2) to establish, operate, or expand infrastructure to accommodate and manage sustainable visitation, including hotels, campgrounds, and restaurants.
Assistance— The Secretary of Agriculture may provide assistance under paragraph (1) through the use of existing, or the establishment of new, entrepreneur and vocational training programs, technical assistance programs, low-interest business loan programs, and loan guarantee programs.
Partnerships— In carrying out this section, the Secretaries may, in accordance with applicable laws, enter into a public-private partnership, cooperative agreement, memorandum of understanding, or similar agreement with a gateway community or a business in a gateway community.
Sec. 132 Improved recreation visitation data
Consistent visitation data—
Annual visitation data— The Secretaries shall establish a single visitation data reporting system to report accurate annual visitation data, in a consistent manner, for—
each unit of Federal recreational lands and waters; and
land held in trust for an Indian Tribe, on request of the Indian Tribe.
Categories of use— Within the visitation data reporting system established under paragraph (1), the Secretaries shall—
establish multiple categories of different recreation activities that are reported consistently across agencies; and
provide an estimate of the number of visitors for each applicable category established under subparagraph (A) for each unit of Federal recreational lands and waters.
Real-Time data pilot program—
In general— Not later than 5 years after the date of the enactment of this title, using existing funds available to the Secretaries, the Secretaries shall carry out a pilot program, to be known as the “Real-Time Data Pilot Program” (referred to in this section as the “Pilot Program”), to make available to the public, for each unit of Federal recreational lands and waters selected for participation in the Pilot Program under paragraph (2)—
real-time or predictive data on visitation (including data and resources publicly available from existing nongovernmental platforms) at—
the unit of Federal recreational lands and waters;
to the extent practicable, areas within the unit of Federal recreational lands and waters; and
to the extent practicable, recreation sites managed by any other Federal agency, a State agency, or a local agency that are located near the unit of Federal recreational lands and waters; and
through multiple media platforms, information about lesser-known recreation sites located near the unit of Federal recreational lands and waters (including recreation sites managed by any other Federal agency, a State agency, or a local agency), in an effort to encourage visitation among recreational sites.
Locations—
Initial number of units— On establishment of the Pilot Program, the Secretaries shall select for participation in the Pilot Program—
10 units of Federal recreational lands and waters managed by the Secretary;
5 units of Federal recreational lands and waters managed by the Secretary of Agriculture (acting through the Chief of the Forest Service);
1 unit of Federal recreational lands and waters managed by the Secretary of Commerce (acting through the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration); and
1 unit of Federal recreational lands and waters managed by the Assistant Secretary of Army for Civil Works.
Report— Not later than 6 years after the date of the enactment of this title, the Secretaries shall submit a report to Congress regarding the implementation of the pilot program, including policy recommendations to expand the pilot program to additional units managed by the Secretaries.
Feedback; support of gateway communities— The Secretaries shall—
solicit feedback regarding participation in the Pilot Program from communities adjacent to units of Federal recreational lands and waters and the public; and
in carrying out subparagraphs (A) and (B), select a unit of Federal recreation lands and waters to participate in the Pilot Program only if the community adjacent to the unit of Federal recreational lands and waters is supportive of the participation of the unit of Federal recreational lands and waters in the Pilot Program.
Dissemination of information— The Secretaries may disseminate the information described in paragraph (1) directly or through an entity or organization referred to in subsection (c).
Inclusion of current assessments— In carrying out the Pilot Program, the Secretaries may, to the extent practicable, rely on assessments completed or data gathered prior to the date of enactment of this title.
Community partners and third-Party providers— For purposes of carrying out this section, the Secretary concerned may—
coordinate and partner with—
communities adjacent to units of Federal recreational lands and waters;
State and local outdoor recreation and tourism offices;
local governments;
Indian Tribes;
trade associations;
local outdoor recreation marketing organizations;
permitted facilitated recreation providers; or
other relevant stakeholders; and
coordinate or enter into agreements, as appropriate, with private sector and nonprofit partners, including—
technology companies;
geospatial data companies;
experts in data science, analytics, and operations research; or
data companies.
Existing programs— The Secretaries may use existing programs or products of the Secretaries to carry out this section.
Privacy clauses— Nothing in this section provides authority to the Secretaries—
to monitor or record the movements of a visitor to a unit of Federal recreational lands and waters;
to restrict, interfere with, or monitor a private communication of a visitor to a unit of Federal recreational lands and waters; or
to collect—
information from owners of land adjacent to a unit of Federal recreational lands and waters; or
information on non-Federal land.
Reports— Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this title, and annually thereafter, the Secretaries shall publish on a website of the Secretaries a report that describes the annual visitation of each unit of Federal recreational lands and waters, including, to the maximum extent practicable, visitation categorized by recreational activity.
DEFINITIONS— In this section—
Federal recreational lands and waters— The term Federal recreational lands and waters—
has the meaning given the term in section 802 of the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act (16 U.S.C. 6801); and
includes Federal lands and waters managed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Secretaries— The term Secretaries means—
the Secretary, with respect to lands under the jurisdiction of the Secretary;
the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service, with respect to lands under the jurisdiction of the Forest Service;
changed
the Secretary of Commerce, acting through the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, with respect to federal Federal waters under the jurisdiction of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; and
the Assistant Secretary of Army for Civil Works, with respect to lakes and reservoirs under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Sec. 133 Monitoring for improved recreation decision making
In general— The Secretaries shall seek to capture comprehensive recreation use data to better understand and inform decision making by the Secretaries.
Pilot protocols— Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this title, and after public notice and comment, the Secretaries shall establish pilot protocols at not fewer than 10 land management units under the jurisdiction of each of the Secretaries to model recreation use patterns (including low-use recreation activities and dispersed recreation activities) that may not be effectively measured by existing general and opportunistic survey and monitoring protocols.
Secretaries defined— In this section, the term Secretaries means—
the Secretary, with respect to lands under the jurisdiction of the Secretary;
the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service, with respect to lands under the jurisdiction of the Forest Service;
changed
the Secretary of Commerce, acting through the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, with respect to federal Federal waters under the jurisdiction of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; and
the Assistant Secretary of Army for Civil Works, with respect to lakes and reservoirs under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Sec. 151 Authorization for lease of forest service administrative sites
Section 8623 of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (16 U.S.C. 580d note; Public Law 115–334) is amended—
in subsection (a)(2)(D), by striking “dwelling;” and inserting “dwelling or multiunit dwelling;”;
in subsection (c), by striking “Secretary” in the middle of the sentence and inserting “Chief of the Forest Service, or their designee”;
in subsection (e)—
in paragraph (3)(B)(ii)—
in subclause (I), by inserting “such as housing,” after “improvements,”;
in subclause (II), by striking “and” at the end;
in subclause (III), by striking “or” at the end and inserting “and”; and
by adding at the end the following:
“(IV) services occurring off the administrative site that—
“(aa) occur at another administrative site in the same unit in which the administrative site is located or a different unit of the National Forest System;
“(bb) benefit the National Forest System; and
“(cc) support activities occurring within the unit of the National Forest System in which the administrative site is located; or”
by adding at the end the following:
“(6) Lease term
“(A) In general—The term of a lease of an administrative site under this section shall be not more than 100 years.
“(B) Reauthorization of use—A lease of an administrative site under this section shall include a provision for reauthorization of the use if the—
“(i) use of the administrative site, at the time of reauthorization, is still being used for the purposes authorized;
“(ii) use to be authorized under the new lease is consistent with the applicable land management plan; and
“(iii) lessee is in compliance with all the terms of the existing lease.”
changed
“(C) Savings—A reauthorization of use under subparagraph (B) may include new terms in the use, as determined by the Chief of the Forest Service, or their designee..”designee.”
added
in subsection (g), by—
added
striking “to a leaseholder” after “payments”; and
added
inserting “or constructed” after “improved”; and
renumbered
was (6)
in subsection (i), by striking “2023” each place it appears and inserting “2028”.
Sec. 154 Parking and Restroom opportunities for Federal recreational lands and waters
Parking Opportunities—
In general— The Secretaries shall seek to increase and improve parking opportunities for persons recreating on Federal recreational lands and waters—
in accordance with existing laws and applicable land use plans;
in a manner that minimizes any increase in maintenance obligations on Federal recreational lands and waters; and
in a manner that does not impact wildlife habitat that is critical to the mission of a Federal agency responsible for managing Federal recreational lands and waters.
Authority— To supplement the quantity of parking spaces available at units of Federal recreational lands and waters on the date of the enactment of this title, the Secretaries may—
enter into a public-private partnership for parking opportunities on non-Federal land;
changed
enter into contracts or agreements with State, Tribal, or local governments for parking opportunities using non-Federal lands and resources;resources; or
removed
lease non-Federal land for parking opportunities; or
renumbered
was (2)(3)(6)
provide alternative transportation systems for a unit of Federal recreational lands and waters.
Restroom opportunities—
In general— The Secretaries shall seek to increase and improve the function, cleanliness, and availability of restroom facilities for persons recreating on Federal recreational lands and waters, including by entering into partnerships with non-Federal partners, including State, Tribal, and local governments and volunteer organizations.
Report— Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretaries shall submit a report to Congress that identifies—
challenges to maintaining or improving the function, cleanliness, and availability of restroom facilities on Federal recreational lands and waters;
the current state of restroom facilities on Federal recreational lands and waters and the effect restroom facilities have on visitor experiences; and
policy recommendations that suggest innovative new models or partnerships to increase or improve the function, cleanliness, and availability of restroom facilities for persons recreating on Federal recreational lands and waters.
Sec. 225 Recreation resource advisory committees
Section 804(d) of the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act (16 U.S.C. 6803(d)), is amended—
in paragraph (5)(A), by striking “11” and inserting “12”; and
in paragraph (5)(D)(ii)—
by striking “Three” and inserting “Four”; and
after subclause (III), by inserting the following:
changed
“(IV) Veterans organizations, as such term is defined in section 201of 201 of the EXPLORE Act.”
in paragraph (8) by striking “Eight” and inserting “Six”.