---
kind: "section"
citation: "16 U.S.C. § 3161"
title: "16"
title_heading: "Conservation"
number: "3161"
heading: "Congressional declaration of findings"
release: "119-102"
date: "2026-07-12"
url: "https://uscodex.org/usc/16/3161"
units:
  - "Chapter 51 — Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation"
  - "Subchapter IV — Transportation and Utility Systems in and Across, and Access into, Conservation System Units"
---

# §3161. Congressional declaration of findings


Congress finds that—

- (a) Alaska’s transportation and utility network is largely undeveloped and the future needs for transportation and utility systems in Alaska would best be identified and provided for through an orderly, continuous decisionmaking process involving the [State](/usc/16/590q.md?p=a) and Federal Governments and the public;
- (b) the existing authorities to approve or disapprove applications for transportation and utility systems through [public lands](/usc/16/620e.md?p=7) in Alaska are diverse, dissimilar, and, in some cases, absent; and
- (c) to minimize the adverse impacts of siting transportation and utility systems within [units](/usc/16/430f–7.md?p=4) established or expanded by this Act and to insure the effectiveness of the decisionmaking process, a single comprehensive statutory authority for the approval or disapproval of applications for such systems must be provided in this Act.

## Source credit

(Pub. L. 96–487, title XI, § 1101, Dec. 2, 1980, 94 Stat. 2457.)

## Notes

### Editorial Notes

### References in Text

This Act, referred to in subsec. (c), is Pub. L 96–487, Dec. 2, 1980, 94 Stat. 2371, known as the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 3101 of this title and Tables.