II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4669 

To establish the Western Riverside National Wildlife Refuge, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 28, 2022 

Mrs. FEINSTEIN (for herself and Mr. PADILLA) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and 

Public Works 

A BILL 

To establish the Western Riverside National Wildlife Refuge, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Western Riverside Na5 tional Wildlife Refuge Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) ADDITIONAL RESERVE LANDS.—The term 

9 ‘‘additional reserve lands’’ means the conserved 

10 habitat totaling approximately 153,000 acres that 


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1 are needed to meet the goals and objectives of the 

2 Conservation Plan, of which— 

3 (A) 56,000 acres are Federal and State ac4 quisition and mitigation for State Permittees; 

5 and 

6 (B) 97,000 acres were contributed by local 

7 Permittees. 

8 (2) CONSERVATION PLAN.—The term ‘‘Con9 servation Plan’’ means the Western Riverside Coun10 ty Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plan per11 mitted by the United States Fish and Wildlife Serv12 ice on June 22, 2004. 

13 (3) COUNTY.—The term ‘‘County’’ means Riv14 erside County, California. 

15 (4) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ 

16 has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the 

17 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

18 Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 

19 (5) MAP.—The term ‘‘Map’’ means the map en20 titled ‘‘Western Riverside National Wildlife Refuge 

21 Acquisition Boundary as proposed by the Western 

22 Riverside National Wildlife Refuge Act’’ and dated 

23 May 25, 2022. 

24 (6) PERMITTEE.—The term ‘‘Permittee’’ means 

25 an entity identified as a permittee in the incidental 


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1 take permit issued under section 10 of the Endan2 gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1539) that is 

3 associated with the Conservation Plan. 

4 (7) REGIONAL CONSERVATION AUTHORITY.— 

5 The term ‘‘Regional Conservation Authority’’ means 

6 the Western Riverside County Regional Conservation 

7 Authority. 

8 (8) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

9 the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Di10 rector of the United States Fish and Wildlife Serv11 ice. 

12 (9) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State 

13 of California. 

14 (10) URBAN PARTNERSHIP.—The term ‘‘Urban 

15 Partnership’’ means a place-based partnership, es16 tablished in accordance with United States Fish and 

17 Wildlife Service policy, to be carried out on partner18 owned land, including the Urban Bird Treaties Pro19 gram, Urban Wildlife Refuge Partnerships, and 

20 other partnership programs of the United States 

21 Fish and Wildlife Service. 

22 (11) URBAN WILDLIFE REFUGE.—The term 

23 ‘‘Urban Wildlife Refuge’’ means a unit of the Na24 tional Wildlife Refuge System that is managed conVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:52 Aug 04, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4669.IS S4669

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1 sistent with the Urban Wildlife Conservation Pro2 gram of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. 

3 (12) WILDLIFE HABITAT.—The term ‘‘wildlife 

4 habitat’’ means the combination of food, water, shel5 ter, or space that meet the needs of wildlife, includ6 ing wildlife corridors, which are features of the land7 scape that provide ecological connectivity and allow 

8 for native species movement or dispersal as identi9 fied— 

10 (A) by the Secretary; or 

11 (B) in section 3.2.3 of the Conservation 

12 Plan. 

13 (13) WILDLIFE REFUGE.—The term ‘‘Wildlife 

14 Refuge’’ means the Western Riverside National 

15 Wildlife Refuge established under section 3(a). 

16 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF WESTERN RIVERSIDE NA17 TIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE. 

18 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—On the first acquisition by, or 

19 transfer to, the Secretary of any land, water, or any inter20 est in land or water under subsection (h), the Secretary 

21 shall establish a unit of the National Wildlife Refuge Sys22 tem, to be known as the ‘‘Western Riverside National 

23 Wildlife Refuge’’. 

24 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the Wildlife Refuge 

25 are— 


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1 (1) to conserve, manage, and restore fish, wild2 life, plants, and their habitats for the benefit of 

3 present and future generations of individuals in the 

4 United States; and 

5 (2) to support the conservation, recovery, and 

6 protection of— 

7 (A) species listed as threatened species or 

8 endangered species under— 

9 (i) the Endangered Species Act of 

10 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); or 

11 (ii) the California Endangered Species 

12 Act (Chapter 1.5 of Division 3 of the Cali13 fornia Fish and Game Code); and 

14 (B) covered species listed under the Con15 servation Plan. 

16 (c) USES.—The uses of the Wildlife Refuge shall in17 clude— 

18 (1) providing, to the extent compatible with the 

19 purposes described in subsection (b) and pursuant to 

20 the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration 

21 Act of 1966 (16 U.S.C. 668dd et seq.)— 

22 (A) opportunities for scientific research, 

23 environmental education, and fish and wildlife24 oriented recreation; and 


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1 (B) improved access to nature for commu2 nities; and 

3 (2) engaging communities in fish and wildlife 

4 conservation, restoration, education, recreation, and 

5 outreach activities through the pursuit of Urban 

6 Partnerships. 

7 (d) URBAN WILDLIFE REFUGE.—The Wildlife Ref8 uge shall be administered as an Urban Wildlife Refuge. 

9 (e) NOTIFICATION OF ESTABLISHMENT.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

11 the date on which the Wildlife Refuge is established 

12 under subsection (a), the Secretary shall publish in 

13 the Federal Register notice of the establishment of 

14 the Wildlife Refuge. 

15 (2) MAP.—The notice published by the Sec16 retary under paragraph (1) shall include the Map. 

17 (f) ACQUISITION BOUNDARY.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The acquisition boundary of 

19 the Wildlife Refuge shall be coterminous with the 

20 boundary depicted on the Map. 

21 (2) BOUNDARY REVISIONS.—The Secretary may 

22 make such minor revisions to expand the acquisition 

23 boundary established under paragraph (1), as may 

24 be appropriate— 


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1 (A) to achieve the purposes of the Wildlife 

2 Refuge described in subsection (b); or 

3 (B) to facilitate the acquisition of property 

4 for the Wildlife Refuge under subsection (h). 

5 (g) ADMINISTRATION OF WILDLIFE REFUGE.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—On the establishment of the 

7 Wildlife Refuge under subsection (a), the Secretary 

8 shall administer all land, water, and any interest in 

9 land or water that have been acquired by, or trans10 ferred to, the Secretary under subsection (h) for in11 clusion in the Wildlife Refuge in accordance with— 

12 (A) the National Wildlife Refuge System 

13 Administration Act of 1966 (16 U.S.C. 668dd 

14 et seq.); and 

15 (B) subsection (b). 

16 (2) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS WITH RESPECT

17 TO NON-FEDERAL LAND.—The Secretary may enter 

18 into cooperative agreements or other instruments, as 

19 appropriate, with the State, the County, the Re20 gional Conservation Authority, or any other entity or 

21 person— 

22 (A) for the management, in a manner con23 sistent with this section, of land that is— 


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1 (i) owned by the State, the County, 

2 the Regional Conservation Authority, or 

3 any other entity or person; and 

4 (ii) located within the acquisition 

5 boundary of the Wildlife Refuge estab6 lished under subsection (f); 

7 (B) to promote public awareness of the 

8 natural resources of the area governed by the 

9 Conservation Plan; or 

10 (C) to encourage public participation in the 

11 conservation of resources in the Wildlife Ref12 uge. 

13 (3) EASEMENTS AND RIGHTS-OF-WAY.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—Any property acquired 

15 by, or transferred to, the Secretary for inclusion 

16 in the Wildlife Refuge under subsection (h) 

17 shall be subject to any valid and existing right 

18 that existed on the property before the property 

19 was acquired by, or transferred to, the Sec20 retary under that subsection. 

21 (B) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—Subject to compat22 ibility requirements under the National Wildlife 

23 Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 (16 

24 U.S.C. 668dd et seq.), nothing in this Act pre25 cludes the establishment of a new utility facility 


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1 or right-of-way (including instream sites, 

2 routes, and areas) within the Wildlife Refuge if 

3 such a facility or right-of-way, as applicable, is 

4 necessary for public health and safety, elec5 tricity and water supply, or other utility serv6 ices. 

7 (h) ACQUISITION AND TRANSFERS OF LAND AND

8 WATER FOR THE WILDLIFE REFUGE.— 

9 (1) ACQUISITIONS.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may ac11 quire, by donation, purchase, or exchange, land, 

12 water, or any interest in land or water (includ13 ing conservation easements) within the acquisi14 tion boundary of the Wildlife Refuge established 

15 under subsection (f) that will achieve, in the de16 termination of the Secretary, the purposes of 

17 the Wildlife Refuge described in subsection (b). 

18 (B) LAND, WATER, AND INTERESTS

19 OWNED BY THE STATE.—Land, water, and any 

20 interests in land or water owned by the State, 

21 the County, or the Western Riverside County 

22 Regional Conservation Authority may only be 

23 acquired by donation. 

24 (C) ACQUISITION OF ADDITIONAL RESERVE

25 LANDS.— 


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1 (i) IN GENERAL.—In order to support 

2 the responsibilities of the Federal Govern3 ment, as described in the Conservation 

4 Plan, the Secretary shall give priority to, 

5 when acquiring land, water, or any interest 

6 in land or water (including conservation 

7 easements) under subparagraph (A), addi8 tional reserve lands within the acquisition 

9 boundary of the Wildlife Refuge estab10 lished under subsection (f). 

11 (ii) PRIORITY.—In acquiring addi12 tional reserve lands under clause (i), the 

13 Secretary shall give priority to additional 

14 reserve lands— 

15 (I) located within criteria cells 

16 identified on the Map; and 

17 (II) that have not been acquired 

18 by a Permittee, before the date of en19 actment of this Act, for the purpose 

20 of satisfying the conservation obliga21 tions of the Permittee under the Con22 servation Plan. 

23 (2) TRANSFERS.— 

24 (A) ASSESSMENT.—Not later than 1 year 

25 after the date of enactment of this Act, the 


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1 head of any Federal department or agency, in2 cluding any agency within the Department of 

3 the Interior, that has jurisdiction of any Fed4 eral property located within the acquisition 

5 boundary of the Wildlife Refuge established 

6 under subsection (f) shall submit to the Sec7 retary an assessment of whether the property 

8 would be consistent with the purposes of the 

9 Wildlife Refuge described in subsection (b). 

10 (B) REQUIREMENTS.—Any assessment 

11 submitted to the Secretary under subparagraph 

12 (A) shall include— 

13 (i) parcel descriptions and best exist14 ing land surveys for the property; 

15 (ii) a list of existing special reserva16 tions designations or purposes of the prop17 erty; 

18 (iii) an inventory of— 

19 (I) all known or suspected haz20 ardous substance contamination of the 

21 property; 

22 (II) any facilities on the prop23 erty; and 

24 (III) any surface water or 

25 groundwater on the property; 


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1 (iv) the status of withdrawal of the 

2 property from— 

3 (I) the Mineral Leasing Act (30 

4 U.S.C. 181 et seq.); and 

5 (II) sections 2319 through 2344 

6 of the Revised Statutes (commonly 

7 known as the ‘‘Mining Law of 1872’’) 

8 (30 U.S.C. 22 et seq.); and 

9 (v)(I) a recommendation relating to 

10 whether the property would be consistent 

11 with the purposes of the Wildlife Refuge 

12 described in subsection (b); and 

13 (II) the reasons supporting that rec14 ommendation. 

15 (C) TRANSFER DETERMINATION.— 

16 (i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 

17 days after the date on which the Secretary 

18 receives an assessment submitted under 

19 subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall de20 termine whether the property described in 

21 that assessment shall be transferred to the 

22 Secretary for inclusion in the Wildlife Ref23 uge. 

24 (ii) PROPERTY ACCEPTED FOR INCLU25 SION.—If the Secretary accepts the transVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:52 Aug 04, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4669.IS S4669

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1 fer of a property described in an assess2 ment submitted under subparagraph (A), 

3 that property shall be transferred to the 

4 Secretary for inclusion in the Wildlife Ref5 uge without fee or reimbursement. 

6 (iii) PROPERTY REJECTED FOR IN7 CLUSION.— 

8 (I) IN GENERAL.—If the Sec9 retary rejects the transfer of a prop10 erty described in an assessment sub11 mitted under subparagraph (A), that 

12 property shall not be transferred to 

13 the Secretary for inclusion in the 

14 Wildlife Refuge. 

15 (II) CONSULTATION.—If the 

16 property is not transferred to the Sec17 retary under subclause (I), the Sec18 retary may consult with the head of 

19 the department or agency that sub20 mitted the assessment under subpara21 graph (A)— 

22 (aa) to further deliberate 

23 whether that property is con24 sistent with the purposes of the 


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1 Wildlife Refuge described in sub2 section (b); and 

3 (bb) to determine what man4 agement activities can be taken 

5 for the Secretary to approve the 

6 eventual transfer of that property 

7 for inclusion in the Wildlife Ref8 uge. 

9 (III) INCLUSION.—If, on further 

10 deliberation between the Secretary 

11 and the head of the department or 

12 agency under subclause (II), the Sec13 retary accepts the transfer of the ap14 plicable property, that property shall 

15 be transferred to the Secretary for in16 clusion in the Wildlife Refuge in ac17 cordance with clause (ii). 

18 (D) ADDITIONAL TRANSFERS.—The Sec19 retary, on completion of reviewing assessments 

20 submitted by the head of any Federal depart21 ment or agency, including any agency within 

22 the Department of the Interior, under subpara23 graph (A), may commence additional assess24 ments in accordance with subparagraphs (B) 

25 and (C) if the Secretary determines that— 


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1 (i) any Federal department or agency, 

2 including any agency within the Depart3 ment of the Interior, has, or has acquired, 

4 jurisdiction over any Federal property lo5 cated within the acquisition boundary of 

6 the Wildlife Refuge established under sub7 section (f); or 

8 (ii) property rejected by the Secretary 

9 under subparagraph (C)(iii) has been re10 mediated and may now be suitable for in11 clusion in the Wildlife Refuge. 

12 (E) PUBLIC ACCESS.—If property trans13 ferred to the Secretary under this paragraph al14 lows for public access at the time of transfer, 

15 that access shall be maintained, unless that ac16 cess, as determined by the Secretary— 

17 (i) would be incompatible with the 

18 purposes of the Wildlife Refuge described 

19 in subsection (b) or the National Wildlife 

20 Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 

21 (16 U.S.C. 668dd et seq.); 

22 (ii) would jeopardize public health or 

23 safety; or 

24 (iii) must be limited due to emergency 

25 circumstances. 


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1 (3) TRIBAL CULTURAL AND RELIGIOUS USES.— 

2 No acquisition or transfer of property under this 

3 subsection shall modify or revoke existing access to, 

4 or use by, affected Indian Tribes, unless that use or 

5 access, as determined by the Secretary— 

6 (A) would be incompatible with the pur7 poses of the Wildlife Refuge described in sub8 section (b) or the National Wildlife Refuge Sys9 tem Administration Act of 1966 (16 U.S.C. 

10 668dd et seq.); 

11 (B) would jeopardize public health or safe12 ty; or 

13 (C) must be limited due to emergency cir14 cumstances. 

15 (4) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—Nothing in this sub16 section exempts or relieves a Permittee from the ob17 ligations of the Permittee under the Conservation 

18 Plan or any associated permit. 

Æ 


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