I 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1776 

To establish the Clear Creek National Recreation Area in San Benito and 

Fresno Counties, to designate the Joaquin Rocks Wilderness in such 

counties, to designate additional components of the national wild and 

scenic rivers system, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 26, 2013 

Mr. FARR (for himself, Mr. VALADAO, and Mr. DENHAM) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To establish the Clear Creek National Recreation Area in 

San Benito and Fresno Counties, to designate the Joaquin Rocks Wilderness in such counties, to designate 

additional components of the national wild and scenic 

rivers system, 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 ‘‘Clear Creek National 

5 Recreation Area and Conservation Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 


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1 (1) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The term ‘‘manage2 ment plan’’ means the Plan for the Recreation Area 

3 prepared under section 4(c). 

4 (2) RECREATION AREA.—The term ‘‘Recreation 

5 Area’’ means the Clear Creek National Recreation 

6 Area. 

7 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

8 the Secretary of the Interior. 

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

10 of California. 

11 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF CLEAR CREEK NATIONAL 

12 RECREATION AREA. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—To promote environmentally re14 sponsible high-quality motorized and non-motorized trail 

15 based recreation, including off-highway vehicle use, scenic 

16 touring, access for hunting and gem collecting, while pro17 tecting ecological, geological, scenic, cultural, and historic 

18 resources, fish and wildlife values, and other resources of 

19 the landscape, there is established the Clear Creek Na20 tional Recreation Area in the State, to be managed by the 

21 Secretary. 

22 (b) BOUNDARIES.—The Recreation Area shall consist 

23 of approximately 75,000 acres of Federal land in San Be24 nito County and Fresno County, California, as generally 


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1 depicted on the map entitled ‘‘Clear Creek National Recre2 ation Area’’ and dated July 30, 2012. 

3 (c) MAP.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—As soon as practicable, after 

5 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

6 shall submit a map and legal description of the 

7 Recreation Area to— 

8 (A) the Committee on Natural Resources 

9 of the House of Representatives; and 

10 (B) the Committee on Energy and Natural 

11 Resources of the Senate. 

12 (2) AVAILABILITY.—Copies of the map sub13 mitted under paragraph (1) shall be on file and 

14 available for public inspection in— 

15 (A) the Office of the Director of the Bu16 reau of Land Management; and 

17 (B) the appropriate office of the Bureau of 

18 Land Management in California. 

19 SEC. 4. MANAGEMENT. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall manage the 

21 Recreation Area to further the purposes described in sec22 tion 3(a), in accordance with— 

23 (1) this Act; 

24 (2) the Federal Land Policy and Management 

25 Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.); and 


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1 (3) any other applicable law. 

2 (b) USES.—The Secretary shall— 

3 (1) allow hiking, camping, hunting, gem col4 lecting, and sightseeing and the use of motorized ve5 hicles, mountain bikes, and horses on designated 

6 roads, trails, and areas; 

7 (2) issue special recreation permits for motor8 ized and non-motorized events; and 

9 (3) reopen the Clear Creek Management Area 

10 to the uses described in this subsection as soon as 

11 practicable following the enactment of this Act and 

12 in accordance with the management guidelines out13 lined in this Act and other applicable law. 

14 (c) INTERIM MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The Secretary 

15 shall use the 2005 Clear Creek Management Area Travel 

16 Management Plan as modified by this Act, or by the Sec17 retary to incorporate natural resource protection informa18 tion not available in 2005, as the basis of an interim man19 agement plan to govern motorized recreation within the 

20 Recreation Area pending the completion of the long-term 

21 management plan required in subsection (d). 

22 (d) PERMANENT MANAGEMENT PLAN.—Not later 

23 than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, 

24 the Secretary shall create a comprehensive management 

25 plan for the Clear Creek Recreation Area that— 


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1 (1) shall describe the appropriate uses and 

2 management of the Recreation Area in accordance 

3 with this Act; 

4 (2) shall be prepared in consultation with— 

5 (A) appropriate Federal, State, and local 

6 agencies (including San Benito, Monterey, and 

7 Fresno Counties); 

8 (B) adjacent land owners; and 

9 (C) other stakeholders (including conserva10 tion and recreational organizations); 

11 (3) shall include a hazards education program 

12 to inform people entering the Recreation Area of the 

13 asbestos related risks associated with various activi14 ties within the Recreation Area, including, but not 

15 limited to, off-highway vehicle recreation; 

16 (4) shall include a user fee program for motor17 ized vehicle use within the Recreational Area and 

18 guidelines for the use of the funds collected for the 

19 management and improvement of the Recreation 

20 Area; 

21 (5) may incorporate any appropriate decisions, 

22 as determined by the Secretary, in accordance with 

23 this Act, that are contained in any management or 

24 activity plan for the area completed before the date 

25 of the enactment of this Act; 


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1 (6) may incorporate appropriate wildlife habitat 

2 management plans or other plans prepared for the 

3 land within or adjacent to the Recreation Area be4 fore the date of the enactment of this Act, in accord5 ance with this Act; 

6 (7) may use information developed under any 

7 studies of land within or adjacent to the Recreation 

8 Area carried out before the date of enactment of this 

9 Act; and 

10 (8) may include cooperative agreements with 

11 State or local government agencies to manage all or 

12 a portion of the recreational activities within the 

13 Recreation Area in accordance with an approved 

14 management plan and the requirements of this Act. 

15 (e) ACQUISITION OF PROPERTY.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may acquire 

17 land adjacent to the National Recreation Area by 

18 purchase from willing sellers, donation, or exchange. 

19 (2) MANAGEMENT.—Any land acquired under 

20 paragraph (1) shall be managed in accordance 

21 with— 

22 (A) the Federal Land Policy and Manage23 ment Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.); 

24 (B) this Act; and 


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1 (C) any other applicable law (including 

2 regulations). 

3 (3) IMPROVED ACCESS.—The Secretary may ac4 quire by purchase from willing sellers, donation, ex5 change, or easement, land, or interest in land to im6 prove public safety in providing access to the Recre7 ation Area. 

8 (f) PRIVATE PROPERTY.— 

9 (1) ACCESS TO PRIVATE PROPERTY.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

11 provide landowners adequate access to in12 holdings within the Recreation Area. 

13 (B) INHOLDINGS.—For access purposes, 

14 private land adjacent to the Recreation Area to 

15 which there is no other practicable access ex16 cept through the Recreation Area shall be man17 aged as an inholding. 

18 (2) USE OF PRIVATE PROPERTY.—Nothing in 

19 this Act affects the ownership, management, or 

20 other rights relating to any non-Federal land (in21 cluding any interest in any non-Federal land). 

22 (3) BUFFER ZONES.—Nothing in this Act cre23 ates a protective perimeter or buffer zone around the 

24 Recreation Area. 


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1 (4) VALID RIGHTS.—Nothing in this Act affects 

2 any easements, rights-of-way, and other valid rights 

3 in existence on the date of the enactment of this 

4 Act. 

5 (g) WATER RIGHT EXCLUSION.—Nothing in this 

6 Act— 

7 (1) shall constitute or be construed to con8 stitute either an express or implied reservation by 

9 the United States of any water or water rights with 

10 respect to the Recreation Area; or 

11 (2) shall affect any water rights existing on the 

12 date of the enactment of this Act. 

13 (h) HUNTING AND FISHING.—Nothing in this Act— 

14 (1) limits hunting or fishing; or 

15 (2) affects the authority, jurisdiction, or respon16 sibility of the State to manage, control, or regulate 

17 fish and resident wildlife under State law (including 

18 regulations), including the regulation of hunting or 

19 fishing on public land managed by the Bureau of 

20 Land Management. 

21 (i) MOTORIZED VEHICLES.—Except in cases in which 

22 motorized vehicles are needed for administrative purposes 

23 or to respond to an emergency, the use of motorized vehi24 cles on public land in the Recreation Area shall be perVerDate Mar 15 2010 05:00 May 01, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1776.IH H1776

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1 mitted only on roads, trails, and areas designated by the 

2 management plan for the use by motorized vehicles. 

3 (j) GRAZING.—In the Recreation Area, the grazing 

4 of livestock in areas in which grazing is allowed as of the 

5 date of the enactment of this Act shall be allowed to con6 tinue, consistent with— 

7 (1) this Act; 

8 (2) the Federal Land Policy and Management 

9 Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.); and 

10 (3) any regulations promulgated by the Sec11 retary, acting through the Director of the Bureau of 

12 Land Management. 

13 (k) WITHDRAWAL.—Subject to valid existing rights, 

14 all Federal land within the Recreation Area is withdrawn 

15 from— 

16 (1) all forms of entry, appropriation, and dis17 posal under the public land laws; 

18 (2) location, entry, and patenting under the 

19 mining laws; and 

20 (3) operation of the mineral leasing, mineral 

21 materials, and geothermal leasing laws. 

22 (l) FEES.—Amounts received by the Secretary under 

23 the fee structure required by subsection (c)(3)(G) shall 

24 be— 


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1 (1) deposited in a special account in the Treas2 ury of the United States; and 

3 (2) made available until expended, without fur4 ther appropriation, to the Secretary for use in the 

5 Recreation Area. 

6 (m) RISK STANDARD.—The National Oil and Haz7 ardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (40 C.F.R. 

8 300), published pursuant to section 105 of the Com9 prehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and 

10 Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9605), shall not apply 

11 to the Secretary’s management of asbestos exposure risks 

12 faced by the public when recreating within the Clear Creek 

13 Recreation Area described in section 3(b). 

14 SEC. 5. JOAQUIN ROCKS WILDERNESS. 

15 In accordance with the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 

16 1131 et seq.), the approximately 21,000 acres of Federal 

17 lands located in Fresno County and San Benito County, 

18 California, and generally depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Pro19 posed Joaquin Rocks Wilderness’’ and dated April 16, 

20 2013, is designated as wilderness and as a component of 

21 the National Wilderness Preservation System and shall be 

22 known as the ‘‘Joaquin Rocks Wilderness’’. 


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1 SEC. 6. CLEAR CREEK MANAGEMENT AREA WILD AND SCE2 NIC RIVERS. 

3 Section 3(a) of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act (16 

4 U.S.C. 1274(a)) is amended by adding at the end the fol5 lowing paragraphs: 

6 ‘‘(ll) LARIOUS CANYON.—The approximately 

7 5.25 miles of Larious Canyon Creek from its source 

8 near Idria Peak in Section 6, R12E, T18S, to the 

9 boundary of the Clear Creek Special Recreation 

10 Management Area in Section 23, R11E, T17S. 

11 ‘‘(ll) SAN CARLOS CREEK.—The approxi12 mately 5.51 miles of the East Fork San Carlos 

13 Creek from its source near San Benito Mountain in 

14 Section 10, R12E, T18S, to the boundary of the 

15 Clear Creek Special Recreation Management Area in 

16 Section 22, R12E, T17S. 

17 ‘‘(ll) CANTUA CREEK.—The approximately 

18 7.68 miles of Cantua Creek from its source north of 

19 Santa Rita Peak in Section 24, R12E, T18S, to the 

20 public land boundary in Section 3, R13E, T18S. 

21 ‘‘(ll) PICACHO CREEK.—The approximately 

22 2.65 miles of Picacho Creek, from its source spring 

23 in Section 20, R12E, T18S, to its confluence with 

24 the San Benito River. 

25 ‘‘(ll) WHITE CREEK AND TRIBUTARIES.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) The approximately 5.37 miles of 

2 White Creek, from its source in Section 36, 

3 R12E, T18S, to the boundary of the Clear 

4 Creek Special Recreation Management Area in 

5 Section 17, R13E, T19S. 

6 ‘‘(B) The approximately 2.29 miles of the 

7 unnamed tributary of White Creek from its 

8 source just south of Spanish Lake in Section 

9 29, R13E, T18S, to its confluence with White 

10 Creek. 

11 ‘‘(C) The approximately 2.45 miles of the 

12 unnamed tributary of White Creek from its 

13 source in Section 33, R13E, T18S, to its con14 fluence with White Creek.’’. 

Æ 


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