I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 7430 

To prohibit the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture 

from transferring certain Federal land, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 20, 2024 

Mr. ZINKE (for himself and Mr. VASQUEZ) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in addition to 

the Committee on Agriculture, for a period to be subsequently determined 

by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 

within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To prohibit the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary 

of Agriculture from transferring certain Federal land, 

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 ‘‘Public Lands in Public 

5 Hands Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act, the term ‘‘publicly accessible tract’’ 

8 means a tract of Federal land managed by the Secretary 


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1 of the Interior or the Chief of the Forest Service that can 

2 be accessed by public road, public trail, public waterway, 

3 public easement, or public right-of-way. 

4 SEC. 3. RESTRICTION ON TRANSFER OF CERTAIN FEDERAL 

5 LAND. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior and 

7 the Secretary of Agriculture are prohibited from transfer8 ring title to Federal land to a non-Federal entity, if the 

9 Federal land is— 

10 (1) a publicly accessible tract; or 

11 (2) contiguous with— 

12 (A) a publicly accessible tract; or 

13 (B) a tract of land that— 

14 (i) is owned by a State, county, or 

15 municipal government; and 

16 (ii) can be accessed by public road, 

17 public trail, public waterway, public ease18 ment, or public right-of-way. 

19 (b) EXCEPTION.—Subsection (a) shall not apply to 

20 a transfer— 

21 (1) of Federal land that is— 

22 (A)(i) less than 300 acres; or 

23 (ii) less than 5 acres and accessible 

24 via a public waterway; and 


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1 (B) authorized to be transferred under and 

2 subject to the Federal Land Policy and Man3 agement Act of 1976; 

4 (2) authorized by— 

5 (A) the Southern Nevada Public Land 

6 Management Act of 1998; 

7 (B) the Sisk Act (16 U.S.C. 479a); 

8 (C) Public Law 85–569, commonly known 

9 as the ‘‘Townsites Act of 1958’’; 

10 (D) the Small Tract Act of 1983; 

11 (E) the Act of May 17, 1906, commonly 

12 known as the ‘‘Native Allotment Act of 1906’’; 

13 (F) Public Law 85–508, commonly known 

14 as the ‘‘Alaska Statehood Act of 1959’’; 

15 (G) the Alaska Native Claims Settlement 

16 Act; 

17 (H) the Alaska Native Vietnam-era Vet18 erans Land Allotment Program authorized by 

19 section 1119 of the John D. Dingell, Jr. Con20 servation, Management, and Recreation Act; 

21 (I) the Recreation and Public Purposes 

22 Act; or 

23 (J) the Weeks Act of 1911; 

24 (3) explicitly authorized by Federal law; or 


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1 (4) completed through a land exchange author2 ized by Federal law. 

3 (c) LIMITATION.—The Secretary shall not subdivide 

4 Federal land to meet acreage minimums described in sub5 section (b)(1). 

6 SEC. 4. STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION. 

7 Nothing in this Act shall be used to influence or in8 terpret the legality of stepping over a property corner from 

9 one parcel of public land to another. 

Æ 


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