I 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5556 

To establish the Great Bend of the Gila National Monument in the State 

of Arizona, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 22, 2016 

Mr. GRIJALVA introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To establish the Great Bend of the Gila National Monument 

in the State of Arizona, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Great Bend of the Gila National Monument Establish6 ment Act’’. 

7 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

8 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Establishment of Great Bend of the Gila National Monument, Arizona. 

Sec. 3. Management of national monument. 

Sec. 4. Management plan. 

Sec. 5. Tribal use of national monument. 


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Sec. 6. Off-road use of motorized and mechanized vehicles. 

Sec. 7. No military airspace restrictions. 

Sec. 8. Research, education, and visitor services. 

Sec. 9. Fish and wildlife. 

Sec. 10. Land acquisition. 

Sec. 11. Withdrawal. 

Sec. 12. Effect on existing facilities and rights-of-way. 

Sec. 13. Water rights. 

Sec. 14. Advisory council. 

1 SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF GREAT BEND OF THE GILA NA2 TIONAL MONUMENT, ARIZONA. 

3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

4 State of Arizona the Great Bend of the Gila National 

5 Monument (in this Act referred to as the ‘‘national monu6 ment’’). 

7 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the national monu8 ment is— 

9 (1) to preserve, protect, and restore the archae10 ological, cultural, historic, geologic, hydrologic, nat11 ural, educational, and scenic resources of the Great 

12 Bend of the Gila (Gila River in Western Maricopa 

13 County, Arizona) and adjacent land; and 

14 (2) to provide for public interpretation and 

15 recreation consistent with the resources described in 

16 paragraph (1). 

17 (c) BOUNDARIES.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The national monument con19 sists of approximately 84,296 acres of public lands 

20 and interests in land administered by the Secretary 

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1 ment, as generally depicted on the map entitled 

2 ‘‘Great Bend of the Gila National Monument’’ and 

3 dated March 6, 2013. 

4 (2) MINOR ADJUSTMENTS.—The Secretary may 

5 make minor adjustments to the boundaries of the 

6 national monument to reflect the inclusion of signifi7 cant archaeological resources discovered after the 

8 date of enactment of this Act on public lands adja9 cent to the national monument. 

10 (3) AVAILABILITY OF MAP.—The map described 

11 in paragraph (1) and the legal description of any ad12 justments made under paragraph (2) shall be on file 

13 and available for public inspection in the appropriate 

14 offices of the Bureau of Land Management. 

15 (d) ADJACENT USES.—Nothing in this Act— 

16 (1) creates a protective perimeter or buffer zone 

17 around the national monument; or 

18 (2) affects private property outside of the 

19 boundaries of the national monument. 

20 SEC. 3. MANAGEMENT OF NATIONAL MONUMENT. 

21 (a) NATIONAL LANDSCAPE CONSERVATION SYS22 TEM.—The Secretary of the Interior shall manage the na23 tional monument as part of the National Landscape Con24 servation System— 


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1 (1) to allow only such uses of the national 

2 monument as to further the purposes for which the 

3 monument was established; and 

4 (2) in accordance with this Act and other laws 

5 generally applicable to the national monument, in6 cluding the Native American Graves Protection and 

7 Repatriation Act (25 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.) and the 

8 policy described in Public Law 95–341 (commonly 

9 known as the American Indian Religious Freedom 

10 Act; 42 U.S.C. 1996). 

11 (b) MANAGEMENT OBJECTIVES.—In managing the 

12 national monument, the Secretary of the Interior shall— 

13 (1) maintain the undeveloped character of the 

14 national monument to the maximum extent prac15 ticable; and 

16 (2) protect and restore cultural resources, spe17 cies, and ecosystems of the national monument. 

18 (c) VEGETATION MANAGEMENT.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Inte20 rior— 

21 (A) shall conduct an inventory of invasive 

22 plant species in the national monument; 

23 (B) may carry out vegetation management 

24 treatments, including efforts to control salt 


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1 cedar and other invasive plant species, in the 

2 national monument; and 

3 (C) shall coordinate vegetation manage4 ment within the national monument boundaries 

5 with ongoing efforts to eradicate invasive spe6 cies by the Flood Control District of Maricopa 

7 County and neighboring communities. 

8 (2) USE OF NATIVE PLANT SPECIES.—The Sec9 retary shall utilize native plant species in planning 

10 for restoration projects to be conducted in the na11 tional monument. 

12 (d) GRAZING.—The Secretary shall permit grazing in 

13 the national monument, where grazing was established be14 fore the date of enactment of this Act— 

15 (1) subject to all applicable laws; and 

16 (2) consistent with the purposes for which the 

17 national monument is established. 

18 (e) BACKCOUNTRY ACTIVITIES.—Management of the 

19 national monument shall support backcountry hunting 

20 and other non-motorized recreation in the national monu21 ment. 

22 SEC. 4. MANAGEMENT PLAN. 

23 (a) MANAGEMENT PLAN REQUIRED.—Not later than 

24 three years after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

25 Secretary of the Interior shall develop a management plan 


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1 for the national monument that addresses the actions nec2 essary to protect the resources described in section 

3 2(b)(1). The management plan shall include a transpor4 tation plan, including travel restrictions and road closures. 

5 (b) CONSULTATION.—In addition to the period of 

6 public comment required by subsection (b), the Secretary 

7 of the Interior shall prepare the management plan in gov8 ernment-to-government consultation with Indian tribes 

9 with a cultural or historic tie to the Great Bend of the 

10 Gila. 

11 SEC. 5. TRIBAL USE OF NATIONAL MONUMENT. 

12 (a) TRADITIONAL USES.—The Secretary of the Inte13 rior shall allow for the continued use of the national monu14 ment by members of Indian tribes— 

15 (1) for traditional ceremonies; and 

16 (2) as a source of traditional plants and other 

17 materials. 

18 (b) TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—Tribal use of the na19 tional monument under subsection (a) shall be— 

20 (1) subject to any terms and conditions the 

21 Secretary of the Interior determines to be necessary 

22 to further the purposes for which the national monu23 ment is established; and 

24 (2) in accordance with applicable law. 

25 (c) TRIBAL RIGHTS.—Nothing in this Act affects— 


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1 (1) the rights of any Indian tribe on Indian 

2 land; 

3 (2) any individually held trust land or Indian 

4 allotment; or 

5 (3) any treaty rights providing for nonexclusive 

6 access to or in the national monument by members 

7 of Indian tribes for traditional and cultural pur8 poses. 

9 SEC. 6. OFF-ROAD USE OF MOTORIZED AND MECHANIZED 

10 VEHICLES. 

11 Except as needed for administrative purposes or to 

12 respond to an emergency, the use of motorized and mecha13 nized vehicles in the national monument is limited to roads 

14 and trails designated for their use. 

15 SEC. 7. NO MILITARY AIRSPACE RESTRICTIONS. 

16 Establishment of the national monument shall not be 

17 construed to impact or impose any altitude, flight, or other 

18 airspace restrictions on current or future military oper19 ations or missions. Should the Armed Forces require addi20 tional or modified airspace after the date of the enactment 

21 of this Act, Congress does not intend for the establishment 

22 of the national monument to impede the Secretary of De23 fense from petitioning the Federal Aviation Administra24 tion to change or expand restricted military airspace. 


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1 SEC. 8. RESEARCH, EDUCATION, AND VISITOR SERVICES. 

2 (a) EDUCATION AND INTERPRETATION.—The Sec3 retary of the Interior shall provide such minimal facilities 

4 within the national monument for education and interpre5 tation, such as signage or other interpretive kiosks, as the 

6 Secretary considers necessary for visitor enjoyment of the 

7 national monument, while ensuring the protection of 

8 monument resources. 

9 (b) VISITOR CENTER.—Any visitor center for the na10 tional monument shall be sited in a community in the vi11 cinity of the national monument, rather than within the 

12 boundaries of the national monument. 

13 (c) RESEARCH AUTHORIZED.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Inte15 rior shall allow scientific research to be conducted in 

16 the national monument, including research to iden17 tify, protect, and preserve the historic and cultural 

18 resources of the monument. 

19 (2) CLIMATE CHANGE RESEARCH.—The Sec20 retary may conduct, or authorize other persons to 

21 conduct, research regarding the effects of climate 

22 change on monument resources to develop manage23 ment techniques to boost resiliency and facilitate ad24 aptation to human-caused climate change. 


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1 SEC. 9. FISH AND WILDLIFE. 

2 Nothing in this Act affects the jurisdiction of the 

3 State of Arizona with respect to the management of fish 

4 and wildlife on public lands in the State. 

5 SEC. 10. LAND ACQUISITION. 

6 (a) ACQUISITION AUTHORITY.—The Secretary of the 

7 Interior may acquire land and any interest in land, State 

8 and private, within or adjacent to the boundaries of the 

9 national monument— 

10 (1) by purchase from willing sellers with do11 nated or appropriated funds; 

12 (2) by donation; or 

13 (3) by exchange. 

14 (b) TREATMENT OF ACQUIRED LAND.—Land and in15 terests in land acquired under the authority of subsection 

16 (a) shall automatically become part of the national monu17 ment. 

18 SEC. 11. WITHDRAWAL. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to valid existing rights, 

20 all Federal land within the national monument (including 

21 any land or interest in land acquired after the date of en22 actment of this Act) is withdrawn from— 

23 (1) entry, appropriation, or disposal under the 

24 public land laws; 

25 (2) location, entry, and patent under the mining 

26 laws; and 


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1 (3) operation of the mineral leasing, mineral 

2 materials, and geothermal leasing laws. 

3 (b) RENEWABLE ENERGY PROJECTS.—Subject to 

4 valid and existing rights, renewable energy and trans5 mission development is prohibited in the national monu6 ment. 

7 SEC. 12. EFFECT ON EXISTING FACILITIES AND RIGHTS-OF8 WAY. 

9 Nothing in this Act terminates or limits any valid 

10 right-of-way within the Monument in existence on the date 

11 of the enactment of this Act (including the customary op12 eration, maintenance, repair, relocation within an existing 

13 right-of-way, or replacement of energy transport facilities 

14 within an existing right-of-way), or other authorized right15 of-way. 

16 SEC. 13. WATER RIGHTS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this shall affect, alter, 

18 or diminish the water rights, or claims or entitlements to 

19 water of the United States, the State of Arizona, or any 

20 irrigation or conservation district, canal company, entity 

21 or individual to the Gila River or any tributary thereto. 

22 (b) RESERVED WATER RIGHTS.—The designation of 

23 the national monument does not imply or create a Federal 

24 reserved water right to the appropriable waters of the Gila 

25 River or any tributary thereto. 


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1 SEC. 14. ADVISORY COUNCIL. 

2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days after 

3 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall es4 tablish an advisory council, to be known as the ‘‘Great 

5 Bend of the Gila National Monument Advisory Council’’. 

6 (b) DUTIES.— 

7 (1) The Council shall advise the Secretary with 

8 respect to the preparation and implementation of the 

9 management plan. 

10 (2) The Council shall advise, or create a sub11 committee to advise, on salt cedar/tamarisk removal 

12 within the monument. 

13 (c) APPLICABLE LAW.—The Council shall be subject 

14 to— 

15 (1) the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 

16 U.S.C. App.); and 

17 (2) the Federal Land Policy and Management 

18 Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.). 

19 (d) MEMBERS.—The Council shall include members 

20 to be appointed by the Secretary. To the extent prac21 ticable, the Secretary shall appoint not more than 13 

22 members from Category One and an additional 13 mem23 bers, in the aggregate, from Category Two, Category 

24 Three, and Category Four, who will represent the pur25 poses for which the national monument was established 

26 and stakeholders who may have an interest in the planning 


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1 and management of the national monument. The cat2 egories referred to in this subsection are the following: 

3 (1) CATEGORY ONE.—Representatives of affili4 ated tribes. 

5 (2) CATEGORY TWO.—Public land ranchers, ir6 rigation districts, and representatives of organiza7 tions associated with agriculture, energy and mineral 

8 development, transportation or rights-of-way, off9 highway vehicle use, and commercial recreation. 

10 (3) CATEGORY THREE.—Representatives of na11 tionally or regionally recognized environmental orga12 nizations, archaeological and historical organiza13 tions, and dispersed recreation activities. 

14 (4) CATEGORY FOUR.— 

15 (A) Representatives of State, county, or 

16 local elected office. 

17 (B) Representatives and employees of a 

18 State agency responsible for the management of 

19 natural resources. 

20 (C) Representatives and employees of aca21 demic institutions who are involved in natural 

22 sciences. 

23 (D) The public-at-large. 

24 (e) REPRESENTATION.—The Secretary shall ensure 

25 that the membership of the Council is fairly balanced in 


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1 terms of the points of view represented and the functions 

2 to be performed by the Council. 

3 (f) DURATION.—The Council shall terminate on the 

4 date that is one year from the date on which the manage5 ment plan is adopted by the Secretary. 

Æ 


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