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104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 3969

To amend the Colorado Wilderness Act of 1993 to extend the interim protection of the Spanish Peaks planning area in the San Isabel National

Forest, Colorado.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

AUGUST 2, 1996

Mr. SKAGGS (for himself, Mr. MCINNIS, and Mrs. SCHROEDER) introduced the

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Resources

A BILL

To amend the Colorado Wilderness Act of 1993 to extend

the interim protection of the Spanish Peaks planning

area in the San Isabel National Forest, Colorado.

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

3 SECTION 1. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

4 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following:

5 (1) The two volcanic peaks in Huerfano and

6 Las Animas Counties, Colorado, known as the Span7 ish Peaks or Wayatoya, are easterly extensions of

8 the Rocky Mountains and served as landmarks to

9 some of Colorado’s earliest settlers.
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1 (2) The portion of the San Isabel National For2 est encompassing the Spanish Peaks is within an

3 area designated on the National Register of Natural

4 Landmarks and has outstanding scenic, geological,

5 and other values.

6 (3) Public Law 96–560 provided for the man7 agement of the Spanish Peaks as a wilderness study

8 area so as to maintain the options of Congress re9 garding possible designation of these lands as com10 ponents of the National Wilderness Preservation

11 System.

12 (4) Section 10 of the Colorado Wilderness Act

13 of 1993 (Public Law 103–77) required continued

14 management of these lands, known as the Spanish

15 Peaks planning area, as a wilderness study area dur16 ing a three-year period extending through August

17 13, 1996, and required the submission to Congress

18 of a report concerning the status of private property

19 holdings within the planning area.

20 (5) Since 1993, the United States has acquired,

21 with the consent of their owners, many of the lands

22 within the Spanish Peaks planning area that were in

23 private ownership in 1993.

24 (6) Acquisition by the United States of some or

25 all of the rest of such non-Federal lands would be
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1 desirable in order to facilitate management of lands

2 within the Spanish Peaks planning area as wilder3 ness, but neither such acquisitions nor enactment of

4 legislation to designate some or all of the planning

5 area as wilderness is likely to be completed prior to

6 the end of the period during which the planning area

7 is required to be managed as a wilderness study

8 area.

9 (7) Therefore, continued management of the

10 Spanish Peaks planning area as a wilderness study

11 area is desirable in order to retain the options of

12 Congress concerning possible designation of lands

13 within the planning area as wilderness.

14 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to require

15 continued management of the Spanish Peaks planning

16 area as a wilderness study area until Congress can deter17 mine which if any of the lands within the planning area

18 are to be designated as wilderness.

19 SEC. 2. WILDERNESS STUDY EXTENSION, SPANISH PEAKS

20 PLANNING AREA, COLORADO.

21 Section 10(d) of the Colorado Wilderness Act of 1993

22 (Public Law 103–77; 107 Stat. 765) is amended by strik23 ing ‘‘for a period of three years from the date of enact-
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1 ment of this Act,’’ and inserting ‘‘until Congress deter2 mines otherwise,’’.

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