IB 
Union Calendar No. 840 
115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 3990 
[Report No. 115–1081] 
To amend title 54, United States Code, to reform the Antiquities Act of 
1906, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 6, 2017 
Mr. BISHOP of Utah (for himself, Mr. LAMBORN, Mr. MCCLINTOCK, Mr. 
GOSAR, Mr. LAMALFA, and Mr. WESTERMAN) introduced the following 
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 
DECEMBER 19, 2018 
Additional sponsors: Mr. YOUNG of Alaska, Mr. STEWART, Mr. CURTIS, and 
Mr. WILLIAMS 
DECEMBER 19, 2018 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on October 6, 2017] 
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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Monument 
Creation and Protection Act’’ or the ‘‘National Monument 
CAP Act’’. 
SEC. 2. LIMITATION ON SIZE; CLARIFICATION OF ELIGIBLE 
OBJECTS. 
Section 320301 of title 54, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘historic land-
marks, historic and prehistoric structures, and other 
objects of historic or scientific interest’’ and inserting 
‘‘object or objects of antiquity’’; 
(2) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘confined to the 
smallest area compatible with the proper care and 
management of the objects to be protected’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘in accordance with the limitations outlined in 
subsections (e), (f), (g), and (h)’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(e) LIMITATION
ON
SIZE
OF
NATIONAL
MONU-
MENTS.—Except as provided by subsections (f), (g), and (h), 
after the date of the enactment of this subsection, land may 
not be declared under this section in a configuration that 
would create a national monument— 
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‘‘(1) that is more than 640 acres; and 
‘‘(2) whose exterior boundary is less than 50 
miles from the closest exterior boundary of another 
national monument declared under this section. 
‘‘(f) EXCEPTION
FOR MONUMENTS
OF LESS THAN 
5,000 ACRES.—Subsection (e) shall not apply to the des-
ignation of a national monument under this section if the 
national monument so designated— 
‘‘(1) would be less than 5,000 acres; 
‘‘(2) would have all exterior boundaries 50 miles 
or more from the closest exterior boundary of another 
national monument declared under this section; and 
‘‘(3) has been reviewed under the National Envi-
ronmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) 
by the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of 
Agriculture, as appropriate. 
‘‘(g) EXCEPTION FOR MONUMENTS OF 5,000 ACRES 
AND UP TO 10,000 ACRES.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—Subsection (e) shall not 
apply to the designation of a national monument 
under this section if the national monument so des-
ignated— 
‘‘(A) would be at least 5,000 acres but not 
more than 10,000 acres; and 
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‘‘(B) would have all exterior boundaries 50 
miles or more from the closest exterior boundary 
of another national monument declaration under 
this section. 
‘‘(2) OTHER REQUIREMENT.—A monument de-
scribed in this subsection shall be subject to the prepa-
ration of an environmental assessment or environ-
mental impact statement as part of a review under 
the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 
U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). The choice of environmental re-
view document shall be within the discretion of the 
Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Agri-
culture, as appropriate. 
‘‘(h) EXCEPTION FOR MONUMENTS 10,000 ACRES AND 
UP TO 85,000 ACRES.—Subsection (e) shall not apply to 
the designation of a national monument under this section 
if the national monument so designated— 
‘‘(1) would be at least 10,000 acres but not more 
than 85,000 acres; 
‘‘(2) would have all exterior boundaries 50 miles 
or more from the closest exterior boundary of another 
national monument declaration under this section; 
and 
‘‘(3) has been approved by the elected governing 
body of each county (or county equivalent), the legis-
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lature of each State, and the Governor of each State 
within whose boundaries the national monument will 
be located (and the Governor of each such State has 
transmitted a copy of each such approval to the 
President). 
‘‘(i) EXCEPTION FOR EMERGENCY DESIGNATION.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—Subsection (e) shall not 
apply to the designation under this section of a na-
tional monument of any acreage amount if designa-
tion is made to prevent imminent and irreparable 
harm to the object or objects of antiquity to be pro-
tected by the designation. 
‘‘(2) ONE YEAR LIMITATION.—A national monu-
ment designation under this subsection shall termi-
nate on the date that is one calendar year after the 
date of the designation. 
‘‘(3) ONE TIME DESIGNATION.—Land designated 
as a national monument under this subsection— 
‘‘(A) may only be so designated one time; 
and 
‘‘(B) may not also be permanently des-
ignated as a national monument under this sec-
tion. 
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‘‘(4) RIGHTS AND USES.—Land designated as a 
national monument under this subsection shall re-
main subject to— 
‘‘(A) valid existing rights; and 
‘‘(B) uses allowed on the day before such 
designation under an applicable Resource Man-
agement Plan or Forest Plan. 
‘‘(j) PRESIDENTIAL AUTHORITY TO REDUCE SIZE OF 
DECLARED MONUMENTS.—The President may— 
‘‘(1) reduce the size of any national monument 
declared under this section by 85,000 acres or less; or 
‘‘(2) reduce the size of any national monument 
declared under this section by more than 85,000 acres 
only if the reduction— 
‘‘(A) has been approved by the elected gov-
erning body of each county (or county equiva-
lent), the legislature of each State, and the Gov-
ernor of each State within whose boundaries the 
national monument will be located (and the Gov-
ernor of each such State has transmitted a copy 
of each such approval to the President); and 
‘‘(B) has been reviewed under the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 
4321 et seq.) by the Secretary of the Interior or 
the Secretary of Agriculture, as appropriate. 
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‘‘(k) NON-FEDERALLY OWNED PROPERTY.—After the 
date of the enactment of this subsection, land may not be 
declared as a national monument under this section in a 
configuration that would place non-federally owned prop-
erty within the exterior boundaries of the national monu-
ment without the express written consent of the owners of 
that non-federally owned property. 
‘‘(l) EFFECT OF DECLARATION ON FEDERAL FUNDS.— 
No declaration under this section shall be construed to in-
crease the amount of Federal funds that are authorized to 
be appropriated for any fiscal year. 
‘‘(m) WATER RIGHTS ASSOCIATED WITH A DECLARA-
TION.—Water rights associated with a declaration under 
this section— 
‘‘(1) may not be reserved expressly or by impli-
cation by a declaration under this section; and 
‘‘(2) may be acquired for a declaration under 
this section only in accordance with the laws of the 
State in which the water rights are based. 
‘‘(n) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this section: 
‘‘(1) DECLARATION; DECLARED.—The terms ‘dec-
laration’ and ‘declared’ shall only include the cre-
ation or expansion of a national monument under 
this section. 
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‘‘(2) LAND.—The term ‘land’ shall not include 
submerged land or water. 
‘‘(3) OBJECT OR OBJECTS OF ANTIQUITY.— 
‘‘(A) The term ‘object or objects of antiquity’ 
means— 
‘‘(i) relics; 
‘‘(ii) artifacts; 
‘‘(iii) human or animal skeletal re-
mains; 
‘‘(iv) fossils (other than fossil fuels); 
and 
‘‘(v) certain buildings constructed be-
fore the date of the enactment of this sub-
section. 
‘‘(B) The term ‘object or objects of antiq-
uity’ does not include— 
‘‘(i) natural geographic features; and 
‘‘(ii) objects not made by humans, ex-
cept fossils (other than fossil fuels) or 
human or animal skeletal remains.’’. 
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Union Calendar No. 840 
115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 3990 
[Report No. 115–1081] 
A BILL 
To amend title 54, United States Code, to reform 
the Antiquities Act of 1906, and for other pur-
poses. 
DECEMBER 19, 2018 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Com-
mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 
and ordered to be printed 
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