109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 585
AN ACT 
To require Federal land managers to support, and to commu-
nicate, coordinate, and cooperate with, designated gate-
way communities, to improve the ability of gateway com-
munities to participate in Federal land management 
planning conducted by the Forest Service and agencies 
of the Department of the Interior, and to respond to 
the impacts of the public use of the Federal lands admin-
istered by these agencies, and for other purposes.
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 ‘‘Gateway Communities 
Cooperation Act’’. 
SEC. 2. IMPROVED RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FEDERAL 
LAND MANAGERS AND GATEWAY COMMU-
NITIES 
TO 
SUPPORT 
COMPATIBLE 
LAND 
MANAGEMENT OF BOTH FEDERAL AND ADJA-
CENT LANDS. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
(1) Many communities that abut or are near 
Federal lands, including units of the National Park 
System, units of the National Wildlife Refuge Sys-
tem, units of the National Forest System, and lands 
administered by the Bureau of Land Management, 
are vitally impacted by the management and public 
use of these Federal lands. 
(2) Some of these communities, commonly 
known as gateway communities, fulfill an integral 
part in the mission of the Federal lands by providing 
necessary services, such as schools, roads, search 
and rescue, emergency service, medical support, 
logistical support, living quarters, and drinking 
water and sanitary systems for visitors to the Fed-
eral lands and employees of Federal land manage-
ment agencies. 
(3) Provision of these vital services by gateway 
communities is an essential ingredient for a mean-
ingful and enjoyable experience by visitors to the 
Federal lands because Federal land management 
agencies are unable to provide, or are prevented 
from providing, these services. 
(4) Many gateway communities serve as an 
entry point for persons who visit the Federal lands 
and are ideal for establishment of visitor services, in-
cluding lodging, food service, fuel, auto repairs, 
emergency services, and visitor information. 
(5) Development in some gateway communities 
may impact the management and protection of these 
Federal lands. 
(6) The planning and management decisions of 
Federal land managers can have unintended con-
sequences for gateway communities and the Federal 
lands when the decisions are not adequately commu-
nicated to, or coordinated with, the elected officials 
and residents of gateway communities. 
(7) Experts in land management planning are 
available to Federal land managers, but persons with 
technical planning skills are often not readily avail-
able to gateway communities, particularly small 
gateway communities. 
(8) Gateway communities are often affected by 
the policies and actions of several Federal land man-
agement agencies and the communities and the 
agencies would benefit from greater interagency co-
ordination of those policies and actions. 
(9) Persuading gateway communities to make 
decisions and undertake actions in their communities 
that would also be in the best interest of the Federal 
lands is most likely to occur when such decision-
making and actions are built upon a foundation of 
cooperation and coordination. 
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to re-
quire Federal land managers to communicate, coordinate, 
and cooperate with gateway communities in order to—
(1) improve the relationships among Federal 
land managers, elected officials, and residents of 
gateway communities; 
(2) enhance the facilities and services in gate-
way communities available to visitors to Federal 
lands when compatible with the management of 
these lands, including the availability of historical 
and cultural resources; and
(3) result in better local land use planning in 
gateway communities and decisions by the relevant 
Secretary. 
(c) DEFINITIONS.—For the purpose of this section, 
the following definitions apply: 
(1) GATEWAY COMMUNITY.—The term ‘‘gate-
way community’’ means a county, city, town, village, 
or other subdivision of a State, a federally recog-
nized Indian tribe, or Alaska Native village, that—
(A) is incorporated or recognized in a 
county or regional land use plan or within tribal 
jurisdictional boundaries; and 
(B) the relevant Secretary (or the head of 
the tourism office for the State) determines is 
significantly affected economically, socially, or 
environmentally by planning and management 
decisions regarding Federal lands administered 
by the relevant Secretary. 
(2) RELEVANT
SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘rel-
evant Secretary’’ means the Secretary of the Interior 
or the Secretary of Agriculture, as appropriate. 
(d) PARTICIPATION
IN FEDERAL PLANNING
AND 
LAND USE.—
(1) PARTICIPATION IN PLANNING.—At the ear-
liest possible time, the relevant Secretary shall solicit
the involvement of elected and appointed officials of 
governments of gateway communities in the develop-
ment of land use plans, programs, land use regula-
tions, land use decisions, transportation plans, gen-
eral management plans, and any other plans, deci-
sions, projects, or policies for Federal lands under 
the jurisdiction of these Federal agencies that are 
likely to have a significant impact on these gateway 
communities. 
(2) INFORMATION
PROVIDED.—To facilitate 
such involvement, the relevant Secretary shall pro-
vide the appropriate officials, at the earliest possible 
time but not later than the scoping process, with the 
following: 
(A) A summary, in nontechnical language, 
of the assumptions, purposes, goals, and objec-
tives of the plan, decision, project, or policy. 
(B) A description of any anticipated sig-
nificant impact of the plan, decision, project, or 
policy on gateway communities. 
(C) Information regarding the technical as-
sistance and training available to the gateway 
community. 
(3) TRAINING SESSIONS.—At the request of a 
gateway community, the relevant Secretary shall
offer training sessions for elected and appointed offi-
cials of gateway communities at which such officials 
can obtain a better understanding of—
(A) the agency planning processes; and 
(B) the methods by which they can partici-
pate most meaningfully in the development of 
the agency plans, decisions, and policies re-
ferred to in paragraph (1). 
(4) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—At the request of 
a gateway community, the relevant Secretary shall 
make available personnel, on a temporary basis, to 
assist gateway communities in development of mutu-
ally compatible land use or management plans. 
(5) COORDINATION
OF
LAND
USE.—The rel-
evant Secretary may enter into cooperative agree-
ments with gateway communities to coordinate the 
management of—
(A) the land use inventory, planning, and 
management activities for the Federal lands ad-
ministered by the relevant Secretary; and 
(B) the land use planning and manage-
ment activities of other Federal agencies, agen-
cies of the State in which the Federal lands are 
located, and local and tribal governments in the 
vicinity of the Federal lands.
(6) INTERAGENCY COOPERATION AND COORDI-
NATION.—To the extent practicable, when the plans 
and activities of 2 or more Federal agencies are an-
ticipated to have a significant impact on a gateway 
community, the Federal agencies involved shall con-
solidate and coordinate their plans and planning 
processes to facilitate the participation of affected 
gateway communities in the planning processes. 
(7) TREATMENT AS COOPERATING AGENCIES.—
To the earliest extent practicable, but not later than 
the scoping process, when a proposed action is deter-
mined to require an environmental impact state-
ment, the relevant Secretary shall allow any affected 
gateway communities the opportunity to be recog-
nized as cooperating agencies under the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 
et seq.).
SEC. 3. SUNSET. 
The authority of the Secretary to carry out any provi-
sions of this title shall terminate 10 years after the date 
of the enactment of this Act.
Passed the House of Representatives December 6, 
2005. 
Attest:
Clerk.
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 585
AN ACT 
To require Federal land managers to support, and 
to communicate, coordinate, and cooperate with, 
designated gateway communities, to improve the 
ability of gateway communities to participate in 
Federal land management planning conducted by 
the Forest Service and agencies of the Depart-
ment of the Interior, and to respond to the im-
pacts of the public use of the Federal lands ad-
ministered by these agencies, and for other pur-
poses.