I 
108TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4865 
To amend the National Trails System Act to authorize an additional category 
of national trail known as a national discovery trail, to provide special 
requirements for the establishment and administration of national dis-
covery trails, and to designate the cross country American Discovery 
Trail as the first national discovery trail. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 20, 2004 
Mr. BEREUTER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Resources 
A BILL 
To amend the National Trails System Act to authorize an 
additional category of national trail known as a national 
discovery trail, to provide special requirements for the 
establishment and administration of national discovery 
trails, and to designate the cross country American Dis-
covery Trail as the first national discovery trail. 
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 Discovery 
Trails Act’’.
SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION OF NATIONAL DISCOVERY TRAILS 
COMPONENT OF NATIONAL TRAILS SYSTEM. 
(a) ADDITIONAL COMPONENT OF SYSTEM.—Section 
3(a) of the National Trails System Act (16 U.S.C. 
1242(a)) is amended— 
(1) by redesignating paragraph (4) as para-
graph (5); and 
(2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol-
lowing new paragraph: 
‘‘(4) National discovery trails, established as 
provided in section 5 and subject to the special re-
quirements of section 7A, which will be extended, 
continuous, interstate trails so located as to— 
‘‘(A) provide for outstanding outdoor 
recreation and travel and the conservation and 
enjoyment of significant natural, cultural, and 
historic resources associated with the trail; and 
‘‘(B) connect representative examples of 
America’s trails and metropolitan, urban, rural, 
and backcountry regions of the Nation.’’. 
(b) SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS FOR NATIONAL DIS-
COVERY TRAILS.—The National Trails System Act is 
amended by inserting after section 7 (16 U.S.C. 1246) 
the following new section:
‘‘SEC. 7A. SPECIAL ADMINISTRATION AND DEVELOPMENT 
REQUIREMENTS APPLICABLE TO NATIONAL 
DISCOVERY TRAILS. 
‘‘(a) DESIGNATION AUTHORITY.—A national dis-
covery trail may be designated on Federal lands and, with 
the consent of the owner thereof, on non-Federal lands. 
The appropriate Secretary shall obtain the consent of the 
owner of non-Federal lands through the use of a written 
agreement, which shall include such terms and conditions 
as the parties to the agreement consider advisable, and 
may include provisions regarding the discontinuation of 
the trail designation on the lands covered by the agree-
ment. 
‘‘(b) NOTICE TO LANDOWNERS.—As part of a feasi-
bility study or environmental assessment concerning a pro-
posed national discovery trail designation, the appropriate 
Secretary conducting the study or assessment shall pro-
vide notification to owners of nonpublic lands where the 
proposed national discovery trail may cross on or abut 
nonpublic lands. 
‘‘(c) PROTECTION OF USE OF ADJACENT LANDS.— 
The Congress does not intend for the establishment of a 
national discovery trail to lead to the creation of protective 
perimeters or buffer zones adjacent to the trail. The fact 
that there may be activities or uses on lands adjacent to 
the trail that would not be permitted on the trail shall