I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3270 
To establish a procedure for resolving claims to certain rights-of-way, and 
for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 17, 2017 
Mr. COOK (for himself and Mr. O’HALLERAN) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 
A BILL 
To establish a procedure for resolving claims to certain 
rights-of-way, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Historic Routes Preservation Act’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Purpose. 
Sec. 3. Definitions. 
Sec. 4. Filing of claim. 
Sec. 5. Evidence and final decision. 
Sec. 6. Judicial review. 
Sec. 7. Applicable law and time extensions. 
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Sec. 8. Implementation required. 
Sec. 9. Effect; applicability. 
Sec. 10. Repeal of restrictions on regulations. 
SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 
The purpose of this Act is to achieve judicial and ad-
ministrative efficiency for, and to reduce the costs typi-
cally associated with, resolving right-of-way claims under 
R.S. 2477 by— 
(1) reducing the burden on Federal courts by 
establishing administrative procedures and evi-
dentiary standards for the processing of R.S. 2477 
right-of-way claims; and 
(2) establishing— 
(A) a deadline for filing R.S. 2477 right- 
of-way claims; 
(B) mandatory procedures for considering 
and acting on the R.S. 2477 right-of-way 
claims; and 
(C) uniform legal and evidentiary stand-
ards of proof of public acceptance of R.S. 2477 
right-of-way claims. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) ABANDON OR ABANDONMENT.—The terms 
‘‘abandon’’ and ‘‘abandonment’’ mean normal action 
by the governing body of a claimant taken at a pub-
lic meeting pursuant to notice that declares all right, 
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title, and claim to a R.S. 2477 right-of-way is relin-
quished. 
(2) ACCEPTANCE
OR
ACCEPTED.—The terms 
‘‘acceptance’’ and ‘‘accepted’’ mean— 
(A) a positive or affirmative action by a 
State or county governmental authority on or 
before October 21, 1976, including— 
(i) a formal resolution or declaration 
of ownership; or 
(ii) the inclusion of a highway in an 
official road map; 
(B) the construction, improvement, or 
maintenance of a highway by a State or county 
governmental authority on or before October 
21, 1976; or 
(C) the continuous use of a highway by the 
public for a period of not fewer than 5 consecu-
tive years ending on a date that is on or before 
October 21, 1976. 
(3) CLAIM.—The term ‘‘claim’’ means the as-
sertion of public acceptance of a R.S. 2477 right-of- 
way filed under section 4(a)(1). 
(4) CLAIMANT.—The term ‘‘claimant’’ means 
any State, county, political subdivision or agency of 
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a State, company, or other person asserting the pub-
lic acceptance of a right-of-way under R.S. 2477. 
(5) CONSTRUCTION.—The term ‘‘construction’’ 
means the physical activity reasonably necessary, ad-
visable, or desirable to allow continuous public use 
over a highway according to the intended mode of 
travel or transportation, which may be established 
by the use of any tools or equipment, or other 
means, including mere usage. 
(6) CONTINUOUS PUBLIC USE.—The term ‘‘con-
tinuous public use’’ means the uninterrupted use of 
a highway by the public for passage as often as gen-
erally regarded by the public to be convenient or 
necessary depending on the character of the land 
and the nature of the use. 
(7) DISCLAIMER AND RELINQUISHMENT.—The 
term ‘‘disclaimer and relinquishment’’ means any 
type of deed or equivalent document in a form suit-
able for recordation that is approved and issued by 
the Secretary disclaiming and relinquishing the in-
terest of the Federal Government in a R.S. 2477 
right-of-way, including a deed or equivalent docu-
ment issued under section 315 of the Federal Land 
Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 
1745). 
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(8) EVIDENCE.—The term ‘‘evidence’’ means 
any testimony, object, or document described in sec-
tion 5 that would be reliable, authentic, probative, 
and persuasive in Federal district court under the 
Federal Rules of Evidence that are in effect on the 
date of the enactment of this Act. 
(9) HIGHWAY.—The term ‘‘highway’’ means 
any road, way, or other land surface route of travel 
that the public has the right of use for passage, 
whether by carriage, animal, foot, or non-motorized 
or motorized vehicle. 
(10) IMPROVEMENT.—The term ‘‘improvement’’ 
means— 
(A) the widening of a highway; 
(B) the horizontal or vertical realignment 
of a highway; 
(C) the installation (as distinguished from 
cleaning, repair, or replacement in kind) of a 
bridge, culvert, or other drainage structure or 
conduit; or 
(D) any significant change in the surface 
composition of a highway. 
(11) MAINTENANCE.—The term ‘‘maintenance’’ 
means the preservation of an existing highway, in-
cluding— 
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(A) the physical upkeep of the highway; 
(B) the repair or replacement of wear or 
damage to the highway, including bridges, cul-
verts, or other drainage structures or conduits, 
from natural or other causes; 
(C) the restoration of the shape of the 
highway; and 
(D) the gradation of the highway or other 
measures to ensure that the shape of the high-
way permits drainage. 
(12) PUBLIC LAND.—The term ‘‘public land’’ 
means land— 
(A) that is owned, controlled by, or subject 
to the jurisdiction of the Federal Government 
for the benefit of the public; and 
(B) that was not reserved on the date on 
which a R.S. 2477 right-of-way grant was ac-
cepted. 
(13) PUBLIC OR PUBLIC USER.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The terms ‘‘public’’ or 
‘‘public user’’ mean all natural persons, includ-
ing 
Federal 
lessees, 
permitees, 
licensees, 
invitees, and any other natural person that 
holds an authorization or is otherwise allowed 
to enter or use public land. 
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