I 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1276 
To reaffirm the policy of the United States with respect to management 
authority over public land, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 14, 2019 
Mr. LOWENTHAL (for himself, Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. PERLMUTTER, Mr. ROUDA, 
Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI, Mr. QUIGLEY, Mr. GOMEZ, Ms. JOHNSON of 
Texas, Mr. CISNEROS, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. MCNERNEY, Ms. 
HAALAND, and Ms. JUDY CHU of California) introduced the following 
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in 
addition to the Committee on Agriculture, for a period to be subsequently 
determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provi-
sions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To reaffirm the policy of the United States with respect 
to management authority over public land, 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 ‘‘America’s Public Land 
Act of 2019’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds that— 
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(1) public land in the United States is— 
(A) iconic, including national parks, wild-
life refuges, and national forests; and 
(B) irreplaceable, including wildlife habi-
tat, archaeological resources, and other national 
treasures; 
(2) public land— 
(A) provides unrivaled recreational oppor-
tunities; and 
(B) is enjoyed by hundreds of millions of 
people in the United States each year; 
(3) public land— 
(A) strengthens the United States econ-
omy; and 
(B) powers a recreation industry that sup-
ports— 
(i) 7,600,000 jobs; and 
(ii) nearly $900,000,000,000 in direct 
spending annually; 
(4) United States public land provides numer-
ous other benefits to the people of the United States, 
including— 
(A) clean air and water; 
(B) public health gains; and 
(C) access to the outdoors; 
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(5) retaining United States public land is in the 
public interest; and 
(6) except as expressly authorized by Congress, 
United States public land should be retained under 
the ownership of the United States. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) 
MANAGEMENT
AUTHORITY.—The 
term 
‘‘management authority’’ means— 
(A) the ability to determine— 
(i) which uses to permit on public 
land, including uses relating to— 
(I) timber; 
(II) grazing; 
(III) renewable and nonrenewable 
energy and mineral resources; 
(IV) recreation; and 
(V) vegetation management; or 
(ii) where and how those uses of pub-
lic land take place; and 
(B) the ability to regulate, permit, or au-
thorize use of public land. 
(2) PUBLIC LAND.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘public land’’ 
means any land or interest in land— 
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(i) owned by the United States; and 
(ii) administered by— 
(I) the Secretary of the Interior, 
acting through— 
(aa) the Director of the Bu-
reau of Land Management; 
(bb) the Director of the Na-
tional Park Service; or 
(cc) the Director of the 
United States Fish and Wildlife 
Service; or 
(II) the Secretary of Agriculture, 
acting through the Chief of the Forest 
Service. 
(B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘public land’’ 
does not include land held in trust for the ben-
efit of an Indian Tribe. 
(3) SECRETARY CONCERNED.—The term ‘‘Sec-
retary concerned’’ means— 
(A) the Secretary of the Interior, with re-
spect to land or an interest in land under the 
jurisdiction of the Department of the Interior; 
and 
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