I
107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 2488
To designate certain lands in the Pilot Range in the State of Utah as
wilderness, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JULY 12, 2001
Mr. HANSEN introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Resources
A BILL
To designate certain lands in the Pilot Range in the State
of Utah as wilderness, 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. DESIGNATION OF WILDERNESS.
(a) DESIGNATION.—In furtherance of the purposes of
the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.), certain Fed-
eral lands in Box Elder County, Utah, which comprise ap-
proximately 37,066 acres, as generally depicted on a map
entitled ‘‘Pilot Range Wilderness’’ and dated ll, are
hereby designated as wilderness and, therefore, as compo-
nents of the National Wilderness Preservation System,
and shall be known as the Pilot Range Wilderness.
(b) MAP AND DESCRIPTION.—As soon as practicable
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary
of the Interior (in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’)
shall file a map and legal description of the Pilot Range
Wilderness with the Committee on Resources of the House
of Representatives and the Committee on Energy and
Natural Resources of the Senate. Such map and descrip-
tion shall have the same force and effect as if included
in this Act, except that the Secretary may correct clerical
and typographical errors in such map and legal descrip-
tion. The map and legal description shall be on file and
available for public inspection in the office of the Director
of the Bureau of Land Management, and the office of the
State Director of the Bureau of Land Management in the
State of Utah, Department of the Interior.
SEC. 2. ADMINISTRATION OF PILOT RANGE WILDERNESS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to valid existing rights
and this Act, the Pilot Range Wilderness shall be adminis-
tered by the Secretary in accordance with the provisions
of the Wilderness Act, except that any reference in such
provisions to the effective date of the Wilderness Act (or
any similar reference) shall be deemed to be a reference
to the effective date of this Act.
(b) INCORPORATION OF ACQUIRED LANDS AND IN-
TERESTS.—Any privately owned lands or interest in lands
within or adjacent to the boundaries of the Pilot Range
Wilderness that are acquired by the United States after
the date of the enactment of this Act shall be added to
and administered as part of the Pilot Range Wilderness.
(c) STATE FISH AND WILDLIFE.—As provided in sec-
tion 4(d)(7) of the Wilderness Act, nothing in this Act
shall be construed as affecting the jurisdiction or respon-
sibilities of the State of Utah with respect to wildlife and
fish on the public lands located in that State.
(d) ACQUISITION OF LANDS AND INTERESTS.—The
Secretary may offer to acquire from nongovernmental en-
tities lands and interest in lands located within or adjacent
to the Pilot Range Wilderness. Such lands may be ac-
quired at fair market value under this subsection by ex-
change, donation, or purchase from willing sellers.
(e) WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT.—In furtherance of the
purposes and principles of the Wilderness Act, manage-
ment activities to maintain or restore fish and wildlife pop-
ulations and the habitats to support such populations may
be carried out within the Pilot Range Wilderness where
consistent with relevant wilderness management plans, in
accordance with appropriate policies and guidelines such
as those set forth in appendix B of the Report of the Com-
mittee on Interior and Insular Affairs to accompany H.R.
2570 of the One Hundred First Congress (H. Rept. 101–
405).
(f) NATIONAL DEFENSE LANDS.—
(1) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the fol-
lowing:
(A) The testing and development of mili-
tary weapons systems and the training of mili-
tary forces are critical to ensuring the national
security of the United States.
(B) The Utah Test and Training Range
and Dugway Proving Ground are unique and ir-
replaceable national assets at the core of the
Department of Defense’s test and training mis-
sion.
(C) The Pilot Range Wilderness is located
near lands withdrawn for military use and be-
neath special use airspace critical to the sup-
port of military test and training missions on
the Utah Test and Training Range and
Dugway Proving Ground.
(D) Continued unrestricted access to the
special use airspace and lands which comprise
the Utah Test and Training Range and
Dugway Proving Ground is a national security
priority and is not incompatible with the protec-
tion and proper management of the natural, en-
vironmental, cultural, and other resources of
the Federal lands designated as wilderness by
this Act.
(2) OVERFLIGHTS.—(A) Nothing in this Act,
the Wilderness Act, or other land management laws
generally applicable to the Pilot Range Wilderness,
shall restrict or preclude low-level overflights, low-
level military overflights and operations of military
aircraft, helicopters, unmanned aerial military over-
flights or military overflights and operations that
can be seen or heard within those areas. This prohi-
bition shall preclude any restriction to altitude or
airspeed, noise level, supersonic flight, route of
flight, time of flight, seasonal usage, or numbers of
flights of any military aircraft, helicopters, un-
manned aerial vehicles, missiles, aerospace vehicles,
and other military weapons systems over the Pilot
Range Wilderness. As used in this paragraph, the
term ‘‘low-level’’ includes any flight down to and in-
cluding 10 feet above ground level.
(B) Nothing in this Act, the Wilderness Act, or
other land management laws generally applicable to
the Pilot Range Wilderness, shall restrict or pre-
clude the designation of new units of special use air-
space, the expansion of existing units of special use
airspace, or the use or establishment of military
training routes over the Pilot Range Wilderness.
(3) COMMUNICATIONS
AND
TRACKING
SYS-
TEMS.—Nothing in this Act, the Wilderness Act, or
other land management laws generally applicable to
the Pilot Range Wilderness, shall be construed to re-
quire the removal of existing communications, in-
strumentation, or electronic tracking systems from
the Pilot Range Wilderness, or to prevent any re-
quired maintenance of such systems, or to prevent
the installation of new communication, instrumenta-
tion, or other equipment necessary for effective test-
ing and training to meet military requirements so
long as the installation and maintenance of such sys-
tems do not require construction of any permanent
roads.
(4) EMERGENCY
ACCESS
AND
RESPONSE.—
Nothing in this Act, the Wilderness Act, or other
land management laws generally applicable to the
Pilot Range Wilderness, shall restrict or preclude
timely access to any area necessary to respond to
emergency situations. Immediate access, including
access for emergency and rescue vehicles and equip-
ment, shall not be restricted if human life or health
may be in jeopardy. The Secretary of the Air Force
and the Secretary shall enter into a formal memo-
randum of understanding within 120 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act formalizing proce-
dures for access to those portions of the Pilot Range
Wilderness that are located beneath the Utah Test
and Training Range airspace which may be nec-
essary to respond to emergency situations, to rescue
downed aircrew, to investigate accident locations, to
recover military aircraft or other weapons systems,
and to restore accident locations. Military operations
on the Dugway Proving Ground and within the Utah
Test and Training Range shall not be limited or re-
stricted in any way pending completion of the memo-
randum of understanding.
(5) CONTROL OR RESTRICTION OF PUBLIC AC-
CESS.—When required by national security or public
safety, public access to the areas of the Pilot Range
Wilderness which are beneath the airspace des-
ignated as special use airspace may be controlled, re-
stricted, or prohibited entirely. Such controls, re-
strictions, or prohibitions shall remain in force for
the minimum duration necessary. The Secretary of
the Air Force shall provide notice of such controls,
restrictions, or prohibitions to the Department of the
Interior and shall enter into a formal memorandum
of understanding with the Secretary within 120 days
after the date of the enactment of this Act pre-
scribing procedures for implementing such controls,
restrictions, or prohibitions. Military operations on
the Dugway Proving Ground and within the Utah
Test and Training Range shall not be limited or re-
stricted in any way pending completion of the memo-
randum of understanding.
(g) LIVESTOCK.—Within the Pilot Range Wilderness,
the grazing of livestock, where established prior to the
date of the enactment of this Act, shall be permitted to
continue subject to such reasonable regulations, policies,
and practices as the Secretary deems necessary, as long
as such regulations, policies, and practices fully conform
with and implement the intent of Congress regarding graz-
ing in such areas as such intent is expressed in the Wilder-
ness Act, section 101(f) of Public Law 101–628, and
House Report 101–405, Appendix A.
(h) WATER RIGHTS.—Congress finds that there are
unique circumstances with respect to the water-related re-
sources within the Pilot Range Wilderness. The Congress
recognizes that there is little or no water or water-related
resources in those areas which are designated as wilder-
ness by this Act. Therefore, nothing in this Act, nor any
action taken pursuant thereto, shall constitute either an
expressed or implied reservation of water. Nothing in this
Act shall affect any valid existing water right, including
any Federal reserved water right, in effect on the date
of enactment of this Act or any water right hereinafter
approved pursuant to the laws of the State of Utah, and
nothing in this section shall constitute a precedent for any
other wilderness designation legislation Congress may
enact after the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 3. WILDERNESS RELEASE.
The Congress hereby finds and directs that Federal
lands within the Pilot Range in Utah not designated as
wilderness by this Act have been adequately studied for
wilderness designation pursuant to section 603(c) of the
Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, are
nonsuitable for wilderness designation, and are no longer
subject to the requirement of section 603(c) of the Federal
Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 pertaining to
the management of wilderness study areas in a manner
that does not impair the suitability of such areas for pres-
ervation as wilderness. The Secretary shall not continue
the plan amendment process initiated pursuant to section
202 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of
1976 and identified by Federal Register notice dated
March 18, 1999, page 13439 within the Pilot Range in
Box Elder County, Utah.
SEC. 4. ADJACENT MANAGEMENT.
The Congress does not intend for the designation of
the Pilot Range Wilderness to lead to the creation of pro-
tective perimeters or buffer zones around any such wilder-
ness. The fact that nonwilderness activities or uses can
be seen or heard within the Pilot Range Wilderness shall
not, of itself, preclude such activities or uses up to the
boundary of that wilderness.
SEC. 5. WITHDRAWAL.
Subject to valid existing rights, the Federal lands
within the Pilot Range Wilderness are hereby withdrawn
from all forms of entry, appropriation, or disposal under
the public land laws; and from location, entry, and patent
under the United States mining laws; and from disposition
under all laws pertaining to mineral and geothermal leas-
ing, and mineral materials, and all amendments thereto.
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