Modernizing Access to Our Public Land Act
Bill: S.904 | Sponsor: Sen. Risch, James E. (R-ID)
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources

Summary:
Modernizing Access to our Public Land Act
This bill directs the Department of the Interior, the Forest Service, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to jointly develop and adopt interagency standards to ensure compatibility and interoperability among federal databases for the collection and dissemination of certain data.
Specifically, these requirements shall apply to outdoor recreation data related to federal lands and used to depict locations at which recreation uses are available to the public.
Each such department shall digitize and make publicly available on their websites, as applicable, geographic information system mapping data that specifies, with respect to the relevant department, all federal interests in private land, including easements, reservations, and rights-of-way
Interior, the Forest Service, and the Corps of Engineers must digitize and publish geographic information system mapping data that includes

To require the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Agriculture, 
and the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works to digitize and 
  make publicly available geographic information system mapping data 
   relating to public access to Federal land and waters for outdoor 
                  recreation, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

<DELETED>SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    This Act may be cited as the ``Modernizing Access to our 
Public Land Act'' or the ``MAPLand Act''.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 2. FINDINGS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    Congress finds that--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) recreational fishing and hunting and other 
        forms of outdoor recreation are important and traditional 
        activities in which millions of people in the United States 
        participate;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) a lack of information about publicly available 
        outdoor recreation opportunities depresses participation in 
        those traditional activities;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) it is in the public interest to provide 
        enhanced and expanded information about access to Federal land 
        for recreational opportunities;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (4) modern Global Positioning System technologies 
        can provide detailed and real-time information to the public 
        about access to, and recreation opportunities on, Federal 
        land;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (5) many of the access easement records held by 
        Federal land management agencies are held on paper files and 
        cannot be easily integrated into digital mapping systems; 
        and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (6) Federal land management agencies should--
        </DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) accelerate efforts to digitize 
                recreational access information into geospatial files; 
                and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) make that recreational access 
                information available to the public.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    In this Act:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) Federal land.--The term ``Federal land'' means 
        any land or water managed by a Federal land management 
        agency.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) Federal land management agency.--The term 
        ``Federal land management agency'' means--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) the Bureau of Reclamation;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) the National Park Service;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (C) the Bureau of Land 
                Management;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (D) the United States Fish and Wildlife 
                Service;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (E) the Forest Service; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (F) the Corps of Engineers.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) Secretaries.--The term ``Secretaries'' means--
        </DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) the Secretary of 
                Agriculture;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) the Secretary of the Interior; 
                and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (C) the Secretary of the Army, acting 
                through the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil 
                Works.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 4. INTERAGENCY DATA STANDARDIZATION.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Secretaries shall jointly develop and adopt interagency 
standards to ensure compatibility and interoperability among applicable 
Federal databases with respect to the collection and dissemination of 
outdoor recreation data relating to Federal land.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 5. DATA CONSOLIDATION, DIGITIZATION, AND 
              PUBLICATION.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) In General.--Not later than 3 years after the date of 
enactment of this Act, each of the Secretaries, to the maximum extent 
practicable, shall digitize and make publicly available on the website 
of the Department of the Interior, the Forest Service, and the Corps of 
Engineers, as applicable, geographic information system mapping data 
that includes, with respect to the Federal land administered by the 
relevant Secretary--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) all Federal interests, including easements and 
        rights-of-way, in private land--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) to which the Federal Government does 
                not have a fee title interest; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) that is used to provide recreational 
                access to the Federal land;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) status information with respect to whether 
        roads and trails on the Federal land are open or 
        closed;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) the dates on which roads and trails on the 
        Federal land are seasonally opened and closed;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (4) the types of vehicles that are allowed on each 
        segment of the roads and trails on the Federal land, including 
        the permissibility of--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) off-highway vehicles;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) motorcycles;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (C) bicycles; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (D) passenger vehicles;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (5) the boundaries of areas where hunting or 
        recreational shooting is regulated or closed on the Federal 
        land; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (6) the boundaries of any portion of a body of 
        water on the Federal land that--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) is closed to entry;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) is closed to watercraft; or</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (C) has horsepower limitations for 
                watercraft.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Updates.--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) In general.--The Secretaries shall biennially 
        update the data described in subsection (a).</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) Public evaluation of accuracy.--The 
        Secretaries shall include on each website referred to in 
        subsection (a), as applicable, a point of contact to allow 
        members of the public to confirm or dispute the accuracy of the 
        information described in that subsection.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 6. REPORTS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    Not later than October 1 of each year--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) each of the Secretary of the Interior and the 
        Secretary of Agriculture shall submit to the Committee on 
        Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the Committee on 
        Natural Resources of the House of Representatives a report on 
        the progress made by the Secretary of the Interior and the 
        Secretary of Agriculture, respectively, toward meeting the 
        requirements of section 5; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) the Secretary of the Army, acting through the 
        Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works, shall submit 
        to the Committee on Environment and Public Works of the Senate 
        and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the 
        House of Representatives a report on the progress made by the 
        Secretary of the Army, acting through the Assistant Secretary 
        of the Army for Civil Works, toward meeting the requirements of 
        section 5.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    There are authorized to be appropriated--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) to the Secretary of the Interior to carry out 
        this Act--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) $2,500,000 for fiscal year 2022; 
                and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) $5,500,000 for each of fiscal years 
                2023 and 2024;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) to the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out 
        this Act--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) $2,500,000 for fiscal year 2022; 
                and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) $5,500,000 for each of fiscal years 
                2023 and 2024; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) to the Secretary of the Army to carry out this 
        Act--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) $1,500,000 for fiscal year 2022; 
                and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) $2,500,000 for each of fiscal years 
                2023 and 2024.</DELETED>

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Modernizing Access to Our Public 
Land Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Federal land.--The term ``Federal land'' means any land 
        managed by a Federal land management agency.
            (2) Federal land management agency.--The term ``Federal 
        land management agency'' means--
                    (A) the Bureau of Reclamation;
                    (B) the National Park Service;
                    (C) the Bureau of Land Management;
                    (D) the United States Fish and Wildlife Service;
                    (E) the Forest Service; and
                    (F) the Corps of Engineers.
            (3) Road or trail.--The term ``road or trail'' means a road 
        or trail designated by 1 or more of the Secretaries for public 
        use.
            (4) Secretaries.--The term ``Secretaries'' means--
                    (A) the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through 
                the Chief of the Forest Service;
                    (B) the Secretary of the Interior; and
                    (C) the Secretary of the Army, acting through the 
                Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works.

SEC. 3. INTERAGENCY DATA STANDARDIZATION.

    Not later than 30 months after the date of enactment of this Act, 
the Secretaries shall jointly develop and adopt interagency standards 
to ensure compatibility and interoperability among applicable Federal 
databases with respect to the collection and dissemination of data--
            (1) relating to outdoor recreation sites on Federal land; 
        and
            (2) used to depict locations at which recreation uses are 
        available to the public.

SEC. 4. DIGITIZATION AND PUBLICATION OF EASEMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Subject to the availability of appropriations, not 
later than 4 years after the date of enactment of this Act, each of the 
Secretaries, to the maximum extent practicable, shall digitize and make 
publicly available on the website of the Department of the Interior, 
the Forest Service, and the Corps of Engineers, as applicable, 
geographic information system mapping data that specifies, with respect 
to the relevant Secretary, all Federal interests in private land, 
including easements, reservations, and rights-of-way--
            (1) to which the Federal Government does not have a fee 
        title interest; and
            (2) that may be used to provide recreational access to the 
        Federal land.
    (b) Public Evaluation of Accuracy.--The Secretaries shall include 
on each website referred to in subsection (a), as applicable, a point 
of contact to allow members of the public to ask questions or provide 
feedback regarding the information described in that subsection.

SEC. 5. DATA CONSOLIDATION AND PUBLICATION OF ROUTE AND AREA DATA FOR 
              RECREATION USERS.

    (a) In General.--Subject to the availability of appropriations, 
beginning not later than 5 years after the date of enactment of this 
Act, each of the Secretaries, to the maximum extent practicable, shall 
make publicly available on the website of the Department of the 
Interior, the Forest Service, and the Corps of Engineers, as 
applicable, geographic information system data with respect to the 
following:
            (1) Status information with respect to whether roads and 
        trails on the Federal land are open or closed.
            (2) The dates on which roads and trails on the Federal land 
        are seasonally closed.
            (3) The classes of vehicles and types of recreational uses 
        that are allowed on each segment of roads and trails on the 
        Federal land, including the permissibility of--
                    (A) off-highway vehicles;
                    (B) motorcycles;
                    (C) nonmotorized bicycles;
                    (D) electric bicycles;
                    (E) passenger vehicles;
                    (F) nonmechanized transportation; and
                    (G) over-snow vehicles.
            (4) The boundaries of areas where hunting or recreational 
        shooting (including archery, firearm discharge, and target 
        shooting) is regulated or closed on the Federal land.
    (b) Updates.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretaries shall update the data 
        described in subsection (a) not less frequently than 2 times 
        per year.
            (2) Public evaluation of accuracy.--The Secretaries shall 
        include on each website referred to in subsection (a), as 
        applicable, a point of contact to allow members of the public 
        to ask questions or provide feedback regarding the information 
        described in that subsection.
    (c) Effect.--Geographic information system data made publicly 
available under subsection (a) shall not disclose information regarding 
the nature, location, character, or ownership of historic, 
paleontological, or archaeological resources, consistent with 
applicable law.

SEC. 6. COOPERATION AND COORDINATION.

    (a) Third-party Providers.--The Secretaries may enter into an 
agreement with a third party to carry out any provision of this Act.
    (b) Us Geological Survey.--The Director of the United States 
Geological Survey may collect, aggregate, digitize, standardize, or 
publish data on behalf of the Secretary of the Interior to meet the 
requirements of this Act.

SEC. 7. REPORTS.

    Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act and 
annually thereafter through September 30, 2031, the Secretaries shall 
submit a report on the progress made by the Secretaries with respect to 
meeting the requirements of this Act to--
            (1) the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the 
        Senate;
            (2) the Committee on Environment and Public Works of the 
        Senate;
            (3) the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of 
        Representatives; and
            (4) the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of 
        the House of Representatives.

SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated--
            (1) to the Secretary of the Interior to carry out this 
        Act--
                    (A) $2,500,000 for fiscal year 2022; and
                    (B) $5,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 
                through 2025;
            (2) to the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out this Act--
                    (A) $2,500,000 for fiscal year 2022; and
                    (B) $5,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 
                through 2025; and
            (3) to the Secretary of the Army to carry out this Act--
                    (A) $1,500,000 for fiscal year 2022; and
                    (B) $2,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 
                through 2025.
                                                       Calendar No. 284

117th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                                 S. 904

                          [Report No. 117-83]

_______________________________________________________________________