Title: Clear Creek National Recreation Area and Conservation Act
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources

Summary:
Clear Creek National Recreation Area and Conservation Act
The Department of the Interior shall (1) use the 2006 Clear Creek Management Area Travel Management Plan, as modified by this bill or by Interior, to incorporate natural resource protection information unavailable in 2006 as the basis for an interim management plan to govern off-highway vehicle recreation in the area; and (2) create a comprehensive management plan for the area, which shall include a hazards education program and a user fee program for motorized vehicle use.
Landowners must be given adequate access to inholdings (i.e., privately-owned land inside the boundary of a national park) within the area. The use of motorized vehicles on public land in the area shall be permitted only on roads, trails, and areas designated by the management plan. Livestock grazing shall be allowed to continue in certain parts of the area.
The bill (1) designates approximately 21,000 acres of identified federal lands in Fresno and San Benito Counties, California, as the Joaquin Rocks Wilderness and as a component of the National Wilderness Preservation System; and (2) releases the San Benito Mountain wilderness study area from  wilderness review requirements.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 403 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 403

To establish the Clear Creek National Recreation Area in San Benito and 
Fresno Counties, California, to designate the Joaquin Rocks Wilderness 
               in such counties, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 9, 2019

 Mr. Panetta introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To establish the Clear Creek National Recreation Area in San Benito and 
Fresno Counties, California, to designate the Joaquin Rocks Wilderness 
               in such counties, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Clear Creek National Recreation Area 
and Conservation Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Management plan.--The term ``management plan'' means 
        the Plan for the Recreation Area prepared under section 4(c).
            (2) Recreation area.--The term ``Recreation Area'' means 
        the Clear Creek National Recreation Area.
            (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Interior.
            (4) State.--The term ``State'' means the State of 
        California.
            (5) Off highway vehicle.--The term ``off highway vehicle'' 
        means any motorized vehicle designed for or capable of cross-
        country travel on or immediately over land, water, snow, or 
        other natural terrain and not intended for use on public roads.

SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF CLEAR CREEK NATIONAL RECREATION AREA.

    (a) In General.--To promote environmentally responsible off highway 
vehicle recreation, the area generally depicted as ``Proposed Clear 
Creek National Recreation Area'' on the map titled ``Proposed Clear 
Creek National Recreation Area'' and dated February 14, 2017, is 
established as the ``Clear Creek National Recreation Area'', to be 
managed by the Secretary.
    (b) Other Purposes.--The Recreation Area shall also support other 
public recreational uses, such as hunting, hiking, and rock and gem 
collecting.
    (c) Map on File.--Copies of the map referred to in subsection (a) 
shall be on file and available for public inspection in--
            (1) the Office of the Director of the Bureau of Land 
        Management; and
            (2) the appropriate office of the Bureau of Land Management 
        in California.

SEC. 4. MANAGEMENT.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall manage the Recreation Area to 
further the purposes described in section 3(a), in accordance with--
            (1) this Act;
            (2) the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 
        U.S.C. 1701 et seq.); and
            (3) any other applicable law.
    (b) Uses.--The Secretary shall--
            (1) prioritize environmentally responsible off highway 
        vehicle recreation and also facilitate hunting, hiking, gem 
        collecting, and the use of motorized vehicles, mountain bikes, 
        and horses in accordance with the management plan described in 
        subsection (c);
            (2) issue special recreation permits for motorized and non-
        motorized events; and
            (3) reopen the Clear Creek Management Area to the uses 
        described in this subsection as soon as practicable following 
        the enactment of this Act and in accordance with the management 
        guidelines outlined in this Act and other applicable law.
    (c) Interim Management Plan.--The Secretary shall use the 2006 
Clear Creek Management Area Resource Management Plan Amendment and 
Route Designation Record of Decision as modified by this Act or the 
Secretary to incorporate natural resource protection information not 
available in 2006, as the basis of an interim management plan to govern 
off highway vehicle recreation within the Recreation Area pending the 
completion of the long-term management plan required in subsection (d).
    (d) Permanent Management Plan.--Not later than 2 years after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall create a 
comprehensive management plan for the Clear Creek Recreation Area 
that--
            (1) shall describe the appropriate uses and management of 
        the Recreation Area in accordance with this Act;
            (2) shall be prepared in consultation with--
                    (A) appropriate Federal, State, and local agencies 
                (including San Benito, Monterey, and Fresno Counties);
                    (B) adjacent land owners;
                    (C) other stakeholders (including conservation and 
                recreational organizations); and
                    (D) holders of any easements, rights-of-way, and 
                other valid rights in the Recreation Area;
            (3) shall include a hazards education program to inform 
        people entering the Recreation Area of the asbestos related 
        risks associated with various activities within the Recreation 
        Area, including off-highway vehicle recreation;
            (4) shall include a user fee program for motorized vehicle 
        use within the Recreational Area and guidelines for the use of 
        the funds collected for the management and improvement of the 
        Recreation Area;
            (5) shall designate as many previously used trails, roads, 
        and other areas for off highway vehicle recreation as feasible 
        in accordance with this in order to provide a substantially 
        similar recreational experience, except that nothing in this 
        paragraph shall be construed as precluding the Secretary from 
        closing any area, trail, or route from use for the purposes of 
        public safety or resource protection;
            (6) may incorporate any appropriate decisions, as 
        determined by the Secretary, in accordance with this Act, that 
        are contained in any management or activity plan for the area 
        completed before the date of the enactment of this Act;
            (7) may incorporate appropriate wildlife habitat management 
        plans or other plans prepared for the land within or adjacent 
        to the Recreation Area before the date of the enactment of this 
        Act, in accordance with this Act;
            (8) may use information developed under any studies of land 
        within or adjacent to the Recreation Area carried out before 
        the date of enactment of this Act; and
            (9) may include cooperative agreements with State or local 
        government agencies to manage all or a portion of the 
        recreational activities within the Recreation Area in 
        accordance with an approved management plan and the 
        requirements of this Act.
    (e) Acquisition of Property.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary may acquire land adjacent to 
        the National Recreation Area by purchase from willing sellers, 
        donation, or exchange.
            (2) Management.--Any land acquired under paragraph (1) 
        shall be managed in accordance with--
                    (A) the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 
                1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.);
                    (B) this Act; and
                    (C) any other applicable law (including 
                regulations).
            (3) Improved access.--The Secretary may acquire by purchase 
        from willing sellers, donation, exchange, or easement, land, or 
        interest in land to improve public safety in providing access 
        to the Recreation Area.
    (f) Private Property.--
            (1) Access to private property.--
                    (A) In general.--The Secretary shall provide 
                landowners adequate access to inholdings within the 
                Recreation Area.
                    (B) Inholdings.--For access purposes, private land 
                adjacent to the Recreation Area to which there is no 
                other practicable access except through the Recreation 
                Area shall be managed as an inholding.
            (2) Use of private property.--Nothing in this Act affects 
        the ownership, management, or other rights relating to any non-
        Federal land (including any interest in any non-Federal land).
            (3) Buffer zones.--Nothing in this Act creates a protective 
        perimeter or buffer zone around the Recreation Area.
            (4) Valid rights.--Nothing in this Act affects any 
        easements, rights-of-way, and other valid rights in existence 
        on the date of the enactment of this Act.
    (g) Water Right Exclusion.--Nothing in this Act--
            (1) shall constitute or be construed to constitute either 
        an express or implied reservation by the United States of any 
        water or water rights with respect to the Recreation Area; or
            (2) shall affect any water rights existing on the date of 
        the enactment of this Act.
    (h) Hunting and Fishing.--Nothing in this Act--
            (1) limits hunting or fishing; or
            (2) affects the authority, jurisdiction, or responsibility 
        of the State to manage, control, or regulate fish and resident 
        wildlife under State law (including regulations), including the 
        regulation of hunting or fishing on public land managed by the 
        Bureau of Land Management.
    (i) Motorized Vehicles.--Except in cases in which motorized 
vehicles are needed for administrative purposes or to respond to an 
emergency, the use of motorized vehicles on public land in the 
Recreation Area shall be permitted only on roads, trails, and areas 
designated by the management plan for the use by motorized vehicles.
    (j) Grazing.--In the Recreation Area, the grazing of livestock in 
areas in which grazing is allowed as of the date of the enactment of 
this Act shall be allowed to continue, consistent with--
            (1) this Act;
            (2) the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 
        U.S.C. 1701 et seq.); and
            (3) any regulations promulgated by the Secretary, acting 
        through the Director of the Bureau of Land Management.
    (k) Withdrawal.--Subject to valid existing rights, all Federal land 
within the Recreation Area is withdrawn from--
            (1) all forms of entry, appropriation, and disposal under 
        the public land laws;
            (2) location, entry, and patenting under the mining laws; 
        and
            (3) operation of the mineral leasing, mineral materials, 
        and geothermal leasing laws.
    (l) Fees.--Amounts received by the Secretary under the fee 
structure required by subsection (d)(4) shall be--
            (1) deposited in a special account in the Treasury of the 
        United States; and
            (2) made available until expended to the Secretary for use 
        in the Recreation Area.
    (m) Risk Standard.--The National Oil and Hazardous Substances 
Pollution Contingency Plan (section 300 of title 40, Code of Federal 
Regulations), published pursuant to section 105 of the Comprehensive 
Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 
U.S.C. 9605), shall not apply to the Secretary's management of asbestos 
exposure risks faced by the public when recreating within the Clear 
Creek Recreation Area described in section 3(b).

SEC. 5. JOAQUIN ROCKS WILDERNESS.

    In accordance with the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.), the 
approximately 21,000 acres of Federal lands located in Fresno County 
and San Benito County, California, and generally depicted on a map 
entitled ``Proposed Joaquin Rocks Wilderness'' and dated February 14, 
2017, is designated as wilderness and as a component of the National 
Wilderness Preservation System and shall be known as the ``Joaquin 
Rocks Wilderness''.

SEC. 6. RELEASE OF SAN BENITO MOUNTAIN WILDERNESS STUDY AREA.

    (a) Finding.--Congress finds that, for the purposes of section 603 
of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1782), 
the San Benito Mountain wilderness study area has been adequately 
studied for wilderness designation.
    (b) Release.--The San Benito Mountain wilderness study area is no 
longer subject to section 603(c) of the Federal Land Policy and 
Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1782(c)).

SEC. 7. CLARIFICATION REGARDING FUNDING.

    No additional funds are authorized to carry out the requirements of 
this Act. Such requirements shall be carried out using amounts 
otherwise authorized.
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