II 118th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 4451 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES June 4, 2024 Mr. Padilla introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources A BILL To require the Secretary of the Interior to enter into an agreement with the National Academy of Sciences to carry out a study on reservation systems for Federal land.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Review and Evaluation of Strategies for Equal Reservations for Visitor Experiences Federal Land Act or the RESERVE Federal Land Act . 2. Definitions In this Act: (1) Booking window The term booking window , with respect to a reservation system, means the time period during which a reservation or lottery entry is available to the public. (2) Federal land The term Federal land means— (A) public lands (as defined in section 103 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 ( 43 U.S.C. 1702 )); (B) National Forest System land; (C) units of the National Park System; (D) units of the National Wildlife Refuge System; (E) sites administered by the Bureau of Reclamation; and (F) sites administered by the Corps of Engineers. (3) Recreation activity The term recreation activity includes camping, backpacking, climbing, fishing, hiking, driving, and other recreational opportunities. (4) Reservation system (A) In general The term reservation system means any platform or method used by managers of Federal land to ration recreation activities. (B) Inclusions The term reservation system includes reservation, lottery, metering, pricing, merit-based, and other similar rationing methods via online, telephone, paper, in-person, or other methods. (5) Secretary The term Secretary means the Secretary of the Interior. 3. National academy of sciences study of reservation systems for recreation activities on Federal land (a) Study (1) In general The Secretary, in coordination with the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Army, acting through the Chief of Engineers, shall, not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this Act, enter into an agreement with the National Academy of Sciences to carry out a study of reservation systems for recreation activities on Federal land. (2) Requirements In carrying out the study under paragraph (1), the National Academy of Sciences shall carry out the following: (A) A comprehensive review of the history of reservation systems, such as recreation.gov, including a review of— (i) the studies that led to the establishment of the applicable reservation system; (ii) the iterations of the applicable reservation system over time to meet the needs of the applicable Federal agency; and (iii) any visitor feedback provided with respect to the applicable reservation system. (B) Based on available data and existing research, answer the following questions: (i) What are the benefits and challenges of implementing reservation systems for visitor management and conservation goals for Federal land? (ii) What data are available to understand demand for recreation on Federal land? How can the data be used to balance visitor management and conservation goals? (iii) What information is available regarding Federal land users and reservation system users? What information is available or needs to be collected regarding demographics and characteristics of successful applicants using the reservation systems? (iv) What best practices should guide reservation system design, including diversity of rationing mechanisms and booking windows, and would promote equal access to recreation activities? What metrics can be used to record outcomes of reservation system design? (v) How have fees been collected for reservation systems over time to meet the needs of the applicable Federal agency? How are the revenues from fees for reservation systems split between, and spent by, Federal land units, Federal agencies, and third-party contractors? How is the fee structure disseminated to users? How could dissemination of information with respect to the fee structure be improved? (vi) What are the odds of success with respect to securing a reservation under reservation systems? How are the odds of success disseminated to users? How could dissemination of information with respect to the odds of success be improved? (vii) How are data, including data collected by contractors, on reservation systems shared with Federal land managers, researchers, and the public? How can transparency be improved to inform the decisionmaking of users of reservation systems? (b) Report The agreement entered into under subsection (a)(1) shall include a requirement that, not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the National Academy of Sciences shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report that describes the results of the study carried out under subsection (a)(1).