Amends the Wilderness Act to grant members of recreation organizations the right to cross wilderness areas on established trails without restriction as part of a journey along a connecting system of trails across public, private, or wilderness area lands, so long as such travel is conducted within a day and is completed without unreasonable delay. Defines a "recreation organization."
Authorizes agencies administering wilderness areas to limit the exercise of such right within any specific area to not more than 10 wilderness crossings annually.
[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2809 Introduced in House (IH)]
111th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2809
To amend the Wilderness Act to allow recreation organizations
consisting of hikers or horseback riders to cross wilderness areas on
established trails, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 10, 2009
Mr. Lamborn (for himself and Mr. Smith of Texas) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural
Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Wilderness Act to allow recreation organizations
consisting of hikers or horseback riders to cross wilderness areas on
established trails, 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. ABILITY OF RECREATION ORGANIZATIONS TO CROSS WILDERNESS
AREAS ON ESTABLISHED TRAILS.
Section 4(d) of the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1133(d)) is amended
by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(8) Use by Recreation Organizations.--
``(A) Recreation organization defined.--In this paragraph,
a `recreation organization' is an organization of hikers or
horseback riders--
``(i) whose purposes include one or more of the
following:
``(I) the promotion of the development and
preservation of trails throughout Federal
lands;
``(II) the promotion and encouragement of
education of the public about the fragile
nature of mountain and forest ecology and the
necessity for its protection and preservation;
or
``(III) the gathering and dissemination of
information regarding the use and enjoyment of
wilderness areas and other Federal land; and
``(ii) whose leadership has by reputation and
practice over a period of at least 10 years
demonstrated compliance and consistency with one or
more of those purposes.
``(B) Members of a recreation organization acting as an
organized unit and regardless of their number shall have the
right to cross wilderness areas on established trails without
restriction as part of a journey along a connecting system of
trails across public, private, or wilderness area lands, so
long as such travel is conducted within one day and is
completed without unreasonable delay. Such travel shall neither
be deemed inconsistent with the purposes of a wilderness area
nor to affect any wilderness area's opportunities for solitude
or a primitive and unconfined type of recreation.
``(C) The agency administering any wilderness area may
limit the exercise of such right within any specific wilderness
area to not more than 10 wilderness crossings annually and may
establish fair procedures to implement this paragraph, except
that the right of a recreation organization hereby granted
shall not be impaired during such process.''.
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Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
Referred to the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands.
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