II 112th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 1087 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES May 26, 2011 Mr. Barrasso (for himself, Ms. Murkowski, Mr. Hatch, Mr. Heller, and Mr. Enzi) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources A BILL To release wilderness study areas administered by the Bureau of Land Management that are not suitable for wilderness designation from continued management as de facto wilderness areas and to release inventoried roadless areas within the National Forest System that are not recommended for wilderness designation from the land use restrictions of the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Final Rule and the 2005 State Petitions for Inventoried Roadless Area Management Final Rule, and for other purposes.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Wilderness and Roadless Area Release Act of 2011.

2.

Release of Bureau of Land Management wilderness study areas previously identified as not suitable for wilderness designation

(a)

Release

Congress finds and directs that the public lands described in subsection (b) have been adequately studied for wilderness designation pursuant to section 603 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1782) and are no longer subject to the requirement of subsection (c) of such section pertaining to the management of wilderness study areas in a manner that does not impair the suitability of such areas for preservation as wilderness. (b)

Covered public lands

Subsection (a) applies to public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management pursuant to the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) that— (1)have not been designated as wilderness by an Act of Congress before the date of the enactment of this Act; and (2)have been identified by the Bureau of Land Management before the date of the enactment of this Act as not suitable for wilderness designation. (c)

Management

Public lands released by subsection (a) shall be managed by the Bureau of Land Management in accordance with the land use plan applicable to the lands developed pursuant to section 202 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1712). (d)

Prohibition

The Secretary of the Interior may not promulgate or issue any system-wide regulation, directive, or order that would direct management of the public lands released by subsection (a) in a manner contrary to the applicable land use plan. (e)

Termination of applicability of wildlands order

Wildlands order 3310 shall not apply with respect to the public lands released by subsection (a).

3.

Release of inventoried roadless areas within the National Forest System not recommended for wilderness designation

(a)

Release

Congress finds and directs that the National Forest System lands described in subsection (b) have been adequately studied for wilderness designation pursuant to the second roadless area review and evaluation program (RARE II) and the land and resource management plan revision process under section 6 of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 1604) and are no longer subject to management to maintain the roadless character and values of the lands and comply with other land-use restrictions of the Roadless Area Conservation Rule contained in part 294 of title 36, Code of Federal Regulations, and amended in the final rule and record of decision published in the Federal Register on January 12, 2001 (66 Fed. Reg. 3244), and the final rule and record of decision published in the Federal Register on May 13, 2005 (70 Fed. Reg. 25654). (b)

Covered National Forest System lands

Subsection (a) applies to inventoried roadless areas within the National Forest System set forth in the maps contained in the Forest Service Roadless Area Conservation, Final Environmental Impact Statement, Volume 2, dated November 2000, that— (1)have not been designated as wilderness by an Act of Congress before the date of the enactment of this Act; and (2)were not recommended for designation as wilderness as a result of the second roadless area review and evaluation program (RARE II) or the subsequent revision of a land and resource management plan under section 6 of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 1604). (c)

Management

National Forest System lands released by subsection (a) shall be managed by the Forest Service under the principles of the Multiple-Use Sustained-Yield Act of 1960 (16 U.S.C. 528 et seq.) in accordance with the land and resource management plan developed for the unit of the National Forest System containing the lands. (d)

Prohibition

The Secretary of Agriculture may not promulgate or issue any system-wide regulation, directive, or order that would direct management of the National Forest System lands released by subsection (a) in a manner contrary to the applicable land and resource management plan. (e)

Termination of applicability of amendments

The amendments made to part 294 of title 36, Code of Federal Regulations, in the final rule and record of decision published in the Federal Register on January 12, 2001 (66 Fed. Reg. 3244), and the final rule and record of decision published in the Federal Register on May 13, 2005 (70 Fed. Reg. 25654), shall not apply with respect to the National Forest System lands released by subsection (a).