H.R. 3914: San Juan Mountains Wilderness Act of 2010

111th Congress · introduced 2009-10-22 · Public Lands and Natural Resources · Latest: Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 345.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2009-10-22 · official record
Who proposed it: Rep. Salazar, John T. [D-CO-3] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 345. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

San Juan Mountains Wilderness Act of 2010

Plain summary

San Juan Mountains Wilderness Act of 2010 - (Sec. 3) Designates specified lands in the Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre, and Gunnison National Forests, as well as in the San Juan Resource Area of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in Colorado as wilderness areas and components of the National Wilderness Preservation System (NWPS). (Sec. 4) Designates specified lands in such National Forests and the San Juan National Forest as the Sheep Mountain Special Management Area. Requires activities within the Area to be managed to maintain such Area's presently existing wilderness character and potential for inclusion in the NWPS. Prohibits the construction of permanent roads, the use of motor vehicles, motorized equipment, or mechanical transport (except as necessary to administer the federal land and to protect public health and safety), and the establishment of temporary roads on the Special Management Area. Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior or of Agriculture (USDA), as appropriate (the Secretary), to allow the continuation of authorized activities, including heliskiing, within the Special Management Area. Designates the Special Management Area as the Sheep Mountain Wilderness on the date on which the Secretary publishes in the Federal Register a notice that the nonconforming use has terminated. (Sec. 5) Authorizes the continuation of the competitive running event permitted since 1992 in the vicinity of the boundaries of the Special Management Area, the Sheep Mountain Wilderness Area, and the Liberty Bell addition to the Mt. Sheffels Wilderness in a manner compatible with the preservation of those areas as wilderness. Prohibits anything in this Act from affecting: (1) the jurisdiction or responsibility of the state of Colorado respecting fish and wildlife; and (2) the creation of protective perimeters or buffer zones around the lands designated as wilderness or a special management area under this Act (covered land). Allows a nonwilderness activity or use conducted outside the boundary of the covered land notwithstanding the fact that such activity or use can be seen or heard from within covered land. Withdraws covered lands, as well as land within the Naturita Canyon Mineral Withdrawal Area, from: (1) entry, appropriation, or disposal under public land laws; (2) location, entry, and patent under mining laws; and (3) disposition under all laws pertaining to mineral and geothermal leasing or mineral materials. Authorizes the acquisition of non-federal land within the boundaries of the Special Management Area or the Wilderness only through exchange, donation, or purchase from a willing seller. Requires any land or interest acquired by the United States inside the boundaries of covered land to become part of the relevant wilderness or special management area. Authorizes the Secretary to acquire the parcel of state land identified as the McKenna Peak adjacent parcel on the map entitled "McKenna Peak Wilderness" and dated April 15, 2010, from the state by donation or exchange. Requires any portion of the State Trust land parcel identified on the map as the proposed Mckenna Peak Wilderness addition, which is acquired by the United States, to become part of the McKenna Peak Wilderness. Allows the continuation of grazing within the covered lands in which it was established, subject to specified regulations, policies, and practices. Prohibits inclusions in the NWPS or special area designations from being construed as interfering with: (1) the operation and maintenance of the Ames Hydroelectric Project; and (2) the authority of the Secretary to authorize mechanical thinning of trees or underbrush for the prevention or control of wildfires. Authorizes the use of wheeled, muscle-powered carts for the removal of shot game in the designated wilderness and special management areas. (Sec. 6) Sets forth provisions regarding water rights and access to, and the operation of, water resource facilities in lands designated as wilderness or a special management area.

Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to House with amendment(s)), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

San Juan Mountains Wilderness Act of 2010

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to House with amendment(s))

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The strongest published arguments

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Salazar, John T. [D-CO-3] · 2 cosponsors

Cost estimate: CBO cost estimate: H.R. 3914, San Juan Mountains Wilderness Act of 2010 (2010-07-06); CBO cost estimate: H.R. 3914, San Juan Mountains Wilderness Act of 2010 (2010-07-06)

Cosponsors on this site

Diana DeGette (D-CO)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (5)

Appropriation: Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
Authorization: A law that creates or continues a government program and says what it may do, often with a suggested spending ceiling. An authorization alone does not provide money; a separate appropriation does.
Federal Register: The official daily publication of the U.S. government for agency rules, proposed rules, public notices and presidential documents.
Jurisdiction: The area or the matters a government or court has authority over.
Rulemaking: The process agencies use to write regulations that carry out laws passed by Congress or a legislature. Usually an agency publishes a proposed rule, takes public comments, then publishes a final rule.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to House with amendment(s))
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-111hr3914.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/111/hr>

Record fed-us-cong111-hr3914 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong111 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong111