H.R. 2072: National Park and Wilderness Waters Protection Forever Act

114th Congress · introduced 2015-04-28 · Public Lands and Natural Resources · Latest: Referred to the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2015-04-28 · official record
Who proposed it: Rep. McCollum, Betty [D-MN-4] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Referred to the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources. 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

National Park and Wilderness Waters Protection Forever Act

Plain summary

National Park and Wilderness Waters Protection Forever Act Withdraws federal lands within the Rainy River Drainage Basin in Minnesota from all forms of: (1) entry, appropriation, or disposal under the public land laws; (2) location, entry, and patent under the mining laws; and (3) operation under the mineral leasing and mineral material laws. Deems the approval of any lease or permit for activities relating to mining on federal lands in the Basin to be a major federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment. Requires an environmental impact statement conducted for such an action to include consideration of any potential impacts to units of the National Park System (NPS) or land in the National Wilderness Preservation System (NWPS) located in the Basin. Conditions the issuance or renewal of any such lease or permit on a requirement that the permittee or lessee seasonally monitor water quality on such lands throughout the Basin. Requires all mining activities to be suspended if any mining related contamination is detected in any NPS unit or NWPS land in the Basin until all contamination has been remediated. Bars a federal agency from approving any mining related activities on federal lands in the Basin until the entity holding a lease or permit for that activity has submitted: (1) an acceptable contamination remediation plan, and (2) a full reclamation and performance bond sufficient to return the affected area to its original condition and treat any potential contamination for 50 years following the conclusion of any mining activities. Exempts sand, gravel, and granite operations that exist on the date of enactment of this Act.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House), 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

National Park and Wilderness Waters Protection Forever Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)

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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. McCollum, Betty [D-MN-4] · 31 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Mark DeSaulnier (D-CA), Donald S. Beyer, Jr. (D-VA), Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Rosa L. DeLauro (D-CT), James P. McGovern (D-MA), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Mark Pocan (D-WI), Jared Huffman (D-CA), Adam B. Schiff (D-CA), Mike Thompson (D-CA), Ted Lieu (D-CA)

Sponsor's campaign money: Rep. McCollum, Betty [D-MN-4] reported raising $1.5 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

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 (2)

Appropriation: Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
Bond: A way to borrow money. A government sells bonds to raise money now and promises to pay it back with interest over time. Bonds repaid from taxes often need voter approval.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-114hr2072.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/114/hr>

Record fed-us-cong114-hr2072 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong114 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong114