Summary

Adds two definitions to federal park-law definitions: “active use,” which lists types of public activities and facilities (playgrounds, bike/pedestrian infrastructure, sports and recreation facilities, community events/programming, and concessions), and “urban area,” which adopts the Secretary of Commerce’s most recent decennial‑census urban designation. The change is a targeted statutory clarification inserted into Title 54 to guide how those terms are read and applied in park and public‑land contexts. The change is narrow and technical: it clarifies language that agencies, planners, and local partners use when applying rules, issuing guidance, or designing programs on Federal lands in or near population centers. It does not appropriate funds or create new programs by itself.

Key Points

• Adds a statutory definition of “active use” listing specific public activities and facilities.
• Defines “urban area” by reference to the Secretary of Commerce’s most recent decennial census urban designation.
• The change is a narrow, textual clarification to Title 54’s definitions rather than a new funding or program authority.
• Federal land management agencies will rely on these definitions when drafting guidance, permitting, or planning documents.
• Clarifying terms can reduce legal ambiguity and improve consistency across agency decisions affecting parks and public lands.
• Does not appropriate money, alter tax law, or directly impose new mandates on state or local governments.
• Uses the Census Bureau’s decennial classification to provide a public, periodically updated geographic standard.
• Potential indirect effects depend on subsequent agency interpretations and rulemaking, not on the statute alone.

Categories & Tags