Sponsors (2)
The bill expands and clarifies Big Bend National Park boundaries to protect land and improve recreation while increasing administrative clarity and transparency — but it can restrict private land use and local economic options, rely on voluntary acquisitions, and risks locking in changes with limited further public input.
Residents near Big Bend and park visitors will see up to ~6,100 acres added to Big Bend National Park, protecting landscapes and expanding outdoor recreation access under NPS management.
Local communities, tribal-lands residents, and federal staff get clearer legal boundaries and a defined administrative contact because the Act defines the 'Secretary' and requires the boundary map to be on file and available for public inspection, which should reduce confusion and help implementation.
Homeowners and local governments near the park may face reduced private land use and limits on future development on acquired parcels, which can shrink the local tax base and disrupt economic plans.
Nearby rural and tribal residents could lose access to or use of lands (including recreational or economic uses) as boundaries change, producing direct economic or quality-of-life harms to those communities.
Because the Act disallows using eminent domain to acquire land for the expansion, acquisitions depend on voluntary donations or exchanges, which may slow or stall consolidation of park lands and complicate long‑term management.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Allows the Interior Secretary to add about 6,100 acres to Big Bend National Park via donation or exchange and bars use of eminent domain.
Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to add about 6,100 acres to Big Bend National Park by accepting donated land or completing land exchanges shown on a referenced map, and requires those lands to be added to and managed as part of the park once acquired. The Secretary may not use eminent domain or condemnation to obtain the lands, and the map showing the tracts must be available for public inspection in National Park Service offices.
Introduced March 25, 2025 by John Cornyn · Last progress June 23, 2025