Sponsors
The bill secures sizable new wilderness and tribal trust lands and expedites local land transfers for conservation, wildfire mitigation, and infrastructure, but it also limits development (mining, some water projects, gaming), shifts cleanup and conveyance costs onto local governments, and adds administrative and environmental‑review risks.
Residents and visitors gain permanent wilderness protection for ~12,392 acres of BLM land, preserving recreation, scenery, and long-term habitat.
The Tribe receives ~2,669 acres placed into trust, strengthening tribal land base, self-determination, and tribal jurisdiction over those lands.
Douglas County and/or local governments obtain large parcels (including ~7,777 acres) and expedited suitability/permits enabling flood control, recreation, hazard mitigation, and quicker local project planning.
Ranchers, miners, and local economies face limits because the wilderness designation restricts mineral development and mining on ~12,392 acres, reducing potential jobs and resource revenues.
Local governments and residents may lose some water‑infrastructure options because the bill prohibits federal support for new water projects within designated wilderness areas.
Local and state governments bear upfront conveyance costs (surveys, appraisals, cleanup, closing) and some conveyances occur 'without consideration,' which can impose immediate budgetary burdens and forego local revenue.
Based on analysis of 6 sections of legislative text.
Conveys federal lands to Nevada, Douglas County, and the Washoe Tribe; adds ~12,392 acres as Burbank Canyons Wilderness; sets use limits, surveys, and environmental disclosure rules.
Introduced March 25, 2026 by Catherine Marie Cortez Masto · Last progress March 25, 2026
Conveys multiple parcels of federal land in Douglas County, Nevada to the State, Douglas County, and the Washoe Tribe; places about 12,392 acres of BLM land into the National Wilderness Preservation System; and creates limits and conditions on how the transferred lands may be used. Recipients get the land without purchase price but must pay survey, appraisal, cleanup, and administrative costs; certain uses (like county disposal or class II/III gaming on trust land) are prohibited, and the Secretary must complete surveys, maps, and required environmental disclosures.