H.R. 4924

119th CONGRESS 1st Session

To provide for certain requirements of the Surface Transportation Board and any State, political subdivision, or qualified private organization requesting interim recreational use of an abandoned railway right-of-way, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES · August 8, 2025 · Sponsor: Mr. Graves · Committee: Committee on Natural Resources

Table of contents

• H.R. 4924
  • SEC. 1. Short title
  • SEC. 2. Interim use of railroad rights-of-way
  • SEC. 3. Periodic review of rails-to-trails corridors
  • SEC. 4. Advisory committee

SEC. 1. Short title

• This Act may be cited as the Rails to Trails Landowner Rights Act.

SEC. 2. Interim use of railroad rights-of-way

• Section 8 of the National Trails System Act () is amended— 16 U.S.C. 1247
  • in subsection (d)—
    • by striking The Secretary of Transportationand inserting (1) The Secretary of Transportation; and
      • To be eligible for the treatment described in this subsection, a State, political subdivision, or qualified private organization shall—
        • provide notice to—
          • (i) the owners of any property upon which the railroad right-of-way crosses, or is adjacent to the land subject to the right-of-way; and
          • (ii) any unit of local government with jurisdiction over any property upon which the railroad right-of-way crosses;
        • not later than 30 days after intervening in an abandonment proceeding under this subsection, receive signed approval from each owner described in subparagraph (A)(i) for the proposed interim use;
        • disclose the legal status of the occupancy for the right-of-way;
        • with respect to any proposed agreement under this subsection—
          • (i) ensure that any agreement reached under this subsection requires the State, political subdivision, or qualified private organization party to such agreement to compensate the owners of property upon which such right-of-way crosses for any additional cost attributed to the interim use, with a minimum compensation level at fair market value of such property, including costs imposed on affected landowners due to the required movement of existing infrastructure and lost development opportunities;
          • (ii) provide to the Board such assurances as the Board may require, that the State, political subdivision, or qualified private organization has the financial resources to provide compensation as described under clause (i); and
          • (iii) ensure that any agreement reached under this subsection requires the trail sponsor to continue all right-of-way maintenance responsibilities in perpetuity or until the right-of-way returns to active rail service; and
        • create an online publicly accessible portal to disclose the information described in subparagraph (A) through (D).
      • Before issuing a notice for interim trail use described in this subsection, and after the approval has been provided under paragraph (2)(B), the Board shall—
        • provide for a public notice and comment period beginning not less than 90 days before a certification is awarded under this subsection;
        • review the width of any applicable easement and consider narrowing an easement if it such width is not necessary for the corridor to potentially be returned to service as a rail corridor;
        • not later than 10 days after the completion of the requirements under subparagraph (A), carry out a cost-benefit analysis of the full impact of the interim use of the railway that considers—
          • (i) the impact on—
          • safety;
          • health;
          • security;
          • privacy;
          • biosecurity;
          • food security; and
          • economic impact on owners described in paragraph (2)(A)(i) and other local communities; and
          • (ii) the likelihood that the corridor will return to use as rail service if such a consideration was not taken into account in such analysis.
      • Any cost incurred carrying out the requirements of paragraph (3)(B) shall be borne by the State, political subdivision, or qualified private organization proposing the interim railway use and the Board shall not incur any such expenses until funding for carrying out such activities is received from the trail sponsor.
    • by adding at the end the following:
      • Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the Board may contract with an independent third party to conduct a cost-benefit analysis required to be carried out under subsection (d)(3)(B).
  • by adding at the end the following:

SEC. 3. Periodic review of rails-to-trails corridors

• The Surface Transportation Board shall—
  • periodically review rails-to-trails corridors described in section 8(d) of the National Trails System Act (); and 16 U.S.C. 1247(d)
  • make recommendations to relevant congressional committees on maintenance requirements of the trail sponsor and consider requests of landowners and trail sponsors to narrow the width of the easement for a corridor.

SEC. 4. Advisory committee

• (a) Establishment
  • The Secretary of the Interior shall establish an advisory committee to recommend maintenance requirements for trail sponsors under the program described in section 8(d) of the National Trails System Act () and any agreement reached under such program. 16 U.S.C. 1247(d)
• (b) Membership
  • The advisory committee established under subsection (a) shall be composed of 11 members appointed by the Secretary not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this Act. The members of the committee shall be as follows:
    • 6 members selected from landowners along existing trails created under such program.
    • 3 members representing rail carriers.
    • 2 members that are trail sponsors under such program.
• (c) Compensation; travel expenses
  • (1) Compensation
    • Members of the committee established under subsection (a) shall not receive compensation from the Secretary in carrying out the duties of the committee under this section.
  • (2) Travel expenses
    • Travel expenses incurred by a member of the committee in carrying out the duties of the committee under this section shall not be eligible for Federal reimbursement.
• (d) Report to Secretary
  • Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the committee established under subsection (a) shall submit to the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives a report containing the recommendations described under subsection (a).