Sponsors (4)
The bill secures lasting environmental, recreational, and tribal-access protections for rivers, wetlands, and wilderness areas, while increasing federal acquisition and management activities that raise taxpayer costs and impose new land‑use, access, and permitting constraints on timber interests, private landowners, and local governments.
Residents, visitors, and nearby communities in the mapped area gain long-term federal protection for rivers, streams, wetlands, and aquatic habitat, preserving scenic, ecological, and recreational values and protecting water quality and anadromous fish habitat.
Tribal communities receive guaranteed consultation pathways and continued access for traditional and cultural activities through formal memorandum-of-understanding arrangements.
Rural communities retain federal wildfire-response and vegetation-management authority and tools that support forest health and community protection.
Taxpayers and government budgets may face substantial new costs for land acquisition, ongoing monitoring, enforcement, stewardship, and possible additional agency staffing.
Timber-dependent businesses, contractors, and some recreation/commercial operators could lose revenue or face restrictions as application of the Northwest Forest Plan, Roadless Rule, and new protective management standards limit logging, roadbuilding, and certain uses.
Private landowners and nearby residents may encounter new limits on development, motorized access, and other property uses along designated wild river segments and protected corridors.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Directs a 5-year Forest Service study and adds lands and multiple North Fork Smith River tributary segments to federal protections, expanding acquisition authority and requiring tribal access MOUs.
Introduced March 11, 2025 by Jeff Merkley · Last progress March 11, 2025
Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to study and expand the Smith River National Recreation Area boundary shown on a January 23, 2023 map, add multiple source-tributary segments of the North Fork Smith River to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System (mostly as "wild" river segments), and update land and river management rules. It requires the Forest Service to complete an aquatic and ecological inventory and assessment within five years, revise applicable management plans to protect identified values, and report findings to Congress. Also clarifies and expands federal acquisition authority for the recreation area (including purchase as well as donation), requires Kalmiopsis Wilderness to be managed under the Wilderness Act, preserves wildfire and vegetation management powers, applies the Northwest Forest Plan and the Roadless Rule in Oregon portions, and requires the Secretary to seek memoranda of understanding with affected Indian Tribes to provide access for traditional and cultural activities and develop interpretive information.