To direct the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture to jointly conduct a study of certain land adjacent to the Walnut Canyon National Monument in the State of Arizona.

May 20, 2004

Mr. RENZI introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Resources

To direct the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture to jointly conduct a study of certain land adjacent to the Walnut Canyon National Monument in the State of Arizona.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Walnut Canyon Study Act of 2004'.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

(a) Findings- Congress finds as follows:

(1) The Coconino National Forest was established in the State of Arizona on July 2, 1908.

(2) The Walnut Canyon National Monument in the State of Arizona was originally designated as a national monument by Presidential proclamation on November 30, 1915, to protect Sinaguan cliff dwellings.

(3) Since the original designation, the Monument boundaries have been expanded to include 3,580 acres.

(4) National Forest System lands and State trust lands in the study area contain significant cultural and natural resources.

(5) The Coconino National Forest Land and Resources Management Plan of 1987 identified National Forest System land in the study area as land for nondevelopment or disposal under the National Forest Management Act of 1976 (16 U.S.C. 472a, et seq.).

(6) State trust land in the study area has been temporarily removed from consideration for development by State agencies with jurisdiction over the State trust land.

(7) The communities in the vicinity of the land in the study area support maintaining public uses of the land surrounding the Monument while protecting the resources of the land.

(8) Several interest groups have proposed expanding the Monument and designating the expanded area as a national park or national preserve.

(9) The city of Flagstaff and Coconino County, Arizona, have passed resolutions supporting further review and study of, and the development of management options for the study area.

(10) To determine the appropriate management of the adjacent land, interested parties have requested a study to help identify management options.

(b) Purposes- The purposes of this Act are--

(1) to authorize a study of the study area to evaluate public uses and resource values; and

(2) to obtain recommendations for management options for maintenance of the public uses and protection of resources of the study area.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

In this Act:

(1) Map- The term `map' means the map entitled `Walnut Canyon Proposed Study Area' and dated July 17, 2003.

(2) Monument- The term `Monument' means the Walnut Canyon National Monument in the State of Arizona.

(3) Secretaries- The term `Secretaries' means the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture, acting jointly.

(4) Study area- The term `study area' means the area identified on the map as `Walnut Canyon Proposed Study Area', consisting of 30,818 acres, of which--

(A) 24,987 acres is Federal land in Coconino National Forest;

(B) 2,037 acres is State land;

(C) 214 acres is private land; and

(D) 3,580 acres is the Monument.

SEC. 4. STUDY.

(a) In General- The Secretaries shall conduct a study of the study area.

(b) Requirements- The study shall evaluate--

(1) the significance of the resources of the study area as the resources pertain to--

(A) the management objectives of the Forest Service; and

(B) the management objectives of the National Park Service;

(2) the opportunities for maintaining existing public uses such as grazing, hunting, and recreation; and

(3) a range of options for managing and conserving resources by the National Park Service or the Forest Service, or by both agencies acting jointly, including the suitability and feasibility of--

(A) a boundary adjustment to the Monument;

(B) designation of the study area as a national park or preserve;

(C) maintaining the study area as managed by the Forest Service; and

(D) any other designation or management option that will accomplish both the protection of resources and the maintenance of public use and access for the study area.

(c) Consultation- In conducting the study, the Secretaries shall--

(1) contract with a third-party consultant with experience in park and land use planning to prepare a draft study; and

(2) collaborate with the persons identified in subsection (d) in developing a scope of work for the draft study under the guidance of the third-party consultant.

(d) Review; Recommendations- The Secretaries, the Forest Supervisor of the Coconino National Forest, the Superintendent of the Flagstaff Area National Monuments, the Flagstaff City Council, and the Coconino County Board of Supervisors shall--

(1) review the draft study prepared by the third-party consultant; and

(2) provide the third-party consultant comments on and recommendations for the draft study.

(e) Report- Not later than 18 months after the date on which funding is made available to carry out this Act, the Secretaries shall submit to Congress a report that--

(1) describes the findings and conclusions of the study conducted under this section, including the recommendation of the persons identified in subsection (d); and

(2) makes a recommendation for the future management of the study area.

(f) Effect- Nothing in this Act affects the management of the land depicted on the Map.

(g) Authorization of Appropriations-

(1) In general- There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary to carry out this Act.

(2) Effect- Amounts made available under paragraph (1) shall not affect the amounts otherwise made available for Forest Service or National Park Service activities in the State of Arizona.

END