This bill designates approximately 12,295 acres of federal land in Taos County, New Mexico, as the Cerro de la Olla Wilderness, protecting it under the Wilderness Act while modifying the boundary of the nearby Río Grande del Norte National Monument. The bill allows the federal government to maintain existing wildlife water development structures (such as water catchment systems for animals) within the wilderness area if they enhance wildlife populations and have minimal visual impact, and requires the federal government to establish a cooperative agreement with New Mexico within one year to coordinate wildlife management activities. The legislation applies to Bureau of Land Management-administered lands in the region and does not require any new federal funding or specify a particular implementation timeline beyond the one-year deadline for the state cooperation agreement. The bill was introduced by New Mexico Senators Heinrich and Luján in April 2025 and is intended to balance wilderness preservation with practical land management needs in the area.
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