The Public Lands Access Restoration Act would change how federal agencies manage public lands by presuming that roads and trails on Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management lands are open to motorized vehicles (ATVs, motorcycles, snowmobiles, and similar vehicles) unless officials specifically restrict access. Currently, the approach is reversed—roads and trails must be designated as open before public use is allowed. Under this bill, agencies would have 180 days to issue new regulations implementing this change, and they could only close roads or trails if they have "clear and convincing evidence" of need for resource protection or public safety, with restrictions subject to public notice, a 30-day comment period, and review every five years. The legislation also requires federal agencies to accept and consider public proposals for adding new motorized routes and to expedite decisions on converting currently closed roads to motorized trails within 90 days. The bill would not apply to roads and trails in congressionally designated wilderness areas or national parks.
Take Action
Your position
Add a comment
to comment on this bill.
Annotate the text
Highlight any passage on the Summary or Full Text tab to attach a note. Annotations appear on the Annotations tab.