Historic Roadways Protection Act | ChamberLight

REPORTED· 119TH CONGRESS

Senate BillS 90UtahLand use and conservation

Historic Roadways Protection Act

INTRO JAN 14· LAST ACTION FEB 4

READING

4MIN

COSPONSORS

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Reported, not passed

LEGISLATIVE PROGRESS

STEP 3 / 8

Introduced

In Committee

Reported

Passed Senate

Passed House

Conference

To President

Became Law

WHAT THE BILL DOES

AI-written

This bill matters because it directly impacts how public lands in Utah are managed and accessed. If it becomes law, it would freeze federal efforts to regulate vehicle use on over a dozen significant public land areas in Utah. This could maintain current access levels for some users, but also potentially delay efforts to protect sensitive natural or cultural resources that new travel plans might address.

Without this bill, the Bureau of Land Management would continue developing and implementing travel management plans, potentially altering existing access to roads and trails. The bill ties the hands of federal managers until the legal status of historical roadways is resolved, highlighting a long-running dispute between the federal government and state/local governments over control and access to public lands, especially those with alleged historic routes under R.S. 2477. This debate affects how millions of acres of federal land are used by the public.

KEY PROVISIONS

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PROVISION 01

Prohibits the use of federal funds by the Secretary of the Interior to finalize or implement new travel management plans for ten specific areas in Utah.

This stops federal land managers from making or putting into action new rules about vehicle access on significant public lands in Utah.

PROVISION 02

Prohibits the use of federal funds to implement four specific existing travel management plans in Utah.

This prevents existing plans related to public land access from being put into practice, maintaining the status quo in those areas.

PROVISION 03

The prohibition on funding lasts until all 22 identified R.S. 2477 lawsuits in Utah are settled in court.

This ties federal land management decisions to the resolution of complex legal battles over historic roadway claims, potentially for an extended period.

SPONSORSHIP

1 + 1

COSPONSOR BREAKDOWNBIPARTISAN · 0%

DEM 0 REP 1 IND 0

ACTION TIMELINE

4 EVENTS

FEB 4

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.

COMMITTEE

DEC 2

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 119-237.

COMMITTEE

JAN 14

Introduced in Senate

INTROREFERRAL

JAN 14

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

INTROREFERRAL

BILL INFO

TypeSenate Bill

NumberS 90

Congress119th

StatusReported

IntroducedJan 14, 2025

Last actionFeb 4, 2026

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REPORTED· 119TH CONGRESS · ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMITTEE · INTRODUCED JAN 14, 2025

Senate BillS 90UtahLand use and conservation

Historic Roadways Protection Act

INTRODUCED JAN 14, 2025· LAST ACTION FEB 4, 2026

PASSAGE CHANCES

—%

READING

4 min

COSPONSORS

COMPLEXITY

Moderate

Call my reps Congress.gov

LEGISLATIVE PROGRESS

STEP 3 OF 8

Introduced

In Committee

Reported

Passed Senate

Passed House

Conference

To President

Became Law

Introduced
In Committee
Reported
Passed Senate
Passed House
Conference
To President
Became Law

WHAT THE BILL DOES

AI-written

KEY PROVISIONS

AI-extracted

high

Prohibits the use of federal funds by the Secretary of the Interior to finalize or implement new travel management plans for ten specific areas in Utah.

This stops federal land managers from making or putting into action new rules about vehicle access on significant public lands in Utah.

high

Prohibits the use of federal funds to implement four specific existing travel management plans in Utah.

This prevents existing plans related to public land access from being put into practice, maintaining the status quo in those areas.

high

The prohibition on funding lasts until all 22 identified R.S. 2477 lawsuits in Utah are settled in court.

This ties federal land management decisions to the resolution of complex legal battles over historic roadway claims, potentially for an extended period.

DEADLINES & DATES

AI-extracted

An AI model extracted this from the bill’s official record and can make mistakes. Check the official text ↗ (opens in new tab)

Ongoing until all R.S. 2477 cases are adjudicated

Prohibition on funding ends when the Secretary certifies to Congress that all R.S. 2477 cases listed in the bill have been decided by the courts.

GLOSSARY

AI-written

Secretary of the Interior: The head of the U.S. Department of the Interior, which manages most federal lands and natural resources.
Travel Management Plan: A document developed by federal agencies like the Bureau of Land Management that outlines where motorized and non-motorized travel is allowed on public lands, including roads, trails, and open areas.
R.S. 2477 cases: Lawsuits related to a repealed 1866 law (Revised Statute 2477) that allowed for the construction of highways over public lands. States and counties use this law to claim rights to historical roads and trails across federal lands, often leading to disputes over public access and federal jurisdiction.
Bureau of Land Management (BLM): A federal agency within the Department of the Interior responsible for managing over 245 million acres of public land, primarily in the Western United States, for multiple uses such as recreation, grazing, mining, and conservation.
Adjudicated: When a legal dispute or case has been formally judged or decided by a court or other legal authority.

ACTION TIMELINE

4 EVENTS

FEB 4

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.

COMMITTEE

DEC 2, 25

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 119-237.

COMMITTEE

JAN 14, 25

Introduced in Senate

INTROREFERRAL

JAN 14, 25

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

INTROREFERRAL

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Committee Referrals

Energy and Natural Resources CommitteeReferred

Feb 4, 2026

senate

Related Hearings

Business meeting to consider S.90, to prohibit the use of funds by the Secretary of the Interior to finalize and implement certain travel management plans in the State of Utah, S.91, to improve Federal activities relating to wildfires, S.290, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to upgrade existing emergency communications centers in units of the National Park System to Next Generation 9-1-1 systems, S.291, to establish an interest-bearing account for the non-Federal contributions to the Lower Colorado River Multi-Species Conservation Program, S.365, to amend the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act to allow for additional entities to be eligible to complete the maintenance work on Bolts Ditch and the Bolts Ditch Headgate within the Holy Cross Wilderness, Colorado, S.446, to prohibit Big Cypress National Preserve from being designated as wilderness or as a component of the National Wilderness Preservation System, S.700 and H.R.837, bills to require the Secretary of Agriculture to convey the Pleasant Valley Ranger District Administrative Site to Gila County, Arizona, S.730, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study to assess the suitability and feasibility of establishing the African Burial Ground International Memorial Museum and Educational Center at the African Burial Ground National Monument, S.790, to redesignate the National Historic Trails Interpretive Center in Casper, Wyoming, as the "Barbara L. Cubin National Historic Trails Interpretive Center", S.791, to establish the Justice Thurgood Marshall National Historic Site in the State of Maryland as an affiliated area of the National Park System, S.815, to designate the outdoor amphitheater at the Blue Ridge Music Center in Galax, Virginia, as the "Rick Boucher Amphitheater", S.1319, to withdraw certain Federal land in the Pecos Watershed area of the State of New Mexico from mineral entry, S.1321, to amend the Strom Thurmond National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1999 to provide for the transfer of the Moab site to Grand County, Utah, S.1341, to amend the Colorado Wilderness Act of 1993 to add certain land to the Sarvis Creek Wilderness, S.1353, to extend the authority for modifications to the Second Division Memorial in the District of Columbia, S.1413, to authorize additional funding for the San Joaquin River Restoration Settlement Act, S.1476, to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate certain segments of the Gila River system in the State of New Mexico as components of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, to provide for the transfer of administrative jurisdiction over certain Federal land in the State of New Mexico, S.1516, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study of the Cahokia Mounds, Emerald Mounds, and Pulcher Mounds in the State of Illinois, S.1518 and H.R.1550, bills to redesignate Saratoga National Historical Park as Saratoga National Battlefield Park, S.1777, to amend the California Desert Protection Act of 1994 to expand the boundary of Joshua Tree National Park, to redesignate the Cottonwood Visitor Center at Joshua Tree National Park as the "Dianne Feinstein Visitor Center", S.1870, to adjust the boundary of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area to include the Rim of the Valley Corridor, S.2102, to establish the Ralph David Abernathy, Sr., National Historic Site, and S.2881, to provide for the transfer of administrative jurisdiction over certain Federal land in the State of California.

Energy and Natural Resources Committee (senate)Feb 4, 2026

Video

Hearings to examine S.90, to prohibit the use of funds by the Secretary of the Interior to finalize and implement certain travel management plans in the State of Utah, S.91, to improve Federal activities relating to wildfires, S.140, to address the forest health crisis on the National Forest System and public lands, S.451, to amend the Mineral Leasing Act to eliminate an administrative fee, S.764, to provide for the designation of certain wilderness areas, recreation management areas, and conservation areas in the State of Colorado, S.790, to redesignate the National Historic Trails Interpretive Center in Casper, Wyoming, as the "Barbara L. Cubin National Historic Trails Interpretive Center", S.888, to designate certain land administered by the Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service in the State of Oregon as wilderness and national recreation areas, to withdraw certain land located in Curry County and Josephine County, Oregon, from all forms of entry, appropriation, or disposal under the public land laws, location, entry, and patent under the mining laws, and operation under the mineral leasing and geothermal leasing laws, S.902, to require the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior to establish a standard for the response time to wildfire incidents, S.945, to amend the Smith River National Recreation Area Act to include certain additions to the Smith River National Recreation Area, to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate certain wild rivers in the State of Oregon, S.1005, to provide for conservation and economic development in the State of Nevada, S.1175, to amend section 6903 of title 31, United States Code, to provide for additional population tiers, S.1195, to promote conservation, improve public land management, and provide for sensible development in Pershing County, Nevada, S.1228, to amend the Public Lands Corps Act of 1993 to modify the cost-sharing requirement for conservation projects carried out by a qualified youth or conservation corps, S.1319, to withdraw certain Federal land in the Pecos Watershed area of the State of New Mexico from mineral entry, S.1341, to amend the Colorado Wilderness Act of 1993 to add certain land to the Sarvis Creek Wilderness, S.1321, to amend the Strom Thurmond National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1999 to provide for the transfer of the Moab site to Grand County, Utah, S.1363, to provide for greater cooperation and coordination between the Federal Government and the governing bodies and community users of land grant-mercedes in New Mexico relating to historical or traditional uses of certain land grant-mercedes on Federal public land, S.1468, to amend the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act to provide that Alexander Creek, Incorporated, is recognized as a Village Corporation under that Act, S.1476, to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate certain segments of the Gila River system in the State of New Mexico as components of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, to provide for the transfer of administrative jurisdiction over certain Federal land in the State of New Mexico, S.1737, to designate and expand wilderness areas in Olympic National Forest in the State of Washington, and to designate certain rivers in Olympic National Forest and Olympic National Park as wild and scenic rivers, S.1860, to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to convey to Brian Head Town, Utah, certain National Forest System land, S.2016, to exchange non-Federal land held by the Chugach Alaska Corporation for certain Federal Land in the Chugach Region, S.2033, to direct the Comptroller General of the United States to conduct a study on existing programs, rules, and authorities that enable or inhibit wildfire mitigation across land ownership boundaries on Federal and non-Federal land, S.2042, to provide lasting protection for inventoried roadless areas within the National Forest System, S.2262, to amend the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 to clarify the nature of public investment for purposes of certain rulemaking, and S.2273, to amend the Act of July 10, 1890, to modify certain provisions relating to the disposal of public land in the State of Wyoming for educational purposes.

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Historic Roadways Protection Act

LEGISLATIVE PROGRESS

WHAT THE BILL DOES

KEY PROVISIONS

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Historic Roadways Protection Act

LEGISLATIVE PROGRESS

WHAT THE BILL DOES

KEY PROVISIONS

DEADLINES & DATES

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