HR3421-119

Introduced

To designate certain special management areas, wildlife conservation areas, protection areas, recreation areas, wilderness areas, and a scientific research and education area in the State of Colorado, and for other purposes.

119th Congress Introduced May 15, 2025

Analysis under review: This bill has generated analysis that may be too generic or incomplete. Clause-level evidence remains available below.

Summary

What This Bill Does

The bill defines 18 key terms used throughout the Gunnison Outdoor Resources Protection Act, including collaboratively developed projects, covered areas, decommission process, ecological integrity, off-highway vehicles, creates designates 9 Special Management Areas totaling over 200,000 acres in Gunnison County managed by Forest Service and BLM, with management focused on ecological integrity, collaborative projects, and road, and creates designates 7 Wildlife Conservation Areas in Gunnison County totaling over 150,000 acres, with primary purpose of conserving habitat for native wildlife including Gunnison sage-grouse, mule deer, and elk. It relies on land designation, mandate, prohibition, and definition. The main policy areas are Social Welfare, Energy, Public Lands, and Environment.

Who Benefits and How

Wildlife and ecosystems in Gunnison County could see lower costs, Wilderness ecosystems and wildlife habitat could see lower costs, and Ute Mountain Ute Tribe could gain revenue opportunities.

Who Bears the Burden and How

Oil and gas industry could face higher barriers, Mining, oil and gas, and timber industries could face higher barriers, and Mining and mineral interests could face higher barriers.

Key Provisions

  • Defines 18 key terms used throughout the Gunnison Outdoor Resources Protection Act, including collaboratively developed projects, covered areas, decommission process, ecological integrity, off-highway vehicles...
  • Creates designates 9 Special Management Areas totaling over 200,000 acres in Gunnison County managed by Forest Service and BLM, with management focused on ecological integrity, collaborative projects, and road...
  • Creates designates 7 Wildlife Conservation Areas in Gunnison County totaling over 150,000 acres, with primary purpose of conserving habitat for native wildlife including Gunnison sage-grouse, mule deer, and elk.
  • Creates designates 2 Recreation Management Areas (Double Top and Horse Ranch Park) totaling about 18,000 acres with specific rules for off-highway vehicle use, over-snow vehicle restrictions, and recreation...
  • Expands designates approximately 48,000 acres of new wilderness through additions to existing wilderness areas and 6 new wilderness designations under the Colorado Wilderness Act of 1993.

Evidence Chain:

This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.

At a Glance

What This Bill Does

The bill defines 18 key terms used throughout the Gunnison Outdoor Resources Protection Act, including collaboratively developed projects, covered areas, decommission process, ecological integrity, off-highway vehicles, creates designates 9 Special Management Areas totaling over 200,000 acres in Gunnison County managed by Forest Service and BLM, with management focused on ecological integrity, collaborative projects, and road, and creates designates 7 Wildlife Conservation Areas in Gunnison County totaling over 150,000 acres, with primary purpose of conserving habitat for native wildlife including Gunnison sage-grouse, mule deer, and elk.

Key Policy Areas

Social Welfare, Energy, Public Lands, Environment

Primary Purpose

The bill defines 18 key terms used throughout the Gunnison Outdoor Resources Protection Act, including collaboratively developed projects, covered areas, decommission process, ecological integrity, off-highway vehicles, creates designates 9 Special Management Areas totaling over 200,000 acres in Gunnison County managed by Forest Service and BLM, with management focused on ecological integrity, collaborative projects, and road, and creates designates 7 Wildlife Conservation Areas in Gunnison County totaling over 150,000 acres, with primary purpose of conserving habitat for native wildlife including Gunnison sage-grouse, mule deer, and elk.

Policy Domains

Social Welfare Energy Public Lands Environment

Land Designations (Sections 3-8)

Identified Gains
  • Wildlife and ecosystems in Gunnison County
  • Wilderness ecosystems and wildlife habitat
  • Ute Mountain Ute Tribe
  • North Fork Valley watershed and environment
  • Native wildlife (sage-grouse, mule deer, elk)
Model: codex-gpt-5:bulk-repair | Version: bill_summary_v2 | Source: ih
Ute Mountain Ute Tribe:
Wilderness ecosystems and wildlife habitat:
Wildlife and ecosystems in Gunnison County:
North Fork Valley watershed and environment:
Native wildlife (sage-grouse, mule deer, elk):
Identified Costs
  • Oil and gas industry
  • Mining, oil and gas, and timber industries
  • Mining and mineral interests
  • Motorized recreation users
  • Mining and mineral extraction companies
Model: codex-gpt-5:bulk-repair | Version: bill_summary_v2 | Source: ih
Oil and gas industry:
Motorized recreation users:
Mining and mineral interests:
Mining and mineral extraction companies:
Mining, oil and gas, and timber industries:

Legislative Progress

Introduced
Introduced Committee Passed
May 15, 2025

Mr. Hurd of Colorado introduced the following bill; which was …

Stakeholder Effects

cui bono?

How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.

Recreation & Tourism
7 mentions across 5 clauses
+4 positive -2 negative ~1 mixed

Motorized boat recreation operators (Gunnison Gorge), Motorized recreation users, Off-highway vehicle users

Positive-direction: Motorized boat recreation operators (Gunnison Gorge), Outdoor recreation users, Outdoor recreation users (hikers, cyclists, snowmobilers), Wilderness recreation users (hikers, backpackers)

Negative-direction: Motorized recreation users, Off-highway vehicle users

Government
5 mentions across 5 clauses
+1 positive -3 negative ?1 uncertain

Federal land managers (Forest Service and BLM), Forest Service, Forest Service and BLM

Positive-direction: State wildlife management agencies

Negative-direction: Federal land managers (Forest Service and BLM), Forest Service, Forest Service and BLM

Mining
5 mentions across 5 clauses
+1 positive -4 negative

Coal mine methane capture operators, Mining and development interests, Mining and mineral extraction companies

Positive-direction: Coal mine methane capture operators

Negative-direction: Mining and development interests, Mining and mineral extraction companies, Mining and mineral interests, Mining, oil and gas, and timber industries

Environment
4 mentions across 4 clauses
+4 positive

Native wildlife (sage-grouse, mule deer, elk), North Fork Valley watershed and environment, Wilderness ecosystems and wildlife habitat

Agriculture
2 mentions across 2 clauses
+1 positive ~1 mixed

Existing grazing permittees, Livestock grazing permittees

Real Estate
1 mention across 1 clause
?1 uncertain

Private landowners in covered areas

Tribal Nations
1 mention across 1 clause
+1 positive

Ute Mountain Ute Tribe

Gambling & Casinos
1 mention across 1 clause
-1 negative

Gaming industry

8/11
sections analyzed
Full impact breakdown

Bill Structure & Actor Mappings

Who is "The Secretary" in each section?

Domains
Social Welfare Energy Public Lands Environment
Actor Mappings
"the_secretary"
→ Secretary of Agriculture (Forest Service land) or Secretary of the Interior (BLM land)
Domains
Energy Environment
Actor Mappings
"the_secretary"
→ Secretary of the Interior
Domains
Tribal Affairs Public Lands
Actor Mappings
"the_secretary"
→ Secretary of the Interior

Note: The Secretary refers to different officials depending on whether the land is managed by the Forest Service (Secretary of Agriculture) or BLM (Secretary of the Interior)

Key Definitions

Terms defined in this bill

4 terms
"collaboratively developed" §2(1)

Project developed through a transparent, nonexclusive collaborative process with diverse interests or meeting resource advisory committee requirements

"covered area" §2(3)

Each of the Special Management Areas, Wildlife Conservation Areas, Protection Areas, Recreation Management Areas, and the Scientific Research and Education Area

"decommission" §2(4)

Reestablishing native vegetation, restoring drainage/watershed function, blocking vehicular traffic, and monitoring for invasive species

"ecological integrity" §2(5)

As defined in 36 CFR 219.19

We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.

Learn more about our methodology