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.
Analysis under review: This bill has generated analysis that may be too generic or incomplete. Clause-level evidence remains available below.
Summary
The Gunnison Outdoor Resources Protection Act of 2025 is a comprehensive public lands bill for Gunnison County, Colorado. It designates nine Special Management Areas (totaling over 200,000 acres) focused on ecological integrity and collaborative management, seven Wildlife Conservation Areas for habitat protection, two Protection Areas, and two Recreation Management Areas. It adds approximately 48,000 acres of new wilderness through additions to existing wilderness areas and six new wilderness designations under the Colorado Wilderness Act. It establishes the Rocky Mountain Scientific Research and Education Area to protect the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory. The bill withdraws federal land in the North Fork Valley from oil and gas leasing and imposes no-surface-occupancy restrictions on additional parcels, while allowing methane capture from active and abandoned coal mines. It directs the Secretary of the Interior to take approximately 19,080 acres of Ute Mountain Ute Tribe fee land into trust, with a prohibition on gaming. General provisions preserve existing grazing rights, state fish and wildlife jurisdiction, water rights, and tribal rights, while withdrawing covered and wilderness areas from mineral entry and disposal.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Designates special management areas, wildlife conservation areas, protection areas, recreation areas, wilderness areas, and a scientific research area in Gunnison County, Colorado, with oil and gas withdrawal provisions and land-in-trust for the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe
Who Benefits
- Wildlife and habitat in Gunnison County
- Outdoor recreation users
- Ute Mountain Ute Tribe (19,080 acres in trust)
Who Bears Costs
- Oil and gas industry (mineral leasing withdrawal in North Fork Valley)
- Mining interests (covered areas withdrawn from mineral entry)
- Off-highway vehicle users (restricted in certain areas)
Key Policy Areas
Public Lands, Environment, Wildlife Conservation, Tribal Affairs
Primary Purpose
Designates special management areas, wildlife conservation areas, protection areas, recreation areas, wilderness areas, and a scientific research area in Gunnison County, Colorado, with oil and gas withdrawal provisions and land-in-trust for the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Comprehensive land conservation package for Gunnison County that balances wilderness protection, recreation access, wildlife habitat, scientific research, energy withdrawal, and tribal sovereignty"
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
IntroducedMr. 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.
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
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
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
Native wildlife (sage-grouse, mule deer, elk), North Fork Valley watershed and environment, Wilderness ecosystems and wildlife habitat
Existing grazing permittees, Livestock grazing permittees
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Agriculture (Forest Service land) or Secretary of the Interior (BLM land)
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of the Interior
- "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
Project developed through a transparent, nonexclusive collaborative process with diverse interests or meeting resource advisory committee requirements
Each of the Special Management Areas, Wildlife Conservation Areas, Protection Areas, Recreation Management Areas, and the Scientific Research and Education Area
Reestablishing native vegetation, restoring drainage/watershed function, blocking vehicular traffic, and monitoring for invasive species
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