San Gabriel Mountains, Foothills, and Rivers Protection Act of 2025
Summary
What This Bill Does
The San Gabriel Mountains, Foothills, and Rivers Protection Act designates federal land in the Angeles National Forest as wilderness and adds other land to existing San Gabriel wilderness protections. The bill requires the Secretary of Agriculture to administer those areas under the Wilderness Act, subject to valid existing rights, while preserving authority for fire, insect, and disease control. It adds three San Gabriel River segments to the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act study list: a 12.7-mile East Fork segment, a 4.3-mile North Fork segment, and an 8.3-mile West Fork segment. It requires the Forest Service to prepare maps and legal descriptions, keep them available for public inspection, and update Angeles National Forest land and resource management plans to reflect the designations and studies. It also permits special use authorizations for existing water transport or diversion facilities in the Pleasant View Ridge Wilderness if statutory conditions are met.
Who Benefits and How
Conservation organizations, hikers, anglers, wildlife users, and nearby communities benefit from stronger protection of San Gabriel mountain lands and river corridors. Public land visitors benefit from wilderness management that limits development and preserves scenic, ecological, and recreation values. Water facility owners in Pleasant View Ridge Wilderness benefit because the bill preserves a pathway to continue operating, maintaining, and reconstructing preexisting water transport or diversion facilities. Forest Service planners benefit from specific map, legal-description, and management-plan directions.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Forest Service staff must administer new wilderness areas, complete maps and legal descriptions, update management plans, and evaluate water-facility special use authorizations. New road builders, developers, and mineral or extractive users face tighter limits in newly designated wilderness areas. Water facility owners must satisfy special-use authorization conditions. Federal taxpayers fund mapping, planning, administration, and public inspection work.
Key Provisions
- Designates new San Gabriel Mountains wilderness areas and additions to the National Wilderness Preservation System.
- Requires Forest Service administration under the Wilderness Act while preserving fire, insect, and disease control.
- Adds East Fork, North Fork, and West Fork San Gabriel River segments for Wild and Scenic Rivers study.
- Requires maps, legal descriptions, public inspection files, and Angeles National Forest management-plan updates.
- Authorizes continued operation, maintenance, and reconstruction of qualifying Pleasant View Ridge water facilities.
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
Designates new wilderness areas and additions in the San Gabriel Mountains region, directs Forest Service wilderness administration, adds East Fork, North Fork, and West Fork San Gabriel River segments for Wild and Scenic Rivers study, requires maps and management-plan updates, and allows continued water-facility authorization in Pleasant View Ridge Wilderness.
Key Policy Areas
Public Lands, Conservation, Water Infrastructure, Forest Service
Primary Purpose
Designates new wilderness areas and additions in the San Gabriel Mountains region, directs Forest Service wilderness administration, adds East Fork, North Fork, and West Fork San Gabriel River segments for Wild and Scenic Rivers study, requires maps and management-plan updates, and allows continued water-facility authorization in Pleasant View Ridge Wilderness.
Policy Domains
Substantive provisions
Identified Gains
- Conservation organizations
- Public land visitors
- Hikers
- Anglers
- Nearby communities
- Water facility owners
Identified Costs
- Forest Service land managers
- New road builders
- Developers on protected lands
- Mineral lease applicants
- Water facility owners
- Federal taxpayers
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
In CommitteeMs. Chu (for herself, Ms. Barragán, Ms. Brownley, Mr. Carbajal, …
Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
Introduced in House
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Fire management crews, Forest Service land managers, Forest Service mapping staff
Positive-direction: Fire management crews
Negative-direction: Forest Service land managers, Forest Service mapping staff, Forest Service permit staff, Forest Service planning staff, Forest Service study staff, Forest Service wilderness managers
Conservation organizations, River conservation advocates
Downstream water users, Water facility owners, Water users near studied segments
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "agencies"
- → ['Forest Service', 'Department of Agriculture']
- "affected_groups"
- → ['Conservation organizations', 'Public land visitors', 'Water facility owners', 'Developers on protected lands', 'Federal taxpayers']
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