Continental Divide National Scenic Trail Completion Act
Summary
What This Bill Does
Subject to appropriations, the Agriculture and Interior Secretaries must seek to complete the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail as a continuous route within ten years. Within one year they must establish a joint Forest Service-Bureau of Land Management Trail Completion Team. The team coordinates with the trail administrator and consults federal agencies, state, Tribal, and local governments, landowners, land-grant merced owners and users, acequias, and other interested parties. Within three years after the team is formed, Agriculture must prepare a comprehensive plan identifying gaps, willing-seller easements, site-specific work, and costs. The agencies must seek nonprofit and volunteer agreements. The Act neither expands land-acquisition authority, including eminent domain, nor prioritizes trail purchases over other acquisitions.
Who Benefits and How
Continental Divide Trail users and gateway communities may benefit from a continuous, better planned route and associated recreation activity. Volunteer and nonprofit trail organizations gain formal partnership opportunities. Willing landowners, Tribal governments, land-grant communities, and acequias gain consultation and preservation of existing acquisition limits.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Forest Service and BLM staff must create and operate the joint team, consult affected parties, identify route gaps, estimate costs, and negotiate partnerships. Federal taxpayers may bear later completion costs subject to appropriations. Landowners and local communities may spend time on route and easement negotiations, but no new compulsory-acquisition power is created.
Key Provisions
- Requires the agencies to seek a continuous trail within ten years, subject to appropriations.
- Creates a joint Forest Service-BLM completion team within one year.
- Requires a comprehensive gap, easement, development, and cost plan within three years of team formation.
- Protects existing land-acquisition limits and relies on willing-seller easements and partnerships.
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
Directs Agriculture and Interior to pursue a continuous Continental Divide National Scenic Trail within ten years through a joint team, development plan, and partnerships.
Key Policy Areas
Public Lands, Outdoor Recreation, Intergovernmental Affairs
Primary Purpose
Directs Agriculture and Interior to pursue a continuous Continental Divide National Scenic Trail within ten years through a joint team, development plan, and partnerships.
Policy Domains
Continental Divide National Scenic Trail Completion Act
Identified Gains
- Continental Divide Trail users
- Gateway communities
- Volunteer trail organizations
- Willing landowners
- Tribal governments
- Land-grant merced communities
Identified Costs
- Forest Service trail staff
- Bureau of Land Management trail staff
- Federal taxpayers
- Local landowners
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
ReportedPlaced on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. …
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Reported by Senator Lee …
Reported by Mr. Lee, without amendment
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported …
Mr. Heinrich (for himself and Mr. Daines) introduced the following …
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and …
Introduced in Senate
Mr. Heinrich (for himself, Mr. Daines, Mr. Sheehy, and Mr. …
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Agriculture trail planners, Bureau of Land Management partnership staff, Bureau of Land Management trail staff
Positive-direction: Tribal governments along the trail
Negative-direction: Agriculture trail planners, Bureau of Land Management partnership staff, Bureau of Land Management trail staff, Forest Service partnership staff, Forest Service trail staff, Interior trail planners
Acequia users, Continental Divide Trail users, Land-grant merced communities
Nonprofit trail partners, Volunteer trail organizations
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "lead"
- → Secretary of Agriculture
- "team"
- → Joint Forest Service-Bureau of Land Management Trail Completion Team
- "partner"
- → Secretary of the Interior
- "affected_public"
- → Trail users, landowners, and consulted communities
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