Colorado Outdoor Recreation and Economy Act
Summary
What This Bill Does
The bill adds approximately 31,000 acres of federal land to existing wilderness areas in Colorado, including additions to Ptarmigan Peak, Holy Cross, Eagles Nest wilderness areas and creates new Hoosier Ridge and Tenmile, exempts designates 8,036 acres in White River National Forest as potential wilderness area with provisions for continued livestock grazing determinations on Big Hole and Blue Ridge Allotments, and requires designates 8,287 acres as Porcupine Gulch Wildlife Conservation Area to protect wildlife migration corridor over Interstate 70, prohibiting motorized vehicles and mechanized transport except for administration. It relies on definition changes, compliance mandates, exemptions, and tax credits. The main policy areas are Energy, Environment, Social Welfare, and Recreation.
Who Benefits and How
Conservation groups could gain revenue opportunities, Wildlife and habitat conservation could gain revenue opportunities, and Indian Tribes in Colorado could face lower compliance burdens.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Motorized recreation users could face higher barriers, Timber industry could face higher barriers, and Bureau of Land Management would take on compliance duties.
Key Provisions
- Adds approximately 31,000 acres of federal land to existing wilderness areas in Colorado, including additions to Ptarmigan Peak, Holy Cross, Eagles Nest wilderness areas and creates new Hoosier Ridge and Tenmile...
- Exempts designates 8,036 acres in White River National Forest as potential wilderness area with provisions for continued livestock grazing determinations on Big Hole and Blue Ridge Allotments.
- Requires designates 8,287 acres as Porcupine Gulch Wildlife Conservation Area to protect wildlife migration corridor over Interstate 70, prohibiting motorized vehicles and mechanized transport except for administration...
- Requires designates 3,528 acres as Williams Fork Mountains Wildlife Conservation Area, limiting motorized vehicle use to designated roads and trails and prohibiting new road construction except for administration.
- Requires designates 2,674 acres as Spraddle Creek Wildlife Conservation Area with prohibition on motorized vehicles and mechanized transport, and no new road construction except temporary roads for vegetation management.
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 adds approximately 31,000 acres of federal land to existing wilderness areas in Colorado, including additions to Ptarmigan Peak, Holy Cross, Eagles Nest wilderness areas and creates new Hoosier Ridge and Tenmile, exempts designates 8,036 acres in White River National Forest as potential wilderness area with provisions for continued livestock grazing determinations on Big Hole and Blue Ridge Allotments, and requires designates 8,287 acres as Porcupine Gulch Wildlife Conservation Area to protect wildlife migration corridor over Interstate 70, prohibiting motorized vehicles and mechanized transport except for administration.
Key Policy Areas
Energy, Environment, Social Welfare, Recreation
Primary Purpose
The bill adds approximately 31,000 acres of federal land to existing wilderness areas in Colorado, including additions to Ptarmigan Peak, Holy Cross, Eagles Nest wilderness areas and creates new Hoosier Ridge and Tenmile, exempts designates 8,036 acres in White River National Forest as potential wilderness area with provisions for continued livestock grazing determinations on Big Hole and Blue Ridge Allotments, and requires designates 8,287 acres as Porcupine Gulch Wildlife Conservation Area to protect wildlife migration corridor over Interstate 70, prohibiting motorized vehicles and mechanized transport except for administration.
Policy Domains
Title I - Continental Divide Recreation, Wilderness, and Camp Hale Legacy Act
Identified Gains
- Conservation groups
- Wildlife and habitat conservation
- Indian Tribes in Colorado
- National Park Service
- Colorado state government
Identified Costs
- Motorized recreation users
- Timber industry
- Bureau of Land Management
- Forest Service
- National Park Service
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
In CommitteeCommittee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands, …
Mr. Bennet (for himself and Mr. Hickenlooper) introduced the following …
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and …
Introduced in Senate
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, Forest Service
Bureau of Land Management, Forest Service, National Park Service face effects in multiple directions
Conservation and environmental groups, Conservation groups, Wildlife and habitat conservation
Backcountry recreation businesses, Motorized recreation users, Motorized recreation users (ATVs, snowmobiles)
Positive-direction: Backcountry recreation businesses, Outdoor recreation businesses, Tourism and recreation businesses
Negative-direction: Motorized recreation users, Motorized recreation users (ATVs, snowmobiles), Mountain biking organizations
Methane capture and utilization companies, Mining and extraction industries, Mining companies
Positive-direction: Methane capture and utilization companies, Oil and gas companies with Thompson Divide leases
Negative-direction: Mining and extraction industries, Mining companies
Timber and logging companies, Timber industry
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Agriculture (Forest Service)
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Agriculture (Forest Service)
- "the_secretary_interior"
- → Secretary of the Interior
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of the Interior
- "director_nps"
- → Director of the National Park Service
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of the Interior
- "commissioner_reclamation"
- → Commissioner of Reclamation
Note: 'The Secretary' refers to Secretary of Agriculture in Titles I and II but Secretary of the Interior in Titles III and IV
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
Methane gas from Federal land in Garfield, Gunnison, Delta, or Pitkin County that would leak or be vented into the atmosphere from active/inactive coal mines subject to Federal coal leases or abandoned underground coal mines
The Greater Thompson Divide Fugitive Coal Mine Methane Use Pilot Program established by section 305(a)(1)
Any oil or gas lease in effect on the date of enactment within the Thompson Divide Withdrawal and Protection Area, excluding leases associated with Wolf Creek Storage Field development rights
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