H.R. 177

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 177 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 177

To amend the Act of December 19, 1913 (38 Stat. 242), to expand access 
to the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and Lake Eleanor Basin areas for 
recreational purposes, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

January 3, 2025

Mr. McClintock (for himself, Mr. Calvert, Mr. LaMalfa, and Mr. Valadao) 
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To amend the Act of December 19, 1913 (38 Stat. 242), to expand access 
to the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and Lake Eleanor Basin areas for 
recreational purposes, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Yosemite National Park Equal Access 
and Fairness Act''.

SEC. 2. EXPANSION OF ACCESS TO HETCH HETCHY RESERVOIR AND LAKE ELEANOR 
BASIN AREAS FOR RECREATIONAL PURPOSES.

(a) In General.--The Act of December 19, 1913 (38 Stat. 242), is 
amended--
(1) in section 7--
(A) in the first sentence--
(i) by striking ``$30,000'' and inserting 
``$2,000,000''; and
(ii) by inserting ``and adjusted annually 
to reflect increases in the Consumer Price 
Index for All Urban Consumers'' after ``July of 
each year'';
(B) by inserting ``The grantee may not recoup said 
sums from wholesale water or power customers of the 
grantee.'' after the first sentence; and
(C) in the second sentence, by inserting ``and 
wildfire mitigation activities'' after ``other 
improvements''; and
(2) by inserting after section 11 the following:

``SEC. 12. RECREATIONAL ACTIVITY.

``(a) In General.--The Secretary of the Interior, acting through 
the Director of the National Park Service (in this section referred to 
as the `Secretary'), shall administer the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and 
Lake Eleanor Basin areas--
``(1) for public recreation, benefit, and use;
``(2) to the extent practicable, in a manner that will 
preserve, develop, and enhance the public recreation capacity 
of each such area; and
``(3) in a manner that will preserve the features of each 
such area that are scenic, historic, scientific, or otherwise 
important.
``(b) Recreational Activities.--Subject to such limitations, 
conditions, and regulations as the Secretary determines necessary, the 
following activities shall be allowed within the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir 
and Lake Eleanor Basin areas for recreational purposes if such 
activities are not inconsistent with the designated primary or 
recreational use of each such area:
``(1) Swimming.
``(2) Use of non-motorized watercraft.
``(3) Camping in and around each such area if such camping 
is not below the respective ordinary high-water marks of each 
such area.
``(4) Picnicking in and around each such area.
``(5) Other recreational activities the Secretary 
determines appropriate.
``(6) Use by motorized and non-motorized vehicles of roads 
required to access each such area to conduct activities 
described in this subsection if such use has no negative effect 
on the operation or maintenance of any facility associated with 
a dam within each such area.''.
(b) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 
of this section, the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the 
Director of the National Park Service, shall submit to the appropriate 
congressional committees a report that includes the following:
(1) An analysis of whether the original intent in the Act 
of December 19, 1913 (38 Stat. 242), regarding access to the 
Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and Lake Eleanor Basin areas for 
recreational purposes has been followed since such areas were 
created.
(2) An analysis of how revenue collection and the 
allocation of funds related to the administration of the Hetch 
Hetchy Reservoir and Lake Eleanor Basin areas can be carried 
out to best provide equitable access to such areas for 
recreational purposes by the public, including consideration 
of--
(A) maintenance and support costs of such areas, 
including--
(i) trail maintenance;
(ii) road improvements; and
(iii) wildfire prevention and suppression; 
and
(B) ways to mitigate such costs, including--
(i) adjusting the prices charged for water 
and power generated by the Hetch Hetchy Water 
and Power System created by the Act of December 
19, 1913 (38 Stat. 242);
(ii) treating the City of San Francisco as 
a concessioner; and
(iii) adding to the annual rental fee 
charged to the City of San Francisco by section 
7 of the Act of December 19, 1913 (38 Stat. 
242), the annual monetary value of the benefits 
that would be lost if such areas had not been 
created, including consideration of--
(I) recreational activities; and
(II) flood control.
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