S. 2262

119 S2262 IS: American Voices in Federal Lands Act
 U.S. Senate
 2025-07-10
 text/xml
 EN
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  II
  119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
  S. 2262
  IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
  July 10, 2025
  Mr. Barrasso  (for himself,  Ms. Lummis ,  Mr.
  Crapo ,  Mr. Risch , and
  Mr. Curtis ) introduced the following bill;
  which was read twice and referred to the  Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
  A BILL
To amend the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 to clarify the
  nature of public involvement for purposes of certain rulemaking, and for other
  purposes.
1.
Short title
This Act may be cited as the   American Voices in Federal Lands Act  .
2.
Public involvement in certain public land rulemaking
(a)
Definition of public involvement
Section 103(d) of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 ( 43 U.S.C. 1702(d) ) is amended by striking  citizens  and inserting  citizens of the United States, in accordance with section 310(d), as applicable, .
(b)
Public involvement relating to certain rules and regulations
Section 310 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 ( 43 U.S.C. 1740 ) is amended to read as follows:
310.
Rules and regulations
(a)
Authorization
(1)
Secretary
Subject to subsection (d), the Secretary, with respect to public lands, shall promulgate rules and regulations to carry out the purposes of—
(A)
this Act; and
(B)
other laws applicable to public lands.
(2)
Secretary of Agriculture
The Secretary of Agriculture, with respect to land in the National Forest System, shall promulgate rules and regulations to carry out the purposes of this Act.
(b)
Requirement
The promulgation of rules and regulations pursuant to this section shall be in accordance with  chapter 5  of title 5, United States Code, without regard to section 553(a)(2) of that title.
(c)
Absence of regulation
Before the promulgation of a rule or regulation pursuant to this section with respect to public lands or land in the National Forest System, the applicable land shall be administered under existing rules and regulations concerning the land, to the maximum extent practicable.
(d)
Public involvement relating to Bureau land
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, with respect to public lands managed by the Bureau, the Secretary—
(1)
in promulgating any applicable regulations pursuant to this or any other Act, may take into consideration only public comments received from citizens of the United States; and
(2)
in any public involvement under this Act or any other provision of law (including regulations), shall establish and implement a process commonly known as  Completely Automated Public Test to tell Computers and Humans Apart (CAPTCHA)  to deter attempts at public involvement via artificial intelligence.
  .