Letter signed by Reps. Huffman, Carbajal, Chu, and Schiff urges inclusion of public lands package in NDAA to increase protections for over 1 million acres of federal public lands in CA

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Dianne Feinstein (both D-Calif.) led a letter calling on House and Senate Armed Services Committee leaders to include the Protecting Unique and Beautiful Landscapes by Investing in California (PUBLIC) Lands Act and the Rim of the Valley Corridor Preservation Act in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2022. Both bills were included in the House NDAA in September and in a public lands package in February.

The letter was signed by Representatives Jared Huffman (CA-02), Judy Chu (CA-27), Salud Carbajal (CA-24), and Adam Schiff (CA-28).

“Collectively, our bicameral bills would increase protections for over 1 million acres of federal public lands throughout Northwest California, the Central Coast, and Los Angeles,” wrote the Members. “Our public lands bills are the result of decades of community engagement, and each enjoys the support of hundreds of local advocates, business leaders, and community groups who helped develop these proposals from the ground-up.”

“We respectfully and strongly urge you to support inclusion of a public lands package aligned with the House NDAA,” they continued. “Now is the time to advance these vital protections.”

The PUBLIC Lands Act, which Padilla introduced in the U.S. Senate earlier this year, would increase protections for public lands throughout Northwest California, the Central Coast, and Los Angeles. It would designate nearly 600,000 acres of new wilderness, more than 583 miles of new wild and scenic rivers, and expand an existing national monument by over 100,000 acres.

The PUBLIC Lands Act is a legislative package which consists of three bills that were originally introduced in the House of Representatives including:

• The Northwest California Wilderness, Recreation, and Working Forests Act, which is led in the House by Representative Huffman,
• The Central Coast Heritage Protection Act, which is led in the House by Representative Carbajal, and
• The San Gabriel Mountains Foothills and Rivers Protection Act, which is led in the House by Representative Chu.

The Rim of the Valley Corridor Preservation Act, introduced by Senator Feinstein in the U.S. Senate and led in the House by Representative Schiff, would expand the boundary of Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area by roughly 191,000 acres, increasing public land access for 47% of Californians who live within two hours of this area.

A copy of the letter can be viewed here and read below:

Dear Chairman Reed, Chairman Smith, Ranking Member Inhofe, and Ranking Member Rogers:

As you continue working towards the final Fiscal Year 2022 (FY22) National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), we request that you include our public lands bills in the final conference report. For the second year in a row and with bipartisan support, the House NDAA has included our public lands bills to protect special places in California.

Collectively, our bicameral bills would increase protections for over 1 million acres of federal public lands throughout Northwest California, the Central Coast, and Los Angeles. Our public lands bills are the result of decades of community engagement, and each enjoys the support of hundreds of local advocates, business leaders, and community groups who helped develop these proposals from the ground-up. They have now passed the House of Representatives four times, each time with bipartisan support. Our bills include:

• Northwest California Wilderness, Recreation, and Working Forests Act (S. 1492/H.R. 2250) to protect 262,000 acres of public lands as wilderness and increase wildfire resiliency.
• Central Coast Heritage Protection Act (S. 1492/H.R. 973) to protect 319,382 acres of public lands as wilderness and protect the region’s abundant biodiversity.
• San Gabriel Mountains Foothills and Rivers Protection Act (S. 1492/H.R. 693) to expand the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument by over 109,000 acres and designate over 30,000 acres as wilderness, providing park-poor communities access to our public lands. 
• Rim of the Valley Corridor Preservation Act (S. 1769/H.R. 1075) to expand the boundary of Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area by roughly 191,000 acres, increasing public land access for 47% of Californians who live within two hours of this area.

Our public lands are some of our nation’s and state’s greatest gifts – which is why we must be thoughtful stewards of these special places so that communities can continue to enjoy them and benefit from our rich natural heritage for generations to come. We respectfully and strongly urge you to support inclusion of a public lands package aligned with the House NDAA. Now is the time to advance these vital protections. Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

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