Rio Grande Natural Area Act
Public Law 109-337 · S. 56 · 109th Congress · began in the Senate
Signed by George W. Bush (R) on Oct 12, 2006 · Public Lands and Natural Resources
Sponsor: Sen. Wayne Allard (R-CO)
Cosponsors (1): Sen. Ken Salazar
Passage votes
- HouseVoice vote
- SenateUnanimous consent
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
Rio Grande Natural Area Act - (Sec. 3) Establishes the Rio Grande Natural Area in Colorado (which shall include the Rio Grande River from the southern boundary of the Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge to the New Mexico State border, extending 1/4 mile on either side of the bank of the River) to conserve, restore, and protect the natural, historic, cultural, scientific, scenic, wildlife, and recreational resources of the Area.
(Sec. 4) Establishes the Rio Grande Natural Area Commission to: (1) advise the Secretary of the Interior with respect to the Area; and (2) prepare a management plan relating to nonfederal land in the Area.
(Sec. 5) Sets forth provisions governing the powers of the Commission, including authorizing the Commission to enter into cooperative agreements for purposes of carrying out such management plan on nonfederal land in the Area. Prohibits the Commission from acquiring any real property or interest in real property.
Directs the Commission to assist the Secretary in implementing such management plan by carrying out authorized activities to preserve and interpret the Area's natural, historic, cultural, scientific, scenic, wildlife, and recreational resources.
(Sec. 6) Directs the Secretary to prepare a management plan for Federal land in the Area. Requires the Commission to submit its management plan for the management of the nonfederal land in the Area to the Secretary for approval or disapproval.
(Sec. 7) Requires the Secretary to administer the Federal land in the Area in accordance with the laws applicable to public land and the management plan in a manner that provides for: (1) education, scientific study, and limited public recreation; (2) the protection of the wildlife habitat; (3) a prohibition on the construction of water storage facilities; and (4) the reduction in the use or removal of roads in the Area.
Encourages the Secretary to negotiate with the State, the Rio Grande Water Conservation District, and affected water users concerning changes in the streamflow.
Applies the management plan for the nonfederal land to private land in the Area only if the private landowner agrees to be bound by such plan.
Permits the Secretary to acquire land or an interest in land within the Area from willing sellers.
Makes inapplicable Wild and Scenic Rivers Act requirements that Federal agencies consider potential national wild, scenic, and recreational river areas in water and land use planning.
(Sec. 8) Prohibits anything in this Act from: (1) modifying the Rio Grande Compact; (2) regulating private land; (3) imposing any mandatory streamflow requirements; (4) creating an express or implied Federal reserved water right; (5) imposing more restrictive Federal water quality standards; or (6) preventing State acquisition of an instream flow to assist in protecting the natural environment.
(Sec. 9) Authorizes appropriations.
(Sec. 10) Terminates the Commission ten years after the enactment of this Act.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Natural Resources Committee · House · referred toSubcommittee: Forests and Forest Health Subcommittee
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Related bills
The record lists no related bills.
Data notes
Related bills are identified by the Congressional Research Service, the House and the Senate: companion and identical bills, bills with similar text, bills that were folded into this law, and rules that brought it to the floor. A bill that is itself a public law in this site’s data links here; the others link to Congress.gov.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 21 actions.
- Oct 12, 2006Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 109-337.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- Oct 2, 2006FloorFloor · Presented to President.
- Sep 27, 2006FloorFloor · Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- FloorFloor · On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote.
- FloorFloor · DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on S. 56.
- FloorFloor · Considered under suspension of the rules.
- FloorFloor · Mr. Gohmert moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
- Mar 9, 2006CommitteeCommittee · Subcommittee Hearings Held.
- CommitteeCommittee · Hearings by Forests and Forest Health Subcommittee of the House Natural Resources Committee
- Aug 1, 2005CommitteeCommittee · Executive Comment Requested from Interior.
- CommitteeCommittee · Referred to the Subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health.
- Jul 27, 2005FloorFloor · Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- FloorFloor · Received in the House.
- CommitteeCommittee · Referred to the House Committee on Resources.
- Jul 26, 2005FloorFloor · Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent.
- Mar 30, 2005CalendarCalendar · Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 64.
- CommitteeCommittee · Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Reported by Senator Domenici under authority of the order of the Senate of 3-17-2005 without amendment. With written report No. 109-45.
- Feb 16, 2005CommitteeCommittee · Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.
- Jan 24, 2005CommitteeCommittee · Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in Senate
Data notes
Every action the Library of Congress lists for the bill, from introduction to signing, plus the dated committee hearings. The source lists many steps twice (the chamber’s own entry and the Library of Congress copy, or a presidential and a became-law entry with the same words); those are shown once. Amendments are listed in their own section.
Amendments
No amendments to this bill are on record.
Data notes
Amendments offered to this bill in either chamber, as the Library of Congress records them: each with a status read from its last recorded step: agreed to, rejected, withdrawn, ruled out of order, fell with another amendment, or offered with no vote recorded (most Senate amendments are only ever offered). The wording of each amendment is the source’s. Amendments to amendments and amendments to other bills are not listed.
Official record
The bill’s full text is on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.