A bill to amend the National Trails System Act to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study on the feasibility of designating the Bay Area Ridge as a national scenic trail, and for other purposes.

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3720 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3720

To amend the National Trails System Act to direct the Secretary of the
 Interior to conduct a study on the feasibility of designating the Bay
     Area Ridge as a national scenic trail, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 28, 2026

  Mr. Schiff introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
       referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

To amend the National Trails System Act to direct the Secretary of the
 Interior to conduct a study on the feasibility of designating the Bay
     Area Ridge as a national scenic trail, 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 ``Bay Area Ridge National Scenic Trail
Feasibility Study Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that the Bay Area Ridge Trail--
            (1) is a scenic nonmotorized multi-use trail that extends
        approximately 550 miles;
            (2) consists of approximately 415 completed miles and
        another approximately 140 miles of the route that are not yet
        completed;
            (3) is located near urban areas of the United States;
            (4) allows people to access the scenic ridgelines of the
        San Francisco Bay Area;
            (5) provides maximum outdoor recreation potential to a
        large, diverse population and many year-round visitors to the
        San Francisco Bay Area;
            (6) provides for the enjoyment of nationally significant
        scenic, historic, and cultural qualities, including the Pacific
        Ocean, the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, and State and
        local parks, among others;
            (7) passes through diverse environments, including marsh,
        grassland, mountain, canyon, rivers, and forests;
            (8) includes landforms that exhibit significant
        characteristics, including the Golden Gate Bridge, the San
        Andreas fault, volcanic areas, geologic formations, and
        wetlands; and
            (9) connects with side trails and regional connector
        trails, such as the Bay Trail, Vine Trail, and Coyote Creek
        Trail, which provide additional public access and connect to
        major population centers.

SEC. 3. BAY AREA RIDGE NATIONAL SCENIC TRAIL FEASIBILITY STUDY.

    Section 5(c) of the National Trails System Act (16 U.S.C. 1244(c))
is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(50) Bay area ridge national scenic trail.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Bay Area Ridge National
                Scenic Trail, a multi-use trail extending approximately
                550 miles along the ridgelines of the hills and
                mountains surrounding the San Francisco Bay Area in
                northern California and connecting over 75 parks and
                open spaces.
                    ``(B) Study.--Notwithstanding subsection (b), not
                later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this
                paragraph, the Secretary of the Interior, in
                consultation with interested organizations (including
                the Bay Area Ridge Trail Council), shall complete and
                submit to Congress the feasibility study for
                designating the Bay Area Ridge Trail as a national
                scenic trail.
                    ``(C) Consultation.--The study under this paragraph
                shall be conducted in consultation with each Federal
                agency and State agency that administers land through
                which the trail described in subparagraph (A)
                passes.''.
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