PRIA Logo™
119-s-5647119th CongressWALLET

River Democracy Act

Sponsored By: Senator Wyden, Ron [D-OR]

Introduced

Summary

Expands the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System in Oregon. This bill would add, reclassify, and precisely map hundreds of river and tributary segments while setting new boundary, mineral withdrawal, wildfire planning, and wetland protections.

Show full summary
  • Families and downstream communities: Would require comprehensive river management plans that assess wildfire and public safety risks and prioritize prescribed fire, fuels treatments, and restoration for drinking water sources. Plans must be completed within 5 years after they start.
  • Tribes, States, and local governments: Would authorize cooperative written agreements to share administration and require consultation and written co-management agreements with Tribes before including Tribal land. Tribes could request culturally significant native species plans.
  • Landowners, miners, and utilities: Would preserve private inholdings and existing utility operations while withdrawing federal land inside new Oregon component boundaries from public land and mining laws, subject to valid existing rights. New Oregon components would use an average boundary of 640 acres per mile.

Personalized for You

How does this bill affect your finances?

Personalize government policy and PRIA will tell you what this bill means for your household, plus every other piece of legislation we track. PRIA reads each provision against your financial profile to show you exactly what matters to your wallet.

Free to download

Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

8 provisions identified: 3 benefits, 0 costs, 5 mixed.

Tumalo Creek drinking water consultation

If enacted, the Secretary of Agriculture would have to consult with the City of Bend when making the comprehensive plan for the bill's Tumalo Creek sections. The consultation would address continued protection of and access to clean drinking water. The provision directs agency planning and does not specify any funding or household payments.

Big Oregon river designation package

If enacted, the bill would add, reclassify, or replace many Wild and Scenic river segments across Oregon. It lists dozens of named segments (for example, Owyhee, Grande Ronde, North Umpqua, Snake corridor, Nestucca, Deschutes, Rogue, Clackamas, and others) and assigns each a classification (wild, scenic, or recreational) and a managing Secretary. These changes would guide federal land and recreation management along the listed rivers and could affect local access, recreation rules, and land-use planning. The changes would take effect upon enactment.

New river boundary and land protections

If enacted, the bill would set several rules to protect private land and cabin interests when agencies draw detailed river boundaries. It would bar including non‑Federal land in some segment boundaries, protect National Forest recreational cabins from being included, require the Agriculture Secretary to account for shifting stream mouths on Oregon Dunes segments, and allow transfer of certain Corps land to the Forest Service only if the Army Secretary finds it unnecessary for dam operations. These steps would limit boundary expansions onto private or cabin lands and clarify transfers.

Exclude Nevada lands from plans

If enacted, the bill would designate certain Twelvemile Creek and McDermitt Creek segments as wild rivers but require that the comprehensive management plan for those segments not apply to any land in Nevada. The provision applies to the specific segments described in the bill. This changes management in Oregon while limiting plan coverage across the state border.

Mineral and wetland protections added

If enacted, federal land inside newly designated Oregon river boundaries would be withdrawn from many public‑land disposals and from new mining, geothermal, and mineral leasing, subject to valid existing rights. The bill would also require the Secretaries to map Essential Serpentine Wetlands within 1 year, offer a 90‑day public review of drafts, and then publish final withdrawal maps. It would treat specified Illinois Watershed botanical and critical areas as Special Management Areas and withdraw federal land there from similar mineral and disposal uses. These steps protect wetlands and watersheds but limit new mineral and leasing development on affected federal lands.

New river protections for Oregon communities

If enacted, the bill would add many Oregon rivers and tributaries to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. It would assign wild, scenic, or recreational labels and name the agency (Interior or Agriculture) to manage each segment. Examples include about 22 miles of the Chewaucan River (recreational), about 8.7 miles of the Blue River (recreational), and new Zigzag River segments near Mount Hood. For Chewaucan sections, the Agriculture Secretary would not include non‑Federal land in the detailed boundaries. These changes would guide river management, recreation, and local land‑use planning.

Repeal of some Oregon river protections

If enacted, the bill would remove certain earlier statutory river designations in Oregon. Examples named include North Fork Owyhee, West Little Owyhee, Walker Creek, and North Fork Silver Creek. The repeal would take effect upon enactment and could change what protections and land‑use rules apply at those river segments.

Uniform boundaries for new Oregon rivers

If enacted, the bill would require detailed boundaries for Oregon components designated on or after enactment to average 640 acres per mile. The acreage would be measured from the ordinary high water mark on both sides of the river. The rule would not apply to segments designated before enactment and would not change existing boundaries for those older segments. This could extend federal management areas near newly designated rivers and affect nearby land‑use planning.

Sponsors & CoSponsors

Sponsor

Wyden, Ron [D-OR]

OR • D

Cosponsors

  • Sen. Merkley, Jeff [D-OR]

    OR • D

    Sponsored 9/30/2026

Roll Call Votes

No roll call votes available for this bill.

View on Congress.gov
Back to Legislation