PRIA, Government Policy, Made Personal

Summary

The Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Agriculture can create and name trails as National Recreation Trails. They can do this for trails they manage, but only if the federal agency, state, or local government that runs the land agrees and if the trail is fairly easy to get to from a city or meets the rules the Secretary sets. Trails in parks, forests, and other recreation areas run by the federal government can be named by the Secretary. When the federal government is not buying land, the Secretary can also name trails near cities with state or local consent, name trails on state-owned recreation land with the State’s consent, and name trails on private land only with the landowner’s written permission.

Title 16, §1243

Conservation, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The Secretary of the Interior, or the Secretary of Agriculture where lands administered by him are involved, may establish and designate national recreation trails, with the consent of the Federal agency, State, or political subdivision having jurisdiction over the lands involved, upon finding that—

(i)such trails are reasonably accessible to urban areas, and, or

(ii)such trails meet the criteria established in this chapter and such supplementary criteria as he may prescribe.

(b)As provided in this section, trails within park, forest, and other recreation areas administered by the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Agriculture or in other federally administered areas may be established and designated as “National Recreation Trails” by the appropriate Secretary and, when no Federal land acquisition is involved—

(i)trails in or reasonably accessible to urban areas may be designated as “National Recreation Trails” by the appropriate Secretary with the consent of the States, their political subdivisions, or other appropriate administering agencies;

(ii)trails within park, forest, and other recreation areas owned or administered by States may be designated as “National Recreation Trails” by the appropriate Secretary with the consent of the State; and

(iii)trails on privately owned lands may be designated “National Recreation Trails” by the appropriate Secretary with the written consent of the owner of the property involved.

Editorial Notes

Amendments

1983—Subsec. (b)(i), (ii). Pub. L. 98–11, § 204(1), substituted “appropriate Secretary” for “Secretary of the Interior”. Subsec. (b)(iii). Pub. L. 98–11, § 204(2)–(4), added cl. (iii).

§1243 National Recreation Trails; Establishment and Designation; Prerequisites

Summary

Title 16, §1243

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

Citations & Metadata