Natural Resources Act
On April 29, 2008, the House passed the final Consolidated Natural Resources Act, S. 2739. This omnibus public lands bill is a collection of more than 60 bills that have been passed by the House individually earlier in this Congress. The bill was signed into law on May 8, 2008.
Among its many provisions, this omnibus bill designates new national park, wilderness and scenic areas, authorizes an array of Bureau of Reclamation projects, and includes new protections for wilderness and precious water resources.
Several key provisions include:
- Designating more than 100,000 acres in the State of Washington as part of the national wilderness preservation system, naming them the “Wild Sky Wilderness.”
- The Cesar E. Chavez Study Act authorizes the Interior Department to study significant lands in Chavez’s life and work in the Farm Workers movement for inclusion in the National Park System.
- Extending U.S. immigration laws and labor protections to the Northern Mariana Islands, as well as giving the Northern Mariana Islands a non-voting delegate in the House of Representatives.