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Monterey Bay National Heritage Area Study Act
To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study to assess the suitability and feasibility of designating certain land in California as the Monterey Bay National Heritage Area, and for other purposes.
Referred to
Policy area
Summary
- Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study assessing whether certain lands in California should be designated as the Monterey Bay National Heritage Area.
- Directs the study to cover Monterey, San Mateo, Santa Cruz, and San Luis Obispo counties, plus adjacent areas with similar heritage aspects.
- Requires the Secretary to consult with California state and local governments, Tribal Governments, nonprofit organizations, and entities like the Monterey Bay Economic Partnership.
- Requires the study to follow the procedures established in federal law for conducting heritage area studies.
AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.
Sponsor (1)
- Sen. Padilla, Alex [D-CA] (D-CA)
1 cosponsor
- Sen. Schiff, Adam B. [D-CA] (D-CA)
Actions (4)
- Jul 29, 2026 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably. · senate
- Jul 21, 2026 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on National Parks. Hearings held. · senate
- Nov 18, 2025 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S8207) · senate
- Nov 18, 2025 Introduced in Senate
More bills on these subjects (8)
Other bills that carry the most legislative subjects in common with this one (topical discovery — distinct from the procedural related bills above).
Similar bills (6)
Bills with similar text or summary — includes reintroductions across Congresses. Ranked by semantic similarity of the bill text (computed locally); a neutral discovery aid, not a claim the bills are duplicates.
Text versions (1)
Bills are re-published as they move (Introduced → Reported → Engrossed → Enrolled …). Each stage below is a separate text; pick two to see what changed. Data from Congress.gov.
Committee action
What happened to this bill in committee — the meetings where it was considered and every recorded vote taken on it.
Meetings where this bill was on the agenda
- Business meeting to consider S.365 and H.R.1729, bills to amend the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act to allow for additional entities to be eligible to complete the maintenance work on Bolts Ditch and the Bolts Ditch Headgate within the Holy Cross Wilderness, Colorado, S.764, to provide for the designation of certain wilderness areas, recreation management areas, and conservation areas in the State of Colorado, S.791, to establish the Justice Thurgood Marshall National Historic Site in the State of Maryland as an affiliated area of the National Park System, S.888, to designate certain land administered by the Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service in the State of Oregon as wilderness and national recreation areas, to withdraw certain land located in Curry County and Josephine County, Oregon, from all forms of entry, appropriation, or disposal under the public land laws, location, entry, and patent under the mining laws, and operation under the mineral leasing and geothermal leasing laws, S.945, to amend the Smith River National Recreation Area Act to include certain additions to the Smith River National Recreation Area, to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate certain wild rivers in the State of Oregon, S.1005, to provide for conservation and economic development in the State of Nevada, S.1088, to provide that the memorial to commemorate the sacrifice and service of the women who worked on the home front to support the efforts of the United States military during World War II may be located on the National Mall, S.1195, to promote conservation, improve public land management, and provide for sensible development in Pershing County, Nevada, S.1257, to amend the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to authorize the use of funds for certain additional Carey Act projects, S.1341, to amend the Colorado Wilderness Act of 1993 to add certain land to the Sarvis Creek Wilderness, S.1349, to withdraw the National Forest System land in the Ruby Mountains subdistrict of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest and the National Wildlife Refuge System land in Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge, Elko and White Pine Counties, Nevada, from operation under the mineral leasing laws, S.1476, to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate certain segments of the Gila River system in the State of New Mexico as components of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, to provide for the transfer of administrative jurisdiction over certain Federal land in the State of New Mexico, S.1737, to designate and expand wilderness areas in Olympic National Forest in the State of Washington, and to designate certain rivers in Olympic National Forest and Olympic National Park as wild and scenic rivers, S.1777, to amend the California Desert Protection Act of 1994 to expand the boundary of Joshua Tree National Park, to redesignate the Cottonwood Visitor Center at Joshua Tree National Park as the "Dianne Feinstein Visitor Center", S.1870, to adjust the boundary of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area to include the Rim of the Valley Corridor, S.2498, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to extend certain leases within units of the National Park System without opening the lease to bidding, S.2767 and H.R.5254, bills to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to enter into an agreement with the Gateway Arch Park Foundation to host private events in Gateway Arch National Park buildings, S.2801, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study to assess the suitability and feasibility of designating the Canterbury Shaker Village National Heritage Area, S.2887, to amend the National Trails System Act to designate the Route 66 National Historic Trail, S.2933, to redesignate a playground in the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve in the State of West Virginia as the "Hearts of Gold Playground: In Honor of West Virginia Children and Families Impacted by Childhood Cancer", S.2968, to ensure access to certain public land, S.3194, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study to assess the suitability and feasibility of designating certain land in California as the Monterey Bay National Heritage Area, S.3313 and H.R.6365, bills to require the Secretary of the Interior to issue a right-of-way for an emergency exit on certain National Park Service land in the State of Virginia, S.3409, to reaffirm that the Bureau of Reclamation retains exclusive ownership, operational control, and financial responsibility for the Lower Yellowstone Fish Bypass Channel, ensuring long-term conservation of the endangered pallid sturgeon and other native aquatic species in the Yellowstone River while protecting the Lower Yellowstone Irrigation Project and District from undue financial and operational burdens, S.3635 and H.R. 7250, bills to reauthorize the Fort Peck Reservation Rural Water System Act of 2000, S.3715 and H.R.6380, bills to establish the Chiricahua N
- Hearings to examine S.1674, to modify the boundary of the Mammoth Cave National Park in the State of Kentucky, S.2498, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to extend certain leases within units of the National Park System without opening the lease to bidding, S.2767 and H.R.5254, bills to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to enter into an agreement with the Gateway Arch Park Foundation to host private events in Gateway Arch National Park buildings, S.2801, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study to assess the suitability and feasibility of designating the Canterbury Shaker Village National Heritage Area, S.2887, to amend the National Trails System Act to designate the Route 66 National Historic Trail, S.2933, to redesignate a playground in the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve in the State of West Virginia as the "Hearts of Gold Playground: In Honor of West Virginia Children and Families Impacted by Childhood Cancer", S.2969, to amend title 54, United States Code, to provide that State law shall apply to the use of motor vehicles on roads within a System unit, S.3131, to provide for the inclusion on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall of the names of the lost crew members of the USS Frank E. Evans killed on June 3, 1969, S.3194, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study to assess the suitability and feasibility of designating certain land in California as the Monterey Bay National Heritage Area, S.3313 and H.R.6365, bills to require the Secretary of the Interior to issue a right-of-way for an emergency exit on certain National Park Service land in the State of Virginia, S.3371, to designate the Museum of the Blind People's Movement in Baltimore, Maryland, as the "National Museum of the Blind People's Movement", S.3456 and H.R.183, bills to amend the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act to provide for a free annual National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass for law enforcement officers and firefighters, S.3501, to amend the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act to designate as a component of the National Heritage Area System the Calumet National Heritage Area in the States of Indiana and Illinois, S.3524, to amend title 54, United States Code, to modify certain cost-sharing requirements for grant programs under the American Battlefield Protection Program, S.3542, to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate the Upper Raritan River Watershed in the State of New Jersey for study for potential addition to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, 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, S.3785, to authorize direct emergency acquisition flexibilities for the National Park Service and Forest Service for the purpose of retaining, vetting, approving, and expediting contractor approval for the clearing, rebuilding, maintenance, and improvement of areas of the Grand Canyon National Park and Kaibab National Forest damaged by certain wildfires, S.3925, to establish the Julius Rosenwald and Rosenwald Schools National Historical Park, S.4238, to amend the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act to designate as a component of the National Heritage Area System the Endless Mountains National Heritage Area in the State of Pennsylvania, S.4399, to provide for certain conveyances under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, S.4538, to amend the National Trails System Act to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study on the feasibility of designating Washington's Trail-1753 as a national historic trail, S.4595, to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate the Mullica River watershed in New Jersey for study for potential designation as a wild and scenic river, S.4767, to extend the authorization of the African American Civil Rights Network, H.R.2306, to reauthorize the Adams Memorial Commission, H.R.5729, to authorize direct emergency acquisition flexibilities for the National Park Service for the purpose of retaining, vetting, approving, and expediting contractor approval for the clearing, rebuilding, maintenance, and improvement of the Grand Canyon grounds that have been impacted by the Dragon Bravo Fire, and H.R.7618, to amend title 54, United States Code, to modify certain cost-sharing requirements for grant programs under the American Battlefield Protection Program.
Full text
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
November 18, 2025
Mr. Padilla (for himself and Mr. Schiff) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
A BILL
To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study to assess the suitability and feasibility of designating certain land in California as the Monterey Bay National Heritage Area, 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 “Monterey Bay National Heritage Area Study Act”.
SEC. 2. STUDY.
(a) In General.—The Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the State of California, local organizations and governmental agencies, Tribal Governments, nonprofit organizations, and other appropriate entities, including the Monterey Bay Economic Partnership, shall conduct a study to assess the suitability and feasibility of designating the areas described in subsection (b) as a National Heritage Area, to be known as the “Monterey Bay National Heritage Area”.
(b) Description of Study Area.—The areas to be studied under subsection (a) include—
(1) Monterey, San Mateo, Santa Cruz, and San Luis Obispo counties in the State of California; and
(2) any other area in the State of California that—
(A) has heritage aspects that are similar to the heritage aspects of an area described in paragraph (1); and
(B) is adjacent to, or in the vicinity of, an area described in paragraph (1).
(c) Applicable Law.—The study required under subsection (a) shall be conducted in accordance with section 120103(a) of title 54, United States Code. <all>
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