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House advances bill to study adding Little Sahara Recreation Area to state parks, including potential wilderness designation
Summary
HB 95 directs study of transferring roughly 56,000 acres of the Little Sahara Recreation Area into the Utah state park system, preserving grazing allotments and enabling the state's first wilderness designation (proposed Bill Orton State Wilderness); passed House 69‑1.
The Utah House on Feb. 10 passed HB 95, a bill to start a process to determine whether the Little Sahara Recreation Area (approximately 56,000 acres administered by the Bureau of Land Management) could be acquired for the state park system and to examine the financial viability of such a transfer under the Recreation and Public Purpose Act of 1954.
Representative Eliason, sponsor, said the bill preserves existing grazing allotments, would require a financial viability study and, if criteria are met, would return a report to the Legislative Management Committee and the interim Natural Resources Committee. He noted that the proposal could include naming a designated area the Bill Orton State Wilderness, the state's first wilderness designation under the Utah Wilderness Act. Eliason said he had met with Congressman Orton's widow and reported family support. House passage was 69‑1, and the bill will be referred to the Senate for further consideration.
