116 S258 IS: Ruby Mountains Protection Act U.S. Senate 2019-01-29 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

II116th CONGRESS1st SessionS. 258IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATESJanuary 29, 2019Ms. Cortez Masto introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural ResourcesA BILLTo prohibit oil and gas leasing on the National Forest System land in the Ruby Mountains Ranger District located in the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, Elko and White Pine Counties, Nevada, and for other purposes.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Ruby Mountains Protection Act.

2.

Prohibition of oil and gas leasing

(a)

Definition of District land

In this section, the term District land means the approximately 450,000 acres of National Forest System land comprising the Ruby Mountains Ranger District of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, Elko and White Pine Counties, Nevada, as in existence on the date of enactment of this Act. (b)

Prohibition

Subject to valid existing rights in existence on the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall not issue under any law, including the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 181 et seq.), an oil or gas lease on the District land. (c)

Application

The prohibition under subsection (b) shall apply to any land or interest in land that is acquired by the United States after the date of enactment of this Act for inclusion in the Ruby Mountains Ranger District.