On December 17, 2025, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla announced the reintroduction of his sweeping public lands bill, cosponsored by U.S. Senator Adam Schiff. The Protecting Unique and Beautiful Landscapes by Investing in California (PUBLIC) Lands Act would permanently protect over 900,000 acres of California public lands.
At a time when some members of Congress are trying to sell off our public lands against the will of the people, THIS bill gives Californians exactly what they want.
In brief, the PUBLIC Lands Act provides:
✨ Restoration at scale: 870,000+ acres of previously logged forests restored in the Shasta-Trinity & Six Rivers National Forests
🚯 Cleanup of illegal grow sites that poison wildlife and pollute streams
🥾 New long-distance trail studies, including the Bigfoot Trail and a Mendocino-to-Redwoods route
🌄 547,000+ acres of new wilderness protections
🌊 699 miles of rivers protected as Wild & Scenic
🏕️ New visitor centers & more recreation access
🔥 Help address wildfire risk
🪶 Continued Tribal cultural access and stewardship
It’s one of the most significant public lands protections for California in decades, and CalWild has been involved in helping to draft, introduce, and reintroduce the PUBLIC Lands Act since its inception. As you can see above, it would protect California’s iconic landscapes, provide critical access to open space for communities, support California’s outdoor recreation economy, and fight the climate crisis.
Guided by science and input from local communities, the bill also advances California’s goals of conserving 30% of our lands and waters by 2030. And, the majority of Californians concerned about fire risk will appreciate that the bill promotes restoration, fire resilience, and ecological health on 871,000 acres of forests in areas of high fire risk in Humboldt and Trinity counties. This would improve water quality, preserve outdoor recreation opportunities, and reduce the threat of wildfires to neighboring communities.
Representatives Jared Huffman, Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Committee, Salud Carbajal, and Judy Chu are leading companion legislation to the respective parts of the package: the Northwest California Wilderness, Recreation, and Working Forests Act; Central Coast Heritage Protection Act; and San Gabriel Mountains Foothills and Rivers Protection Act.
“Our public lands and natural spaces are some of California’s greatest gifts — from the Northern California redwoods, to the Carrizo Plain, to the San Gabriel Mountains,” said Senator Padilla. “As the Trump Administration tries to sell off our state’s precious public lands and waters, we must protect and restore these areas to mitigate wildfire risk, reach California’s conservation goals, protect our natural resources, and ensure generations to come can enjoy access to the outdoors. I was thrilled to see President Biden heed our calls to permanently protect the entire San Gabriel Mountains last year, and I urge my colleagues to pass this package to protect access to green space for millions of Californians.”
Originally introduced by former Senator Kamala Harris and then championed by Senator Padilla, the PUBLIC Lands Act is a combination of three bills passed in 2021 and 2022 by the House of Representatives:
- The Northwest California Wilderness, Recreation, and Working Forests Act, which is led in the House by Representative Huffman. The bill would permanently protect 484,733 acres of public lands and 479.8 miles of wild and scenic rivers.
- The Central Coast Heritage Protection Act, which is led in the House by Representative Carbajal. The bill would permanently protect 385,842 acres of public lands and 199.3 miles of wild and scenic rivers.
- The San Gabriel Mountains Foothills and Rivers Protection Act, which is led in the House by Representative Judy Chu. The bill would permanently protect 35,335 acres of public lands and 20.2 miles of wild and scenic rivers.
Unfortunately, thanks to legislative dysfunction, and despite Senator Padilla’s best efforts, the bill has not been able to pass both the Senate and House in the same session.
“The PUBLIC Lands Act safeguards special places that Americans love and want to protect. It ensures these sensitive landscapes, with remarkable cultural and environmental value, are protected for future generations to enjoy. We’re deeply appreciative of Senator Padilla’s leadership to expand outdoor access, conserve California’s natural areas, and ensure meaningful consultation and collaboration with California Native American tribes,” said California Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot.
CalWild is committed to support our champions’ efforts to pass the bill in both houses of Congress.
