16 U.S.C. § 8423 — Range access

(a) In this section, “target shooting range” means a developed and managed area authorized or operated by the Forest Service, a Forest Service concessioner, or the Bureau of Land Management or its lessee, specifically for the public's purposeful discharge of legal firearms, firearms training, archery, or related activities. This section does not define “concessioner” or “lessee.”

(b) (1) Not later than one year after January 4, 2025, the Secretary concerned^* must make public a list that—

(A) identifies each National Forest and Bureau of Land Management district with a target shooting range meeting paragraph (3)(B);

(B) identifies each such National Forest and district without a range meeting paragraph (3)(B); and

(C) for each National Forest and district identified under subparagraph (B), determines whether applicable law or the applicable land-use plan prevents establishing such a range.

(2) (A) The Secretary^* concerned must identify at least one suitable location for a qualifying target shooting range within each National Forest and Bureau of Land Management district where the Secretary has determined under paragraph (1)(C) that applicable law or the land-use plan does not prevent establishing one.

(B) The Secretaries^*, consulting the entities in subsection (d), must, when identifying a location—

(i) consider how close it is to areas frequently used by recreational shooters;

(ii) ensure it would not adversely affect a range on non-Federal land; and

(iii) consider nearby recreational uses, including proximity to National Park System units, to minimize possible conflict and prioritize visitor safety.

(3) (A) Not later than five years after January 4, 2025, at one or more suitable locations identified on each eligible National Forest and Bureau of Land Management district, the Secretary concerned must—

(i) subject to available appropriations, construct a qualifying target shooting range or modify an existing range to qualify; or

(ii) enter into an agreement with an entity described in subsection (d)(1) under which the entity establishes or maintains a qualifying target shooting range.

(B) A range established under this paragraph—

(i) (I) must accommodate rifles and pistols; (II) may include skeet, trap, or sporting-clay infrastructure; and (III) may accommodate archery;

(ii) must include appropriate public-safety designs and features, including significantly modified landscapes such as berms, buffer distances, or other safety designs or features, and a designated firing line; and

(iii) may include shade structures, trash containers, restrooms, benches, and any other feature the Secretary concerned decides is necessary.

(C) For subparagraph (A), the Secretary concerned may treat a target shooting range on land transferred or leased under the Recreation and Public Purposes Act of June 14, 1926 (44 Stat. 741, chapter 578; 43 U.S.C. 869 and following) as meeting subparagraph (B).

(c) (1) The Secretary concerned may subject a target shooting range's management to conditions necessary for safe, responsible use of the range and adjacent land and resources.

(2) Except in an emergency, before closing Federal recreational lands and waters^* administered by the Chief of the Forest Service or the Director of the Bureau of Land Management to recreational shooting under section 7913 of this title, the Secretary concerned must seek to ensure that a range meeting subsection (b)(3)(B), or an equivalent range next to a National Forest or Bureau of Land Management district, is available to the public.

(d) (1) In carrying out this section, the Secretaries must coordinate with State^*, Tribal, and local governments; nonprofit or nongovernmental organizations, including signatories to the August 17, 2006, Federal Lands Hunting, Fishing, and Shooting Sports Roundtable memorandum of understanding; shooting clubs; Federal advisory councils on hunting and shooting sports; and people or entities with authorized leases or permits in an area being considered.

(2) The Secretaries may coordinate with an entity listed in paragraph (1) to help construct, modify, operate, or maintain a range. They may also explore ways to leverage funding to maximize non-Federal investment in those activities.

(e) Not later than two years after January 4, 2025, and annually afterward through fiscal year 2033, the Secretaries must submit to the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and the House Committee on Natural Resources a report describing progress in carrying out this section.

(f) Nothing in this section changes the Secretary concerned's authority to administer a target shooting range in addition to ranges meeting subsection (b)(3)(B) on Federal recreational lands and waters administered by that Secretary.