Special Areas; State Petitions for Inventoried Roadless Area Management

The Department of Agriculture, Forest Service is proposing changes to Subpart B of Title 36, Code of Federal Regulations, Protection of Inventoried Roadless Areas (the roadless rule), adopted on January 12, 2001 (66 FR 3244). This proposed rule would replace the existing rule with a petitioning process that would provide Governors an opportunity to seek establishment of management requirements for National Forest System inventoried roadless areas within their States. This opportunity for State petitions would be available for 18 months following the effective date of the final rule. It is anticipated that this timeframe will be sufficient for States to collaborate effectively with local governments, stakeholders and other interested parties to develop proposals that consider a full range of public input. A State petition would be evaluated and, if accepted by the Secretary of Agriculture, the Forest Service would initiate subsequent State- specific rulemaking for the management of inventoried roadless areas in cooperation with the State involved in the petitioning process, and in consultation with stakeholders and experts. In proposing this rule and seeking public comment, the agency is responding to the continued controversy, policy concerns, and legal uncertainty surrounding the implementation of the roadless rule. Public comments received will be considered in the development of the final rule.