Johnson Valley bill advances

H.R. 1676, a bill introduced by Rep. Paul Cook (R-Calif.) to protect a large portion of California’s Johnson Valley area from Navy takeover, was approved by the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources last week. The bill now goes to the full House for consideration.

Cook’s measure would designate the 189,000-acre Johnson Valley area as a national off-highway recreation area, protecting it from a Navy takeover, but allowing for limited military use of the area. Several years ago, the Navy began the process to take over about 365,906 acres of public land near San Bernardino for live-fire training for the Marines. That land includes a large portion of the Johnson Valley area, a popular off-road riding area.