July is shaping up to be a busy month for wilderness advocates as Congress has scheduled hearings on a number of pending wilderness bills. Following is a summary of the upcoming House and Senate committee action:

Nevada Wilderness - On July 20, the House Resources Committee will hold a hearing on HR 4593, the "Lincoln County Conservation, Recreation, and Development Act" sponsored by Nevada Reps. Gibbons, Porter and Berkley, which would designate nearly 800,000 acres of BLM wilderness in southeastern Nevada’s Lincoln County.

New Mexico Wilderness – On July 20, the House Resources Committee will also hear testimony on H.R. 3176, the "Ojito Wilderness Act," sponsored by Reps. Tom Udall and Heather Wilson, which would designate the 11,000 acre Ojito wilderness in NM and allow the Pueblo of Zia to purchase certain adjacent BLM land which will be managed under the law as open space.

California Wilderness – On July 21, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will hold a hearing on S.738 the "Northern California Coastal Wild Heritage Wilderness Act" sponsored by Sens. Boxer and Feinstein which would designate almost 300,000 acres of wilderness and 21 miles of wild & scenic river in northwest California. Witnesses will include Senator Boxer, Representative Mike Thompson (in whose district the areas lie), and a local elected official (TBD).

Puerto Rico Wilderness – On July 21, the Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee will also hear testimony on S. 2334 the "Carribbean National Forest Act" to designate 10,000 acres of National Forest land in Puerto Rico as wilderness.

Washington Wilderness – The Seattle Times reported on July 9, 2004, that House Resources Committee Chair Pombo has scheduled a hearing on the House version of the Wild Sky Wilderness on July 22. Reps. Larsen and Nethercutt and Sen. Murray, according to news reports, have been working to reach a compromise to allow the bill to move forward this year. Chairman Pombo who has expressed concerns about the bill has yet to commit to moving the measure beyond the July 22 hearing. The bill was passed by the Senate last fall. Nethercutt said President Bush told him during a campaign visit to Spokane last month that he would sign the bill if it reached his desk.