HB 103: State Land Access Road Amendments - Utah

Substitute #3 → Enrolled · 5 edits · Mar 24, 2025

MODERATE

This bill adds new requirements for state agencies to identify and record public roads on state and trust lands, while clarifying rules for closing roads in wildlife areas and ensuring state ownership when counties abandon Class D roads. The changes matter because they formalize public access rights, prevent counties from losing state road titles, and establish a specific process for the Division of Wildlife Resources to close roads only with county consent or under strict conditions.

Scope change

The bill expands the scope of road management by adding new duties for the Public Lands Policy Coordinating Office and School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration to map and record roads, and by creating a new section for the Division of Wildlife Resources to manage road closures in wildlife management areas.

REQUIREMENT

New duties require the Public Lands Policy Coordinating Office and School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration to identify and record public roads on state and trust lands within seven specific counties by January 5, 2026.

The Division of Wildlife Resources must now identify roads within wildlife management areas in habitat plans and cannot permanently close them without county legislative body consent, effective May 7, 2025.

Clarified that the Division of Wildlife Resources may temporarily close roads for wildlife but permanently closes them only through a specific review process and county consent, with an exception for closing less-traveled roads that fork from an alternative route.

ENFORCEMENT

Updated rules for Class D roads clarify that if a county abandons such a road, the state retains sole jurisdiction and control, preventing loss of state title.

TIMELINE

Added a specific deadline of January 5, 2026, for completing road identification and recording in Carbon, Garfield, Grand, Kane, San Juan, Uintah, and Wayne counties.

Introduced → Substitute #1 · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended to narrow its scope by limiting road identification and recording requirements to specific counties (Carbon, Kane, and Uintah) rather than statewide, and to allow the work to be completed over time as resources permit. Additionally, the notice requirements were simplified by removing the option to label roads as 'Public Right-of-way' and replacing coordinate-based location data with legal descriptions. A new provision was added to clarify that abandoned Class D roads revert to state control and remain open for public use.

Scope change

The bill's applicability was reduced from statewide to only Carbon, Kane, and Uintah counties, and the mandatory deadline for all counties was replaced with a flexible timeline for most areas.

SCOPE

The requirement to identify and record access roads was limited specifically to Carbon, Kane, and Uintah counties, removing the obligation for all other counties.

TIMELINE

A new provision allows the director to complete the identification and recording requirements over time as resources allow, except for the three specified counties which retain the March 31, 2026 deadline.

REQUIREMENT

The required notice document title was changed from 'Public Access' or 'Public Right-of-way' to only 'Public Access', and the location data requirement was changed from coordinates to a legal description.

ENFORCEMENT

A new clause was added to Section 72-3-105 clarifying that if a county abandons a Class D road, the state department exercises sole jurisdiction and the road remains open for public use.

Substitute #2 → Substitute #3 · 6 edits

MODERATE

This bill substitutes a new version of HB 103 that expands the counties where state agencies must identify and record public road access on trust and state lands, adds a new section on wildlife management area road closures, and clarifies abandonment procedures for class D roads and R.S. 2477 rights-of-way. The changes strengthen public access protections and provide clearer guidance on when roads can be closed or abandoned.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded to include additional counties (Garfield, Grand, San Juan, and Wayne) for road identification requirements, and added new provisions specifically addressing Division of Wildlife Resources authority over roads in wildlife management areas.

TIMELINE

Extended the list of counties subject to road identification deadlines from three counties (Carbon, Kane, Uintah) to seven counties (Carbon, Garfield, Grand, Kane, San Juan, Uintah, Wayne) with a January 5, 2026 deadline.

REQUIREMENT

Added new requirements for the Division of Wildlife Resources to identify roads within wildlife management areas in habitat management plans and established specific procedures for temporarily or permanently closing such roads.

Strengthened provisions ensuring that when state or trust lands are sold, exchanged, or leased, existing public road access rights must be preserved and recorded before the transaction is finalized.

Added requirements for PLPCO and SITLA to record notice of public roads on trust and state lands with county recorder offices, including legal descriptions and public access requirements.

ENFORCEMENT

Clarified that the Division of Wildlife Resources cannot permanently close a road in a wildlife management area without consent from the county legislative body.

DEFINITION

Added a new section codifying that title to class D roads abandoned by counties remains with the state and established a 180-day notice process for counties abandoning class D road interests.

Substitute #1 → Substitute #2 · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was expanded from a substitute version to a second substitute that adds significant new provisions for wildlife management areas and changes the deadline for road identification in certain counties. The original version focused only on trust lands and state-owned public lands, while the new version also requires the Division of Wildlife Resources to identify roads within wildlife management areas and prevents permanent road closures without county consent. Additionally, the deadline for completing road identification in Carbon, Kane, and Uintah counties was moved from March 31, 2026 to January 5, 2026.

Scope change

The bill's scope was expanded to include the Division of Wildlife Resources and wildlife management areas, which were not covered in the original substitute version.

SCOPE

Added requirements for the Division of Wildlife Resources to identify roads within wildlife management areas and prohibits permanent road closures without county legislative body consent.

Added amendments to Section 23A-6-303 regarding wildlife management plan reviews and adoption processes.

TIMELINE

Changed the deadline for completing road identification requirements in Carbon, Kane, and Uintah counties from March 31, 2026 to January 5, 2026.

REQUIREMENT

Modified the notice recording requirements to focus on temporary public easements or rights of entry rather than all roads, and changed the notice content to require a requirement that roads remain open for public use.

ELIGIBILITY

Expanded the bill's applicability to include wildlife management areas in addition to trust lands and state-owned public lands.

State Land Access Road Amendments

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