Hill Heat

On Tuesday, February 10, 2026, at 2:00 p.m., in room 1324 Longworth House Office Building, the Committee on Natural Resources, Subcommittee on Federal Lands will hold a legislative hearing on the following bills:

• H.R. 34 (Rep. Gosar), “Land and Social Security Optimization Act” or the “LASSO Act”
• H.R. 1329 (Rep. Malliotakis), “Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum Act”
• H.R. 3553 (Rep. Min), “Building Resiliency and Understanding of Shrublands to Halt Fires Act” or the “BRUSH Fires Act”
• H.R. 5478 (Rep. Moore of UT), “Fruit Heights Land Conveyance Act of 2025”
• H.R. 5911 (Rep. Hurd), “Crystal Reservoir Conveyance Act”
• S. 282 (Sen. King), “Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument Access Act”

Hearing memo

Witnesses:

Panel I (Members of Congress):

• To Be Announced

Panel II (Administration Witnesses):

• Dave Lytle, Deputy Chief, U.S. Forest Service, Washington, D.C. [H.R. 34, H.R. 3553, H.R. 5478, and H.R. 5911]
• Ronald Cortez, Under Secretary for Finance and Administration and Chief Financial Officer, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. [H.R. 1329]

Panel III (Outside Experts):

• Michelle Metteer, City Administrator, City of Ouray, Ouray, CO [H.R. 5911]
• Darren Frandsen, City Manager, City of Fruit Heights, Fruit Heights, UT [H.R. 5478]
• Jane Abraham, Former Chair, American Museum of Women’s History Congressional Commission, Washington, DC [H.R. 1329]
• Margaret Byfield, Executive Director, American Stewards of Liberty, Georgetown, TX [H.R. 34]
• Chris Hamm, President, Orange County Firefighters IAFF Local 3631, Tustin, CA [H.R. 3553] [Minority Witness]

The “Land And Social Security Optimization (LASSO) Act,” which would deposit into the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) trust fund, Administered by the Social Security Administration, 10 percent of federal revenues generated on public lands and waters managed by the Department of the Interior (DOI) and U.S. Forest Service (USFS).

In 2020, President Trump signed into law the “Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum Act,” creating the Smithsonian Institution’s 21st museum, which aims to recognize “women’s contributions to various fields and throughout different periods of history that have influenced the direction of the United States.” Since this time, the Museum has been a formally established institution but lacks a permanent physical location. Although the legislation stated that it was “the intent of Congress that the Museum be located on or near the National Mall,” a provision also expressly prohibited the Museum from being located in the Reserve under the Commemorative Works Act (CWA). The Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum Act authorizes the Smithsonian to locate the American Women’s History Museum within the Reserve, which broadly encompasses what is known as the National Mall.

H.R. 3553 directs USFS to carry out a targeted study on 1) the effectiveness of wildfire mitigation methods in shrubland ecosystems and 2) the severity of damage from brush-related wildland fires to communities.

H.R. 5478, sponsored by Representative Blake Moore (R-UT-01), conveys approximately 295 acres of USFS land to Fruit Heights to close the gap along the Bonneville Shoreline Trail.

H.R. 5911, sponsored by Representative Jeff Hurd (R-CO-03), conveys to Ouray, Colo., the Crystal Reservoir, Full Moon Dam and Ditch, and 45 acres of surrounding land necessary to the Reservoir’s operation and maintenance. H.R. 5911 also conveys to the City all water rights associated with the covered land and related infrastructure.

S. 282 authorizes NPS to acquire, from willing sellers or donors, up to 2,465 acres of land to provide road access to the 87,500-acre Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument from the south. The bill sets general management and administration guidelines for the Monument that, among other things, protect hunting and fishing access, allow for the collection of fiddlehead ferns, permit forest management activities, and require the production of public safety and educational materials to better inform visitors about the Monument.