The Protecting America’s Rock Climbing Act (H.R. 1380) overcame a critical hurdle last week when it passed out of the House Natural Resources Committee with a unanimous vote.

The bill, which would ensure sustainable access to rock climbing in designated Wilderness, enjoys bipartisan support and is one step closer to becoming law. “We are proud to champion this piece of legislation, which is designed to uphold the integrity of the Wilderness Act and ensure that climbers are able to continue enjoying America’s Wilderness areas in a responsible way,” says Erik Murdock, interim executive director for Access Fund. “Climbers across the country answered our call to action and are helping to move this critical bill toward the president’s desk.”

This bill responds to a growing threat from the National Park Service, which recently moved to prohibit fixed anchors in Wilderness areas in California and Colorado. The Protecting America’s Rock Climbing Act would establish consistency in how different federal land agencies manage Wilderness climbing and codify the long-standing federal policy that climbing activities, including the conditional use, placement, and maintenance of climbing anchors, are appropriate uses of America’s Wilderness areas, subject to reasonable rules and regulations to protect Wilderness character. The Protecting America’s Rock Climbing Act does not dictate how each agency should allow fixed anchors, but it does prevent land management agencies from formalizing policies that would fundamentally prohibit standard Wilderness climbing practices.

Before moving out of committee, the Protecting America’s Rock Climbing Act was amended to explicitly protect existing climbing routes and fixed anchors, as well as ensure that the bill will not be misinterpreted as a revision to the Wilderness Act. This amendment brings the bill into alignment with the Senate version of the bill (section 122 of America’s Outdoor Recreation Act, S. 873).

What’s Next and How You Can Help
The next step for this bill is a floor vote in the full House of Representatives, then it gets reconciled with the Senate version of the bill before being sent to the president’s desk to be signed into law. Access Fund is asking the climbing community to continue applying pressure for a floor vote by writing to your congressional representatives and telling them how important this bill is to you. It only takes five minutes using our easy letter-writing tool and draft letter.

America’s 8 million climbers are a powerful climbing advocacy movement. Access Fund works to empower climbers with the tools they need to be effective advocates for the lands and sport they love—whether that’s elevating their voices to lawmakers, connecting them to volunteer opportunities, providing training and grants for local access and conservation projects, or helping them minimize their environmental impacts. Every climber has an incredible opportunity to influence the future of climbing and the greater conservation movement.