# San Pablo Bay National Wildlife Refuge Expansion Act of 2024

This bill expands the San Pablo Bay National Wildlife Refuge by adding approximately 5,658 acres of land, marshes, tidal flats, salt ponds, and open waters in the San Francisco Bay Area. The refuge currently protects wildlife habitat in Marin, Sonoma, Napa, and Solano Counties in California, and this expansion would add more territory to that protected area. The bill essentially redraws the refuge's boundaries to include these additional lands, which will be managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as part of the national wildlife refuge system.

The government can acquire the new land through donations, purchases from willing sellers, or land exchanges, but crucially, it cannot use eminent domain or force anyone to sell their property. This means landowners have the final say—the government can only add private land if the owners agree to it. The bill also allows the Fish and Wildlife Service to work with California state agencies and local communities on managing lands within or near the refuge, and it encourages the government to request funding from the Land and Water Conservation Fund each year to help pay for these acquisitions.

The bill emphasizes that hunting, fishing, wildlife observation, photography, and environmental education should remain priority activities in the refuge. Before finalizing plans for the expanded area, the Fish and Wildlife Service must give local communities in the four affected counties a chance to participate in the planning process and share their input. The bill also includes some technical corrections to an older law that established the original refuge, mainly updating outdated language.