Official Summaries

Creating Obstructions Necessary to Address Illegal and Nefarious Entry Rapidly Act or CONTAINER Act

This bill requires the Department of the Interior and the Forest Service to allow border states to place temporary, movable structures on federal lands adjacent to the U.S.-Canada and U.S.-Mexico borders without a special use authorization.

Border states may place these structures on such lands for the purpose of securing the northern or southern border for a period of not more than one year. Interior and the Forest Service must approve extension requests in 90-day increments if U.S. Customs and Border Protection determines that operational control of the border area has not been achieved.

Current Full Text

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 534 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 534

To authorize certain States to take certain actions on certain Federal 
 land to secure an international border of the United States, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 16, 2025

   Mr. Rouzer (for himself, Mr. McCaul, Mr. Pfluger, Mr. Nehls, Mr. 
Meuser, Mr. Fleischmann, and Ms. Tenney) introduced the following bill; 
   which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in 
     addition to the Committee on Agriculture, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To authorize certain States to take certain actions on certain Federal 
 land to secure an international border of the United States, and for 
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Creating Obstructions Necessary To 
Address Illegal and Nefarious Entry Rapidly Act'' or the ``CONTAINER 
Act''.

SEC. 2. PLACEMENT OF MOVABLE, TEMPORARY STRUCTURES ON CERTAIN FEDERAL 
              LAND TO SECURE AN INTERNATIONAL BORDER OF THE UNITED 
              STATES.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Border state.--The term ``Border State'' means a State 
        that is adjacent to the northern border or southern border.
            (2) Federal land.--The term ``Federal land'' means land 
        under the jurisdiction and management of a Federal land 
        management agency that is adjacent to the northern border or 
        southern border.
            (3) Federal land management agency.--The term ``Federal 
        land management agency'' means--
                    (A) the Bureau of Indian Affairs;
                    (B) the Bureau of Land Management;
                    (C) the Bureau of Reclamation;
                    (D) the Forest Service;
                    (E) the United States Fish and Wildlife Service; 
                and
                    (F) the National Park Service.
            (4) Northern border.--The term ``northern border'' means 
        the international border between the United States and Canada.
            (5) Operational control.--The term ``operational control'' 
        has the meaning given such term in section 2(b) of the Secure 
        Fence Act of 2006 (8 U.S.C. 1701 note; Public Law 109-367).
            (6) Secretary concerned.--The term ``Secretary concerned'' 
        means--
                    (A) the Secretary of the Interior, with respect to 
                Federal land under the jurisdiction and management of 
                the Secretary of the Interior, acting through, as 
                applicable--
                            (i) the Director of the Bureau of Indian 
                        Affairs;
                            (ii) the Director of the Bureau of Land 
                        Management;
                            (iii) the Commissioner of Reclamation;
                            (iv) the Director of the United States Fish 
                        and Wildlife Service; and
                            (v) the Director of the National Park 
                        Service; and
                    (B) the Secretary of Agriculture, with respect to 
                National Forest System land, acting through the Chief 
                of the Forest Service.
            (7) Southern border.--The term ``southern border'' means 
        the international border between the United States and Mexico.
    (b) Special Use Authorization.--Subject to subsection (c), the 
Secretary concerned shall not require a Border State to obtain a 
special use authorization for the temporary placement on Federal land 
within the Border State of a movable, temporary structure for the 
purpose of securing the northern border or southern border, if the 
Border State submits to the Secretary concerned notice of the proposed 
placement not later than 45 days before the date of the proposed 
placement.
    (c) Temporary Placement.--
            (1) In general.--A movable, temporary structure described 
        in subsection (b) may be placed by a Border State on Federal 
        land in accordance with that subsection for a period of not 
        more than 1 year, subject to paragraph (2).
            (2) Extension.--
                    (A) In general.--The period described in paragraph 
                (1) may be extended in 90-day increments, on approval 
                by the Secretary concerned.
                    (B) Consultation required.--The Secretary concerned 
                shall consult with the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and 
                Border Protection for purposes of determining whether 
                to approve an extension under subparagraph (A).
                    (C) Approval.--The Secretary concerned shall 
                approve a request for an extension under this paragraph 
                if the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border 
                Protection determines that operational control has not 
                been achieved as of the date of the consultation 
                required under subparagraph (B).
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