POLISCOPE
Back to bills
Part ofCounties →

The civic record

Read. Follow. Verify.
HB 595UTAHSession 2026State Billdead
Did Not Advance

Utah establishes application process and legislative approval requirements for state trail designations

Original title: Public Trail Amendments

Last action · March 6, 2026: House/ filedSponsor: Doug Owens

Bill progressHistory & official text ↓
Introduced
Committee
Floor Vote
Passed
Law

Track this bill to get notified when it advances a stage. One tap to stop, anytime.

Public stanceCommunity reactions are separate from the official record and reporting.

What This Bill Proposed

Utah House Bill 595 establishes a formal application and evaluation process for designating recreational trails on as state trails, requiring review by local governments and legislative approval via starting May 6, 2026.

Why it matters

Local municipalities and counties gain veto power over proposed state trail designations within their borders through formal resolutions, while the Division of Outdoor Recreation acquires rulemaking authority to administer trail applications and management.

Background
  • State recreational trails in Utah previously lacked a codified, uniform statutory application and designation process prior to this legislation. context

Who It Would Have Affected

Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.

Directly affected

Division of Outdoor Recreation

The division must evaluate applications, submit reports to committees, engage in land negotiations, and establish administrative rules for state trails.

Directly affected

Counties and Municipalities

Local legislative bodies receive completed trail applications for review and gain the authority to block a proposed trail by adopting a resolution of opposition.

Directly affected

Recreational trail applicants

Individuals must submit written applications following division rules to nominate existing trails on public land.

Key Facts

You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who can apply to designate a state trail?
A person may submit a written application to the Division of Outdoor Recreation to nominate an existing recreational trail located on .
Can a local county or city block a proposed state trail?
Yes. A legislative committee cannot recommend a proposed state trail to the Legislature if an affected county or municipality adopts a resolution opposing it.
How is a state trail officially approved?
The Legislature and the governor must approve a state trail through a .

What else do you want to know?

News Coverage

No news coverage found yet. Articles are indexed twice daily.

Follow the record

Votes, people, money & the original source

Where This Stands

This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · introduced in the House.

Procedural history

11 actions
  1. Mar 6, 2026House
    House/ filed
  2. Mar 6, 2026House
    House/ strike enacting clause
  3. Feb 26, 2026House
    House/ received fiscal note from Fiscal Analyst
  4. Feb 26, 2026Released
    LFA/ fiscal note publicly available for HB0595
  5. Feb 25, 2026Version Sponsor
    LFA/ fiscal note sent to sponsor for HB0595
  6. Feb 23, 2026HouseIntroduced
    House/ 1st reading (Introduced)
Show 5 earlier actions
  1. Feb 23, 2026House
    House/ received bill from Legislative Research
  2. Feb 23, 2026Legislative Fiscal Agency
    LFA/ bill sent to agencies for fiscal input for HB0595
  3. Feb 23, 2026Legislative Fiscal Analyst
    LFA/ bill assigned to staff for fiscal analysis for HB0595
  4. Feb 23, 2026Legislative Research and General Counsel
    Numbered Bill Publicly Distributed
  5. Feb 23, 2026Legislative Research and General Counsel
    Bill Numbered but not Distributed

Version history

Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.

View official text →

Lobbying Activity

No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.

Full breakdown

Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.

Sponsors

Doug OwensHouse · District 33DemocraticPrimary sponsor

Discoveries

1 pattern noticed across the record

Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.

policy shift95% confidence

Establishment of Formal State Trail Designation Framework

The bill introduces a structured statutory mechanism for creating state trails where none previously existed in code, integrating local government consent into state-level designations.

Division of Outdoor Recreation

Connected Entities

Utah Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Advisory Committee, House or Senate Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment Committee, Division of Outdoor Recreation and 1 more
OrganizationUtah Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Advisory Committee“Reviews completed state trail applications.”Map →
OrganizationHouse or Senate Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment Committee“Reviews state trail evaluation reports when the Legislature is in session.”Map →
OrganizationDivision of Outdoor Recreation“Evaluates applications, formulates rules, and manages state trails.”Map →
OrganizationNatural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment Interim Committee“Reviews state trail evaluation reports when the Legislature is not in session.”Map →

Sources

Open source document

le.utah.gov

Analysis Score

0–100
  • Significance20
    Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 60)
  • Controversy25
    Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
  • Entertainment5
    Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
  • Buzz20
    Current news / social attention level

Publisher tools

Share or embed this record

POLISCOPE publisher tools

Share or embed this record