Ranking Member Huffman Celebrates New National Monument Designations in California

WASHINGTON – U.S. House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) today celebrated President Joseph R. Biden’s expected designation of the new Chuckwalla and Sáttítla Highlands National Monuments in California using his authority under the Antiquities Act of 1906.

“Designation of the Chuckwalla and Sáttítla Highlands National Monuments is yet another win for Indigenous and community conservation efforts championed by the Biden-Harris administration,” said Ranking Member Huffman. “The new Chuckwalla National Monument will protect sacred and ecologically invaluable lands that have been home to the Cahuilla, Chemehuevi, Mojave, Quechan, and Serrano peoples since time immemorial. Likewise, Sáttítla, also known as the Medicine Lake Highlands, has been a spiritual center for the Pit River and Modoc Tribes for millennia. I’m grateful to the community leaders and elected officials that listened to Indigenous communities and worked tirelessly to protect these lands so that the ancestral homelands, cultural resources and traditions, and sacred sites of the region are protected for generations to come.”

ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND

The Chuckwalla National Monument encompasses more than 624,000 acres of land adjacent to Joshua Tree National Park in the Coachella Valley region of California. Its designation follows a decades-long effort led by tribes, elected officials, and community leaders, and incorporates input from clean energy partners to support clean energy deployment. In April 2024, Ranking Member Huffman joined a letter led by Senators Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Laphonza Butler (D-Calif.) and Rep. Raúl Ruiz (D-Calif.) urging President Biden and Secretary Haaland to use the President’s authority under the Antiquities Act of 1906 to designate the Chuckwalla National Monument.

The Sáttítla Highlands National Monument in Northern California will protect over 224,000 acres of rich landscapes from clear lakes to lava flows to ice caves. This region also serves as an extensive freshwater aquifer, capturing snowmelt that supplies water to millions of Californians.

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