The Wyoming Public Lands Initiative Act of 2025 aims to redesignate and manage various federal lands across Wyoming, balancing conservation, recreation, and resource use. The bill designates five new wilderness areas as components of the National Wilderness Preservation System, totaling approximately 20,412 acres. These include the Encampment River Canyon, Prospect Mountain, Upper Sweetwater Canyon, Lower Sweetwater Canyon, and Bobcat Draw Wilderness areas, each with specific acreage and boundary details. These newly designated wilderness areas will be administered by the Secretary of the Interior in accordance with the Wilderness Act, with provisions for fire management and existing grazing rights. Importantly, the bill clarifies that no protective perimeter or buffer zone is established around these wilderness areas, and activities outside their boundaries are not precluded simply by being visible or audible from within. A significant aspect of the bill is the release of seventeen wilderness study areas from further wilderness designation review. Any portion of these study areas not designated as wilderness by this Act will no longer be subject to the Federal Land Policy and Management Act's wilderness study provisions. These released lands will be managed under the Federal Land Policy and Management Act and applicable land management plans. Specific management provisions are outlined for certain released wilderness study areas. For instance, the Copper Mountain Wilderness Study Area allows for oil and gas leasing via directional drilling , prohibiting surface occupancy. The Whiskey Mountain Wilderness Study Area's management will adhere to the existing Cooperative Agreement for bighorn sheep, while the Bobcat Draw released lands will have a travel management plan and be withdrawn from most mineral activities, with a similar directional drilling exception for oil and gas. The bill also establishes the Dubois Badlands National Conservation Area , comprising about 4,446 acres, to conserve and enhance its ecological, wildlife, recreational, and scenic resources. Motorized vehicles in this area are restricted to existing roads and trails. Concurrently, the Dubois Motorized Recreation Area is established, covering approximately 367 acres, specifically for motorized off-road vehicle use, with a required boundary fence and travel management plan. Furthermore, the Act creates several Special Management Areas (SMAs) , including Bennett Mountains, Black Cat, Sweetwater Rocks, Fortification Creek, Fraker Mountain, North Fork, and Cedar Mountain. These SMAs are established to enhance natural, historic, scenic, and recreational values, with some also focusing on wildlife habitat, forest health, and livestock production. Common management directives for SMAs include prohibiting new permanent roads, restricting motorized vehicles to designated routes (with administrative exceptions), and requiring travel management plans within two years. Most SMAs are withdrawn from mineral entry and leasing, but allow for oil and gas leasing through directional drilling without surface occupancy. The Sweetwater Rocks SMA specifically withdraws land from wind and solar energy right-of-way leasing. The bill also mandates studies for potential new motorized recreation areas in Fremont, Hot Springs, and Washakie Counties, and establishes a Fremont County Implementation Team to advise on local management requirements.