House OKs public land ‘Samaritan’ bill sparked by Lake Mead incidents

WASHINGTON — The House on Tuesday renewed passage of a bill to allow volunteer groups easier access to search public lands for victims of crime or accidents.

Lawmakers voted 413-0 for the Good Samaritan Search and Recovery Act, inspired by difficulties families encountered while trying to recover the remains of loved ones at the Lake Mead National Recreation Area.

The bill “tears down bureaucratic roadblocks that are preventing families from achieving closure” following the disappearance of a family member on public land, said Rep. Joe Heck, R-Nev., the bill’s sponsor.

Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, said the bill was “extremely significant. Our land agencies have become too big, too dogmatic, too bureaucratic to do things that help people.

“This bill is nothing more than common sense,” said Bishop, who is chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee. “It’s sad we have to pass legislation to get a land agency to do what they should be doing in the first place.”

The Heck bill directs the Interior secretary to expedite federal land access to eligible search groups. It removes a requirement that groups obtain liability insurance and directs land managers to issue access approvals or denials within 48 hours.

It took the Goldberg family and Red Rock Search and Rescue nine months to obtain the necessary $1 million in liability insurance for a special use permit to search a rocky section of the Lake Mead park for the body of Keith Goldberg, a Las Vegas cabdriver slain in January 2012. When searchers finally entered the park, Goldberg’s partial remains were recovered in less than two hours.

Likewise, it took 10 months for divers with Earth Resource Group to gain permission to search the lake for Air Force Staff Sgt. Antonio Tucker, who was presumed drowned.

Volunteers found Tucker’s body on April 16, 2013, after less than two days of searching.

The Good Samaritan bill passed the House 394-0 in the last session of Congress but was not taken up in the Senate. Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., has introduced a new bill this year.

Keith Goldberg’s mother, brother, sister and brother-in-law watched Tuesday’s discussion and vote from the House gallery.

“It still shakes me up hearing them talk about Keith,” said his sister, Jodi Goldberg, of Alexandria, Va.

“I’m not giving up on this,” said brother Jeffrey Goldberg, who traveled from New Jersey. “This is (Keith’s) legacy.”

Contact Review-Journal Washington Bureau Chief Steve Tetreault at stetreault@reviewjournal.com or 202-783-1760. Find him on Twitter: @STetreaultDC.