Under Bishop's bill, Park City would receive two tracts of land managed by the Bureau of Land Management. The land, surrounded by development inside the city limits, would be used for public recreation and open space.

"This bill does three good things: It helps settle long-term concerns over the future of these lands, it preserves some important open space, and it gives control and access for these lands to those closest to it, the leaders and citizens of the city," Bishop said.

The Gambel Oaks and White Acre parcels had been identified 30 years ago as areas that could be transferred out of federal hands. The Bishop bill transfers them to the city and directs the Interior Department to sell two other properties in Park City, with proceeds going toward environmental restoration projects in the BLM's Salt Lake City office.

The other Bishop bill would authorize a study on raising the height of Weber's Arthur V. Watkins Dam, a 14.5-mile-long earthen dam enclosing Willard Bay Reservoir. Raising the dam 5 feet would add 50,000 to 70,000 acre-feet of water to its 215,000-acre-feet storage capacity.

"The more time passes, the more water we need in Utah," Bishop said. "Increasing our storage capacity makes sense, and it will bring benefits right now and for decades to come. Water is essential to our future in the West, and this bill ensures we'll have more of that precious resource down the road."

The dam also leaked in 2006, and the legislation would provide the resources to repair it.

Both bills passed the House last year but bogged down in the Senate.