Fort Carson-Pinon Canyon Military Lands Withdrawal Act

Summary: Fort Carson-Pinon Canyon Military Lands Withdrawal Act - Withdraws from appropriation under public land, mining, mineral, geothermal leasing, and mineral materials disposal laws, and reserves for military use by the Army, specified lands at the Fort Carson Military Reservation and Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site (both in Colorado). 
Requires the Secretary of the Army to manage such lands for military purposes covered by this Act and to authorize their use by other U.S. military agencies. 
Directs the Secretary, with the concurrence of the Secretary of the Interior, to develop a management plan for such reserved and withdrawn lands. 
Terminates such land withdrawals and reservations 15 years after enactment of this Act. 
Requires the Secretary of the Army to:  (1) decontaminate relinquished lands (but authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to refuse to accept lands if such decontamination is not practicable or economically feasible, if the lands cannot be decontaminated sufficiently to allow them to be opened to the operation of the public land laws, or if insufficient funds are appropriated for the purpose of decontaminating the lands); (2) if the Secretary of the Interior declines to accept jurisdiction of lands proposed for relinquishment under such provision or determines that some of the lands withdrawn by this Act are contaminated to an extent that prevents opening the contaminated lands to operation of the public land laws, warn the public of risks of entry, conduct only decontamination activities on such lands after the expiration of the withdrawal, and make a status report to the Secretary of the Interior and to the Congress; and (3) maintain a program of decontamination of the lands withdrawn by this Act at least at the level of effort carried out during FY 1992, subject to specified limitations. 
Directs that the United States be held harmless and not liable for any injuries or damages to persons or property suffered in the course of any mining, mineral activity, or geothermal leasing activity conducted on lands comprising the Fort Carson Reservation or Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site, including liabilities to non-Federal entities under specified provisions of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 or the Solid Waste Disposal Act. 
Authorizes appropriations.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Fort Carson-Pinon 
Canyon Military Lands Withdrawal Act''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents.
Sec. 2. Withdrawal and reservation of lands at Fort Carson Military 
                            Reservation.
Sec. 3. Withdrawal and reservation of lands at Pinon Canyon Maneuver 
                            Site.
Sec. 4. Maps and legal descriptions.
Sec. 5. Management of withdrawn lands.
Sec. 6. Management of withdrawn and acquired mineral resources.
Sec. 7. Hunting, fishing, and trapping.
Sec. 8. Termination of withdrawal and reservation.
Sec. 9. Determination of presence of contamination and effect of 
                            contamination.
Sec. 10. Delegation.
Sec. 11. Hold harmless.
Sec. 12. Amendment to Military Lands Withdrawal Act of 1986.
Sec. 13. Authorization of appropriations.

SEC. 2. WITHDRAWAL AND RESERVATION OF LANDS AT FORT CARSON MILITARY 
              RESERVATION.

    (a) Withdrawal.--Subject to valid existing rights and except as 
otherwise provided in this Act, the lands at the Fort Carson Military 
Reservation, Colorado, that are described in subsection (c) are hereby 
withdrawn from all forms of appropriation under the public land laws, 
including the mining laws, the mineral and geothermal leasing laws, and 
the mineral materials disposal laws.
    (b) Reservation.--The lands withdrawn under subsection (a) are 
reserved for use by the Secretary of the Army--
            (1) for military maneuvering, training and weapons firing; 
        and
            (2) for other defense related purposes consistent with the 
        uses specified in paragraph (1).
    (c) Land Description.--The lands referred to in subsection (a) 
comprise 3,133.02 acres of public land and 11,415.16 acres of 
federally-owned minerals in El Paso, Pueblo, and Fremont Counties, 
Colorado, as generally depicted on the map entitled ``Fort Carson 
Proposed Withdrawal--Fort Carson Base'', dated February 6, 1992, and 
published in accordance with section 4.

SEC. 3. WITHDRAWAL AND RESERVATION OF LANDS AT PINON CANYON MANEUVER 
              SITE.

    (a) Withdrawal.--Subject to valid existing rights and except as 
otherwise provided in this Act, the lands at the Pinon Canyon Maneuver 
Site, Colorado, that are described in subsection (c) are hereby 
withdrawn from all forms of appropriation under the public land laws, 
including the mining laws, the mineral and geothermal leasing laws, and 
the mineral materials disposal laws.
    (b) Reservation.--The lands withdrawn under subsection (a) are 
reserved for use by the Secretary of the Army--
            (1) for military maneuvering and training; and
            (2) for other defense related purposes consistent with the 
        uses specified in paragraph (1).
    (c) Land Description.--The lands referred to in subsection (a) 
comprise 2,517.12 acres of public lands and 130,139 acres of federally-
owned minerals in Las Animas County, Colorado, as generally depicted on 
the map entitled ``Fort Carson Proposed Withdrawal--Fort 
Carson Maneuver Area--Pinon Canyon site'', dated February 6, 1992, and 
published in accordance with section 4.

SEC. 4. MAPS AND LEGAL DESCRIPTIONS.

    (a) Preparation of Maps and Legal Description.--As soon as 
practicable after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
of the Interior shall prepare maps depicting the lands withdrawn and 
reserved by this Act and publish in the Federal Register a notice 
containing the legal description of such lands.
    (b) Legal Effect.--Such maps and legal descriptions shall have the 
same force and effect as if they were included in this Act, except that 
the Secretary of the Interior may correct clerical and typographical 
errors in such maps and legal descriptions.
    (c) Availability of Maps and Legal Description.--Copies of such 
maps and legal descriptions shall be available for public inspection in 
the offices of the Colorado State Director and the Canon City District 
Manager of the Bureau of Land Management and in the offices of the 
Commander of Fort Carson, Colorado.
    (d) Costs.--The Secretary of the Army shall reimburse the Secretary 
of the Interior for the costs of implementing this section.

SEC. 5. MANAGEMENT OF WITHDRAWN LANDS.

    (a) Management Guidelines.--
            (1) Management by secretary of the army.--Except as 
        provided in section 6, during the period of withdrawal, the 
        Secretary of the Army shall manage for military purposes the 
        lands covered by this Act and may authorize use of the lands by 
        the other military departments and agencies of the Department 
        of Defense, and the National Guard, as appropriate.
            (2) Access restrictions.--When military operations, public 
        safety, or national security, as determined by the Secretary of 
        the Army, require the closure of roads and trails on the lands 
        withdrawn by this Act commonly in public use, the Secretary of 
        the Army is authorized to take such action, except that such 
        closures shall be limited to the minimum areas and periods 
        required for the purposes specified in this subsection. 
        Appropriate warning notices shall be kept posted during 
        closures.
            (3) Suppression of fires.--The Secretary of the Army shall 
        take necessary precautions to prevent and suppress brush and 
        range fires occurring within and outside the lands as a result 
        of military activities and may seek assistance from the Bureau 
        of Land Management in suppressing such fires. The memorandum of 
        understanding required by this section shall provide for Bureau 
        of Land Management assistance in the suppression of such fires, 
        and for a transfer of funds from the Department of the Army to 
        the Bureau of Land Management as compensation for such 
        assistance.
    (b) Management Plan.--
            (1) Development required.--The Secretary of the Army, with 
        the concurrence of the Secretary of the Interior, shall develop 
        a plan for the management of acquired lands and lands withdrawn 
        under sections 2 and 3 for the period of withdrawal. The plan 
        shall--
                    (A) be consistent with applicable law;
                    (B) include such provisions as may be necessary for 
                proper resource management and protection of the 
                natural, cultural, and other resources and values of 
                such lands; and
                    (C) identify those withdrawn and acquired lands, if 
                any, which are to be open to mining or mineral and 
                geothermal leasing, including mineral materials 
                disposal.
            (2) Time for development.--The management plan required by 
        this subsection shall be developed not later than 5 years after 
        the date of the enactment of this Act.
    (c) Implementation of Management Plan.--
            (1) Memorandum of understanding required.--The Secretary of 
        the Army and the Secretary of the Interior shall enter into a 
        memorandum of understanding to implement the management plan 
        developed under subsection (b).
            (2) Duration.--The duration of any such memorandum of 
        understanding shall be the same as the period of withdrawal 
        specified in section 8(a).
            (3) Amendment.--The memorandum of understanding may be 
        amended by agreement of both Secretaries.
    (d) Use of Certain Resources.--The Secretary of the Army is 
authorized to utilize sand, gravel, or similar mineral or mineral 
material resources from the lands withdrawn by this Act when the use of 
such resources is required for construction needs of the Fort Carson 
Reservation or Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site.

SEC. 6. MANAGEMENT OF WITHDRAWN AND ACQUIRED MINERAL RESOURCES.

    Except as provided in section 5(d), the Secretary of the Interior 
shall manage all withdrawn and acquired mineral resources within the 
boundaries of the Fort Carson Military Reservation and Pinon Canyon 
Maneuver Site in the same manner as provided in section 12 of the 
Military Lands Withdrawal Act of 1986 (Public Law 99-606; 100 Stat. 
3466) for mining and mineral leasing on certain lands withdrawn by that 
Act from all forms of appropriation under the public land laws.

SEC. 7. HUNTING, FISHING, AND TRAPPING.

    All hunting, fishing, and trapping on the lands withdrawn and 
reserved by this Act shall be conducted in accordance with section 2671 
of title 10, United States Code.

SEC. 8. TERMINATION OF WITHDRAWAL AND RESERVATION.

    (a) Termination Date.--The withdrawal and reservation made by this 
Act shall terminate 15 years after the date of the enactment of this 
Act.
    (b) Determination of Continuing Military Need.--
            (1) Determination required.--At least three years before 
        the termination under subsection (a) of the withdrawal and 
        reservation established by this Act, the Secretary of the Army 
        shall advise the Secretary of the Interior as to whether or not 
        the Department of the Army will have a continuing military need 
        for any of the lands after the termination date.
            (2) Method of making determination.--If the Secretary of 
        the Army concludes under paragraph (1) that there will be a 
        continuing military need for any of the lands after the 
        termination date established by subsection (a), the Secretary 
        of the Army, in accordance with applicable law, shall--
                    (A) evaluate the environmental effects of renewal 
                of such withdrawal and reservation;
                    (B) hold at least one public hearing in Colorado 
                concerning such evaluation; and
                    (C) file, after completing the requirements of 
                subparagraphs (A) and (B), an application for extension 
                of the withdrawal and reservation of such lands in 
                accordance with the regulations and procedures of the 
                Department of the Interior applicable to the extension 
                of withdrawals for military uses.
            (3) Notification.--The Secretary of the Interior shall 
        notify the Congress concerning a filing under paragraph (3)(C).
    (c) Early Relinquishment of Withdrawal.--If the Secretary of the 
Army concludes under subsection (b) that before the termination date 
established by subsection (a) there will be no military need for all or 
any part of the lands withdrawn and reserved by this Act, or if, 
during the period of withdrawal, the Secretary of the Army otherwise 
decides to relinquish any or all of the lands withdrawn and reserved 
under this Act, the Secretary of the Army shall file with the Secretary 
of the Interior a notice of intention to relinquish such lands.
    (d) Acceptance of Lands Proposed for Relinquishment.--
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary of the 
Interior, upon deciding that it is in the public interest to accept 
jurisdiction over the lands proposed for relinquishment, may revoke the 
withdrawal and reservation established by this Act as it applies to the 
lands proposed for relinquishment. Should the decision be made to 
revoke the withdrawal and reservation, the Secretary of the Interior 
shall publish in the Federal Register an appropriate order which 
shall--
            (1) terminate the withdrawal and reservation;
            (2) constitute official acceptance of full jurisdiction 
        over the lands by the Secretary of the Interior; and
            (3) state the date upon which the lands will be opened to 
        the operation of the public land laws, including the mining 
        laws if appropriate.

SEC. 9. DETERMINATION OF PRESENCE OF CONTAMINATION AND EFFECT OF 
              CONTAMINATION.

    (a) Determination of Presence of Contamination.--
            (1) Before relinquishment notice.--Before filing a 
        relinquishment notice under section 8(c), the Secretary of the 
        Army shall prepare a written determination as to whether and to 
        what extent the lands to be relinquished are contaminated with 
        explosive, toxic, or other hazardous materials. A copy of the 
        determination made by the Secretary of the Army shall be 
        supplied with the relinquishment notice. Copies of both the 
        relinquishment notice and the determination under this 
        subsection shall be published in the Federal Register by the 
        Secretary of the Interior.
            (2) Upon termination of withdrawal.--At the expiration of 
        the withdrawal period made by this Act, the Secretary of the 
        Interior shall determine whether and to what extent the lands 
        withdrawn by this Act are contaminated to an extent which 
        prevents opening such contaminated lands to operation of the 
        public land laws.
    (b) Program of Decontamination.--
            (1) In general.--Throughout the duration of the withdrawal 
        and reservation made by this Act, the Secretary of the Army, to 
        the extent funds are made available, shall maintain a program 
        of decontamination of the lands withdrawn by this Act at least 
        at the level of effort carried out during fiscal year 1992.
            (2) Decontamination of lands to be relinquished.--In the 
        case of lands subject to a relinquishment notice under section 
        8(c) that are contaminated, the Secretary of the Army shall 
        decontaminate the land to the extent that funds are 
        appropriated for such purpose if the Secretary of the Interior, 
        in consultation with the Secretary of the Army, determines 
        that--
                    (A) decontamination of the lands is practicable and 
                economically feasible, taking into consideration the 
                potential future use and value of the land; and
                    (B) upon decontamination, the land could be opened 
                to the operation of some or all of the public land 
                laws, including the mining laws.
    (c) Authority of Secretary of the Interior To Refuse Contaminated 
Lands.--The Secretary of the Interior shall not be required to accept 
lands proposed for relinquishment if the Secretary of the Army and the 
Secretary of the Interior conclude that--
            (1) decontamination of any or all of the lands proposed for 
        relinquishment is not practicable or economically feasible;
            (2) the lands cannot be decontaminated sufficiently to 
        allow them to be opened to the operation of the public land 
        laws; or
            (3) insufficient funds are appropriated for the purpose of 
        decontaminating the lands.
    (d) Effect of Continued Contamination.--If the Secretary of the 
Interior declines under subsection (c) to accept jurisdiction of lands 
proposed for relinquishment or if the Secretary of the Interior 
determines under subsection (a)(2) that some of the lands withdrawn by 
this Act are contaminated to an extent that prevents opening the 
contaminated lands to operation of the public land laws--
            (1) the Secretary of the Army shall take appropriate steps 
        to warn the public of the contaminated state of such lands and 
        any risks associated with entry onto such lands;
            (2) after the expiration of the withdrawal, the Secretary 
        of the Army shall undertake no activities on such lands except 
        in connection with decontamination of such lands; and
            (3) the Secretary of the Army shall report to the Secretary 
        of the Interior and to the Congress concerning the status of 
        such lands and all actions taken under paragraphs (1) and (2).
    (e) Effect of Subsequent Decontamination.--If the lands described 
in subsection (d) are subsequently decontaminated, upon certification 
by the Secretary of the Army that the lands are safe for all 
nonmilitary uses, the Secretary of the Interior shall reconsider 
accepting jurisdiction over the lands.
    (f) Effect on Other Laws.--Nothing in this Act shall affect, or be 
construed to affect, the obligations of the Secretary of the Army, if 
any, to decontaminate lands withdrawn by this Act pursuant to 
applicable law, including the Comprehensive Environmental Response 
Compensation and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.) and the 
Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.).

SEC. 10. DELEGATION.

    The functions of the Secretary of the Army under this Act may be 
delegated. The functions of the Secretary of the Interior under this 
Act may be delegated, except that the order referred to in section 8(d) 
may be approved and signed only by the Secretary of the Interior, the 
Deputy Secretary of the Interior, or an Assistant Secretary of the 
Department of the Interior.

SEC. 11. HOLD HARMLESS.

    (a) In General.--The United States shall be held harmless and shall 
not be liable for any injuries or damages to persons or property 
suffered in the course of any mining, mineral activity, or geothermal 
leasing activity conducted on lands comprising the Fort Carson 
Reservation or Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site, including liabilities to 
non-Federal entities under section 107 or 113 of the Comprehensive 
Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act of 1980 (42 
U.S.C. 9607, 9613), or section 7003 of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 
U.S.C. 6973).
    (b) Indemnification.--Any party conducting any mining, mineral, or 
geothermal leasing activity on lands comprising the Fort Carson 
Reservation or Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site shall indemnify the United 
States against any costs, fees, damages, or other liabilities 
(including costs of litigation) incurred by the United States and 
arising from or relating to such mining activities, including costs of 
mineral materials disposal, whether arising under the Comprehensive 
Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act of 1980, the 
Solid Waste Disposal Act, or otherwise.

SEC. 12. AMENDMENT TO MILITARY LANDS WITHDRAWAL ACT OF 1986.

    (a) Use of Certain Resources.--Section 3(f) of the Military Lands 
Withdrawal Act of 1986 (Public Law 99-606; 100 Stat. 3461) is amended 
by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
    ``(2) Subject to valid existing rights, the Secretary of the 
military department concerned may utilize sand, gravel, or similar 
mineral or material resources when the use of such resources is 
required for construction needs on the respective lands withdrawn by 
this Act.''.
    (b) Technical Correction.--Section 9(b) of the Military Lands 
Withdrawal Act of 1986 (Public Law 99-606; 100 Stat. 3466) is amended 
by striking ``section 7(f)'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``section 
8(f)''.

SEC. 13. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are hereby authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act.

            Passed the House of Representatives March 28, 1995.

            Attest:

                                                ROBIN H. CARLE,

                                                                 Clerk.
                                     

104th CONGRESS

  1st Session

                               H. R. 256

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

 To withdraw and reserve certain public lands and minerals within the 
      State of Colorado for military uses, and for other purposes.