I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 527 

To provide for a land exchange involving Federal land in the Superior National Forest in Minnesota acquired by the Secretary of Agriculture 

through the Weeks Law, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 14, 2019 

Mr. STAUBER (for himself, Mr. EMMER, Mr. PETERSON, Mr. GOSAR, Mr. 

WESTERMAN, and Mr. HAGEDORN) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To provide for a land exchange involving Federal land in 

the Superior National Forest in Minnesota acquired by 

the Secretary of Agriculture through the Weeks Law, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Superior National Forest Land Exchange Act of 2019’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 


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Sec. 2. Purpose and need for NorthMet Land Exchange. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 

Sec. 4. NorthMet Land Exchange. 

Sec. 5. Valuation of NorthMet Land Exchange. 

Sec. 6. Maps and legal descriptions. 

Sec. 7. Post-exchange land management. 

Sec. 8. Miscellaneous provisions. 

1 SEC. 2. PURPOSE AND NEED FOR NORTHMET LAND EX2 CHANGE. 

3 (a) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this Act to fur4 ther the public interest by consummating the NorthMet 

5 Land Exchange as specifically set forth in this Act. 

6 (b) NEED.—According to the Final Record of Deci7 sion, the NorthMet Land Exchange is advisable and need8 ed because the NorthMet Land Exchange will— 

9 (1) result in a 40-acre net gain in National 

10 Forest System lands; 

11 (2) improve the spatial arrangement of Na12 tional Forest System lands by reducing the amount 

13 of ownership boundaries to be managed by 33 miles; 

14 (3) improve management effectiveness by ex15 changing isolated Federal lands with no public over16 land access for non-Federal lands that will have pub17 lic overland access and be accessible and open to 

18 public use and enjoyment; 

19 (4) result in Federal cost savings by eliminating 

20 certain easements and their associated administra21 tion costs; 


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1 (5) meet several of the priorities identified in 

2 the land and resource management plan for Superior 

3 National Forest to protect and manage administra4 tively or congressionally designated, unique, pro5 posed, or recommended areas, including acquisition 

6 of 307 acres of land to the administratively proposed 

7 candidate Research Natural Areas, which are man8 aged by preserving and maintaining areas for eco9 logical research, observation, genetic conservation, 

10 monitoring, and educational activities; 

11 (6) promote more effective land management 

12 that would meet specific National Forest needs for 

13 management, including acquisition of over 6,500 

14 acres of land for new public access, watershed pro15 tection, ecologically rare habitats, wetlands, water 

16 frontage, and improved ownership patterns; 

17 (7) convey Federal land generally not needed 

18 for other Forest resource management objectives, 

19 because such land is adjacent to intensively devel20 oped private land including ferrous mining areas, 

21 where abundant mining infrastructure and transpor22 tation are already in place, including— 

23 (A) a large, intensively developed open pit 

24 mine lying directly to the north of the Federal 

25 land; 


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1 (B) a private mine railroad, powerlines, 

2 and roads lying directly to the south of the 

3 Federal land; and 

4 (C) already existing ore processing, milling, 

5 and tailings facilities located approximately 5 

6 miles to the west of the Federal land; and 

7 (8) provide a practical resolution to complex 

8 issues pertaining to the development of private min9 eral rights underlying the Federal land surface, and 

10 thereby avoid potential litigation which could ad11 versely impact the status and management of the 

12 Federal land and other National Forest System land 

13 acquired under the authority of section 6 of the Act 

14 of March 1, 1911 (commonly known as the Weeks 

15 Law; 16 U.S.C. 515). 

16 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

17 In this Act: 

18 (1) COLLECTION AGREEMENTS.—The term 

19 ‘‘Collection Agreements’’ means the following agree20 ments between the Secretary and PolyMet pertaining 

21 to the NorthMet Land Exchange: 

22 (A) The agreement dated August 25, 

23 2015. 

24 (B) The agreement dated January 15, 

25 2016. 


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1 (2) FEDERAL LAND PARCEL.—The term ‘‘Fed2 eral land parcel’’ means all right, title, and interest 

3 of the United States in and to approximately 6,650 

4 acres of National Forest System land, as identified 

5 in the Final Record of Decision, within the Superior 

6 National Forest in St. Louis County, Minnesota, as 

7 generally depicted on the map entitled ‘‘Federal 

8 Land Parcel–NorthMet Land Exchange’’, and dated 

9 June 2017. 

10 (3) NON-FEDERAL LAND.—The term ‘‘non-Fed11 eral land’’ means all right, title, and interest of 

12 PolyMet in and to approximately 6,690 acres of land 

13 in four separate tracts (comprising 10 separate land 

14 parcels in total) within the Superior National Forest 

15 to be conveyed to the United States by PolyMet in 

16 the land exchange as generally depicted on an over17 view map entitled ‘‘Non-Federal Land Parcels– 

18 NorthMet Land Exchange’’ and dated June 2017, 

19 and further depicted on separate tract maps as fol20 lows: 

21 (A) TRACT 1.—Approximately 4,650 acres 

22 of land in St. Louis County, Minnesota, gen23 erally depicted on the map entitled ‘‘Non-Fed24 eral Land Parcels–NorthMet Land Exchange– 

25 Hay Lake Tract’’, and dated June 28, 2018. 


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1 (B) TRACT 2.—Approximately 320 acres of 

2 land in 4 separate parcels in Lake County, Min3 nesota, generally depicted on the map entitled 

4 ‘‘Non-Federal Land Parcels–NorthMet Land 

5 Exchange–Lake County Lands’’, and dated 

6 June 28, 2018. 

7 (C) TRACT 3.—Approximately 1,560 acres 

8 of land in 4 separate parcels in Lake County, 

9 Minnesota, generally depicted on the map enti10 tled ‘‘Non-Federal Land Parcels–NorthMet 

11 Land Exchange–Wolf Lands’’, and dated June 

12 2017. 

13 (D) TRACT 4.—Approximately 160 acres of 

14 land in St. Louis County, Minnesota, generally 

15 depicted on the map entitled ‘‘Non-Federal 

16 Land Parcel–NorthMet Land Exchange–Hunt17 ing Club Lands’’, dated June 2017. 

18 (4) NORTHMET LAND EXCHANGE.—The term 

19 ‘‘NorthMet Land Exchange’’ means the land ex20 change specifically authorized and directed by sec21 tion 4 of this Act. 

22 (5) POLYMET.—The term ‘‘PolyMet’’ means 

23 PolyMet Mining Corporation, Inc., a Minnesota Cor24 poration with executive offices in St. Paul, Min25 nesota, and headquarters in Hoyt Lakes, Minnesota. 


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1 (6) RECORD OF DECISION.—The term ‘‘Record 

2 of Decision’’ means the Final Record of Decision of 

3 the Forest Service issued on January 9, 2017, ap4 proving the NorthMet Land exchange between the 

5 United States and PolyMet Mining, Inc., a Min6 nesota Corporation, involving National Forest Sys7 tem land in the Superior National Forest in Min8 nesota. 

9 (7) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

10 the Secretary of Agriculture. 

11 (8) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State 

12 of Minnesota. 

13 SEC. 4. NORTHMET LAND EXCHANGE. 

14 (a) EXCHANGE AUTHORIZED AND DIRECTED.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to section 5(c)(1) 

16 and other conditions imposed by this Act, if PolyMet 

17 offers to convey to the United States all right, title, 

18 and interest of PolyMet in and to the non-Federal 

19 land, the Secretary shall accept the offer and convey 

20 to PolyMet all right, title, and interest of the United 

21 States in and to the Federal land parcel. 

22 (2) LAND EXCHANGE EXPEDITED.—Subject to 

23 the conditions imposed by this Act, the NorthMet 

24 Land Exchange directed by this Act shall be conVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:04 Jan 26, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H527.IH H527

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1 summated not later than 90 days after the date of 

2 enactment of this Act. 

3 (b) FORM OF CONVEYANCE.— 

4 (1) NON-FEDERAL LAND.—Title to the non5 Federal land conveyed by PolyMet to the United 

6 States shall be by general warranty deed subject to 

7 existing rights of record, and otherwise conform to 

8 the title approval regulations of the Attorney Gen9 eral of the United States. 

10 (2) FEDERAL LAND PARCEL.—The Federal 

11 land parcel shall be quitclaimed by the Secretary to 

12 PolyMet by an exchange deed. 

13 (c) EXCHANGE COSTS.— 

14 (1) REIMBURSEMENT REQUIRED.—PolyMet 

15 shall pay or reimburse the Secretary, either directly 

16 or through the Collection Agreements, for all land 

17 survey, appraisal, land title, deed preparation, and 

18 other costs incurred by the Secretary in processing 

19 and consummating the NorthMet Land Exchange. 

20 The Collection Agreements, as in effect on the date 

21 of the enactment of this Act, may be modified 

22 through the mutual consent of the parties. 

23 (2) DEPOSIT OF FUNDS.—All funds paid or re24 imbursed to the Secretary under paragraph (1)— 


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1 (A) shall be deposited and credited to the 

2 accounts in accordance with the Collection 

3 Agreements; 

4 (B) shall be used for the purposes specified 

5 for the accounts; and 

6 (C) shall remain available to the Secretary 

7 until expended without further appropriation. 

8 (d) CONDITIONS ON LAND EXCHANGE.— 

9 (1) RESERVATION OF CERTAIN MINERAL

10 RIGHTS.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), the 

11 United States shall reserve the mineral rights on ap12 proximately 181 acres of the Federal land parcel as 

13 generally identified on the map entitled ‘‘Federal 

14 Land Parcel–NorthMet Land Exchange’’, and dated 

15 June 2017. 

16 (2) THIRD-PARTY AUTHORIZATIONS.—As set 

17 forth in the Final Record of Decision, PolyMet shall 

18 honor existing road and transmission line authoriza19 tions on the Federal land parcel. Upon relinquish20 ment of the authorizations by the holders or upon 

21 revocation of the authorizations by the Forest Serv22 ice, PolyMet shall offer replacement authorizations 

23 to the holders on at least equivalent terms. 


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1 SEC. 5. VALUATION OF NORTHMET LAND EXCHANGE. 

2 (a) APPRAISALS.—The Congress makes the following 

3 new findings: 

4 (1) Appraisals of the Federal and non-Federal 

5 lands to be exchanged in the NorthMet Land Ex6 change were formally prepared in accordance with 

7 the Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land 

8 Acquisitions, and were approved by the Secretary in 

9 conjunction with preparation of the November 2015 

10 Draft Record of Decision on the NorthMet Land 

11 Exchange. 

12 (2) The appraisals referred to in paragraph (1) 

13 determined that the value of the non-Federal lands 

14 exceeded the value of the Federal land parcel by ap15 proximately $425,000. 

16 (3) Based on the appraisals referred to in para17 graph (1), the United States would ordinarily be re18 quired to make a $425,000 cash equalization pay19 ment to PolyMet to equalize exchange values under 

20 the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 

21 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), unless such an 

22 equalization payment is waived by PolyMet. 

23 (b) VALUES FOR CONSUMMATION OF LAND EX24 CHANGE.—The appraised values of the Federal and non25 Federal land determined and approved by the Secretary 

26 in November 2015, and referenced in subsection (a)— 


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1 (1) shall be the values utilized to consummate 

2 the NorthMet Land Exchange; and 

3 (2) shall not be subject to reappraisal. 

4 (c) WAIVER OF EQUALIZATION PAYMENT.— 

5 (1) CONDITION ON LAND EXCHANGE.—Not6 withstanding section 206(b) of the Federal Land 

7 Policy and Management Act (43 U.S.C. 1716(b)), 

8 and as part of its offer to exchange the non-Federal 

9 lands as provided in section 4(a)(1) of this Act, 

10 PolyMet shall waive any payment to it of any monies 

11 owed by the United States to equalize land values. 

12 (2) TREATMENT OF WAIVER.—A waiver of the 

13 equalization payment under paragraph (1) shall be 

14 considered as a voluntary donation to the United 

15 States by PolyMet for all purposes of law. 

16 SEC. 6. MAPS AND LEGAL DESCRIPTIONS. 

17 (a) MINOR ADJUSTMENTS.—By mutual agreement, 

18 the Secretary and PolyMet may correct minor or typo19 graphical errors in any map, acreage estimate, or descrip20 tion of the Federal land parcel or non-Federal land to be 

21 exchanged in the NorthMet Land Exchange. 

22 (b) CONFLICT.—If there is a conflict between a map, 

23 an acreage estimate, or a description of land under this 

24 Act, the map shall control unless the Secretary and 

25 PolyMet mutually agree otherwise. 


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1 (c) EXCHANGE MAPS.—The maps referred to in sec2 tion 3 depicting the Federal and non-Federal lands to be 

3 exchanged in the NorthMet Land Exchange, and dated 

4 June 28 2018, depict the identical lands identified in the 

5 Final Record of Decision, which are on file in the Office 

6 of the Supervisor, Superior National Forest. 

7 SEC. 7. POST-EXCHANGE LAND MANAGEMENT. 

8 (a) NON-FEDERAL LAND.—Upon conveyance of the 

9 non-Federal land to the United States in the NorthMet 

10 Land Exchange, the non-Federal land shall become part 

11 of the Superior National Forest and be managed in ac12 cordance with— 

13 (1) the Act of March 1, 1911 (commonly known 

14 as the Weeks Law; 16 U.S.C. 500 et seq.); and 

15 (2) the laws and regulations applicable to the 

16 Superior National Forest and the National Forest 

17 System. 

18 (b) PLANNING.—Upon acquisition by the United 

19 States in the NorthMet Land Exchange, the non-Federal 

20 lands shall be managed in a manner consistent with the 

21 land and resource management plan applicable to adjacent 

22 federally owned lands in the Superior National Forest. An 

23 amendment or supplement to the land and resource man24 agement plan shall not be required solely because of the 

25 acquisition of the non-Federal lands. 


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1 (c) FEDERAL LAND.—Upon conveyance of the Fed2 eral land parcel to PolyMet in the NorthMet Land Ex3 change, the Federal land parcel shall become private land 

4 and available for any lawful use in accordance with appli5 cable Federal, State, and local laws and regulations per6 taining to mining and other uses of land in private owner7 ship. 

8 SEC. 8. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS. 

9 (a) WITHDRAWAL OF ACQUIRED NON-FEDERAL

10 LAND.—The non-Federal lands acquired by the United 

11 States in the NorthMet Land Exchange shall be with12 drawn, without further action by the Secretary, from ap13 propriation and disposal under public land laws and under 

14 laws relating to mineral and geothermal leasing. 

15 (b) WITHDRAWAL REVOCATION.—Any public land 

16 order that withdraws the Federal land parcel from appro17 priation or disposal under a public land law shall be re18 voked without further action by the Secretary to the extent 

19 necessary to permit conveyance of the Federal land parcel 

20 to PolyMet. 

21 (c) WITHDRAWAL OF FEDERAL LAND PENDING

22 CONVEYANCE.—The Federal land parcel to be conveyed 

23 to PolyMet in the NorthMet Land Exchange, if not al24 ready withdrawn or segregated from appropriation or dis25 posal under the mineral leasing and geothermal or other 


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1 public land laws upon enactment of this Act, is hereby so 

2 withdrawn, subject to valid existing rights, until the date 

3 of conveyance of the Federal land parcel to PolyMet. 

4 (d) ACT CONTROLS.—In the event any provision of 

5 the Record of Decision conflicts with a provision of this 

6 Act, the provision of this Act shall control. 

Æ 


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