69–006 

114TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 2d Session 114–834 

ARBUCKLE PROJECT MAINTENANCE COMPLEX AND 

DISTRICT OFFICE CONVEYANCE ACT OF 2016 

NOVEMBER 29, 2016.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 

State of the Union and ordered to be printed 

Mr. BISHOP of Utah, from the Committee on Natural Resources, 

submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany H.R. 1219] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred the 

bill (H.R. 1219) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to convey 

certain land and appurtenances of the Arbuckle Project, Oklahoma, 

to the Arbuckle Master Conservancy District, and for other purposes, having considered the same, report favorably thereon with 

an amendment and recommend that the bill as amended do pass. 

The amendment is as follows: 

Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the following: 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Arbuckle Project Maintenance Complex and District 

Office Conveyance Act of 2016’’. 

SEC. 2. CONVEYANCE OF MAINTENANCE COMPLEX AND DISTRICT OFFICE OF THE ARBUCKLE 

PROJECT, OKLAHOMA. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior shall, as soon as practicable, convey to the Arbuckle Master Conservancy District, located in Murray County, Oklahoma, all right, title, and interest of the United States in and to the Maintenance 

Complex and District Office, Arbuckle Project, Oklahoma, consistent with the terms 

and conditions set forth in the Agreement between the United States and the Arbuckle Master Conservancy District. 

(b) DEFINITIONS.— 

(1) AGREEMENT.—The term ‘‘Agreement’’ means the Agreement between the 

United States and the Arbuckle Master Conservancy District for Transferring 

Title to the Federally Owned Maintenance Complex and District Office to the 

Arbuckle Master Conservancy District (Agreement No. 14AG640141). 

(2) DISTRICT OFFICE.—The term ‘‘District Office’’ means the headquarters 

building located at 2440 East Main, Davis, Oklahoma, and the approximately 

0.83 acres described in the Agreement. 

(3) MAINTENANCE COMPLEX.—The term ‘‘Maintenance Complex’’ means the 

caretakers residence, shop buildings, and any appurtenances located on the 

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lands described in the Agreement, to include approximately 2.00 acres, more or 

less. 

(c) LIABILITY.—Effective upon the date of conveyance of the Maintenance Complex 

and District Office under this section, the United States shall not be held liable by 

any court for damages of any kind arising out of any act, omission, or occurrence 

relating to the Maintenance Complex and District Office, except for damages caused 

by acts of negligence committed by the United States or by its employees or agents 

prior to the date of conveyance. Nothing in this section increases the liability of the 

United States beyond that provided in chapter 171 of title 28, United States Code 

(popularly known as the ‘‘Federal Tort Claims Act’’) on the date of the enactment 

of this Act. 

(d) BENEFITS.—After conveyance of the Maintenance Complex and District Office 

to the Arbuckle Master Conservancy District— 

(1) the Maintenance Complex and District Office shall not be considered to 

be a part of a Federal reclamation project; and 

(2) such water district shall not be eligible to receive any benefits with respect 

to any facility comprising that Maintenance Complex and District Office, except 

benefits that would be available to a similarly situated person with respect to 

such a facility that is not part of a Federal reclamation project. 

(e) COMMUNICATION.—If the Secretary of the Interior has not completed the conveyance required under subsection (a) within 12 months after the date of enactment 

of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a letter with sufficient detail that 

explains the reasons the conveyance has not been completed and stating the date 

by which the conveyance will be completed. 

PURPOSE OF THE BILL

The purpose of H.R. 1219 is to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain land and appurtenances of the Arbuckle 

Project, Oklahoma, to the Arbuckle Master Conservancy District. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

H.R. 1219, as amended, authorizes the Secretary of the Interior 

to convey all the United States’ right, title and interest in the 

Maintenance Complex and District Office of the federal Arbuckle 

water project in Oklahoma to the Arbuckle Master Conservancy 

District in Murray County, Oklahoma. 

Authorized in 1962 by Public Law 87–594, the Bureau of Reclamation’s Arbuckle Project in south-central Oklahoma provides a 

number of benefits, including flood control, municipal water supply, 

recreation and fish and wildlife purposes. The Arbuckle Master 

Conservancy District contracted with the federal government for 

the payment of the reimbursable costs for construction and operation and maintenance of the Project. 

The Project’s authorizing statute allowed for the conveyance of 

title to ‘‘pipelines and related facilities as are used solely for delivering project water to the water users’’ upon completion of the District’s repayment obligations. The District completed repayment of 

its capital costs for the Project in September 2012 and title to the 

Wynnewood Pumping Plant and Aqueduct was transferred from 

Reclamation to the District in December 2012. The District also requested that the Maintenance Complex and District Office be included in the transfer, as it had operated and maintained these facilities since January 1968. However, according to District officials, 

Reclamation indicated that there was insufficient authority to complete this request since the facilities were not used solely for the 

purpose of delivering project water. 

H.R. 1219 authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to convey all 

right, title and interest related to the Maintenance Complex and 

District Office and their associated approximately 2.83 acres to the 

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District. As amended, the bill directs the Secretary to transfer title 

to the aforementioned facilities and land as soon as practicable, 

and requires the Secretary to provide in writing why the transfer 

has not taken place if it does not occur within twelve months after 

the date of enactment of this Act. The goals of the legislation, 

based on the longstanding precedent of prior federal laws authorizing such title transfers, are to allow the District to reduce federal 

paperwork requirements and relieve the federal government of all 

future liability and financial responsibilities. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1. Short title. This section establishes the short title of 

the bill as the ‘‘Arbuckle Project Maintenance Complex and District 

Office Conveyance Act of 2016’’. 

Section 2. Conveyance of maintenance complex and district office 

of the Arbuckle Project, Oklahoma. This section of the bill, as 

amended, directs the Interior Secretary to, as soon as practicable, 

convey to the District all right, title and interest of the Maintenance Complex and District Office of the Arbuckle Project per 

Agreement No. 14AG640141, as defined in the legislation. Once 

conveyed, the United States will be relieved of all future liability 

and financial responsibilities related to the Maintenance Complex 

and District Office, and will only be held liable for damages caused 

by acts of negligence committed by the United States or by its employees prior to the date of conveyance. If the transfer has not been 

completed within twelve months after date of enactment of this 

Act, the Secretary is directed to submit a letter to Congress detailing why the transfer has not taken place and stating the anticipated completion date of the conveyance. 

COMMITTEE ACTION

H.R. 1219 was introduced on March 3, 2015, by Congressman 

Tom Cole (R–OK). The bill was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and within the Committee to the Subcommittee on 

Water, Power and Oceans. On October 28, 2015, the Subcommittee 

held a hearing on the bill. On November 15, 2016, the Natural Resources Committee met to consider the bill. The Subcommittee was 

discharged by unanimous consent. Congressman John Fleming (R– 

LA) offered an amendment designated #1 to the bill; it was adopted 

by unanimous consent. No further amendments were offered, and 

the bill, as amended, was ordered favorably reported to the House 

of Representatives by unanimous consent on November 16, 2016. 

COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII 

of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee on 

Natural Resources’ oversight findings and recommendations are reflected in the body of this report. 

COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII

1. Cost of Legislation and Congressional Budget Act of 1974. 

With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(2) and (3) of rule 

XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and sections 

308(a) and 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the ComVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:49 Dec 01, 2016 Jkt 069006 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR834.XXX HR834
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mittee has received the enclosed cost estimate for the bill from the 

Director of the Congressional Budget Office: 

U.S. CONGRESS, 

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE, 

Washington, DC, November 28, 2016. 

Hon. ROB BISHOP, 

Chairman, Committee on Natural Resources, 

House of Representatives, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1219, the Arbuckle 

Project Maintenance Complex and District Office Conveyance Act 

of 2016. 

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Aurora Swanson. 

Sincerely, 

KEITH HALL. 

Enclosure. 

H.R. 1219—Arbuckle Project Maintenance Complex and District Office Conveyance Act of 2016 

H.R. 1219 would authorize the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) to 

convey certain federal properties to the Arbuckle Master Conservancy District in Oklahoma for no consideration. Based on information from the BOR, CBO estimates that enacting the legislation 

would have no significant effect on the federal budget. The properties that would be transferred generate no income for the government and are not expected to be sold in the next several years. Because enacting the legislation would not affect direct spending or 

revenues, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. 

Under current law, the BOR is authorized to transfer ownership 

of pipelines and similar facilities that are used to deliver project 

water to users. In 2012, the BOR transferred the conveyance facilities of the Arbuckle project to the district. At that time, the district 

expressed interest in receiving title to additional properties, including the Arbuckle maintenance complex and the district office building. H.R. 1219 would authorize the BOR to transfer those additional properties to the district. 

CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 1219 would not increase net 

direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive 

10-year periods beginning in 2027. 

H.R. 1219 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would 

benefit the Arbuckle Master Conservancy District of Oklahoma, 

Any costs incurred by the district associated with the conveyance 

would result from conditions of receiving federal assistance. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Aurora Swanson. This 

estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Director 

for Budget Analysis. 

2. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by 

clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goal or objective 

of this bill is to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to convey 

certain land and appurtenances of the Arbuckle Project, Oklahoma, 

to the Arbuckle Master Conservancy District. 

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EARMARK STATEMENT

This bill does not contain any Congressional earmarks, limited 

tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined under clause 9(e), 

9(f), and 9(g) of rule XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives. 

COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104–4

This bill contains no unfunded mandates. 

COMPLIANCE WITH H. RES. 5

Directed Rule Making. The Chairman does not believe that this 

bill directs any executive branch official to conduct any specific 

rule-making proceedings. 

Duplication of Existing Programs. This bill does not establish or 

reauthorize a program of the federal government known to be duplicative of another program. Such program was not included in 

any report from the Government Accountability Office to Congress 

pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111–139 or identified in the 

most recent Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance published pursuant to the Federal Program Information Act (Public Law 95–220, 

as amended by Public Law 98–169) as relating to other programs. 

PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL OR TRIBAL LAW

This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or tribal law. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

If enacted, this bill would make no changes in existing law. 

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