Appendix 13 

APPENDIX 13—LAND TENURE ADJUSTMENT 

CRITERIA 

The Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA) provides for retention of the public 

lands in federal ownership and management by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for multiple 

uses. FLPMA and other federal laws, executive orders, and policies suggest criteria to use when 

categorizing public lands for retention or disposal, and for identifying acquisition priorities. Disposal by 

sale, exchange, or Recreation and Public Purpose (R&PP) patent remains an option if such an action 

would serve an important objective and have a public benefit. 

The following is a list of suggested criteria to consider in land tenure adjustment proposals, but it is not 

considered all-inclusive. These criteria are meant to guide and streamline consideration of land tenure 

adjustment proposals. 

Criteria for Retention or Acquisition: 

• Important, crucial, or critical habitat for fish, wildlife, and plants 

• Riparian areas and wetlands 

• Parcels that provide access to larger blocks of public land 

• Lands with special designation or management emphasis 

• Significant cultural resources 

• Recreation opportunities and benefits 

• Mineral development potential. 

Criteria for Disposal: 

• Parcels difficult or costly to administer 

• Parcels more suitable for management by another federal or state agency 

• Parcels of special importance to local communities. 

Transfer to other public agencies will also be considered if improved management efficiency would 

result. Prior to any disposal, a site-specific analysis must determine that the lands considered contain no 

significant wildlife, recreation, or other resource values the loss of which could not be mitigated; have no 

overriding public values; and represent no substantial public investments. Land tenure adjustments must 

serve the public interest. Exchange will be the preferred method for disposals. 

EXCHANGES 

• Land exchanges that serve the national interest and are beneficial to BLM programs or that 

support the programs of other agencies (reference Sections 102, 205, and 206 of FLPMA) will be 

promoted. 

• Transfer of leasable minerals out of federal ownership should be avoided except when nonfederal leasable minerals are to be received in return. It is preferable to trade both surface and 

subsurface (mineral) estates. 

• Exchanges should involve lands similar in character and/or value. Lands acquired by BLM in an 

exchange will be retained under federal ownership or control. 

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Appendix 13 

• Exchanges should not be made solely for the purpose of blocking up federal land ownership. 

SALES 

Public land sale proposals are the result of a BLM initiative or in response to expressed public interest or 

need. Lands to be considered for disposal, at a minimum, must meet the following criteria as outlined in 

Section 203 of the FLPMA: 

• They are difficult and uneconomical to manage and are not suitable for management by another 

federal department or agency. 

• Disposal would serve important public objectives, including but not limited to, community 

expansion or economic development, that could not be achieved prudently or feasibly on land 

other than public lands and that outweigh other public objectives or values. 

• The tract was acquired for a specific purpose, and the tract is no longer required for that purpose 

or any other federal purpose. 

SALES AND EXCHANGES INVOLVING WETLANDS 

Bureau policy is to retain wetlands in federal ownership unless federal, state, public, and private 

institutions and parties have demonstrated the ability to maintain, restore, and protect wetlands and 

riparian habitats on a continuous basis (BLM Manual 6740). Sales and exchanges may be authorized 

when— 

• The tract of public wetlands is either so small or remote that it is uneconomical to manage. 

• The tract of public wetlands is not suitable for management by another federal agency. 

• The patent contains restrictions of uses as prohibited by identified federal, state, or local wetlands 

regulations. 

• The patent contains restrictions and conditions that ensure the patentee can maintain, restore, and 

protect the wetlands on a continuous basis. 

RECREATION AND PUBLIC PURPOSES LEASE/PATENT 

The objective of the R&PP Act is to meet the needs of state and local governmental agencies and other 

qualified organizations for public lands required for recreational and public purposes. Use of the R&PP 

Act protects public values in the land through its reversionary provisions and helps qualified entities 

obtain the more liberal pricing authorized under the Act. 

Public lands shall be conveyed or leased only for an established or definitely proposed project for which 

there is a reasonable timetable of development and satisfactory development and management plans. No 

more land than is reasonably necessary for the proposed use shall be conveyed. 

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Appendix 13 

DESERT LAND ENTRIES 

• The purpose of the Desert Land Law is to permit the reclamation by irrigation of arid public land 

through individual effort and private capital (reference 43 Code of Federal Regulations [CFR] 

§2520). 

• Lands that will not produce any reasonably remunerative agricultural crop by the usual means or 

methods of cultivation, without artificial irrigation, may be considered for a desert land entry. The 

lands must be untimbered, surveyed, unreserved, and unappropriated. Tracts need not be 

contiguous, but shall be sufficiently close to each other to be managed satisfactorily as an 

economic unit. 

• The proposed crop may include any agricultural product to which the land under consideration is 

generally adapted and which would return a fair reward for the expense of producing it. 

• All Desert Land Entry applications will be coordinated with the Wyoming State Engineer and the 

Soil Conservation Service. 

ACQUISITION 

• Acquisition of lands will be considered, if in compliance with the Resource Management Plan 

(RMP), to facilitate various resource management objectives and to acquire lands with high 

resource values. 

• The preferred method for acquisition will be through exchange. 

• Acquisitions, including easements, can be completed through exchange, Land and Water 

Conservation Funds (LWCF) purchases, or donations. 

• Acquisitions of private lands will be pursued only with willing landowners. 

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