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[House Report 115-124]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

115th Congress   }                                      {       Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 1st Session     }                                      {      115-124

======================================================================

 
       REMOVING OUTDATED RESTRICTIONS TO ALLOW FOR JOB GROWTH ACT

                                _______
                                

  May 16, 2017.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

Mr. Conaway, from the Committee on Agriculture, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 1177]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Agriculture, to whom was referred the bill 
(H.R. 1177) to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to release 
on behalf of the United States the condition that certain lands 
conveyed to the City of Old Town, Maine, be used for a 
municipal airport, and for other purposes, having considered 
the same, report favorably thereon without amendment and 
recommend that the bill do pass.

                           Brief Explanation

    The Removing Outdated Restrictions to Allow for Job Growth 
Act, H.R. 1177, directs the Secretary of Agriculture to release 
on behalf of the United States the condition that certain lands 
conveyed to the City of Old Town, Maine, be used for a 
municipal airport.

                    Purpose and Need for Legislation

    In the early 1980s, the City of Old Town, Maine, purchased 
land from the federal government to be part of the Old Town 
Airport. The deed included a use restriction, as required by a 
1941 amendment to the Bankhead-Jones Farm Tenant Act of 1937, 
limiting use of the land to a municipal airport or other public 
use. Old Town has invested heavily in this land in order to 
attract businesses, but the deed restriction needs to be lifted 
before further economic development can occur.
    H.R. 1177 provides for the removal of the deed restriction 
on the parcel of land around the Old Town airport to allow for 
business development. The bill allows the City of Old Town to 
send a letter to the Secretary of Agriculture detailing which 
lands it would like released from the deed restriction and 
directs the Secretary to release that land to the City of Old 
Town.
    The committee believes H.R. 1177 will allow economic 
development in Old Town to move forward, creating 175 much-
needed jobs. This legislation will provide certainty to private 
investors in the community and help the local economy thrive.

               Section-by-Section Analysis of Legislation

Section 1. Short title

    Section 1 of the bill designates the title of the bill as 
the ``Removing Outdated Restrictions to Allow for Job Growth 
Act.''

Section 2. Release of reversionary interest

    Section 2 of the bill allows the land conveyed from the 
United States to the City of Old Town, Maine, under section 
32(c) of the Bankhead-Jones Farm Tenant Act to be released from 
the deed restriction if the city makes a written request to the 
Secretary of Agriculture.
    Upon receipt of such a request, the bill directs the 
Secretary to release, convey, and quitclaim, without monetary 
consideration, all rights, title and interest in the land 
specified.
    The intent of the Committee is for Section 2 to release the 
land in question from a deed restriction prohibiting economic 
development and allow the City of Old Town, Maine to move 
forward with development plans that will create 175 new jobs.

                        Committee Consideration

                              I. HEARINGS

    No hearings were held by the Committee on the Removing 
Outdated Restrictions to Allow for Job Growth Act.

                           II. FULL COMMITTEE

    The Committee on Agriculture met, pursuant to notice, with 
a quorum present, on May 3, 2017, to consider H.R. 1177, 
Removing Outdated Restrictions to Allow for Job Growth Act.
    H.R. 1177 was placed before the Committee for 
consideration. Without objection, a first reading of the bill 
was waived, and it was open to amendment at any point.
    Chairman Conaway and Mr. Peterson were recognized for 
statements. Chairman Conaway then recognized Mr. Peterson to 
offer a motion that the bill H.R. 1177 be reported favorably to 
the House with recommendation that it do pass. The motion was 
subsequently approved by voice vote.
    Chairman Conaway advised Members that pursuant to the rules 
of the House of Representatives Members had until May 5, 2017, 
to file any supplemental, minority, additional, or dissenting 
views with the Committee.
    Without objection, staff was given permission to make any 
necessary clerical, technical or conforming changes to reflect 
the intent of the Committee. Chairman Conaway thanked all the 
Members and adjourned the meeting.

                            Committee Votes

    In compliance with clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the House of 
Representatives, H.R. 1177 was reported by voice vote with a 
majority quorum present. There was no request for a recorded 
vote.

                      Committee Oversight Findings

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, the Committee on Agriculture's 
oversight findings and recommendations are reflected in the 
body of this report.

           Budget Act Compliance (Sections 308, 402, and 423)

    The provisions of clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives and section 308(a)(1) of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (relating to estimates of new 
budget authority, new spending authority, new credit authority, 
or increased or decreased revenues or tax expenditures) are not 
considered applicable. The estimate and comparison required to 
be prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office 
under clause 3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives and sections 402 and 423 of the Congressional 
Budget Act of 1974 submitted to the Committee prior to the 
filing of this report are as follows:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                       Washington, DC, May 9, 2017.
Hon. K. Michael Conaway,
Chairman, Committee on Agriculture,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1177, the Removing 
Outdated Restrictions to Allow for Job Growth Act.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Jeff LaFave.
            Sincerely,
                                                        Keith Hall.
    Enclosure.

H.R. 1177--Removing Outdated Restrictions to Allow for Job Growth Act

    H.R. 1177 would remove a deed restriction from certain 
lands previously conveyed to the city of Old Town, Maine. Under 
current law, the affected lands can only be used for public 
purposes. The bill would allow the city to dispose of some of 
the affected lands to allow for the development of private 
businesses.
    Based on information provided by the Forest Service, CBO 
estimates that implementing H.R. 1177 would have no effect on 
the federal budget. Enacting the bill would not affect direct 
spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do 
not apply.
    CBO also estimates that enacting the legislation would not 
increase net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of 
the four consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2028.
    H.R. 1177 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jeff LaFave. 
This estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

                    Performance Goals and Objectives

    H.R. 1177 does not authorize funding, therefore, clause 
3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives is inapplicable.

                        Committee Cost Estimate

    Pursuant to clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, the Committee report incorporates the 
cost estimate prepared by the Director of the Congressional 
Budget Office pursuant to sections 402 and 423 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974.

                      Advisory Committee Statement

    No advisory committee within the meaning of section 5(b) of 
the Federal Advisory Committee Act was created by this 
legislation.

                Applicability to the Legislative Branch

    The Committee finds that the legislation does not relate to 
the terms and conditions of employment or access to public 
services or accommodations within the meaning of section 
102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act (Public Law 
104-1).

                       Federal Mandates Statement

    The Committee adopted as its own the estimate of Federal 
mandates prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office pursuant to section 423 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform 
Act (Public Law 104-4).

Earmark Statement Required by Clause 9 of Rule XXI of the Rules of the 
                        House of Representatives

    H.R. 1177 does not contain any congressional earmarks, 
limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined in 
clause 9(e), 9(f), or 9(g) of rule XXI of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives.

                    Duplication of Federal Programs

    This bill does not establish or reauthorize a program of 
the Federal Government known to be duplicative of another 
Federal program, a program that was included in any report from 
the Government Accountability Office to Congress pursuant to 
section 21 of Public Law 111-139, or a program related to a 
program identified in the most recent Catalog of Federal 
Domestic Assistance.

                  Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings

    The Committee does not believe that the legislation directs 
an executive branch official to conduct any specific rule 
making proceedings within the meaning of 5 U.S.C. 551.

                                  [all]
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