IB 

Union Calendar No. 222

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2907

[Report No. 108–379] 

To provide for a land exchange in the State of Arizona between the Secretary 

of Agriculture and Yavapai Ranch Limited Partnership. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 25, 2003

Mr. RENZI (for himself and Mr. HAYWORTH) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Resources 

NOVEMBER 18, 2003 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 

House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on July 25, 2003] 

A BILL

To provide for a land exchange in the State of Arizona 

between the Secretary of Agriculture and Yavapai Ranch 

Limited Partnership.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2

•HR 2907 RH 

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Northern Arizona Na3 tional Forest Land Exchange Act of 2003’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 

5 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—

6 (1) certain parcels of private land in the ap7 proximately 170 square miles of land commonly 

8 known as the ‘‘Yavapai Ranch’’ and located in 

9 Yavapai County, Arizona, are intermingled with Na10 tional Forest System land owned by the United States 

11 and administered by the Secretary of Agriculture as 

12 part of Prescott National Forest; 

13 (2) the private land is owned by the Yavapai 

14 Ranch Limited Partnership and the Northern 

15 Yavapai, L.L.C., in an intermingled checkerboard 

16 pattern, with the United States or Yavapai Ranch 

17 Limited Partnership and the Northern Yavapai, 

18 L.L.C., owning alternate square mile sections of land 

19 or fractions of square mile sections; 

20 (3) a significant portion of the private land 

21 within the checkerboard area (including the land lo22 cated in or near the Pine Creek watershed, Juniper 

23 Mesa Wilderness Area, Haystack Peak, and the Luis 

24 Maria Baca Float No. 5) is located in environ25 mentally valuable areas that possess attributes for 

26 public management, use, and enjoyment, including—
3

•HR 2907 RH 

1 (A) outdoor recreation; 

2 (B) preservation of stands of old growth for3 est; 

4 (C) largely unfragmented habitat for ante5 lope, deer, elk, mountain lion, wild turkey, and 

6 other wildlife species; 

7 (D) scientific research; 

8 (E) rangeland; 

9 (F) cultural and archaeological resources; 

10 and 

11 (G) scenic vistas; 

12 (4) the checkerboard ownership pattern of private 

13 and public land within Prescott National Forest im14 pedes sound and efficient management of the inter15 mingled National Forest System land; 

16 (5) if the private land in the checkerboard area 

17 is subdivided or developed, the intermingled National 

18 Forest System land will become highly fragmented 

19 and lose much of the value of the land for wildlife 

20 habitat and future public access, use, and enjoyment; 

21 (6) acquisition by the United States of certain 

22 parcels of land that have been offered by Yavapai 

23 Ranch Limited Partnership and the Northern 

24 Yavapai, L.L.C., for addition to Prescott National 
4

•HR 2907 RH 

1 Forest will serve important public objectives, includ2 ing—

3 (A) acquiring private land that meets the 

4 criteria for inclusion in the National Forest Sys5 tem in exchange for land with lower public, envi6 ronmental, and ecological values; 

7 (B) consolidating a large area of National 

8 Forest System land to preserve—

9 (i) permanent public access, use, and 

10 enjoyment of the land; and 

11 (ii) efficient management of the land; 

12 (C) minimizing cash outlays by the United 

13 States to achieve the objectives described in sub14 paragraphs (A) and (B); and 

15 (D) reducing administrative costs to the 

16 United States through—

17 (i) consolidation of Federal land hold18 ings for more efficient land management 

19 and planning; 

20 (ii) elimination of approximately 350 

21 miles of boundary between private land and 

22 the Federal parcels; and 

23 (iii) reduction of right-of-way, special 

24 use, and other permit processing and 
5

•HR 2907 RH 

1 issuance for roads and other facilities on 

2 National Forest System land; 

3 (7) parcels of National Forest System land have 

4 been identified for conveyance to Yavapai Ranch 

5 Limited Partnership or the Northern Yavapai, 

6 L.L.C., through a land exchange because the parcels—

7 (A) have significantly lower recreational, 

8 wildlife, ecological, and other public purpose val9 ues than the land to be acquired by the United 

10 States; and 

11 (B) are encumbered by special use permits 

12 and rights-of-way for a variety of purposes (in13 cluding summer youth camps, municipal water 

14 treatment facilities, sewage treatment facilities, 

15 city parks, and airport-related facilities) that—

16 (i) limit the usefulness of the parcels 

17 for general National Forest System pur18 poses; but 

19 (ii) are logical for pass-through con20 veyances from Yavapai Ranch Limited 

21 Partnership and the Northern Yavapai, 

22 L.L.C., to the permit or right-of-way hold23 ers; and 

24 (8) because there are limited water resources on 

25 the National Forest System land available for future
6

•HR 2907 RH 

1 water users and the unlimited use of the water re2 sources would have adverse long-term impacts on ex3 isting and future water users and State water right 

4 holders and the Verde River and National Forest Sys5 tem land conveyed by the United States, limits on 

6 water use should be established on the National Forest 

7 System land that—

8 (A) is located near the communities of 

9 Camp Verde, Cottonwood, and Clarkdale; and 

10 (B) is to be conveyed by the United States 

11 to Yavapai Ranch Limited Partnership or the 

12 Northern Yavapai, L.L.C. 

13 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to authorize, 

14 direct, and facilitate the exchange of Federal land and non15 Federal land between the United States, Yavapai Ranch 

16 Limited Partnership, and the Northern Yavapai, L.L.C. 

17 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

18 In this Act: 

19 (1) CAMP.—The term ‘‘camp’’ means Camp 

20 Pearlstein, Friendly Pines, Patterdale Pines, Pine 

21 Summit, Sky Y, and YoungLife Lost Canyon camps 

22 in the State of Arizona. 

23 (2) FEDERAL LAND.—The term ‘‘Federal land’’ 

24 means the land described in section 4(a)(2). 
7

•HR 2907 RH 

1 (3) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The term ‘‘Manage2 ment Plan’’ means the land and resource manage3 ment plan for Prescott National Forest. 

4 (4) NON-FEDERAL LAND.—The term ‘‘non-Fed5 eral land’’ means the approximately 35,000 acres of 

6 non-Federal land located within the boundaries of 

7 Prescott National Forest, as generally depicted on the 

8 map entitled ‘‘Yavapai Ranch Land Exchange Non9 Federal Lands’’, dated April 2002. 

10 (5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

11 the Secretary of Agriculture. 

12 (6) YAVAPAI RANCH.—The term ‘‘Yavapai 

13 Ranch’’ means—

14 (A) the Yavapai Ranch Limited Partner15 ship, an Arizona Limited Partnership; and 

16 (B) the Northern Yavapai, L.L.C., an Ari17 zona Limited Liability Company. 

18 SEC. 4. LAND EXCHANGE. 

19 (a) CONVEYANCE OF FEDERAL LAND BY THE UNITED

20 STATES.—

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—On receipt of an offer from 

22 Yavapai Ranch to convey the non-Federal land, the 

23 Secretary shall convey to Yavapai Ranch by deed ac24 ceptable to Yavapai Ranch, subject to easements, 

25 rights-of-way, utility lines, and any other valid en-
8

•HR 2907 RH 

1 cumbrances on the Federal land in existence on the 

2 date of enactment of this Act and any other reserva3 tions that may be agreed to by the Secretary and 

4 Yavapai Ranch, all right, title, and interest of the 

5 United States in and to the Federal land described in 

6 paragraph (2). 

7 (2) DESCRIPTION OF FEDERAL LAND.—The Fed8 eral land referred to in paragraph (1) shall consist of 

9 the following: 

10 (A) Certain land comprising approximately 

11 15,300 acres located in Yavapai County, Ari12 zona, as generally depicted on the map entitled 

13 ‘‘Yavapai Ranch Land Exchange Area Federal 

14 Lands’’, dated April 2002. 

15 (B) Certain land in the Coconino National 

16 Forest, Coconino County Arizona—

17 (i) comprising approximately 1,500 

18 acres located in Coconino National Forest, 

19 Coconino County, Arizona, as generally de20 picted on the map entitled ‘‘Yavapai Ranch 

21 Land Exchange Flagstaff Federal Lands22 Airport Parcel’’, dated April 2002; and 

23 (ii) comprising approximately 28.26 

24 acres in 2 separate parcels, as generally de25 picted on the map entitled ‘‘Yavapai Ranch 
9

•HR 2907 RH 

1 Land Exchange Flagstaff Federal Lands—

2 Wetzel School and Mt. Elden Parcels’’, 

3 dated September 2002. 

4 (C) Certain land referred to as Williams 

5 Airport, Williams golf course, Williams Sewer, 

6 Buckskinner Park, Williams Railroad, and Well 

7 parcels numbers 2, 3, and 4, comprising ap8 proximately 950 acres, located in Kaibab Na9 tional Forest, Coconino County, Arizona, as gen10 erally depicted on the map entitled ‘‘Yavapai 

11 Ranch Land Exchange Williams Federal 

12 Lands’’, dated April 2002. 

13 (D) Certain land comprising approximately 

14 2,200 acres located in Prescott National Forest, 

15 Yavapai County, Arizona, as generally depicted 

16 on the map entitled ‘‘Yavapai Ranch Land Ex17 change Camp Verde Federal Land—General 

18 Crook Parcel’’, dated April 2002. 

19 (E) Certain land comprising approximately 

20 820 acres located in Prescott National Forest in 

21 Yavapai County, Arizona, as generally depicted 

22 on the map entitled ‘‘Yavapai Ranch Land Ex23 change Camp Verde Federal Lands—Cotton24 wood/Clarkdale Parcel’’, dated April 2002. 
10

•HR 2907 RH 

1 (F) Certain land comprising approximately 

2 237.5 acres located in Kaibab National Forest, 

3 Coconino County, Arizona, as generally depicted 

4 on the map entitled ‘‘Yavapai Ranch Land Ex5 change Younglife/Lost Canyon’’, dated April 

6 2002. 

7 (G) Certain land comprising approximately 

8 200 acres located in Prescott National Forest, 

9 Yavapai County, Arizona, and including 

10 Friendly Pines, Patterdale Pines, Camp 

11 Pearlstein, Pine Summit, and Sky Y, as gen12 erally depicted on the map entitled ‘‘Yavapai 

13 Ranch Land Exchange Prescott Federal Lands—

14 Summer Youth Camp Parcels’’, dated April 

15 2002. 

16 (H) Perpetual, unrestricted, and nonexclu17 sive easements that—

18 (i) run with and benefit land owned by 

19 or conveyed to Yavapai Ranch across cer20 tain land of the United States; 

21 (ii) are for the purposes of—

22 (I) operating, maintaining, re23 pairing, improving, and replacing elec24 tric power lines or water pipelines (in-
11

•HR 2907 RH 

1 cluding related storage tanks, valves, 

2 pumps, and hardware); and 

3 (II) providing rights of reasonable 

4 ingress and egress necessary for the ac5 tivities described in subclause (I); 

6 (iii) are 20 feet in width; and 

7 (iv) are located 10 feet on either side of 

8 each line depicted on the map entitled 

9 ‘‘Yavapai Ranch Land Exchange YRLP Ac10 quired Easements for Water Lines’’, dated 

11 April 2002. 

12 (3) CONDITIONS.—

13 (A) PERMITS.—Permits or other legal occu14 pancies of the Federal land by third parties in 

15 existence on the date of transfer of the Federal 

16 land to Yavapai Ranch shall be addressed in ac17 cordance with—

18 (i) part 254.15 of title 36, Code of Fed19 eral Regulations (or any successor regula20 tion); and 

21 (ii) other applicable laws (including 

22 regulations). 

23 (B) ESTABLISHMENT OF CONSERVATION

24 EASEMENTS ON CERTAIN PARCELS.—
12

•HR 2907 RH 

1 (i) IN GENERAL.—To conserve water in 

2 the Verde Valley, Arizona, and to minimize 

3 the adverse impacts from future develop4 ment of the parcels described in subpara5 graphs (D) and (E) of paragraph (2) on 

6 current and future users of water and hold7 ers of water rights in existence on the date 

8 of enactment of this Act and the Verde 

9 River and National Forest System land re10 tained by the United States, the United 

11 States shall limit in perpetuity the use of 

12 water on the parcels by establishing con13 servation easements that—

14 (I) prohibit golf course develop15 ment on the parcels; 

16 (II) require that public parks and 

17 greenbelts on the parcels be watered 

18 with treated effluent; 

19 (III)(aa) with respect to the par20 cel described in paragraph (2)(D), 

21 limit total post-exchange water use to 

22 not more than 700 acre-feet of water 

23 per year; and 

24 (bb) with respect to the parcel de25 scribed in paragraph (2)(E), limit 
13

•HR 2907 RH 

1 total post-exchange water use to not 

2 more than 150 acre-feet of water per 

3 year; and 

4 (IV) require that any water used 

5 for the parcels not be withdrawn from 

6 wells perforated in the Holocene allu7 vium of the Verde River unless sup8 plied by municipalities or private 

9 water companies; however any water 

10 supplied by municipalities or private 

11 water companies shall count toward 

12 the water use limitations set out in the 

13 preceding subclauses (III)(aa) and 

14 (III)(bb). 

15 (ii) RECORDATION.—The conservation 

16 easements described in clause (i) shall be re17 corded in the title to parcels described in 

18 subparagraphs (D) and (E) of paragraph 

19 (2) that are conveyed by the Secretary to 

20 Yavapai Ranch. 

21 (iii) SUBSEQUENT CONVEYANCE.—

22 (I) IN GENERAL.—On acquisition 

23 of title to the parcels described in sub24 paragraphs (D) and (E) of paragraph 

25 (2), Yavapai Ranch may convey all or 
14

•HR 2907 RH 

1 a portion of the parcels to 1 or more 

2 successors-in-interest. 

3 (II) WATER USE APPORTION4 MENT.—A conveyance under subclause 

5 (I) shall, in accordance with the terms 

6 described in clause (i), include a re7 corded and binding agreement on the 

8 amount of water available for use on 

9 the parcel or portion of the parcel con10 veyed, as determined by the Yavapai 

11 Ranch. 

12 (iv) ENFORCEMENT.—The Secretary 

13 shall enter into an assignment with a polit14 ical subdivision of the State of Arizona au15 thorizing the political subdivision to enforce 

16 the terms described in clause (i) in any 

17 manner provided by law. Until such time 

18 as the Secretary executes the assignment, 

19 the Secretary shall hold the conservation 

20 easements. 

21 (v) LIABILITY.—

22 (I) IN GENERAL.—Any action for 

23 a breach of the terms of the conserva24 tion easements described in clause (i) 

25 shall be against the owner or owners of 
15

•HR 2907 RH 

1 the parcel or portion of the parcel, at 

2 the time of the breach, whose action or 

3 failure to act has resulted in the 

4 breach. 

5 (II) HOLD HARMLESS.—To the 

6 extent that the United States or a suc7 cessor-in-interest to the United States 

8 no longer holds title to the parcels or 

9 any portion of the parcels described in 

10 subparagraph (D) or (E) of paragraph 

11 (2), the United States or such suc12 cessor-in-interest shall be held harmless 

13 from damages or injuries attributable 

14 to any breach of the terms of the con15 servation easements described in clause 

16 (i) by a subsequent successor-in-inter17 est. 

18 (b) CONVEYANCE OF NON-FEDERAL LAND BY YAVAPAI

19 RANCH.—

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—On receipt of title to the Fed21 eral land, Yavapai Ranch shall simultaneously con22 vey to the United States, by deed acceptable to Sec23 retary and subject to any encumbrances, all right, 

24 title, and interest of Yavapai Ranch in and to the 

25 non-Federal land. 
16

•HR 2907 RH 

1 (2) EASEMENTS.—

2 (A) IN GENERAL.—The conveyance of non3 Federal land to the United States under para4 graph (1) shall be subject to the reservation of—

5 (i) perpetual and unrestricted ease6 ments and water rights that run with and 

7 benefit the land retained by Yavapai Ranch 

8 for—

9 (I) the operation, maintenance, 

10 repair, improvement, development, and 

11 replacement of not more than 3 wells 

12 in existence on the date of enactment of 

13 this Act; 

14 (II) related storage tanks, valves, 

15 pumps, and hardware; and 

16 (III) pipelines to points of use; 

17 and 

18 (ii) easements for reasonable ingress 

19 and egress to accomplish the purposes of the 

20 easements described in clause (i). 

21 (B) EXISTING WELLS.—

22 (i) IN GENERAL.—Each easement for 

23 an existing well shall be—

24 (I) 40 acres in area; and
17

•HR 2907 RH 

1 (II) to the maximum extent prac2 ticable—

3 (aa) centered on the existing 

4 well; and 

5 (bb) located in the same 

6 square mile section of land. 

7 (ii) LIMITATION.—Within a 40-acre 

8 easement described in clause (i), the United 

9 States and any permitees or licensees of the 

10 United States shall be prohibited from un11 dertaking any activity that interferes with 

12 the use of the wells by Yavapai Ranch, 

13 without the written consent of Yavapai 

14 Ranch. 

15 (iii) RESERVATION OF WATER FOR THE

16 UNITED STATES.—The United States shall 

be entitled to 1 17 ⁄2 the production of each ex18 isting or replacement well, not to exceed a 

19 total of 3,100,000 gallons of water annually, 

20 for watering wildlife and stock and for other 

21 National Forest System purposes from the 3 

22 wells. 

23 (C) REASONABLE ACCESS.—Each easement 

24 for ingress and egress shall be at least 20 feet in 

25 width. 
18

•HR 2907 RH 

1 (D) LOCATION.—The locations of the ease2 ments and wells shall be the locations generally 

3 depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Yavapai Ranch 

4 Land Exchange YRLP Reserved Easements for 

5 Waterlines and Wells’’, dated April 2002. 

6 (c) LAND TRANSFER PROBLEMS.—

7 (1) FEDERAL LAND.—If a parcel of Federal land 

8 (or a portion of the parcel) cannot be conveyed to 

9 Yavapai Ranch because of the presence of hazardous 

10 materials or if the proposed title to a parcel of Fed11 eral land (or a portion of the parcel) is unacceptable 

12 to Yavapai Ranch because of the presence of threat13 ened or endangered species, cultural or historic re14 sources, unpatented mining claims, or other third 

15 party rights under public land laws—

16 (A) the parcel of Federal land or portion of 

17 the parcel shall be excluded from the exchange; 

18 and 

19 (B) the non-Federal land shall be adjusted 

20 in accordance with section 5(c). 

21 (2) NON-FEDERAL LAND.—If 1 or more of the 

22 parcels of non-Federal land or a portion of such a 

23 parcel cannot be conveyed to the United States be24 cause of the presence of hazardous materials or if the 
19

•HR 2907 RH 

1 proposed title to a parcel or a portion of the parcel 

2 is unacceptable to the Secretary—

3 (A) the parcel of non-Federal land or por4 tion of the parcel shall be excluded from the ex5 change; and 

6 (B) the Federal land shall be adjusted in 

7 accordance with section 5(c). 

8 (d) CONVEYANCE OF FEDERAL LAND TO CITIES AND

9 CAMPS.—

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Following the acquisition of 

11 the Federal land, Yavapai Ranch shall convey to the 

12 cities of Flagstaff, Williams, and Camp Verde and the 

13 camps the parcels of Federal land or portions of par14 cels located in or near the cities or camps under any 

15 terms agreed to by Yavapai Ranch, the cities, and 

16 camps before the date on which the exchange is com17 pleted. 

18 (2) DELETION FROM EXCHANGE.—If Yavapai 

19 Ranch and the cities or camps referred to in para20 graph (1) have not agreed to the terms and conditions 

21 of a subsequent conveyance of a parcel or portion of 

22 a parcel of Federal land before the completion of the 

23 exchange, the Secretary, on notification by Yavapai 

24 Ranch, the cities, or camps, shall delete the parcel or 

25 any portion of the parcel from the exchange. Any par-
20

•HR 2907 RH 

1 cel or portion of a parcel to be deleted may be config2 ured by the Secretary to leave the United States with 

3 manageable post-exchange land and boundaries. 

4 (3) EASEMENTS.—In accordance with section 

5 120(h) of the Comprehensive Environmental Re6 sponse, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 

7 U.S.C. 9620(h)), the United States shall reserve ease8 ments in any land transferred to Yavapai Ranch. 

9 SEC. 5. EXCHANGE VALUATION, APPRAISALS, AND EQUALI10 ZATION. 

11 (a) EQUAL VALUE EXCHANGE.—The values of the non12 Federal and Federal land to be exchanged under this Act—

13 (1) shall be equal, as determined by the Sec14 retary; or 

15 (2) if the values are not equal, shall be equalized 

16 in accordance with subsection (c). 

17 (b) APPRAISALS.—

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The values of the Federal land 

19 and non-Federal land shall be determined by apprais20 als using the appraisal standards in—

21 (A) the Uniform Appraisal Standards for 

22 Federal Land Acquisitions, fifth edition (Decem23 ber 20, 2000); and 

24 (B) the Uniform Standards of Professional 

25 Appraisal Practice. 
21

•HR 2907 RH 

1 (2) APPROVAL.—In accordance with part 

2 254.9(a)(1) of title 36, Code of Federal Regulations 

3 (or any successor regulation), the appraiser shall be—

4 (A) acceptable to the Secretary and Yavapai 

5 Ranch; and 

6 (B) a contractor, the clients of which shall 

7 be the Secretary and Yavapai Ranch. 

8 (3) REQUIREMENTS.—During the appraisal 

9 process the appraiser shall—

10 (A) consider the effect on value of the Fed11 eral land or non-Federal land because of the ex12 istence of encumbrances on each parcel, includ13 ing—

14 (i) permitted uses on Federal land that 

15 cannot be reasonably terminated before the 

16 appraisal; and 

17 (ii) facilities on Federal land that can18 not be reasonably removed before the ap19 praisal; and 

20 (B) determine the value of each parcel of 

21 Federal land and non-Federal land (including 

22 the value of each individual section of the inter23 mingled Federal and non-Federal land of the 

24 Yavapai Ranch) as an assembled transaction 

25 consistent with the applicable provisions of parts
22

•HR 2907 RH 

1 254.5 and 254.9(b)(1)(v) of title 36, Code of Fed2 eral Regulations (or any successor regulation). 

3 (4) DISPUTE RESOLUTION.—A dispute relating 

4 to the appraised values of the Federal land or non5 Federal land following completion of the appraisal 

6 shall be processed in accordance with—

7 (A) section 206(d) of the Federal Land Pol8 icy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 

9 1716(d)); and 

10 (B) part 254.10 of title 36, Code of Federal 

11 Regulations (or any successor regulation). 

12 (5) APPRAISAL PERIOD.—After the final ap13 praised values of the Federal land and non-Federal 

14 land have been reviewed and approved by the Sec15 retary or otherwise determined in accordance with the 

16 requirements of paragraph (4), the final appraised 

17 values—

18 (A) shall not be reappraised or updated by 

19 the Secretary before the completion of the land 

20 exchange; and 

21 (B) shall be considered to be the values of 

22 the Federal land and non-Federal land on the 

23 date of the transfer of title. 

24 (6) AVAILABILITY.—In accordance with the pol25 icy of the Forest Service, and to ensure the timely 
23

•HR 2907 RH 

1 and full disclosure of the appraisals to the public, the 

2 appraisals approved by the Secretary shall be made 

3 available for public inspection in the Offices of the 

4 Supervisors for Prescott, Coconino, and Kaibab Na5 tional Forests. 

6 (c) EQUALIZATION OF VALUES.—

7 (1) SURPLUS OF NON-FEDERAL LAND.—

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—If, after any adjustments 

9 are made to the non-Federal land or Federal 

10 land under subsection (c) or (d) of section 4, the 

11 final appraised value of the non-Federal land ex12 ceeds the final appraised value of the Federal 

13 land, the Federal land and non-Federal land 

14 shall be adjusted in accordance with subpara15 graph (B) until the values are approximately 

16 equal. 

17 (B) ADJUSTMENTS.—An adjustment re18 ferred to in subparagraph (A) shall be accom19 plished by beginning at the east boundary of sec20 tion 30, T. 20 N., R. 6 W., Gila and Salt River 

21 Base and Meridian, Yavapai County, Arizona, 

and adding to the Federal land in 1 22 ⁄8 section in23 crements (N–S 64th line) and lot lines across the 

24 section, while deleting in the same increments 

25 portions of sections 19 and 31, T. 20 N., R. 6 
24

•HR 2907 RH 

1 W., Gila and Salt River Base and Meridian, 

2 Yavapai County, Arizona, to establish a linear 

3 and continuous boundary that runs north to 

4 south across the sections. 

5 (2) SURPLUS OF FEDERAL LAND.—

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—If, after any adjustments 

7 are made to the non-Federal land or Federal 

8 land under subsection (c) or (d) of section 4, the 

9 final appraised value of the Federal land exceeds 

10 the final appraised value of the non-Federal 

11 land, the Federal land and non-Federal land 

12 shall be adjusted in accordance with subpara13 graph (B) until the values are approximately 

14 equal. 

15 (B) ADJUSTMENTS.—Adjustments under 

16 subparagraph (A) shall be made in the following 

17 order: 

18 (i) Beginning at the south boundary of 

19 section 31, T. 20 N., R. 5 W., Gila and Salt 

20 River Base and Meridian, Yavapai County, 

21 Arizona, and sections 33 and 35, T. 20 N., 

22 R. 6 W., Gila and Salt River Base and Me23 ridian, Yavapai County, by adding to the 

24 non-Federal land to be conveyed to the 

United States in 1 25 ⁄8 section increments (E–
25

•HR 2907 RH 

1 W 64th line) while deleting from the convey2 ance to Yavapai Ranch Federal land in the 

3 same incremental portions of section 32, T. 

4 20 N., R. 5 W., Gila and Salt River Base 

5 and Meridian, Yavapai County, Arizona, 

6 and sections 32, 34, and 36, in T. 20 N., R. 

7 6 W., Gila and Salt River Base and Merid8 ian, Yavapai County, Arizona, to establish 

9 a linear and continuous boundary that runs 

10 east to west across the sections. 

11 (ii) By deleting the following parcels: 

12 (I) The Wetzel School parcel iden13 tified on the map described in section 

14 4(a)(2)(B)(ii). 

15 (II) The Williams Sewer parcel 

16 identified on the map described in sec17 tion 4(a)(2)(C). 

18 (III) That part of the Williams 

19 Railroad parcel identified on the map 

20 described in section 4(a)(2)(C) that lies 

21 south of Business I–40. 

22 (IV) A portion of the Cottonwood/

23 Clarkdale Federal Lands identified on 

24 the map described in Section 

25 4(a)(2)(E) and further described as the 
26

•HR 2907 RH 

S1⁄2S1 1 ⁄2 of Section 8, Township 15 

2 North, Range 3 East, Gila and Salt 

3 River Base and Meridian, Yavapai 

4 County, Arizona. 

5 (V) The Buckskinner Park parcel 

6 identified on the map described in sec7 tion 4(a)(2)(C). 

8 (VI) Approximately 316 acres of 

9 the Camp Verde Federal Land-General 

10 Crook Parcel identified on the map de11 scribed in Section 4(a)(2)(D) and fur12 ther described as Lots 1, 5, and 6 and 

the NE1⁄4NE1 13 ⁄4 of Section 26, and the 

N1⁄2N1 14 ⁄2 of Section 27, Township 14 

15 North, Range 4 East, Gila and Salt 

16 River Base and Meridian, Yavapai 

17 County, Arizona. 

18 (VII) A portion of the Cotton19 wood/Clarkdale Federal Lands identi20 fied on the map described in section 

21 4(a)(2)(E) and further described as the 

N1⁄2S1 22 ⁄2 of Section 8, Township 15 

23 North, Range 3 East, Gila and Salt 

24 River Base and Meridian, Yavapai 

25 County, Arizona.
27

•HR 2907 RH 

1 (VIII) Approximately 314 acres of 

2 the Camp Verde Federal Land-General 

3 Crook Parcel identified on the map de4 scribed in section 4(a)(2)(D) and fur5 ther described as Lots 2, 7, 8 and 9 

and the SE1⁄4NE1 6 ⁄4 of Section 26, and 

the S1⁄2N1 7 ⁄2 of Section 27, Township 14 

8 North, Range 4 East, Gila and Salt 

9 River Base and Meridian, Yavapai 

10 County, Arizona. 

11 (IX) The Mt. Elden parcel identi12 fied on the map described in section 

13 4(a)(2)(B)(ii). 

14 (C) MODIFICATIONS—By mutual agreement 

15 by the Secretary and the Yavapai Ranch, the 

16 land and acreage in subclauses (I) through (IX) 

17 may be modified to conform with a survey ap18 proved by the Bureau of Land Management or to 

19 leave the United States with manageable post-ex20 change land and boundaries. 

21 (3) ADDITIONAL EQUALIZATION OF VALUES.—If, 

22 after the values are adjusted in accordance with para23 graph (1) or (2), the values of the Federal land and 

24 non-Federal land are not equal, then the Secretary 

25 and Yavapai Ranch may by agreement adjust the 
28

•HR 2907 RH 

1 acreage of the Federal land and non-Federal land 

2 until the values of that land are equal. 

3 (d) CASH EQUALIZATION.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—After the values of the non5 Federal and Federal land are equalized to the max6 imum extent practicable under subsection (c), any 

7 balance due the Secretary or Yavapai Ranch shall be 

8 paid—

9 (A) through cash equalization payments 

10 under section 206(b) of the Federal Land Policy 

11 and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 

12 1716(b)); or 

13 (B) in accordance with standards estab14 lished by the Secretary and Yavapai Ranch. 

15 (2) LIMITATION.—

16 (A) ADJUSTMENTS.—If the value of the Fed17 eral land exceeds the value of the non-Federal 

18 land by more than $50,000, the Secretary and 

19 Yavapai Ranch shall, by agreement, delete addi20 tional Federal land from the exchange until the 

21 values of the Federal land and non-Federal land 

22 are equal. 

23 (B) DEPOSIT.—Any amounts received by 

24 the United States under this Act—
29

•HR 2907 RH 

1 (i) shall be deposited in a fund estab2 lished under Public Law 90–171 (16 U.S.C. 

3 484a) (commonly known as the ‘‘Sisk Act’’); 

4 and 

5 (ii) shall be available, without further 

6 appropriation, for the acquisition of land or 

7 interests in land for National Forest System 

8 purposes in the State of Arizona. 

9 SEC. 6. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS. 

10 (a) REVOCATION OF ORDERS.—Any public orders 

11 withdrawing any of the Federal land from appropriation 

12 or disposal under the public land laws are revoked to the 

13 extent necessary to permit disposal of the Federal land. 

14 (b) WITHDRAWAL OF FEDERAL LAND.—The Federal 

15 land is withdrawn from all forms of entry and appropria16 tion under the public land laws, including the mining and 

17 mineral leasing laws and the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 

18 (30 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.), until the date on which the ex19 change of Federal land and non-Federal land is completed. 

20 (c) SURVEYS, INVENTORIES, AND CLEARANCES.—Be21 fore completing the exchange of Federal land and non-Fed22 eral land under this Act, the Secretary shall carry out land 

23 surveys and preexchange inventories, clearances, reviews, 

24 and approvals relating to hazardous materials, threatened 
30

•HR 2907 RH 

1 and endangered species, cultural and historic resources, and 

2 wetlands and floodplains. 

3 (d) COSTS OF IMPLEMENTING THE EXCHANGE.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—

5 (A) The United States shall bear the costs 

6 or other responsibilities or requirements associ7 ated with land surveys, title searches, archeo8 logical and cultural surveys and salvage, re9 moval of encumbrances and curing title defi10 ciencies necessary to bring the Federal land into 

11 a condition where it is acceptable for exchange 

12 purposes. 

13 (B) Yavapai Ranch shall bear the costs or 

14 other responsibilities or requirements associated 

15 with land surveys, title searches, archeological 

16 and cultural surveys and salvage, removal of en17 cumbrances and curing title deficiencies nec18 essary to bring the non-Federal land into a con19 dition where it is acceptable for exchange pur20 poses. 

21 (2) INELIGIBLE REIMBURSEMENTS.—No amount 

22 paid by Yavapai Ranch under this subsection shall be 

23 eligible for reimbursement under section 206(f) of the 

24 Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 

25 (43 U.S.C. 1716(f)). 
31

•HR 2907 RH 

1 (e) TIMING.—It is the intent of Congress that the ex2 change of Federal land and non-Federal land directed by 

3 this Act be completed not later than 18 months after the 

4 date of enactment of this Act. 

5 (f) CONTRACTORS.—

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary lacks ade7 quate staff or resources to complete the exchange by 

8 the date specified in subsection (e), the Yavapai 

9 Ranch may contract with independent third-party 

10 contractors to carry out any work necessary to com11 plete the exchange by that date, subject to the mutual 

12 agreement of the Secretary and the Yavapai Ranch on 

13 the contractor or contractors, scope of work, estimated 

14 cost of work, and approval of any such work by the 

15 Secretary. 

16 (2) REIMBURSEMENT.—In the event that 

17 Yavapai Ranch contracts with independent third 

18 party contractors to carry out or complete any re19 sponsibilities or requirements that would be per20 formed by the Secretary but for the lack of adequate 

21 staff or resources, then the Secretary shall reimburse 

22 Yavapai Ranch for Yavapai Ranch’s costs or expenses 

23 for such contractors in accordance with section 206(f) 

24 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 

25 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1716(f)).
32

•HR 2907 RH 

1 SEC. 7. STATUS AND MANAGEMENT OF LAND AFTER EX2 CHANGE. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Non-Federal land acquired by the 

4 United States under this Act—

5 (1) shall become part of the Prescott National 

6 Forest; and 

7 (2) shall be administered by the Secretary in ac8 cordance with—

9 (A) this Act; 

10 (B) the laws (including regulations) appli11 cable to the National Forest System; and 

12 (C) other authorized uses of the National 

13 Forest System. 

14 (b) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Acquisition of the non-Federal 

16 land under this Act shall not require a revision or 

17 amendment to the Management Plan. 

18 (2) AMENDMENT OR REVISION.—If the Manage19 ment Plan is amended or revised after the date of ac20 quisition of non-Federal land under this Act, the 

21 Management Plan shall be amended to reflect the ac22 quisition of the non-Federal land. 

23 (c) POST-EXCHANGE MANAGEMENT OF CERTAIN

24 LAND.—

25 (1) IN GENERAL.—On acquisition by the United 

26 States, the non-Federal land acquired by the United 
33

•HR 2907 RH 

1 States and any adjoining National Forest System 

2 land shall be managed in accordance with—

3 (A) paragraphs (2) through (6); and 

4 (B) the laws (including regulations) gen5 erally applicable to National Forest System 

6 land. 

7 (2) PROTECTION OF NATURAL RESOURCES.—The 

8 non-Federal land shall be managed in a manner that 

9 maintains the species, character, and natural values 

10 of the land, including—

11 (A) deer, pronghorn antelope, wild turkey, 

12 mountain lion, and other resident wildlife and 

13 native plant species; 

14 (B) suitability for livestock grazing; and 

15 (C) aesthetic values. 

16 (3) GRAZING.—Each area located in the Yavapai 

17 Ranch grazing allotment as of the date of enactment 

18 of this Act shall—

19 (A) remain in the Yavapai Ranch grazing 

20 allotment; and 

21 (B) continue to be subject to grazing in ac22 cordance with the laws (including regulations) 

23 generally applicable to domestic livestock grazing 

24 on National Forest System land. 

25 (4) ROADS.—
34

•HR 2907 RH 

1 (A) IMPROVEMENT AND MAINTENANCE.—

2 The Secretary shall maintain or improve a sys3 tem of roads and trails on the non-Federal land 

4 to provide opportunities for hunting, motorized 

5 and nonmotorized recreation, and other uses of 

6 the land by the public. 

7 (B) PUBLIC ACCESS ROAD.—

8 (i) CONSTRUCTION.—The Secretary 

9 shall improve or construct a public access 

10 road linking Forest Road 7 (Pine Creek 

11 Road) to Forest Road 1 (Turkey Canyon 

12 Road) through portions of sections 33, 32, 

13 31, and 30, T. 19 N., R. 6 W., Gila and 

14 Salt River Base and Meridian. 

15 (ii) EXISTING ROAD.—The existing 

16 road linking Pine Creek and Gobbler Knob 

17 shall—

18 (I) until the date on which the 

19 new public access road is completed, 

20 remain open; and 

21 (II) after the date on which the 

22 new public access road is completed, be 

23 obliterated. 

24 (C) EASEMENTS.—
35

•HR 2907 RH 

1 (i) IN GENERAL.—On completion of the 

2 land exchange under this Act, the Secretary 

3 and Yavapai Ranch shall grant each other 

4 at no charge reciprocal easements for in5 gress, egress, and utilities across, over, and 

6 through—

7 (I)(aa) the routes depicted on the 

8 map entitled ‘‘Yavapai Ranch Land 

9 Exchange Road and Trail Ease10 ments—Yavapai Ranch Area’’ dated 

11 April 2002; and 

12 (bb) any other inholdings retained 

13 by the United States or Yavapai 

14 Ranch; or 

15 (II) any relocated routes that are 

16 agreed to by the Secretary and 

17 Yavapai Ranch. 

18 (ii) REQUIREMENTS.—An easement de19 scribed in clause (i)—

20 (I) shall be unlimited, perpetual, 

21 and nonexclusive in nature; and 

22 (II) shall run with and benefit the 

23 land of the grantee. 

24 (iii) RIGHTS OF GRANTEE.—The rights 

25 of the grantee shall extend to—
36

•HR 2907 RH 

1 (I) any successors-in-interest, as2 signs, and transferees of Yavapai 

3 Ranch; and 

4 (II) in the case of the Secretary, 

5 members of the general public, as deter6 mined to be appropriate by the Sec7 retary. 

8 (5) TIMBER HARVESTING.—

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

10 subparagraph (B), timber harvesting for com11 modity production shall be prohibited on the 

12 non-Federal land. 

13 (B) EXCEPTIONS.—Timber harvesting may 

14 be conducted on the non-Federal land if the Sec15 retary determines that timber harvesting is nec16 essary—

17 (i) to prevent or control fires, insects, 

18 and disease through forest thinning or other 

19 forest management techniques; 

20 (ii) to protect or enhance grassland 

21 habitat, watershed values, native plants, 

22 trees, and wildlife species; or 

23 (iii) to improve forest health. 

24 (6) WATER IMPROVEMENTS.—Nothing in this 

25 Act prohibits the Secretary from authorizing or con-
37

•HR 2907 RH 

1 structing new water improvements in accordance with 

2 the laws (including regulations) applicable to water 

3 improvements on National Forest System land for—

4 (A) the benefit of domestic livestock or wild5 life management; 

6 (B) the improvement of forest health or for7 est restoration; or 

8 (C) other National Forest purposes. 

9 (d) MAPS.—

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and Yavapai 

11 Ranch may correct any minor errors in the maps of, 

12 legal descriptions of, or encumbrances on the Federal 

13 land or non-Federal land. 

14 (2) DISCREPANCY.—In the event of any discrep15 ancy between a map and legal description, the map 

16 shall prevail unless the Secretary and Yavapai Ranch 

17 agree otherwise. 

18 (3) AVAILABILITY.—All maps referred to in this 

19 Act shall be on file and available for inspection in the 

20 Office of the Supervisor, Prescott National Forest, 

21 Prescott, Arizona. 

22 (e) EFFECT.—Nothing in this Act precludes, prohibits, 

23 or otherwise restricts Yavapai Ranch from subsequently 

24 granting, conveying, or otherwise transferring title to the 

25 Federal land after its acquisition of the Federal land. 
38

•HR 2907 RH 

1 SEC. 8. CONVEYANCE OF ADDITIONAL LAND. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall convey to an 

3 individual or entity that represents the majority of land4 owners with encroachments on the lot by quitclaim deed the 

5 parcel of land described in subsection (b). 

6 (b) DESCRIPTION OF LAND.—The parcel of land re7 ferred to in subsection (a) is lot 8 in section 11, T. 21 N., 

8 R. 7 E., Gila and Salt River Base and Meridian, Coconino 

9 County, Arizona. 

10 (c) AMOUNT OF CONSIDERATION.—In exchange for the 

11 land described in subsection (b), the individual or entity 

12 acquiring the land shall pay to the Secretary consideration 

13 in the amount of—

14 (1) $2500; plus 

15 (2) any costs of re-monumenting the boundary of 

16 land. 

17 (d) TIMING.—

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

19 the date on which the Secretary receives a power of 

20 attorney executed by the individual or entity acquir21 ing the land, the Secretary shall convey to the indi22 vidual or entity the land described in subsection (b). 

23 (2) LIMITATION.—If, by the date that is 270 

24 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec25 retary does not receive the power of attorney described 

26 in paragraph (1)—
39

•HR 2907 RH 

1 (A) the authority provided under this sub2 section shall terminate; and 

3 (B) any conveyance of the land shall be 

4 made under Public Law 97–465 (16 U.S.C. 521c 

5 et seq.). 

6 SEC. 9. COMPENSATION FOR PERSONS HOLDING GRAZING 

7 PERMITS. 

8 Persons holding grazing permits for land transferred 

9 into private ownership under this Act shall be compensated 

10 in accordance with section 402(g) of the Federal Land Pol11 icy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1752(g)).
Union Calendar No. 222

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2907

[Report No. 108–379] 

A BILL

To provide for a land exchange in the State of Arizona between the Secretary of Agriculture and 

Yavapai Ranch Limited Partnership. 

NOVEMBER 18, 2003

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 

and ordered to be printed