59–010 

Calendar No. 339 

114TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 1st Session 114–194 

ARAPAHO NATIONAL FOREST BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENT 

ACT OF 2015 

DECEMBER 16, 2015.—Ordered to be printed 

Ms. MURKOWSKI, from the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany H.R. 1324] 

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 

referred the Act (H.R. 1324) to adjust the boundary of the Arapaho 

National Forest, Colorado, and for other purposes, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon without amendment and 

recommends that the bill do pass. 

PURPOSE

The purpose of H.R. 1324 is to adjust the boundary of the Arapaho National Forest, Colorado. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED

Between Rocky Mountain National Park and the Bowen Gulch 

Protection Area on the Arapaho National Forest is a 10-lot subdivision known as the ‘‘Wedge.’’ The Rocky Mountain Nature Association and the Trust for Public Land, in partnership with the U.S. 

Forest Service and the National Park Service, have worked for 20 

years to acquire these Wedge lots, which are part of the Colorado 

River headwaters and are highly visible from Trail Ridge Road, the 

main road that traverses Rocky Mountain National Park. Currently, the Forest Service owns seven of the Wedge lots but these 

parcels do not have national forest status as the boundary of Arapaho National Forest has never been adjusted to include the lots 

within the Arapaho National Forest. 

H.R. 1324 would adjust the boundary of the Arapaho National 

Forest in the State of Colorado to incorporate 92.95 additional 

acres. Federal land to be included in the new boundary will become 


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part of the Bowen Gulch Protection Area established under section 

6 of the Colorado Wilderness Act of 1993. Owners of non-Federal 

lands within the new boundary who historically have accessed their 

lands through lands included in the Arapaho expansion would have 

continued right of motorized access to their lands across an existing roadway. 

H.R. 1324 requires the Secretary of Agriculture to obtain written 

permission from the private land owners of the lots to include the 

lots within the new boundary. The bill also authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to acquire non-Federal lands from willing sellers within the new boundary. 

Completion of these acquisitions would ensure the protection of 

the view shed of Rocky Mountain National Park and the resource 

values of the Bowen Gulch Protection Area within the Arapaho National Forest. Without financial support from the Land and Water 

Conservation Fund (LWCF), the only options available to the Federal government to acquire the remaining parcels are through existing administrative authorities, such as donation or exchange. 

These administrative authorities, however, are only available if 

Congress modifies the boundary of the Arapaho National Forest to 

include the Wedge within the national forest. H.R. 1324 accomplishes this boundary adjustment. 

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

In the 113th Congress, the House introduced a similar bill to 

H.R. 1324, H.R. 4846, on June 11, 2014. The House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation held a hearing on the bill on September 9, 2014, and the Natural Resources Committee ordered the bill reported as amended on 

September 18, 2014. The House of Representatives passed H.R. 

4846 as amended under suspension of the rules on November 13, 

2014. 

H.R. 1324 was introduced in the 114th Congress by Representative Polis on March 4, 2015. On March 25, 2015, the House Natural 

Resources Committee ordered H.R. 1324 reported. The House of 

Representatives passed H.R. 1324 under suspension of the rules by 

a vote of 381–30 on April 28, 2015. The bill was received by the 

Senate and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. 

On May 12, 2015, Senators Bennet and Gardner introduced a 

similar bill, S. 1295. The Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forest, 

and Mining held a hearing on both H.R. 1324 and S. 1295 on October 8, 2015. 

On November 19, 2015, the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources met in open business session and on a voice vote ordered 

H.R. 1324 favorably reported without amendment. 

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION AND TABULATION OF VOTES

The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in 

open business session on November 19, 2015, by a majority voice 

vote of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass H.R. 

1324. 


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SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1 contains the short title, ‘‘Arapaho National Forest 

Boundary Adjustment Act of 2015.’’ 

Section 2(a) adjusts the boundary of the Arapaho National Forest 

to include approximately 92.95 acres. Privately owned lots may 

only be included within the boundary adjustment area if the Secretary obtains written permission for inclusion from the lot owners. 

Section 2(b) designates all Federal land within the boundary adjustment area as part of the Bowen Gulch Protection Area. Section 

2(c) makes the boundary effective as of January 1, 1965, for purposes of LWCF (authorizing acquisition of lands within the boundaries of the national forest). Section 2(d) clarifies that nothing in 

the Act opens privately owned land within the boundary adjustment area to public motorized use. Section 2(e) allows for continued 

motorized access for the owners of non-Federal land within the 

boundary adjustment area to their private land across certain access points historically used by the owners. 

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

The following estimate of costs of this measure has been provided 

by the Congressional Budget Office: 

U.S. CONGRESS, 

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE, 

Washington, DC, December 4, 2015. 

Hon. LISA MURKOWSKI, 

Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 

U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MADAM CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has 

prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1324, the Arapaho National Forest Boundary Adjustment Act of 2015. 

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. 1324—Arapaho National Forest Boundary Adjustment Act of 

2015 

H.R. 1324 would modify the boundary of the Arapaho National 

Forest in Colorado to include an additional 93 acres of land. Based 

on information provided by the Forest Service, CBO estimates that 

implementing the legislation would have no significant effect on 

the federal budget. We expect that any additional costs to revise 

brochures, maps, and signs to reflect the new boundary would not 

be significant because such revisions would take place in conjunction with scheduled reprinting and routine maintenance. 

Because enacting H.R. 1324 would not affect direct spending or 

revenues, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. CBO 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 2026. 

H.R. 1324 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act. 


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On April 6, 2015, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R. 1324, 

the Arapaho National Forest Boundary Adjustment Act of 2015, as 

ordered reported by the House Committee on Natural Resources on 

March 25, 2015. The two versions of the legislation are similar, and 

the estimated costs are the same. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jeff LaFave. This estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis. 

REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION

In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following evaluation 

of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in carrying out 

H.R. 1324. The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of imposing Government-established standards or significant economic 

responsibilities on private individuals and businesses. 

No personal information would be collected in administering the 

program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal privacy. 

Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the enactment of H.R. 1324, as ordered reported. 

CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING

H.R. 1324, as ordered reported, does not contain any congressionally directed spending items, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff 

benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the Standing Rules of the Senate. 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

The testimony provided by the U.S. Forest Service at the October 

8, 2015, Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining hearing on S. 1295, the Senate companion bill to H.R. 1324, follows: 

STATEMENT OF GLENN CASAMASSA, ASSOCIATE DEPUTY

CHIEF, NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM, U.S. FOREST SERVICE, 

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Mr. Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, thank 

you for the opportunity to present the views of the U.S. 

Department of Agriculture (USDA) regarding S. 1295, S. 

1448, S. 1941, and S. 1942. 

S. 1295, THE ‘‘ARAPAHO NATIONAL FOREST BOUNDARY

ADJUSTMENT ACT’’ 

S. 1295 would modify the boundary of the Arapaho National Forest in the State of Colorado to incorporate approximately 92.95 acres of land currently outside the proclaimed National Forest boundary. All Federal land within 

the new boundary would be included in the Bowen Gulch 

Protection Area established under section 6 of the Colorado Wilderness Act of 1993. S. 1295 requires the Secretary to obtain written permission from the owners of lots 

to include the lots in the boundary adjustment. Private 

land owners have provided letters of support. 

The Federal lands within the new boundary would be 

closed to motorized use by the public. S. 1295 allows for 


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continued motorized access over historical routes by owners of non-Federal land within the new boundary. 

The Department supports S. 1295. It would provide National Forest status for parcels previously purchased. It 

would also allow the Forest Service to use its existing land 

exchange authorities to acquire additional parcels from 

willing landowners within the new boundary. Completion 

of these acquisitions would ensure protection of the Rocky 

Mountain National Park view-shed and the resource values of the Bowen Gulch Protection Area. We would also 

like to work with the Committee to clarify that motorized 

use for administrative purposes within the new boundary 

area is allowed. 

S. 1448, THE ‘‘FRANK MOORE WILD STEELHEAD SANCTUARY

DESIGNATION ACT’’ 

The Department supports S. 1448, which establishes the 

‘‘Frank Moore Wild Steelhead Sanctuary’’. The area proposed for designation (Steamboat Creek) represents the 

major spawning tributary for wild steelhead in the North 

Umpqua River, and serves as an important sanctuary for 

conservation and long term persistence of this highly valued fisheries resource. Scientific studies and data indicate 

this area provides an important thermal refuge for wild 

steelhead production in the basin. Its designation and associated watershed restoration activities will aid in promoting a resilient landscape for wild steelhead conservation into the future in the face of changing climate. 

Frank Moore is a legendary fly angler, wild fish conservationist, and World War II veteran who stormed the 

beaches of Normandy, France in 1944 for the D-Day allied 

invasion. He survived and together with his wife of 70+ 

years, Jeanne, built and were the long-time proprietors of 

the world-renowned Steamboat Inn along the North Umpqua River. In 2010, Frank Moore was inducted into the 

Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame, and is also featured in 

the recent, critically acclaimed documentary ‘‘Mending the 

Line.’’ 

This designation is a tribute to Frank Moore and his 

service to our country in more ways than one. In a TED 

Talk last year (TEDxPortland, May 15, 2014), one of the 

viewers commented: ‘‘Absolutely amazing . . . I am 19 and 

my generation needs role models like this man.’’ 

S. 1941, THE ‘‘CRAGS, COLORADO LAND EXCHANGE ACT OF

2015’’ 

S. 1941 would require a land exchange between the 

United States and Broadmoor Hotel, Inc. (BHI). The 

United States would convey an 83 acre tract of National 

Forest System Land and a non-exclusive perpetual easement for access in exchange for a 320 acre parcel and a 

permanent trail easement for a section of the Barr trail 

owned by BHI. Both exchange parcels are located within 

the Pike National Forest. 


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The Department generally supports S. 1941 but would 

like to work with the committee on concerns with the bill. 

For example, we would like to help develop language that 

would ensure the northern boundary of the land conveyed 

is located to provide adequate space for Forest Service 

road maintenance and administration. 

The National Forest parcel that would be conveyed in 

the exchange has long been encumbered with significant 

resort improvements managed under special use authorization. In return for this parcel, the United States would 

receive an isolated inholding that the Forest Service has 

placed a high priority on acquiring. The inholding has significant recreational values and provides additional access 

for the public to the National Forest. 

As a result, the exchange will eliminate potentially significant development in a sensitive area in exchange for 

conveying Federal land where development impacts have 

already occurred. In addition, the United States would secure legal access on a segment of the very popular Barr 

trail. This trail provides an important recreational access 

to the Pike National Forest. 

S. 1942, THE ‘‘ELKHORN RANCH AND WHITE RIVER NATIONAL

FOREST CONVEYANCE ACT LAND EXCHANGE ACT OF 2015’’ 

S. 1942 would direct the conveyance of a 148 acre parcel 

of National Forest System land to the Gordman-Leverich 

Partnership. The parcel is located within the White River 

National Forest. 

While the Administration has serious reservations about 

the use of Federal lands to compensate a private landowner, acknowledging the unusual circumstances in this 

specific case, the Department does not oppose S. 1942. The 

bill would resolve a long standing title issue associated 

with the property. 

A dependent resurvey, which is a survey dependent 

upon prior surveys of record, was completed in 1949, and 

established a property monument approximately 2,100 feet 

from the corner, relied upon by the original homesteaders. 

This meant that this parcel of national forest land had 

been managed as private land. 43 U.S.C. 772, enacted in 

1909, provided for such resurveys and guaranteed that the 

bona fide rights of landowners would be protected. 

Because this land survey discrepancy only came to light 

within the past 15 years, and because the parcel has never 

been managed as National Forest, protection of the bona 

fide rights of the landowners is appropriate. Resolution of 

this title issue will end a long-standing title claim in an 

efficient, fair manner. 

This concludes my remarks. I would be happy to answer 

any questions. Thank you for the opportunity to testify. 


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CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no changes in existing law are made by the bill as ordered reported. 

Æ 


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