```

[House Report 109-490]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

109th Congress                                            Rept. 109-490
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                      Part 1

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

 
 RETENTION AND USE OF FOREST SERVICE MARINA PERMIT FEES FROM NATIONAL 
           FOREST SYSTEM UNITS DERIVED FROM THE PUBLIC DOMAIN

                                _______
                                

                  June 7, 2006.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

  Mr. Pombo, from the Committee on Resources, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 4084]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

  The Committee on Resources, to whom was referred the bill 
(H.R. 4084) to amend the Forest Service use and occupancy 
permit program to restore the authority of the Secretary of 
Agriculture to utilize the special use permit fees collected by 
the Secretary in connection with the establishment and 
operation of marinas in units of the National Forest System 
derived from the public domain, and for other purposes, having 
considered the same, report favorably thereon without amendment 
and recommend that the bill do pass.

                          Purpose of the Bill

    The purpose of H.R. 4084 is to amend the Forest Service use 
and occupancy permit program to restore the authority of the 
Secretary of Agriculture to utilize the special use permit fees 
collected by the Secretary in connection with the establishment 
and operation of marinas in units of the National Forest System 
derived from the public domain, and for other purposes.

                  Background and Need for Legislation

    H.R. 4084 would amend the Act of March 4, 1915 (16 U.S.C. 
497). This Act authorizes most U.S. Forest Service long-term 
permits for hotels, resorts, stores, marinas and facilities for 
industrial, commercial, education or public purposes. Generally 
speaking, such permits are 20 years or more in duration. The 
bill would allow permit fees associated with marinas to be 
retained by the local Forest Service and used for the 
maintenance and management of those facilities. This long-
standing Forest Service authority was inadvertently repealed by 
the 108th Congress. H.R. 4084 would reinstate it.

                            Committee Action

    H.R. 4084 was introduced on October 19, 2005, by 
Congressman Wally Herger (R-CA). The bill was primarily 
referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and additionally 
referred to the Committee on Resources. Within the Resources 
Committee, the bill was referred to the Subcommittee on Forests 
and Forest Health. On October 27, 2005, the Subcommittee held a 
hearing on the bill. On March 29, 2006, the Full Resources 
Committee met to consider the bill. The Subcommittee was 
discharged from further consideration of the bill by unanimous 
consent. No amendments were offered and the bill was ordered 
favorably reported to the House of Representatives by unanimous 
consent.

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

                   Constitutional Authority Statement

    Article I, section 8 of the Constitution of the United 
States grants Congress the authority to enact this bill.

                    Compliance With House Rule XIII

    1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives requires an estimate and 
a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be 
incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(3)(B) 
of that rule provides that this requirement does not apply when 
the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted 
cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the 
Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
    2. Congressional Budget Act. As required by clause 3(c)(2) 
of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and 
section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, this 
bill does not contain any new budget authority, credit 
authority, or an increase or decrease in revenues or tax 
expenditures. According to the Congressional Budget Office, 
enacting H.R. 4084 would increase direct spending by about $1 
million per year.
    3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. This bill does 
not authorize funding and therefore, clause 3(c)(4) of rule 
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives does not 
apply.
    4. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate. Under clause 
3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives and section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act 
of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate 
for this bill from the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office:

H.R. 4084--A bill to amend the Forest Service use and occupancy permit 
        program to restore the authority of the Secretary of 
        Agriculture to utilize the special use permit fees collected by 
        the Secretary in connection with the establishment and 
        operation of marinas in units of the National Forest System 
        derived from the public domain

    H.R. 4084 would authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to 
spend without further appropriation any special-use fees 
collected from marinas operated in national forests. Based on 
information provided by the Forest Service, CBO estimates that 
enacting H.R. 4084 would increase direct spending by about $1 
million annually beginning in fiscal year 2007.
    The bill contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would impose no significant costs on state, local, or tribal 
governments.
    H.R. 4084 would direct that offsetting receipts collected 
from special-use fees imposed on marina operators be deposited 
into an existing Forest Service special account for recreation 
management. The receipts would be used primarily for visitor 
and recreational activities. Under existing law, such 
offsetting receipts--about $1.3 million annually--are deposited 
into the National Forest Fund, and 25 percent of the amounts 
deposited each year are paid without further appropriation to 
states with national forest land. Based on information provided 
by the Forest Service, we assume that, under H.R. 4084, the 
agency would no longer make those payments.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis. 
The estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

                    Compliance With Public Law 104-4

    This bill contains no unfunded mandates.

                Preemption of State, Local or Tribal Law

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

         Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported

  In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by 
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law 
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new 
matter is printed in italic, existing law in which no change is 
proposed is shown in roman):

                          ACT OF MARCH 4, 1915

     CHAP. 144. AN ACT Making appropriations for the Department of 
Agriculture for the fiscal year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred 
and sixteen.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

FOREST SERVICE

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  [The Secretary of Agriculture]
  (A) Permits for Use and Occupancy of National Forest System 
Lands.--The Secretary of Agriculture is authorized, under such 
regulations as he may make and upon such terms and conditions 
as he may deem proper, (a) to permit the use and occupancy of 
suitable areas of land within the national forests, not 
exceeding eighty acres and for periods not exceeding thirty 
years, for the purpose of constructing or maintaining hotels, 
resorts, and any other structures or facilities necessary or 
desirable for recreation, public convenience, or safety; (b) to 
permit the use and occupancy of suitable areas of land within 
the national forests, not exceeding five acres and for periods 
not exceeding thirty years, for the purpose of constructing or 
maintaining summer homes and stores; (c) to permt the use and 
occupancy of suitable areas of land within the national forest, 
not exceeding eighty acres and for periods not exceeding thirty 
years, for the purpose of constructing or maintaining 
buildings, structures, and facilities for industrial or 
commercial purposes whenever such use is related to or 
consistent with other uses on the national forests; (d) to 
permit any State or political subdivision thereof, or any 
public or nonprofit agency, to use and occupy suitable areas of 
land within the national forests not exceeding eighty acres and 
for periods not exceeding thirty years, for the purpose of 
constructing or maintaining any buildings, structures, or 
facilities necessary or desirable-for education or for any 
public use or in connection with any public activity. [The 
authority]
  (B) Limitation on Use of Permits.--The authority provided by 
this paragraph shall be exercised in such manner as not to 
preclude the general public from full enjoyment of the natural, 
scenic, recreational, and other aspects of the national 
forests.
  (C) Special Rules Regarding Marina Permits.--Amounts 
collected in connection with the issuance of a special use 
permit under this paragraph for a marina at a unit of the 
National Forest System derived from the public domain shall be 
deposited in an existing special account in the Treasury 
established for the Secretary of Agriculture for recreation 
management purposes. Amounts so deposited shall be available to 
the Secretary of Agriculture, until expended and without 
further appropriation, for repair, maintenance, and facility 
enhancement related directly to visitor enjoyment, visitor 
access, and health and safety, for interpretation, visitor 
information, visitor service, visitor needs assessments, and 
signs, for habitat restoration directly related to wildlife-
dependent recreation that is limited to hunting, fishing, 
wildlife observation, or photography, for law enforcement 
related to public use and recreation, and for direct operating 
or capital costs associated with the issuance of such special 
use permits, including any fee management agreement or 
reservation service used in the issuance of such permits. The 
Secretary may not use such amounts for biological monitoring 
for listed or candidate species under the Endangered Species 
Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). Not less than 80 percent 
of the permit fees collected at a specific unit of the National 
Forest System shall be expended for that unit, but the 
Secretary may transfer up to 20 percent of such fees to 
appropriations available to enhance recreation opportunities at 
other units of the National Forest System.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                                  

```