49–010 

Calendar No. 549 

109TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 2d Session 109–306 

EUGENE LAND CONVEYANCE ACT 

JULY 31, 2006.—Ordered to be printed 

Mr. DOMENICI, from the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 2150] 

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 

referred the bill (S. 2150) to direct the Secretary of Interior to convey certain Bureau of Land Management land to the City of Eugene, Oregon, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon with amendments and recommends that the bill, as amended, 

do pass. 

The amendments are as follows: 

1. On page 2, lines 4 and 5, strike ‘‘Not later than 60 days after 

the date of enactment of this Act’’ and insert ‘‘Except as provided 

in subsection (c)’’. 

2. On page 2, strike lines 14 through 25 and insert the following: 

‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The land referred to in subsection 

9a) is the parcel of approximately 12 acres of land 

under the administrative jurisdiction of the Bureau of 

Land Management in Lane County, Oregon, as depicted on the map entitled ‘‘West Eugene Wetlands 

Land Transfer’’ and dated April 11, 2005. 

‘‘(2) SURVEY.— ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The legal description of the 

land described in paragraph (1) may be based on 

the survey of the land completed in 1979.’’. 

3. On page 3, line 12, insert ‘‘, at the discretion of the Secretary,’’ 

before ‘‘revert’’. 

PURPOSE OF THE MEASURE

The purpose of S. 2150 is to direct the Secretary of the Interior 

to convey 12 acres of land administered by the Bureau of Land 

Management to the city of Eugene, Oregon. 


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BACKGROUND AND NEED

S. 2150 authorizes the transfer of 12 acres from the Bureau of 

Land Management (BLM) to the city of Eugene for the purpose of 

constructing the West Eugene Environmental Education Center 

(WEEEC). The WEEEC is a planned campus that will eventually 

hold laboratories, greenhouses, a reference library, and public gathering places including an exhibit hall, auditorium, and three classrooms that will serve the 2,200 acre West Eugene Wetlands. 

The WEEEC was established through the West Eugene Wetland 

Partnership. The Partnership is made up of the BLM, Eugene 

School Districts, Northwest Youth Corp, and the Willamette Resources and Educational Network. 

The development of the education center will be the culmination 

of over a decade of work on the part of local residents to preserve 

the West Eugene Wetlands. The BLM has used $12 million of 

LWCF land acquisition to purchase over 1,400 acres of wetlands for 

the purpose of consolidating the land base for the center. 

The parcel to be conveyed under S. 2150 was acquired by the 

BLM in 1979 with Oregon and California Lands Act (O&C) appropriated funds. The BLM originally planned to build its Eugene District Office on the parcel, but because much of the site is occupied 

by wetlands, a different location was ultimately selected for the office. A parcel such as this would typically be conveyed under the 

authority of the Recreation and Public Purpose Act (R&PP) (43 

USC 869 et seq.). However, because the parcel was purchased with 

O&C funds, the R&PP Act does not apply and legislation is necessary to transfer the property. 

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

S. 2150 was introduced on December 20, 2005, by Senators 

Wyden and Smith. The Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests 

held a hearing on S. 2150 on March 29, 2006. At the business 

meeting on May 24, 2006, the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources ordered S. 2150 favorably, reported with amendments. 

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open business session on May 24, 2006, by a unanimous voice vote of a 

quorum present recommends that the Senate pass S. 2150, if 

amended as described herein. 

COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS

During its consideration of S. 2150, the Committee adopted three 

amendments. Amendment No. 1 removes a time requirement to 

complete the conveyance. Amendment No. 2 corrects the map reference and establishes that an existing 1979 survey may serve as 

a basis for the legal description of the land to be conveyed. Amendment No. 3 provides discretion for the Secretary on imposing the 

reversionary clause. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Sections 1 and 2 provides the short title and defines key terms. 


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Section 3(a) directs the Secretary of the Interior to convey land 

to the city of Eugene, Oregon for the purposes of establishing a 

wildlife viewing area and an environmental education center. 

Subsection (b) describes the land to be conveyed and specifies 

that an existing 1979 survey is adequate for the purposes of the 

conveyance. 

Subsection (c) provides that the parcel shall revert back to the 

United States (at the discretion of the Secretary of the Interior) if 

it is not being used for the purpose specified in the bill. 

Subsection (d) authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to include 

other additional terms and conditions as the Secretary determines 

to be appropriate to protect the interests of the United States. 

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

The following estimate of the cost of this measure has been provided by the Congressional Budget Office: 

S. 2150—Eugene Land Conveyance Act 

S. 2150 would direct the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain property in Oregon to the city of Eugene. CBO estimates that 

enacting S. 2150 would have no significant impact on the federal 

budget and would not affect revenues or direct spending. 

The bill contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would 

impose no costs on budgets on state, local, or tribal governments. 

Enacting this legislation would benefit the city of Eugene. 

Under S. 2150, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) would 

convey to Eugene, Oregon, for no consideration, about 12 acres of 

land in Lane County. Based on information provided by BLM, we 

estimate that the administrative costs of completing the conveyance would not be significant. Also, the land to be conveyed under 

S. 2150 generates no offsetting receipts that would be forgone if the 

bill is enacted. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis. This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, 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 

S. 2150. 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 S. 2150. 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

The views of the Administration that were included in testimony 

provided by the Department of the Interior at the Subcommittee 

hearing follows: 


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STATEMENT OF LAWRENCE E. BENNA, DEPUTY DIRECTOR, 

BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE

INTERIOR

Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to testify. 

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages 261.8 

million acres of surface land primarily in 12 western 

states. As the Nation’s largest Federal land manager, the 

BLM administers the public lands for a wide range of multiple uses including energy production, outdoor recreation, 

livestock grazing, and by conserving natural, historical, 

cultural, and other resources. The Federal Land Policy and 

Management Act (FLPMA) directs the BLM to make decisions about the appropriate use of the public lands through 

the development of resource management plans using a 

collaborative public process. 

FLPMA allows the BLM to convey lands out of public 

ownership if, for example, they have been identified for 

disposal through the BLM land use planning process in 

order to serve important public objectives, such as community expansion and economic development. In partnering 

with local communities across the West, we understand 

their needs and are supportive of efforts that ensure a balanced approach to local land use management. As a matter 

of both policy and practice, the BLM generally requires receipt of fair market value for any public lands transferred 

out of public ownership. This serves to ensure that taxpayers are fairly compensated for the removal of public 

lands from Federal ownership while also supporting local 

communities. 

The various BLM-related bills before the Subcommittee 

today cover a wide range of Federal land issues, but at 

their core all are intended to support the needs of local 

communities. I will discuss each bill individually. 

S. 2150. EUGENE LAND CONVEYANCE ACT

S. 2150, the Eugene Land Conveyance Act, directs the 

Secretary of the Interior to convey to the City of Eugene, 

Oregon, without consideration and subject to valid existing 

rights, a parcel of approximately 12 acres currently under 

the administrative jurisdiction of the BLM for the purposes of constructing an environmental education center 

and establishing a wildlife viewing area. The BLM supports the conveyance authorized by S. 2150; however, we 

have some concerns and would appreciate the opportunity 

to work with the sponsor and the Committee on minor 

technical amendments. 

The parcel to be conveyed under S. 2150 is located within the city limits of Eugene, Oregon. The BLM purchased 

the parcel on September 21, 1979, with $510,000 of Oregon 

and California Lands Act (O&C) appropriated funds. The 

BLM originally planned to build its Eugene District Office 

on the parcel; however, about half the site was determined 

to be occupied by wetlands, and the Eugene office was 


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built at another location. We have not had the site appraised since the original purchase. 

If the parcel to be conveyed under S. 2150 were public 

domain land, the BLM could convey it under the authority 

of the Recreation and Public Purposes (R&PP) Act (43 

U.S.C. 869 et seq.). However, because the BLM purchased 

the parcel with O&C funds, it is designated as ‘‘Revested 

O&C Railroad Grant Lands’’, and the R&PP Act does not 

apply. 

An old ranch house located on the parcel, known as the 

‘‘Red House’’, was converted for office use and currently 

hosts employees and volunteers associated with the West 

Eugene Wetlands (WEW) Partnership. The WEW Partnership includes the BLM, the City of Eugene, The Nature 

Conservancy, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Oregon Youth Conservation Corps, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service, the McKenzie River Trust, and the Willamette Resources and Educational Network (WREN). The WEW 

Partnership (primarily the City of Eugene and The Nature 

Conservancy) have worked to leverage Federal dollars to 

reach nearly $4.5 million for acquisition and management 

of the wetlands. 

In addition, the Eugene 4J School District and the Bethel School District joined with the WEW Partnership to 

form the WEW Education Center Partnership. This group 

is working to build the Wetlands Education Center on the 

parcel to be conveyed under S. 2150. The wetlands education program has secured funding from a wide variety of 

public and private sources, including the U.S. Department 

of Education, the City of Eugene, the Eugene 4J School 

District, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Oregon 

Watershed Enhancement Board, the Collins Foundation, 

and private donations. The Education Center will contain 

the Rachel Carson Center for Natural Resources (a 4J 

High School), the Northwest Youth Corps, laboratories and 

green houses, visiting classrooms and office space for 

WEW Partnership staff. In May 2002, voters in Eugene 

approved a school bond that included the first installment 

for construction of the Rachel Carson Center for Natural 

Resources. 

The following are concerns we would like to address 

through technical amendments: 

• Survey: The BLM has a survey from its purchase of 

the property in 1979 that is adequate to support the 

BLM’s issuing a Quit Claim Deed to the City of Eugene. 

If this meets the sponsor’s intentions, Section 3(b)(1) 

should be amended to state ‘‘12.36 acres,’’ and the ‘‘Survey’’ in section 3(b)(2) should refer to the existing survey 

from the 1979 acquisition. 

• Reversion: We urge that Section 3(c) be amended to 

make reversion at the Secretary’s discretion. 


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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 S. 2150, as ordered reported. 

Æ 


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