II 

Calendar No. 570

107TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1028

[Report No. 107–253] 

To direct the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain parcels of land 

acquired for the Blunt Reservoir and Pierre Canal features of the initial 

stage of the Oahe Unit, James Division, South Dakota, to the Commission of Schools and Public Lands and the Department of Game, Fish, 

and Parks of the State of South Dakota for the purpose of mitigating 

lost wildlife habitat, on the condition that the current preferential leaseholders shall have an option to purchase the parcels from the Commission, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 13, 2001

Mr. DASCHLE (for himself and Mr. JOHNSON) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

SEPTEMBER 9, 2002

Reported by Mr. BINGAMAN, with an amendment 

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

A BILL

To direct the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain 

parcels of land acquired for the Blunt Reservoir and 

Pierre Canal features of the initial stage of the Oahe 

Unit, James Division, South Dakota, to the Commission 

of Schools and Public Lands and the Department of 
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Game, Fish, and Parks of the State of South Dakota 

for the purpose of mitigating lost wildlife habitat, on 

the condition that the current preferential leaseholders 

shall have an option to purchase the parcels from the 

Commission, and for other purposes.

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Blunt Reservoir and 

5 Pierre Canal Land Conveyance Act of 2001’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that—

8 (1) under the Act of December 22, 1944 (com9 monly known as the ‘‘Flood Control Act of 1944’’) 

10 (58 Stat. 887, chapter 665; 33 U.S.C. 701–1 et 

11 seq.), Congress approved the Pick-Sloan Missouri 

12 River Basin Program—

13 (A) to promote the general economic devel14 opment of the United States; 

15 (B) to provide for irrigation above Sioux 

16 City, Iowa; 

17 (C) to provide for municipal and industrial 

18 water supply, fish and wildlife, and recreation; 

19 (D) to protect urban and rural areas from 

20 devastating floods of the Missouri River; and 

21 (E) for other purposes; 
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1 (2) the purpose of the Oahe Unit, James Divi2 sion, of the Oahe Irrigation Project was to meet the 

3 requirements of that Act by providing irrigation 

4 above Sioux City, Iowa; 

5 (3) the principal features of the initial stage of 

6 the Oahe Unit, James Division, of the Oahe Irriga7 tion Project included—

8 (A) a system of main canals, including the 

9 Pierre Canal, running east from the Oahe Res10 ervoir; and 

11 (B) the establishment of regulating res12 ervoirs, including the Blunt Dam and Res13 ervoir, located approximately 35 miles east of 

14 Pierre, South Dakota; 

15 (4) land to establish the Pierre Canal and 

16 Blunt Reservoir was purchased between 1972 and 

17 1977, when construction on the initial stage of the 

18 Oahe Unit, James Division, was halted; 

19 (5) since 1978, the Commissioner of Reclama20 tion has administered the land—

21 (A) on a preferential lease basis to original 

22 landowners or their descendants; and 

23 (B) on a nonpreferential lease basis to 

24 other persons; 
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1 (6) the 2 largest reservoirs created by the Pick2 Sloan Missouri River Basin Program, Lake Oahe 

3 and Lake Sharpe, caused the loss of approximately 

4 221,000 acres of fertile, wooded bottomland in 

5 South Dakota that constituted some of the most 

6 productive, unique, and irreplaceable wildlife habitat 

7 in the State; 

8 (7) the State has developed a plan to meet the 

9 Federal obligation under the Fish and Wildlife Co10 ordination Act (16 U.S.C. 661 et seq.) to mitigate 

11 the loss of wildlife habitat, the implementation of 

12 which is authorized by section 602 of title VI of 

13 Public Law 105–277 (112 Stat. 2681–660); and 

14 (8) it is in the interests of the United States 

15 and the State to—

16 (A) provide original landowners or their 

17 descendants with an opportunity to purchase 

18 back their land; and 

19 (B) transfer the remaining land to the 

20 State to allow implementation of its habitat 

21 mitigation plan. 

22 SEC. 3. BLUNT RESERVOIR AND PIERRE CANAL. 

23 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

24 (1) BLUNT RESERVOIR FEATURE.—The term 

25 ‘‘Blunt Reservoir feature’’ means the Blunt Res-
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1 ervoir feature of the Oahe Unit, James Division, au2 thorized by the Act of August 3, 1968 (82 Stat. 

3 624), as part of the Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin 

4 Program. 

5 (2) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

6 means the Commission of Schools and Public Lands 

7 of the State. 

8 (3) NONPREFERENTIAL LEASE PARCEL.—The 

9 term ‘‘nonpreferential lease parcel’’ means a parcel 

10 of land that—

11 (A) was purchased by the Secretary for use 

12 in connection with the Blunt Reservoir feature 

13 or the Pierre Canal feature; and 

14 (B) was considered to be a nonpreferential 

15 lease parcel by the Secretary as of January 1, 

16 2001, and is reflected as such on the roster of 

17 leases of the Bureau of Reclamation for 2001. 

18 (4) PIERRE CANAL FEATURE.—The term 

19 ‘‘Pierre Canal feature’’ means the Pierre Canal fea20 ture of the Oahe Unit, James Division, authorized 

21 by the Act of August 3, 1968 (82 Stat. 624), as 

22 part of the Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin Pro23 gram. 

24 (5) PREFERENTIAL LEASEHOLDER.—The term 

25 ‘‘preferential leaseholder’’ means a person or de-
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1 scendant of a person that held a lease on a pref2 erential lease parcel as of January 1, 2001, and is 

3 reflected as such on the roster of leases of the Bu4 reau of Reclamation for 2001. 

5 (6) PREFERENTIAL LEASE PARCEL.—The term 

6 ‘‘preferential lease parcel’’ means a parcel of land 

7 that—

8 (A) was purchased by the Secretary for use 

9 in connection with the Blunt Reservoir feature 

10 or the Pierre Canal feature; and 

11 (B) was considered to be a preferential 

12 lease parcel by the Secretary as of January 1, 

13 2001, and is reflected as such on the roster of 

14 leases of the Bureau of Reclamation for 2001. 

15 (7) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

16 the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the 

17 Commissioner of Reclamation. 

18 (8) STATE.—

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘State’’ 

20 means the State of South Dakota. 

21 (B) INCLUSION.—The term ‘‘State’’ in22 cludes a successor in interest of the State. 

23 (9) UNLEASED PARCEL.—The term ‘‘unleased 

24 parcel’’ means a parcel of land that—
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1 (A) was purchased by the Secretary for use 

2 in connection with the Blunt Reservoir feature 

3 or the Pierre Canal feature; and 

4 (B) is not under lease as of the date of en5 actment of this Act. 

6 (b) DEAUTHORIZATION.—The Blunt Reservoir fea7 ture is deauthorized. 

8 (c) CONVEYANCE.—Not later than 1 year after the 

9 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall convey 

10 all of the preferential lease parcels to the Commission, 

11 without consideration, on the condition that the Commis12 sion honor the purchase option provided to preferential 

13 leaseholders under subsection (e). 

14 (d) ACCEPTANCE OF LAND AND OBLIGATIONS.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—As a condition of each con16 veyance under subsections (c) and (f), respectively, 

17 the State shall agree to accept—

18 (A) in ‘‘as is’’ condition, the Blunt Res19 ervoir Feature and the Pierre Canal Feature; 

20 and 

21 (B) any liability accruing after the date of 

22 conveyance as a result of the ownership, oper23 ation, or maintenance of the features referred 

24 to in subparagraph (A), including liability asso25 ciated with certain outstanding obligations asso-
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1 ciated with expired easements, or any other 

2 right granted in, on, over, or across either fea3 ture. 

4 (2) RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE STATE.—An 

5 outstanding obligation described in paragraph (1)(B) 

6 shall inure to the benefit of, and be binding upon, 

7 the State. 

8 (3) OIL, GAS, MINERAL, AND OTHER OUT9 STANDING RIGHTS.—A conveyance under subsection 

10 (c) or (f) shall be made subject to—

11 (A) oil, gas, and other mineral rights re12 served of record, as of the date of enactment of 

13 this Act, by or in favor of a third party; and 

14 (B) any permit, license, lease, right-of-use, 

15 or right-of-way of record in, on, over, or across 

16 a feature referred to in paragraph (1)(A) that 

17 is outstanding as to a third party as of the date 

18 of enactment of this Act. 

19 (e) PURCHASE OPTION.—

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—A preferential leaseholder 

21 shall have an option to purchase from the Commis22 sion the preferential lease parcel that is the subject 

23 of the lease. 

24 (2) TERMS.—
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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

2 subparagraph (B), a preferential leaseholder 

3 may elect to purchase a parcel on 1 of the fol4 lowing terms: 

5 (i) Cash purchase for the amount that 

6 is equal to—

7 (I) the value of the parcel deter8 mined under paragraph (4); minus 

9 (II) 10 percent of that value. 

10 (ii) Installment purchase, with 10 per11 cent of the value of the parcel determined 

12 under paragraph (4) to be paid on the date 

13 of purchase and the remainder to be paid 

14 over not more than 30 years at 3 percent 

15 annual interest. 

16 (B) VALUE UNDER $10,000.—If the value 

17 of the parcel is under $10,000, the purchase 

18 shall be made on a cash basis in accordance 

19 with subparagraph (A)(i). 

20 (3) OPTION EXERCISE PERIOD.—

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—A preferential lease22 holder shall have until the date that is 5 years 

23 after the date of the conveyance under sub24 section (c) to exercise the option under para25 graph (1). 
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1 (B) CONTINUATION OF LEASES.—Until the 

2 date specified in subparagraph (A), a pref3 erential leaseholder shall be entitled to continue 

4 to lease from the Commission the parcel leased 

5 by the preferential leaseholder under the same 

6 terms and conditions as under the lease, as in 

7 effect as of the date of conveyance. 

8 (4) VALUATION.—

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—The value of a pref10 erential lease parcel shall be determined to be, 

11 at the election of the preferential leaseholder—

12 (i) the amount that is equal to— 

13 (I) the number of acres of the 

14 preferential lease parcel; multiplied by 

15 (II) the amount of the per-acre 

16 assessment of adjacent parcels made 

17 by the Director of Equalization of the 

18 county in which the preferential lease 

19 parcel is situated; or 

20 (ii) the amount of a valuation of the 

21 preferential lease parcel for agricultural 

22 use made by an independent appraiser. 

23 (B) COST OF APPRAISAL.—If a preferential 

24 leaseholder elects to use the method of valu25 ation described in subparagraph (A)(ii), the 
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1 cost of the valuation shall be paid by the pref2 erential leaseholder. 

3 (5) CONVEYANCE TO THE STATE.—

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—If a preferential lease5 holder fails to purchase a parcel within the pe6 riod specified in paragraph (3)(A), the Commis7 sion shall convey the parcel to the State of

8 South Dakota Department of Game, Fish, and 

9 Parks. 

10 (B) WILDLIFE HABITAT MITIGATION.—

11 Land conveyed under subparagraph (A) shall be 

12 used by the South Dakota Department of 

13 Game, Fish, and Parks for the purpose of miti14 gating the wildlife habitat that was lost as a re15 sult of the development of the Pick-Sloan 

16 project. 

17 (6) USE OF PROCEEDS.—Of the proceeds of 

18 sales of land under this subsection—

19 (A) not more than $750,000 shall be used 

20 to reimburse the Secretary for expenses in21 curred in implementing this Act; 

22 (B) an amount not exceeding 10 percent of 

23 the cost of each transaction conducted under 

24 this Act shall be used to reimburse the Commis-
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1 sion for expenses incurred implementing this 

2 Act; 

3 (C) $3,095,000 shall be deposited in the 

4 South Dakota Wildlife Habitat Mitigation 

5 Trust Fund established by section 603 of the 

6 Water Resources Development Act of 1999 

7 (113 Stat. 389) for the purpose of paying prop8 erty taxes on land transferred to the State; 

9 (D) $185,400 shall be transferred to Sully 

10 County, South Dakota; 

11 (E) $14,600 shall be transferred to 

12 Hughes County, South Dakota; and 

13 (F) the remainder shall be used by the 

14 Commission to support public schools in the 

15 State. 

16 (f) CONVEYANCE OF NONPREFERENTIAL LEASE

17 PARCELS AND UNLEASED PARCELS.—

18 (1) CONVEYANCE BY SECRETARY TO STATE.—

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year 

20 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec21 retary shall convey to the South Dakota De22 partment of Game, Fish, and Parks the non23 preferential lease parcels and unleased parcels 

24 of the Blunt Reservoir and Pierre Canal. 
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1 (B) WILDLIFE HABITAT MITIGATION.—

2 Land conveyed under subparagraph (A) shall be 

3 used by the South Dakota Department of 

4 Game, Fish, and Parks for the purpose of miti5 gating the wildlife habitat that was lost as a re6 sult of the development of the Pick-Sloan 

7 project. 

8 (2) LAND EXCHANGES FOR NONPREFERENTIAL

9 LEASE PARCELS AND UNLEASED PARCELS.—

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—With the concurrence 

11 of the South Dakota Department of Game, 

12 Fish, and Parks, the South Dakota Commission 

13 of Schools and Public Lands may allow a per14 son to exchange land that the person owns else15 where in the State for a nonpreferential lease 

16 parcel or unleased parcel at Blunt Reservoir or 

17 Pierre Canal, as the case may be. 

18 (B) PRIORITY.—The right to exchange 

19 nonpreferential lease parcels or unleased parcels 

20 shall be granted in the following order of pri21 ority: 

22 (i) Exchanges with current lessees for 

23 nonpreferential lease parcels. 

24 (ii) Exchanges with adjoining and ad25 jacent landowners for unleased parcels and 
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1 nonpreferential lease parcels not exchanged 

2 by current lessees. 

3 (C) EASEMENT FOR WATER CONVEYANCE

4 STRUCTURE.—As a condition of the exchange of 

5 land of the Pierre Canal Feature under this 

6 paragraph, the United States reserves a per7 petual easement to the land to allow for the 

8 right to design, construct, operate, maintain, 

9 repair, and replace a pipeline or other water 

10 conveyance structure over, under, across, or 

11 through the Pierre Canal Feature. 

12 (g) RELEASE FROM LIABILITY.—

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Effective on the date of con14 veyance of any parcel under this Act, the United 

15 States shall not be held liable by any court for dam16 ages of any kind arising out of any act, omission, or 

17 occurrence relating to the parcel, except for damages 

18 for acts of negligence committed by the United 

19 States or by an employee, agent, or contractor of the 

20 United States, before the date of conveyance. 

21 (2) NO ADDITIONAL LIABILITY.—Nothing in 

22 this section adds to any liability that the United 

23 States may have under chapter 171 of title 28, 

24 United States Code (commonly known as the ‘‘Fed25 eral Tort Claims Act’’). 
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1 (h) REQUIREMENTS CONCERNING CONVEYANCE OF

2 LEASE PARCELS.—

3 (1) INTERIM REQUIREMENTS.—During the pe4 riod beginning on the date of enactment of this Act 

5 and ending on the date of conveyance of the parcel, 

6 the Secretary shall continue to lease each pref7 erential lease parcel or nonpreferential lease parcel 

8 to be conveyed under this section under the terms 

9 and conditions applicable to the parcel on the date 

10 of enactment of this Act. 

11 (2) PROVISION OF PARCEL DESCRIPTIONS.—

12 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

13 of this Act, the Secretary shall provide the State a 

14 full legal description of all preferential lease parcels 

15 and nonpreferential lease parcels that may be con16 veyed under this section. 

17 (i) FUNDING OF THE SOUTH DAKOTA TERRESTRIAL

18 WILDLIFE HABITAT RESTORATION TRUST FUND.—Sec19 tion 603(b) of the Water Resources Development Act of 

20 1999 (113 Stat. 388) is amended by striking 

21 ‘‘$108,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$111,095,000’’. 

22 (j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

23 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act 

24 $750,000.
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Blunt Reservoir and 

3 Pierre Canal Land Conveyance Act of 2002’’. 

4 SEC. 2. BLUNT RESERVOIR AND PIERRE CANAL. 

5 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

6 (1) BLUNT RESERVOIR FEATURE.—The term 

7 ‘‘Blunt Reservoir feature’’ means the Blunt Reservoir 

8 feature of the Oahe Unit, James Division, authorized 

9 by the Act of August 3, 1968 (82 Stat. 624), as part 

10 of the Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin Program. 

11 (2) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

12 means the Commission of Schools and Public Lands 

13 of the State. 

14 (3) NONPREFERENTIAL LEASE PARCEL.—The 

15 term ‘‘nonpreferential lease parcel’’ means a parcel of 

16 land that—

17 (A) was purchased by the Secretary for use 

18 in connection with the Blunt Reservoir feature or 

19 the Pierre Canal feature; and 

20 (B) was considered to be a nonpreferential 

21 lease parcel by the Secretary as of January 1, 

22 2001, and is reflected as such on the roster of 

23 leases of the Bureau of Reclamation for 2001. 

24 (4) PIERRE CANAL FEATURE.—The term ‘‘Pierre 

25 Canal feature’’ means the Pierre Canal feature of the 

26 Oahe Unit, James Division, authorized by the Act of 
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1 August 3, 1968 (82 Stat. 624), as part of the Pick2 Sloan Missouri River Basin Program. 

3 (5) PREFERENTIAL LEASEHOLDER.—The term 

4 ‘‘preferential leaseholder’’ means a person or descend5 ant of a person that held a lease on a preferential 

6 lease parcel as of January 1, 2001, and is reflected 

7 as such on the roster of leases of the Bureau of Rec8 lamation for 2001. 

9 (6) PREFERENTIAL LEASE PARCEL.—The term 

10 ‘‘preferential lease parcel’’ means a parcel of land 

11 that—

12 (A) was purchased by the Secretary for use 

13 in connection with the Blunt Reservoir feature or 

14 the Pierre Canal feature; and 

15 (B) was considered to be a preferential lease 

16 parcel by the Secretary as of January 1, 2001, 

17 and is reflected as such on the roster of leases of 

18 the Bureau of Reclamation for 2001. 

19 (7) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

20 the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Com21 missioner of Reclamation. 

22 (8) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State 

23 of South Dakota, including a successor in interest of 

24 the State. 
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1 (9) UNLEASED PARCEL.—The term ‘‘unleased 

2 parcel’’ means a parcel of land that—

3 (A) was purchased by the Secretary for use 

4 in connection with the Blunt Reservoir feature or 

5 the Pierre Canal feature; and 

6 (B) is not under lease as of the date of en7 actment of this Act. 

8 (b) DEAUTHORIZATION.—The Blunt Reservoir feature 

9 is deauthorized. 

10 (c) ACCEPTANCE OF LAND AND OBLIGATIONS.—

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—As a condition of each convey12 ance under subsections (d)(5) and (e), respectively, the 

13 State shall agree to accept—

14 (A) in ‘‘as is’’ condition, the portions of the 

15 Blunt Reservoir Feature and the Pierre Canal 

16 Feature that pass into State ownership; 

17 (B) any liability accruing after the date of 

18 conveyance as a result of the ownership, oper19 ation, or maintenance of the features referred to 

20 in subparagraph (A), including liability associ21 ated with certain outstanding obligations associ22 ated with expired easements, or any other right 

23 granted in, on, over, or across either feature; and 

24 (C) the responsibility that the Commission 

25 will act as the agent for the Secretary in admin-
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1 istering the purchase option extended to pref2 erential leaseholders under subsection (d). 

3 (2) RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE STATE.—An out4 standing obligation described in paragraph (1)(B) 

5 shall inure to the benefit of, and be binding upon, the 

6 State. 

7 (3) OIL, GAS, MINERAL AND OTHER OUT8 STANDING RIGHTS.—A conveyance to the State under 

9 subsection (d)(5) or (e) or a sale to a preferential 

10 leaseholder under subsection (d) shall be made subject 

11 to—

12 (A) oil, gas, and other mineral rights re13 served of record, as of the date of enactment of 

14 this Act, by or in favor of a third party; and 

15 (B) any permit, license, lease, right-of-use, 

16 or right-of-way of record in, on, over, or across 

17 a feature referred to in paragraph (1)(A) that is 

18 outstanding as to a third party as of the date of 

19 enactment of this Act. 

20 (4) ADDITIONAL CONDITIONS OF CONVEYANCE TO

21 STATE.—A conveyance to the state under subsection 

22 (d)(5) or (e) shall be subject to the reservations by the 

23 United States and the conditions specified in section 

24 1 of the Act of May 19, 1948 (chapter 310; 62 Stat. 

25 240), as amended (16 U.S.C. 667b), for the transfer 
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1 of property to state agencies for wildlife conservation 

2 purposes. 

3 (d) PURCHASE OPTION.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—A preferential leaseholder 

5 shall have an option to purchase from the Commis6 sion, acting as an agent for the Secretary, the pref7 erential lease parcel that is the subject of the lease. 

8 (2) TERMS.—

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

10 subparagraph (B), a preferential leaseholder may 

11 elect to purchase a parcel on 1 of the following 

12 terms: 

13 (i) Cash purchase for the amount that 

14 is equal to—

15 (I) the value of the parcel deter16 mined under paragraph (4); minus 

17 (II) 10 percent of that value. 

18 (ii) Installment purchase, with 10 per19 cent of the value of the parcel determined 

20 under paragraph (4) to be paid on the date 

21 of purchase and the remainder to be paid 

22 over not more than 30 years at 3 percent 

23 annual interest. 

24 (B) VALUE UNDER $10,000.—If the value of 

25 the parcel is under $10,000, the purchase shall be 
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1 made on a cash basis in accordance with sub2 paragraph (A)(i). 

3 (3) OPTION EXERCISE PERIOD.—

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—A preferential lease5 holder shall have until the date that is 5 years 

6 after enactment of this Act to exercise the option 

7 under paragraph (1). 

8 (B) CONTINUATION OF LEASES.—Until the 

9 date specified in subparagraph (A), a pref10 erential leaseholder shall be entitled to continue 

11 to lease from the Secretary the parcel leased by 

12 the preferential leaseholder under the same terms 

13 and conditions as under the lease, as in effect as 

14 of the date of enactment of this Act. 

15 (4) VALUATION.—

16 (A) IN GENERAL.—The value of a pref17 erential lease parcel shall be its fair market 

18 value for agricultural purposes determined by an 

19 independent appraisal, exclusive of the value of 

20 private improvements made by the leaseholders 

21 while the land was federally owned before the 

22 date of the enactment of this Act, in conformance 

23 with the Uniform Appraisal Standards for Fed24 eral Land Acquisition. 
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1 (B) FAIR MARKET VALUE.—Any dispute 

2 over the fair market value of a property under 

3 subparagraph (A) shall be resolved in accordance 

4 with section 2201.4 of title 43, Code of Federal 

5 Regulations. 

6 (5) CONVEYANCE TO THE STATE.—

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—If a preferential lease8 holder fails to purchase a parcel within the pe9 riod specified in paragraph (3)(A), the Secretary 

10 shall convey the parcel to the State of South Da11 kota Department of Game, Fish, and Parks. 

12 (B) WILDLIFE HABITAT MITIGATION.—Land 

13 conveyed under subparagraph (A) shall be used 

14 by the South Dakota Department of Game, Fish, 

15 and Parks for the purpose of mitigating the 

16 wildlife habitat that was lost as a result of the 

17 development of the Pick-Sloan project. 

18 (6) USE OF PROCEEDS.—Proceeds of sales of 

19 land under this Act shall be deposited as miscella20 neous funds in the Treasury and such funds shall be 

21 made available, subject to appropriations, to the State 

22 for the establishment of a trust fund to pay the coun23 ty taxes on the lands received by the State Depart24 ment of Game, Fish, and Parks under the bill. 
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1 (e) CONVEYANCE OF NONPREFERENTIAL LEASE PAR2 CELS AND UNLEASED PARCELS.—

3 (1) CONVEYANCE BY SECRETARY TO STATE.—

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year 

5 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec6 retary shall convey to the South Dakota Depart7 ment of Game, Fish, and Parks the nonpref8 erential lease parcels and unleased parcels of the 

9 Blunt Reservoir and Pierre Canal. 

10 (B) WILDLIFE HABITAT MITIGATION.—Land 

11 conveyed under subparagraph (A) shall be used 

12 by the South Dakota Department of Game, Fish, 

13 and Parks for the purpose of mitigating the 

14 wildlife habitat that was lost as a result of the 

15 development of the Pick-Sloan project. 

16 (2) LAND EXCHANGES FOR NONPREFERENTIAL

17 LEASE PARCELS AND UNLEASED PARCELS.—

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—With the concurrence of 

19 the South Dakota Department of Game, Fish, 

20 and Parks, the South Dakota Commission of 

21 Schools and Public Lands may allow a person to 

22 exchange land that the person owns elsewhere in 

23 the State for a nonpreferential lease parcel or 

24 unleased parcel at Blunt Reservoir or Pierre 

25 Canal, as the case may be. 
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1 (B) PRIORITY.—The right to exchange non2 preferential lease parcels or unleased parcels 

3 shall be granted in the following order or pri4 ority: 

5 (i) Exchanges with current lessees for 

6 nonpreferential lease parcels. 

7 (ii) Exchanges with adjoining and ad8 jacent landowners for unleased parcels and 

9 nonpreferential lease parcels not exchanged 

10 by current lessees. 

11 (C) EASEMENT FOR WATER CONVEYANCE

12 STRUCTURE.—As a condition of the exchange of 

13 land of the Pierre Canal Feature under this 

14 paragraph, the United States reserves a per15 petual easement to the land to allow for the right 

16 to design, construct, operate, maintain, repair, 

17 and replace a pipeline or other water conveyance 

18 structure over, under, across, or through the 

19 Pierre Canal Feature. 

20 (f) RELEASE FROM LIABILITY.—

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Effective on the date of con22 veyance of any parcel under this Act, the United 

23 States shall not be held liable by any court for dam24 ages of any kind arising out of any act, omission, or 

25 occurrence relating to the parcel, except for damages 
25

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1 for acts of negligence committed by the United States 

2 or by an employee, agent, or contractor of the United 

3 States, before the date of conveyance. 

4 (2) NO ADDITIONAL LIABILITY.—Nothing in this 

5 section adds to any liability that the United States 

6 may have under chapter 171 of title 28, United States 

7 Code (commonly known as the ‘‘Federal Tort Claims 

8 Act’’). 

9 (g) REQUIREMENTS CONCERNING CONVEYANCE OF

10 LEASE PARCELS.—

11 (1) INTERIM REQUIREMENTS.—During the pe12 riod beginning on the date of enactment of this Act 

13 and ending on the date of conveyance of the parcel, 

14 the Secretary shall continue to lease each preferential 

15 lease parcel or nonpreferential lease parcel to be con16 veyed under this section under the terms and condi17 tions applicable to the parcel on the date of enactment 

18 of this Act. 

19 (2) PROVISION OF PARCEL DESCRIPTIONS.—Not 

20 later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this 

21 Act, the Secretary shall provide the State a full legal 

22 description of all preferential lease parcels and non23 preferential lease parcels that may be conveyed under 

24 this section. 
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1 (h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

2 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act 

3 $750,000 to reimburse the Secretary for expenses incurred 

4 in implementing this Act, and such sums as are necessary 

5 to reimburse the Commission for expenses incurred imple6 menting this Act, not to exceed 10 percent of the cost of 

7 each transaction conducted under this Act. 

Calendar No. 570

107TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1028

[Report No. 107–253] 

A BILL

To direct the Secretary of the Interior to convey 

certain parcels of land acquired for the Blunt Reservoir and Pierre Canal features of the initial stage of the Oahe Unit, James Division, South Dakota, to the Commission of Schools and Public Lands and the Department of Game, Fish, and Parks of the State of South Dakota for the purpose of mitigating lost wildlife habitat, on the condition that the current preferential leaseholders shall have an option to purchase the parcels from the Commission, and for other purposes. 

SEPTEMBER 9, 2002

Reported with an amendment