29–010

Calendar No. 451

108TH CONGRESS REPORT " SENATE ! 2d Session 108–241 

CIBOLA NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE, CALIFORNIA 

MARCH 9, 2004.—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 H.R. 417] 

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 

referred the Act (H.R. 417) to revoke a Public Land Order with respect to certain lands erroneously included in the Cibola National 

Wildlife Refuge, California, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon without amendment and recommends that the Act 

do pass. 

PURPOSE

H.R. 417 revokes Public Land Order 3442, dated August 21, 

1964, insofar as it included approximately 140 acres in Imperial 

County, California (in the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge). H.R. 

417 directs the Secretary of the Interior to resurvey and publish 

the new boundaries of the Refuge. The effect of the bill is to transfer administrative jurisdiction over the 140-acre parcel from the 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to the Bureau of Land Management. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED

H.R. 417 will correct an error made in the designation the Cibola 

National Wildlife Refuge (NWR). In 1964, Public Land Order 3442 

withdrew approximately 16,600 acres of public domain lands along 

the Colorado River in California and Arizona for the Cibola NWR. 

The withdrawal erroneously included approximately 140 acres in 

Imperial County at the southern boundary of the California portion 

of the refuge. 

Prior to 1964, this property fell under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and, beginning in 1962, the BLM 

issued a permit for a public recreation concession on 18 acres of the 

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lands now in question. Because neither the Fish and Wildlife Service nor the BLM recognized the mistake in legal descriptions on the 

ground, the BLM continued to renew the original permit and the 

recreational concession use has continued, unbroken, to the present 

time. However, given the discovery of the past mistake, neither the 

BLM nor the Fish and Wildlife Service have the authority to continue issuing the concession contract. 

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

H.R. 417 was introduced by Representative Hunter on January 

28, 2003 and was passed by the House of Representatives on 

March 19, 2003. A similar bill, H.R. 3937, was passed by the House 

in the 107th Congress, but was not acted upon by the Senate. The 

Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests held a hearing on H.R. 

417 on June 4, 2003. S. Hrg. 108–68. At the business meeting on 

February 11, 2004, the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources ordered H.R. 417 favorably reported without amendment. 

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION AND TABULATION OF VOTES

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open business session on February 11, 2004, by a unanimous vote of a 

quorum present recommends that the Senate pass H.R. 417. 

The rollcall vote on reporting the measure was 23 yeas, 0 nays, 

as follows:

YEAS NAYS 

Mr. Domenici 

Mr. Nickles 

Mr. Craig 

Mr. Campbell *

Mr. Thomas 

Mr. Alexander 

Ms. Murkowski 

Mr. Talent 

Mr. Burns 

Mr. Smith *

Mr. Bunning 

Mr. Kyl *

Mr. Bingaman 

Mr. Akaka 

Mr. Dorgan *

Mr. Graham *

Mr. Wyden *

Mr. Johnson *

Ms. Landrieu *

Mr. Bayh *

Mrs. Feinstein *

Mr. Schumer *

Ms. Cantwell

* Indicates vote by proxy. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1 revokes a portion of Public Land Order 3442 that established the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge in August 21, 1964 

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for the purpose of excluding specific lands from the refuge, totaling 

140 acres. The effect of the revocation is to transfer administrative 

jurisdiction over the lands from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 

to the Bureau of Land Management. The lands to be conveyed include a BLM concession known as ‘‘Walker’s Camp.’’ The Committee understands that there is a proposal to expand the size and 

scope of the existing concession operation, which currently occupies 

approximately 18 acres. The Committee does not intend for the 

transfer of the 140 acres from the Fish and Wildlife Service to the 

BLM to be viewed as an endorsement of any development of the 

lands in question. The Committee expects that any management 

changes proposed by the BLM for the affected acreage will be made 

through the agency’s standard planning process, with full opportunity for public involvement and comment from interested parties. 

These management changes should be consistent with existing uses 

and compliment the purposes of the neighboring refuge lands. 

The Committee does not intend for the transfer of these lands 

from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to the BLM to result in any 

substantive change in the natural, cultural and historical resources 

located on the land. The Committee expects that the BLM will 

safeguard these resources, including any sacred sites or trails, in 

consultation with affected Indian tribes. 

Section 2 directs the Secretary of the Interior to resurvey and notice of modified boundaries. 

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, February 25, 2004. 

Hon. PETE V. DOMENICI, 

Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 

U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 417, an act to revoke a 

public land order with respect to certain lands erroneously included 

in the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge, California. 

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Megan Carroll. 

Sincerely, 

ELIZABETH M. ROBINSON

(For Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Director). 

Enclosure. 

H.R. 417—An act to revoke a public land order with respect to certain lands erroneously included in the Cibola National Wildlife 

Refuge, California 

CBO estimates that H.R. 417 would have no significant impact 

on the federal budget. The bill could increase both offsetting receipts and direct spending, but we estimate that any such effects 

would be negligible. The bill would not affect revenues. H.R. 417 

contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as deVerDate jul 14 2003 21:06 Mar 10, 2004 Jkt 029010 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR241.XXX SR241
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fined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would impose no 

costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 

H.R. 417 would revoke Public Land Order 3442 as it pertains to 

140 acres of land within the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge in 

California. By doing so, the bill would effectively remove those 

lands from the refuge and return them to the jurisdiction of the 

Bureau of Land Management (BLM). According to BLM, this 

change would allow the agency to renegotiate a lease with a private 

concessionaire who currently operates recreational facilities on the 

affected lands. Based on information from the agency, CBO estimates that any change in offsetting receipts from lease payments, 

and subsequent spending of those receipts, would be negligible. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Megan Carroll. This 

estimate was approved by Robert A. Sunshine, 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. 417. 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. 417, as ordered reported. 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

The pertinent legislative report received by the Committee from 

the Department of the Interior setting forth Executive agency recommendation relating to H.R. 417 is set forth below:

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, 

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, 

Washington, DC, June 24, 2003. 

Hon. PETE V. DOMENICI, 

Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 

U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: This letter sets forth the views of the Department of the Interior on H.R. 417, an Act to revoke a Public 

Land Order with respect to certain lands erroneously included in 

the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge, California. 

H.R. 417 would revoke a small portion of Public Land Order 

3442, dated August 21, 1964. This Public Land Order withdrew approximately 16,600 acres of public domain lands along the Colorado 

River in California and Arizona for the Cibola NWR. The withdrawal erroneously included a small area of approximately 140 

acres in Imperial County at the southern boundary of the California portion of the refuge. A similar bill, H.R. 3937, was passed 

by the House last year, but was not acted upon by the Senate. 

Prior to 1964, this property fell under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and, beginning in 1962, the BLM 

issued a permit for a public recreation concession on the lands now 

in question. Because neither the Service nor the BLM recognized 

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the mistake in legal descriptions on the ground, the BLM continued 

to renew the original permit and the recreational concession use 

has continued, unbroken, to the present time, although the BLM 

lease did expire in April 2002. The concession and location are commonly known as ‘‘Walters Camp,’’ which consists of a recreational 

vehicle park, a small marina, and a store, and the BLM estimates 

that Walter’s Camp receives 11,000 visitors per year. 

The National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966, 

as amended, (Act) requires that all uses of refuge lands be compatible with the purpose for which the refuge was established. Section 

4(a) of the Act and section 204(j) of the Federal Land Policy and 

Management Act both prohibit the Secretary of the Interior from 

revoking withdrawals of land within NWRs. For this reason, Congressional action is required to remove these lands from the Refuge 

System. 

Since the inclusion of these lands in the Public Land Order was 

a mistake, due to the prior existence of the concession, we believe 

the most equitable solution is removal of the lands from the refuge. 

There are no listed species inhabiting the 140 acres and the area 

in question is, at best, marginal wildlife habitat. Removal of the 

140 acres of land from the refuge would free-up the area necessary 

for the continuation of the recreational concession, while still affording more than adequate protection for the nearest significant 

wildlife habitat feature, Three Fingers Lake. 

We believe that the withdrawal of these lands will benefit all 

parties involved—the concessionaire, the Service, the BLM and, ultimately, the public. For this reason, we support the bill and urge 

prompt action on enactment of H.R. 417. 

The Office of Management and Budget has advised that there is 

no objection to the presentation of this report from the standpoint 

of the Administration’s program. 

Sincerely, 

REBECCA W. WATSON, Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management. 

CHANGES TO 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 Act H.R. 417, as ordered reported.

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