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80-419 PS 2003

H.R. 4968, TO PROVIDE FOR THE

EXCHANGE OF CERTAIN

LANDS IN UTAH

LEGISLATIVE HEARING

BEFORE THE

SUBCOMMITTEE ON NATIONAL PARKS, RECREATION,

AND PUBLIC LANDS

OF THE

COMMITTEE ON RESOURCES

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

ONE HUNDRED SEVENTH CONGRESS

SECOND SESSION

June 27, 2002

Serial No. 107-133

Printed for the use of the Committee on Resources

(

Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.access.gpo.gov/congress/house

or

Committee address: http://resourcescommittee.house.gov

(II)

COMMITTEE ON RESOURCES

JAMES V. HANSEN, Utah, Chairman

NICK J. RAHALL II, West Virginia, Ranking Democrat Member

Don Young, Alaska,

Vice Chairman

W.J. ‘‘Billy’’ Tauzin, Louisiana

Jim Saxton, New Jersey

Elton Gallegly, California

John J. Duncan, Jr., Tennessee

Joel Hefley, Colorado

Wayne T. Gilchrest, Maryland

Ken Calvert, California

Scott McInnis, Colorado

Richard W. Pombo, California

Barbara Cubin, Wyoming

George Radanovich, California

Walter B. Jones, Jr., North Carolina

Mac Thornberry, Texas

Chris Cannon, Utah

John E. Peterson, Pennsylvania

Bob Schaffer, Colorado

Jim Gibbons, Nevada

Mark E. Souder, Indiana

Greg Walden, Oregon

Michael K. Simpson, Idaho

Thomas G. Tancredo, Colorado

J.D. Hayworth, Arizona

C.L. ‘‘Butch’’ Otter, Idaho

Tom Osborne, Nebraska

Jeff Flake, Arizona

Dennis R. Rehberg, Montana

George Miller, California

Edward J. Markey, Massachusetts

Dale E. Kildee, Michigan

Peter A. DeFazio, Oregon

Eni F.H. Faleomavaega, American Samoa

Neil Abercrombie, Hawaii

Solomon P. Ortiz, Texas

Frank Pallone, Jr., New Jersey

Calvin M. Dooley, California

Robert A. Underwood, Guam

Adam Smith, Washington

Donna M. Christensen, Virgin Islands

Ron Kind, Wisconsin

Jay Inslee, Washington

Grace F. Napolitano, California

Tom Udall, New Mexico

Mark Udall, Colorado

Rush D. Holt, New Jersey

Anibal Acevedo-Vila, Puerto Rico

Hilda L. Solis, California

Brad Carson, Oklahoma

Betty McCollum, Minnesota

Tim Stewart, Chief of Staff

Lisa Pittman, Chief Counsel/Deputy Chief of Staff

Steven T. Petersen, Deputy Chief Counsel

Michael S. Twinchek, Chief Clerk

James H. Zoia, Democrat Staff Director

Jeffrey P. Petrich, Democrat Chief Counsel

(III)

SUBCOMMITTEE ON NATIONAL PARKS, RECREATION,

AND PUBLIC LANDS

GEORGE P. RADANOVICH, California, Chairman

DONNA M. CHRISTENSEN, Virgin Islands Ranking Democrat Member

Elton Gallegly, California

John J. Duncan, Jr., Tennessee

Joel Hefley, Colorado

Wayne T. Gilchrest, Maryland

Walter B. Jones, Jr., North Carolina,

Vice Chairman

Mac Thornberry, Texas

Chris Cannon, Utah

Bob Schaffer, Colorado

Jim Gibbons, Nevada

Mark E. Souder, Indiana

Michael K. Simpson, Idaho

Thomas G. Tancredo, Colorado

Dale E. Kildee, Michigan

Eni F.H. Faleomavaega, American Samoa

Frank Pallone, Jr., New Jersey

Tom Udall, New Mexico

Mark Udall, Colorado

Rush D. Holt, New Jersey

Anibal Acevedo-Vila, Puerto Rico

Hilda L. Solis, California

Betty McCollum, Minnesota

(V)

CONTENTS

Page

Hearing held on June 27, 2002 ............................................................................... 1

Statement of Members:

Cannon, Hon. Chris, a Representative in Congress from the State of

Utah, Prepared statement of ....................................................................... 2

Hansen, Hon. James V., a Representative in Congress from the State

of Utah, Prepared statement of ................................................................... 7

Matheson, Hon. James, a Representative in Congress from the State

of Utah ........................................................................................................... 8

Prepared statement of ............................................................................... 9

Radanovich, Hon. George P., a Representative in Congress from the State

of California ................................................................................................... 1

Prepared statement of ............................................................................... 2

Statement of Witnesses:

Boyden, Stephen G., Director, State of Utah, School and Institutional

Trust Lands Administration, Salt Lake City, Utah ................................... 10

Prepared statement of ............................................................................... 12

Fulton, Tom, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Land and Minerals

Management, U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C. .......... 3

Prepared statement of ............................................................................... 5

Plant, Paula, School Trust Lands Specialist, Utah State Office of

Education, Salt Lake City, Utah ................................................................. 22

Prepared statement of ............................................................................... 23

Rupp, Karen, Trust Lands Specialist, Utah PTA, American Fork, Utah .... 15

Prepared statement of ............................................................................... 16

Additional materials supplied:

Young, Larry, Executive Director, The Southern Utah Wilderness

Alliance, and Pam Eaton, Four Corners Regional Representative, The

Wilderness Society, Statement submitted for the record .......................... 33

(1)

LEGISLATIVE HEARING ON H.R. 4968, TO PROVIDE FOR THE EXCHANGE OF CERTAIN

LANDS IN UTAH

Thursday, June 27, 2002

U.S. House of Representatives

Subcommittee on National Parks, Recreation, and Public Lands

Committee on Resources

Washington, DC

The Subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 2:17 p.m., in room

1334, Longworth House Office Building, Hon. George Radanovich

[Chairman of the Subcommittee] presiding.

STATEMENT OF THE HON. GEORGE P.. RADANOVICH, A

REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF

CALIFORNIA

Mr. RADANOVICH. Good afternoon. Thank you for your patience.

As I know we had votes on the floor, so this Committee is coming

to order now, a little bit late. Today, the Subcommittee on National

Parks, Recreation and Public Lands will hear testimony on one bill,

H.R. 4968, the Federal Utah State Trust Lands Consolidation Act,

introduced by my Subcommittee colleague, Congressman Chris

Cannon from Utah.

Mr. RADANOVICH. I would like to begin by welcoming the witnesses here today. I know many of them have traveled a long way

to be able to testify on this legislation and that you have to catch

planes. So, we are going to get going with this pretty quickly.

H.R. 4968, which would ratify a land exchange agreement

reached between the Department of Interior and Agriculture and

the State of Utah would provide for the exchange of 243,000 acres

of State and Federal lands in Utah. The agreement would facilitate

the Federal acquisition of State trust lands located within the scenic San Rafael Swell provided for completion for the remaining

trust lands within the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve and eliminate

State inholdings within the Manti-LaSal National Forest.

Before turning the time over the Mrs. Christensen, who is not

here, for the opening statement, I would like to ask unanimous

consent that Mr. Matheson be permitted to sit on the dais following

the remarks.

Without objection, it is so ordered.

2

I have been informed that the Ranking Member is not able to be

here for this, and so I would turn my time and attention over to

Mr. Cannon who has an opening statement.

[The prepared statement of Mr. Radanovich follows:]

Statement of The Honorable George P. Radanovich, Chairman,

Subcommittee on National Parks, Recreation, and Public Lands

Good afternoon. The hearing will come to order.

Today the Subcommittee on National Parks, Recreation, and Public Lands will

hear testimony on one bill, H.R. 4968, the Federal–Utah State Trust Lands Consolidation Act, introduced by my Subcommittee colleague Congressman Cannon of

Utah. I would like to begin by welcoming the witnesses here today. I know many

of them have traveled a long way to be able to testify on this legislation.

H.R. 4968, which would ratify a land exchange agreement reached between the

Departments of Interior and Agriculture and the State of Utah, would provide for

the exchange of 243,000 acres of state and Federal lands in Utah. The agreement

would facilitate the Federal acquisition of state trust lands located within the scenic

San Rafael (Ra-fell) Swell, provide for completion of the remaining trust lands within the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve, and eliminate state inholdings in the Manti–La

Sal National Forest.

Before turning the time over to Mrs. Christensen for her opening statement, I

would ask unanimous consent that Mr. Matheson be permitted to sit on the dais

following his remarks.

I now turn to the Ranking Member, Mrs. Christensen, for any opening statement

she may have.

Mr. CANNON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. In light of the fact that

I think some of our witnesses have planes to catch and the lateness

of the start here, if I could submit that statement for the record,

I would appreciate that.

Mr. RADANOVICH. That is not a problem.

[The prepared statement of Mr. Cannon follows:]

Statement of The Honorable Chris Cannon, a Representative in Congress

from the State of Utah

Mr. Chairman, thank you for conducting this hearing on H.R. 4968, authored by

myself and co-sponsored by Chairman Hansen and our colleague Congressman

Matheson. Mr. Chairman, this land exchange represents the third major effort by

the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration, Governor Leavitt and the

Department of Interior to block up the checkerboard ownership of these lands which

are dedicated to the benefit of Utah’s school children.

H.R. 4968 will ratify an agreement signed by the Secretary of Interior, the Secretary of Agriculture and the Governor of Utah that agrees to exchange over

100,000 acres of land within Emery, Uintah, Utah, Washington and Sevier Counties. The Federal Government will gain ownership of spectacular lands located within the San Rafael Swell area, critical species habitat in the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve in Washington County and in holdings within the Manti- La Sal National Forest. In return, the school children of Utah will receive developable lands that may

contain oil, gas, coal or other resources. This exchange has been certified by an outside, third party expert who has fully analyzed these lands and minerals and submitted a report stating that this is an equal-value exchange.

Mr. Chairman, there has been much talk in my District about a proposed National Monument in the San Rafael area in Emery County, Utah. I have been opposed to use of the Antiquities Act to make this designation. However, this legislation does not prejudge that decision. The fact is that the San Rafael Swell is the

subject of numerous wilderness proposals, a National Conservation Area proposal,

a National Monument proposal and the list goes on. It is clear that this area will

someday be protected in some fashion. It is the mandate of the Trust Lands Administration to generate income from their lands. The two are not compatible. Thus,

this exchange will remove approximately 102,000 acres of State lands from the San

Rafael Swell which will enable this Congress or future Congresses to fully deal with

how we protect this incredible area.

3

The second major feature of this exchange will finally remove over 2,400 acres of

State lands out of the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve. Washington County, the State and

private landowners agreed to this HCP several years ago to insure the protection

of the desert tortoise and other species in this rapidly growing area. Although we

have been successful in acquiring most other private lands, the State has been unable to trade out of the Reserve. Over time, the State will be compensated for these

valuable lands through the sale of coal from the Walker Flat tract.

Lastly, Mr. Chairman, this bill involves nearly 3,000 acres of lands that will be

transferred to the Manti–La Sal National Forest. Near Moab, Utah the State currently owns tracts of land that are vital to the view shed of both the forest and BLM

lands. The State has agreed to exchange these lands to protect these areas from future development.

Mr. Chairman, this is a fair exchange that continues our efforts to protect those

lands in Utah that should not be developed and allows the school children of Utah

to fully appreciate the assets they own. We have wide spread support for this effort

throughout the State, among the delegation, the Administration and the environmental community. I once again thank the Chairman and look forward to the testimony.

Mr. RADANOVICH. With that, I notice that the Honorable James

Matheson is not here. What I would like to do is to begin the hearing by calling up Mr. Tom Fulton, who is the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Land and Minerals of the Department here in Washington. Mr. Fulton, if you will begin your testimony, then we will

allow Mr. Matheson to begin his as soon as he finishes voting and

comes back here.

So, welcome to the Subcommittee. I am going to hereby turn the

gavel over to Mr. Cannon and he will be conducting the rest of the

hearing.

You have 5 minutes to give your testimony, Mr. Fulton. We hope

you will be available for questions afterwards. Thank you very

much. You may begin.

STATEMENT OF TOM FULTON, DEPUTY ASSISTANT

SECRETARY OF LAND AND MINERALS, DEPARTMENT OF

INTERIOR, WASHINGTON, D.C.

Mr. FULTON. Yes, Mr. Chairman, thank you. I will certainly interrupt my comments if Congressman Matheson arrives. Thank

you very much for the opportunity to testify on behalf of the Departments of Interior and Agriculture in support of H.R. 4968, the

Federal-Utah State Trust Lands Consolidation Act.

This legislation would ratify the agreement recently signed by

the Department of Interior and the Department of Agriculture with

Governor Leavitt of Utah. The agreement proposes to exchange approximately 108,000 acres of land currently administered by the

Utah School and Institutional Trust Land Administration, known

as SITLA for approximately 133,000 acres of Federal lands.

In this agreement, deferred land purchases by the Federal Government of SITLA lands in Washington County will add additional

protection over time for sensitive and threatened resources in the

Red Cliffs Desert Reserve.

The agreement, which we urge the Congress to ratify, serves important needs for both the Federal Government and its land managing capacity and those of SITLA. SITLA has management responsibility for 3.5 million acres within the State of Utah and it is

mandated to manage those lands for the benefit of its trustees, primarily the school children of Utah.

4

I know you will hear later from individuals who represent those.

This legislation follows in the footsteps of the Utah Schools and

Lands Exchange Act of 1998 and the Utah West Desert Land Exchange Act of 2000, which have benefited the Federal Government

through the acquisition of environmental significant land and have

benefited the people of Utah through long-term revenue potential.

Earlier this month, on June 20th, the agreement was signed. Let

me briefly describe the major components of that agreement. We do

have a copy of that agreement. We could have it entered into the

record, if it is so desired.

Mr. CANNON. Please.

Mr. FULTON. Thank you.

[The agreement referred to follows:]

********** SUBCOMMITTEE INSERT **********

Mr. FULTON. Under the agreement, the Federal Government

would receive 108,000 acres of land from SITLA, the largest portion, approximately 102,870 acres in the San Rafael Swell of central Utah, would be administered by the Bureau of Land Management. The BLM currently manages the vast majority of this area,

but like so many areas in Utah, it is interspersed with State trust

lands.

While the Utah Enabling Act of 1894 was well intentioned in

designating four sections from each township to finance public education, within Utah the result is a complicated land management

scheme.

The San Rafael Swell is widely recognized and one worthy of special protection. This agreement places the overwhelming majority

of those lands in Federal protection with some minor private

inholdings remaining. All lands conveyed are subject to valid existing rights, including grazing and other permits.

In addition the San Rafael acreage, other smaller transfers to the

Federal Government management include 1700 acres within the

Manti-LaSal National Forest, 1700 acres in Grand County and

6,452 acres in Washington County.

The SITLA lands within the national Forest allow for the consolidation of additional lands that are difficult for the State currently

to manage, while providing alternatives for SITLA in other parts

of Utah.

Parcels conveyed in Washington County in the Red Cliffs Desert

Reserve are important habitat areas for species such as threatened

desert tortoise and will provide for further Federal protections of

significant natural resources, while allowing State and private entities to develop lands elsewhere in Washington County.

Another aspect of the agreement would be the transfer of 133,000

acres of Federal lands to SITLA. These lands, primarily in Uintah

County and Emery County, comprise lands with revenue-generating potential for SITLA. The transfers to SITLA include both surface and mineral interests, with two notable exceptions.

In the case of the UaUb Oil Shale Tract, the Federal Government

will continue to receive a share of future oil shale revenues and in

the case of the Walker Flat Coat Tract, the coal interest in those

lands will revert to the Federal Government after approximately

5

$46 million has been generated from coal production for SITLA.

These provisions help ensure that the Federal interest is protected.

This carefully crafted agreement provides a win-win for Federal

agencies managing diverse lands in Utah, as well as the State of

Utah and its schools and will generate much needed revenue while

protecting sensitive resources.

Legislation before this Committee represents an opportunity to

place high resource value lands into public ownership and management while allowing the State of Utah to enhance the return to its

schoolchildren. This agreement accomplishes this in a responsible

way with long-term positive benefits for both.

Thank you for the opportunity to testify. I would be glad to answer any questions the Committee might have.

[The prepared statement of Mr. Fulton follows:]

Statement of Tom Fulton, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Land and Minerals

Management. U.S. Department of the Interior

Thank you for the opportunity to testify on behalf of the Department of the Interior in strong support of H.R. 4968, the Federal–Utah State Trust Lands Consolidation Act. This legislation would ratify the agreement recently signed by the Department of the Interior and Department of Agriculture with Governor Michael O.

Leavitt of Utah. The agreement proposes to exchange approximately 108,284 acres

of land currently administered by the Utah School and Institutional Trust Land Administration (SITLA) for approximately 133,283 acres of Federal lands. A set of the

deferred land purchases by the Federal Government of SITLA lands in Washington

County, Utah will add additional protection over time for sensitive and threatened

resources in the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve.

The agreement, which we urge the Congress to ratify swiftly, serves important

needs of both the Federal Government in its land managing capacity, and of SITLA.

SITLA has management responsibility for 3.5 million acres within the State of

Utah, and is mandated to manage those lands for the benefit of its trustees, primarily the schoolchildren of Utah. This legislation follows in the footsteps of the

‘‘Utah Schools and Lands Exchange Act of 1998’’ (P.L. 105–335) and the ‘‘Utah West

Desert Land Exchange Act of 2000’’ (P.L. 106–301) which have benefitted the

Federal Government through acquisition of environmentally significant lands and

have benefitted the people of Utah through long-term revenue potential.

The Agreement

The Department signed the ‘‘2002 Federal–Utah State Trust Lands Consolidation’’

agreement on June 20, 2002. Let me briefly describe the major components of that

agreement.

Lands to be Conveyed to the Federal Government

Under the agreement, the Federal Government would receive 108,284 acres of

land from SITLA. The largest portion of these lands, approximately 102,871 acres

in the San Rafael Swell area of central Utah, would be administered by the BLM.

The San Rafael Swell area is an exquisite landscape of high mesas, deep canyons,

spectacular arches and soaring spires. The terrain varies from sheer cliffs and dazzling canyons to more gently eroded badlands broken by shallow washes. The BLM

currently manages the vast majority of this area, but like so many areas in Utah,

it is dotted with state trust lands. While the Utah Enabling Act of 1894 was well

intentioned in designating four sections from each township to finance public education within the new state of Utah, the proven result has been complicated land

management.

The San Rafael Swell region is widely recognized as one worthy of special protection. This agreement places the overwhelming majority of the lands in Federal protection with some minor private inholdings remaining. All lands conveyed are subject to valid existing rights including grazing leases or permits.

In addition to the San Rafael acreage, other smaller transfers to Federal Government management include 1,773 acres within the Manti–LaSal National Forest,

1,760 acres in Grand County and 6,452 acres in Washington County. The SITLA

lands within the National Forest allow for the consolidation of additional lands that

are difficult for the state to manage while providing productive alternatives for

SITLA in other parts of Utah. Parcels conveyed in Washington County in the Red

6

Cliffs Desert Reserve are important habitat areas for species such as the threatened

desert tortoise and will provide for further Federal protection of significant natural

resources and allow other state or privately owned lands elsewhere in Washington

County to be developed.

Lands to be Conveyed to SITLA

Another aspect of this agreement would transfer about 133,000 acres of Federal

lands to SITLA. These lands, primarily in Uintah County and Emery County, with

lesser acreage in Utah, Washington and Sevier counties, comprise lands with revenue generating potential for SITLA. The transfers to SITLA include both surface

and mineral interests, with two notable exceptions. In the case of the ‘‘UaUb Oil

Shale Tract’’, the Federal Government will receive a share of future oil shale revenues and in the case of ‘‘Walker Flat Coal Tract’’ the coal interest in those lands

will revert to the Federal Government after approximately $46.5 million has been

generated from coal production for SITLA’s benefit. These provisions help to ensure

that the Federal interest is protected.

Protection of the Federal interest has been a top priority for both the Department

of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture throughout negotiations over this

exchange. This carefully crafted agreement provides a win for Federal agencies

managing their diverse lands in Utah, as well as the State of Utah and its schools

who will generate much needed revenue while protecting sensitive resources.

Conclusion

The legislation before this Committee represents an opportunity to place high resource value lands into public ownership and management while allowing the State

of Utah to enhance the return for its schoolchildren. This agreement accomplishes

this in a responsible way with long term positive benefits for both the Federal Government and the people of Utah.

Thank you for the opportunity to present the Department’s views on H.R. 4968.

I would be happy to answer any questions the Committee may have.

Mr. CANNON. Thank you, Mr. Fulton.

I would like to apologize to those of you who are here either to

testify or as guests. We had a series of votes on the floor and so

we started a little bit late.

I would like to recognize the fact that the Chairman of the full

Committee, Mr. Hansen, is here. Did you have an opening statement?

Mr. HANSEN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I don’t have an opening

statement. I am sure that everyone in this room knows an awful

lot about this particular legislation. I thank you for introducing

this bill.

As many of you folks know, years ago we were always trying to

get a little more financing out of the public lands of Utah. One of

our past Governors, Governor Scott Matheson, introduced an idea

called Project Bold. It really was a very bold idea, to block up all

of the lands.

I don’t think people realize how the west is checker boarded. As

you look around our western States, it just looks like a checkerboard. Who knows what? You almost have to have a surveyor with

you wherever you go because you don’t know what is private, what

is State and what is Federal. It becomes very, very difficult.

New Mexico was way ahead of the rest of us. They started blocking up years ago. Out of that the State of New Mexico realized a

lot more for the school kids than others. We should have gone

along with Governor Matheson, but it was like eating the whole

elephant. It was just one big bite. I don’t know if we could swallow

it.

What we are doing now is these small pieces like this one and

those that we have done before. A lot of this inures to the benefit

7

of our school children. It is a very smart way to do it. It is too bad,

in a way, that we lost out on the Kaparwitz Plateau which has literally probably more clean coal than any other place that know of,

maybe in the world, but at least in America.

That, I understand, costs the school kids of America about $5 billion, but maybe some day we can resurrect that. I don’t have too

much argument with the Grand Staircase Escalante, only about 90

percent of it. The other 10 percent, I probably would agree with

President Clinton that he maybe did a half vast, vast v-a-s-t, job

on it, in case there is any question with the recorder.

Any way we get down to it, I would hope the day would come

that we could look into the Kaparwitz Plateau because there is a

lot of energy there. As one of the conferees on the Energy Committee, I am fully aware of the importance that is going to be to

us, terribly important. We are trying to do our very best to think

of ways to pull this together.

Mr. Cannon, I know that you feel very strongly about getting this

bill through and you are ready to predicate your eternal life on this

happening. If that is all true, we will move it in full Committee if

you can get it through this Subcommittee.

With that, I would like to submit my statement for the record

and just forget what I said otherwise, all right?

Mr. CANNON. With that context, I think we had better get this

bill passed.

[The prepared statement of Mr. Hansen follows:]

Statement of The Honorable James V. Hansen, a Representative in

Congress from the State of Utah

I thank my friend Mr. Cannon for introduction of this bill. He has worked to bring

this thing together, and I am sure that this legislation will result in a win-win situation for the State of Utah and the Federal Government.

I would also like to thank all of the people that have been involved in this trade

that will benefit all parties involved. I look forward to your testimony today.

Mr. Cannon explained what this legislation does, and I am sure that Mr. Boyden

will elaborate more on its specific points, so I won’t go into that. But I would like

to comment on a few important things that I believe this legislation will accomplish

by ratifying the agreement reached by the State of Utah and the Departments of

the Interior and Agriculture.

When you look at a map of Utah, you see that a large portion of the state looks

like a checkerboard. These are the school trust lands that we are talking about

today. They were created by the Utah Enabling Act to provide revenue to the State

School Fund. But people that are in charge of producing revenue from these lands,

like Mr. Boyden, have the problem that in most parts of the state, the trust lands

are scattered out all across the map.

Sometimes they get stuck in Federal designations or withdrawals, such as the

Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument, where there were more than

175,000 acres of school trust lands. We did a land exchange in the 105th Congress

that swapped those lands that were locked up inside the monument with lands that

would be of more potential benefit to Utah’s school children. This got rid of the state

inholdings within the monument and blocked some of these trust lands up together

so the state could make some progress with their revenue. It was a win-win situation from everyone’s standpoint. We did the same thing in the 106th Congress with

over 100,000 acres in Utah’s West Desert.

This legislation accomplishes much of what that legislation did, along with a few

more things. The land exchange in the San Rafael Swell area eliminates many problems that were similar in the Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument before

the exchange. This is sorely needed, especially since some of these trust lands lie

within designated Wilderness Study Areas. This legislation eliminates all inholdings

in the Manti–La Sal National Forest. It also requires the Bureau of Land Management to acquire most of the remaining trust lands within the Red Cliffs Desert ReVerDate 11-MAY-2000 14:58 May 01, 2003 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6621 80419.TXT HRESOUR1 PsN: HRESOUR1
8

serve in Washington County, Utah. Of course, the lands exchanged will all be of approximately equal value.

I thank my colleagues for this opportunity to resolve some of the resource conflicts

in Utah with this common-sense legislation. I look forward to working on this in

the future, and urge all of my colleagues to support H.R. 4968.

Mr. CANNON. We would like to recognize the presence of the gentleman from Idaho, Mr. Simpson, who I will recognize in just a moment.

Let me also point out that Congressman Matheson, my colleague

and friend, is here with us. We have gone ahead because we have

some flights to make. But Mr. Matheson will speak to us next.

With that, the gentleman is recognized for 5 minutes.

STATEMENT OF THE HON. JIM MATHESON, A

REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF UTAH

Mr. MATHESON. Well, Mr. Chairman, I don’t have an opening

statement. I just want you to know that any time I see on the

schedule something to exchange certain lands in Utah, we in Idaho

get very nervous, so I wanted to be here to make sure that part

of it didn’t include Idaho.

We are actually doing our best to give Utah land away to Nevada

and otherwise. You shouldn’t worry so much.

Mr. CANNON. I had a couple of questions, Mr. Fulton. First of all,

once again for the record, does the Administration consider this to

be a fair and equal trade?

Mr. FULTON. Yes, Mr. Chairman, it does. In fact, both the Bureau of Land Management which represented the Administration

in the negotiations and the State have an arms’ length white paper

independently verifying the equity of this exchange.

Mr. CANNON. Thanks. In what ways would the Federal Government benefit from the exchange?

Mr. FULTON. Well, it is able to better manage the public lands

it will have. It gained significant environmental resources that it

can apply some management practices to. It has a strong desire to

work with State and local governments. So, something that benefits

the Utah school children is important to the Administration.

Mr. CANNON. Could you just follow up a little bit on the environment? Will this benefit the environment?

Mr. FULTON. Yes, significantly. In particular, the Desert Tortoise

in the south, north of St. George is southwestern Utah, that is a

land acquisition component of this agreement that will result in an

enhanced protection value for that threatened species.

Mr. CANNON. Thank you. That is all I had by the way of questions. Thank you, Mr. Fulton. We appreciate that clear and direct

testimony and appreciate your service to the Committee.

Mr. FULTON. Thank you very much.

Mr. CANNON. Now, Mr. Matheson, if you would join us. Without

objection, we would like to invite Mr. Matheson to join us on the

dais if he is interested in doing that after his testimony.

Mr. MATHESON. I appreciate that.

Mr. CANNON. You are recognized for 5 minutes.

Mr. MATHESON. I have a written statement. I am going to be

brief because I know there are folks who are trying to catch a plane

9

and I know we got a little late start. So, I will submit my written

statement.

I just want to assistant myself with just about everything Mr.

Hansen said. I am not sure about the ‘‘half past’’ stuff. But most

of what he said I think I am in agreement with.

I think this is a great day because public lands discussions in

Utah are so often characterized by people just sort of throwing grenades at each other. Today we have an example where the State

School Trust Land Administration did it the right way. They

reached out. They talked with all the relevant parties. They had a

collaborative process. It just goes to show that when we work together we can actually come up with a common sense solution. I

really applaud them on that effort to work in a collaborative way.

I hope that this is a signal of things to come in terms of how we

address a lot of public lands issues in Utah. I hope the State School

Trust Land Administration continues to move forward in trying to

consolidate this checkerboard pattern that we all know makes no

sense. For the sake of the school kids and for the sake of better

land management, we ought to move forward on this consolidation

throughout our State.

So, I commend them. I think that is really the biggest story out

of this legislation, their good work.

I commend the Chairman for introducing this bill and I wholeheartedly support his in his efforts.

I yield back the balance of my time.

[The prepared statement of Mr. Matheson follows:]

Statement of The Honorable Jim Matheson, a Representative in Congress

from the State of Utah

Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Christiansen, I want to thank you for providing

me with the opportunity to testify on this important piece of legislation.

This legislation seeks to remedy, through a common sense, collaborative approach,

a very difficult challenge that we have in Utah.

For generations, the map of Utah has been divided and sub-divided then sub-divided again into a checkerboard pattern of ownership upon which all land use decisions have been made. Within this checkerboard are scattered 3.5 million acres of

Utah’s school trust lands.

The checkerboard separates different parcels of trust land, and while these lands

provide Utah schools with valuable royalties, they also limit development and planning for Utah lands and the surrounding communities.

Twenty years ago, Governor Scott Matheson, my father, proposed a new way to

manage these lands. Project Bold, as he termed it, would consolidate many of the

lands. It would partner the state, local communities, and the Federal Government

in a collaborative effort to better manage Utah resources.

Project Bold was successful in many areas. It helped create more manageable

lands while giving the state a better way to harness the wealth of its resources.

This legislation proposes to exchange approximately 108,000 acres of land currently administered by the Utah School and Institutional Land Administration for

approximately 133,000 acres of Federal land.

Mr. Chairman, the importance of this agreement for the people of Utah cannot

be understated. I believe that when considering its value we need to keep in mind

three points.

First, this agreement is an exchange of equal value. Often times when we are

charged with legislating land exchanges, we find it challenging to take care of affected parties while keeping our trust with the American taxpayer.

This is one instance where we do not face that problem. The vast majority of the

land in this exchange is from the San Rafeal Swell area of central Utah. For those

of you who have not been there, the Swell is a geological, botanical, and biological

wonder that is a national treasure. Its an area about the size of Delaware made

up of high mesas, deep slot canyons, untouched forests, pure rivers, and endangered

animals.

10

Conveying the SITLA lands within the Swell to the Federal Government is one

of the first steps we must take in preserving this treasure for future generations

of Americans. SITLA will also be transferring lands to protect the endangered

desert tortoise as well as the Manti–Lasal National Forest. Protecting these resources is one of the basic tasks of our Federal lands policies.

Secondly, I hope this Committee keeps in mind the cooperation that gave way to

this legislation. Too often in Utah, the debate about how we manage our public

lands comes down to butting heads rather cool-headed dialogue.

That was not the case for this agreement. SITLA sat down and talked through

this deal with the Utah environmental community. Objections were raised and

worked through. Agreements were found, and the values of all parties were respected. It is my hope that the existing concerns can be eased through continued

communication.

I believe that this collaborative process signals a possible new era in the debate

on our public lands. I hope that the lesson learned from this process is that all

Utahns value and treasure our lands, and maybe we can begin to deal with the

issues that have kept us apart for too long.

Finally, we should keep in mind why the School Trust Land program was created

in the first place, and that is for the benefit and welfare of the children of Utah.

Utah has the fastest growing population in the country. We have the highest student to teacher ratio in the nation, and like many other states across this nation

we are increasingly challenged to find resources for our growing school population.

This legislation provides us with some of the resources that Utah schools will

need to successfully educate our children. The interest provided to the fund is what

helps to supplement school budgets, the more royalties there are the more resources

we can provide our children.

I want to thank the Committee for inviting me here. I look forward to the swift

passage of H.R. 4968.

Mr. CANNON. Thank you. You are welcome to come up on the

dais. I just want to make a couple of points. First of all, welcome

to the debate on this issue. In the new districting plan, this will

probably be in Congressman Matheson’s district.

Second, having had a lot of experience in the public lands of

Utah, Mr. Matheson is going to add greatly to this debate. We appreciate you joining the debate. I will point out that as a young

man this was his father’s project. So, this, I suspect is sort of seeing some good things come out of what has been a good idea on a

bipartisan basis for a very long time.

If you would like to join us, you are welcome to.

I guess we are now dealing with the third panel of witnesses, if

you would come up, please. We have Mr. Stephen Boyden, Director,

State of Utah, School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration, Salt Lake City, Utah. Welcome, Mr. Boyden.

We have Ms. Karen Rupp, Trust Lands Specialist, Utah PTA,

from American Fork, Utah. Thanks for being with us today.

Also, Ms. Paula Plant, School Trust Lands Specialist, Utah State

Office of Education, Salt Lake City, Utah. I personally appreciate

all the time that you individually have spent on this issue and for

the leadership you have given not only in Utah, but to the western

States on the issue.

With that, Mr. Boyden, you are recognized for 5 minutes.

STATEMENT OF STEPHEN G. BOYDEN, DIRECTOR, STATE OF

UTAH, SCHOOL AND INSTITUTIONAL TRUST LANDS

ADMINISTRATION, SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH

Mr. BOYDEN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. It is an honor for us to

be here and have an opportunity to address ourselves to

11

H.R. 4968. We are here to urge support for and swift passage of

that bill.

I would like to give special thanks to some people who have been

deeply involved in this: Steve Griles, the Deputy Secretary of Interior; Tom Fulton, who has just testified; to Terry Catlin and to

Sally Wiseley, the State Director of the State of Utah who have

been involved on the Federal side. Then to John Harja who has

been representing this State in the negotiations along with the

staff of the State School Institutional and Trust Lands Administration.

All the effort culminated in the agreement signed June 18th.

That agreement is in the record at this time. I would like to point

out that the agreement covers three things. The first is a land exchange of equal values. Those values are set out in a report that

was prepared by those negotiators. I would ask that this report,

called ‘‘A White Paper in Support of the 2002 Federal-Utah State

Trust Lands Consolidation Agreement,’’ prepared by John Harja

and Terry Catlin, be submitted to the record at this time.

Mr. CANNON. Without objection.

Mr. BOYDEN. That was the first part of the agreement. The second part deals with the deferred purchase of the Desert Tortoise

habitat that was referred to earlier. There are some lands located

near St. George, Utah, in Washington County that have an appraised value of approximately $32 million. These lands will be

purchased from revenues from a coal field known as Walker Flat

as part of the agreement.

Much of the agreement deals with how this money will be dispersed. It will pay for the Desert Tortoise habitat parcel by parcel.

Those will be released to the Federal Government as the money is

obtained.

The third item in the agreement deals with the restructuring of

a debt that is owed to the State of Utah by the Federal Government in the last exchange. It is worth about $15.5 million now,

which includes principal and interest. Again, the Walker Flat Coal

tract will provide the cash to pay off that debt. The white paper

that I referred to just a moment ago is very helpful in understanding how the equal value was arrived.

I would like to address myself very quickly to two issues. One is

the equal value question and the second one is the environmental

consequences of this agreement. The paper on Page 22 says, ‘‘The

aggregate total values summarized in the table below amount to

rounded totals of $35,500,000 for the State lands and $35,700,000

for the BLM and Forest Service lands.’’

So, that is about as close as you can get when you are talking

about equal value. It is less than one-half of 1 percent. So, I would

like to commend those people who worked on it to come up with

the values.

I would also refer you to Page 5 of the report, the first paragraph

at the very top. It says, ‘‘The final report of the independent qualified appraisers,’’ and these were hired jointly by the State and the

Federal Government, ‘‘did find that the exchange was approximately equal in value and that the value determined was a reasonable facsimile of probably market value.’’ I think that’s critical.

12

Then I would refer you to a paper that comes from Hendricks,

Vella, Weber and Williams. These were the real estate consultants

hired by both of us. Their conclusion reads this way after reviewing

how the exchange was taking place and the process that was used

in making the valuation, they conclude as follows:

‘‘Based on the foregoing, we therefore find that the exchange referred to as the Federal-Utah State Trust Lands Consolidation Exchange is an exchange of properties approximately equal in value.’’

So, I think that really addresses that question. We are happy at

this point to say that the teams have worked that out and then

that has been reviewed by independent real estate people, one of

whom is an MAI appraiser, and they have concluded as I have just

read.

The next item that I would like to address is the environmental

impact of this exchange. We tried early on to avoid any kind of conflict that may compromise the environment. So, we scrupulously

avoided all WSA’s, all Section 202 lands, which had been inventoried in the State. Also, we avoided the existing citizens’ proposals

that were proposed for wilderness.

In so doing, we have reduced much of the conflict which might

otherwise exist.

There are several features which are important in our agreement. There will be continued consultation and protection under

the Endangered Species Act. Cultural resources are protected

under the State laws, which are equivalent to Federal law. We are

going to work internally with Utah’s Division of Wildlife Resources

for protection of the habitat for all animals that would not necessarily be on the Endangered Species List.

It is also important to understand that the Clean Air and Clean

Water Acts apply to the land acquired by the State under this exchange. The purpose has been, I think, very well met. We have

tried from the very beginning to make Federal management over

very sensitive areas available in the San Rafael Swell area.

In return, the State has acquired lands which it can manage for

potential development. In all, it has been an exchange which has

been beneficial both to the United States and to the State of Utah.

Thank you very much.

[The prepared statement of Mr. Boyden follows:]

Statement of Stephen G. Boyden, Director. Utah School and Institutional

Trust Lands Administration

Mr. Chairman, and members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity

to testify today. My name is Stephen G. Boyden, and I am the Director of the Utah

School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration, an independent state agency

that manages more than 3.5 million acres of state school trust lands within Utah

that are dedicated to the financial support of public education.

I encourage the Subcommittee, and Congress, to act favorably on H.R. 4968, the

Federal - Utah State Trust Lands Consolidation Act of 2002. This legislation ratifies

the recent agreement between the State of Utah and the Departments of the Interior and Agriculture for the exchange of approximately 243,000 acres of state and

Federal lands in Utah. The Agreement, when ratified, will place over 102,000 acres

of state trust lands located within Utah’s remarkably scenic San Rafael Swell region

into Federal ownership, will permit completion of Federal acquisition of state trust

lands within the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve in Washington County, Utah, and will

eliminate state inholdings in the Manti - La Sal National Forest. In return, the

State of Utah will receive Federal lands with lesser environmental sensitivity but

greater potential for generating revenue for Utah’s public education system—the

13

purpose for which Congress originally granted trust lands to Utah and the other

western states.

Revenue from Utah school trust lands—whether from grazing, forestry, surface

leasing or mineral development—is placed in the State School Fund, a permanent

income-producing endowment created by Congress in the Utah Enabling Act for the

support of the state’s public education system. Historically, revenue from these

lands has been limited, in large part because the school trust lands are largely scattered in checkerboard pattern throughout surrounding Federal lands. When the

United States withdraws the surrounding Federal lands from multiple use status,

for national parks, monuments, or wilderness study areas, the usefulness of the

inheld state trust lands for economic uses such as mineral development is effectively

destroyed. Likewise, state efforts to generate revenues from its lands through sale

of the lands for recreational development and homesites have been viewed by

Federal land managers as conflicting with conservation-oriented management of the

surrounding Federal lands. Over the years, disputes over state school trust lands

within Federal conservation areas have generated significant public controversy,

and often led to expensive and time-consuming litigation between the State of Utah

and the United States.

In the last several years, the State of Utah and the United States have made

great strides in resolving this problem through a series of legislated land exchanges.

In 1998, Congress passed the Utah Schools and Land Exchange Act, Public Law

105–335. This legislation ratified a state-federal agreement that provided an exchange of hundreds of thousands of acres of school trust lands out of various national parks, monuments, forests and Indian reservations into areas that could

produce revenue for Utah’s schools. Then, in 2000, Congress enacted the Utah West

Desert Land Exchange Act, Public Law 106–301, which exchanged over 100,000

acres of state trust land out of proposed Federal wilderness in Utah’s scenic West

Desert for Federal lands elsewhere in the region.

The hallmark of each of these exchanges was their ‘‘win-win’’ nature: school trust

lands with significant environmental values were placed into Federal ownership,

while Federal lands with lesser environmental values but greater potential for revenue generation were exchanged to the State, thus fulfilling the purpose of the

school land grants—providing financial support for public education. Members of

this Subcommittee and your staff provided great support for these exchanges, and

we thank you again for all your efforts.

H.R. 4968 is the next step in this process of redrawing the land ownership map

in Utah to eliminate conflicts between state and Federal land management. The legislation before you would ratify the June 18, 2002 Agreement between the State of

Utah and the Departments of the Interior and Agriculture. Enactment of H.R. 4968

will:

1. Eliminate State Inholdings Within BLM Lands in the San Rafael Swell Region.

The San Rafael Swell is one of Utah’s scenic wonders. A 900 square mile area

of uplifted cliffs and deep canyons, it provides spectacular recreational opportunities

for the public, contains significant cultural, historic and paleontological resources,

and includes valuable wildlife habitat. Local government and conservation groups

have variously proposed the San Rafael Swell for national monument status, a national conservation area, a heritage area, and Federal wilderness. All agree that it

is a spectacular natural resource that merits special status.

Under the Agreement, the Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration (the ‘‘Trust Lands Administration’’) would convey approximately 102,871 acres

of school trust lands within the San Rafael Swell to the Bureau of Land Management. Many of these lands are within BLM wilderness study areas (WSAs), and

other lands are within areas proposed by the environmental community for wilderness designation. Conveyance of these trust lands to the United States would eliminate state-federal land management conflicts in the area, and remove the possibility

that sale or development of state lands in the area could conflict with protection of

the Swell’s significant scenic resources.

2. Provide for Federal Acquisition of Remaining State Trust Lands in the Red Cliffs

Desert Reserve.

The Red Cliffs Desert Reserve in Washington County, Utah, was established in

1995 to implement a multiple-species habitat conservation plan approved by the

Fish and Wildlife Service under Section 10(a) of the Endangered Species Act. The

Reserve contains the highest density of critical habitat for the Mojave desert tortoise, a threatened species, in the United States, as well as providing a valuable recreational resource in what is one of the nation’s fastest growing counties. Approximately 11,000 acres of Utah school trust lands were originally included within the

14

Reserve. Prior to creation of the Reserve, most state school trust lands in the Reserve were planned for commercial and residential development to accommodate

rapid urban growth occurring in the area. In the 1995 intergovernmental agreement

creating the Reserve, the Department of the Interior agreed to acquire the Utah

school trust lands in the Reserve by purchase or by administrative land exchanges

conducted pursuant to Section 206 of the Federal Lands Policy & Management Act

of 1976. Since 1995, however, BLM has acquired only 939 acres of school trust lands

in the Reserve by administrative land exchange under FLPMA. BLM’s delay in acquiring school trust lands in the Reserve has caused significant financial loss to

Utah’s public schools, which are entitled by law to the proceeds from the lands.

The Agreement provides for the conveyance of over 6,000 acres of trust lands

within the Reserve to the BLM. Certain of these lands will be conveyed to the BLM

immediately, while others will be conveyed as the State receives revenues from coal

lands that it is receiving in the exchange. By fixing a mechanism for the conveyance

of the lands, the Agreement will eliminate the significant expenditures of staff and

resources that BLM and the Trust Lands Administration are currently incurring in

an effort to complete administrative land exchanges of state lands out of the Reserve. More importantly, Federal acquisition of the state trust lands in the Reserve

will fulfill the United States’ 1995 commitment to compensate Utah’s school trust

for lands effectively taken by the Federal designation of critical habitat for the

desert tortoise.

3. Eliminate State Inholdings in the Manti - La Sal National Forest.

The Trust Lands Administration will also convey approximately 2892.56 acres of

trust lands located within or adjacent to the Manti - La Sal National Forest to the

Department of Agriculture for inclusion in the National Forest System. Certain of

these lands are located in the Wasatch Plateau area of the forest, and contain wildlife habitat, timber resources, and roadless areas. Other state lands being conveyed

to USDA are located above the scenic Castle Valley area in Grand County, Utah,

and were identified by local conservation groups for Federal acquisition to protect

forest resources and scenic vistas from the possibility of commercial development.

4. Provide For An Equal Value Exchange And Protect the Public Interest.

In negotiating the Agreement, the State and the United States expended substantial effort to ensure that the lands being conveyed by the State to the United States

and the Federal lands being conveyed to the State were of approximately equal

value. This process included careful analysis of sales of land comparable to those

being conveyed, and, in the case of state lands within the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve,

use of full narrative appraisals by a licensed Utah appraiser approved by the Bureau of Land Management.

Recognizing that valuation of lands associated with Federal land exchanges has

been of concern to members of the Subcommittee and the public, the parties also

engaged a nationally-recognized independent real estate consultant to evaluate the

methodologies used by the parties in valuing the lands and minerals involved in the

exchange and the parties’ conclusion that the lands on both sides of the exchange

are of approximately equal value. The independent consultants concluded that the

parties’ process for determining value and their conclusion that the exchange was

on an equal value basis was reasonable and supportable.

The Subcommittee should also note that the Agreement contains various provisions protecting the interests of parties that may be affected by the exchange. Valid

existing rights, including the rights of existing grazing permittees, mineral lessees,

and other land users will be honored by the parties to the exchange. In negotiating

the exchange, the State of Utah also took care to avoid selecting Federal lands containing significant environmental values that might be impacted by state acquisition, such as wilderness study area or proposed wilderness status, although some

minor overlaps do exist. The Agreement also contains specific provisions for the protection of any candidate, threatened or endangered plant or animal species that may

be found on lands being acquired by the State, and contemplates the execution of

a detailed Memorandum of Understanding between the Trust Lands Administration

and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, with consultation under Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act at that time.

5. Benefit School Revenues and Local Economies.

The Federal lands being acquired by Utah’s school trust have been carefully chosen for their potential to permit economic development at the local level, as well as

providing revenue to the permanent State School Fund. As these lands are developed, they have the potential to create new jobs and property tax revenue, which

will also benefit schools both locally and statewide

15

In conclusion, H.R. 4968 represents another great step toward simplifying land

ownership in Utah, protecting Utah’s natural heritage, and adequately funding public education. I respectfully urge the Subcommittee to approve it expeditiously and

without amendment.

Thank you for the opportunity to testify today.

NOTE: ‘‘A White Paper in Support of the 2002 Federal–Utah State Trust Lands

Consolidation Agreement’’ submitted for the record by Mr. Boyden has been retained

in the Committee’s official files.

Mr. CANNON. Thank you very much for your testimony. You will

note that there are lights on the panel. Green means you can talk.

Yellow means sum up. Red means if you care about your airplane

you might want to shorten.

I didn’t cut you off, by the way, Mr. Boyden. That was very helpful testimony. We appreciate that. Certainly we are not going to

cut people off, but if you are just aware of that timing light, we

would appreciate it.

Ms. Rupp, if you would like to take 5 minutes.

STATEMENT OF KAREN RUPP, TRUST LANDS SPECIALIST,

UTAH PTA, AMERICAN FORK, UTAH

Ms. RUPP. Mr. Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, my

name is Karen Rupp. I am here today representing the Utah Congress of Parents and Teachers or the Utah PTA.

Susan Dayton has submitted a letter—she is the President of the

Utah PTA—showing great support for this is exchange that is

about to take place.

We urge Congress to enact this legislation promptly and especially without amendment. Education is really important to Utahans. We tax ourselves as one of the highest States and yet we have

the lowest per-student expenditure of all 51 States.

So, the school trust lands are extremely important to us in being

able to fund education and enhance it.

In the 1980’s Utah PTA found and was exposed to what school

trust lands are. A resolution was passed with Utah PTA working

with the other education communities to explain what trust lands

could possibly do in the funding, because we honestly were very ignorant of what these lands were granted for at the beginning of

Statehood.

We found in the western United States the other education communities are in practically the same boat. So, we have found that

that has been very beneficial for us to do it. Currently, every year

we have about 2500 parents watching a video that was produced

by SITLA and the State office of Education, explaining what trust

lands are and how they can benefit Utah schools.

So, if you were to ask currently today about school trust lands,

you would be surprised how many recognize what they are and

what the intended use was for them as opposed to back in the

1980’s where no one knew what they were.

One of the programs that has come out from this is the way we

had wanted to do it so that people could recognize what school

trust lands are. We have taken a program called the School LAND

Trust Program and this is money that is spent from the dividends

and interest off the permanent account. It goes directly to the

schools and they make plans with parents, teachers and adminisVerDate 11-MAY-2000 14:58 May 01, 2003 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6602 80419.TXT HRESOUR1 PsN: HRESOUR1
16

trators sitting on the committees. They will make plans of how to

spend this money that will best improve and enhance education on

the local level. It is totally site-based decisionmaking from the

schools and it is approved by local school boards.

Just to give you two examples of what is happening in Utah, I

would like to tell you about two of the schools. One of them is

Whitehorse High School, which is on the Navajo tribal lands. It is

99 percent Navajo. They are really concerned as parents and the

administrators that the students don’t lose their cultural identify,

but at the same time, they are really concerned about their future.

So, what they decided to do is to take their trust lands money

and use it to help a heritage cultural program. They have been able

to purchase textbooks and supplies and things to be able to enhance their learning of their proficiency in English. They do a summer program that will be able to do their reading and writing and

mathematics and social studies, the areas that they are weakest in.

Parents are involved in this. They sit down and they will go over

the data with the parents to find out where they are really failing

and what they can do to help them. It is equally important that

they do, along with this, their native culture with their Navajo arts

and crafts. This program is ongoing and it is all being funded

through the trust lands. It is really exciting to parents.

The second I would like to tell you about is Bacchus Elementary,

which is in Kearns, Utah. This is a school that has 15 different primary languages going on. If you can imagine a teacher in elementary school trying to help the children learn to read and write and

do mathematics all at the same time that they truly do not understand the English language.

What they have done is they have taken their money and helped

to fund an aide to work with the children who are struggling so

much in the proficiency of English and enable the teacher to be

able to continue teaching the other children in the classrooms,

keeping in mind that our classroom rates have been very, very

high.

This has been significant as they have gone through and done

their testing, to be able to know that they have been able to help

these children and especially that they have been able to keep the

other children on track.

Just finally, we would like to thank you as Utah PTA and the

education community on the exchanges that have taken place prior

to this time and look forward to the ones that are going to happen

this time. So, we want you to know that when we say that this

money directly affects the children, we really have a program in

place to be able to do that.

Thank you for allowing me to be here.

[The prepared statement of Ms. Rupp follows:]

Statement of Karen A. Rupp, Utah Congress of Parents and Teachers

Mr. Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity

to testify today. My name is Karen Rupp. I am here today representing the Utah

Congress of Parents and Teachers—the Utah PTA.

Attached you will find a letter of support for the 2002 Federal—Utah State Trust

Lands Consolidation from Susan Dayton, President of Utah PTA. Utah PTA strongly supports the Federal - Utah State Trust Lands Consolidation Act of 2002

H.R. 4968. We urge Congress to enact this legislation promptly and without amendment.

17

Education is important to Utahns. Taxpayers in Utah spend more of their tax dollar on education than any other state. Two-thirds of Utah is Federal land, which

pays no taxes. Utah has a young population with the highest number of school students per taxpayer. The untaxed Federal land combined with the high student-taxpayer ratio results in the state with the highest tax commitment to education providing the lowest per pupil funding of all fifty-one states. Consequently, school trust

lands are significant because the endowment fund created by these lands generates

an increasing revenue stream of interest and dividends to each Utah school.

Congress granted school trust lands to Utah at statehood for the express purpose

of providing funding for Utah’s public schools. Utah has not always been exemplary

in managing the lands and revenues as a trust. It was the PTA in the late 1980’s

that recognized how school trust lands could become an important revenue source

for education in Utah, if they were managed as a trust as was intended at statehood. Utah PTA passed a resolution, you will find attached with the written testimony that began the movement to reform the way school lands in Utah were managed. At that time there was just $34 million in the permanent State School Fund

where revenues from the land are deposited. Utah PTA, with the other education

groups in the state, became unified in their resolve to ensure that school trust lands

be managed for schools. After significant study, the legislature created the School

and Institutional Trust Lands Administration, an independent state agency, to manage the school trust lands in 1994. Now just eight years later, the fund has grown

to $351 million.

Legislation such as H.R. 4968 will have a direct impact on Utah students. In

1999, the legislature established the School LAND Trust Program that distributes

the annual interest and dividends from the permanent State School Fund directly

to each public school on a per pupil basis. Committees consisting of the principal,

teachers and parents determine the school’s greatest academic need. They prepare

a plan to address the identified need with their portion of the annual trust land dividend. Local school boards approve the plans and exercise oversight of plan implementation and spending. It is a model program for local control and site-based decision making that works. As a result, this exchange will make a difference for every

child in Utah.

Schools implement plans that are unique to the needs of students at each school.

The following are examples of how two different schools used their trust land funds

to make a difference:

Whitehorse High School is located on the Navajo Tribal Lands and is 99 percent

Navajo. Parents, students, and faculty determined that the Heritage Language Program is a pivotal component of the Whitehorse High School curriculum; therefore,

they developed a Cultural Center on site at Whitehorse High School. The purpose

of the Cultural Center is to provide resources to teach about the Navajo culture and

traditions. It provides informational resources such as books, tapes, and educational

curricula. The center utilizes real life cultural experiences. Hands-on authentic instruction, integrated into the mainstream curriculum, provides students with meaningful relevant content. The center tests for English proficiency, enabling the school

to determine if instruction is having a positive impact on learning. Parents are notified of the test’s results. Parents who serve on the School Improvement Team actively analyze the data with teachers, and administrators. In addition, a summer

school to remediate weak academic areas is provided for a month. The teachers integrate writing, math, science, social studies, reading and traditional Navajo arts and

crafts. This plan will be ongoing to provide educational opportunities for the students at Whitehorse High School.

The second school is Bacchus Elementary located in Kearns, Utah. This school has

15 different primary languages spoken as well as a mobility rate of 39.5 percent,

which has increased 4 percent over the last few years. The committee used the

school’s dividends to hire an aide to help students with limited English proficiency

and reading difficulty. Their testing showed improvement in scores, especially

among those who are considered English Language Learners (ELL).

As parents, teachers, principals, and school boards become involved in deciding

how to make the greatest difference for their students with the school trust land

dividends, they also become aware how important it is that trust lands be managed

to produce revenue. School children should not go without basic education needs

such as textbooks, technology and professional development while the public enjoys

scenic wonders, restores the habitat of endangered species, hunts and recreates at

the children’s expense. Different interest groups of the state of Utah are beginning

to understand that there can be solutions to competing land management practices.

One solution that Utah and the United States Congress have found that works is

land exchanges. Utah PTA supports fair compensation to the schools of Utah when

the Federal Government captures the children’s land for preservation or public uses.

18

We thank Governor Leavitt, former Secretary Babbitt, Congressman Hansen and

Cannon, Senators Bennett and Hatch as well as all who sit on this Committee and

their staffs who made the Utah Schools and Land Exchange of 1998 and the Utah

West Desert Land Exchange of 2000 successful. These two prior exchanges have resulted in the protection of over a half million acres for national parks, monuments,

Native American reservations, national forests and wilderness. The exchanges will

increase revenues to the permanent trust fund that in turn will increase the annual

dividend to schools this year and for decades to come.

H.R. 4968 Federal–Utah State Trust Lands Consolidation Act of 2002 solves the

conflict in land management for over 100,000 acres of school trust lands in the state

of Utah. It will directly benefit the schoolchildren of Utah. It will directly benefit

the American public by preserving the beautiful San Rafael Swell and the species

that live within the Red Cliffs Conservation Area. We strongly encourage your support of the legislation.

Thank you for inviting me to testify here today.

[Attachments to Ms. Rupp’s statement follow:]

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Mr. CANNON. Thank you, Ms. Rupp. If you would give my best

to Margaret, I would appreciate that. She is a wonderful leader in

this area.

I would like to point out for the record that we are joined by our

colleague from New Jersey, Mr. Rush Holt. He has been very active

in the legislation we have been working on for the San Rafael

Swell. He had to leave to go to another engagement.

But thank you again, Ms. Rupp, for your testimony.

Ms. Plant, if you would like to speak for 5 minutes, we would appreciate hearing from you.

STATEMENT OF PAULA PLANT, SCHOOL TRUST LANDS

SPECIALIST, UTAH STATE OFFICE OF EDUCATION, SALT

LAKE CITY, UTAH

Ms. PLANT. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and Committee members

for the invitation to be here today. We appreciate the opportunity

of talking to you about this land exchange and are here to request

your support of the bill.

I am here representing the State Office of Education and you will

find attached to my written testimony also letters in support from

the Elementary and Secondary Principals Association, the Utah

Education Association, the Superintendents Association and the

School Boards Association.

Just as a reminder, at Statehood Utah and the Federal Government entered into a bilateral compact. In the Enabling Act, the

Federal Government granted four sections in each township specifically for the purpose of supporting public education.

In the Constitution Utah agreed to the terms of the compact including a provision that they would not tax the Federal lands within the State. The money that is generated from those lands by

State and Federal law, if the lands are to generate money, that

money goes into a permanent fund. The money is not spent, but is

invested. The interest and dividends are then distributed annually

to the School LAND Trust that Karen has just explained to you.

We have a funding problem in the State of Utah that Representative Hansen just explained to you. Our legislature commits a larger percentage of its resources to support education in the State of

Utah and at the same time, we never seem to be able to move out

of dead last in per pupil funding.

We look to school trust lands as a means to help deal with that

situation because two-thirds of the land in the State of Utah cannot

be taxed for education. The problem is these lands are sprinkled

across other Federal designations that are not managed to produce

revenue.

For the most part, the schools in the State of Utah have not been

compensated for those other land uses. Adding to this grim picture,

our legislature is in special session right now trying to deal with

deficits.

In the State of Utah, the children are going to feel cuts, additional cuts. We are going to lose teachers and programs in every

school in the State. It leads us to a situation where we can’t continue to tolerate uncompensated use of the school children’s land.

So, we are very pleased to be here and for the support that we

have had in the past on two previous land exchanges where people

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are coming together and saying, ‘‘How can we solve the management conflict in the State of Utah?’’

Those of you who have helped make those possible, we want to

say thank you because we know that these kinds of land exchanges

are not easy. We know that they take a great deal of time and resources, a lot of patience and tenacity. We appreciate those who

have been involved in this potential land exchange to this point in

time.

We thank our Congressional delegation, Mr. Cannon for carrying

the legislation, to Mr. Fulton who testified to you, the School Trust

LANDS Administration, to all those who have been involved. We

believe it will be important to the school children and want you to

know that education in Utah supports this kind of a land exchange

that can be positive for the environment, protecting lands that

probably ought to be protected, and recognizing that this will simplify the land management in the State, which seems to be the big

problem.

Trust lands and the Federal Government will be able to manage

their consolidated blocks for a single purpose. We think that’s important.

We also believe that it is important that we are able to stimulate

some economic situations in the counties where these lands will be

located. As those lands become productive, not only will the permanent funding increase from the revenues, but also property and income taxes will increase that also helps schools.

Now, we know that there are those who may be questioning the

values in the exchange. Based on what Mr. Boyden has explained

to you, we believe the land exchange is fair and would like you to

consider, if there are those who still have questions, that it is our

school children’s land that has been captivated in these Federal

designations.

They have not been producing revenue in the past for many,

many years. We have not only lost those revenues, but also the interest and dividends that would have compounded over time.

We thank you for the opportunity to be here today and request

your support of this piece of legislation.

Thank you very much.

[The prepared statement of Ms. Plant follows:]

Statement of Paula Plant, Utah State Office of Education

Mr. Chairman, and distinguished Committee members, thank you for the invitation to testify this afternoon in support of H.R. 4968 Federal—Utah State Trust

Lands Consolidation Act of 2002. I am here to strongly urge your support for the

land exchange that has been signed by Governor Leavitt, the Secretary of Interior

and Secretary of Agriculture.

At statehood, the state of Utah and the Federal Government entered into a bilateral compact that established a trust for the public schools of Utah. In the Utah

Enabling Act, the Federal Government granted four sections in each township to

support the common schools. In the Utah Constitution the state agreed to the terms

of the compact including a provision that the state would not tax the Federal lands

in the new state in return for the land grant to schools. School trust lands are an

important component in the present and future funding of education in the state.

Both Federal and state law require that the lands be managed to generate income

for the schools. Revenue from trust lands—whether from grazing, forestry, surface

leasing or mineral development—is placed in the State School Fund, a permanent

income-producing endowment for public schools. The fund is invested and the annual interest and dividends are distributed to each school through the School LAND

Trust Program.

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The state is heavily impacted by Federal ownership. Two thirds of the land in the

state cannot be taxed for education. In addition many of the school trust lands that

were granted to provide revenue for schools are sprinkled across various Federal

designations that are not managed to be revenue producing. Because the school

lands are inside land managed for purposes such as wilderness and habitat conservation, they have not been revenue producing and for the most part, schools have

not been compensated. The schools of Utah have consistently been funded at the

lowest per pupil expenditure in the nation while the state commits a greater percentage of the annual budget to education. Adding to the grim picture, current

budget deficits in Utah are requiring that schools reduce expenditures across the

state, programs and personnel are being eliminated. The schools of Utah cannot continue to tolerate uncompensated use of the school lands in the face of such desperately needed revenues.

The education community of Utah is pleased that steps have been enacted in recent years to correct the errors of the past and to actively seek resolution to the

conflict in land management missions. I wish to thank all who made two prior Utah

land exchanges a reality. Sincere thanks goes to Governor Leavitt, the School and

Institutional Trust Lands Administration, former Secretary Babbitt, Congressmen

Hansen and Cannon, Senators Bennett and Hatch as well as members of this

Committee and their staffs. We recognize exchanges of this magnitude require significant dedication of time and resources as well as tenacity and patience. We are

appreciative of those efforts. The Utah Schools and Land Exchange of 1998 and the

Utah Schools and Utah West Desert Land Exchange Act of 2000 have resolved some

large prior management conflicts. Utah schools are beginning to receive revenues

from acquired lands, the American public is able to enjoy beautiful scenic and recreational areas of Utah, and lands that have been identified for their significant environmental and scientific value have been preserved.

The proposed land exchange before you today will resolve another piece of the

land use conflict in the state. The education groups of Utah including the Utah

State Board of Education, the State Superintendent, Utah PTA, the Utah Education

Association, the Utah School Boards Association and the Utah School Superintendents’ Association strongly urge your support of H.R. 4968. The education organizations of Utah support exchanges for the school children that accomplish the purposes explained here.

1. The exchange is positive for the environment. Over 112,000 acres of trust lands

will be conveyed to the American public. These lands are in areas that have

been identified by the BLM and the environmental community as having significant natural, scenic, recreational, and scientific values. The San Rafael

Swell is one of America’s scenic treasures. In the absence of an exchange, trust

lands in this area will be used for mineral development or will be sold for purposes such as cabin sites. The Red Cliffs Desert Reserve in Washington County, in addition to its status as critical habitat for the desert tortoise and other

species, is an exceptional public recreation area in one of the most rapidly

growing urban areas in the county.

2. The exchange will greatly simplify land management. While the school trust

lands to be exchanged have both surface and mineral value, the lands cannot

be managed to produce significant income without major disruption of the wilderness or scenic characteristics of surrounding areas. In the past, management conflicts of this type between the State and the United States have led

to lengthy and expensive litigation. Elimination of scattered school trust sections throughout these areas will permit unified Federal management of the

lands. On the other side of the exchange, the school trust will also receive consolidated tracts that can be managed far more efficiently and productively than

the scattered lands being given up.

3. The exchange will benefit school revenues and local economies. The Federal

lands being acquired by Utah’s school trust have been carefully chosen for their

potential to permit economic development at the local level, as well as providing revenue to the permanent State School Fund while avoiding acquisitions

in areas of critical environmental concern. We support the opportunity for increased development with the associated increase of jobs, property taxes that

support local schools and income taxes that support education through the

state budget.

We understand that there are those who may question the values attributed to

various lands in the exchange. We believe the exchange is fair, and have watched

closely as tracts have been added and dropped from the proposal to address the concerns of various affected parties, with values then carefully brought back into balance. A nationally-recognized independent real estate consulting firm was engaged

by the parties to evaluate the methodologies used in valuing the lands and minerals

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involved in the exchange and the parties’ conclusions that the lands on both sides

of the exchange are of approximately equal value. The independent consultants have

concluded that the parties’ processes for determining value and their conclusions

that the exchange was on an equal value basis are reasonable and supportable.

For those who continue to question, we ask that they remember that the majority

of trust lands being proposed for trade have been captured within Federal Wilderness Study Areas for two decades. In the case of the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve

lands, highly valuable development lands in one of the most rapidly growing urban

areas in the nation have been effectively taken through Federal designation of critical habitat for the desert tortoise, depriving the school trust of millions in real estate development revenue. Utah has taken the high road, and chosen not to litigate

over these takings, nor has it chosen to sell the lands or take other action that

would significantly diminish the conservation values of the surrounding Federal

lands. The Federal Government’s creation of these designations has denied Utah’s

schoolchildren the use of lands granted by Congress for the express purpose of generating revenue for their education, not to mention the interest on lost revenues

that would have compounded on those revenues over time.

We request that the Subcommittee recognize H.R. 4968 as another important step

in resolving the conflict between conservation and education in the state of Utah,

and urge your support of the bill.

Thank you for the opportunity of testifying in the Committee today.

[Attachments to Ms. Plant’s statement follow:]

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Mr. CANNON. Thank you, Mrs. Plant. As Ms. Ruff pointed out, we

have among the highest tax rates in the country and the lowest per

capita per student expenditure. I don’t have the numbers officially

yet, but right now we do household taxation. If you would just

tackle households in Utah so you bring back kids that are off to

college that aren’t married yet, that don’t have their own families.

If you were to do a per-family taxation, we are about the seventh

highest, in Utah, per household taxed State.

But if you adjust by families, we may well be the highest per

family tax State in the country with the lowest expenditure. That

is, of course, because we have a huge number of kids.

I think that there is no question but that I have the youngest

population of any district in the country by a significant margin

and the only district that comes close to that is my colleague, Mr.

Simpson, from Southeast Idaho, or the eastern part of Idaho, which

has much the same demographics.

We ought to check, Mike, and see who has the youngest and the

most kids. I think we are probably ahead of you still, but I suspect

it is fairly close.

Mr. SIMPSON. You might have the youngest. Ours are the best

looking.

No, I’m just kidding. I was just doing a quick inventory of all the

beautiful women I know in Utah. It is pretty good.

Mr. CANNON. On the other hand, it’s wonderful in Idaho as well.

Do you have any questions?

Mr. SIMPSON. Not any questions. But I do want to say I appreciate what you are doing here. As Congressman Cannon mentioned,

we have much the same problem you do in Idaho. We have 64 percent Federal land. When you throw in the State lands on top of

that, we have close to 68 percent of the land which is non-revenue

producing, which consequently, 32 percent of the land is producing

the taxes which support public schools.

We face that same situation now and the same deficit situation

that you are in with the State legislature and the Governor looking

for funds to try to fund public schools. So, I both sympathize and

agree with we had to you are trying to do.

Consolidation of these lands, I think, is a good idea so that A,

you can manage them better and you can get more revenue out of

them. We done some of that particularly with BLM areas and we

are trying to do more of it with the Forest Service areas within the

State of Idaho.

But, to me it makes for actually better management of the lands

also, not just in revenue, but in better management. When there

were originally laid out, if you look at it, it was just kind of a

checkerboard pattern around there. We really didn’t think about

management and who was managing and all that kind of stuff. It

is amazing when you look at some of the maps how every pink section is the State of Idaho’s here and they are trying to manage

that.

So, I appreciate what you are trying to do here. I applaud you

for it. Hopefully we will get this through before too long.

Mr. CANNON. Thank you.

Let me just point out that I am enormously proud of the way we

in Utah have managed the State trust lands and have moved these

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issues forward and have provided some leadership in other States,

as well.

I am thrilled to have been involved in the two prior recent land

exchanges that we have done for school trust lands and hope that

this one will move expeditiously this year as well, which I think

it will.

I do have a couple of questions. Mr. Boyden, you talked about

avoiding areas of conflict, lands where they were either in wilderness study areas or other areas. Are there any lands that you are

taking in this trade which are environmental sensitive?

Mr. BOYDEN. I believe that we have some lands which may have

good elk and deer habitat that we have heard some people say need

to be protected. So, we have entered into a MOU with the Department of Wildlife Resources for the management of those lands so

that whatever kind of development we do will be done in such a

way as to ensure that that habitat not be compromised unduly.

Mr. CANNON. Thank you. Are there any other environmental sensitive things that come to mind?

Mr. BOYDEN. There has been some talk by the North Horn mind

who are getting some access routes. But we have gone down there

and looked at the plant species which some people have complained

about. At this point we have found nothing. We will do whatever

is necessary to avoid any damage to those species.

Mr. CANNON. How about the lands you are moving out of? Are

there environmentally sensitive areas there?

Mr. BOYDEN. Absolutely. We have the tortoise habitat, the Desert

Tortoise habitat. The original Red Cliffs Reserve is about 10,000

acres. Involved in this we have several thousand acres involved in

the land exchange and then we have the rest. The balance will be

bought out by the payments that we receive from the Walker Flat

area.

So all of this right now is managed under a reserve and will continue to be preserved into the future.

Mr. CANNON. All right, thank you. There has been some talk

about a monument in the center of San Rafael Swell. Of course

that is where the bulk of these lands are being exchanged. What

is the relationship of this land exchange to the monument proposal?

Mr. BOYDEN. The land exchange and the monument creation

have nothing to do with each other. But if a monument were to be

created, we would have to then deal with how do you manage trust

lands inside a national monument.

So, what this does is make it possible for us to exchange into

other areas where we are not involved in that kind of management

issue. We remove ourselves from that. I think this is a great advantage to the Federal Government in its planning effort.

Certainly, we don’t have any income potential when we are going

to protect lands which are in WSAs. A good portion of this San

Rafael Swell area is already in designated wilderness study areas.

We had a big land exchange when our former President named

a monument in southern Utah. Now the Governor talked about a

monument in this area and we have a fairly substantial land exchange. We will have to think about what the next step is to encourage a focus on an area so we can do more exchanges.

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Mr. CANNON. This is just in reverse. What happened is we were

caught unawares with the Grand Staircase and then it created all

kinds of issues for the management of the School Trust Funds.That

is why it precipitated a large exchange. In this one we were a little

more visionary. We knew that there would be and area that would

be a future conflict if we remained.

So, we tried to take ourselves out of the equation and not get in

anybody’s way, even when it comes to the development of either a

national conservatism area, a national monument or a national

park, whatever the result is, or the status quo, we are not going

to be a player in that and start having difficulties between the purpose of the School Institutional Trust Lands mission and that of

preservation of the Bureau of Land Management in those very sensitive areas.

I saw ‘‘Minority Report,’’ the new Tom Cruise movie, the other

day. Maybe we need an oracle to help us see what the next President is going to do so that we can be prepared.

Thank you, Mr. Boyden.

Ms. Rupp, could you speak for just a couple of minutes on how

important this bill is for education in the State of Utah and what

it will do for school kids?

Ms. RUPP. Well, if you go back to the 1980’s when we first start- ed becoming involved in this, there was $34 million in the permanent account, which again we got the dividends and interest off of,

which is very minimal.

Just in the length of time that these exchanges have taken place

and through the innovative things that have happened in Utah,

our permanent account now is currently at $351 million and hopefully the stock market will do better. But with those types of

things, we can’t continue to have children in the school system and

not provide books and supplies and things for them to be able to

learn with.

Utah is in such a unique position because of the amount of children we have, we really do have the work force there. We have to

have an educated work force. These lands will make a difference,

a huge difference, if we can be able to get them producing the way

that I know our forefathers intended them to be.So, it will make

a tremendous difference.

Mr. CANNON. You know, we lost, over the last year of this recession almost two million jobs to people who didn’t have college educations. We picked up about 400,000 jobs for people who had college educations. So education is the key to a decent future in America.

Ms. Plant, are there any educational organizations in the State

of Utah that are not supportive of this exchange that you know of?

Ms. PLANT. Not that I know of. I think there are letters attached

from everyone except for the State’s school board who simply do not

have time to have it on their agenda, but told me that I could tell

you that they have supported land exchanges in the past that do

the things that this one does and that they would be supportive of

this one as well.

Mr. CANNON. For the record, and from my experience, I think

you know all of the education groups in the State. So, that is probably a fair statement that everybody supports it; is that not?

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Ms. PLANT. I would say that they do, yes.

Mr. CANNON. Would you like to speak about the benefits of this

exchange in addition to what you have said already?

Ms. PLANT. Well, yes, maybe I can just share an experience of

my own. I sit on one of the School Land Trust Committees in one

of my children’s schools. The first year I did we had to spend a little bit of money coming and we met with the teachers.

I think this is a very unique and interesting thing that is happening, is that parents and teachers and administrators are sitting

down and saying, ‘‘What are the problems in these schools and how

can we address them?’’

We have very high Reading scores and learned that we were not

doing that well in Social Studies and Science. Well, this didn’t

quite add up for me because I’d always been told if you read well

you would do everything else well.

So, I looked at the teachers and said, ‘‘What’s going on?’’

They said, ‘‘Well, if we had geography maps in or rooms, the kids

might know where the countries were.’’

We found that there were only two classrooms in the school that

had accurate geography maps for that age group. So, we used a

portion of the money to purchase the maps.

Then we said, ‘‘Well, what’s the deal with the Science scores?’’

They said, ‘‘Well, we don’t have up-to-date classroom sets of

Science books and there is no place to conduct the kinds of experiments that interest children in Science.’’

So, there was a classroom that we cleaned out and we turned it

into a Science lab. The money now is going over the course of the

year to buy Science lab equipment and textbooks so that we can

teach Science in our school. I think that is very important.

In addition, I think it is important with this land exchange that

we begin to create conversations with communities that have different ideas about how the land ought to be used, so that instead

of constantly being in conflict, we can sometimes be partners and

say there are solutions.

I think that is very important. I think that the economic benefits

this is going to contribute to the counties that are going to receive

the lands over time will be very important to those communities.

Mr. CANNON. Thank you very much.

Are there any other comments you would like to make on the

subject, any of you?

Mr. BOYDEN. We would like to thank you very much for your

time, Mr. Chairman.

Mr. CANNON. Thank you. You helped us develop a very complete

record. We appreciate your comments and your input on this matter.

The Subcommittee stands adjourned.

[Whereupon, at 3:10 p.m., the Subcommittee was adjourned.]

[A statement submitted for the record by Larry Young, Executive

Director, The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, and Pam Eaton,

Four Corners Regional Representative, The Wilderness Society,

follows:]

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Statement of Larry Young, Executive Director, The Southern Utah

Wilderness Alliance and Pam Eaton, Four Corners Regional

Representative, The Wilderness Society

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee, the Southern Utah Wilderness

Alliance and The Wilderness Society appreciate the opportunity to submit our views

and concerns regarding H.R. 4968, legislation that proposes the exchange of lands

between the State of Utah on the one hand and the Bureau of Land Management

and Forest Service on the other. As proposed, this exchange would involve the transfer of approximately 108,000 acres of state lands to the Federal Government in exchange for approximately 133,000 acres of Federal lands.

The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance and its 14,000 members in Utah and

across the nation have been committed for the past 17 years to ensuring that future

generations of Americans will have the opportunity to use and enjoy, without diminishment, the spectacular array of landscapes bestowed upon the State of Utah. The

Wilderness Society, with nearly 190,000 members from across the country, has been

committed to protecting America’s wilderness and wildlife since 1935. We have been

deeply involved in discussions centered on designation of certain public lands in

Utah as part of the National Wilderness Preservation System and we are dedicated

to protecting the integrity of this superlative natural heritage and the biological

processes supporting it.

The initial impetus for this proposal was to resolve state land issues within the

San Rafael Swell—a spectacular region that we are dedicated to protecting. We

could support a proposal that focuses on exchanging state lands out of Swell provided that: (1) resource values are protected; and (2) the exchange is of equal value.

However, in its current form, H.R. 4968 fails both of our tests for an appropriate

exchange. Though initially focused on lands in the San Rafael Swell, the proposed

exchange includes lands far outside the Swell region near St. George, Utah, the

value of which is highly controversial. Our hope is that through a cooperative effort,

this legislation will evolve in a way that we and others who share our concerns can

ultimately support the bill. We believe that it is possible to find equivalent lands

in exchange for state lands in the San Rafael Swell without losing sensitive lands

in the Bookcliffs, Molen Reef, and other special areas that should remain in Federal

public ownership

Toward that end, we believe that a number of issues must first be addressed and

resolved as the bill receives further consideration:

Environmental Concerns Have Not Been Adequately Addressed Through The Process

In late May 2002, SITLA invited us to meet with them to discuss the proposed

exchange, and on May 28 we provided SITLA with a letter raising our initial concerns. On June 17, 2002 SITLA responded by letter addressing some of these concerns, but leaving many issues unresolved. Unfortunately, the bill was introduced

just two days later on June 19, and we did not have the opportunity to resolve these

remaining issues. We believe, however, that together we can find a solution that will

protect the most sensitive environmental resources while moving the legislation

closer to an exchange of equal value.

BLM Should Retain Ownership of Ecologically Sensitive Lands

The exchange proposal in its current form includes certain lands with important

wildlife and other values that we believe would be undermined or harmed if transferred to SITLA. Under BLM management, public lands are now subject to the protections offered by Federal laws like the National Environmental Policy Act, the

Clean Water Act, the Federal Land Policy and Management Act, and others. None

of these laws would apply to public lands transferred to SITLA, whose primary interest in the lands is economic development.

In the short time between this bill’s introduction and the hearing before this Subcommittee, we have struggled to find opportunities to reduce the environmental conflicts inherent in the proposed exchange. After extensive review and discussion, we

have narrowed our concerns to the most environmentally sensitive parcels within

the Molen Reef and Bookcliff areas. These lands, described below and totaling approximately 33,500 acres, should be removed from the exchange:

A. In the Molen Reef area of the San Rafael Swell, approximately 800 acres of

BLM lands, that have been proposed for Wilderness designation and are included within America’s Redrock Wilderness Act H.R. 1613, are proposed to

be traded to SITLA. These should be removed from the exchange. These parcels encompass portions of Muddy Creek, and include important winter habitat

for hundreds of elk. SITLA acquisition of these and adjacent parcels would preclude Wilderness designation, and could result in a negative impact to this important elk habitat. It is our understanding that the lands would be utilized

34

as an elk ranch and private hunting area, which in turn could lead to the

transfer of Chronic Wasting Disease from domestic to wild elk, and the loss

of a public wildlife resource.

The area is also potential critical habitat for the Federally and State endangered blackfooted ferret, the State threatened yellow-billed cuckoo, as well as

the sage grouse, western red bat, ring-tailed cat and birds of prey such as the

bald eagle. According to the Utah Natural Heritage data, these lands also comprise valuable habitat for a number of sensitive and rare plant species. Lastly,

these parcels are within approximately 2,500 feet of the Rochester petroglyph

panel, an important public cultural resource. Transfer of these BLM lands

could affect management and protection of this well-known rock art.

B. The proposal in the Bookcliffs area contains two areas known as Monument

Ridge and Wolf Point, both of which contain some of the most biologically rich

and important wildlife habitat in Utah. Of the proposal’s approximately 92,000

total acres in the Bookcliffs, we are concerned mainly with about 32,700 acres

within these two particularly important areas.

Both Monument Ridge and Wolf Point overlap extremely sensitive lands, and

miles of riparian corridors that are important to nesting raptors, native fish

and other wildlife. In addition to their primitive character, these areas are

critical mule deer fawning and elk calving habitat, and crucial mule deer and

elk summer and winter range. Monument Ridge is an important wildlife migration corridor, as well as a location for sage grouse leks and nesting habitat.

The area also contains habitat for the Federally and State threatened Mexican

spotted owl, and the northern goshawk. Monument Ridge also happens to be

the home of the oldest bear identified in recent Bringham Young University

studies of the area—Hillary, a 24-year-old female.

The above parcels should be removed from the proposed exchange, and are identified on maps attached as an exhibit hereto. While removing these parcels from the

legislation does not resolve all of our environmental and valuation concerns, it represents our bottom-line toward protecting the outstanding environmental resources

of these areas and moves the bill closer toward an equal-value exchange.

The Exchange Proposal Should Safeguard Utah’s Unique and Valuable

Archeological and Cultural Sites; Tribes Should be Involved

In addition to removing the above parcels, the legislation should ensure that archeological resources are protected. Under normal circumstances, actions impacting

Federal lands require the Federal agencies to consult with Native American tribes,

and to inventory cultural, archeological and historic sites to minimize harmful impacts. See e.g. National Historic Preservation Act, 16 U.S.C. Sec. 470e [Section 106]

(before approving projects of approving funding, Federal agencies shall ‘‘take into account the effect of the undertaking on any district, site, building, structure or object

that is included in or eligible for inclusion in the National Register’’).

The regulations further confirm that the ‘‘[t]ransfer, lease or sale of property out

of Federal ownership and control without adequate and legally enforceable restrictions or conditions to ensure long-term preservation of the property’s historic significance’’ results in an ‘‘adverse effect’’ on historic properties.’’ NHPA regulations, 36

C.F.R. section 800.5(a)(2)(vii).

As far as we can determine, the NHPA’s provisions have not been observed in connection with this exchange. As you know, Utah is blessed with a wealth of such archeological and culturally-important sites, which should not be given away without

consultation and some measure of protection.

The Lands Exchanged Should Be of Equal Value

The state and Federal lands subject to the exchange must be carefully evaluated

to ensure fairness to both Federal and state taxpayers, i.e., that the lands are of

equal value. As it stands, serious questions remain regarding the comparable value

of the properties subject to the proposed exchange, and the net gain of nearly 30,000

acres to the State of Utah. We encourage you to examine carefully this aspect of

the legislation, including an investigation into the statements and conclusions presented in A White Paper in Support of the 2002 Federal–Utah State Trust Lands

Consolidation Agreement. Testimony submitted by The Western Land Exchange

Project, a public interest organization with expertise in this area, also raises significant questions regarding the fairness of this exchange.

Finally, we reiterate that the primary motivating factor for this proposal is the

desire to trade state lands out of the scenic San Rafael Swell. A trade involving

state lands outside of the San Rafael is extraneous to this objective. Restricting the

exchange to state lands in the San Rafael would help limit the proposal in the

Bookcliffs and other areas to less environmentally-sensitive lands.

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Conclusion

The lands with important wilderness and wildlife values described above should

be removed from the exchange. Removal of the areas would promote the protection

of important public, cultural, archeological and wildlife values for present and future generations, and would move the legislation closer to an exchange of equal

value. The importance of these areas weighs strongly in favor of their retention,

management and protection by the Federal Government for the benefit of all Americans.

Thank you for the opportunity to provide our perspective on this important issue.

We would be pleased to provide you with further information as the legislative process proceeds, and look forward to working with the Committee to improve this legislation so that it may receive broad support.

[Maps attached to Mr. Young’s statement follow:]

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