" ! SENATE 110TH CONGRESS

2d Session 

REPORT

110–279 

Calendar No. 631 

ESTABLISH A PILOT PROGRAM FOR THE 

EXPEDITED DISPOSAL OF FEDERAL REAL 

PROPERTY 

R E P O R T 

OF THE

COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND 

GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS 

UNITED STATES SENATE 

TO ACCOMPANY

S. 1667 

TO ESTABLISH A PILOT PROGRAM FOR THE EXPEDITED DISPOSAL 

OF FEDERAL REAL PROPERTY 

APRIL 7, 2008.—Ordered to be printed 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with REPORTSE:\Seals\Congress.#13
(II) 

COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS 

JOSEPH I. LIEBERMAN, Connecticut, Chairman 

CARL LEVIN, Michigan 

DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii 

THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware 

MARK L. PRYOR, Arkansas 

MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana 

BARACK OBAMA, Illinois 

CLAIRE MCCASKILL, Missouri 

JON TESTER, Montana 

SUSAN M. COLLINS, Maine 

TED STEVENS, Alaska 

GEORGE V. VOINOVICH, Ohio 

NORM COLEMAN, Minnesota 

TOM COBURN, Oklahoma 

PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico 

JOHN WARNER, Virginia 

JOHN E. SUNUNU, New Hampshire 

MICHAEL L. ALEXANDER, Staff Director 

KEVIN J. LANDY, Chief Counsel 

TROY H. CRIBB, Counsel 

JOHN P. KILVINGTON, Staff Director, Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, 

Government Information, Federal Services, and International Security 

BRANDON L. MILHORN, Minority Staff Director and Chief Counsel 

AMANDA WOOD, Minority Director of Governmental Affairs 

CHRISTOPHER J. BARKLEY, Minority Professional Staff Member, Subcommittee on Federal 

Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and International Security 

TRINA DRIESSNACK TYRER, Chief Clerk 


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069010 

Calendar No. 631 

110TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 2d Session 110–279 

ESTABLISH A PILOT PROGRAM FOR THE EXPEDITED 

DISPOSAL OF FEDERAL REAL PROPERTY 

APRIL 7, 2008.—Ordered to be printed 

Mr. LIEBERMAN, from the Committee on Homeland Security and 

Governmental Affairs, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 1667] 

The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, 

to which was referred the bill (S. 1667) to establish a pilot program 

for the expedited disposal of Federal real property, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon with an amendment and 

recommends that the bill do pass. 

CONTENTS 

Page 

I. Purpose and Summary .................................................................................. 1 

II. Background and Need for the Legislation ................................................... 2 

III. Legislative History ......................................................................................... 4 

IV. Section-by-Section Analysis .......................................................................... 5 

V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact .................................................................. 8 

VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate ................................................ 9 

VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported ........................... 11 

I. PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

The purpose of S. 1667 is to provide the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) with temporary authority to sell or demolish 

property that the Federal government owns but no longer needs, 

and to do so under more flexible rules than currently exist. The bill 

would both expedite the disposal process and create a financial incentive for agencies to sell the property they no longer need. 

As reported, the bill would also allow representatives of the 

homeless to apply for properties that might be useful to assist the 

homeless. Currently, under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, unneeded Federal property is made available for use to 


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1Government Accountability Office, High Risk Series: An Update, GAO–07–310, January 

2007, p. 4. Can be found at http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d07310.pdf. 2Testimony given to the Senate Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services and International Security. Goldstein, Mark, Government 

Accountability Office, Federal Real Property: An Update on High Risk Issues, GAO–07–895T, 

May 24, 2007, p. 10. Can be found at http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d07895t.pdf. 

assist the homeless. This bill would incorporate features from that 

process to ensure similar treatment of the properties for purposes 

of the pilot program. 

II. BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR THE LEGISLATION

Property management is one of the most pressing management 

problems facing the federal government today, according to the 

Government Accountability Office (GAO). In 2003, GAO put ‘‘Managing Federal Real Property’’ on its biennial High Risk List to 

draw attention to its serious concerns surrounding this activity. According to GAO, the High Risk designation targets those programs 

that expose taxpayers to at least $1 billion in waste, and its purpose is ‘‘to identify and help resolve serious weaknesses in areas 

that involve substantial resources and provide critical services to 

the public.’’ 1 The Committee believes urgent action is needed to resolve the problems related to real property management before 

they grow larger and put more tax dollars and agency missions at 

risk. 

The Committee’s primary concern is that federal agencies are 

holding more property in their portfolios than they need. Rather 

than disposing of properties once they are no longer useful, agencies often opt to hold onto them at the same time that they are 

adding new properties to their inventory. For example, according to 

GAO, the Department of Energy, the Department of Homeland Security and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration—

which are three of the largest real property-holding agencies—have 

reported that approximately 10 percent or more of the facilities in 

their inventories are excess or underutilized.2 At the Department 

of Energy alone, the amount of unneeded square footage is approximately 20 million square feet. That is more square footage than 

would be contained within three buildings the size of the Pentagon, 

which is the largest office building in the world. 

Every unneeded square foot of building space held by the federal 

government requires annual funding for operations and maintenance. This includes the costs of cleaning, heating, lighting, and 

landscaping a building, as well as any costs related to a mortgage 

or lease for the space, which also includes costs associated with security. Additionally, holding unneeded property carries a hidden 

opportunity cost due to both the lost revenues that would be gained 

from selling the property and the avoidance of future maintenance 

costs. Over a long period of time, and with a large number of 

unneeded properties in the government’s portfolio, the costs could 

likely add up to hundreds of millions, if not billions, of dollars 

wasted. In addition, when an agency holds on to a property it no 

longer needs, that property cannot be used for other activities that 

can create jobs, spur innovations and increase local and national 

prosperity. 

In testimony before the Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services and InterVerDate Aug 31 2005 05:28 Apr 09, 2008 Jkt 069010 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR279.XXX SR279

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3 Id. 

4The Federal Real Property Council, an inter-agency council chaired by the Office of Management and Budget, was established by Executive Order 13327 on February 4, 2004 to develop 

guidance, serve as a clearinghouse for best practices, and facilitate the efforts of agency Senior 

Real Property Officers. 5Federal Real Property Council, FY 2006 Federal Real Property Report: An Overview of the 

U.S. Federal Government’s Real Property Assets, July 2007, p. 4. Can be found at http:// 

www.gsa.gov/gsa/cmlattachments/GSAlDOCUMENT/FRPP112007lR2-tI3-vl0Z5RDZi34K-pR.pdf. 6 Report of the Office of Management and Budget, Response to Section 408 of Public Law 109– 396, July 15, 2007, p. 2. Can be found at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/financial/fia/responselsection408.pdf. 7Testimony given to the Senate Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services and International Security. Winstead, David, General Services Administration, May 24, 2007, p. 4. Can be found at http://hsgac.senate.gov/public/lfiles/ 

FinalWinsteadStatement52407hearing0.pdf. 

national Relations, Mark Goldstein of GAO underscored the need 

for reform, stating, ‘‘The magnitude of the problem with underutilized or excess federal real property continues to put the government at risk for lost dollars and missed opportunities.’’ 3

To understand the magnitude of the problem it is important to 

note the large number of unneeded properties that the federal government is currently holding. The Federal Real Property Council 4

reports that the federal government owned or operated more than 

505,000 buildings worldwide in 2006, worth an estimated total of 

$809 billion.5 Of those, more than 21,000 buildings are reportedly no longer needed, all worth a total of $18 billion, according to the 

Office of Management and Budget (OMB).6 Under the Federal 

Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949, 40 U.S.C. et 

seq., agencies report excess real property to the General Services 

Administration (GSA), which makes it available to other federal 

agencies. If no federal agency expresses interest, it is deemed surplus federal property. The Act also authorizes a number of public 

benefit conveyances of excess and surplus properties. However, conveyances under these procedures do not occur as often as they 

should. Since 2004, the government’s building portfolio has grown 

by several thousand each year despite the tens of thousands of 

available excess properties. This, combined with the fact that more 

than four percent of the entire federal building inventory is 

unneeded, strongly indicates that there is a significant problem 

with the process for disposing of property. 

According to David Winstead, the Commissioner of the Public 

Building Service at the GSA, 30 percent of all federal assets are 

considered underperforming or non-performing, and 7 percent of all 

rentable square footage is vacant.7 In the short-run, annual maintenance is cheaper for agencies than conducting a lengthy and 

drawn-out disposal, and so the easy—and costly—decision is made 

to keep unneeded property. 

The Committee is concerned that the current process in place for 

disposing of unneeded federal buildings is inefficient and cumbersome, and likely largely at fault for the disposal backlog of 

21,000 properties. Federal rules and regulations have created enormous obstacles for agencies that try to dispose of property they no 

longer need. First, the disposal process itself is long, complicated 

and expensive, filled with numerous procedures that each agency 

must follow. 

The disposal process, governed by subchapters III and IV of 

chapter 5, title 40 of the U.S. Code, and under part 102 of title 41 

of the Code of Federal Regulations, requires agencies to go through 


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8See, e.g., Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2005, Public Law 108–447, 118 Stat. 2809, 3259 

(Dec. 8, 2004) (authority for GSA); Public Law 109–54, Title V, 199 Stat. 559–563 (August 2, 

2005) (authority for the Department of Agriculture); and 38 U.S.C. 8162–8163 (authority for the 

Department of Veterans Affairs). 9Winstead testimony, supra note 7. 

over a dozen separate processes to determine possible uses of real 

property before disposal may proceed. While undoubtedly well-intentioned, these requirements have created a patchwork of cumbersome and confusing rules. Their net effect has been to discourage agencies from initiating disposal, thereby depriving non-federal 

entities of the opportunity to make more productive use of the 

properties. 

This leads to the second major obstacle in the disposal process, 

which is that many agencies do not have a financial incentive to 

dispose of their buildings. Current law requires that when an agency sells a building, all funds received revert to the Treasury even 

though it can be a significant expense to get a building ready for 

disposal. This means that the agency which undertook the process, 

and used significant budgetary and personnel resources to do it, 

does not get to share in the reward of its work, namely a portion 

of the proceeds from the sale. 

With so little incentive to spend the money and energy needed 

to dispose of the property, these obstacles have served to encourage 

agencies to pay for continued maintenance of an unneeded property 

rather than go to the trouble and cost of getting rid of it, to the 

detriment of taxpayers who fund the maintenance through their 

tax dollars. 

Certain agencies have specific statutory authority to retain proceeds from the sale of their properties.8 Retention of proceeds has 

proven to be an effective tool for federal agencies to dispose of their 

unneeded properties. As David Winstead from GSA testified before 

the Committee, ‘‘Retention of proceeds from sale is a good incentive 

for agencies to dispose of unneeded assets and provides a much 

needed source of reinvestment funds.’’ 9 For that reason, the Committee believes it is appropriate under the pilot program to allow 

agencies to recoup the cost of selling buildings, plus an additional 

20%, as an incentive for disposing of the properties. 

III. LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

S. 1667 was introduced by Senator Carper and Senator Coburn 

on June 20, 2007 and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Prior to the bill’s introduction, 

the Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government 

Information, Federal Services and International Security held a 

hearing on May 24, 2007, to consider problems with real property 

management identified by GAO. Witnesses at the hearing were: the 

Honorable Clay Johnson III, Deputy Director for Management, Office of Management and Budget; Mark Goldstein, Director, Physical 

Infrastructure Issues, GAO; Boyd Rutherford, Assistant Secretary 

for Administration, United States Department of Agriculture; 

David Winstead, Commissioner of Public Building Service, GSA; 

Philip Grone, Deputy Undersecretary of Defense, Installations and 

Environment, United States Department of Defense; and Robert 

Henke, Assistant Secretary for Management, United States Department of Veterans Affairs. 


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10Part A of title XXIX of Public Law 101–510; 10 U.S.C. 2687 note. 

S. 1667 was reported favorably by the Committee by voice vote 

on November 14, 2007, as amended by the Lieberman-Collins-Carper-Coburn substitute. The substitute amendment: defines terms 

for purposes of the pilot program; creates procedures under which 

representatives of the homeless may apply for use of property; 

places a limitation on the total number of properties that may be 

disposed of by cash sale under the pilot program; requires GAO to 

review the effectiveness of the pilot program; and makes technical 

changes. Members present for the vote on the bill as amended were 

Senators Lieberman, Carper, McCaskill, Tester, Collins, Stevens, 

Voinovich, Coleman, and Coburn. 

IV. SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1 

The bill amends chapter 5, subtitle I of title 40, United States 

Code, to add a new ‘‘Subchapter VII—Expedited Disposal of Real 

Property’’. This new subchapter would contain new sections 621 

through 630 in title 40, as follows: 

Section 621. Definitions 

Section 621 defines the following terms for purposes of the pilot 

program: Director, Expedited Disposal of a Real Property, Landholding Agency, Real Property, and Representative of the Homeless. 

Real property is defined as property that an agency determines 

to be excess, surplus, underperforming, or otherwise not meeting 

the needs of the federal government. The Committee limited the 

definition of real property only to buildings and not to land assets. 

Additionally, property that is to be closed or realigned under the 

Base Realignment and Closure Act (BRAC) 10 is not eligible for disposal under the pilot program. 

Section 622. Pilot program 

Section 622 requires the Director of the Office of Management 

and Budget to establish the Federal Real Property Disposal Pilot 

Project and limits its duration to five years after enactment. The 

pilot project establishes a different process for disposing of 

unneeded property, and provides Congress an opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness of the process for possible permanent reforms. 

Section 623. Selection of real properties 

Section 623 allows agencies to nominate candidate properties for 

the pilot project, from which OMB is allowed to select properties 

for participation. 

This section also requires OMB to establish a public website to 

post information about all of the properties selected for the pilot 

project. Under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act 

(McKinney-Vento), 42 U.S.C. 11411 et seq., there is currently no requirement that information related to properties available for use 

to assist the homeless be posted on a dedicated website. The Committee added this requirement to ensure that any representative of 

the homeless, or member of the general public, will have easy acVerDate Aug 31 2005 05:28 Apr 09, 2008 Jkt 069010 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR279.XXX SR279

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11 According to OMB officials, only 5 of 84 properties conveyed to organizations representing 

the homeless under McKinney-Vento have been larger than 100,000 square feet. 

cess to information about those properties. In this respect, the pilot 

program will be more transparent than the existing McKinneyVento rules. The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development 

(HUD) also is required to conduct outreach to representatives of 

the homeless to inform them about the existence of the pilot 

project. The Committee believes that e-mail notifications to interested non-profit organizations would be one means of conducting effective outreach. 

The Secretary of HUD is required to make available any information (other than valuation information) that is requested regarding each of the properties in the pilot program. This provision mirrors the requirement for information disclosure that is currently in 

McKinney-Vento. 

Section 624. Suitability determination 

This section requires the Secretary of HUD to make a determination for each property as to whether it is suitable for use to assist 

the homeless or not. The determination will be made using the existing criteria found within McKinney-Vento as well as two additional criteria: (1) For property located in the middle of a federal 

installation, whether such property can easily be transported to an 

off-site location; and (2) for property where the predominant use is 

other than housing, whether the size of the property is equal to or 

greater than 100,000 square feet. 

Regarding the first additional criterion, the Committee believes 

that property in the middle of an existing federal installation, such 

as a military base, is not accessible to members of the homeless 

community and therefore not appropriate for assistance to the 

homeless. Such properties are not accessible to the general public 

because of their sensitive nature. However, some properties, such 

as trailers, may be easily transported to an off-site location. Regarding the second criterion, the Committee believes that since few 

properties of this size are applied for under McKinney-Vento procedures, and even fewer are conveyed to representatives of the homeless, it would be appropriate to generally exclude such properties 

from the pilot program.11 (Section 625, though, does provide a process under which representatives of the homeless can appeal to have 

such large properties deemed fit for use by the homeless.) 

As soon as the determination is made by HUD, pertinent information will be posted on the website created under Section 623. 

The Committee expects that the website will be in an easily located 

place to facilitate its use by representatives of the homeless. The 

website will contain, at a minimum, the following information for 

each property: The address of the property, the result of the suitability determination, and the date which the property was listed 

on the website. The Committee expects HUD to provide adequate 

justification of the determination so that representatives of the 

homeless may make an informed decision whether to appeal the 

determination. 


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Section 625. Unsuitable real property 

Under section 625, if a property is determined by HUD to be unsuitable for use by the homeless, such property will be put on hold 

for 20 days, during which no disposal activity can take place regarding that particular property. 

During that 20-day period, any representative of the homeless is 

allowed to appeal the suitability determination made by HUD. If 

the property has been determined unsuitable because it is larger 

than 100,000 square feet, and the representative can provide clear 

and convincing evidence that the property is in fact usable by the 

homeless, then HUD is required to reverse its determination. HUD 

has 20 days to make a final determination, at which point no further appeal is available. 

If no appeal is made after HUD’s initial determination, then any 

unsuitable property proceeds immediately to disposal under expedited procedures. 

Section 626. Suitable real property 

Under section 626, all property determined by HUD to be suitable for use by the homeless is put on hold for 90 days, during 

which time no disposal activity can be taken regarding the property. 

During that 90-day period, any representative of the homeless 

can apply to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) 

to receive the property, at no cost, for use to assist the homeless. 

If HHS believes that the application will likely be accepted, but has 

otherwise run out of time in the 90-day period (for example, because of a request to the applicant for additional information), it 

may extend the deadline at its discretion. This extension authority 

is not intended to operate as an automatic extension for all applications, but should be used by HHS in circumstances where an extension is reasonably justifiable. The Committee recommends that 

HHS keep documentation regarding its procedures for granting extensions as well as for each instance in which an extension is 

granted. 

HHS has 20 days to make a decision on whether to accept or 

deny any applications submitted. If no applications are submitted 

in the 90-day period, the property proceeds immediately to disposal 

under expedited procedures. 

Section 627. Expedited procedures 

All properties sold under section 627 must be sold for no less 

than fair market value. This provision is intended to ensure that 

open market sales are the means by which properties are sold in 

order to maximize the financial return to the federal government. 

A property may be sold under the pilot program only if the property will generate monetary proceeds to the federal government. A 

disposal of property under the pilot program may not include any 

exchange, trade, transfer, acquisition of like-kind property, or other 

non-cash transaction as part of the disposal. 

Expedited procedures waive the following existing provisions: 

subchapter IV of chapter 5 of subtitle I of title 40, U.S.C. (regarding proceeds from sale or transfer); sections 550 and 553 of title 40 

(regarding disposal of property for certain purposes); section 501 of 

the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11411); 


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any other provision of law authorizing the no-cost conveyance of 

real property owned by the federal government; and certain congressional notification requirements. 

The expedited procedures under section 627 do not waive requirements of the National Historic Preservation Act, 16 U.S.C. 

470 et seq. 

Section 628. Special rules and use of proceeds from disposal of real 

property 

Section 628 allows federal agencies that sell property under this 

pilot project to keep 20% of the proceeds generated from the sale, 

in addition to the administrative costs of selling the property. The 

remaining 80% reverts to the Treasury. 

The funds retained by agencies under the pilot remain available 

until expended, until the termination of the pilot program, for activities related to federal real property capital improvements and 

disposal activities. Upon termination of the pilot program, any unobligated amounts shall be transferred to the Treasury. 

Under current rules, agencies are required to pay all of the administrative costs associated with disposal, but receive none of the 

benefits because all proceeds go to the Treasury. This section provides an incentive to get unneeded properties off the rolls, by allowing agencies to retain a share of the portion of the proceeds from 

the sale. 

Section 629. Limitation on number of permissible cash sales 

Section 629 restricts the number of cash sales under the pilot to 

750. The number of demolitions is not be restricted by any cap. 

Section 630. Government Accountability Office study 

Section 630 requires GAO to conduct oversight of the administration of the pilot project and report to Congress within 3 years of 

the date of enactment. The Committee expects GAO to consult with 

the appropriate congressional committees and bill sponsors prior to 

setting the terms of the investigation and beginning the work. 

V. EVALUATION OF REGULATORY IMPACT

Pursuant to the requirements of paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of 

the Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee has considered 

the regulatory impact of this bill. The Congressional Budget Office 

states that the bill contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 

mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 

would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments, or private entities. The enactment of this legislation will not have significant regulatory impact. 


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VI. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE COST ESTIMATE

JANUARY 30, 2008. 

Hon. JOSEPH I. LIEBERMAN, 

Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 

Affairs, 

U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 1667, a bill to establish a 

pilot program for the expedited disposal of federal real property. 

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

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Matthew Pickford. 

Sincerely, 

PETER R. ORSZAG. 

Enclosure. 

S. 1667—A bill to establish a pilot program for the expedited disposal of federal real property 

Summary: S. 1667 would establish a pilot program to expedite 

the disposal of surplus or underutilized federal property for cash. 

The legislation also would create a process for representatives of 

the homeless, including public and private entities, to participate 

in the program. Finally, S. 1667 would require an evaluation of 

this program by the Government Accountability Office (GAO). 

CBO estimates that enacting the bill would increase direct spending by $20 million over the 2009–2018 period. Added admin- istrative and reporting costs would come to another $15 million 

over that period, assuming appropriation of the necessary funds. S. 

1667 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as 

defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA). 

Estimated cost to the Federal Government: The estimated budgetary impact of S. 1667 is shown in the following table. The costs 

of this legislation fall within budget function 800 (general government). 

By fiscal year, in millions of dollars— 

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2009– 

2013 

2009– 

2018 

CHANGES IN DIRECT SPENDING 

Estimated Budget Authority 4 4 4 4 4 0 0 0 0 0 20 20 

Estimated Outlays ............... 4 4 4 4 4 0 0 0 0 0 20 20 

CHANGES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION 

Estimated Authorization 

Levels .............................. 3 3 3 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 15 15 

Estimated Outlays ............... 3 3 3 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 15 15 

Basis of estimate: For this estimate, CBO assumes that the bill 

will be enacted before the end of 2008. 

Direct spending 

S. 1667 would amend the Federal Property and Administrative 

Services Act, which governs the disposition of most federal real 

property. That act and other statutes that govern real estate transactions of specific agencies and programs generally require agencies to allocate excess property to other public purposes before ofVerDate Aug 31 2005 05:28 Apr 09, 2008 Jkt 069010 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR279.XXX SR279

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fering it for sale. About 30 federal agencies with landholdings control approximately 1.2 billion real property assets worldwide with 

a value of about $375 billion. The net proceeds from such sales are 

deposited in the Treasury as offsetting receipts and are not available to be spent. In addition, some of the largest landholding agencies have received special authorities to accept payments for leasing federal property. Such payments can be either in the form of 

cash or in-kind considerations such as construction, maintenance, 

restoration, and repair services. 

In most years, only a small portion of excess federal property is 

sold. Some excess properties are transferred to public agencies and 

institutions through public benefit conveyances. S. 1667 would establish a five-year pilot program to expedite the disposal of excess, 

surplus, or underutilized federal property. The Director of the Office of Management and Budget, in consultation with agencies, 

would be required to select federal properties for disposal under the 

program. The program would terminate five years after enactment 

and would be limited to no more than 750 properties. Those selected properties would then be subject to an expedited review 

process by the Department of Housing and Urban Development 

(HUD) to determine if they are suitable to be converted into housing for the homeless. The remaining properties could be sold, and 

the net proceeds from such sales would then be divided: 80 percent 

would be deposited in the Treasury as miscellaneous receipts, while 

20 percent would be retained and spent by the affected agency. 

Under current law, CBO estimates that governmentwide receipts 

from the sale of surplus property will total about $20 million per 

year. Under the proposed legislation, an agency could retain and 

spend 20 percent of the proceeds from the sale of its excess, surplus, or underutilized property. CBO expects that enacting S. 1667 

would not significantly increase the number of properties sold 

above the number anticipated under current law because most federal agencies that manage significant numbers of properties would 

likely opt to continue using their flexible leasing authorities rather 

than disposition authority to manage underutilized property. Thus, 

we estimate that the use of proceeds under the bill from the future 

sale of surplus property would increase direct spending by $20 million over the five-year period of the pilot program. 

Spending subject to appropriation 

Implementing S. 1667 would increase the workload of GSA and 

HUD to expedite the process of evaluating and disposing of properties for use as housing for homeless persons. In addition, the legislation would require GAO to report within three years on the 

pilot program, including recommendations for reforms to federal 

property laws. Based on information from some landholding agencies and the cost of similar activities and reports, CBO estimates 

that such activities would cost about $3 million annually. 

Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: S. 1667 contains no 

intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in UMRA 

and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments, 

or private entities. The bill would allow representatives of the 

homeless, including public and private entities, to acquire federal 

property using an expedited process. Any costs that those entities 


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incur would result from complying with conditions of federal assistance. 

Estimate prepared by: Federal Costs: Matthew Pickford; Impact 

on State, Local, and Tribal Governments: Elizabeth Cove; Impact 

on the Private Sector: MarDestinee Perez. 

Estimate approved by: Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant Director 

for Budget Analysis. 

VII. CHANGES TO EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by S. 1667 as 

reported are shown as follows (existing law proposed to be omitted 

is enclosed in brackets, new matter is printed in italic, and existing 

law in which no change is proposed is shown in roman): 

UNITED STATES CODE 

TITLE 40—PUBLIC BUILDINGS, 

PROPERTY, AND WORKS 

* * * * * * * 

CHAPTER 5—PROPERTY MANAGEMENT 

* * * * * * * 

Subchapter VII—Expedited Disposal of Real Property 

621. Definitions 

In this subchapter: 

(1) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director of the 

Office of Management and Budget. 

(2) EXPEDITED DISPOSAL OF A REAL PROPERTY.—The term ‘‘expedited disposal of a real property’’ means a demolition of real 

property or a sale of real property for cash that is conducted 

under the requirements of section 545. 

(3) LANDHOLDING AGENCY.—The term ‘‘landholding agency’’

means a landholding agency as defined under section 501(i)(3) 

of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 

11411(i)(3)). 

(4) REAL PROPERTY.—

(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘real property’’ means—

(i) a parcel of real property under the administrative 

jurisdiction of the Federal Government that is—

(I) excess; 

(II) surplus; 

(III) underperforming; or 

(IV) otherwise not meeting the needs of the Federal Government, as determined by the Director; 

and 

(ii) a building or other structure located on real 

property described under clause (i). 

(B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘real property’’ excludes any 

parcel of real property or building or other structure loVerDate Aug 31 2005 05:28 Apr 09, 2008 Jkt 069010 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6603 E:\HR\OC\SR279.XXX SR279

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12 

cated on such real property that is to be closed or realigned 

under the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 

1990 (part A of title XXIX of Public Law 101–510; 10 

U.S.C. 2687 note). 

(5) REPRESENTATIVE OF THE HOMELESS.—The term ‘‘representative of the homeless’’ means a representative of the homeless as defined under section 501(i)(4) of the McKinney-Vento 

Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11411(i)(4)). 

622. Pilot program 

(a) The Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall 

conduct a pilot program, to be known as the ‘‘Federal Real Property 

Disposal Pilot Program’’, under which real property that is not 

meeting Federal Government needs may be disposed of in accordance with this subchapter. 

(b) The Federal Real Property Disposal Pilot Program shall terminate 5 years after the date of the enactment of this subchapter. 

623. Selection of real properties 

(a) Agencies shall recommend candidate disposition real properties to the Director for participation in the pilot program established under section 622. 

(b) The Director, with the concurrence of the head of the executive 

agency concerned and consistent with the criteria established in this 

subchapter, may then select such candidate real properties for participation in the pilot program and notify the recommending agency 

accordingly. 

(c) The Director shall ensure that all real properties selected for 

disposition under this section are listed on a website that shall—

(1) be updated routinely; and 

(2) include the functionality to allow members of the public, 

at their option, to receive such updates through electronic mail. 

(d) The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall ensure that efforts are taken to inform representatives of the homeless 

about—

(1) the pilot program established under section 622; and 

(2) the website under subsection (c). 

(e) The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall—

(1) make available to the public upon request all information 

(other than valuation information), regardless of format, in the 

possession of the Department of Housing and Urban Development relating to the properties listed on the website under subsection (c), including environmental assessment data; and 

(2) maintain a current list of agency contacts for making referrals to inquiries for information relating to specific properties. 

624. Suitability determination 

(a) After the Director selects the candidate real properties that 

may participate in the pilot program under section 623, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall determine whether 

each such real property is suitable for use to assist the homeless. 

(b) The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall base 

the suitability determination required under subsection (a)—


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13 

(1) on the suitability criteria identified by the Secretary of 

Housing and Urban Development under section 501(a) of the 

McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11411(a)); 

(2) for real properties located within a Federal installation, 

campus, or compound, on whether such property can easily be 

transported to an off-site location; and 

(3) for real properties where the predominant use is other 

than housing, on whether the size of the real property is equal 

to or greater than 100,000 square feet. 

(c) Immediately after a determination of suitability is made under 

this section, the Director shall publish, on the website described in 

section 623(c) the following information: 

(1) The address of each such real property. 

(2) The result of the suitability determination required under 

subsection (a) for each such real property. 

(3) The date on which the suitability determination was 

made. 

625. Unsuitable real property 

(a) If a real property is determined unsuitable under section 624, 

such real property may not be disposed of or otherwise used for any 

other purpose for at least 20 days after such determination was 

made. 

(b)(1) Not later than 20 days after a real property has been determined unsuitable under section 624 and before disposal of the real 

property in accordance with subsection (d), any representative of the 

homeless may appeal to the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development for a secondary review of such determination. 

(2) Not later than 20 days after a real property has been determined unsuitable under subsection (b)(3) of section 624, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall deem such real 

property suitable notwithstanding the requirements of that subsection if a representative of the homeless has produced clear and 

convincing evidence that such property can be utilized for the benefit 

of the homeless. Any determination under this paragraph shall be 

committed to the unreviewable discretion of the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. 

(c) Not later than 20 days after the receipt of any appeal under 

subsection (b), the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development 

shall respond to such appeal and shall make a final suitability determination regarding the real property. 

(d)(1) If at the end of the 20-day period required under subsection 

(a), no appeal for review of a determination of unsuitability is received by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, such 

real property shall be disposed of in accordance with section 627. 

(2) If after conducting a secondary review of a determination of 

unsuitability under subsection (b), the Secretary of Housing and 

Urban Development determines that the real property remains unsuitable under subsection (c), such real property shall be disposed 

of in accordance with section 627. 

(3) If after conducting a secondary review of a determination of 

unsuitability under subsection (b), the Secretary of Housing and 

Urban Development determines that the real property is suitable 

under subsection (c), such real property shall be treated as suitable 

property for purposes of section 626. 


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626. Suitable real property 

(a)(1) If a real property is determined suitable under section 624 

or upon a secondary review under section 625(d), any representative 

of the homeless shall have not more than 90 days after such determination to submit an application to the Secretary of Health and 

Human Services for the transfer of the real property to that representative. If an application cannot be completed within the 90-day 

period due to non-material factors, the Secretary of Health and 

Human Services, with the concurrence of the appropriate landholding agency may grant reasonable extensions. 

(2) If at the end of the time period described under paragraph (1), 

no representative of the homeless has submitted an application, 

such real property shall be disposed of in accordance with section 

627. 

(b)(1) Not later than 20 days after the receipt of any application 

under subsection (a)(1), the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall assess such application and determine whether to approve 

or deny the request for the transfer of the real property to such applicant. 

(2) If the application of a representative of the homeless is denied 

by the Secretary of Health and Human Services under paragraph 

(1), such real property shall be disposed of in accordance with section 627. 

(3) If the application of a representative of the homeless is approved by the Secretary of Health and Human Services under paragraph (1), such real property shall be made promptly available to 

that representative by permit or lease, or by deed, as a public health 

use under subsections (a) through (d) of section 550. 

627. Expedited disposal requirements 

(a) Real property sold under the pilot program established under 

this subchapter shall be sold at not less than the fair market value, 

as determined by the Director in consultation with the head of the 

executive agency. Costs associated with such disposal may not exceed the fair market value of the property unless the Director approves incurring such costs. 

(b) A real property may be sold under the pilot program established under this subchapter only if the property will generate monetary proceeds to the Federal Government, as provided in subsection 

(a). A disposal of real property under the pilot program may not include any exchange, trade, transfer, acquisition of like-kind property, or other non-cash transaction as part of the disposal. 

(c) Nothing in this subchapter shall be construed as terminating 

or in any way limiting authorities that are otherwise available to 

agencies under other provisions of law to dispose of Federal real 

property, except as provided in subsection (d). 

(d) Any expedited disposal of a real property conducted under this 

subchapter shall not be subject to—

(1) subchapter IV of this chapter; 

(2) sections 550 and 553 of this title; 

(3) section 501 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance 

Act (42 U.S.C. 11411); 

(4) any other provision of law authorizing the no-cost conveyance of real property owned by the Federal Government; or 


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(5) any congressional notification requirement other than that 

in section 545. 

628. Special rules for deposit and use of proceeds from disposal of 

real property 

(a) Agencies that conduct the disposal of real properties under 

this subchapter shall be reimbursed from the proceeds, if any, from 

such disposal for the administrative expenses associated with such 

disposal. Such amounts shall be credited as offsetting collections to 

the account that incurred such expenses, to remain available until 

expended. 

(b)(1) After payment of such administrative costs, the balance of 

the proceeds shall be distributed as follows: 

(A) 80 percent shall be deposited into the Treasury as miscellaneous receipts. 

(B) 20 percent shall be deposited into the account of the agency that owned the real property and initiated the disposal action. 

(2) Funds deposited under paragraph (1)(B) shall remain available until expended for the period of the pilot program, for activities 

related to Federal real property capital improvements and disposal 

activities. Upon termination of the pilot program, any unobligated 

amounts shall be transferred to the general fund of the Treasury. 

629. Limitation on number of permissible cash sales 

The total number of cash sales of real properties to be disposed 

of under this subchapter over the 5-year term of the Federal Real 

Property Disposal Pilot Program shall not exceed 750. 

630. Government Accountability Office study 

(a) Not later than 36 months after the date of enactment of this 

subchapter, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to Congress and make publicly available a study of the effectiveness of the pilot program. 

(b) The study described under subsection (a) shall include at a 

minimum—

(1) recommendations for permanent reforms to statutes governing real property disposals and no cost conveyances; and 

(2) recommendations for improving the permanent process by 

which Federal properties are made available for use by the 

homeless. 

Æ 


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