29–006 

113TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 1st Session 113–190 

POWELL SHOOTING RANGE LAND CONVEYANCE ACT 

SEPTEMBER 10, 2013.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 

State of the Union and ordered to be printed 

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington, from the Committee on Natural 

Resources, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 130] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred the 

bill (S. 130) to require the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain Federal land to the Powell Recreation District in the State of 

Wyoming, having considered the same, report favorably thereon 

without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass. 

PURPOSE OF THE BILL

The purpose of S. 130 is to require the Secretary of the Interior 

to convey certain Federal land to the Powell Recreation District in 

the State of Wyoming. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

The town of Powell is located in Park County, in northwestern 

Wyoming. Since 1980, the Powell Recreation District has used approximately 322 acres of public land as a public shooting range. Because the lands are located within the boundaries of an irrigation 

district, they were presumed to be under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Reclamation. The Bureau issued the original lease for the 

shooting range in 1980 and a renewal in 2007. Recently, it was determined that the lands are actually administered by the Bureau 

of Land Management (BLM). 

In October 2005, the recreation district applied for a transfer of 

the land under the Recreation and Public Purposes Act (RPPA, 43 

U.S.C. 869 et seq.). The land, however, had not been identified by 

BLM as appropriate for conveyance under the RPPA, and the Department of the Interior concluded that it does not have authority 


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to administratively transfer the land under the RPPA because the 

land is contaminated with lead. 

S. 130 directs the Secretary of the Interior to convey the 322 

acres to the Powell Recreation District for continued use as a shooting range, or for any other public purpose allowed under the RPPA. 

The conveyance is to be made at no cost, but the District is required to pay for any administrative costs associated with the conveyance. 

The land is conveyed subject to reversionary terms requiring its 

continued use for a public purpose. This appears unnecessary considering the subsurface estate is already owned by the State of Wyoming and the site’s hazardous substance contamination that required a liability release and prevented a RPPA conveyance in the 

first place. This provision may be of no consequence, however, since 

the shooting range is intended to be permanent. 

COMMITTEE ACTION

S. 130 was introduced on January 24, 2013, by Senator Michael 

Enzi (R–WY). On June 19, 2013, the bill passed the Senate by 

unanimous consent without amendment. The bill was then referred 

to the Committee on Natural Resources, and within the Committee 

to the Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation. On July 19, 2013, the Subcommittee held a hearing on the 

bill. On July 24, 2013, the full Resources Committee met to consider S. 130. The Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation was discharged by unanimous consent. No 

amendments were offered and the bill was adopted and ordered favorably reported to the House of Representatives by unanimous 

consent. 

COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII 

of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee on 

Natural Resources’ oversight findings and recommendations are reflected in the body of this report. 

COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII

1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of 

the House of Representatives requires an estimate and a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(2)(B) of that rule provides 

that this requirement does not apply when the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974. Under clause 

3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and 

section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate for this bill from the 

Director of the Congressional Budget Office: 

S. 130—Powell Shooting Range Land Conveyance Act 

S. 130 would require the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to 

convey 322 acres of federal land near Powell, Wyoming, to the Powell Recreation District. Based on information provided by BLM, 


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CBO estimates that implementing the legislation would have no 

significant impact on the federal budget. Enacting S. 130 would not 

affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. 

The act would require BLM to convey the affected lands, without 

consideration, to the Powell Recreation District, which currently 

operates a shooting range on those lands. Because the act requires 

the district to pay all administrative costs associated with the conveyance, CBO estimates that implementing S. 130 would have no 

significant impact on discretionary spending. In addition, the affected lands are not expected to generate receipts over the next 10 

years under current law. 

S. 130 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates 

as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act. 

On April 1, 2013, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for S. 130 as 

ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources on March 14, 2013. The two versions of this legislation 

are identical, and the CBO cost estimates are the same. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jeff LaFave. The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant Director 

for Budget Analysis. 

2. Section 308(a) of Congressional Budget Act. As required by 

clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, 

this bill does not contain any new budget authority, spending authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in revenues or 

tax expenditures. Based on information provided by BLM, CBO estimates that implementing the legislation would have no significant impact on the federal budget. 

3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by 

clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goal or objective 

of this bill is to require the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain Federal land to the Powell Recreation District in the State of 

Wyoming. 

EARMARK STATEMENT

This bill does not contain any Congressional earmarks, limited 

tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined under clause 9(e), 

9(f), and 9(g) of rule XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives. 

COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104–4

This bill contains no unfunded mandates. 

COMPLIANCE WITH H. RES. 5

Directed Rule Making. The Chairman does not believe that this 

bill directs any executive branch official to conduct any specific 

rule-making proceedings. 

Duplication of Existing Programs. This bill does not establish or 

reauthorize a program of the federal government known to be duplicative of another program. Such program was not included in 

any report from the Government Accountability Office to Congress 

pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111–139 or identified in the 

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suant to the Federal Program Information Act (Public Law 95–220, 

as amended by Public Law 98–169) as relating to other programs. 

PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL OR TRIBAL LAW

This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or tribal law. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

If enacted, this bill would make no changes in existing law. 

Æ 


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