I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2348 

To maximize land management efficiencies, promote land conservation, 

generate education funding, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 1, 2021 

Mr. STEWART (for himself and Mr. O’HALLERAN) introduced the following 

bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To maximize land management efficiencies, promote land 

conservation, generate education funding, and for other 

purposes. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Advancing Conserva5 tion and Education Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that— 

8 (1) at statehood, Congress granted each of the 

9 western States land to be held in trust by the States 


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1 and used for the support of public schools and other 

2 public institutions; 

3 (2) since the statehood land grants, Congress 

4 and the executive branch have created multiple Fed5 eral conservation areas on Federal land within the 

6 western States, including National Parks, National 

7 Monuments, national conservation areas, national 

8 grassland, components of the National Wilderness 

9 Preservation System, wilderness study areas, and 

10 national wildlife refuges; 

11 (3) since statehood land grant land owned by 

12 the western States are typically scattered across the 

13 public land, creation of Federal conservation areas 

14 often include State land grant parcels with substan15 tially different management mandates, making land 

16 and resource management more difficult, expensive, 

17 and controversial for both Federal land managers 

18 and the western States; and 

19 (4) allowing the western States to relinquish 

20 State trust land within Federal conservation areas 

21 and to select replacement land from the public land 

22 within the respective western States, would— 

23 (A) enhance management of Federal con24 servation areas by allowing unified management 

25 of those areas; and 


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1 (B) increase revenue from the statehood 

2 land grants for the support of public schools 

3 and other worthy public purposes. 

4 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

5 In this Act: 

6 (1) APPLICATION.—The term ‘‘application’’ 

7 means an application for State relinquishment and 

8 selection of land made under this Act in accordance 

9 with section 5. 

10 (2) ELIGIBLE AREA.—The term ‘‘eligible area’’ 

11 means land within the outer boundary of— 

12 (A) a unit of the National Park System; 

13 (B) a component of the National Wilder14 ness Preservation System; 

15 (C) a unit of the National Wildlife Refuge 

16 System; 

17 (D) a unit of the National Landscape Con18 servation System; 

19 (E) an area determined by the Bureau of 

20 Land Management, through an inventory car21 ried out in accordance with FLPMA, to have 

22 wilderness characteristics— 

23 (i) as of the date of enactment of this 

24 Act; or 


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1 (ii) in a land use plan finalized under 

2 FLPMA; 

3 (F) National Forest System land and pub4 lic land administered by the Bureau of Land 

5 Management that has been designated as a na6 tional monument, national volcanic monument, 

7 national recreation area, national scenic area, 

8 inventoried roadless area, unit of the Wild and 

9 Scenic Rivers System, wilderness study area, or 

10 Land Use Designation II (as described by sec11 tion 508 of the Alaska National Interest Lands 

12 Conservation Act (Public Law 101–626; 104 

13 Stat. 4428)); or 

14 (G) a sentinel landscape designated by the 

15 Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of De16 fense, and the Secretary of the Interior. 

17 (3) FLPMA.—The term ‘‘FLPMA’’ means the 

18 Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 

19 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.). 

20 (4) PRIORITY AREA.—The term ‘‘priority area’’ 

21 means land within the outer boundary of any— 

22 (A) National Monument; 

23 (B) national conservation area managed by 

24 the Bureau of Land Management; 


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1 (C) component of the National Wilderness 

2 Preservation System; or 

3 (D) unit of the National Park System. 

4 (5) PUBLIC LAND.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘public land’’ 

6 has the meaning given the term ‘‘public lands’’ 

7 in section 103 of FLPMA (43 U.S.C. 1702). 

8 (B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘public 

9 land’’ does not include Federal land that— 

10 (i) is within an eligible area; 

11 (ii) is within an area of critical envi12 ronmental concern established pursuant to 

13 section 202(c)(3) of FLPMA (43 U.S.C. 

14 1712(c)(3)); 

15 (iii) is within an area withdrawn or 

16 reserved by an Act of Congress, the Presi17 dent, or public land order for a particular 

18 public purpose or program, including for 

19 the conservation of natural resources; 

20 (iv) has been acquired using funds 

21 from the Land and Water Conservation 

22 Fund established under section 200302 of 

23 title 54, United States Code; 

24 (v) is within the boundary of an In25 dian reservation, pueblo, or rancheria; or 


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1 (vi) is within a special recreation man2 agement area. 

3 (6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

4 the Secretary of the Interior. 

5 (7) STATE LAND GRANT PARCEL.—The term 

6 ‘‘State land grant parcel’’ means— 

7 (A) any land granted to a western State by 

8 Congress through a statehood or territorial land 

9 grant for the support of public education or 

10 other public institutions, or subsequently ac11 quired by the western State for that purpose; or 

12 (B) land granted to the State of Alaska 

13 under subsections (a), (b), and (k) of section 6 

14 of the Act of July 7, 1958 (commonly known as 

15 the ‘‘Alaska Statehood Act’’) (48 U.S.C. note 

16 prec. 21; Public Law 85–508). 

17 (8) TRADITIONAL CULTURAL PROPERTY.—The 

18 term ‘‘traditional cultural property’’ has the mean19 ing given the term— 

20 (A) ‘‘historic property’’ in section 800.16 

21 of title 36, Code of Federal Regulations (as in 

22 effect on the date of enactment of this Act); or 

23 (B) ‘‘sacred site’’ in section 1(b) of Execu24 tive Order No. 13007 (42 U.S.C. 1996 note; re25 lating to Indian sacred sites). 


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1 (9) WATER RIGHT.—The term ‘‘water right’’ 

2 means any right in or to groundwater, surface 

3 water, or effluent under Federal, State, or other law. 

4 (10) WESTERN STATE.—The term ‘‘western 

5 State’’ means any of the States of Alaska, Arizona, 

6 California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, 

7 North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Wash8 ington, and Wyoming. 

9 SEC. 4. RELINQUISHMENT OF STATE LAND GRANT PAR10 CELS AND SELECTION OF REPLACEMENT 

11 LAND. 

12 (a) AUTHORITY TO SELECT.—In accordance with 

13 this Act and in order to facilitate the fulfillment of the 

14 mandates of State land grant parcels and Federal land 

15 described in subparagraphs (A) through (G) of section 

16 3(2), on approval by the Secretary of an application under 

17 section 5, a western State may relinquish to the United 

18 States State land grant parcels wholly or primarily within 

19 eligible areas and select in exchange public land within the 

20 western State. 

21 (b) VALID EXISTING RIGHTS.—Land conveyed under 

22 this Act shall be subject to valid existing rights. 

23 (c) MANAGEMENT AFTER RELINQUISHMENT.—Any 

24 portion of a State land grant parcel acquired by the 


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1 United States under this Act that is located within an eli2 gible area shall— 

3 (1) be incorporated in, and be managed as part 

4 of, the applicable unit described in subparagraphs 

5 (A) through (G) of section 3(2) in which the land is 

6 located without further action by the Secretary with 

7 jurisdiction over the unit; and 

8 (2) if located within the National Forest Sys9 tem, be administered by the Secretary of Agriculture 

10 in accordance with— 

11 (A) the Act of March 1, 1911 (commonly 

12 known as the ‘‘Weeks Law’’) (16 U.S.C. 552 et 

13 seq.); and 

14 (B) any laws (including regulations) appli15 cable to the National Forest System and the 

16 unit of the National Forest System in which the 

17 land is located. 

18 (d) LIMITATION.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para20 graphs (2) and (3), until a western State has relin21 quished and conveyed to the United States substan22 tially all of the State land grant parcels located in 

23 priority areas in the western State, the western 

24 State may not apply to relinquish State land grant 

25 parcels in other eligible areas in the western State. 


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1 (2) EXCEPTION.—The Secretary may waive the 

2 limitation in paragraph (1) on a determination that 

3 the relinquishment and conveyance to the United 

4 States of substantially all State land grant parcels 

5 located in priority areas in the western State is im6 practical or infeasible. 

7 (3) OTHER STATE LAND GRANT PARCELS.—The 

8 Secretary may accept an application from a western 

9 State to relinquish State land grant parcels within 

10 an eligible area in the western State if— 

11 (A) the application is limited to relin12 quishing one or more State land grant parcels 

13 within a single eligible area; 

14 (B) the western State submitting the ap15 plication is, as determined by the Secretary, 

16 making substantial progress in relinquishing 

17 State land grant parcels within priority areas in 

18 the western State; and 

19 (C) the Secretary has not accepted any 

20 other applications from the western State under 

21 this paragraph during the 5-year period ending 

22 on the date of the application. 

23 SEC. 5. PROCESS. 

24 (a) PROCESS FOR APPLICATION.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 540 days 

2 after the date of the enactment of this Act and in 

3 accordance with this section, the Secretary shall pro4 mulgate regulations establishing a process by which 

5 the western States may request the relinquishment 

6 of State land grant parcels wholly or partially within 

7 eligible areas and select public land in exchange for 

8 the State land grant parcels. 

9 (2) TIMING.—Except as provided in section 

10 8(c), the process established by the Secretary under 

11 this section shall ensure that the relinquishment of 

12 State land grant parcels and the conveyance of pub13 lic land is concurrent. 

14 (b) PUBLIC NOTICE.—Prior to accepting or con15 veying any land under this Act, the Secretary shall provide 

16 public notice and an opportunity to comment on the pro17 posed conveyances between the western State and the 

18 United States. 

19 (c) ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise pro21 vided in this subsection, the Secretary shall acquire 

22 State land grant parcels and convey public land 

23 under this Act in accordance with— 

24 (A) the National Environmental Policy Act 

25 of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); and 


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1 (B) other applicable laws. 

2 (2) ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT OR ENVI3 RONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT.—In preparing an 

4 environmental assessment or environmental impact 

5 statement pursuant to section 102(2) of the Na6 tional Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 

7 4332(2)) for the acquisition of State land grant par8 cels and the conveyance of public land under this 

9 Act, if the western State has indicated an unwilling10 ness to consider State land grant parcels for relin11 quishment or public land for acquisition (other than 

12 the State land grant parcels and public land de13 scribed in the proposed agency action), the Secretary 

14 is not required to study, develop, and describe more 

15 than— 

16 (A) the proposed agency action; and 

17 (B) the alternative of no action. 

18 (d) AGREEMENTS WITH STATES.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized 

20 to enter into agreements with any of the western 

21 States to facilitate processing of applications and 

22 conveyance of selected land. 

23 (2) AGREEMENT.—On completion of a pre24 application process that includes identification of 

25 land to be conveyed, the Secretary and the western 


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1 State may enter into a nonbinding agreement that 

2 includes— 

3 (A) a time schedule for completing the con4 veyances; 

5 (B) an assignment of responsibility for 

6 performance of required functions and for costs 

7 associated with processing the conveyances; and 

8 (C) a statement specifying whether as9 sumption of costs will be allowed pursuant to 

10 section 8(d). 

11 (e) APPROVAL OR REJECTION.—The Secretary— 

12 (1) shall issue a final determination on an ap13 plication not later than 3 years after the date a 

14 western State submits that application to the Sec15 retary; 

16 (2) may approve an application in whole or in 

17 part, or as modified by the Secretary as necessary 

18 to balance the equities of the States and interest of 

19 the public; 

20 (3) shall not accept an application under this 

21 Act for selection of any parcel of public land that in 

22 the judgment of the Secretary— 

23 (A) is not reasonably compact and consoli24 dated; 


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1 (B) will create significant management 

2 conflicts with respect to the management of ad3 jacent Federal land; 

4 (C) will significantly adversely affect public 

5 use of a recreation site or recreation area eligi6 ble for the collection of recreation fees under 

7 the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement 

8 Act (16 U.S.C. 6801 et seq.) or other authority; 

9 (D) will significantly adversely affect pub10 lic access, hunting, fishing, recreational shoot11 ing, outdoor recreation, or result in adverse im12 pacts to critical fish and wildlife habitat; or 

13 (E) is not in the public interest, as deter14 mined under 43 Code of Federal Regulations 

15 2200.0–6(b), as in effect on the date of enact16 ment of this Act; 

17 (4) shall not accept any State land grant par18 cels that, in the judgment of the Secretary, are not 

19 suitable for inclusion in the applicable unit described 

20 in subparagraphs (A) through (G) of section 3(2) in 

21 which the land is located; 

22 (5) shall, prior to approving an application, con23 sult with the head of any Federal agency with juris24 diction over Federal land— 


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1 (A) within which a western State proposes 

2 to relinquish a State land grant parcel; or 

3 (B) that is adjacent to public land pro4 posed for conveyance to a western State; 

5 (6) shall, prior to approving an application— 

6 (A) consult, in accordance with Federal 

7 law, with any Indian tribe affected by the sub8 ject of the application, including any Indian 

9 tribe that notifies the Secretary that there is 

10 traditional cultural property located within the 

11 public land proposed for conveyance to the 

12 western State; and 

13 (B) if the Secretary determines that tradi14 tional cultural property is located within the 

15 public land proposed for conveyance to the 

16 western State, consider the extent to which pro17 tection would be available for the traditional 

18 cultural property after conveyance of the public 

19 land to the western State, including terms or 

20 conditions that the Secretary, with the agree21 ment of the western State, may impose on the 

22 conveyance of the public land to the western 

23 State; 

24 (7) may reject an application in whole or in 

25 part if the Secretary, after consideration of available 


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1 protection for traditional cultural property located 

2 within the public land proposed for conveyance to 

3 the western State pursuant to paragraph (6)(B), de4 termines that insufficient protection would be avail5 able for the traditional cultural property after con6 veyance of the public land to the western State; 

7 (8) shall, for applications by a western State for 

8 the conveyance of a parcel of public land that will 

9 result in significantly diminished public access to ad10 jacent Federal land— 

11 (A) reject that portion of the application; 

12 or 

13 (B) reserve a right-of-way through the 

14 public land to be conveyed ensuring continued 

15 public access to adjacent Federal land; and 

16 (9) shall convey any public land approved for 

17 selection not later than 1 year after entering into a 

18 final agreement between the Secretary and the west19 ern State on the land to be conveyed, subject to such 

20 other terms and conditions as may be appropriate. 

21 (f) COSTS.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—All costs of conveyances 

23 under this Act, including appraisals, surveys, and re24 lated costs, shall be paid equally by the Secretary 

25 and the western State. 


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1 (2) ALLOCATION.—The Federal agency that re2 ceives State land in a conveyance under this Act 

3 shall assume the Federal share of administrative 

4 costs, including appraisals, surveys, and related 

5 costs, unless otherwise agreed to by the heads of the 

6 respective agencies. 

7 (g) CONVEYANCE BY WESTERN STATE.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The conveyance of any State 

9 land grant parcel under this Act shall— 

10 (A) be by patent or deed acceptable to the 

11 Secretary; and 

12 (B) not be considered an exchange or ac13 quisition for purposes of sections 205 and 206 

14 of FLPMA (43 U.S.C. 1715, 1716). 

15 (2) CONCURRENCE.—The Secretary of Agri16 culture shall concur in any determination to accept 

17 the conveyance of a State land grant parcel within 

18 the boundaries of any unit of the National Forest 

19 System. 

20 (h) CONVEYANCE BY UNITED STATES.—The convey21 ance of public land by the United States shall— 

22 (1) not be considered a sale, exchange, or con23 veyance under section 203, 206, or 209 of FLPMA 

24 (43 U.S.C. 1713, 1716, and 1719); and 


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1 (2) include such terms or conditions as the Sec2 retary may require. 

3 SEC. 6. MINERAL LAND. 

4 (a) SELECTION AND CONVEYANCE.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to this Act, a west6 ern State may select, and the Secretary may convey, 

7 land that is mineral in character under this Act. 

8 (2) EXCLUSION.—A western State may not se9 lect, and the Secretary may not convey land that in10 cludes only— 

11 (A) a portion of a mineral lease or permit; 

12 (B) the Federal mineral estate, unless the 

13 United States does not own the associated sur14 face estate; or 

15 (C) the Federal surface estate, unless the 

16 United States does not own the associated min17 eral estate. 

18 (b) MINING CLAIMS.— 

19 (1) MINING CLAIMS UNAFFECTED.—Nothing in 

20 this Act alters, diminishes, or expands the existing 

21 rights of a mining claimant under applicable law. 

22 (2) VALIDITY EXAMS.—Nothing in this Act re23 quires the United States to carry out a mineral ex24 amination for any mining claim located on public 

25 land to be conveyed under this Act. 


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1 (3) WITHDRAWAL.—Public land selected by a 

2 western State for acquisition under this Act is with3 drawn, subject to valid existing rights, from location, 

4 entry, and patent under the mining laws until that 

5 date on which— 

6 (A) the land is conveyed by the Federal 

7 Government to the western State; 

8 (B) the Secretary makes a final determina9 tion not accepting the selection of the land; or 

10 (C) the western State withdraws the selec11 tion of the land. 

12 SEC. 7. CONSTRUCTION WITH OTHER LAWS. 

13 (a) CONSIDERATION.—In the application of laws, reg14 ulations, and policies relating to selections made under 

15 this Act, the Secretary shall consider the equities of the 

16 western States and the interest of the public. 

17 (b) LAND USE PLAN.—The Secretary may approve 

18 an application submitted in accordance with this Act even 

19 if— 

20 (1) the selected public land is not otherwise 

21 identified for disposal; or 

22 (2) the land to be acquired is not identified to 

23 be acquired in the applicable land use plan. 

24 SEC. 8. VALUATION. 

25 (a) EQUAL VALUE.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The overall value of the 

2 State land grant parcels and the public land to be 

3 conveyed shall be— 

4 (A) equal; or 

5 (B) if the value is not equal— 

6 (i) equalized by the payment of funds 

7 to the western State or to the Secretary as 

8 the circumstances require; or 

9 (ii) reflected on the balance of a ledg10 er account established under subsection 

11 (c). 

12 (2) APPRAISAL REQUIRED.—Except as provided 

13 in subsection (b), the Secretary shall determine the 

14 value of a State land grant parcel and public land 

15 through an appraisal completed in accordance 

16 with— 

17 (A) the Uniform Appraisal Standards for 

18 Federal Land Acquisitions; and 

19 (B) the Uniform Standards for Profes20 sional Appraisal Practice. 

21 (3) EQUALIZATION.—For each transaction, an 

22 equalization payment described in paragraph 

23 (1)(B)(i) or a ledger entry described in paragraph 

24 (1)(B)(ii) may not exceed 25 percent of the total 


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1 value of the land or interest transferred out of Fed2 eral ownership. 

3 (b) LOW VALUE PARCELS.— 

4 (1) VALUATION.—The Secretary may, with the 

5 consent of a western State, use a summary appraisal 

6 or statement of value made by a qualified appraiser 

7 carried out in accordance with the Uniform Stand8 ards for Professional Appraisal Practice instead of 

9 an appraisal that complies with the Uniform Ap10 praisal Standards for Federal Land Acquisitions if 

11 the western State and the Secretary agree that the 

12 market value of a State land grant parcel or a parcel 

13 of public land is— 

14 (A) less than $500,000; and 

15 (B) less than $500 per acre. 

16 (2) DIVISION.—A State land grant parcel or a 

17 parcel of public land may not be artificially divided 

18 in order to qualify for a summary appraisal or state19 ment of value under paragraph (1). 

20 (c) LEDGER ACCOUNTS.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and any west22 ern State may agree to use a ledger account to make 

23 equal the value of land relinquished by the western 

24 State and conveyed by the United States to the 

25 western State under this Act. 


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1 (2) IMBALANCES.—A ledger account described 

2 in paragraph (1) shall reflect imbalances in value to 

3 be reconciled in a subsequent transaction. 

4 (3) ACCOUNT BALANCING.—Each ledger ac5 count shall be— 

6 (A) balanced not later than 3 years after 

7 the date on which the ledger account is estab8 lished; and 

9 (B) closed not later than 5 years after the 

10 date of the last conveyance of land under this 

11 Act. 

12 (d) COSTS.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary or the west14 ern State may assume costs or other responsibilities 

15 or requirements for conveying land under this Act 

16 that ordinarily are borne by the other party. 

17 (2) ADJUSTMENT.—If the Secretary assumes 

18 costs or other responsibilities under paragraph (1), 

19 the Secretary shall make adjustments to the value of 

20 the public land conveyed to the western State to 

21 compensate the Secretary for assuming the costs or 

22 other responsibilities. 

23 (e) ADJUSTMENT.—If value is attributed to any par24 cel of public land that has been selected by a western State 

25 because of the presence of minerals under a lease entered 


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1 into under the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 181 et 

2 seq.) that is in a producing or producible status, and the 

3 lease is to be conveyed under this Act, the value of the 

4 parcel shall be reduced by the amount that represents the 

5 likely Federal revenue sharing obligation under that Act, 

6 but the adjustment shall not be considered as reflecting 

7 a property right of the western State. 

8 SEC. 9. MISCELLANEOUS. 

9 (a) HAZARDOUS MATERIALS.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the west11 ern States shall make available for review and in12 spection any record relating to hazardous materials 

13 on land to be conveyed under this Act. 

14 (2) CERTIFICATION.—The Secretary and the 

15 western State shall each complete an inspection and 

16 a hazardous materials certification of land to be con17 veyed under this Act before the completion of the 

18 conveyance. 

19 (b) WATER RIGHTS.— 

20 (1) STATE-HELD APPURTENANT WATER

21 RIGHTS.—Any conveyance of a State land grant par22 cel under this Act may include the conveyance of 

23 State-held water rights appurtenant to the land con24 veyed in accordance with applicable law. 


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1 (2) FEDERALLY HELD APPURTENANT WATER

2 RIGHTS.—Any conveyance of public land under this 

3 Act may include the conveyance of federally held 

4 water rights appurtenant to the land conveyed in ac5 cordance with applicable Federal and State law. 

6 (3) EFFECT.—Nothing in this Act— 

7 (A) creates an implied or expressed Fed8 eral reserved water right; 

9 (B) affects a valid existing water right; or 

10 (C) affects the use of water conveyance in11 frastructure associated with a water right de12 scribed in subparagraph (B). 

13 (c) GRAZING PERMITS.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—If land conveyed under this 

15 Act is subject to a lease, permit, or contract for the 

16 grazing of domestic livestock in effect on the date of 

17 the conveyance, the Secretary (or the Secretary of 

18 Agriculture for land located within the National For19 est System) and the western State shall allow the 

20 grazing to continue for the remainder of the term of 

21 the lease, permit, or contract, subject to the related 

22 terms and conditions of user agreements, including 

23 permitted stocking rates, grazing fee levels, access, 

24 and ownership and use of range improvements. 


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1 (2) RENEWAL.—On expiration of any grazing 

2 lease, permit, or contract described in paragraph 

3 (1), the party that has jurisdiction over the land on 

4 the date of expiration may elect to renew the lease, 

5 permit, or contract if permitted under applicable 

6 law. 

7 (3) CANCELLATION.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this Act 

9 prevents the Secretary (or the Secretary of Ag10 riculture for land located within the National 

11 Forest System) or the western State from can12 celing or modifying a grazing permit, lease, or 

13 contract if the land subject to the permit, lease, 

14 or contract is sold, conveyed, transferred, or 

15 leased for nongrazing purposes. 

16 (B) LIMITATION.—Except to the extent 

17 reasonably necessary to accommodate surface 

18 operations in support of mineral development, 

19 the Secretary (or the Secretary of Agriculture 

20 for land located within the National Forest Sys21 tem) or the western State shall not cancel or 

22 modify a grazing permit, lease, or contract for 

23 land conveyed pursuant to this Act because the 

24 land subject to the permit, lease, or contract 

25 has been leased for mineral development. 


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1 (4) BASE PROPERTIES.—If land conveyed by 

2 the western State under this Act is used by a graz3 ing permittee or lessee to meet the base property re4 quirements for a Federal grazing permit or lease, 

5 the land shall continue to qualify as a base property 

6 for the remaining term of the lease or permit and 

7 the term of any renewal or extension of the lease or 

8 permit. 

9 (5) RANGE IMPROVEMENTS.—Nothing in this 

10 Act prohibits a holder of a grazing lease, permit, or 

11 contract from being compensated for range improve12 ments pursuant to the terms of the lease, permit, or 

13 contract under existing Federal or State laws. 

14 (d) ROAD RIGHTS-OF-WAYS.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—If land conveyed under this 

16 Act is subject to a road lease, road right-of-way, 

17 road easement, or other valid existing right in effect 

18 on the date of the conveyance, the Secretary (or the 

19 Secretary of Agriculture for land located within the 

20 National Forest System) and the western State shall 

21 allow the lease, right-of-way, easement, or other 

22 valid existing right to continue for the remainder of 

23 the term of the lease, right-of-way, easement, or 

24 other valid existing right, subject to the applicable 


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1 terms and conditions of the lease, right-of-way, ease2 ment, or other valid existing right. 

3 (2) RENEWAL.—On expiration of any road 

4 lease, road right-of-way, road easement, or other 

5 valid existing right described in paragraph (1), the 

6 party that has jurisdiction over the land on the date 

7 of expiration may elect to renew the lease, right-of8 way, easement, or other valid existing right if per9 mitted under applicable law. 

10 (e) PROTECTION OF INDIAN RIGHTS.— 

11 (1) TREATY RIGHTS.—Nothing in this Act al12 ters or diminishes the treaty rights of any Indian 

13 tribe. 

14 (2) LAND HELD IN TRUST.—Nothing in this 

15 Act affects— 

16 (A) land held in trust by the Secretary for 

17 any Indian tribe; or 

18 (B) any individual Indian allotment. 

19 (3) EFFECT.—Nothing in this Act alters, di20 minishes, or enlarges the application of— 

21 (A) division A of subtitle III of title 54, 

22 United States Code (formerly known as the 

23 ‘‘National Historic Preservation Act’’ (16 

24 U.S.C. 470 et seq.)); 


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1 (B) the Native American Graves Protec2 tion and Repatriation Act (25 U.S.C. 3001 et 

3 seq.); 

4 (C) Public Law 95–341 (commonly known 

5 as the ‘‘American Indian Religious Freedom 

6 Act’’) (42 U.S.C. 1996); 

7 (D) chapter 3125 of title 54, United States 

8 Code; or 

9 (E) the Archaeological Resources Protec10 tion Act of 1979 (16 U.S.C. 470aa et seq.). 

11 SEC. 10. EFFECT. 

12 Nothing in this Act repeals or limits, expressly or by 

13 implication, any authority in existence on the date of en14 actment of this Act for the selection or exchange of land. 

15 SEC. 11. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), the pro17 visions of this Act shall cease to be effective with regard 

18 to any State land grant parcel located within an eligible 

19 area for which an application has not been filed by the 

20 date that is 20 years after the date of the enactment of 

21 this Act. 

22 (b) NEW ELIGIBLE AREAS.—If the application de23 scribed in subsection (a) is for a State land grant parcel 

24 that is located within an eligible area established after the 

25 date of enactment of this Act, the provisions of this Act 


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1 shall remain effective for 20 years after the date on which 

2 the new eligible area is established. 

Æ 


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