II 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 14 

To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain interests in 

Federal land acquired for the Scofield Project in Carbon County, Utah. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 6, 2015 

Mr. HATCH introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain 

interests in Federal land acquired for the Scofield 

Project in Carbon County, Utah. 

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 ‘‘Scofield Land Transfer 

5 Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) CARBON COUNTY.—The term ‘‘Carbon 

9 County’’ means Carbon County, Utah, within which 

10 the Scofield Reservoir property is located. 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 14 IS

1 (2) CLAIMANT.—The term ‘‘claimant’’ means 

2 any person or entity (or a successor in interest to a 

3 person or entity) that, according to the records in 

4 the office of the Recorder for Carbon County, as of 

5 the date of enactment of this Act, claims title to, or 

6 an interest in, the Federal land. 

7 (3) FEDERAL LAND.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘Federal 

9 land’’ means the land acquired by Price River 

10 Water Conservation District and transferred to 

11 the United States for use in the construction 

12 and operation of Scofield Dam and Reservoir 

13 located between the normal water surface ele14 vation and the property boundary elevation in 

15 the Scofield Reservoir basin. 

16 (B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘Federal 

17 land’’ does not include— 

18 (i) any mineral or subsurface rights to 

19 the land described in subparagraph (A); or 

20 (ii) the 205 acres of land adjoining 

21 the Scofield Reservoir, as adjudicated in 

22 the case styled United States v. Dunn (557 

23 F.3d 1165 (10th Cir. 2009)). 

24 (4) FLOOD SURCHARGE ELEVATION.—The term 

25 ‘‘flood surcharge elevation’’ means the elevation of 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 14 IS

1 7640.3 in the North American Vertical Datum of 

2 1988, which corresponds to the elevation of the crest 

3 of Scofield Dam. 

4 (5) FUND.—The term ‘‘Fund’’ means the Sco5 field Reservoir Fund established by section 

6 3(d)(9)(A). 

7 (6) LIFE ESTATE.—The term ‘‘life estate’’ 

8 means— 

9 (A) if the claimant is a person, an interest 

10 of the claimant in the Federal land that will re11 vert to the United States on the date of the 

12 death of the claimant; and 

13 (B) if the claimant is an entity, an interest 

14 in the Federal land of a person designated by 

15 the claimant that will revert to the United 

16 States on the date of the death of the des17 ignated person. 

18 (7) NORMAL WATER SURFACE ELEVATION.— 

19 The term ‘‘normal water surface elevation’’ means 

20 the contour elevation of 7621.8 in the North Amer21 ican Vertical Datum of 1988, which corresponds to 

22 the elevation of the crest of the spillway of Scofield 

23 Dam. 

24 (8) PROPERTY BOUNDARY ELEVATION.—The 

25 term ‘‘property boundary elevation’’ means the conVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:24 Jan 08, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S14.IS S14

emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 14 IS

1 tour elevation 7630, as surveyed by McGonagle and 

2 Ulrich, Land Surveyors, in 1926, which was trans3 muted to the current elevation of 7638.9 in the 

4 North American Vertical Datum of 1988 and which 

5 corresponds to 1.4 vertical feet below the crest of 

6 Scofield Dam. 

7 (9) ROADS.—The term ‘‘Roads’’ means the 

8 streets, improved and unimproved, as in existence on 

9 the date of enactment of this Act, that— 

10 (A) are located on the Federal land; 

11 (B) are intended for public access via mo12 torized vehicle to the Federal land claims of the 

13 claimants; and 

14 (C) extend to the shoreline of Scofield Res15 ervoir. 

16 (10) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

17 means the Secretary of the Interior. 

18 (11) STRUCTURE.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘structure’’ 

20 means any improvement located on the property 

21 of a claimant, as in existence on the date of en22 actment of this Act, including— 

23 (i) a residence; 

24 (ii) a shed; 

25 (iii) a workshop; 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 14 IS

1 (iv) a garage; 

2 (v) a carport; 

3 (vi) a deck; 

4 (vii) a boathouse; or 

5 (viii) an incidental building. 

6 (B) INCLUSION.—The term ‘‘structure’’ in7 cludes any infrastructure associated with a resi8 dence that is not owned by a public or private 

9 utility, including water, power, sewer, and im10 provements to Roads. 

11 SEC. 3. CONVEYANCE OF SCOFIELD PROJECT LAND. 

12 (a) SURVEY.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—To facilitate the conveyance 

14 of the Federal land under this Act, it shall be the 

15 responsibility of Carbon County— 

16 (A) to enter into an agreement with the 

17 Secretary to pay the costs associated with a full 

18 physical and title survey of the Federal land in 

19 order to delineate the boundaries associated 

20 with the Federal land, Federal easements, or 

21 other Federal interests in land; and 

22 (B) subject to paragraph (2), to initiate 

23 and complete a full physical survey of the 

24 Roads and the parcels located within the Fed25 eral land that are eligible to be conveyed to the 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 14 IS

1 claimants, and, in any case in which a land de2 scription or record of ownership in any record 

3 of Carbon County conflicts with a claim of a 

4 claimant with regard to an existing physical 

5 feature or facility, propose boundaries and land 

6 descriptions to resolve the dispute. 

7 (2) UNRESOLVED DISPUTES.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—If a claim to a parcel 

9 or portion of a parcel of Federal land cannot be 

10 resolved in accordance with the applicable land 

11 description in the records of Carbon County by 

12 the applicable deadline for an election under 

13 subsection (d)(6), the claimant shall stipulate 

14 to, accept, and submit to the Secretary the land 

15 description developed by Carbon County to re16 solve the dispute in order to meet the election 

17 requirement of subsection (d)(6) by not later 

18 than 180 days after that deadline. 

19 (B) FAILURE TO STIPULATE AND AC20 CEPT.—If a claimant fails to stipulate to and 

21 accept the land description of Carbon County 

22 by the date described in subparagraph (A), the 

23 authority to convey the affected parcel or por24 tion of a parcel of Federal land pursuant to this 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
7 

•S 14 IS

1 section shall be terminated with respect to the 

2 disputed claim. 

3 (b) APPRAISAL.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—As a condition of the con5 veyance under this section, Carbon County shall 

6 enter into an agreement with the Secretary to pay 

7 the costs associated with an appraisal of the fair 

8 market value of each property interest requested by 

9 a claimant relating to the conveyance by the Sec10 retary under this Act. 

11 (2) DETERMINATION OF FAIR MARKET

12 VALUE.—The fair market value of a property inter13 est under paragraph (1) shall be determined by the 

14 Secretary in accordance with the Uniform Appraisal 

15 Standards for Federal Land Acquisitions and the 

16 Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Prac17 tices. 

18 (c) NOTIFICATION.—It shall be the responsibility of 

19 Carbon County to notify each claimant of any trespass or 

20 encroachment by the applicable claimant on the Federal 

21 land, including the existence of any trespassing or en22 croaching structure of the claimant. 

23 (d) AUTHORIZATION TO CONVEY FEDERAL LAND.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—To resolve the issues of tres25 pass and encroachment on the Federal land by the 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
8 

•S 14 IS

1 claimants, the Secretary may, in accordance with 

2 paragraphs (5) and (6)— 

3 (A) on an election by a claimant— 

4 (i) subject to paragraph (2), convey to 

5 the claimant fee interest in the claimed 

6 portion of the Federal land that is located 

7 above the normal water surface elevation, 

8 as determined by the results of the survey 

9 required under subsection (a), subject to 

10 all valid rights-of-way, licenses, and ease11 ments in existence on the date of enact12 ment of this Act; or 

13 (ii) subject to paragraph (3), grant to 

14 the claimant a life estate permitting the 

15 continued occupation of the claimed por16 tion of the Federal land above the normal 

17 water surface elevation, as determined by 

18 the results of the survey required under 

19 subsection (a), subject to all valid rights20 of-way, licenses, and easements in exist21 ence on the date of enactment of this Act; 

22 or 

23 (B) subject to paragraph (4), on an elec24 tion by Carbon County, convey to Carbon Coun25 ty fee interest in the Roads, as determined by 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
9 

•S 14 IS

1 the survey required under subsection (a), sub2 ject to all valid rights-of-way, licenses, and 

3 easements in existence on the date of enactment 

4 of this Act. 

5 (2) CONVEYANCE REQUIREMENTS.—A convey6 ance under paragraph (1)(A)(i) shall be subject to— 

7 (A) the claimant paying to the Secretary 

8 the fair market value of the fee interest in the 

9 claimed portion of the Federal land, as deter10 mined by the Secretary under subsection (b), 

11 exclusive of the value of any structures; 

12 (B) provisions under which the claimant 

13 shall agree to indemnify and hold harmless the 

14 United States for all claims by the claimant or 

15 others arising from— 

16 (i) the design, construction, operation, 

17 maintenance, or replacement of Scofield 

18 Dam and Reservoir; 

19 (ii) the survey of claims, description of 

20 claims, delineation of boundaries, convey21 ance documents, conveyance process, and 

22 recording of deeds associated with the con23 veyance; and 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
10 

•S 14 IS

1 (iii) any damages associated with any 

2 structure or chattel of the claimant that 

3 may be displaced in a flood event; 

4 (C) the United States retaining a flood 

5 easement as well as an access easement for pur6 poses of monitoring and enforcing the require7 ments of subparagraph (D) with respect to the 

8 entire portion of Federal land conveyed; and 

9 (D) deed restrictions requiring that— 

10 (i) to prevent any structure on the 

11 portion of the Federal land conveyed from 

12 being displaced during a flood event, the 

13 claimant shall— 

14 (I) secure or tie down all existing 

15 structures; and 

16 (II) if replacing or rebuilding 

17 such a structure, limit the replace18 ment or rebuilding to the number and 

19 type of structures in existence on the 

20 date of enactment of this Act; and 

21 (ii) all activities carried out by the 

22 claimant under clause (i) with respect to a 

23 structure be carried out in accordance with 

24 applicable standards for structures that 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
11 

•S 14 IS

1 may be submerged, flooded, or inundated, 

2 as contained in— 

3 (I) the International Building 

4 Code (as adopted by Utah Adminis5 trative Code R156–56); or 

6 (II) any other building code or 

7 engineering standard that is— 

8 (aa) similar to the Inter9 national Building Code; 

10 (bb) widely used; and 

11 (cc) nationally recognized. 

12 (3) LIFE ESTATE REQUIREMENTS.—A life es13 tate granted under paragraph (1)(A)(ii) shall be 

14 subject to— 

15 (A) the claimant paying to the Secretary 

16 the fair market value of the life estate on the 

17 claimed portion of the Federal land, as deter18 mined by the Secretary under subsection (b), 

19 but excluding the value of any structures; 

20 (B) provisions under which the claimant 

21 agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the 

22 United States for all claims by the claimant or 

23 others arising from— 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
12 

•S 14 IS

1 (i) the design, construction, operation, 

2 maintenance, or replacement of Scofield 

3 Dam and Reservoir; 

4 (ii) the survey of claims, description of 

5 claims, delineation of boundaries, convey6 ance documents, conveyance process, and 

7 recording of deeds associated with the con8 veyance; and 

9 (iii) any damages associated with any 

10 structure or chattel of the claimant that 

11 may be displaced in a flood event; and 

12 (C) restrictions equivalent to the deed re13 strictions described in clauses (i) and (ii) of 

14 paragraph (2)(D), as applicable. 

15 (4) CONVEYANCE OF ROADS REQUIREMENTS.— 

16 A conveyance under paragraph (1)(B) shall be sub17 ject to— 

18 (A) Carbon County paying to the Secretary 

19 a sum determined to be acceptable by the Sec20 retary; 

21 (B) provisions under which Carbon County 

22 shall agree to indemnify and hold harmless the 

23 United States for all claims by Carbon County 

24 or others arising from— 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
13 

•S 14 IS

1 (i) the design, construction, operation, 

2 maintenance, or replacement of Scofield 

3 Dam and Reservoir; 

4 (ii) the survey of claims, description of 

5 claims, delineation of boundaries, convey6 ance documents, conveyance process, and 

7 recording of deeds associated with the con8 veyance; and 

9 (iii) any damages associated with 

10 structures or chattel of Carbon County 

11 that may be displaced in a flood event; 

12 (C) the United States retaining a flood 

13 easement as well as an access easement for pur14 poses of monitoring and enforcing the require15 ments of subparagraph (D) with respect to the 

16 entire portion of the Roads conveyed; and 

17 (D) restrictions equivalent to the deed re18 strictions described in clauses (i) and (ii) of 

19 paragraph (2)(D), as applicable. 

20 (5) COMPLIANCE WITH ENVIRONMENTAL

21 LAWS.— 

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—Before conveying the 

23 Federal land under paragraph (1)(A)(i) or the 

24 Roads under paragraph (1)(B) or granting a 

25 life estate under paragraph (1)(A)(ii), the SecVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:24 Jan 08, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S14.IS S14

emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
14 

•S 14 IS

1 retary shall comply with all applicable require2 ments under— 

3 (i) the National Environmental Policy 

4 Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); 

5 (ii) the Endangered Species Act of 

6 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); and 

7 (iii) any other applicable law. 

8 (B) EFFECT.—Nothing in this Act modi9 fies or alters any obligations under— 

10 (i) the National Environmental Policy 

11 Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); or 

12 (ii) the Endangered Species Act of 

13 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). 

14 (C) COSTS.—Before the initiation of any 

15 conveyance under this Act, Carbon County shall 

16 pay to the Secretary an amount equal to the 

17 costs associated with achieving environmental 

18 compliance under this paragraph. 

19 (6) DEADLINE FOR ELECTION.— 

20 (A) CLAIMANTS.—Not later than 5 years 

21 after the date of enactment of this Act, each 

22 claimant shall notify the Secretary in writing 

23 whether the claimant elects to receive— 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
15 

•S 14 IS

1 (i) a fee interest in the claimed por2 tion of the Federal land, in accordance 

3 with paragraph (1)(A)(i); or 

4 (ii) a life estate in the claimed portion 

5 of the Federal land, in accordance with 

6 paragraph (1)(A)(ii). 

7 (B) CARBON COUNTY.—Not later than 3 

8 years after the date of enactment of this Act, 

9 Carbon County shall notify the Secretary in 

10 writing whether Carbon County elects to receive 

11 a fee interest in the Roads, in accordance with 

12 paragraph (1)(B). 

13 (7) FAILURE TO NOTIFY SECRETARY OR COM14 PLETE TRANSFER.— 

15 (A) NOTICE OF ELECTION.—If a claimant 

16 fails to submit to the Secretary a notice of an 

17 election in accordance with paragraph (6)(A), 

18 any future claim by the claimant with respect 

19 to the Federal land shall be terminated. 

20 (B) TRANSFER.— 

21 (i) CLAIMANTS.—If, due to a failure 

22 by the claimant to act in furtherance of 

23 the transfer of fee interest or life estate 

24 under this section, no transfer of the 

25 claimed Federal Land has been recorded 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
16 

•S 14 IS

1 with the recorder of Carbon County by the 

2 date that is 7 years after the date of enact3 ment of this Act, any claim by the claim4 ant with respect to the Federal land shall 

5 be terminated. 

6 (ii) CARBON COUNTY.—If, due to a 

7 failure by Carbon County to act in further8 ance of the transfer of fee interest, no 

9 transfer of the Roads has been recorded 

10 with the recorder of Carbon County by the 

11 date that is 5 years after the date of enact12 ment of this Act, the authority of the Sec13 retary to convey the interest in the Roads 

14 shall be terminated. 

15 (C) QUIET TITLE.—On extinguishment of 

16 a claim under subparagraph (A) or (B), the 

17 Secretary shall take such action as is necessary 

18 to quiet title to the applicable portion of the 

19 Federal land, including removal of persons, en20 tities, structures, and materials encumbering 

21 the applicable portion of the Federal land. 

22 (8) PAYMENTS IN LIEU OF TAXES.—Any Fed23 eral land transferred to a claimant in fee under 

24 paragraph (1)(A)(i) or to Carbon County under 

25 paragraph (1)(B) shall not be included or taken into 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
17 

•S 14 IS

1 consideration in the allocation of any payment in 

2 lieu of taxes under chapter 69 of title 31, United 

3 States Code. 

4 (9) TRUST FUND.— 

5 (A) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is estab6 lished in the Treasury of the United States a 

7 fund, to be known as the ‘‘Scofield Reservoir 

8 Fund’’, to be administered by the Secretary and 

9 made available, without fiscal year limitation, 

10 for— 

11 (i) monitoring and enforcing the re12 quirements of paragraphs (2)(C), (3)(C), 

13 and (4)(C) regarding maintaining access 

14 to, and eliminating encroachment and pri15 vate exclusive use of, the Federal land sur16 rounding the Scofield Reservoir; and 

17 (ii) providing enhanced public rec18 reational opportunities at Scofield Res19 ervoir. 

20 (B) TRANSFERS TO FUND.—There shall be 

21 deposited in the Fund any amounts received as 

22 consideration for— 

23 (i) a conveyance under subparagraph 

24 (A)(i) or (B) of paragraph (1); or 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
18 

•S 14 IS

1 (ii) the granting of a life estate under 

2 paragraph (1)(A)(ii). 

Æ 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS