II

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1505

To amend the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 to enhance

the management of Federal lands, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

SEPTEMBER 30 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 27), 1993

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

referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

A BILL

To amend the Federal Land Policy and Management Act

of 1976 to enhance the management of Federal lands,

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 ‘‘Natural Resource Em5 ployment Transition Assistance Act of 1993’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 Congress finds that—

8 (1) more than 450 million acres of Federal land

9 are administered as public lands (as the term is de10 fined in section 103(e) of the Federal Land Policy
2

•S 1505 IS

1 and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1702(e))

2 by the Bureau of Land Management of the Depart3 ment of the Interior;

4 (2) most of the public lands are located in 11

5 western States and Alaska;

6 (3) the public lands constitute the largest Fed7 eral land management system and comprise over 60

8 percent of all federally owned real property;

9 (4) as much as 75 percent of the 2.2 billion

10 acres of land in the United States has been in the

11 public domain, including practically all the lands

12 within the boundaries of all States excluding Texas

13 and Hawaii;

14 (5) pursuant to the policies set forth in the

15 Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976

16 (42 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), the Bureau of Land Man17 agement manages most public lands;

18 (6) the Secretary of the Interior (referred to in

19 this section as the ‘‘Secretary’’) is required to man20 age public lands according to multiple use and sus21 tained yield principles involving an interdisciplinary

22 approach that includes physical, biological, and eco23 nomic disciplines, and is required to weigh long-term

24 benefits to the public against short-term gains;
3

•S 1505 IS

1 (7) in the management of public lands, the Sec2 retary is required to give special consideration to the

3 designation and protection of critical environmental

4 areas;

5 (8) the Secretary is authorized to withdraw

6 land for the purpose of limiting activities to main7 tain other public values in an area, or to reserve the

8 area for a specific purpose;

9 (9) many withdrawals curtail or adversely affect

10 economic uses of the public lands;

11 (10) the Secretary is authorized to regulate the

12 use, occupancy, and development of public lands

13 through such instruments as rules, easements, li14 censes, leases, and permits;

15 (11) the Secretary may order a suspension of

16 the instruments described in paragraph (10) if the

17 Secretary determines that the suspension is nec18 essary to protect public health or safety, or the envi19 ronment;

20 (12) the Secretary has promulgated and follows

21 guidelines for land use planning on all public lands

22 managed by the Bureau of Land Management;

23 (13) public lands are widely seen as valuable

24 national assets, capable of providing the best public

25 benefits through continued Federal ownership, but
4

•S 1505 IS

1 are sorely in need of more effective economic man2 agement;

3 (14) many workers have suffered adverse eco4 nomic conditions caused by Federal laws and regula5 tions that govern the use of natural resources on

6 public lands;

7 (15) many of the workers who have been dis8 located by restrictions placed on the use of public

9 domain lands limiting the use of natural resources

10 have unique skills that are not readily transferable

11 to other industries;

12 (16) reemployment opportunities are often lim13 ited in the area in which the workers were formerly

14 employed;

15 (17) economic assistance is necessary for work16 ers who have been dislocated because Federal poli17 cies have led to their economic hardships;

18 (18) assistance programs are often inadequate

19 or nonexistent for workers who have lost their jobs

20 and are in need of assistance as a result of Federal

21 land management decisions affecting public land;

22 (19) there is a need for financial and technical

23 assistance for workers who have suffered adverse

24 economic conditions; and
5

•S 1505 IS

1 (20) an assistance program should be estab2 lished that promotes technical, financial, and other

3 types of assistance to workers.

4 SEC. 3. PURPOSE.

5 It is the purpose of this Act to improve the ability

6 of the Secretary of the Interior to manage the public lands

7 of the United States pursuant to the requirements of the

8 Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43

9 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) by providing an assistance program

10 for workers who were or are currently threatened to be

11 dislocated from employment as a result of restrictions

12 placed on public lands.

13 SEC. 4. NATURAL RESOURCE EMPLOYMENT TRANSITION

14 ASSISTANCE.

15 (a) ECONOMIC IMPACT STATEMENT.—Section 204(b)

16 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976

17 (43 U.S.C. 1714(b)) is amended by adding at the end the

18 following new paragraph:

19 ‘‘(3)(A) The Secretary shall include with each notice

20 published pursuant to paragraph (1) a detailed statement

21 of the economic impact of the proposed withdrawal. The

22 economic impact statement shall accompany the proposal

23 for withdrawal through the agency review process.

24 ‘‘(B) The economic impact statement shall include an

25 analysis of—
6

•S 1505 IS

1 ‘‘(i) the economic impact of the proposed with2 drawal on Federal, State, and local revenues, the

3 local tax bases, school financing, social services, and

4 infrastructure funding, unemployment levels, and in5 flation;

6 ‘‘(ii) any adverse economic effects that could

7 not be avoided if the proposed withdrawal was to

8 take place;

9 ‘‘(iii) alternatives to the proposed withdrawal,

10 including the alternative of no withdrawal;

11 ‘‘(iv) an assessment of Federal funding require12 ments for recreational facility maintenance; and

13 ‘‘(v) an assessment of the impact of the pro14 posed withdrawal on Federal land and natural re15 source management policies.

16 ‘‘(C) If the Secretary determines that a proposed

17 withdrawal would result in no significant economic impact,

18 the Secretary shall include in the economic impact state19 ment a finding that reflects the determination, including

20 an explanation of the finding.

21 ‘‘(D) Prior to preparing an economic impact state22 ment, the Secretary shall consult with each Federal, State,

23 and local agency that has jurisdiction by law or special

24 expertise with respect to each economic impact involved.
7

•S 1505 IS

1 ‘‘(E)(i) Copies of the economic impact statement and

2 the comments of the appropriate Federal, State, and local

3 agencies, shall be made available to the public.

4 ‘‘(ii) The Secretary shall provide for a period during

5 which the public may comment on the proposal for with6 drawal. The public comments shall be appended to the eco7 nomic impact statement.

8 ‘‘(F) The Secretary shall prepare a record of decision

9 for each withdrawal decision, including a rejection of an

10 application for withdrawal. The record of decision shall

11 summarize the actions of the agency and explain the rejec12 tion of the proposed alternatives.’’.

13 (b) TRANSITION ASSISTANCE.—The Federal Land

14 Policy and Management Act of 1976 (42 U.S.C. 1701 et

15 seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new

16 title:

17 ‘‘TITLE VIII—TRANSITION

18 ASSISTANCE

19 ‘‘SEC. 801. NATURAL RESOURCE EMPLOYMENT TRANSITION

20 ASSISTANCE.

21 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS AND DETERMINATION OF ELIGI22 BILITY.—

23 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section:

24 ‘‘(A) ADVERSELY AFFECTED EMPLOY25 MENT.—The term ‘adversely affected employ-
8

•S 1505 IS

1 ment’ means work in an industry, occupation,

2 or establishment (including the timber industry

3 or an occupation or establishment related to the

4 timber industry) that, as a direct or indirect re5 sult of the implementation of this Act—

6 ‘‘(i) has sustained or is projected to

7 sustain substantial economic harm;

8 ‘‘(ii) has experienced, is experiencing,

9 or will experience interruptions in the sup10 ply of raw materials or goods used in man11 ufacturing; or

12 ‘‘(iii) will gradually decline or down13 size or experience an acceleration of de14 cline.

15 ‘‘(B) ADVERSELY AFFECTED WORKER.—

16 The term ‘adversely affected worker’ means an

17 individual who—

18 ‘‘(i) is an eligible dislocated worker

19 within the meaning of section 301(a)(1) of

20 the Job Training Partnership Act (29

21 U.S.C. 1651(a)(1)); and

22 ‘‘(ii)(I) has been totally, partially, or

23 temporarily separated from work that is

24 considered as adversely affected employ-
9

•S 1505 IS

1 ment within the 3-year period beginning on

2 the date of enactment of this section; or

3 ‘‘(II) has received a notice of termi4 nation or layoff from such work.

5 ‘‘(C) AFFECTED STATE.—The term ‘af6 fected State’ means any of the several States of

7 the United States and the District of Columbia

8 in which there is adversely affected employ9 ment.

10 ‘‘(D) PRIVATE INDUSTRY COUNCIL.—The

11 term ‘private industry council’ means a private

12 industry council described in section 102 of the

13 Job Training Partnership Act (29 U.S.C.

14 1512).

15 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATIONS.—The determination of

16 whether an individual is an adversely affected work17 er under paragraph (1)(A)(ii) shall be made by the

18 Secretary of the Interior, pursuant to criteria estab19 lished by the Secretary, in consultation with the Ad20 ministrator of the Environmental Protection Agency,

21 the Secretary of the Army, the Secretary of Com22 merce, the Secretary of Energy, the Secretary of Ag23 riculture, or the Secretary of Labor, as appropriate.

24 ‘‘(3) CERTIFICATION.—The Secretary of the In25 terior, in consultation with the Administrator of the
10

•S 1505 IS

1 Environmental Protection Agency, the Secretary of

2 the Army, the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary

3 of Energy, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Sec4 retary of Labor, and the Governor of an affected

5 State, shall certify an industry, occupation, or estab6 lishment based on the implementation of this Act as

7 one in which there is adversely affected employment.

8 ‘‘(4) CONCLUSIVE PRESUMPTION.—

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The total, partial, or

10 temporary layoff, or the notification of termi11 nation or layoff of an adversely affected worker

12 after 1981, on which certification of an affected

13 State is based under paragraph (3) shall be

14 conclusively presumed to be attributable to

15 compliance with this Act.

16 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—No conclusive pre17 sumption exists under subparagraph (A) if an

18 adversely affected worker has voluntarily quit,

19 been laid off, or been terminated from a job for

20 a cause that would disqualify such worker for

21 unemployment compensation under the State

22 law.

23 ‘‘(b) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may award

25 grants to States, substate grantees (as described in
11

•S 1505 IS

1 paragraph (2)), employers, employer associations,

2 and labor organizations—

3 ‘‘(A) to provide training, adjustment as4 sistance, and employment services to adversely

5 affected workers; and

6 ‘‘(B) to make needs-related payments to

7 such workers in accordance with subsection (g).

8 ‘‘(2) SUBSTATE GRANTEES.—Entities eligible

9 for designation as substate grantees include—

10 ‘‘(A) private industry councils in a sub11 state area designated by the Governor of the

12 State involved;

13 ‘‘(B) service delivery area grant recipients

14 or administrative entities;

15 ‘‘(C) private nonprofit organizations;

16 ‘‘(D) units of general local government in

17 the substate area, or agencies thereof;

18 ‘‘(E) local offices of State agencies; and

19 ‘‘(F) other public agencies, such as com20 munity colleges and area vocational schools.

21 ‘‘(c) GRANT AMOUNT.—

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The amount of a grant

23 awarded under this section shall be based on a per24 centage developed by the Secretary through consid25 eration of the ratio of—
12

•S 1505 IS

1 ‘‘(A) the per capita incidence of adversely

2 affected workers in each State; to

3 ‘‘(B) the per capita incidence of adversely

4 affected workers in all States.

5 ‘‘(2) RURAL AREAS.—The Secretary shall not

6 award a grant under subsection (b) unless the appli7 cant provides assurances that the applicant will use

8 a portion of the amount awarded under the grant to

9 provide training, adjustment assistance, employment

10 services, and needs-related payments to adversely af11 fected workers in rural areas.

12 ‘‘(d) PRIORITY AND APPROVAL.—

13 ‘‘(1) APPLICATION.—

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to re15 ceive a grant under subsection (b), a State, sub16 state grantee, employer, employer association,

17 or labor organization shall submit an applica18 tion to the Secretary at such time, in such man19 ner, and containing such assurances as the Sec20 retary may require.

21 ‘‘(B) REVIEW PRIOR TO SUBMISSION.—

22 Prior to the submission of an application under

23 subparagraph (A), an applicant shall—
13

•S 1505 IS

1 ‘‘(i) submit the application for review

2 and comment to the appropriate private in3 dustry council and the State; and

4 ‘‘(ii) offer local labor organizations

5 the opportunity to provide comments on

6 the application.

7 ‘‘(C) DOCUMENTATION.—An applicant

8 that submits an application under subpara9 graph (B) shall maintain all documentation re10 lating to consultations with the entities de11 scribed in clauses (i) and (ii) of such subpara12 graph.

13 ‘‘(2) NEEDS-RELATED PAYMENTS REQUIRED.—

14 The Secretary shall not approve an application for

15 a grant under subsection (b) unless the application

16 contains assurances that the applicant will use

17 amounts provided under the grant to provide needs18 related payments in accordance with subsection (g).

19 ‘‘(e) USE OF FUNDS.—Subject to the requirements

20 of subsections (f) and (g), grants under subsection (b)

21 may be used for any purpose for which funds may be used

22 under section 314 of the Job Training Partnership Act

23 (29 U.S.C. 1661c).

24 ‘‘(f) ADJUSTMENT ASSISTANCE.—
14

•S 1505 IS

1 ‘‘(1) JOB SEARCH ALLOWANCE.—Grants under

2 subsection (b) for adjustment assistance may be

3 used to provide a job search allowance to an ad4 versely affected worker. Such allowance, if provided,

5 shall provide reimbursement to such worker in an

6 amount that does not exceed 90 percent of the cost

7 to such worker for necessary job search expenses, as

8 prescribed by regulations of the Secretary, or $800,

9 whichever is less, unless the need for a greater

10 amount is demonstrated in the application and ap11 proved by the Secretary.

12 ‘‘(2) CRITERIA FOR AWARDING JOB SEARCH AL13 LOWANCES.—A job search allowance may be pro14 vided only—

15 ‘‘(A) to assist an adversely affected worker

16 who has been totally separated in securing a job

17 within the United States; and

18 ‘‘(B) if the Secretary determines that the

19 adversely affected worker cannot reasonably be

20 expected to secure suitable employment in the

21 commuting area in which such worker resides.

22 ‘‘(g) NEEDS-RELATED PAYMENTS.—The Secretary

23 shall prescribe regulations with respect to the use of

24 amounts awarded under a grant under subsection (b) for

25 needs-related payments in order to enable adversely af-
15

•S 1505 IS

1 fected workers to complete training or education programs

2 under this section. Such regulations shall—

3 ‘‘(1) require that needs-related payments shall

4 be provided to an adversely affected worker only if

5 such worker—

6 ‘‘(A)(i) qualifies for emergency or extended

7 unemployment benefits; or

8 ‘‘(ii) does not qualify or has ceased to

9 qualify for unemployment compensation;

10 ‘‘(B) is participating in training or edu11 cation programs under this section, except that

12 the regulations shall protect an adversely af13 fected worker from being disqualified pursuant

14 to this subparagraph for a failure to participate

15 that is not the fault of such worker; and

16 ‘‘(C) receives, or is a member of a family

17 that receives, a total family income (exclusive of

18 unemployment compensation, child support pay19 ments, and welfare payments) that, in relation

20 to family size, is not in excess of the lower liv21 ing standard income level;

22 ‘‘(2) provide that an adversely affected worker

23 may not be disqualified from receipt of needs-related

24 payments if such worker terminates temporary or
16

•S 1505 IS

1 part-time employment to participate in a training or

2 education program under this section;

3 ‘‘(3) provide that not later than 30 days after

4 enrollment in a training program, an adversely af5 fected worker shall receive needs-related payments if

6 such worker—

7 ‘‘(A) does not qualify or has ceased to

8 qualify for unemployment compensation; and

9 ‘‘(B) has enrolled in a training program

10 under this section;

11 ‘‘(4) provide for procedures for waiving maxi12 mum benefits requirements;

13 ‘‘(5) provide for procedures for allowing the

14 payment of needs-related payments based on special

15 needs that shall be determined by the Secretary on

16 appeal;

17 ‘‘(6) provide that the levels of needs-related

18 payments to an adversely affected worker who does

19 not qualify or has ceased to qualify for unemploy20 ment compensation shall be equal to the higher of—

21 ‘‘(A) the applicable level of unemployment

22 compensation; or

23 ‘‘(B) the official poverty line (as defined by

24 the Office of Management and Budget, and re25 vised annually by the Secretary of Health and
17

•S 1505 IS

1 Human Services in accordance with section

2 673(2) of the Community Services Block Grant

3 Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2));

4 ‘‘(7) provide that the amount of needs-related

5 payments to an adversely affected worker who quali6 fies for emergency or extended unemployment bene7 fits shall be equal to the difference between the

8 amount of such worker’s compensation and the

9 amount of such worker’s unemployment benefits;

10 ‘‘(8) provide for the adjustment of payments to

11 reflect changes in total family income; and

12 ‘‘(9) provide that the grantee shall obtain infor13 mation with respect to such income, and changes

14 therein, from the adversely affected worker.

15 ‘‘(h) COUNSELING AND REFERRALS.—Not later than

16 45 days after an adversely affected worker qualifies for

17 unemployment benefits, a grantee under this section shall

18 provide employment counseling and referral to training

19 programs, if needed, to such worker.

20 ‘‘(i) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Inte22 rior may reserve not more than 5 percent of the

23 awards appropriated under this section for the ad24 ministration of activities authorized under this sec-
18

•S 1505 IS

1 tion, including the provision of technical assistance

2 for the preparation of grant applications.

3 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY.—In the provision of technical

4 assistance for preparation of grant applications

5 under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall give prior6 ity to nongovernmental and nonprofit organizations.

7 ‘‘(j) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days after

8 the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall

9 prescribe regulations to carry out this section.

10 ‘‘(k) GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE ASSESSMENT

11 OF EFFECTS OF COMPLIANCE WITH ENVIRONMENTAL

12 POLICIES.—The Comptroller General of the United States

13 shall—

14 ‘‘(1) identify and assess, to the extent possible,

15 the effects on Federal land management and natural

16 resources policy, and on employment, that are attrib17 utable to compliance with the provisions of this Act,

18 the National Forest Management Act of 1976, the

19 Migratory Bird Treaty Act, the Act commonly

20 known as the Clean Water Act, the National Envi21 ronmental Policy Act of 1969, the Forest and

22 Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of

23 1974, the Multiple-Use Sustained-Yield Act of 1960

24 or the Endangered Species Act of 1973, and any
19

•S 1505 IS

1 other Federal land management and natural re2 source policies; and

3 ‘‘(2) submit to Congress on the date that is 4

4 years after the date of the enactment of this section

5 a written report on the assessments required under

6 paragraph (1).

7 ‘‘(l) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be

9 appropriated $100,000,000 for fiscal year 1994, and

10 such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal

11 years 1995 through 1998 to carry out this section.

12 The total amount appropriated for all 5 such fiscal

13 years shall not exceed $500,000,000.

14 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts appropriated

15 pursuant to this subsection shall remain available

16 until expended.’’.

Æ

S 1505 IS——2