I

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1506

To provide for the orderly disposal of certain Federal land in the State

of Nevada and for the acquisition of environmentally sensitive land in

the State, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

APRIL 21, 1999

Mr. GIBBONS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the

Committee on Resources

A BILL

To provide for the orderly disposal of certain Federal land

in the State of Nevada and for the acquisition of environmentally sensitive land in the State, 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 ‘‘Nevada Public Land

5 Management Act of 1999’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—
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1 (1) Federal holdings in the State of Nevada

2 constitute over 87 percent of the area of the State,

3 and in 10 of the 17 counties the Federal Govern4 ment controls at least 80 percent of the land;

5 (2) the large amount of federally controlled

6 land in Nevada and the lack of an adequate private

7 land ownership base has had a negative impact on

8 the overall economic development of rural counties

9 and communities and severely degraded the ability of

10 local governments to provide necessary services;

11 (3) under general land laws less than 3 percent

12 of the Federal land in Nevada has moved from Fed13 eral control to private ownership in the last 130

14 years;

15 (4) in resource management plans, the Bureau

16 of Land Management has identified for disposal land

17 that is difficult and costly to manage and that would

18 more appropriately be in non-Federal ownership;

19 (5) implementation of Federal land manage20 ment plans has been impaired by the lack of nec21 essary funding to provide the needed improvements

22 and the lack of land management programs to ac23 complish the goals and standards set out in the

24 plans; and
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1 (6) the lack of a private land tax base prevents

2 most local governments from providing the appro3 priate infrastructure to allow timely development of

4 land that is disposed of by the Federal Government

5 for community expansion and economic growth.

6 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are to pro7 vide for—

8 (1) the orderly disposal and use of certain Fed9 eral land in the State of Nevada that was not in10 cluded in the Southern Nevada Public Land Man11 agement Act of 1998 (Public Law 105–263; 112

12 Stat. 2343);

13 (2) the acquisition of environmentally sensitive

14 land in the State; and

15 (3) the implementation of projects and activities

16 in the State to protect or restore important environ17 mental and cultural resources.

18 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

19 In this Act:

20 (1) CURRENT LAND USE PLAN.—The term

21 ‘‘current land use plan’’, with respect to an adminis22 trative unit of the Bureau of Land Management,

23 means the management framework plan or resource

24 management plan applicable to the unit that was ap-
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1 proved most recently before the date of enactment of

2 this Act.

3 (2) ENVIRONMENTALLY SENSITIVE LAND.—The

4 term ‘‘environmentally sensitive land’’ means land or

5 an interest in land, the acquisition of which the

6 United States would, in the judgment of the Sec7 retary or the Secretary of Agriculture—

8 (A) promote the preservation of natural,

9 scientific, aesthetic, historical, cultural, water10 shed, wildlife, or other values that contribute to

11 public enjoyment or biological diversity;

12 (B) enhance recreational opportunities or

13 public access;

14 (C) provide the opportunity to achieve bet15 ter management of public land through consoli16 dation of Federal ownership; or

17 (D) otherwise serve the public interest.

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

19 the Secretary of the Interior.

20 (4) SPECIAL ACCOUNT.—The term ‘‘Special Ac21 count’’ means the account established by section 6.

22 (5) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State

23 of Nevada.

24 (6) UNIT OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT.—The term

25 ‘‘unit of local government’’ means the elected gov-
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1 erning body of each city and county in the State ex2 cept the cities of Las Vegas, Henderson, and North

3 Las Vegas.

4 SEC. 4. DISPOSAL AND EXCHANGE.

5 (a) DISPOSAL.—In accordance with this Act, the

6 Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43

7 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), and other applicable law and subject

8 to valid existing rights, the Secretary may dispose of pub9 lic land under current land use plans maintained under

10 section 202 of the Federal Land Policy and Management

11 Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1713), other than land that is

12 identified for disposal under the Southern Nevada Public

13 Land Management Act of 1998 (Public Law 105–263;

14 112 Stat. 2343).

15 (b) RECREATION AND PUBLIC PURPOSE CONVEY16 ANCES.—

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not less than 30 days before

18 offering land for sale or exchange under subsection

19 (a), the State or the unit of local government in the

20 jurisdiction of which the land is located may elect to

21 obtain the land for local public purposes under the

22 Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize acquisition or use

23 of public lands by States, counties, or municipalities

24 for recreational purposes’’, approved June 14, 1926
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1 (commonly known as the ‘‘Recreation and Public

2 Purposes Act’’) (43 U.S.C. 869 et seq.).

3 (2) RETENTION BY SECRETARY.—If the State

4 or unit of local government elects to obtain the land,

5 the Secretary shall retain the land for conveyance to

6 the State or unit of local government in accordance

7 with that Act.

8 (c) WITHDRAWAL.—Subject to valid existing rights,

9 all Federal land selected for disposal under subsection

10 (d)(1) is withdrawn from location and entry under the

11 mining laws and from operation under the mineral leasing

12 and geothermal leasing laws until the Secretary termi13 nates the withdrawal or the land is patented.

14 (d) SELECTION.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, the unit of

16 local government that has jurisdiction over land

17 identified for disposal under subsection (a), and the

18 State shall jointly select land to be offered for sale

19 or exchange under this section.

20 (2) COORDINATION.—The Secretary shall co21 ordinate land disposal activities with the unit of local

22 government under the jurisdiction of which the land

23 is located.

24 (3) LOCAL LAND USE PLANNING AND ZONING

25 REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary shall dispose of
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1 land under this section in a manner that is con2 sistent with local land use planning and zoning re3 quirements and recommendations.

4 (e) SALES OFFERING, PRICE, PROCEDURES, AND

5 PROHIBITIONS.—

6 (1) OFFERING.—The Secretary shall make the

7 first offering of land as soon as practicable after

8 land has been selected under subsection (d).

9 (2) SALE PRICE.—

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall

11 make all sales of land under this section at a

12 price that is not less than the fair market value

13 of the land, as determined by the Secretary.

14 (B) AFFORDABLE HOUSING.—Subpara15 graph (A) does not affect the authority of the

16 Secretary to make land available at less than

17 fair market value for affordable housing pur18 poses under section 7(b) of the Southern Ne19 vada Public Land Management Act of 1998

20 (Public Law 105–263; 112 Stat. 2349).

21 (3) COMPETITIVE BIDDING.—

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—The sale of public land

23 selected under subsection (d) shall be conducted

24 in accordance with sections 203 and 209 of the
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1 Federal Land Policy and Management Act of

2 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1713, 1719).

3 (B) EXCEPTIONS.—The exceptions to com4 petitive bidding requirements under section

5 203(f) of the Federal Land Policy and Manage6 ment Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1713(f)) shall

7 apply to sales under this Act in cases in which

8 the Secretary determines that application of an

9 exception is necessary and proper.

10 (C) NOTICE OF COMPETITIVE BIDDING

11 PROCEDURES.—The Secretary shall also ensure

12 adequate notice of competitive bidding proce13 dures to—

14 (i) owners of land adjoining the land

15 proposed for sale;

16 (ii) local governments in the vicinity

17 of the land proposed for sale; and

18 (iii) the State.

19 (4) PROHIBITIONS.—A sale of a tract of land

20 selected under subsection (d) shall not be under21 taken if the Federal costs of sale preparation and

22 processing are estimated to exceed the proceeds of

23 the sale.

24 (f) DISPOSITION OF PROCEEDS.—
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1 (1) LAND SALES.—Of the gross proceeds of

2 sales of land under this section during a fiscal

3 year—

4 (A) 5 percent shall be paid to the State for

5 use in the general education program of the

6 State;

7 (B) 45 percent shall be paid directly to the

8 local unit of government in the jurisdiction of

9 which the land is located for use as determined

10 by the unit of local government, with consider11 ation given to use for support of health care de12 livery, law enforcement, and schools; and

13 (C) 50 percent shall be deposited in the

14 Special Account.

15 (2) LAND EXCHANGES.—

16 (A) IN GENERAL.—In a land exchange

17 under this section, the non-Federal party shall

18 provide direct payment to the unit of local gov19 ernment in the jurisdiction of which the land is

20 located in an amount equal to 15 percent of the

21 fair market value of the Federal land conveyed

22 in the exchange.

23 (B) TREATMENT OF PAYMENTS AS COST

24 INCURRED.—If any agreement to initiate the

25 exchange so provides, a payment under sub-
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1 paragraph (A) shall be considered to be a cost

2 incurred by the non-Federal party that shall be

3 compensated by the Secretary.

4 (C) PENDING EXCHANGES.—This Act,

5 other than subsections (a) and (b) and this sub6 section, shall not apply to any land exchange

7 for which an initial agreement to initiate an ex8 change was signed by an authorized representa9 tive of the exchange proponent and an author10 ized officer of the Bureau of Land Management

11 before the date of enactment of this Act.

12 (g) ADDITIONAL DISPOSAL LAND.—Public land iden13 tified for disposal in the State under a replacement of or

14 amendment to a current land use plan shall be subject

15 to this Act.

16 SEC. 5. ACQUISITION OF ENVIRONMENTALLY SENSITIVE

17 LAND.

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—After consultation in accordance

19 with subsection (c), the Secretary may use funds in the

20 Special Account and any other funds that are made avail21 able by law to acquire environmentally sensitive land and

22 interests in environmentally sensitive land.

23 (b) CONSENT.—The Secretary may acquire environ24 mentally sensitive land under this section only from willing

25 sellers.
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1 (c) PERMISSION.—

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—Before initiating efforts to

3 acquire environmentally sensitive land under this

4 section, the Secretary or the Secretary of Agri5 culture shall consult and obtain consent from the

6 State and units of local government under the juris7 diction of which the environmentally sensitive land is

8 located (including appropriate planning and regu9 latory agencies) before they can acquire the land.

10 (2) INFORMATION.—The Secretary or Secretary

11 of Agriculture shall provide the State and units of

12 local government with the following:

13 (A) An explanation of why the acquisition

14 is necessary.

15 (B) An analysis of the potential impact of

16 the acquisition on State and local government.

17 (C) Information regarding other appro18 priate aspects of the acquisition.

19 (d) ADMINISTRATION.—On acceptance of title by the

20 United States, any environmentally sensitive land or inter21 est in environmentally sensitive land acquired under this

22 section that is within the boundaries of a unit of the Na23 tional Forest System, the National Park System, the Na24 tional Wildlife Refuge System, the National Wild and Sce25 nic Rivers System, the National Trails System, the Na-
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1 tional Wilderness Preservation System, any other system

2 established by law, or any national conservation or recre3 ation area established by law—

4 (1) shall become part of the unit or area with5 out further action by the Secretary or Secretary of

6 Agriculture; and

7 (2) shall be managed in accordance with all

8 laws (including regulations) and land use plans ap9 plicable to the unit or area.

10 (e) FAIR MARKET VALUE.—The fair market value of

11 environmentally sensitive land or an interest in environ12 mentally sensitive land to be acquired by the Secretary

13 or the Secretary of Agriculture under this section shall

14 be determined—

15 (1) under section 206 of the Federal Land Pol16 icy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1711)

17 and other applicable requirements and standards;

18 and

19 (2) without regard to the presence of a species

20 listed as a threatened species or endangered species

21 under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16

22 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

23 (f) PAYMENTS IN LIEU OF TAXES.—Section 6901(1)

24 of title 31, United States Code, is amended—
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1 (1) in subparagraph (G), by striking ‘‘or’’ at

2 the end;

3 (2) in subparagraph (H), by striking the period

4 at the end and inserting ‘‘; or ’’; and

5 (3) by adding at the end the following:

6 ‘‘(I) acquired by the Secretary of the Inte7 rior or the Secretary of Agriculture under sec8 tion 5 of the Nevada Public Land Management

9 Act of 1999 that is not otherwise described in

10 subparagraphs (A) through (G).’’.

11 SEC. 6. SPECIAL ACCOUNT.

12 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the

13 Treasury of the United States a separate account to be

14 used in carrying out this Act.

15 (b) CONTENTS.—The Special Account shall consist

16 of—

17 (1) amounts deposited in the Special Account

18 under section 4(f)(1)(B);

19 (2) donations to the Special Account; and

20 (3) appropriations to the Special Account.

21 (c) USE.—

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Amounts in the Special Ac23 count shall be available to the Secretary until ex24 pended, without further Act of appropriation, to

25 pay—
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1 (A) subject to paragraph (2), costs in2 curred by the Bureau of Land Management in

3 arranging sales or exchanges under this Act, in4 cluding the costs of land boundary surveys,

5 compliance with the National Environmental

6 Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.),

7 appraisals, environmental and cultural clear8 ances, and public notice;

9 (B) the cost of acquisition of environ10 mentally sensitive land or interest in such land

11 in the State;

12 (C) the cost of carrying out any necessary

13 revision or amendment of a current land use

14 plan of the Bureau of Land Management that

15 relates to land sold, exchanged, or acquired

16 under this Act;

17 (D) the cost of projects or programs to re18 store or protect wetlands, riparian areas, or cul19 tural, historic, prehistoric, or paleontological re20 sources, including petroglyphs;

21 (E) the cost of projects, programs, or land

22 acquisition to stabilize or restore water quality

23 and lake levels in Walker Lake; and

24 (F) related costs determined by the Sec25 retary.
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1 (2) LIMITATIONS.—

2 (A) COSTS IN ARRANGING SALES OR EX3 CHANGES.—Costs charged against the Special

4 Account for the purposes described in para5 graph (1)(A) shall not exceed the minimum

6 amount practicable in view of the fair market

7 value of the Federal land to be sold or ex8 changed.

9 (B) ACQUISITION.—Not more than 50 per10 cent of the amounts deposited in the Special

11 Account in any fiscal year may be used in that

12 fiscal year or any subsequent fiscal year for the

13 purpose described in paragraph (1)(B).

14 (3) PLAN REVISIONS AND AMENDMENTS.—The

15 process of revising or amending a land use plan shall

16 not cause delay or postponement in the implementa17 tion of this Act.

18 (d) INTEREST.—All funds deposited in the Special

19 Account shall earn interest in the amount determined by

20 the Secretary of the Treasury on the basis of the current

21 average market yield on outstanding marketable obliga22 tions of the United States of comparable maturities. Such

23 interest shall be added to the principal of the account and

24 expended in accordance with subsection 6(c).
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1 (e) COORDINATION.—The Secretary shall coordinate

2 the use of the Special Account with the Secretary of Agri3 culture, the State, and units of local government in which

4 land or an interest in land may be acquired, to ensure

5 accountability and demonstrated results.

6 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

7 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are nec8 essary to carry out this section.

9 SEC. 7. REPORT.

10 The Secretary, in cooperation with the Secretary of

11 Agriculture, shall submit to the Committee on Energy and

12 Natural Resources of the Senate and the Committee on

13 Resources of the House of Representatives a biennial re14 port that describes each transaction that is carried out

15 under this Act.

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