I

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 2077

To establish a National Forest Preserve consisting of certain Federal lands

in the Sequoia National Forest in the State of California to protect

and preserve remaining Giant Sequoia ecosystems and to provide increased recreational opportunities in connection with such ecosystems.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JUNE 8, 1999

Mr. BROWN of California introduced the following bill; which was referred to

the Committee on Resources

A BILL

To establish a National Forest Preserve consisting of certain

Federal lands in the Sequoia National Forest in the

State of California to protect and preserve remaining

Giant Sequoia ecosystems and to provide increased recreational opportunities in connection with such ecosystems.

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 AND TABLE OF CONTENTS.

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

5 ‘‘Sequoia Ecosystem and Recreation Preserve Act of

6 1999’’.
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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for

2 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents.

Sec. 2. Findings.

Sec. 3. Definitions.

Sec. 4. Expansion and establishment of wilderness areas in Sequoia and Inyo

National Forests.

Sec. 5. Establishment of Giant Sequoia National Forest Preserve.

Sec. 6. Purposes of Preserve.

Sec. 7. Preserve Scientific Advisory Team.

Sec. 8. Management plan.

Sec. 9. Designation of ancient forest reserves.

Sec. 10. Preserve transportation and access.

Sec. 11. Recreational facilities.

Sec. 12. Effect of Preserve on activities previously conducted in area covered

by Preserve.

Sec. 13. Effect of Preserve on other public or private interests.

Sec. 14. Water rights.

Sec. 15. Payments to local governments.

Sec. 16. Community Assistance Task Force.

Sec. 17. Preparation of budget proposal for Preserve.

Sec. 18. Authorization of appropriations.

3 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

4 The Congress finds the following:

5 (1) Giant Sequoia trees (Sequoiadendron

6 giganteum) are the largest of all living things and

7 the most majestic trees on earth. Without any help

8 or hindrance from humans, Giant Sequoia have lived

9 up to 3200 years and attained a height of 275 feet,

10 a diameter of 38 feet, a circumference of 120 feet,

11 and a weight of over 12,000,000 pounds. The largest

12 tree currently in the National Forest System is lo13 cated in the Sequoia National Forest, the Boole

14 Tree, a Giant Sequoia that stands 269 feet high and

15 has a diameter of 29 feet.
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1 (2) Giant Sequoias are survivors of a genus of

2 trees which once covered most of the northern hemi3 sphere, but are now native to only a small portion

4 of the Sierra Nevada range in the State of Cali5 fornia.

6 (3) The ancient forests of the Sequoia National

7 Forest are the homes of rare, threatened, and en8 dangered species of plants and wildlife.

9 (4) The ancient forests of the Sequoia National

10 Forest provide outstanding and unique recreational

11 opportunities for the people of the United States. Of

12 those units of the National Forest System located in

13 the Sierra Nevada range, the Sequoia National For14 est is located closest to Los Angeles and the bur15 geoning population in the Central Valley.

16 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

17 For purposes of this Act:

18 (1) PRESERVE.—The term ‘‘Preserve’’ means

19 the Federal lands included in the Giant Sequoia Na20 tional Forest Preserve established in section 5.

21 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘the Secretary’’

22 means the Secretary of Agriculture.

23 (3) GROVE.—The term ‘‘grove’’ means any

24 stand or group of Giant Sequoia in the Preserve
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1 identified by Forest Service methods in effect on the

2 date of the enactment of this Act.

3 (4) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The term ‘‘manage4 ment plan’’ means the management plan prepared

5 after the date of the enactment of this Act for man6 agement of the Preserve.

7 (5) ANCIENT FOREST RESERVES.—The term

8 ‘‘ancient forest reserves’’ means lands in the Pre9 serve designated under section 9 on which—

10 (A) motorized vehicles may be used only on

11 designated roads; and

12 (B) only the least possible amount of me13 chanical manipulation or intervention in natural

14 processes shall be allowed.

15 (6) NATURAL STATE.—The term ‘‘natural

16 state’’ means the conditions that are within the

17 range of variability in structure and composition

18 that occurred during the last few millennia and

19 which will promote ecosystem stability and resil20 iency.

21 (7) SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY TEAM.—The term

22 ‘‘Scientific Advisory Team’’ means the Scientific Ad23 visory Team established pursuant to section 7.
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1 (8) TASK FORCE.—The term ‘‘Task Force’’

2 means the Community Assistance Task Force estab3 lished under section 16.

4 SEC. 4. EXPANSION AND ESTABLISHMENT OF WILDERNESS

5 AREAS IN SEQUOIA AND INYO NATIONAL

6 FORESTS.

7 In furtherance of the purpose of the Wilderness Act

8 (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.), and the Federal Land Policy

9 and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.),

10 the following lands in the State of California, as generally

11 depicted on the maps referenced in this section, are hereby

12 designated as wilderness areas and shall be administered

13 as components of the National Wilderness Preservation

14 System:

15 (1) Certain lands in the Sequoia National For16 est and the Inyo National Forest, which comprise

17 approximately 20,800 acres, as generally depicted on

18 a map entitled ‘‘Golden Trout Wilderness Addi19 tions—Proposed’’, and which are hereby incor20 porated in, and which shall be deemed to be part of,

21 the Golden Trout Wilderness designated by section

22 2(b) of Public Law 95–237 (92 Stat. 41).

23 (2) Certain lands in the Sequoia National For24 est, which comprise approximately 28,540 acres, as

25 generally depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Golden Trout
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1 Wilderness Additions—Proposed 2’’, and which are

2 hereby incorporated in, and which shall be deemed

3 to be part of, the Golden Trout Wilderness des4 ignated by section 2(b) of Public Law 95–237 (92

5 Stat. 41).

6 (3) Certain lands in the Sequoia National For7 est, which comprise approximately 12,071 acres, as

8 generally depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Domeland

9 Wilderness Additions—Proposed’’, and which are

10 hereby incorporated in, and which shall be deemed

11 to be part of, the Domeland Wilderness originally

12 designated by section 3 of Public Law 88–577 (78

13 Stat. 891).

14 (4) Certain lands in the Sequoia National For15 est, which comprise approximately 39,398 acres, as

16 generally depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Bright Star

17 Wilderness—Proposed’’, and which are hereby incor18 porated in, and which shall be deemed to be part of,

19 the Bright Star Wilderness designated by section

20 102(6) of Public Law 103–433 (108 Stat. 4473).

21 (5) Certain lands in the Sequoia National For22 est, which comprise approximately 56,630 acres, as

23 generally depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Golden Trout

24 Wilderness Additions—Proposed 3’’, and which are

25 hereby incorporated in, and which shall be deemed
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1 to be part of, the Golden Trout Wilderness des2 ignated by section 2(b) of Public Law 95–237 (92

3 Stat. 41).

4 (6) Certain lands in the Sequoia National For5 est, which comprise approximately 12,531 acres, as

6 generally depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Slate Moun7 tain Wilderness Area—Proposed’’, and shall be

8 known as the Slate Mountain Wilderness.

9 SEC. 5. ESTABLISHMENT OF GIANT SEQUOIA NATIONAL

10 FOREST PRESERVE.

11 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is hereby established

12 the Giant Sequoia National Forest Preserve, consisting of

13 certain federally owned lands within the Sequoia National

14 Forest in the State of California. The Preserve shall com15 prise approximately 340,835 acres as generally depicted

16 on the map entitled, ‘‘Giant Sequoia National Forest Pre17 serve, 1995’’, dated llllll and numbered

18 llllll. Federal lands included in the Preserve are

19 dedicated in perpetuity for the preservation and restora20 tion of natural processes and the promotion of recreational

21 activity, scientific study, and other similar purposes as

22 specified in this Act.

23 (b) UNIT OF NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM.—The Sec24 retary, acting through the Forest Service, shall administer

25 the Preserve as a separate unit within the National Forest
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1 System in accordance with the purposes and provisions of

2 this Act.

3 (c) MAP AND LEGAL DESCRIPTION.—Not later than

4 six months after the date of the enactment of this Act,

5 the Secretary shall file a map and a legal description of

6 the Preserve with the Committee on Resources and the

7 Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives

8 and with the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

9 and the Committee on Agriculture, Forestry, and Nutri10 tion of the Senate. Such map and description shall have

11 the same force and effect as if included in this Act. The

12 Secretary may correct clerical and typographical errors in

13 the map and description.

14 (d) AVAILABILITY OF MAP.—The map and legal de15 scription prepared pursuant to subsection (c) shall be

16 made available for public inspection in the office of the

17 Forest Supervisor, Sequoia National Forest, in the office

18 of the Regional Forester, United States Forest Service,

19 Region 5, in the office of the Superintendent, Sequoia Na20 tional Park, in the office of the Director, National Park

21 Service, Department of the Interior and in the office of

22 the Chief of the Forest Service, Department of Agri23 culture.
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1 SEC. 6. PURPOSES OF PRESERVE.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—It is the purpose of this Act not

3 only to protect and maintain the groves of Giant Sequoias

4 in the Preserve, their supporting ecosystems, and associ5 ated forests, but also to preserve the natural state and

6 processes that have created and maintained these forests

7 for millennia.

8 (b) SPECIFIC PURPOSES.—Subject to subsection (c),

9 the Preserve is established for the purposes of—

10 (1) assuring the ecological integrity and rec11 reational resources of the Federal lands in the Pre12 serve;

13 (2) protecting the Giant Sequoia groves as well

14 as all contiguous Federal lands in the Preserve and

15 assuring the perpetuation and continuation of the

16 many ecosystems and the essential and natural proc17 esses in the Preserve;

18 (3) providing optimum habitat for all indige19 nous species found, as of the date of the enactment

20 of this Act, in the Preserve;

21 (4) promoting and coordinating research in the

22 Preserve to compile information about the Giant Se23 quoia and other Sierra Nevada ecosystems;

24 (5) providing optimum water quality, air qual25 ity, soil quality, and scenic quality in the Preserve,

26 consistent with other Federal and State laws; and
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1 (6) providing increased opportunities for recre2 ation, including hiking, horseback riding, camping,

3 use of off-highway vehicles, crosscountry skiing, and

4 nature studies, consistent with the purposes speci5 fied in the preceding paragraphs.

6 (c) PROHIBITIONS.—Regardless of the specific men7 tion of an authorized activity in this Act, the Secretary

8 shall not permit an activity to continue or to be initiated

9 in the Preserve if the Secretary determines that the activ10 ity will, over time, degrade the health or cause the ulti11 mate destruction of the Giant Sequoia ecosystem or other

12 ecosystems in the Preserve. No portion of the Preserve

13 shall be within the timber base or used in a calculation

14 or basis for a sustained yield of timber.

15 SEC. 7. PRESERVE SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY TEAM.

16 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall appoint a

17 Scientific Advisory Team for the Preserve consisting of at

18 least 9 physical and biological scientists from such fields

19 as Sequoia ecology, hydrology, wildlife biology, landscape

20 ecology, conservation biology, soil science, geology, and

21 wildfire behavior. Not more than 3 members of the Sci22 entific Advisory Team may be current or retired employees

23 of the Forest Service.

24 (b) ROLE IN PREPARATION OF PRESERVE MANAGE25 MENT PLAN.—The Scientific Advisory Team shall give ad-
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1 vice and guidance to the Forest Service during preparation

2 of the management plan, assist with the study of data re3 garding the Preserve, review and make recommendations

4 on reports developed in connection with the Preserve, and

5 perform other duties as requested by the Secretary. The

6 Scientific Advisory Team shall target its efforts toward as7 suring that the management plan is consistent with the

8 overall purposes of this Act and with the best and most

9 current scientific knowledge and research.

10 (c) ROLE IN PREPARATION OF LAND CONDITION

11 SURVEYS AND REPORTS.—The Scientific Advisory Team

12 shall advise the Forest Service in compiling informational

13 reports, which shall include surveys of the condition of

14 lands within the Preserve and which will be used in pre15 paring the management plan. The Forest Service shall

16 complete the surveys within one year after the date of the

17 enactment of this Act. These surveys and reports shall ad18 dress the following issues:

19 (1) FIRE AND FUEL.—Compilation of existing

20 data and a report regarding historical and pre21 historical fire and surveys of current fuel loading

22 with identification of areas that exceed the natural

23 range of fuels build-up. The Scientific Advisory

24 Team shall review the surveys and make rec25 ommendations for restoration of these areas.
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1 (2) ARTIFICIALLY PLANTED SEQUOIAS.—Com2 pilation of existing data and a report regarding

3 sources of Sequoia seedlings planted within and ad4 jacent to Sequoia groves. The Team shall review re5 ports and make recommendations as to the need for

6 remediation to protect the integrity of individual

7 grove genetics.

8 (3) PREVIOUSLY LOGGED AREAS.—Compilation

9 of information and a report on previously logged

10 areas focusing on species mix, age, and arrange11 ment. The Scientific Advisory Team shall make rec12 ommendations for management strategies which will

13 result in the eventual restoration of these lands to

14 a natural state. Certain areas where logging has oc15 curred in both recent and historical times may be

16 recommended to remain unrestored and designated

17 as historic sites, interpretive areas, or for scientific

18 purposes.

19 (d) INTERAGENCY COOPERATION AND COORDINA20 TION.—The Scientific Advisory Team shall cooperate with

21 other agencies that are engaged in managing Sequoia eco22 systems in order to facilitate interagency cooperation,

23 sharing of scientific information and data, and to maxi24 mize usefulness of past, present, and future research.
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1 (e) TEAM FINDINGS.—The Scientific Advisory Team

2 shall not be required to reach consensus regarding its find3 ings on any issue, but the Scientific Advisory Team should

4 furnish comments, recommendations, and findings in a

5 format which will allow for a majority as well as dissenting

6 opinions.

7 (f) PUBLIC ACCESS TO INFORMATION.—All informa8 tion developed for and by the Scientific Advisory Team

9 and the Forest Service under this section, including min10 utes, summaries, memos, majority recommendations, and

11 dissenting opinions, shall be retained at the office of the

12 Forest Supervisor, Sequoia National Forest, and shall be

13 readily available to the public.

14 (g) FUTURE ACTIVITIES OF TEAM.—After the final

15 management plan has been published and any administra16 tive appeals have completed the appeal process, the Sci17 entific Advisory Team shall remain available for peer re18 view of proposed projects, monitoring, and such other du19 ties that the Secretary may request.

20 (h) COMPENSATION.—Members of the Scientific Ad21 visory Team shall serve without compensation, except that

22 the Secretary may reimburse members of the Scientific

23 Advisory Team for their direct costs of participating in

24 the activities of the Scientific Advisory Team.
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1 SEC. 8. MANAGEMENT PLAN.

2 (a) PREPARATION.—Not later than five years after

3 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall

4 publish as a freestanding document a final management

5 plan for the Preserve that shall include at least the fol6 lowing:

7 (1) The measures, standards, and guidelines

8 needed to protect, restore, and enhance the natural

9 and scientific values of the Preserve and recreational

10 resources of the Preserve.

11 (2) All other measures intended to carry out

12 the purposes and provisions of this Act, including

13 specific delineation of planned administrative activi14 ties to carry out this Act.

15 (3) Provisions and maps of areas designated as

16 ancient forest reserves, and the process by which ad17 ditional areas may be designated as ancient forest

18 reserves.

19 (4) Other specific measures required by this

20 Act.

21 (b) INTERIM MANAGEMENT.—Pending the comple22 tion of the management plan, the Secretary shall manage

23 the Preserve in a manner consistent with the purposes and

24 provisions of this Act. The Secretary shall buy out any

25 timber contracts in existence on the date of the enactment

26 of this Act that authorize harvesting in the Preserve. Be-
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1 tween the date of the enactment of this Act and the date

2 the management plan is final, the Secretary shall approve

3 or initiate only those interim management activities that

4 are consistent with the purposes of this Act.

5 (c) ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS.—The management

6 plan and all of the notices of decision, decision notices,

7 and decision memos for the management plan and for

8 projects implementing the management plan shall be sub9 ject to administrative appeal as provided by law.

10 (d) PUBLIC SAFETY.—Nothing in this Act shall be

11 construed to prohibit the Secretary from undertaking or

12 permitting those activities in the Preserve that the Sec13 retary considers necessary to ensure public safety and pre14 vent loss of life and property.

15 SEC. 9. DESIGNATION OF ANCIENT FOREST RESERVES.

16 (a) DESIGNATION.—As part of the management plan,

17 the Secretary shall designate and map the ancient forest

18 reserves.

19 (b) SPECIFIED ANCIENT FOREST RESERVES.—

20 Lands designated as ancient forest reserves shall include

21 at least the following: The Freeman Creek watershed, the

22 McIntyre Complex Groves, the Moses Roadless Area, the

23 Slate Mountain Roadless Area, the Rincon Roadless Area,

24 Deer Meadow, and the Agnew and Kennedy Sequoia

25 Groves.
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1 (c) SUBSEQUENT DESIGNATIONS.—Additional areas

2 may be designated as ancient forest reserves after the

3 completion of the management plan by amending the man4 agement plan. Such additions shall be based on public

5 input and scientific recommendations.

6 SEC. 10. PRESERVE TRANSPORTATION AND ACCESS.

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—The management plan shall in8 clude a comprehensive transportation plan for the Pre9 serve. In order to protect the natural features of the Pre10 serve, reduce conflicts among users of the Preserve, and

11 ensure visitor safety, the Secretary may regulate and con12 trol the times and means of access and use of the Pre13 serve.

14 (b) ROADS.—

15 (1) NEW CONSTRUCTION PROHIBITED.—Except

16 for short connecting sections to make loop roads or

17 to provide access to campgrounds or for other pur18 poses consistent with this Act, no new road con19 struction shall occur within the Preserve. No excep20 tions under the preceding sentence shall be made in

21 the case of ancient forest reserves and wilderness

22 areas within the Preserve.

23 (2) ROAD CATEGORIES.—The transportation

24 plan shall locate and map all roads in existence on

25 the date of the enactment of this Act, whether such
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1 roads are permanent, temporary, or de facto, and

2 all compacted areas, such as landings and turnouts.

3 These roads and compacted areas shall be inven4 toried and categorized into one of the following cat5 egories:

6 (A) Existing roads and compacted areas

7 which should form the permanent road system

8 for the Preserve and are consistent with the

9 purposes of this Act. This category may include

10 projections for future needs such as new camp11 grounds, interpretive and study centers, and

12 parking sites.

13 (B) Roads and compacted areas which are

14 degrading water quality or ecosystems and

15 which shall be restored to natural conditions.

16 (C) Existing roads and compacted areas

17 which may be converted for use as motorized

18 vehicle recreation roads without undue resource

19 damage.

20 (D) Existing roads and landings which

21 could be used for off-highway vehicles, including

22 the construction of short connecting sections to

23 provide loop trails.

24 (E) Existing roads and compacted areas

25 which could be used in conjunction with the of-
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1 ficial trail system for recreation, including

2 snowmobile, cross-country skiing, recreational

3 stock, hiking, and interpretive trails and areas

4 suitable for use by the disabled, including the

5 use of motorized wheelchairs.

6 (c) TRAILS.—

7 (1) IDENTIFICATION OF TRAILS.—The trans8 portation plan shall include a trail plan for the Pre9 serve that inventories and maps all trails on the

10 1956 USGS maps, the 1966 Sequoia National For11 est Recreation Map, historical trails, and trails indi12 cated by public input whether or not they have been

13 assigned a Forest Service trail number. These trails

14 shall become the official trail network for the Pre15 serve.

16 (2) TRAIL LIMITATIONS.—In the trail plan, the

17 Secretary shall determine which trails will be limited

18 to nonmotorized, nonmechanized recreation, such as

19 by horseback and hiking, and which trails will allow

20 mechanized recreation of various types, such as by

21 mountain bike and all-terrain vehicles. The Sec22 retary shall base such determinations on sensitivity

23 of the site, potential for user conflicts, and public

24 input. There shall be no use of motor vehicles on

25 trails in ancient forest reserves. The trail plan shall
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1 include provisions to ensure adequate and appro2 priate recreational trail opportunities for disabled in3 dividuals.

4 (3) RELOCATION AND EXPANSION OF TRAILS.—

5 Trails may be relocated where currently obliterated

6 by roads or logging damage or where necessary for

7 resource protection. Additional trails may be added

8 to the trail network through the conversion of exist9 ing roads to such purpose. The establishment of new

10 trails should be considered throughout the Preserve

11 consistent with the purposes of this Act.

12 (d) EMERGENCY AND SCIENTIFIC ACCESS.—Nothing

13 in this section shall be construed to prohibit the use of

14 motorized vehicles or aircraft for emergency and other es15 sential administrative services, including those services

16 provided by State and local governments, or for authorized

17 scientific research when the use of motorized vehicles or

18 aircraft is a necessary part of such research.

19 SEC. 11. RECREATIONAL FACILITIES.

20 (a) EXISTING CAMPGROUNDS.—All campgrounds in

21 the Preserve on the date of the enactment of this Act,

22 including campgrounds within grove boundaries or ancient

23 forest reserves, may remain in place subject to evaluation

24 by the Secretary.
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1 (b) EXPANSION.—The Secretary shall provide new

2 camping opportunities in the Preserve in the form of both

3 developed and primitive sites. The Secretary shall identify

4 the potential locations of new campgrounds in the trans5 portation plan prepared under section 10. Such camp6 grounds shall be constructed outside of ancient forest re7 serves in locations where they will cause the least resource

8 damage.

9 (c) PRIMITIVE CAMPING.—Primitive camping shall be

10 allowed throughout the Preserve, except that the Secretary

11 may control the use of certain areas based on usage and

12 resource conditions.

13 (d) STOCK CAMPGROUNDS.—In addition to overnight

14 camping facilities for stock use in existence on the date

15 of the enactment of this Act, additional horse and other

16 recreational stockcamping opportunities shall be devel17 oped, including potable and stock water supplies and hold18 ing corrals throughout the Preserve. All new construction

19 shall be outside of groves and ancient forest reserves and

20 shall be in areas which will cause the least resource dam21 age and in areas which shall have access to the Preserve

22 trail network. Potential sites shall be considered in the

23 transportation plan.

24 (e) OTHER RECREATIONAL FACILITIES.—The man25 agement plan shall address sites for further study for rec-
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1 reational facilities, such as interpretive facilities, disabled

2 accessible areas, trailheads, picnic and day-use facilities,

3 parking areas, scenic lookouts, and campgrounds. These

4 potential areas shall be identified and coordinated with the

5 transportation plan.

6 SEC. 12. EFFECT OF PRESERVE ON ACTIVITIES PRE7 VIOUSLY CONDUCTED IN AREA COVERED BY

8 PRESERVE.

9 (a) HUNTING AND FISHING.—Regulations regarding

10 hunting and fishing in the Preserve shall continue to be

11 under the jurisdiction of the California Department of

12 Fish and Game. If hunting and fishing activities adversely

13 affect the Preserve, the Secretary shall submit rec14 ommendations to the California Department of Fish and

15 Game regarding changes in such regulations.

16 (b) FIREWOOD COLLECTION.—The Secretary shall

17 manage firewood collection based on need and resource

18 protection, except that the Secretary shall prohibit fire19 wood collection in areas where such collection harms the

20 resources of the Preserve.

21 (c) MINERAL AND GEOTHERMAL LEASING.—No pat22 ent may be issued under the mining or geothermal laws

23 of the United States after the date of the enactment of

24 this Act on Federal lands in the Preserve, even if the loca25 tion and claim was made before such date. Federal lands
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1 in the Preserve are hereby withdrawn from all forms of

2 locations, entry, and patent under the United States min3 ing laws, and from the operation of the mineral leasing

4 laws of the United States, including all laws pertaining

5 to geothermal leasing.

6 (d) GRAZING.—Nothing in this Act shall be construed

7 to prohibit or regulate recreational or commercial grazing.

8 Grazing in the Preserve shall continue to be regulated by

9 the Forest Service.

10 SEC. 13. EFFECT OF PRESERVE ON OTHER PUBLIC OR PRI11 VATE INTERESTS.

12 (a) STATE AND LOCAL LANDS.—Nothing in this Act

13 shall be construed to affect State-owned, county-owned, or

14 municipally-owned land located partially or wholly within

15 the boundaries of the Preserve.

16 (b) PRIVATELY OWNED LANDS.—Nothing in this Act

17 shall be construed to affect the use or ownership of private

18 land located partially or wholly within the boundaries of

19 the Preserve on the date of enactment of this Act. Any

20 action of the Secretary to buy or trade for privately held

21 lands for inclusion in the Preserve shall require the vol22 untary agreement of the private seller.

23 (c) SPECIAL-USE PERMITS.—Nothing in this Act

24 shall be construed to affect Forest Service special-use per-
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1 mits or leases in effect at the time of the enactment of

2 this Act.

3 (d) LEASED PRIVATE HOMES AND CAMPS.—All

4 homes and camps with valid leases in the Preserve on the

5 date of the enactment of this Act, and which are otherwise

6 in compliance with the terms of the leases, shall continue

7 and may be renewed. Existing special use permits and

8 leases for homes and camps within the boundaries of the

9 Preserve are hereby deemed to be consistent with the pur10 poses of this Act. Nothing in this Act shall be construed

11 to affect the renewal of such permits and leases.

12 SEC. 14. WATER RIGHTS.

13 (a) RESERVATION OF RIGHT.—The Congress hereby

14 reserves a quantity of water sufficient to fulfill the pur15 poses of this Act. The priority date of such reserved water

16 rights shall be the date of enactment of this Act.

17 (b) PROTECTION OF RIGHT.—The Secretary and all

18 other officers of the United States shall take all steps nec19 essary to protect the rights reserved by this section, in20 cluding the filing by the Secretary of a claim for the quan21 tification of such rights in any present or future appro22 priate stream adjudication in the courts of the State of

23 California in which the United States is or may be joined

24 and which is conducted in accordance with section 208 of
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1 the Act of July 10, 1952 (66 Stat. 560, 43 U.S.C. 666;

2 commonly referred to as the ‘‘McCarran Amendment’’).

3 (c) PRESERVATION OF PRIOR RIGHTS.—Nothing in

4 this Act shall be construed as a relinquishment or reduc5 tion of any water rights reserved or appropriated by the

6 United States in the State of California on or before the

7 date of enactment of this Act.

8 (d) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—The Federal water

9 rights reserved by this Act are specific to the Preserve.

10 Nothing in this Act related to the reserved Federal water

11 rights shall be construed as establishing a precedent with

12 regard to any future designation, nor shall it constitute

13 an interpretation of any other Act or any designation

14 made pursuant thereto.

15 SEC. 15. PAYMENTS TO LOCAL GOVERNMENTS.

16 (a) SECTION SUPERSEDES OTHER PAYMENT PROVI17 SIONS.—Payments under this section shall be made in lieu

18 of payments under the Act of May 23, 1908 (16 U.S.C.

19 500) and chapter 69 of title 31 of the United States Code

20 in connection with Federal lands included in the Preserve.

21 (b) PAYMENTS REQUIRED.—The Secretary shall

22 make payments under this section each fiscal year to the

23 local government of each political subdivision whose

24 boundaries include Federal lands in the Preserve if such

25 local government would have received real property tax
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1 revenues had such lands been privately rather than pub2 licly held. In the case of the fiscal year of the enactment

3 of this Act, the Secretary shall pro rate the payment that

4 would otherwise be made under this section.

5 (c) AMOUNT OF PAYMENT.—The amount of the pay6 ment to be made to a local government under this section

7 shall be equal to the amount of the real property tax which

8 would be due to the local government with respect to Fed9 eral lands in the Preserve in the fiscal year concerned had

10 such lands been privately rather than publicly held and

11 used for timber production in the State of California. For

12 purposes of this section, the amount of the required pay13 ment be referred to as the ‘‘tax-equivalency amount’’.

14 (d) DETERMINATION OF TAX-EQUIVALENCY

15 AMOUNT.—For each fiscal year, the Secretary, after con16 sultation with the Comptroller General, shall determine a

17 proposed tax-equivalency amount for all Federal lands in

18 the Preserve. Upon determining the proposed tax-equiva19 lency amount for any political subdivision, the Secretary

20 shall notify the local government concerned. If the local

21 government notifies the Secretary that the local govern22 ment accepts the Secretary’s estimate, the Secretary shall

23 promptly make such payment to the local government.

24 (e) DISPUTES.—If a local government objects to the

25 Secretary’s estimate of the tax-equivalency amount pro-
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1 posed to be paid by the Secretary under this section for

2 any fiscal year, the local government shall notify the Sec3 retary in writing of the amount which the local govern4 ment estimates to be the correct tax-equivalency amount.

5 Upon receipt of such notice, the Secretary shall appoint

6 an arbiter. The local government shall also appoint an ar7 biter. The two arbiters shall jointly appoint a third arbiter.

8 The three arbiters shall comprise an arbitration panel

9 which shall determine the tax-equivalency amount to be

10 paid under this section to the local government. The deter11 mination of the arbitration panel shall be binding on the

12 Secretary and the local government and shall not be sub13 ject to judicial review, except as provided in sections 10

14 and 11 of title 9, United States Code.

15 (f) COSTS OF ARBITRATION.—The costs of any arbi16 tration under subsection (e) shall be paid by the Secretary,

17 except that if the tax-equivalency amount determined by

18 the arbitration panel is closer to the amount specified by

19 the Secretary than to the amount estimated by the local

20 government, the costs of the arbitration shall be deducted

21 from the tax-equivalency amount paid to the local govern22 ment.

23 (g) ACCOUNTING.—As a condition for receiving the

24 tax-equivalency amount, the local government shall agree

25 to provide an annual accounting to the Secretary of all
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1 purposes for which the tax-equivalency amount is used and

2 the amount used for each purpose.

3 SEC. 16. COMMUNITY ASSISTANCE TASK FORCE.

4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall establish

5 a Community Assistance Task Force to oversee the provi6 sion of assistance to communities and workers in political

7 subdivisions whose boundaries include Federal lands in the

8 Preserve or contain facilities that milled timber from lands

9 included in the Preserve during any portion of the five10 year period ending on the date of the enactment of this

11 Act.

12 (b) COMMUNITY REQUESTS FOR ASSISTANCE.—Any

13 community described in subsection (a) that is adversely

14 affected by loss of Federal timber sales as a result of this

15 Act may request assistance from the Task Force. The

16 Task Force shall verify the stated need for the assistance

17 and the purposes for which the assistance will be used.

18 (c) TYPES OF COMMUNITY ASSISTANCE.—The Task

19 Force shall provide assistance (including technical assist20 ance) for the establishment of local community task forces,

21 retraining programs for workers, diversification of local

22 economies, and job counseling and job placement services.

23 Such assistance may be in the form of loans and grants.

24 The Secretary may authorize the use of facilities, equip-
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1 ment, and personnel of the Department of Agriculture to

2 provide such assistance.

3 (d) WORKER REQUESTS FOR ASSISTANCE.—Any

4 worker displaced from a job in the timber industry because

5 of the loss of Federal timber sales as a result of this Act

6 may request assistance from the Task Force to assist the

7 worker in securing other employment.

8 (e) DEVELOPMENT OF EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNI9 TIES.—The Task Force shall encourage and develop em10 ployment opportunities in the political subdivisions de11 scribed in subsection (a) in forest ecosystem restoration,

12 recreation, and other forms of employment compatible

13 with the purposes and provisions of this Act.

14 (f) TERMINATION.—The Task Force shall terminate

15 five years after the date of its establishment by the Sec16 retary.

17 SEC. 17. PREPARATION OF BUDGET PROPOSAL FOR PRE18 SERVE.

19 In preparing the budget proposal for the Preserve for

20 each fiscal year, the Secretary shall not target any of the

21 budget to any commodity production in the Preserve. The

22 amount of the budget request shall be proportionate to

23 the funds which the Sequoia National Forest received be24 fore the enactment of this Act.
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1 SEC. 18. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

2 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums

3 as may be necessary to carry out this Act.

Æ