I 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 417 

To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to convey to Miami-Dade County 

certain federally owned land in Florida, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 25, 2013 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN (for herself, Mr. DIAZ-BALART, Ms. WASSERMAN

SCHULTZ, Ms. WILSON of Florida, and Mr. GARCIA) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture 

A BILL 

To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to convey to MiamiDade County certain federally owned land in Florida, 

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. CONVEYANCE OF LAND COMPRISING SUB4 TROPICAL HORTICULTURE RESEARCH STA5 TION. 

6 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

7 (1) COUNTY.—The term ‘‘County’’ means 

8 Miami-Dade County in the State of Florida. 


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1 (2) PROPERTY.—The term ‘‘Property’’ means 

2 approximately 2 acres, more or less, of the federally 

3 owned land comprising the Subtropical Horticulture 

4 Research Station in the County, which— 

5 (A) has been mutually delineated by the 

6 Secretary and the authorized representative of 

7 the County; and 

8 (B) fronts on SW 67th Avenue in Palmetto 

9 Bay, Florida. 

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

11 the Secretary of Agriculture. 

12 (b) PROPERTY CONVEYANCE.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120 days 

14 after the date on which the County deposits the con15 sideration under paragraph (2) and cost reimburse16 ment provided in this section with the Department 

17 of Agriculture, the Secretary shall convey and quit18 claim to the County, all rights, title, and interests of 

19 the United States in the Property, subject to ease20 ments and rights of record and such other reserva21 tions, terms, and conditions as the Secretary may 

22 prescribe. 

23 (2) CONSIDERATION.— 

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—As consideration for 

25 the conveyance of the Property, the County 


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1 shall pay to the Secretary an amount in cash 

2 equal to the market value of the property. 

3 (B) APPRAISAL.—To determine the market 

4 value of the Property, the Secretary shall have 

5 the Property appraised for the highest and best 

6 use of the Property in conformity with the Uni7 form Appraisal Standards for Federal Land Ac8 quisitions developed by the Interagency Land 

9 Acquisition Conference. The approved appraisal 

10 shall at all times be the property of the United 

11 States. 

12 (3) CORRECTIONS.—With the agreement of the 

13 County, the Secretary may make minor corrections 

14 or modifications to the legal description of the Prop15 erty. 

16 (4) COSTS.— 

17 (A) TRANSACTION COSTS.—Except as pro18 vided in subparagraph (C), the County shall, at 

19 closing for the conveyance of the Property 

20 under this section, pay or reimburse the Sec21 retary, as appropriate, for the reasonable trans22 action and administrative personnel costs asso23 ciated with the conveyance authorized by this 

24 section, including the transaction costs of apVerDate Mar 15 2010 04:34 Feb 06, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H417.IH H417

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1 praisal, title, hazardous substances examina2 tion, and closing costs. 

3 (B) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—In addition 

4 to transaction costs under subparagraph (A), 

5 the County shall pay administrative costs in the 

6 liquidated amount of $50,000. 

7 (C) ATTORNEYS’ FEES.—The County and 

8 the Secretary shall each bear their own attor9 neys’ fees. 

10 (5) SURVEY.—The County shall, at its cost, 

11 survey the exterior boundaries of the Subtropical 

12 Horticulture Research Station and the Property in 

13 accordance with Federal survey standards and to the 

14 satisfaction of the Secretary, and shall provide to 

15 the Secretary certified originals with signature and 

16 raised seal. 

17 (6) RELEASE.—The County, by a recordable in18 strument that the Secretary determines is satisfac19 tory, shall release the Department of Agriculture 

20 from the instrument dated September 8, 2006, titled 

21 ‘‘Unity of Title’’. 

22 (7) SECURITY FENCING.—On or before closing 

23 for the conveyance of the Property under this sec24 tion, the County shall, at its cost, contract for the 

25 construction of a security fence located on the 


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1 boundary between the Property and the adjacent 

2 land administered by the Secretary. The fence shall 

3 be of materials and standards approved in advance 

4 by the Secretary. The Secretary may approve tem5 porary security structures for use during construc6 tion phases of the fence. 

7 (8) OTHER TERMS.—The Secretary and the 

8 County may otherwise effect the purpose of this sec9 tion on such additional terms as are mutually ac10 ceptable and which are not inconsistent with the 

11 provisions of this section. 

12 (c) RECEIPTS.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall deposit 

14 all funds received from the conveyance authorized 

15 under this section, including the market value con16 sideration and the reimbursement for costs, into the 

17 Treasury of the United States to be credited to the 

18 appropriation for the Agricultural Research Service. 

19 (2) USE OF FUNDS.—Notwithstanding any limi20 tation in applicable appropriation Acts for the De21 partment of Agriculture or the Agricultural Re22 search Service, all funds deposited into the Treasury 

23 pursuant to subsection (b) shall be available to the 

24 Secretary until expended, without further appropriaVerDate Mar 15 2010 04:34 Feb 06, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H417.IH H417

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1 tion, for the operation, upkeep, and maintenance of 

2 the Subtropical Horticulture Research Station. 

Æ 


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