December 30, 1980 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD - HOUSE

$50,000 death benefit to Federal firefighters and law enforcement officers because the benefits provided under FECA

are comparatively generous and would

in many cases exceed the $50,000 payment authorized for State-local public

safety officers.

Although the costs entailed in H.R.

5888 are not large, the special treatment

provided by the bill would inevitably set

a precedent for extension of its benefits

to other, If not all, Federal employees

who die in the line of duty. This would

result in an unwarranted and costly

added burden on the taxpayers of this

Nation.

Finally, the retroactive provision in

the bill is objectionable by arbitrarily

excluding employees whose deaths occurred before the effective date.

For all of these reasons, I cannot approve H.R. 5888.

JIMMY CARTER.

THE WHITE HOUSE, December 23, 1980.

H.R. 4386

MEMORANDUM OF DISAPPROVAL

I am withholding my approval from

H.R. 4386, a bill "For the relief of Mr.

and Mrs. Clarence Oveson."

H.R. 4386 would direct the Secretary

of the Treasury to pay $50,000 to Mr.

and Mrs. Clarence Oveson of Saint Louis

and Koochiching Counties, Minnesota.

The payment would be for full settlement of the Oveson's claims arising from

the assumption of management by the

United States of certain real property

owned by the United States but occupied

by the Ovesons. The payment would not

affect any claims that the Ovesons might

have arising from the loss of any structures affixed to the land. The Ovesons

apparently purchased the land in question from another individual in good

faith though title to the land actually

rests with the U.S. Government as part

of the Voyageurs National Park.

I am withholding my approval from

H.R. 4386 because it would provide com- pensation to individuals who have occu- pied Federal lands without authority.

Approval of this legislation would set a precedent of rewarding unauthorized users of Federal lands. It would not only

undermine ongoing efforts by all Federal

land management agencies to eliminate

such uses but could also invite additional unauthorized use.

While I sympathize with the plight of

the Ovesons, I cannot support the payment of taxpayers' funds to them to

remedy a problem they have with other

private individuals in a situation in

which the United States Government was in no way at fault. I understand

that there may be legal remedies available to the Ovesons against the person

who improperly sold them land to which

he did not have clear title.

JIMMY CARTER.

THE WHITE HOUSE, December 24, 1980.

H.R. 6257

MEMORANDUM OF DISAPPROVAL

'I am withholding my approval of H.R.

6257, a bill to authorize the Secretary of

Agriculture to convey certain National

Forest System lands and for other purposes. As originally introduced in Congress, this was a noncontroversial bill

providing a simplified procedure for conveying small parcels of land within the

National Forest System. Sections one

through seven of the bill would accomplish this purpose. However, during the

closing hours of the 96th Congress, a new

section 8 was added that would adversely

affect the Alaska Railroad, an agency of

the Department of Transportation.

Section 8 would require the Secretary

of 'Transportation to is-sue regulations for

the rental of Alaska Railroad lands

under terms that would result in a loss

of revenue to the Railroad, provide for

inequitable treatment of different tenants, and create a complicated method

for determining rents that would be extremely difficult to administer. It would

further delay the Railroad's effort to

raise its lease land rents to fair market

value, and it would lock into statute past

practices that have been criticized by the

General Accounting Office and the Department of Transportation. It would

also inhibit the Railroad's ability to establish a modern lease land development program consistent with normal

commercial practice.

The Railroad is operated as a self-sustaining business by the Federal Government, to the benefit of the State of

Alaska and its citizens. Rental income

from rail lands is used to pay part of its

operating costs. The loss of revenue resulting from this bill may force the Railroad to curtail service or require a new federal operating subsidy to make up the

difference. A curtailment of service

would injure those shippers and residents

of Alaska who use the Railroad, and an increase in federal funds for the Railroad is unacceptable.

For these reasons, I am vetoing H.R.

6257. However, I support those provisions

in the bill that would give the Secretary

of Agriculture authority to dispose of

small tracts of National Forest lands

that have become difficult to administer

efficiently. This authority, which the Department of Agriculture has been seeking for several years, would greatly facilitate the disposal of approximately 200,-

000 acres of National Forest lands that

present special management problems

and would eliminate the need for a case- by-case authorization from the Congress

before such lands can be sold or exchanged. Therefore, I urge the 97th Congress to enact similar authority early

next year.

JIMMY CARTER.

THE WHITE HOUSE, December 28, 1980.

RESIGNATION FROM THE HOUSE OF

REPRESENTATIVES

The SPEAKER received the following

resignation from the House of Representatives:

CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES,

HOUSE O REPRESENTATIVES,

Washington, D.C. December 18, 1980. The Honorable BRENDAN T. BYRNE,

Office of the Governor,

Executive State House,

Trenton, N.J.

DEAR GOVERNOR BYRNE: In accordance with

the law, I hereby resign as the Representstive of the Fourth District of New Jersey effective midnight, December 29, 1980.

Sincerely yours,

FRANK THOMPSON, Jr.

Copies: Hon. Edmund L. Henshaw, Jr.,

Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives;

Hon. Benjamin J. Guthrle, Sergeant at

Arms; Hon. Thomas P. O'Neill, Jr., Speaker

of the House.

REPORTS OF COMMITTEES ON PUBLIC BILLS AND RESOLUTIONS

Under clause 2 of rule XIII, reports of

committees were delivered to the Clerk

for printing and reference to the proper

calendar, as follows:

[Pursuant to the order of the House on

Dec. 4, 1980, the following report was filed

on Dec. 19, 19801

Mr. BROOKS: Committee on Government

Operations. Report on Veterans Administration pays scant thought to medicaid computer needs (Rept. No. 96-1538). Referred to

the Committee of the Whole House on the

State of the Union.

Mr. DELLUMS: Committee on the District

of Columbia. Activities and summary report

of the Commmittee on the District of Columbia (Rept. No. 96-1539). Referred to the

Committee of the Whole House on the State

of the Union.

[Pursuant to the order of the House on

Dec. 16, 1980, the following report was filed on Dec. 22, 19801

Mr. BROOKS: Committee on Government

Operations. Report on the Government's

classification of private ideas (Rept. No. 96-

1540). Referred to the Committee of the

Whole House on the State of the Union.

[Pursuant to the order of the House on Dec. 4, 1980, the following report was filed

on Dec. 22, 1980]

Mr. BROOKS: Committee on Government

Operations. Report on allocation of budget

totals by program (Rept. No. 96-1541). Referred to the Committee of the Whole House

on the State of the Union.

Mr. SMTTH of Iowa: Committee on Small

Business. Report on summary of activities of

the Committee on Small Business, 96th Congress (Rept. No. 96-1542). Referred to the

Committee of the Whole House on the State

of the Union.

[Pursuant to the order of the House on

Dec. 4, 1980, the following report was filed

on Dec. 29, 19801

Mr. HANLEY: Committee on Post Office

and Civil Service. Report pursuant to Section

302(b) of the Congressional Budget Act of

1974 (Rept. No. 96-1544). Referred to the

Committee of the Whole House on the State

of the Union.

Mr. GIATMO: Committee on the Budget.

Report on activities of the Committee on the

Budget, 96th Congress (Rept. No. 96-1545).

Referred to the Committee of the Whole

House on the State of the Union.

Mr. PERKNS: Committee on Education

and Labor. Report on the activities of the

Committee on Education and Labor during

the 96th Congress (Rept. No. 96-1546). Referred to the Committee of the Whole House

on the State of the Union.

Mr. WOLFF: Select Committee on Narcotics Abuse and Control. Annual report for

the year 1980 of the Select Committee on

Narcotics Abuse and Control (Rept. No. 96-

1547). Referred to the Committee of the

Whole House on the State of the Union.

Mr. BENNETT: Committee on Standards

of Official Conduct. Report on activities of

the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct during the 96th Congress (Rept. No.

96-1548). Referred to the Committee of the

Whole House on the State of the Union.

34415