I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 380

To provide full funding for the payment in lieu of taxes program for the 

next five fiscal years, to protect local jurisdictions against the loss of 

property tax revenues when private lands are acquired by a Federal 

land management agency, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 27, 2003

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

Committee on Resources, and in addition to the Committee on Agriculture, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 

each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL

To provide full funding for the payment in lieu of taxes 

program for the next five fiscal years, to protect local 

jurisdictions against the loss of property tax revenues 

when private lands are acquired by a Federal land management agency, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives 

2 of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Property Tax Endow5 ment Act of 2003’’. 
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1 SEC. 2. FULL FUNDING FOR PAYMENTS IN LIEU OF TAXES. 

2 Section 6906 of title 31, United States Code, is amend3 ed—

4 (1) by striking ‘‘Necessary’’ and inserting ‘‘(a) IN

5 GENERAL.—Necessary’’; 

6 (2) by striking ‘‘Amounts’’ and inserting ‘‘Except 

7 as provided in subsection (b), amounts’’; and 

8 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub9 section: 

10 ‘‘(b) FULL FUNDING.—For fiscal years 2004 through 

11 2008, amounts necessary to carry out this chapter shall 

12 be made available to the Secretary of the Interior, out of 

13 any funds in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated and 

14 without further appropriation, for obligation and expendi15 ture in accordance with this chapter.’’. 

16 SEC. 3. PROTECTION OF LOCAL TAX BASE AS PART OF FED17 ERAL LAND ACQUISITION. 

18 (a) ELECTION OF PAYMENT TO OFFSET REVENUE

19 LOSS.—

20 (1) NOTIFICATION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT.—

21 Whenever a Federal land management agency ac22 quires privately owned land by purchase, exchange, 

23 or donation, the head of the agency shall notify the 

24 unit of general local government within whose juris25 diction the land lies. 
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1 (2) ELECTION.—If a unit of general local govern2 ment is notified by a Federal agency under para3 graph (1) regarding an acquisition of land by the 

4 Federal agency, the elected officials with authority 

5 under State law to govern the unit may within 90 

6 days after that notification, elect to receive from the 

7 Federal land management agency a one-time pay8 ment in an amount sufficient to offset the long term 

9 revenue loss to the local government that will result 

10 from the acquisition of the land by the Federal 

11 agency. 

12 (b) TREATMENT OF LAND AFTER ONE-TIME PAY13 MENT.—

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—If a unit of general local gov15 ernment receives, pursuant to an election under sub16 section (a), a one-time payment with respect to land 

17 acquired by a Federal land management agency, the 

18 land shall not be treated as entitlement land for pur19 poses of chapter 69 of title 31, United States Code, 

20 notwithstanding any changes that may thereafter 

21 occur in the value of the land, interest rates, tax22 ation rates, or any other economic factor. 

23 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 6901(1) 

24 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by add25 ing at the end the following: 
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1 ‘‘Such term does not include any land with respect to 

2 which a unit of local government receives a one-time pay3 ment under the Property Tax Endowment Act of 2003.’’. 

4 (c) APPLICATION.—

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—This section shall apply to 

6 any land acquisition by a Federal land management 

7 agency completed after September 30, 1998. 

8 (2) APPLICATION TO PRIOR ACQUISITION.—For 

9 purposes of the application of this section to an ac10 quisition of land by a Federal agency before the date 

11 of the enactment of this Act, the head of the agency 

12 is deemed to have notified the unit of general local 

13 government concerned in accordance with paragraph 

14 (1) on the date of the enactment of this Act. 

15 (3) NO EFFECT ON TITLE.—This subsection 

16 shall not affect any right, title, or interest of the 

17 United States in or to land. 

18 SEC. 4. ONE-TIME PAYMENT. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—If a unit of general local govern20 ment elects under section 3(a)(2) to receive a one-time 

21 payment with respect to land acquired by a Federal land 

22 management agency—

23 (1) the head of the Federal agency shall deter24 mine and make such payment in accordance with 

25 this section; and 
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1 (2) such acquisition may not occur before the 

2 date the payment is made. 

3 (b) AMOUNT OF PAYMENT.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amount of such pay5 ment—

6 (A) shall be sufficient to yield a revenue 

7 stream in perpetuity equal to the property taxes 

8 currently required to be paid with respect to the 

9 land, determined as an annuity amount based 

10 on an interest rate equal to the current average 

11 yield on outstanding obligations of the United 

12 States with remaining periods of maturity of 10 

13 years on the date of acquisition of the land by 

14 the Federal agency; 

15 (B) shall be determined based on the rate 

16 of tax and land valuation in effect for the land 

17 under the property tax laws of the unit of gen18 eral local government that apply in the local tax 

19 year in which the land is acquired by the Fed20 eral land management agency; and 

21 (C) shall include amounts to offset prop22 erty taxes that were attributable to—

23 (i) improvements on the acquired 

24 lands; or 
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1 (ii) the use of the lands for business 

2 enterprise. 

3 (2) FEDERAL ACQUISITIONS FROM TAX-EXEMPT

4 ENTITIES.—If a Federal land management agency 

5 acquires lands by purchase, donation, exchange, or 

6 other means from a nongovernmental organization 

7 or other entity that is exempt from local taxation, 

8 paragraph (1) shall apply as if the land were ac9 quired from the last person that owned the lands 

10 that was not exempt from such taxation. 

11 (3) DEDUCTION OF PILT PAYMENTS.—In the 

12 case of a payment under this section to a unit of 

13 general local government with respect to land that 

14 was acquired by a Federal land management agency 

15 before the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

16 head of the agency shall deduct, from the amount 

17 otherwise required to be paid, the amount of any 

18 payment made to the unit with respect to the land 

19 after September 30, 1998, under chapter 69 of title 

20 31, United States Code. 

21 (c) TIME FOR PAYMENT.—The payment required 

22 under subsection (a) in connection with a land acquisition 

23 shall be made before the Federal land management agency 

24 takes possession of the land. 

25 (d) USE OF PAYMENT.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Amounts paid to a unit of 

2 general local government under this section shall be 

3 deposited into a trust fund established and adminis4 tered by the unit of general local government. 

5 (2) RESTRICTION OF USE OF PRINCIPAL.—The 

6 principal of the trust funds may not be expended. 

7 (3) USE OF INTEREST.—Interest generated by 

8 the trust funds shall be available to the unit of gen9 eral local governmental for any governmental pur10 pose. 

11 SEC. 5. RELATIONSHIP OF ONE-TIME PAYMENTS TO PAY12 MENTS IN LIEU OF TAXES. 

13 A one-time payment received by a unit of general 

14 local government under this Act shall not be deducted or 

15 in any way used to offset payments required to be made 

16 to the unit under chapter 69 of title 31, United States 

17 Code. 

18 SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS. 

19 In this section: 

20 (1) DONATION.—The term ‘‘donation’’ includes 

21 any conveyance of land to the Federal Government 

22 that is required as a condition of receipt of any ben23 efit under Federal law. 
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1 (2) FEDERAL LAND MANAGEMENT AGENCY.—

2 The term ‘‘Federal land management agency’’ 

3 means each of the following: 

4 (A) The Forest Service. 

5 (B) The Bureau of Land Management. 

6 (C) The National Park Service. 

7 (D) The United States Fish and Wildlife 

8 Service. 

9 (3) UNIT OF GENERAL LOCAL GOVERNMENT.—

10 The term ‘‘unit of general local government’’ has the 

11 meaning given the term in section 6901(2) of title 

12 31, United States Code.

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