I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 420

To establish a user fee system that provides for an equitable return to 

the Federal Government for the occupancy and use of National Forest 

System lands and facilities by organizational camps that serve the youth 

and disabled adults of America, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 28, 2003

Mr. KOLBE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committee on Resources, 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 establish a user fee system that provides for an equitable 

return to the Federal Government for the occupancy 

and use of National Forest System lands and facilities 

by organizational camps that serve the youth and disabled adults of America, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

5 ‘‘National Forest Organizational Camp Fee Improvement 

6 Act of 2003’’. 
2

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

2 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings, purpose, and definitions. 

Sec. 3. Fees for occupancy and use of National Forest System lands and facilities by organizational camps. 

Sec. 4. Implementation. 

Sec. 5. Relationship to other laws. 

Sec. 6. Deposit and expenditure of use fees. 

Sec. 7. Ministerial issuance or amendment authorization.

3 SEC. 2. FINDINGS, PURPOSE, AND DEFINITIONS. 

4 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

5 (1) Organizational camps, such as those admin6 istered by the Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and faith7 based and community-based organizations, provide a 

8 valuable service to young people, individuals with a 

9 disability, and their families by promoting physical, 

10 mental, and spiritual health through activities con11 ducted in a natural environment. 

12 (2) The 192,000,0000 acres of national forests 

13 and grasslands of the National Forest System man14 aged for multiple uses by the Forest Service provides 

15 an ideal setting for such organizational camps. 

16 (3) The Federal Government should charge 

17 land use fees for the occupancy and use of National 

18 Forest System lands by such organizational camps 

19 that, while based on the fair market value of the 

20 land in use, also recognize the benefits provided to 

21 society by such organizational camps, do not pre-
3

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1 clude the ability of such organizational camps from 

2 utilizing these lands, and permit capital investment 

3 in, and maintenance of, camp facilities by such orga4 nizational camps or their sponsoring organizations. 

5 (4) Organizational camps should—

6 (A) ensure that their facilities meet appli7 cable building and safety codes, including fire 

8 and health codes; 

9 (B) have annual inspections as required by 

10 local law, including at a minimum inspections 

11 for fire and food safety; and 

12 (C) have in place safety plans that address 

13 fire and medical emergencies and encounters 

14 with wildlife. 

15 (b) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this Act to estab16 lish a land use fee system that provides for an equitable 

17 return to the Federal Government for the occupancy and 

18 use of National Forest System lands by organizational 

19 camps that serve young people or individuals with a dis20 ability. 

21 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this Act: 

22 (1) The term ‘‘organizational camp’’ means a 

23 public or semi-public camp that—
4

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1 (A) is developed on National Forest Sys2 tem lands by a nonprofit organization or gov3 ernmental entity; 

4 (B) provides a valuable service to the pub5 lic by using such lands as a setting to introduce 

6 young people or individuals with a disability to 

7 activities that they may not otherwise experi8 ence and to educate them on natural resource 

9 issues; and 

10 (C) does not have as its primary purpose 

11 raising revenue through commercial activities. 

12 (2) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

13 of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the For14 est Service. 

15 (3) The term ‘‘individual with a disability’’ has 

16 the meaning given the term in section 7 of the Reha17 bilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 705). 

18 (4) The term ‘‘children at risk’’ means children 

19 who are raised in poverty or in single-parent homes 

20 or are subject to such circumstances as parental 

21 drug abuse, homelessness, or child abuse. 

22 (5) The term ‘‘change in control’’ means—

23 (A) in the case of a corporation, the sale 

24 or transfer of a controlling interest in the cor25 poration; 
5

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1 (B) in the case of a partnership or limited 

2 liability company, the sale or transfer of a con3 trolling interest in the partnership or limited li4 ability company; and 

5 (C) in the case of an individual, the sale or 

6 transfer of an organizational camp to another 

7 party. 

8 SEC. 3. FEES FOR OCCUPANCY AND USE OF NATIONAL FOR9 EST SYSTEM LANDS AND FACILITIES BY OR10 GANIZATIONAL CAMPS. 

11 (a) LAND USE FEE.—

12 (1) PERCENTAGE OF LAND VALUE.—The Sec13 retary shall charge an annual land use fee for each 

14 organizational camp for its occupancy and use of 

15 National Forest System lands equal to five percent 

16 of the product of the following: 

17 (A) The total number of acres of National 

18 Forest System lands authorized for the organi19 zational camp. 

20 (B) The estimated per-acre market value 

21 of land and buildings in the county where the 

22 camp is located, as reported in the most recent 

23 Census of Agriculture conducted by the Na24 tional Agricultural Statistics Service. 
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1 (2) ANNUAL ADJUSTMENT.—The land use fee 

2 determined under paragraph (1) for an organiza3 tional camp shall be adjusted annually by the annual 

4 compounded rate of change between the two most 

5 recent Censuses of Agriculture. 

6 (3) REDUCTION IN FEES.—

7 (A) BASED ON TYPE OF PARTICIPANTS.—

8 The Secretary shall reduce the land use fee de9 termined under paragraph (1) for an organiza10 tional camp if the organizational camp is at11 tended by individuals with a disability or chil12 dren at risk. The amount of the reduction for 

13 a year shall bear the same ratio to the land use 

14 fee determined under paragraph (1) for the or15 ganizational camp as the total number of indi16 viduals with a disability and children at risk 

17 who attend the organizational camp bears to 

18 the total number of individuals who attend the 

19 organizational camp for the year. 

20 (B) BASED ON TYPE OF PROGRAMS.—

21 After making the reduction required by sub22 paragraph (A), the Secretary shall also reduce 

23 the land use fee determined under paragraph 

24 (1) for an organizational camp if the organiza25 tional camp provides youth programs for indi-
7

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1 viduals attending the camp consisting of orga2 nized and supervised social, citizenship, char3 acter-building, or faith-based activities oriented 

4 to outdoor-recreation experiences. The amount 

5 of the reduction for a year shall be equal to 60 

6 percent of the land use fee determined under 

7 paragraph (1), as adjusted under subparagraph 

8 (A). 

9 (C) RELATION TO MINIMUM FEE.—Not10 withstanding subparagraphs (A) and (B), the 

11 reductions made under this paragraph may not 

12 reduce the land use fee for an organizational 

13 camp below the minimum land use fee required 

14 to be charged under paragraph (4). 

15 (D) SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS.—For pur16 poses of determining the amount of the land 

17 use fee reduction required under subparagraph 

18 (A) or (B), the Secretary may not take into 

19 consideration the existence of sponsorships or 

20 scholarships to assist individuals in attending 

21 the organizational camp. 

22 (4) MINIMUM LAND USE FEE.—The Secretary 

23 shall charge a minimum land use fee under para24 graph (1) that represents, on average, the Sec25 retary’s cost annually to administer an organiza-
8

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1 tional camp special use authorization in the National 

2 Forest Region in which the organizational camp is 

3 located. Notwithstanding paragraph (3) or sub4 section (d), the minimum land use fee shall not be 

5 subject to a reduction or waiver. 

6 (b) FACILITY USE FEE.—

7 (1) PERCENTAGE OF FACILITIES VALUE.—If an 

8 organizational camp uses a Government-owned facil9 ity on National Forest System lands pursuant to 

10 section 7 of the Act of April 24, 1950 (commonly 

11 known as the Granger-Thye Act; 16 U.S.C. 580d), 

12 the Secretary shall charge, in addition to the land 

13 use fee imposed under subsection (a), a facility use 

14 fee equal to five percent of the value of the author15 ized facilities, as determined by the Secretary. 

16 (2) REDUCTION IN FEES PROHIBITED.—Not17 withstanding subsection (d), the facility use fees de18 termined under paragraph (1) shall not be subject to 

19 a reduction or waiver. 

20 (c) FEE RELATED TO RECEIPT OF OTHER REVE21 NUES.— If an organizational camp derives revenue from 

22 the use of National Forest System lands or authorized fa23 cilities described in subsection (b) for purposes other than 

24 to introduce young people or individuals with a disability 

25 to activities that they may not otherwise experience and 
9

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1 to educate them on natural resource issues, the Secretary 

2 shall charge, in addition to the land use fee imposed under 

3 subsection (a) and the facility use fee imposed under sub4 section (b), an additional fee equal to five percent of that 

5 revenue. 

6 (d) WORK-IN-LIEU PROGRAM.—Subject to sub7 sections (a)(4) and (b)(2), section 3 of the Federal Timber 

8 Contract Payment Modification Act (16 U.S.C. 539f) shall 

9 apply to the use fees imposed under this section. 

10 SEC. 4. IMPLEMENTATION. 

11 (a) PROMPT IMPLEMENTATION.—The Secretary shall 

12 issue direction regarding implementation of this Act by in13 terim directive within 180 days after the date of the enact14 ment of this Act. The Secretary shall implement this Act 

15 beginning with the first billing cycle for organizational 

16 camp special use authorizations occurring more than 180 

17 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

18 (b) PHASE-IN OF USE FEE INCREASES.—In issuing 

19 any direction regarding implementation of this Act under 

20 subsection (a), the Secretary shall consider whether to 

21 phase-in any significant increases in annual land or facil22 ity use fees for organizational camps. 

23 SEC. 5. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS. 

24 Except as specifically provided by this Act, nothing 

25 in this Act supersedes or otherwise affects any provision 
10

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1 of law, regulation, or policy regarding the issuance or ad2 ministration of authorizations for organizational camps re3 garding the occupancy and use of National Forest System 

4 lands. 

5 SEC. 6. DEPOSIT AND EXPENDITURE OF USE FEES. 

6 (a) DEPOSIT AND AVAILABILITY.—Unless subject to 

7 section 7 of the Act of April 24, 1950 (commonly known 

8 as the Granger-Thye Act; 16 U.S.C. 580d), use fees col9 lected by the Secretary under this Act shall be deposited 

10 in a special account in the Treasury and shall remain 

11 available to the Secretary for expenditure, without further 

12 appropriation until expended, for the purposes described 

13 in subsection (c). 

14 (b) TRANSFER.—Upon request of the Secretary, the 

15 Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer to the Secretary 

16 from the special account such amounts as the Secretary 

17 may request. The Secretary shall accept and use such 

18 amounts in accordance with subsection (c). 

19 (c) USE.—Use fees deposited pursuant to subsection 

20 (a) and transferred to the Secretary under subsection (b) 

21 shall be expended for monitoring of Forest Service special 

22 use authorizations, administration of the Forest Service’s 

23 special program, interpretive programs, environmental 

24 analysis, environmental restoration, and similar purposes. 
11

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1 SEC. 7. MINISTERIAL ISSUANCE OR AMENDMENT AUTHOR2 IZATION. 

3 (a) NEPA EXCEPTION.—The ministerial issuance or 

4 amendment of an organizational camp special use author5 ization shall not be subject to the National Environmental 

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

7 (b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—For purposes of sub8 section (a), the ministerial issuance or amendment of an 

9 authorization occurs only when the issuance or amend10 ment of the authorization would not change the physical 

11 environment or the activities, facilities, or program of the 

12 operations governed by the authorization, and at least one 

13 of the following apply: 

14 (1) The authorization is issued upon a change 

15 in control of the holder of an existing authorization. 

16 (2) The holder, upon expiration of an author17 ization, is issued a new authorization. 

18 (3) The authorization is amended—

19 (A) to effectuate administrative changes, 

20 such as modification of the land use fee or con21 version to a new special use authorization form; 

22 or 

23 (B) to include nondiscretionary environ24 mental standards or to conform with current 

25 law.

Æ
2

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

2 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings, purpose, and definitions. 

Sec. 3. Fees for occupancy and use of National Forest System lands and facilities by organizational camps. 

Sec. 4. Implementation. 

Sec. 5. Relationship to other laws. 

Sec. 6. Deposit and expenditure of use fees. 

Sec. 7. Ministerial issuance or amendment authorization.

3 SEC. 2. FINDINGS, PURPOSE, AND DEFINITIONS. 

4 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

5 (1) Organizational camps, such as those admin6 istered by the Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and faith7 based and community-based organizations, provide a 

8 valuable service to young people, individuals with a 

9 disability, and their families by promoting physical, 

10 mental, and spiritual health through activities con11 ducted in a natural environment. 

12 (2) The 192,000,0000 acres of national forests 

13 and grasslands of the National Forest System man14 aged for multiple uses by the Forest Service provides 

15 an ideal setting for such organizational camps. 

16 (3) The Federal Government should charge 

17 land use fees for the occupancy and use of National 

18 Forest System lands by such organizational camps 

19 that, while based on the fair market value of the 

20 land in use, also recognize the benefits provided to 

21 society by such organizational camps, do not pre-
3

•HR 420 IH 

1 clude the ability of such organizational camps from 

2 utilizing these lands, and permit capital investment 

3 in, and maintenance of, camp facilities by such orga4 nizational camps or their sponsoring organizations. 

5 (4) Organizational camps should—

6 (A) ensure that their facilities meet appli7 cable building and safety codes, including fire 

8 and health codes; 

9 (B) have annual inspections as required by 

10 local law, including at a minimum inspections 

11 for fire and food safety; and 

12 (C) have in place safety plans that address 

13 fire and medical emergencies and encounters 

14 with wildlife. 

15 (b) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this Act to estab16 lish a land use fee system that provides for an equitable 

17 return to the Federal Government for the occupancy and 

18 use of National Forest System lands by organizational 

19 camps that serve young people or individuals with a dis20 ability. 

21 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this Act: 

22 (1) The term ‘‘organizational camp’’ means a 

23 public or semi-public camp that—
4

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1 (A) is developed on National Forest Sys2 tem lands by a nonprofit organization or gov3 ernmental entity; 

4 (B) provides a valuable service to the pub5 lic by using such lands as a setting to introduce 

6 young people or individuals with a disability to 

7 activities that they may not otherwise experi8 ence and to educate them on natural resource 

9 issues; and 

10 (C) does not have as its primary purpose 

11 raising revenue through commercial activities. 

12 (2) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

13 of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the For14 est Service. 

15 (3) The term ‘‘individual with a disability’’ has 

16 the meaning given the term in section 7 of the Reha17 bilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 705). 

18 (4) The term ‘‘children at risk’’ means children 

19 who are raised in poverty or in single-parent homes 

20 or are subject to such circumstances as parental 

21 drug abuse, homelessness, or child abuse. 

22 (5) The term ‘‘change in control’’ means—

23 (A) in the case of a corporation, the sale 

24 or transfer of a controlling interest in the cor25 poration; 
5

•HR 420 IH 

1 (B) in the case of a partnership or limited 

2 liability company, the sale or transfer of a con3 trolling interest in the partnership or limited li4 ability company; and 

5 (C) in the case of an individual, the sale or 

6 transfer or an organizational camp to another 

7 party. 

8 SEC. 3. FEES FOR OCCUPANCY AND USE OF NATIONAL FOR9 EST SYSTEM LANDS AND FACILITIES BY OR10 GANIZATIONAL CAMPS. 

11 (a) LAND USE FEE.—

12 (1) PERCENTAGE OF LAND VALUE.—The Sec13 retary shall charge an annual land use fee for each 

14 organizational camp for its occupancy and use of 

15 National Forest System lands equal to five percent 

16 of the product of the following: 

17 (A) The total number of acres of National 

18 Forest System lands authorized for the organi19 zational camp. 

20 (B) The estimated per-acre market value 

21 of land and buildings in the county where the 

22 camp is located, as reported in the most recent 

23 Census of Agriculture conducted by the Na24 tional Agricultural Statistics Service. 
6

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1 (2) ANNUAL ADJUSTMENT.—The land use fee 

2 determined under paragraph (1) for an organiza3 tional camp shall be adjusted annually by the annual 

4 compounded rate of change between the two most 

5 recent Censuses of Agriculture. 

6 (3) REDUCTION IN FEES.—

7 (A) BASED ON TYPE OF PARTICIPANTS.—

8 The Secretary shall reduce the land use fee de9 termined under paragraph (1) for an organiza10 tional camp if the organizational camp is at11 tended by individuals with a disability or chil12 dren at risk. The amount of the reduction for 

13 a year shall bear the same ratio to the land use 

14 fee determined under paragraph (1) for the or15 ganizational camp as the total number of indi16 viduals with a disability and children at risk 

17 who attend the organizational camp bears to 

18 the total number of individuals who attend the 

19 organizational camp for the year. 

20 (B) BASED ON TYPE OF PROGRAMS.—

21 After making the reduction required by sub22 paragraph (A), the Secretary shall also reduce 

23 the land use fee determined under paragraph 

24 (1) for an organizational camp if the organiza25 tion camp provides youth programs for individ-
7

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1 uals attending the camp consisting of organized 

2 and supervised social, citizenship, character3 building, or faith-based activities oriented to 

4 outdoor-recreation experiences. The amount of 

5 the reduction for a year shall be equal to 60 

6 percent of the land use fee determined under 

7 paragraph (1), as adjusted under subparagraph 

8 (A). 

9 (C) RELATION TO MINIMUM FEE.—Not10 withstanding subparagraphs (A) and (B), the 

11 reductions made under this paragraph may not 

12 reduce the land use fee for an organizational 

13 camp below the minimum land use fee required 

14 to be charged under paragraph (4). 

15 (D) SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS.—For pur16 poses of determining the amount of the land 

17 use fee reduction required under subparagraph 

18 (A) or (B), the Secretary may not take into 

19 consideration the existence of sponsorships or 

20 scholarships to assist individuals in attending 

21 the organizational camp. 

22 (4) MINIMUM LAND USE FEE.—The Secretary 

23 shall charge a minimum land use fee under para24 graph (1) that represents, on average, the Sec25 retary’s cost annually to administer an organiza-
8

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1 tional camp special use authorization in the National 

2 Forest Region in which the organizational camp is 

3 located. Notwithstanding paragraph (3) or sub4 section (d), the minimum land use fee shall not be 

5 subject to a reduction or waiver. 

6 (b) FACILITY USE FEE.—

7 (1) PERCENTAGE OF FACILITIES VALUE.—If an 

8 organizational camp uses a Government-owned facil9 ity on National Forest System lands pursuant to 

10 section 7 of the Act of April 24, 1950 (commonly 

11 known as the Granger-Thye Act; 16 U.S.C. 580d), 

12 the Secretary shall charge, in addition to the land 

13 use fee imposed under subsection (a), a facility use 

14 fee equal to five percent of the value of the author15 ized facilities, as determined by the Secretary. 

16 (2) REDUCTION IN FEES PROHIBITED.—Not17 withstanding subsection (d), the facility use fees de18 termined under paragraph (1) shall not be subject to 

19 a reduction or waiver. 

20 (c) FEE RELATED TO RECEIPT OF OTHER REVE21 NUES.— If an organizational camp derives revenue from 

22 the use of National Forest System lands or authorized fa23 cilities described in subsection (b) for purposes other than 

24 to introduce young people or individuals with a disability 

25 to activities that they may not otherwise experience and 
9

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1 to educate them on natural resource issues, the Secretary 

2 shall charge, in addition to the land use fee imposed under 

3 subsection (a) and the facility use fee imposed under sub4 section (b), an additional fee equal to five percent of that 

5 revenue. 

6 (d) WORK-IN-LIEU PROGRAM.—Subject to sub7 sections (a)(4) and (b)(2), section 3 of the Federal Timber 

8 Contract Payment Modification Act (16 U.S.C. 539f) shall 

9 apply to the use fees imposed under this section. 

10 SEC. 4. IMPLEMENTATION. 

11 (a) PROMPT IMPLEMENTATION.—The Secretary shall 

12 issue direction regarding implementation of this Act by in13 terim directive within 180 days after the date of the enact14 ment of this Act. The Secretary shall implement this Act 

15 beginning with the first billing cycle for organizational 

16 camp special use authorizations occurring more than 180 

17 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

18 (b) PHASE-IN OF USE FEE INCREASES.—In issuing 

19 any direction regarding implementation of this Act under 

20 subsection (a), the Secretary shall consider whether to 

21 phase-in any significant increases in annual land or facil22 ity use fees for organizational camps. 

23 SEC. 5. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS. 

24 Except as specifically provided by this Act, nothing 

25 in this Act supersedes or otherwise affects any provision 
10

•HR 420 IH 

1 of law, regulation, or policy regarding the issuance or ad2 ministration of authorizations for organizational camps re3 garding the occupancy and use of National Forest System 

4 lands. 

5 SEC. 6. DEPOSIT AND EXPENDITURE OF USE FEES. 

6 (a) DEPOSIT AND AVAILABILITY.—Unless subject to 

7 section 7 of the Act of April 24, 1950 (commonly known 

8 as the Granger-Thye Act; 16 U.S.C. 580d), use fees col9 lected by the Secretary under this Act shall be deposited 

10 in a special account in the Treasury and shall remain 

11 available to the Secretary for expenditure, without further 

12 appropriation until expended, for the purposes described 

13 in subsection (c). 

14 (b) TRANSFER.—Upon request of the Secretary, the 

15 Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer to the Secretary 

16 from the special account such amounts as the Secretary 

17 may request. The Secretary shall accept and use such 

18 amounts in accordance with subsection (c). 

19 (c) USE.—Use fees deposited pursuant to subsection 

20 (a) and transferred to the Secretary under subsection (b) 

21 shall be expended for monitoring of Forest Service special 

22 use authorizations, administration of the Forest Service’s 

23 special program, interpretive programs, environmental 

24 analysis, environmental restoration, and similar purposes. 
11

•HR 420 IH 

1 SEC. 7. MINISTERIAL ISSUANCE OR AMENDMENT AUTHOR2 IZATION. 

3 (a) NEPA EXCEPTION.—The ministerial issuance or 

4 amendment of an organizational camp special use author5 ization shall not be subject to the National Environmental 

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

7 (b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—For purposes of sub8 section (a), the ministerial issuance or amendment of an 

9 authorization occurs only when the issuance or amend10 ment of the authorization would not change the physical 

11 environment or the activities, facilities, or program of the 

12 operations governed by the authorization, and at least one 

13 of the following apply: 

14 (1) The authorization is issued upon a change 

15 in control of the holder of an existing authorization. 

16 (2) The holder, upon expiration of an author17 ization, is issued a new authorization. 

18 (3) The authorization is amended—

19 (A) to effectuate administrative changes, 

20 such as modification of the land use fee or con21 version to a new special use authorization form; 

22 or 

23 (B) to include nondiscretionary environ24 mental standards or to conform with current 

25 law.

Æ