H. R. 4578—78
(c) PERMANENT CLOSURE.—For the purposes of subsection (a),
an aircraft landing strip shall be considered to be closed perma-
nently if the intended duration of the closure is more than 180
days in any calendar year.
SEC. 346. COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE NATIONAL SCENIC AREA.
(a) LAND ACQUISITION.—Section 9 of the Columbia River Gorge
National Scenic Area Act (16 U.S.C. 544g) is amended:
(1) by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection (g); and
(2) by inserting after subsection (d) the following:
‘‘(e) APPRAISALS.—
‘‘(1) DEFINITION OF LANDOWNER.—In this subsection, the
term ‘landowner’ means the owner of legal or equitable title
as of September 1, 2000.
‘‘(2) APPRAISAL STANDARDS.—Except as provided in para-
graph (3), land acquired or conveyed by purchase or exchange
under this section shall be appraised in conformity with the
Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land Acquisitions.
‘‘(3) SPECIAL MANAGEMENT AREAS.—
‘‘(A) BEFORE
APRIL
1, 2001.—Land within a special
management area for which the landowner, before April
1, 2001, makes a written bona fide offer to convey to
the Secretary for fair market value shall be appraised—
‘‘(i) without regard to the effect of any zoning or
land use restriction made in response to this Act; but
‘‘(ii) subject to any other current zoning or land
use restriction imposed by the State or locality in which
the land is located on the date of the offer.
‘‘(B) ON OR AFTER APRIL 1, 2001.—Land within a special
management area for which the landowner, on or after
April 1, 2001, makes a written bona fide offer to convey
to the Secretary for fair market value shall be appraised
subject to—
‘‘(i) any zoning or land use restriction made in
response to this Act; and
‘‘(ii) any other current zoning or land use restric-
tion that applies to the land on the date of the offer.
‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION FOR CERTAIN LAND EXCHANGES.—
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—To facilitate priority land exchanges
through which land within the boundaries of the White Salmon
Wild and Scenic River or within the scenic area is conveyed
to the United States, the Secretary may accept title to such
land as the Secretary determines to be appropriate within
the States, regardless of the State in which the land conveyed
by the Secretary in exchange is located, in accordance with
land exchange authorities available to the Secretary under
applicable law.
‘‘(2) SPECIAL RULE FOR LAND CERTAIN EXCHANGES.—Not-
withstanding any other provision of law—
‘‘(A) any exchange described in paragraph (1) for which
an agreement to initiate has been executed as of September
30, 2000, shall continue; and
‘‘(B) any timber stumpage proceeds collected under the
exchange shall be retained by the Forest Service to com-
plete the exchange.’’.
(b) ADMINISTRATION OF SPECIAL MANAGEMENT AREAS.—Section
8(o) of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area Act (16
U.S.C. 544f) is amended—
H. R. 4578—79
(1) by striking ‘‘Any ordinance’’ and inserting the following:
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any ordinance’’;
(2) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘the Uniform Appraisal
Standards for Federal Land Acquisitions (Interagency Land
Acquisition Conference, 1973).’’ and inserting ‘‘section 9(e).’’;
and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(2) APPLICABILITY.—This subsection shall not apply to any
land offered to the Secretary for acquisition after March 31,
2001.’’.
(c) PUBLICATION OF NOTICE.—
(1) Not later than November 1, 2000, the Secretary of
Agriculture shall provide notice of the provisions contained
in the amendments made by subsections (a) and (b) through—
(A) publication of a notice in the Federal Register
and in newspapers of general circulation in the counties
in the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area; and
(B) posting of a notice in each facility of the United
States Postal Service located in those counties.
(2) If the counties wherein special management areas are
located provide the Forest Service administrator of the
Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area lists of the names
and addresses of landowners within the special management
areas as of September 1, 2000, the Forest Service shall send
to such names and addresses by certified first class mail notice
of the provisions contained in the amendments made by sub-
sections (a) and (b);
(A) The mailing shall occur within twenty working
days of the receipt of the list; and
(B) The mailing shall constitute constructive notice
to landowners, and proof of receipt by the addressee shall
not be required.
(d) DESIGNATION
OF SPECIAL MANAGEMENT AREAS.—Section
4(b)(2) of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area Act (16
U.S.C. 544b(b)(2)) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘in this section’’ and
inserting ‘‘by paragraph (1)’’; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(3) MODIFICATION OF BOUNDARIES.—The boundaries of the
special management areas are modified as depicted on a map
dated September 20, 2000, which shall be on file and available
for public inspection in the office of the Chief of the Forest
Service in Washington, District of Columbia, and copies shall
be available in the office of the Commission, and the head-
quarters of the scenic area.’’.
(e) PAYMENTS
TO LOCAL GOVERNMENTS.—Section 14(c)(3) of
the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area Act (16 U.S.C.
544l(c)(3)) is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘(3) No payment’’ and inserting the following:
‘‘(3) LIMITATION.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subparagraph
(B), no payment’’;
(2) by striking ‘‘fifth’’ and inserting ‘‘eighth’’; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(B) CONTINUATION OF CERTAIN PAYMENTS.—For any
land or interest in land for which the Secretary is making
H. R. 4578—80
a payment in fiscal year 2000, such payment shall be
continued for a total of eight fiscal years.’’.
SEC. 347. (a) EXCHANGE REQUIRED.—In exchange for the non-
Federal lands and the additional consideration described in sub-
section (b), the Secretary of Agriculture shall convey to Kern
County, California, all right, title, and interest of the United States
in and to four parcels of land under the jurisdiction of the Forest
Service in Kern County, as follows:
(1) Approximately 70 acres known as Camp Owen as
depicted on the map entitled ‘‘Camp Owen’’, dated June 15,
2000.
(2) Approximately 4 acres known as Wofford Heights Park
as depicted on the map entitled ‘‘Wofford Heights Park’’, dated
June 15, 2000.
(3) Approximately 4 acres known as the French Gulch
maintenance yard as depicted on the map entitled ‘‘French
Gulch Maintenance Yard’’, dated June 15, 2000.
(4) Approximately 14 acres known as the Kernville Fish
Hatchery as depicted on the map entitled ‘‘Kernville Fish
Hatchery’’, dated June 15, 2000.
(b) CONSIDERATION.—
(1) CONVEYANCE OF NON-FEDERAL LANDS.—As consideration
for the conveyance of the Federal lands referred to in subsection
(a), Kern County shall convey to the Secretary a parcel of
land for fair market value consisting of approximately 52 acres
as depicted on the map entitled ‘‘Greenhorn Mountain Park’’,
located in Kern County, California, dated June 18, 2000.
(2) REPLACEMENT
FACILITY.—As additional consideration
for the conveyance of the storage facility located at the mainte-
nance yard referred to in subsection (a)(3), Kern County shall
provide a replacement storage facility of comparable size and
condition, as acceptable to the Secretary, at the Greenhorn
Ranger District Lake Isabella Maintenance Yard property.
(3) CASH EQUALIZATION PAYMENT.—As additional consider-
ation for the conveyance of the Federal lands referred to in
subsection (a), Kern County shall tender a cash equalization
payment specified by the Secretary. The cash equalization pay-
ment shall be based upon an appraisal performed at the option
of the Forest Service pursuant to section 206(b) of the Federal
Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1716(b)).
(c) CONDITIONS ON ACCEPTANCE.—Title to the non-Federal lands
to be conveyed under this section must be acceptable to the Sec-
retary, and the conveyance shall be subject to valid existing rights
of record. The non-Federal lands shall conform with the title
approval standards applicable to Federal land acquisitions.
(d) TIME FOR CONVEYANCE.—Subject to subsection (c), the Sec-
retary shall complete the conveyance of the Federal lands under
subsection (a) within 3 months after Kern County tenders to the
Secretary the consideration required by subsection (b).
(e) STATUS OF ACQUIRED LANDS.—Upon approval and accept-
ance of title by the Secretary, the non-Federal lands conveyed
to the United States under this section shall become part of Sequoia
National Forest, and the boundaries of the national forest shall
be adjusted to include the acquired lands. The Secretary shall
manage the acquired lands for recreational purposes in accordance
with the laws and regulations pertaining to the National Forest
H. R. 4578—81
System. For purposes of section 7 of the Land and Water Conserva-
tion Fund Act of 1965 (16 U.S.C. 460l–9), the boundaries of the
national forest, as adjusted pursuant to this section, shall be consid-
ered to be the boundaries of the national forest as of January
1, 1965.
(f) RELATIONSHIP TO ENVIRONMENTAL LIABILITY.—In connection
with the conveyances under this section, the Secretary may require
such additional terms and conditions related to environmental
liability as the Secretary considers appropriate to protect the
interests of the United States.
(g) LEGAL DESCRIPTIONS.—The exact acreage and legal descrip-
tion of the real property to be exchanged under this section shall
be determined by a survey or surveys satisfactory to the Secretary.
The costs of any such survey, as well as other administrative
costs incurred to execute the land exchange (other than costs
incurred by Kern County to comply with subsection (h)), shall
be divided equally between the Secretary and Kern County.
(h) TREATMENT OF EXISTING UTILITY LINES AT CAMP OWEN.—
Upon receipt of the Federal lands described in subsection (a)(1),
Kern County shall grant an easement, and record the easement
in the appropriate office, for permitted or licensed uses of those
lands that are unrecorded as of the date of the conveyance.
(i) APPLICABLE LAW.—Except as otherwise provided in this
section, any exchange of National Forest System land under this
section shall be subject to the laws (including regulations) applicable
to the conveyance and acquisition of land for the National Forest
System.
SEC. 348. (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than March 1, 2001,
the Secretary shall cause to be established an advisory group to
provide continuing expert advice and counsel to the Director of
the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) with respect
to the research and development activities NETL conducts and
manages.
(b) MEMBERSHIP.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The advisory group shall be composed
of—
(A) a balanced group of—
(i) representatives of academia;
(ii) representatives of industry;
(iii) representatives of non-governmental organiza-
tions; and
(iv) representatives of energy regulatory agencies;
(B) a representative of the DOE’s Office of Fossil
Energy;
(C) a representative of the DOE’s Office of Energy
Efficiency and Renewable Energy;
(D) a representative of the DOE’s Office of Science;
and
(E) others, as appropriate.
(c) DUTIES.—The advisory group shall provide advice, informa-
tion, and recommendations to the Director—
(1) on management and strategic issues affecting the lab-
oratory; and
(2) on the scientific and technical direction of the labora-
tory’s R&D program;
(d) COMPENSATION; SUPPORT; PROCEDURES.—