(B) EXCEPTIONS.—The terms ‘‘public’’ or 
‘‘public user’’ do not include any Federal agent 
or employee acting within the scope of the em-
ployment of the Federal agency or employee. 
(14) R.S. 2477.—The term ‘‘R.S. 2477’’ means 
section 2477 of the Revised Statutes (43 U.S.C. 
932) repealed by section 706 of the Federal Land 
Policy and Management Act of 1976 (Public Law 
94–579; 90 Stat. 2793). 
(15) R.S. 2477 RIGHT-OF-WAY.—The term ‘‘R.S. 
2477 right-of-way’’ means an open-ended grant or 
dedication of land by the United States for rights- 
of-way allowing public use and passage, which could 
be accepted. 
(16) RESERVED.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—The term ‘‘reserved’’ 
means action by the Secretary, before the ear-
lier of a R.S. 2477 right-of-way acceptance or 
October 21, 1976— 
(i) to withdraw land from the public 
domain; 
(ii) to make the land unavailable for 
appropriation under public land laws; and 
(iii) to dedicate the land by the 
United States to a specific public purpose, 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:52 Jul 26, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00007
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3270.IH
H3270
dlhill on DSKBC4BHB2PROD with BILLS
such as a park, military establishment, wil-
derness area, tribal land, or Federal en-
clave, that does not rely on a R.S. 2477 
right-of-way for the public purpose. 
(B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘reserved’’ 
does not apply to an action of the Secretary 
with respect to the designation of a wilderness 
study area, an area of critical environmental 
concern, or land with wilderness characteristics. 
(17) SCOPE.—The term ‘‘scope’’ means the es-
tablished width of a R.S. 2477 right-of-way as of the 
date of acceptance, including the area needed to 
meet the public convenience or safety or the exigen-
cies of increased travel based on the traditional use 
of a highway (including permissible improvements, 
realignments, or relocation), and is not limited to 
the disturbed surface of the highway. 
(18) 
SECRETARY.—The 
term 
‘‘Secretary’’ 
means the Secretary with management jurisdiction 
over land owned or controlled by the United States 
on which a R.S. 2477 right-of-way is claimed to be 
located. 
SEC. 4. FILING OF CLAIM. 
(a) FILING.— 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:52 Jul 26, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00008
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3270.IH
H3270
dlhill on DSKBC4BHB2PROD with BILLS
(1) NEW
ADMINISTRATIVE
CLAIMS.—During 
the 25-year period beginning on the date of the en-
actment of this Act, a claimant asserting the public 
acceptance of a right-of-way granted under R.S. 
2477 may file a claim under this section. 
(2) ADMINISTRATIVE
CLAIM
AFTER
FILING 
CLAIM UNDER TITLE 28.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—A claimant may file a 
claim under paragraph (1) if, before the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the claimant— 
(i) filed a notice of an intent to file 
suit with respect to a claim asserting the 
public acceptance of a right-of-way granted 
under R.S. 2477 under section 2409a(m) 
of title 28, United States Code; or 
(ii) filed suit with respect to a claim 
asserting the public acceptance of a right- 
of-way granted under R.S. 2477 under sec-
tion 2409a(m) of title 28, United States 
Code. 
(B) DISMISSAL OF COURT ACTION.—If a 
claimant files a claim under paragraph (1) with 
respect to a claim asserting the public accept-
ance of a right-of-way granted under R.S. 2477 
under section 2409a(m) of title 28, United 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:52 Jul 26, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00009
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3270.IH
H3270
dlhill on DSKBC4BHB2PROD with BILLS
States Code, any suit filed by or on behalf of 
the claimant with respect to public acceptance 
of the right-of-way shall be dismissed with prej-
udice. 
(b) FORM; CONTENTS.— 
(1) FORM.—Not later than 30 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
shall establish a form to be used by claimants for fil-
ing claims under this section. 
(2) CONTENTS.—A claim filed under subsection 
(a)(1) shall include— 
(A) evidence supporting the claim; and 
(B) proof of notice or attempted notice by 
the claimant under subsection (d). 
(c) PLACE OF FILING.—A claimant shall file a claim 
in the appropriate State or regional location designated 
by the Secretary for the filing of claims under this section. 
(d) NOTICE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (3), a claimant shall provide notice of the 
right-of-way claim by— 
(A) at least once per week during the 2- 
week period immediately preceding the filing of 
the claim, publishing in a newspaper authorized 
to publish public notice under the laws of the 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:52 Jul 26, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00010
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3270.IH
H3270
dlhill on DSKBC4BHB2PROD with BILLS
State in which the longest lineal part of the 
claimed R.S. 2477 right-of-way is located, a 
general summary of the claim, including the lo-
cation and general description of the claimed 
R.S. 2477 right-of-way; and 
(B) not later than 30 days after the date 
on which the claim is filed, providing, or rea-
sonably attempting to provide, written notice of 
the claim to all owners of land contiguous to 
the boundary of the claimed right-of-way. 
(2) ATTEMPTED NOTICE.—The reasonable at-
tempt of a claimant to provide written notice under 
paragraph (1)(B) shall be considered to be sufficient 
notice under this subsection if the claimant files with 
Secretary verification of the reasonable attempt 
under written oath or affirmation. 
(3) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding paragraph 
(1), a claimant shall be considered to have given suf-
ficient notice under this subsection if the claimant 
provides notice of an intent to file suit with respect 
to the claimed R.S. 2477 right-of-way under section 
2409a(m) of title 28, United States Code, on or 
after the date of the enactment of this Act. 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:52 Jul 26, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00011
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3270.IH
H3270
dlhill on DSKBC4BHB2PROD with BILLS
(e) EFFECT OF FAILURE TO MEET FILING DEAD-
LINE OR REQUIREMENTS.—If a claimant fails to comply 
with the requirements of— 
(1) subsection (a), the failure shall be consid-
ered to be an automatic irrevocable abandonment of 
any R.S. 2477 right-of-way claim; or 
(2) subsection (b), (c), or (d), the claim filed by 
the claimant shall not be processed until the date on 
which the failure to comply with those subsections is 
cured. 
(f) STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.—Except as provided 
in subsection (a)(1), any statute of limitations for assert-
ing the public acceptance of the R.S. 2477 right-of-way 
under this section is waived. 
SEC. 5. EVIDENCE AND FINAL DECISION. 
(a) BURDEN OF PROOF.—A claimant shall have the 
burden to prove, by a preponderance of the evidence, the 
acceptance of a right-of-way under R.S. 2477. 
(b) PRESUMPTIONS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except in a case in which 
the land underlying the claimed R.S. 2477 right-of- 
way was reserved before October 21, 1976, accept-
ance (including continuous public use, location, con-
struction, and scope of the R.S. 2477 right-of-way) 
shall be conclusively verified, proven, and established 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
21:08 Jul 26, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00012
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3270.IH
H3270
dlhill on DSKBC4BHB2PROD with BILLS
on filing, under oath or affirmation by a claimant 
attesting to the authenticity and accuracy, of— 
(A) at least 2 types of evidence from 
among the category of evidence described in 
subsection (c)(1) relating to the R.S. 2477 
right-of-way; or 
(B) all 3 types of evidence described in 
subparagraphs (A) through (C) of subsection 
(c)(2), in the case of demonstrating scope and 
acceptance before October 21, 1976. 
(2) COPIES.—A copy of an original document 
may be used as evidence in the place of the original 
document under this section if the copy is accom-
panied by a written declaration, under oath by a 
custodian, owner, or author, that the copy is an ac-
curate representation of the material terms of the 
original document. 
(3) HEARSAY.—Hearsay contained in a docu-
ment or otherwise provided shall be considered reli-
able, admissible, and probative for the purposes of 
this Act. 
(4) GRANT WITHDRAWAL.—Evidence produced 
by the United States that establishes that the 
United States reserved the land underlying the R.S. 
2477 right-of-way before acceptance conclusively es-
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
21:08 Jul 26, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00013
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3270.IH
H3270
dlhill on DSKBC4BHB2PROD with BILLS
tablishes withdrawal of the Federal grant for the 
R.S. 2477 right-of-way. 
(c) DESCRIPTION OF CATEGORIES OF EVIDENCE.— 
For the purposes of actions under this Act, the following 
categories of evidence shall be considered: 
(1) CATEGORY 1.—Category 1 evidence consists 
of each of the following types of evidence: 
(A) A center line or other survey con-
ducted by the Federal Government or duly li-
censed land surveyor, applying generally accept-
ed survey standards and procedures or the Bu-
reau of Land Management Manual of Surveying 
Instructions applicable to surveys before Octo-
ber 21, 1976, clearly showing the public use, 
control, construction, location, direction, begin-
ning and end points, length, width, and type of 
surface of the R.S. 2477 right-of-way as of date 
certain. 
(B) Maps, plats, maintenance records (in-
cluding actual or estimated costs of mainte-
nance), photographs, GIS or global positioning 
data, or other computer-generated images show-
ing the location of the R.S. 2477 right-of-way 
prepared, made, edited, kept, or relied on, gen-
erally or on a case-by-case basis, by the Federal 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:52 Jul 26, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00014
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3270.IH
H3270
dlhill on DSKBC4BHB2PROD with BILLS
Government, a State or local government, an 
institution of higher education, college, or a 
public or private organization historically, cus-
tomarily or regularly engaged in the prepara-
tion, retention, analysis, or expert interpreta-
tion of contemporary or historic maps. 
(C) Historical or other records of govern-
ment entities or records constructed, obtained, 
or kept by a government in the ordinary course 
of business, including Federal, State, local, and 
territorial records, such as records of the De-
partments of the Interior, Agriculture, or De-
fense, the Bureau of Land Management, the 
Forest Service, the Natural Resources Con-
servation Service, the Soil Conservation Service, 
General Land Office, Federal centers or en-
claves, the Smithsonian Institution, and the Li-
brary of Congress. 
(2) CATEGORY 2.—Category 2 evidence consists 
of each of the following types of evidence: 
(A) Historical records (other than those 
described in paragraph (1)(C)), including origi-
nal documents, authenticated copies, facsimiles, 
and computer-transmitted images reliably show-
ing evidence of construction (including tools 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:52 Jul 26, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00015
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3270.IH
H3270
dlhill on DSKBC4BHB2PROD with BILLS
used, if any), location (including aerial photo-
graphs, topographical maps, and government 
road maps), fixtures, and other structures, or 
maintenance by a State or local government of 
the R.S. 2477 right-of-way before October 21, 
1976. 
(B) Written or transcribed oral statements 
from at least 2 persons, given under oath before 
a notary public, court recorder, judge or any 
other government official authorized by law to 
administer oaths or otherwise authenticated re-
citing reliable knowledge of the facts that estab-
lish the acceptance by public usage of the R.S. 
2477 right-of-way before October 21, 1976. 
(C) A title opinion prepared by a duly li-
censed title examiner prepared in accordance 
with generally accepted title standards, estab-
lishing the title, location, and dimensions of the 
R.S. 2477 right-of-way. 
(d) SCOPE.—The scope of a R.S. 2477 right-of-way 
shall be the scope of the R.S. 2477 right-of-way as of the 
date of the enactment of this Act. 
(e) DETERMINATION OF ABANDONMENT.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 
the date on which a R.S. 2477 right-of-way is con-
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:52 Jul 26, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00016
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3270.IH
H3270
dlhill on DSKBC4BHB2PROD with BILLS
clusively established as accepted under subsection 
(b)(1), the Secretary shall determine, in writing, 
whether the R.S. 2477 right-of-way has been pre-
viously abandoned by the claimant. 
(2) FAILURE TO MAKE DETERMINATION.—The 
failure of the Secretary to make a written deter-
mination within the 90-day period described in para-
graph (1) shall conclusively establish that the right- 
of-way has not been abandoned. 
(3) FINAL
AGENCY
ACTION.—The determina-
tion by the Secretary under paragraph (1), or the 
failure to make the determination by the date de-
scribed in that paragraph, shall be a final agency ac-
tion, subject to appeal, in accordance with section 6. 
(f) 
DISCLAIMER
AND
RELINQUISHMENT
RE-
QUIRED.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (e), 
not later than 120 days after the date on which evi-
dence to establish acceptance of a R.S. 2477 right- 
of-way has been filed under this section, the Sec-
retary shall deliver to the claimant a written docu-
ment disclaiming and relinquishing the right and in-
terest of the United States in and to the R.S. 2477 
right-of-way. 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:52 Jul 26, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00017
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3270.IH
H3270
dlhill on DSKBC4BHB2PROD with BILLS