SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Small Lands Tracts 
Conveyance Act’’. 
SEC. 2. SPECIAL CONVEYANCE AUTHORITY REGARDING 
SMALL PARCELS OF NATIONAL FOREST SYS-
TEM LAND AND PUBLIC LANDS. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) ADJACENT LANDHOLDER.—The term ‘‘ad-
jacent landholder’’ means any holder of non-Federal 
land (including a holder that is a State, county, or 
local government or any agency thereof, or an In-
dian tribe) that shares one or more boundaries with 
an eligible Federal lands parcel and who makes a re-
quest to purchase an eligible Federal lands parcel. 
(2) DIRECTOR CONCERNED.—The term ‘‘Direc-
tor concerned’’ means the Director of the Bureau of 
Land Management for a State. 
(3) ELIGIBLE FEDERAL LANDS PARCEL.—The 
term ‘‘eligible Federal lands parcel’’ means a parcel 
of National Forest System land or the public lands 
that— 
(A) shares one or more boundaries with 
non-Federal land; 
(B) is located within the boundaries of an 
incorporated or unincorporated area with a pop-
ulation of at least 500 residents; 
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(C) is not subject to existing rights held by 
a non-Federal entity; 
(D) does not contain an exceptional re-
source; and 
(E) is not habitat for an endangered spe-
cies or a threatened species determined under 
section 4 of the Endangered Species Act of 
1973 (16 U.S.C. 1533). 
(4) EXCEPTIONAL RESOURCE.—The term ‘‘ex-
ceptional resource’’ means a resource of scientific, 
historic, cultural, or recreational value on a parcel of 
public lands that the Director concerned or Regional 
Forester concerned determines, on the record and 
after an opportunity for a hearing— 
(A) is documented by a Federal, State, or 
local governmental authority; and 
(B) requires extraordinary conservation 
and protection to maintain the resource for the 
benefit of the public. 
(5) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ 
has the meaning given that term in section 102 of 
the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 
1994 (25 U.S.C. 479a). 
(6) NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM LAND.— 
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(A) IN
GENERAL.—The term ‘‘National 
Forest System land’’ means land within the Na-
tional Forest System, as defined in section 
11(a) of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable 
Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 
1609(a)), including the National Grasslands 
and land utilization projects designated as Na-
tional Grasslands administered pursuant to the 
Act of July 22, 1937 (7 U.S.C. 1010–1012). 
(B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term does not in-
clude any land managed by the Forest Service 
that is included in a national monument, an 
area of critical environmental concern, a na-
tional conservation area, a national riparian 
conservation area, a national recreation area, a 
national scenic area, a research natural area, a 
national outstanding natural area, a national 
natural landmark, a wilderness area, a wilder-
ness study area, the national wild and scenic 
rivers system, the national system of trails, or 
land held in trust by the United States for the 
benefit of any Indian tribe. 
(7) PUBLIC LANDS.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—The term ‘‘public 
lands’’ has the meaning given that term in sec-
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tion 103(e) of the Federal Land Policy and 
Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1702(e)). 
(B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term does not in-
clude any land managed by the Bureau of Land 
Management that is included in a national 
monument, an area of critical environmental 
concern, a national conservation area, a na-
tional riparian conservation area, a national 
recreation area, a national scenic area, a re-
search natural area, a national outstanding nat-
ural area, a national natural landmark, a wil-
derness area, a wilderness study area, the na-
tional wild and scenic rivers system, the na-
tional system of trails, or land held in trust by 
the United States for the benefit of any Indian 
tribe. 
(8) REGIONAL
FORESTER
CONCERNED.—The 
term ‘‘Regional Forester concerned’’ means the Re-
gional Forester with jurisdiction over the National 
Forest System land of a specific Forest Service Re-
gion. 
(b) SELECTION OF PARCELS FOR CONVEYANCE.— 
(1) TWO SELECTION METHODS.—The Director 
concerned or the Regional Forester concerned shall 
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select an eligible Federal lands parcel for conveyance 
under this section— 
(A) in response to a request submitted by 
an adjacent landholder; or 
(B) upon the recommendation of the Dis-
trict Office of the Bureau of Land Management 
or unit of the National Forest System exer-
cising administration over the parcel. 
(2) ADJACENT LANDHOLDER REQUEST.— 
(A) PROCESS REQUIRED.—The Secretary 
of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior 
each shall create a process by which an adja-
cent landholder may request to purchase an eli-
gible Federal lands parcel. 
(B) GUIDELINES.—To the maximum ex-
tent practicable, the process shall be consistent 
with other public purchase request processes 
used by the Forest Service and the Bureau of 
Land Management to convey Federal land 
under their respective statutory and regulatory 
authority. 
(C) PUBLIC ACCESSIBILITY.—The process 
shall be open to the public and available on the 
internet. 
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(D) DEADLINE.—The process shall be 
available to the public within 90 days of the 
date of the enactment of this Act. 
(3) REVIEW OF ADJACENT LANDHOLDER RE-
QUEST.—When an adjacent landholder submits a re-
quest under paragraph (1)(A) for conveyance of a 
parcel of National Forest System land or public 
lands, the Director concerned or the Regional For-
ester concerned shall review the parcel and deter-
mine, within 30 days after receipt of the request, 
whether the parcel satisfies the definition of eligible 
Federal lands parcel for conveyance. 
(4) REJECTION
OF
ADJACENT
LANDHOLDER 
REQUEST.—If the Director concerned or the Re-
gional Forester concerned determines under para-
graph (2) that all or a portion of the parcel of Na-
tional Forest System land or public lands covered by 
an adjacent landholder request under paragraph 
(1)(A) fails to satisfy the definition of eligible Fed-
eral lands parcel, the Director concerned or the Re-
gional Forester concerned shall give the landowner— 
(A) a written explanation of the reasons 
for the rejection, which specifies— 
(i) which of the elements of the defini-
tion of eligible Federal lands parcel the 
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parcel fails to satisfy and how and why the 
parcel fails to satisfy that element; 
(ii) how the continued administration 
of the parcel by the Bureau of Land Man-
agement or the Forest Service would im-
pact the parcel and surrounding economy; 
and 
(iii) why the Federal Government 
needs to maintain ownership of the parcel 
and would be the best land ownership 
steward of the parcel; and 
(B) an opportunity to appeal the rejection 
under subsection (e). 
(c) PARCEL AND ACREAGE LIMITATIONS.— 
(1) ACREAGE.—An eligible Federal lands parcel 
conveyed under this section may not exceed 160 
acres unless a request for additional acreage is ap-
proved by the Director concerned or the Regional 
Forester concerned. 
(2) NUMBER OF PARCELS.—An adjacent land-
holder may only acquire one eligible Federal lands 
parcel under this section per year, except that, if the 
parcel is less than 160 acres in size, the adjacent 
landholder may acquire additional eligible Federal 
lands parcels during that year so long as the total 
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acreage acquired does not exceed 160 acres unless a 
request for additional acreage is approved by the Di-
rector concerned or the Regional Forester concerned. 
(d) CONVEYANCE PROCESS.— 
(1) PUBLIC NOTICE.—The Director concerned 
or the Regional Forester concerned shall provide 
public notice of the availability of an eligible Federal 
lands parcel, even in cases in which the parcel 
shares a boundary with only a single parcel of non- 
Federal land or with multiple parcels owned by the 
same adjacent landholder. The notice shall state that 
the parcel satisfies the definition of eligible Federal 
lands parcel for conveyance. 
(2) SINGLE ADJACENT LANDHOLDER.—If the 
eligible Federal lands parcel shares a boundary with 
only a single parcel of non-Federal land or with mul-
tiple parcels owned by the same adjacent landholder, 
the Director concerned or the Regional Forester con-
cerned shall carry out a negotiated sale of the eligi-
ble Federal lands parcel with the adjacent land-
holder. 
(3) MULTIPLE
ADJACENT
LANDHOLDERS.—If 
multiple parcels of non-Federal land, owned by dif-
ferent adjacent landholders, share a boundary with 
an eligible public lands parcel, the sale of the eligible 
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public lands parcel under this section shall be con-
ducted using competitive bidding procedures estab-
lished under section 203(f) of the Federal Land Pol-
icy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 
1713(f)). 
(4) REJECTION OF OFFERS.—The Director con-
cerned or the Regional Forester concerned may re-
ject any offer made under this subsection that does 
not offer the minimum consideration required by 
subsection (f). The adjacent landholder shall be 
given an opportunity to appeal the rejection under 
subsection (e). 
(5) COMPLIANCE WITH LOCAL PLANNING AND 
ZONING.—As a condition of the conveyance of an eli-
gible public lands parcel under this section, the Di-
rector concerned or the Regional Forester concerned 
shall require the purchaser of the parcel to agree to 
comply with all local land use ordinances and any 
master zoning plan applicable to the parcel or the 
adjacent non-Federal land of the purchaser. 
(6) FORM OF CONVEYANCE.—When an eligible 
Federal lands parcel is to be sold under this section, 
the Director concerned or the Regional Forester con-
cerned shall convey, by quitclaim deed, all right, 
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title, and interest, including the mineral estate, of 
the United States in and to the parcel. 
(e) APPEALS PROCESS.— 
(1) AVAILABILITY OF APPEAL.—If the Director 
concerned or the Regional Forester concerned rejects 
an adjacent landholder request under subsection 
(b)(1)(A) for selection of a parcel of National Forest 
System land or public lands for conveyance under 
this section or rejects an adjacent landholder offer 
for purchase of an eligible Federal lands parcel 
under subsection (d), the Director concerned or the 
Regional Forester concerned shall provide an ap-
peals process for reconsideration of the rejection 
using the expedited Forest Service appeals process 
available under section 322(d) of Public Law 102– 
381 (16 U.S.C. 1612 note). 
(2) ADMINISTERING
OFFICIAL.—For purposes 
of applying section 322(d) of Public Law 102–381 
(16 U.S.C. 1612 note), references to the Chief of the 
Forest Service or the Secretary of Agriculture shall 
be deemed to mean the Director concerned or the 
Regional Forester concerned. 
(f) CONSIDERATION.— 
(1) FAIR MARKET VALUE.—As consideration for 
the sale of an eligible Federal lands parcel under 
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this section, the Director concerned or the Regional 
Forester concerned shall require a cash payment in 
an amount that is equal to not less than the fair 
market value of the parcel, including the mineral es-
tate, being conveyed by the Director concerned or 
the Regional Forester concerned. 
(2) ESTABLISHMENT.—The fair market value 
of an eligible Federal lands parcel shall be estab-
lished by an appraisal submitted by the adjacent 
landholder seeking to purchase the parcel, unless the 
Director concerned or the Regional Forester con-
cerned rejects such appraisal within 45 days after 
submission. In the case of the rejection of the ap-
praisal, the Director concerned or the Regional For-
ester concerned shall cause another appraisal to be 
conducted, within 30 days, in accordance with the 
regulations regarding appraisals issued under section 
206(f) of the Federal Land Policy and Management 
Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1716(f)). 
(g) TREATMENT OF PROCEEDS.— 
(1) ESTABLISHMENT OF FUND.—The Secretary 
of the Treasury shall establish in the Treasury of 
the United States a special fund to provide for the 
collection and distribution of funds under this sub-
section. 
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(2) COLLECTION.—Funds collected from the 
conveyance of an eligible Federal lands parcel under 
this section shall be deposited into the Treasury 
fund created under paragraph (1). 
(3) DISTRIBUTION.—Funds collected under this 
subsection shall be distributed annually to those 
States in which the Federal Government owns more 
than 33 percent of the land area of that State ac-
cording to the calculation provided in paragraph (4). 
(4) CALCULATION
OF
DISTRIBUTION.—From 
amounts collected and deposited under this section— 
(A) 50 percent of the amount collected 
from a conveyance shall be distributed to the 
State in which the conveyance took place; and 
(B) the remaining 50 percent shall be dis-
tributed equally between the remaining States 
identified under paragraph (3). 
(5) LIMITATION OF USE.—As a condition of re-
ceipt of funds under this subsection, a State receiv-
ing such funds shall agree to use the funds only for 
the following purposes: 
(A) PURCHASE.—To purchase additional 
eligible Federal lands parcels, that are con-
sistent with land use management under the 
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Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 
1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701). 
(B) COMPLIANCE.—To comply with a Fed-
eral requirement under— 
(i) Endangered Species Act of 1973 
(16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); 
(ii) Federal Water Pollution Control 
Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.); or 
(iii) National Environmental Policy 
Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). 
(h) PAYMENT OF COSTS OF CONVEYANCE.— 
(1) PAYMENT OF COSTS REQUIRED.—The Di-
rector concerned or the Regional Forester concerned 
shall require the purchaser to cover the costs to be 
incurred, or to reimburse the Director concerned or 
the Regional Forester concerned for costs incurred, 
to carry out the conveyance, including survey and 
appraisal costs, costs for environmental documenta-
tion, and any other administrative costs related to 
the conveyance. 
(2) REFUND OF EXCESS.—If amounts are col-
lected from the purchaser in advance of the Director 
concerned or the Regional Forester concerned incur-
ring the actual costs, and the amount collected ex-
ceeds the costs actually incurred by the Director 
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concerned or the Regional Forester concerned to 
carry out the conveyance, the Director concerned or 
the Regional Forester concerned shall refund the ex-
cess amount to the purchaser. 
(3) TREATMENT
OF
AMOUNTS
RECEIVED.— 
Amounts received as reimbursement under para-
graph (1) shall be credited to the fund or account 
that was used to cover those costs in carrying out 
the conveyance. Amounts so credited shall be merged 
with amounts in such fund or account, and shall be 
available for the same purposes, and subject to the 
same conditions and limitations, as amounts in such 
fund or account. 
(i) TIME FOR CONVEYANCE.—It is the intent of the 
Congress that the conveyance of an eligible Federal lands 
parcel under this section, from selection of the parcel for 
conveyance through completion of the sale, should take no 
more than 18 months. 
(j) CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION.—Because the scope of 
a conveyance is limited and excluded from any exceptional 
resource, a conveyance of an eligible Federal lands parcel 
under this section is categorically excluded from the re-
quirement to prepare an environmental assessment or an 
environmental impact statement under the National Envi-
ronmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). 
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(k) ADDITIONAL AUTHORITY.—The conveyance au-
thority provided by this section is in addition to the sale 
authority provided by section 203 of the Federal Land 
Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1713) 
or any other provision of law. 
Æ 
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