I 
115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6682 
To amend the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 to improve 
the transparency and oversight of land conveyances involving disposal 
or acquisition of National Forest System lands or Bureau of Land 
Management public lands, to provide protections and certainty for private 
landowners related to resurveying such public lands, and for other pur-
poses. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
AUGUST 28, 2018 
Mr. TIPTON introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Natural 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 amend the Federal Land Policy and Management Act 
of 1976 to improve the transparency and oversight of 
land conveyances involving disposal or acquisition of Na-
tional Forest System lands or Bureau of Land Manage-
ment public lands, to provide protections and certainty 
for private landowners related to resurveying such public 
lands, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Protection and Trans-
parency for Adjacent Landowners Act’’. 
TITLE 
I—REQUIREMENTS 
FOR 
FOREST SERVICE AND BU-
REAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT 
LAND 
ACQUISITIONS 
AND 
CONVEYANCES 
SEC. 101. ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR FOREST SERV-
ICE AND BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT 
LAND ACQUISITIONS AND CONVEYANCES. 
(a) NOTICE TO ADJACENT LANDOWNERS.— 
(1) LAND ACQUISITIONS.—Section 205 of the 
Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 
(43 U.S.C. 1715) is amended by adding at the end 
the following new subsection: 
‘‘(f) NOTICE TO ADJACENT LANDOWNERS.—As part 
of the acquisition of a parcel of non-Federal lands under 
this section, section 206, or other applicable law that will 
become public lands or National Forest System lands, the 
Secretary or the Secretary of Agriculture, as the case may 
be, shall provide advance written notification to each 
owner of land that is adjacent to the parcel of land to 
be acquired. To assist in identifying adjacent landowners, 
the Secretary concerned should use the most recently 
available tax records.’’. 
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(2) LAND CONVEYANCES.—Section 208 of the 
Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 
(43 U.S.C. 1718) is amended— 
(A) by inserting ‘‘(a) ISSUANCE OF PAT-
ENT AND OTHER CONVEYANCE DOCUMENTS.— 
’’ before the first sentence and ‘‘(b) OTHER 
TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—’’ before the second 
sentence; and 
(B) by adding at the end the following new 
subsection: 
‘‘(c) NOTICE TO ADJACENT LANDOWNERS.—As part 
of the conveyance of a parcel of public lands or National 
Forest System lands by sale, exchange, or other disposal 
method under section 203 or 206 or other applicable law, 
the Secretary or the Secretary of Agriculture, as the case 
may be, shall provide advance written notification to each 
owner of land that is adjacent to the parcel of land to 
be conveyed. To assist in identifying adjacent landowners, 
the Secretary concerned should use the most recently 
available tax records.’’. 
(b) 
OVERSIGHT
OF
USE
OF
THIRD-PARTY 
FACILITATORS.— 
(1) ACQUISITION.—Section 205 of the Federal 
Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 
U.S.C. 1715) is amended by inserting after sub-
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section (f), as added by subsection (a)(1), the fol-
lowing new subsection: 
‘‘(g) 
OVERSIGHT
OF
USE
OF
THIRD-PARTY 
FACILITATORS.—(1) If the acquisition process for a parcel 
of non-Federal lands under this section, section 206, or 
other applicable law that will become public lands or Na-
tional Forest System lands involves the use of a third- 
party facilitator, the Secretary or the Secretary of Agri-
culture, as the case may be, shall require, as a condition 
of the approval of the acquisition— 
‘‘(A) submission of all purchase contracts and 
related agreements held by the third-party facilitator 
related to the parcel to be acquired; and 
‘‘(B) supervisor review of such purchase con-
tracts and related agreements, the purpose of the ac-
quisition, and other terms and conditions of the ac-
quisition. 
‘‘(2) In this subsection, the term ‘third-party 
facilitator’ means any entity (other than an agent of the 
United States) whose role in a real estate transaction is 
to assist the buyer or seller, or both, in reaching agree-
ment in the transaction.’’. 
(2) LAND CONVEYANCES.—Section 208 of the 
Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 
(43 U.S.C. 1718) is amended by inserting after sub-
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section (c), as added by subsection (a)(2), the fol-
lowing new subsection: 
‘‘(d) 
OVERSIGHT
OF
USE
OF
THIRD-PARTY 
FACILITATORS.—(1) If the process by which a parcel of 
public lands or National Forest System lands will be con-
veyed by sale, exchange, or other disposal method under 
section 203 or 206 or other applicable law, involves the 
use of a third-party facilitator, the Secretary or the Sec-
retary of Agriculture, as the case may be, shall require, 
as a condition of the approval of the conveyance— 
‘‘(A) submission of all purchase contracts and 
related agreements held by the third-party facilitator 
related to the Federal land to be conveyed; 
‘‘(B) submission to appraisers of contact infor-
mation for prospective end owners of the Federal 
land to be conveyed; and 
‘‘(C) supervisor review of such purchase con-
tracts and related agreements, the purpose of the 
conveyance, and other terms and conditions of the 
conveyance. 
‘‘(2) In this subsection, the term ‘third-party 
facilitator’ means any entity (other than an agent of the 
United States) whose role in a real estate transaction is 
to assist the buyer or seller, or both, in reaching agree-
ment in the transaction.’’. 
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