I 
108TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4700 
To provide special authority to the Secretary of Agriculture to convey certain 
Forest Service administrative sites in the White River National Forest 
in Colorado, to reserve the proceeds from such conveyances to help 
resolve the facilities needs of that national forest, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 24, 2004 
Mr. MCINNIS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Resources 
A BILL 
To provide special authority to the Secretary of Agriculture 
to convey certain Forest Service administrative sites in 
the White River National Forest in Colorado, to reserve 
the proceeds from such conveyances to help resolve the 
facilities needs of that national forest, and for other 
purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘White River National 
Forest Improvement Act of 2004’’.
SEC. 2. ADMINISTRATIVE SITES CONVEYANCE AUTHORITY, 
WHITE 
RIVER 
NATIONAL 
FOREST, 
COLO-
RADO. 
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following: 
(1) The White River National Forest in Colo-
rado (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Forest’’) is 
one of the most visited recreation forests in the 
United States, but the administrative facilities of the 
Forest have become outdated and prohibitively ex-
pensive to operate and maintain. 
(2) The recently completed facility master plan 
for the Forest, entitled ‘‘Facility Master Plan, White 
River National Forest’’ and dated March 2003, in-
cluding Appendix 3 of the plan, entitled ‘‘Baseline 
Analysis and Strategic Recommendations’’ (in this 
section referred to as the ‘‘Facility Master Plan and 
Appendix 3’’), provides an excellent model for solv-
ing the facilities needs of the Forest so as to better 
serve the public and otherwise fulfill the mission of 
the Forest. 
(b) SPECIAL CONVEYANCE AUTHORITY.— 
(1) AUTHORITY PROVIDED.—The Secretary of 
Agriculture is authorized to sell, lease, exchange or 
otherwise convey, under such terms and conditions 
as the Secretary may prescribe, any or all right, 
title, and interest of the United States in and to the
following parcels of real property, including improve-
ments thereon, within the Forest, as identified for 
disposal in the Facility Master Plan and Appendix 
3: 
(A) PARCEL
A.—Shop/Barracks/Residen-
tial Compound, 10.9 acres, more or less. 
(B) PARCEL B.—Eagle D.O. and dwelling 
unit, 0.3 acres, more or less. 
(C) PARCEL C.—Eagle Shop/Pasture com-
pound, 8.0 acres, more or less. 
(D) PARCEL D.—Washington Street Resi-
dence, 0.2 acres, more or less. 
(E) PARCEL E.—Holy Cross D.O. (Dowd 
Junction), 10 acres, more or less. 
(F) PARCEL
F.—Martin Property, 11.7 
acres, more or less. 
(G) PARCEL G.—Bone Yard/Storage Area, 
5 acres, more or less. 
(H) PARCEL
H.—Housing Compound, 7 
acres, more or less. 
(I) PARCEL
I.—Cross Creek Parcel, 10 
acres, more or less. 
(J) PARCEL
J.—Dwelling 355 Fairway, 
0.2 acres, more or less.
(K) PARCEL
K.—Dwelling 236 Fairway, 
0.2 acres, more or less. 
(L) PARCEL L.—Sopris D.O. (Site #300), 
1.2 acres, more or less. 
(M) PARCEL
M.—Sopris Pasture (Site 
#380), 11 acres, more or less. 
(N) PARCEL N.—Old Tree Nursery (Site 
#360), 29 acres, more or less. 
(O) PARCEL
O.—SO Shop (Site #610), 
0.66 acres, more or less. 
(P) PARCEL P.—Airport Site, 4.0 acres, 
more or less. 
(2) INCLUSION OF ADDITIONAL PARCELS.—The 
Secretary may use the authority provided by this 
section to convey other real property in the Forest 
that is excess or extraneous to the needs of the For-
est Service and is used predominantly for adminis-
trative purposes. The Secretary may include the ap-
proximately 3.0 acre administrative parcel in Aspen, 
Colorado, but the Secretary may only convey that 
parcel by lease or other contractual arrangement so 
that the United States retains fee ownership of the 
parcel. 
(3) DESCRIPTIONS.—The Secretary may modify 
the description of a parcel of real property referred
to in paragraph (1) to correct errors or to recon-
figure the parcel to facilitate a conveyance. 
(c) CONSIDERATION.— 
(1) ACCEPTANCE
AND
FORMS.—As consider-
ation for the conveyance of real property under this 
section, the Secretary of Agriculture may accept 
cash, land, improvements, operational and mainte-
nance services related to the administrative facilities 
of the Forest, or a combination thereof. 
(2) USE.—Subject to subsection (e), the Sec-
retary shall utilize the parcels of real property re-
ferred to in subsection (b)(1) and the consideration 
received under this subsection in connection with im-
plementing the financial arrangements, including 
public/private partnership transactions and full solu-
tion transactional packages, described in the Facility 
Master Plan and Appendix 3. The Secretary may 
modify the details of the Facility Master Plan and 
Appendix 3 consistent with the goal of solving the 
facilities needs of the Forest so as to better serve 
the public and otherwise fulfill the mission of the 
Forest. 
(3) VALUATION.—Any appraisal of real prop-
erty considered necessary or desirable by the Sec-
retary to carry out a conveyance under this section
shall conform to the Uniform Appraisal Standards 
for Federal Land Acquisitions. 
(4) 
CASH
EQUALIZATION.—Notwithstanding 
any other provision of law, the Secretary may accept 
a cash equalization payment in excess of 25 percent 
of the value of any real property conveyed under this 
section by exchange. 
(d) METHODS AND MANNER OF CONVEYANCE.— 
(1) SOLICITATIONS OF OFFERS.—The Secretary 
of Agriculture may— 
(A) solicit offers for the sale, lease, ex-
change, or other conveyance of parcels of real 
property under this section on such terms and 
conditions as the Secretary may prescribe; and 
(B) reject any offer that the Secretary de-
termines is not adequate or not in the public in-
terest. 
(2) USE OF COMPETITIVE METHODS.—The Sec-
retary shall convey a parcel of real property under 
this section utilizing competitive processes, including 
competitive solicitation by auction, bid, or otherwise, 
except insofar as the Secretary determines that 
other procedures are required to facilitate the con-
veyance of the parcel.
(3) USE OF BROKERS.—The Secretary may uti-
lize brokers or other third parties in the conveyance 
of real property under this section and, from the 
proceeds of the conveyance, may pay reasonable 
commissions or fees for services rendered. 
(e) TREATMENT OF RECEIPTS.— 
(1) DEPOSIT
IN
SISK
ACT
FUND.—The Sec-
retary of Agriculture shall deposit the net receipts of 
a conveyance under this section in the fund estab-
lished by Public Law 90–171 (commonly known as 
the ‘‘Sisk Act’’; 16 U.S.C. 484a). 
(2) RELATION TO OTHER FOREST RECEIPTS.— 
The receipts from a conveyance under this section 
shall not be paid or distributed to the State of Colo-
rado or any county in the State under any provision 
of law or otherwise be considered as moneys received 
from the National Forest System for purposes of the 
Act of May 23, 1908, or the Act of March 1, 1911 
(16 U.S.C. 500), or the Act of March 4, 1913 (16 
U.S.C. 501). 
(3) USE
OF
RECEIPTS.—Amounts deposited 
pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be available to the 
Secretary for expenditure, without further appro-
priation, for the acquisition, construction, operation, 
and maintenance of administrative improvements in
the Forest, including provisions for employee hous-
ing, in connection with implementing the financial 
arrangements, including public/private partnership 
transactions and full solution transactional pack-
ages, described in the Facility Master Plan and Ap-
pendix 3, subject to such modifications of the Facil-
ity Master Plan and Appendix 3 as the Secretary 
may make under subsection (c). 
(f) MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS.— 
(1) WITHDRAWAL.—Subject to valid existing 
rights, the parcels of real property referred to in 
subsection (b)(1) are withdrawn from location, 
entry, and patent under the mining laws of the 
United States. 
(2) INAPPLICABLE AUTHORITIES.—Subchapters 
II and III of chapter 5 of title 40, United States 
Code, and the Agriculture Property Management 
Regulations shall not apply to any action taken pur-
suant to this section. 
(g) AUTHORIZATION FOR APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are nec-
essary to carry out this section. 
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