I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2367
To provide for the conveyance of certain public lands in and around historic 
mining townsites in Nevada, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 5, 2003
Mr. GIBBONS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Resources 
A BILL 
To provide for the conveyance of certain public lands in 
and around historic mining townsites in Nevada, 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 ‘‘Nevada Mining Town-
site Conveyance Act’’. 
SEC. 2. DISPOSAL OF PUBLIC LANDS IN MINING TOWN-
SITES, ESMERALDA AND NYE COUNTIES, NE-
VADA. 
(a) FINDINGS.— Congress finds the following:
(1) The Federal Government owns real property 
in and around historic mining townsites in the coun-
ties of Esmeralda and Nye in the State of Nevada. 
(2) While the real property is under the juris-
diction of the Secretary of the Interior, acting 
through the Bureau of Land Management, some of 
the real property land has been occupied for decades 
by persons who took possession by purchase or other 
documented and putatively legal transactions, but 
whose continued occupation of the real property con-
stitutes a ‘‘trespass’’ upon the title held by the Fed-
eral Government. 
(3) As a result of the confused and conflicting 
ownership claims, the real property is difficult to 
manage under multiple use policies and creates a 
continuing source of friction and unease between the 
Federal Government and local residents. 
(4) Much of the real property is appropriate for 
disposal for the purpose of promoting administrative 
efficiency and effectiveness, and the Bureau of Land 
Management has already identified certain parcels of 
the real property for disposal. 
(5) Some of the real property contains historic 
and cultural values that must be protected.
(6) To promote responsible resource manage-
ment of the real property, certain parcels should be 
conveyed to the county in which the property is situ-
ated in accordance with land use management plans 
of the Bureau of Land Management so that the 
county can, among other things, dispose of the prop-
erty to persons residing on or otherwise occupying 
the property. 
(b) MINING TOWNSITE DEFINED.—In this section, 
the term ‘‘mining townsite’’ means real property in the 
counties of Esmeralda and Nye, Nevada, that is owned 
by the Federal Government, but upon which improvements 
were constructed because of a mining operation on or near 
the property and based upon the belief that—
(1) the property had been or would be acquired 
from the Federal Government by the entity that op-
erated the mine; or 
(2) the person who made the improvement had 
a valid claim for acquiring the property from the 
Federal Government. 
(c) CONVEYANCE AUTHORITY.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Notwithstanding sections 
202 and 203 of the Federal Land Policy and Man-
agement Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1712, 1713), the 
Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau
convey the property to that person or persons by ap-
propriate deed or other legal conveyance as provided 
in that State law. For purposes of proving a valid 
interest, the person making the claim must have oc-
cupied the mining townsite for at least 15 years im-
mediately before the date of the enactment of this 
Act. The county is not required to recognize a claim 
under this paragraph submitted more than 10 years 
after the date of the enactment of this Act. 
(e) PROTECTION OF HISTORIC AND CULTURAL RE-
SOURCES.—As a condition on the conveyance or reconvey-
ance of a mining townsite under subsection (c), all historic 
and cultural resources (including improvements) on the 
mining townsite shall be preserved and protected in ac-
cordance with applicable Federal and State law. 
(f) VALID EXISTING RIGHTS.—The conveyance of a 
mining townsite under this section shall be subject to valid 
existing rights, including any easement or other right-of-
way or lease in existence as of the date of the conveyance. 
All valid existing rights and interests of mining claimants 
shall be maintained, unless those rights or interests are 
deemed abandoned and void or null and void under—
(1) section 2320 of the Revised Statutes (30 
U.S.C. 21 et seq);
(2) the Federal Land Policy and Management 
Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq); or 
(3) subtitle B of title X of the Omnibus Budget 
Reconciliation Act of 1993 (30 U.S.C. 28(f)–(k)), in-
cluding regulations promulgated under section 
3833.1 of title 43, Code of Federal Regulations or 
any successor regulation. 
(g) SURVEY.—A mining townsite to be conveyed by 
the United States under this section shall be sufficiently 
surveyed to legally describe the land for patent convey-
ance. 
(h) RELEASE.—On completion of the conveyance of 
a mining townsite under subsection (c), the United States 
shall be relieved from liability for, and shall be held harm-
less from, any and all claims arising from the presence 
of improvements and materials on the conveyed property. 
(i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of the Inte-
rior such amounts as may be necessary to carry out the 
conveyances required by this section, including funds to 
cover the costs of cadastral and mineral surveys, mineral 
potential reports, hazardous materials, biological, cultural 
and archeological clearances, validity examinations and 
other expenses incidental to the conveyances.
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