An Act to provide for payments to local governments based upon the acreage of the National Wildlife Refuge System which is within their boundaries, and for other purposes.
PL 95-469 (H.R.8394), enacted 10/17/1978

PUBLIC LAW 95-469—OCT. 17, 1978 
92 STAT. 1319 
Public Law 95-469 
95th Congress 
An Act 
To provide for payments to local governments based upon the acreage of the 
National Wildlife Refuge System which is vrithin their boundaries, and for 
other purposes. 
Oct. 17, 1978 
[H.R. 8394] 
Refuge Revenue 
Sharing 
Act, amendment. 
Be it enacted &y t^^ Senate and House of Representatwes 
of the 
United States of America in Congress asserribled^ That (a) section 401 
of the Act of June 15, 1935 (commonly referred to as the "Refuge 
Revenue Sharing Act", 16U.S.C. 715s) is amended as follows: 
(1) Subsection (a) is amended— 
(A) by inserting "salmonoid carcassas," after "animals,"; 
and 
(B) by inserting after "National Wildlife Refuge Sjrstem" 
the second time it appears ", National Fish Hatcheries, or 
other areas,". 
(2) Subsection (b) is amended by inserting "and revenue-
sharing" immediately after "revenue-producing"; and by striking 
out "set forth in subsection (a)". 
(3) Subsections (c), (d), (e), (f), and (g) are amended to 
read as follows: 
"(c) (1) The Secretary shall pay out the fund, for each fiscal year 
Payments, 
beginning with the fiscal year ending September 30, 1979, to each 
county in which is situated any fee area whichever of the following 
amounts is greater: 
" (A) An amount equal to the product of 75 cents multiplied by 
the total acreage of that portion of the fee area which is located 
within such county. 
" ( B ) An amount equal to three-fourths of 1 per centum of the 
fair market value, as determined by the Secretary, of that portion 
of the fee area (excluding any improvements thereto made after 
the date of Federal acquisition) which is located within such 
county. 
"(C) An amount equal to 25 per centum of the net receipts col-
lected by the Secretary in connection with the operation and 
management of such fee area during such fiscal year; but if a fee 
area is located in two or more counties, the amount each such 
county is entitled to shall be the amount which bears to such 25 per 
centum the same ratio as that portion of the fee area acreage which 
is within such county bears to the total acreage of such fee area. 
" (2) At the end of each fiscal year the Secretary shall pay out of the 
fund for such fiscal year to each county in which any reserve area is 
situated, an amount equal to 25 per centum of the net receipts collected 
by the Secretary in connection with the operation and management of 
such area during such fiscal year: Provided^ That when any such area 
is situated in more than one county the distributive share to each 
county from the aforesaid receipts shall be proportional to its acreage 
of such reserve area. 
" (3) For purposes of this section, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, 
Guam, and the Virgin Islands shall each be treated as a county. 
92 STAT. 1320 
PUBLIC LAW 95-469—OCT. 17, 1978 
"(4) (A) For purposes of determining the fair market value of fee 
areas under paragraph (1) (B), the Secretary shall— 
"(i) appraise before September 30,1979, all fee areas for which 
payments under this section were not authorized for fiscal years 
occurring before October 1,1977; and 
" (ii) appraise all other fee areas, within five years after the date 
of the 1978 amendment to this subsection, in the order in which 
such areas were first established by the Service. 
After initial appraisal under clause (i) or (ii), each fee area shall 
thereafter be reappraised by the Secretary at least once during each 
five-year period occurring after the date of the initial appraisal. Until 
any fee area referred to in clause (ii) is initially appraised under this 
subparagraph, the fair market value of such area shall be deemed to 
be that adjusted cost of the area which was used to determine pay-
ments under this subsection for fiscal year 1977; and in no case may 
the amount of any payment to any local government under paragraph 
(1) (B) with respect to any fee area be less than the amount paid under 
paragraph (2) (A) of this subsection (as in effect on September 30, 
1977) with respect to such area. 
Determinations. 
"(B) The Secretary shall make the determinations required under 
this subsection in such manner as the Secretary considers to be equitable 
and in the public interest. All such determinations shall be final and 
conclusive, 
"(5) (A) Each county which receives payments under paragraphs 
(1) and (2) with respect to any fee area or reserve area shall distribute, 
under guidelines established by the Secretary, such payments on a 
proportional basis to those units of local government (including, but 
not limited to, school districts and the county itself in appropriate 
cases) which have incurred the loss or reduction of real property tax 
revenues by reason of the existence of such area. In any case in which 
a unit of local government other than the county acts as the collecting 
and distributing agency for real property taxes, the payments under 
paragraphs (1) and (2) shall be made to such other unit which shall 
distribute the payments in accordance with the guidelines. 
Regulations. 
"(B) The Secretary may prescribe regulations under which pay-
ments under this paragraph may be made to units of local government 
in cases in which subparagraph (A) will not effect the purposes of 
this paragraph. 
"(C) Payments received by units of local government under this 
, 
subsection may be used by such units for any governmental purpose. 
"(d) If the net receipts in the fund which are attributable to revenue 
collections for any fiscal year do not equal the aggregate amount of 
payments required to be made for such fiscal year under subsection 
(c) to counties, there are authorized to be appropriated to the fund 
an amount equal to the difference between the total amount of net 
receipts and such aggregate amount of payments. 
" (e) If the net receipts in the fund which are attributable to revenue 
collections for any fiscal year exceed the aggregate amount of pay-
ments required to be made for such fiscal year under subsection (c) to 
counties, the amount of such excess shall be transferred to the Migra-
tory Bird Conservation Fund for use in the acquisition of suitable areas 
for migratory bird refuges under the provisions of the Migratory Bird 
Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 715-715r). 
"(f) The Secretary shall carry out any revenue producing activity 
referred to in subsection (a) (1), (2), and (3) within any fee area 
or reserve area subject to such terms, conditions, or regulations, includ-
PUBLIC LAW 95-469—OCT. 17, 1978 
92 STAT. 1321 
ing sales in the open markets, as the Secretary determines to be in the 
best interest of the United States, The Secretary may, in accordance 
with such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, dispose of 
animals which are surplus to any such area by exchange of the same 
or other kinds, gift or loan to public institutions for exhibition or 
propogation purposes, and for the advancement of knowledge and the 
dissemination of information relating to the conservation of wildlife. 
"(g) As used in this section— 
"(1) The term 'Secretary' means the Secretary of the Interior. 
"(2) The term 'fee area' means any area which was acquired 
in fee by the United States and is administered, either solely or 
primarily, by the Secretary through the Service, 
" (3) The term 'reserve area' means any area of land withdrawn 
from the public domain and administered, either solely or pri-
marily, by the Secretary through the Service, 
"(4) The term 'Service' means the United States Fish and 
Wildlife Service. 
"(5) The term 'county' means any county, parish, or organized 
or unorganized borough.". 
(4) Such section is amended by adding at the end thereof the 
following new subsection: 
"(h) In administering the Act of October 20, 1976 (Public Law 
94-565, 31 U.S.C. 1601-1607), for fiscal years occurring after Sep-
tember 30, 1978— 
"(1) reserve areas shall be deemed to be entitlement lands for 
purposes of section 6(a) of such Act; and 
"(2) payments received by any unit of local government pur-
suant to subsection (c) (2) shall be deemed to be payments under 
a provision of law specified in section 4 of such Act.", 
(b) Title IV of such Act of June 15,1935, is amended by amending 
the center heading immediately preceding section 401 thereof to read 
as follows: 
Disposal of 
animals. 
Definitions. 
16 use 7158. 
"TITLE IV—PARTICIPATION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTS 
IN REVENUE FROM AREAS ADMINISTERED BY THE 
UNITED STATES FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE". 
SEC. 2. The amendments made by this Act shall apply with respect 16 USC 7158 
to payments made to counties under title IV of the Act of June 15, ^°^-
1935, for the fiscal year ending September 30,1979, and for fiscal years 16 USC 7158. 
thereafter; except that the amendments made to such title IV which 
amend section 401 (a) and (g), add paragraph (4) to section 401(c), 
and amend the title heading shall take effect on the date of the enact-
ment of this Act. No authorization for appropriation shall be available 
under this Act before the fiscal year ending September 30, 1980. 
SEC. 3. The Act entitled "An Act to provide for certain payments to 
be made to local governments by the Secretary of the Interior based 
upon the amount of certain public lands within the boundaries of such 
locality", approved October 20, 1976 (90 Stat. 2662; 31 U.S.C. 1601) 
is amended as follows: 
(1) in subsection (a) of section 6 delete clause (4) and insert in 31 USC 1606. 
lieu thereof the following new clause: 
"(4) effective October 1,1978, lands on which are located semi-
active or inactive installations, not including industrial installa-
tions, retained by the Army for mobilization purposes and for 
support of reserve component training; or". 
(2) at the end of section 5 insert the following new subsection: 31 USC 1605. 
92 STAT. 1322 
PUBLIC LAW 95-469—OCT. 17, 1978 
"(c) Nothing in this Act shall authorize pny payments to any unit 
of local government for any lands otherwise entitled to receive pay-
31 use 1606. 
ments pursuant to subsection (a) of section 6 if such lands were owned 
and/or administered by a State or unit of local government and exempt 
from payment of real estate taxes at the time title to such lands is con-
veyed to the United States, except that, beginning in fiscal year 1979, 
this subsection shall cease to be applicable to payments for any land 
which is or was acquired by a State or unit of local government from 
private parties for the purpose of donation of such land to the Federal 
Government and which is or was so donated within eight years of the 
date of acquisition thereof by the State or unit of local government."; 
and 
31 use 1603. 
(3) at the end of section 3 insert the following new subsection: 
"(e) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (c) of section 6 
of this Act as it applies to the State of Alaska, for purposes of this 
section, beginning in fiscal year 1979 a unit of local government in 
Alaska located outside the boundaries of an organized borough which 
acts as the collecting and distributing agency for real property taxes 
shall be eligible to receive payments under the foregoing provisions of 
this section.". 
Approved October 17, 1978. 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: 
HOUSE REPORT No. 95-1197 (Comm. on Merchant Marine and Fisheries). 
SENATE REPORT No. 95-1174 (Comm. on Environment and Public Works). 
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol 124 (1978)-
June 6, considered and passed House. 
Sept. 25, considered and passed Senate, amended; vote vitiated; reconsidered and 
passed Senate, amended. 
Sept. 29, House concurred in Senate amendments.