[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3673 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3673

To minimize the impact of Federal acquisition of private lands on units 
              of local government, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           November 22, 1993

  Mr. Herger introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                   Committee on Government Operations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To minimize the impact of Federal acquisition of private lands on units 
              of local government, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Federal Land Acquisition Impact 
Relief Act of 1993.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) land that is held by agencies of the Federal Government 
        does not fully contribute to the tax base of overburdened units 
        of local government;
            (2) further acquisitions of private lands by Federal 
        agencies have the potential to impose severe hardships on units 
        of local government; and
            (3) when it is clearly in the national interest for the 
        Federal Government to acquire private lands, other than by a 
        contemporaneous exchange involving Federal land, Federal 
        agencies should minimize the impact of Federal acquisition on 
        units of local government.

SEC. 3. DECLARATION OF POLICY.

    It is the policy of Congress that--
            (1) Federal agencies should not acquire private land, other 
        than by exchange, unless the acquisition is clearly in the 
        national interest;
            (2) the acquisition of private land by a Federal agency 
        should be based on a careful analysis of the full range of the 
        benefits and costs of Federal acquisition; and
            (3) the acquisition of private land by a Federal agency 
        should not result in a net loss of local tax revenues to the 
        relevant unit of local government.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    As used in this Act:
            (1) Agency.--The term ``agency'' has the same meaning as is 
        provided for ``Executive agency'' in section 105 of title 5, 
        United States Code.
            (2) Unit of local government.--The term ``unit of local 
        government'' means--
                    (A) any county, municipality, or other political 
                subdivision of a State, having authority under the laws 
                of the State to levy and collect taxes upon real 
                property; or
                    (B) the District of Columbia.
            (3) Real property taxes.--The term ``real property taxes'' 
        means all taxes, whether ad valorem or otherwise, applicable 
        with respect to real property, including special assessments, 
        assessments for benefit, or other charges of general 
        application against land in favor of a State or local 
        governmental unit.
            (4) State.--The term ``State'' means any of the several 
        States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of 
        the Northern Mariana Islands, or any territory and possession 
        of the United States.

SEC. 5. ECONOMIC IMPACT ANALYSIS.

    (a) In General.--Prior to each acquisition of private land by an 
agency, the head of the agency shall prepare an economic impact 
analysis in accordance with this section.
    (b) Contents.--In preparing the economic impact analysis, the head 
of the agency shall, at a minimum, analyze--
            (1) the extent to which alternative means to Federal 
        acquisition are available to serve the Federal resource 
        management objectives at issue;
            (2) any tax payment loss to the relevant unit of local 
        government;
            (3) the effects of the tax payment loss on the delivery of 
        governmental services by the unit;
            (4) the effects on local employment and income; and
            (5) any potential limitations that the Federal acquisition 
        would pose for future community expansion.
    (c) Consultation.--The agency shall consult with the relevant unit 
of local government during the preparation of the economic impact 
analysis.
    (d) Notice and Comment.--The agency shall provide an opportunity 
for notice and comment in connection with the preparation of the 
economic impact analysis.

SEC. 6. TAX EQUIVALENCY PAYMENTS.

    (a) In General.--
            (1) In general.--For each parcel of private land acquired 
        by an agency after October 1, 1992, other than by 
        contemporaneous land exchange, the head of the agency shall pay 
        annually to the unit of local government in which the parcel is 
        located an amount equal to the real property taxes computed on 
        the current market value of the parcel, as determined in 
        accordance with paragraph (2).
            (2) Current market value.--
                    (A) Initial value.--The initial current market 
                value of a parcel shall be equal to the purchase price 
                per acre multiplied by the number of acres acquired by 
                the Federal Government.
                    (B) Adjustments.--The unit of local government may 
                adjust the current market value of a parcel to reflect 
                adjustments in the current market value of other lands 
                within the jurisdiction.
            (3) Special formulas.--In computing a tax equivalency 
        payment under this subsection, special farm or forest use 
        formulas, which may vary from State to State, shall not be 
        applied to the value of the parcel.
    (b) Failure to Pay.--If for any reason the head of an agency fails 
to make a payment required under subsection (a), the unit of local 
government may file a civil action against the agency, and a district 
court of the United States shall have jurisdiction to enforce this 
section.

SEC. 7. EFFECT OF OTHER LAWS.

    If for any fiscal year a payment described in section 6(a) is made 
to a State or unit of local government with respect to a parcel of land 
described in section 6(a)(1), such payment shall be reduced in 
proportion to the payment in lieu of real property taxes, if any, which 
is made with respect to the same parcel of land under any other Federal 
law.

SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    In each fiscal year, there are authorized to be appropriated to 
each agency such sums as are necessary to carry out this Act.

SEC. 9. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    This Act shall become effective on October 1, 1994.

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