[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 687 Introduced in House (IH)]







104th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 687

 To authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to convey certain lands in 
 the Sam Houston National Forest in the State of Texas to the current 
          occupant of the lands, the Gulf Coast Trades Center.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 25, 1995

  Mr. Wilson introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                         Committee on Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to convey certain lands in 
 the Sam Houston National Forest in the State of Texas to the current 
          occupant of the lands, the Gulf Coast Trades Center.

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

SECTION 1. LAND CONVEYANCE, SAM HOUSTON NATIONAL FOREST, TEXAS.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Gulf Coast Trades Center (in this section referred 
        to as the ``Center''), a private nonprofit organization 
        chartered by the State of Texas, occupies a 46.7 acre former 
        Job Corps site under the jurisdiction of the Department of 
        Agriculture in the Sam Houston National Forest near New 
        Waverly, Texas.
            (2) The Center has expended over $400,000 in performing 
        necessary repairs and maintenance to buildings and improvements 
        on the site and has replaced dilapidated buildings on the site 
        with new structures at a cost to the Center of over $1,500,000.
            (3) The residual value of the buildings and improvements 
        owned by the United States is a minor contributory portion of 
        the value of the site.
            (4) The Center operates a residential vocational training 
        program on the site and has provided training for approximately 
        8,000 disadvantaged youth since 1971.
            (5) The Center also provides educational, social, and 
        support services, preemployment and work maturity instruction, 
        group counseling, and instruction in substance abuse prevention 
        and transitional living skills at the site.
    (b) Conveyance Required.--Subject to valid existing rights, the 
Secretary of Agriculture shall convey to the Center by quitclaim deed 
all right, title, and interest of the United States in a parcel of 
National Forest System land, including all buildings and improvements 
owned by the United States on the parcel, consisting of approximately 
46.7 acres and containing the former New Waverly Job Corps Center in 
the Sam Houston National Forest, Texas, which is currently occupied by 
the Center under a special use permit. The parcel to be conveyed is 
identified upon a map entitled ``Gulf Coast Trades Center Exchange'', 
dated September 1994, and available for inspection in the offices of 
the Supervisor of the National Forests in Texas and the Chief of the 
Forest Service.
    (c) Consideration.--
            (1) Payment of fair market value.--As consideration for the 
        conveyance under subsection (b), the Center shall pay to the 
        Secretary of Agriculture an amount equal to the fair market 
        value of the parcel to be conveyed, as determined by the 
        Secretary under paragraph (2).
            (2) Valuation.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall appraise 
        the parcel to be conveyed under subsection (b) to determine the 
        fair market value of the federally owned lands and interests in 
        the parcel; except that the Secretary shall--
                    (A) limit the appraised value to the value of the 
                land and the contributory value of the infrastructure, 
                including the water and sewer systems; and
                    (B) exclude from the appraisal the value of all 
                buildings on the parcel and all improvements made by 
                the Center on the parcel.
            (3) Deposit of payment.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall 
        deposit amounts received under paragraph (1) into the special 
        fund in the Treasury into which funds are deposited pursuant to 
        the Act of December 4, 1967 (16 U.S.C. 484a), commonly known as 
        the Sisk Act. Upon appropriation, the amounts deposited shall 
        be available to the Secretary until expended for the 
        acquisition of lands and interests in lands in the State of 
        Texas that are suitable for inclusion in the National Forest 
        System.
            (4) Conveyance costs.--The Secretary and the Center shall 
        share equally in the costs of preparing and executing the 
        conveyance required by subsection (b), including the costs of 
        conducting the appraisal under this subsection.
    (d) Condition of Conveyance.--The conveyance under subsection (b) 
shall be subject to the condition that the Center (or any successor in 
interest to the Center) use the conveyed lands for nonprofit 
educational and training purposes.
    (e) Right of Reentry.--If the Secretary of Agriculture determines 
that the conveyed parcel is not being used in accordance with 
subsection (d), then, at the option of the Secretary, the United States 
shall have a right of reentry with regard to the property.
    (f) Additional Terms and Conditions.--The Secretary of Agriculture 
may require such additional terms and conditions in connection with the 
conveyance under subsection (b) as the Secretary considers appropriate 
to protect the interests of the United States.
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