[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2223 Reported in House (RH)]






                                                 Union Calendar No. 392
105th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 2223

                          [Report No. 105-693]

To amend the Act popularly known as the Recreation and Public Purposes 
 Act to authorize transfers of certain public lands or national forest 
 lands to local education agencies for use for elementary or secondary 
   schools, including public charter schools, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 23, 1997

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

                           September 9, 1998

Additional sponsors: Mr. Stump, Mr. Ensign, Mr. Riggs, Mr. Hansen, Mr. 
                        Graham, and Mr. Gibbons

                           September 9, 1998

Reported with amendments, committed to the Committee of the Whole House 
          on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed
 [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed 
                               in italic]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Act popularly known as the Recreation and Public Purposes 
 Act to authorize transfers of certain public lands or national forest 
 lands to local education agencies for use for elementary or secondary 
   schools, including public charter schools, and for other purposes.

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

<DELETED>SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    This Act may be cited as the ``Education Land Grant 
Act''.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 2. TRANSFERS OF PUBLIC LANDS OR NATIONAL FOREST LANDS FOR 
              USE FOR ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    Section 1 of the Act entitled ``An Act to authorize 
acquisition or use of public lands by States, counties, or 
municipalities for recreational purposes'', approved June 14, 1926 
(Chapter 578; 44 Stat. 741; 43 U.S.C. 869), popularly known as the 
Recreation and Public Purposes Act, is amended--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) in subsection (a), in the first sentence--
        </DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) by inserting ``or national forest 
                lands'' after ``public lands''; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) by inserting ``including to a local 
                education agency for use for an elementary or secondary 
                school, including a public charter school,'' after 
                ``public purposes,'';</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) in subsection (a), in the second sentence, by 
        striking ``public lands'' and inserting ``lands'';</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) in subsection (c), by striking ``in any 
        national forest, national park, or national monument, or 
        national wildlife refuge,'' and inserting ``in the National 
        Park System, the National Wildlife Refuge System, the National 
        Wilderness Preservation System, the National Wild and Scenic 
        Rivers System, the National Trails System, any Bureau of Land 
        Management area of critical environmental concern, or any 
        national recreation area,'' and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (4) by adding at the end the following:</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(d) Deadline for Consideration of Application for Use 
for School.--If the Secretary receives an application from a duly 
qualified applicant that is a local education agency seeking a 
conveyance of land under this Act for use for an elementary or 
secondary school, including a public charter school, the Secretary 
shall--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(1) before the end of the 10-day period 
        beginning on the date of that receipt, provide notice of that 
        receipt to the applicant; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(2) before the end of the 60-day period 
        beginning on the date of that receipt--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) determine whether or not to convey 
                land pursuant to the application, and notify the 
                applicant of that determination; or</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) report to the Congress and the 
                applicant the reasons that determination has not been 
                made.''.</DELETED>

SECTION 1. AUTHORIZATION OF USE OF NATIONAL FOREST LANDS FOR PUBLIC 
              SCHOOL PURPOSES.

    (a) Transfers.--The Secretary of Agriculture may, upon a finding 
that the transfer of certain National Forest lands for local public 
school purposes would serve the public interest, authorize the transfer 
of up to 40 acres of National Forest lands to a local governmental 
entity for public school purposes. The Secretary may make available 
only those National Forest lands that have been identified for disposal 
or exchange or are not otherwise needed for National Forest purposes. 
The Secretary shall make such transfers using the least amount of land 
required for the efficient operation of the project involved.
    (b) Costs.--Such transfers may be made at discounted or no-cost. 
The Secretary shall provide for a no-cost transfer to a local 
governmental entity for public school purposes if the Secretary 
determines that the charges for such lands would impose an undue 
hardship on the local governmental entity.
    (c) Conditions.--Such transfers shall be conditioned on the 
requirement that the lands so transferred will be used solely for 
public school purposes.
    (d) Deadline for Consideration of Application for Use for School.--
If the Secretary receives an application from a duly qualified 
applicant that is a local education agency seeking a conveyance of land 
under this Act for use for an elementary or secondary school, including 
a public charter school, the Secretary shall--
            (1) before the end of the 10-day period beginning on the 
        date of that receipt, provide notice of that receipt to the 
        applicant; and
            (2) before the end of the 90-day period beginning on the 
        date of that receipt--
                    (A) determine whether or not to convey land 
                pursuant to the application, and notify the applicant 
                of that determination; or
                    (B) report to the Congress and the applicant the 
                reasons that determination has not been made.
            Amend the title so as to read: ``A bill to provide for the 
        use of certain National Forest lands for public school 
        purposes.''.




                                                 Union Calendar No. 392

105th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                               H. R. 2223

                          [Report No. 105-693]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

To amend the Act popularly known as the Recreation and Public Purposes 
 Act to authorize transfers of certain public lands or national forest 
 lands to local education agencies for use for elementary or secondary 
   schools, including public charter schools, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                           September 9, 1998

Reported with amendments, committed to the Committee of the Whole House 
          on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed