[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 736 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 736

  To convey certain real property within the Carlsbad Project in New 
              Mexico to the Carlsbad Irrigation District.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 13, 1997

 Mr. Domenici introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
       referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To convey certain real property within the Carlsbad Project in New 
              Mexico to the Carlsbad Irrigation District.

    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 ``Carlsbad Irrigation Project Acquired 
Land Transfer Act''.

SEC. 2. CONVEYANCE.

    (a) Lands and Facilities.--
            (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), and 
        subject to the conditions set forth in subsection (c) and 
        section 2(b), the Secretary of the Interior (in this Act 
        referred to as the ``Secretary'') is hereby authorized to 
        convey all right, title, and interest of the United States in 
        and to the lands described in subsection (b) (in this Act 
        referred to as the ``acquired lands'') in addition to all 
        interests the United States holds in the irrigation and 
        drainage system of the Carlsbad Project and all related lands 
        including ditch rider houses, maintenance shop and buildings, 
        and Pecos River Flume to the Carlsbad Irrigation District (a 
        quasi-municipal corporation formed under the laws of the State 
        of New Mexico and in this Act referred to as the ``District'').
            (2) Limitations.--
                    (A) The Secretary shall retain title to the surface 
                estate of such acquired lands which are located under 
                the footprint of Brantley and Avalon dams or any other 
                project dam or reservoir diversion structure.
                    (B) The Secretary shall retain storage and flow 
                easements for any tracts located under the maximum 
                spillway elevations of Avalon and Brantley Reservoirs.
    (b) Acquired Lands Described.--The lands referred to in subsection 
(a) are those lands (including the surface and mineral estate) in Eddy 
County, New Mexico, described as the acquired lands in section (7) of 
the ``Status of Lands and Title Report: Carlsbad Project'' as reported 
by the Bureau of Reclamation in 1978.
    (c) Terms and Conditions of Conveyance.--Any conveyance of the 
acquired lands under this Act shall be subject to the following terms 
and conditions:
            (1) The conveyed lands shall continue to be managed and 
        used by the District for the purposes for which the Carlsbad 
        Project was authorized, consistent with existing management of 
        such lands and other adjacent project lands.
            (2) Except as provided in paragraph (3), the District shall 
        assume all rights and obligations of the United States under--
                    (A) the agreement dated July 28, 1994, between the 
                United States and the Director, New Mexico Department 
                of Game and Fish (Document No. 2-LM-40-00640), relating 
                to management of certain lands near Brantley Reservoir 
                for fish and wildlife purposes; and
                    (B) the agreement dated March 9, 1977, between the 
                United States and the New Mexico Department of Energy, 
                Minerals, and Natural Resources (Contract No. 7-07-57-
                X0888) for the management and operation of Brantley 
                Lake State Park.
            (3) Exceptions.--In relation to agreements referred to in 
        paragraph (2)--
                    (A) the District shall not be obligated for any 
                financial support agreed to by the Secretary, or the 
                Secretary's designee, in either agreement; and
                    (B) the District shall not be entitled to any 
                receipts or revenues generated as a result of either 
                agreement.
    (d) Sense of the Congress.--It is the sense of the Congress that 
the Secretary should complete the conveyance authorized by this Act, 
including such action as may be required under the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. et seq.) within 9 months of 
the date of enactment of this Act.
    (e) Report to Congress.--If the conveyance authorized by this Act 
is not completed by the Secretary within 9 months of the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall prepare a report to the 
Congress which shall include a detailed explanation of problems that 
have been encountered in completion of the conveyance, and specific 
steps that the Secretary has taken or will take to complete the 
conveyance. The Secretary's report shall be transmitted to the 
Committee on Resources of the House of Representatives, and to the 
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate within 30 days 
after the expiration of such 9 month period.

SEC. 3. LEASE MANAGEMENT AND PAST REVENUES COLLECTED FROM THE ACQUIRED 
              LANDS.

    (a) Identification and Notification of Leaseholders.--Within 120 
days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the 
Interior shall provide to the District a written identification of all 
mineral and grazing leases in effect on the acquired lands on the date 
of enactment of this Act, and the Secretary of the Interior shall 
notify all leaseholders of the conveyance authorized by this Act.
    (b) Management of Mineral and Grazing Leases, Licenses, and 
Permits.--The District shall assume all rights and obligations of the 
United States for all mineral and grazing leases, licenses, and permits 
existing on the acquired lands conveyed under section 2, and shall be 
entitled to any receipts from such leases, licenses and permits 
accruing after the date of conveyance: Provided, That all such receipts 
shall be used for purposes for which the project was authorized. The 
District shall continue to adhere to the current Bureau of Reclamation 
mineral leasing stipulations for the Carlsbad Project: Provided 
further, That all future mineral leases from acquired lands within a 
one mile radius of Brantley and Avalon dams shall be subject to the 
approval of the Secretary prior to consummation of the lease.
    (c) Availability of Amounts Paid Into Reclamation Fund.--Receipts 
paid into the reclamation fund which exist as construction credits to 
the Carlsbad Project under the terms of the Mineral Leasing Act for 
Acquired Lands (30 U.S.C. 351-359) as amended shall be made available 
to the District as credits towards its ongoing operation and 
maintenance obligation to the United States until such credits are 
depleted: Provided, That immediately following the enactment of this 
Act, such receipts collected by the Minerals Management Service, not to 
exceed $200,000, shall be made available to the Secretary for the 
purpose of offsetting the actual cost of implementing this Act: 
Provided further, That any receipts collected by the Minerals 
Management Service, prior to the actual date of conveyance, which are 
in excess of $200,000 shall be deposited into the reclamation fund and 
added to existing construction credits to the Carlsbad Project.

SEC. 4. WATER CONSERVATION PRACTICES.

    The Secretary, in cooperation with the District, is hereby 
authorized to expend not to exceed $100,000 annually, from amounts 
appropriated for operation and maintenance within the Bureau of 
Reclamation, for the purposes of implementing water conservation 
practices at the Carlsbad Irrigation Project, including but not limited 
to phreatophyte control: Provided, That matching funds shall be 
provided by the District in direct proportion to the amount of project 
lands held by the District in relation to withdrawn or other project 
lands held by the United States: Provided further, That nothing in this 
Act shall be construed to limit the ability of the District to 
voluntarily implement water conservation practices.

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