[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5651 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5651

To convey certain Federal lands to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            December 8, 2000

Mr. Romero-Barcelo introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
 the Committee on Armed Services, and in addition to the Committee on 
 Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, 
 in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the 
                jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To convey certain Federal lands to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, 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. CONVEYANCE OF FEDERAL LANDS.

    All right, title and interest of the United States in and to those 
lands designated for transfer, or transferred, to the Secretary of the 
Interior pursuant to section 1508 of title XV of Public Law 106-398 
shall be conveyed, without consideration, to the Commonwealth of Puerto 
Rico.

SEC. 2. MANAGEMENT OF CONVEYED LANDS.

    (a) Cooperative Agreement.--
            (1) Those areas conveyed to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico 
        pursuant to section 1 shall be managed for conservation 
        purposes subject to a cooperative agreement between the 
        Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the Secretary of the Interior.
            (2) Areas adjacent to the areas conveyed to the 
        Commonwealth of Puerto Rico pursuant to section 1 shall be 
        considered for inclusion under the cooperative agreement. 
        Adjacent areas to be included under the cooperative agreement 
        shall be mutually agreed to by the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico 
        and the Secretary of the Interior. This determination of 
        inclusion of lands shall be incorporated into the cooperative 
        agreement process as set forth in paragraph (1).
            (3) The cooperative agreement referenced in this subsection 
        shall be implemented in cooperation with the Puerto Rico 
        Conservation Trust and other interested parties.
    (b) Cooperative Agreement.--
            (1) Purposes.--All lands subject to the cooperative 
        agreement required by subsection (a) shall be managed to 
        protect and preserve the natural resources of these lands in 
        perpetuity. Consistent with the provisions of this subsection, 
        the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the Secretary of the 
        Interior shall comply with all applicable Federal environmental 
        laws, including the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, 
        the Endangered Species Act of 1973, and the National Historic 
        Preservation Act.
            (2) Timing.--The cooperative agreement shall be completed 
        not later than 120 days after the enactment of this Act. The 
        Commonwealth of Puerto Rico shall implement the terms and 
        conditions of the cooperative agreement, which can only be 
        amended by agreement of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the 
        Secretary of the Interior.
    (c) Role of National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.--Contingent on 
funds being available specifically for the preservation and protection 
of natural resources on the lands referred to in section 1, amounts 
necessary to carry out the cooperative agreement may be made available 
to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to establish and manage an 
endowment for the management of lands conveyed to the Commonwealth of 
Puerto Rico and subject to the cooperative agreement. The proceeds from 
investment of the endowment shall be available on an annual basis. The 
Foundation shall strive to leverage annual proceeds with non-Federal 
funds to the fullest extent possible.

SEC. 3. CONTINUED DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE RESPONSIBILITY.

    Federal responsibility to fund and implement any necessary response 
actions (including operation and maintenance) to address environmental 
contamination resulting from the acts, omissions or presence of the 
Department of Defense or which is present at the time of any conveyance 
by the Secretary of the Navy to the Secretary of the Interior pursuant 
to title XV of Public Law 106-398 (including contamination subsequently 
discovered) or which is present at the time of conveyance by the 
Secretary of the Navy to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico pursuant to 
this Act (including contamination subsequently discovered), shall be 
the exclusive responsibility of the Secretary of Defense, and not the 
responsibility of the Secretary of the Interior or the Commonwealth of 
Puerto Rico, unless such contamination was caused or contributed to by 
the Department of the Interior or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. With 
respect to the conveyance implemented pursuant to section 1, the 
Secretary of Defense shall have the responsibility, on behalf of the 
United States, to comply with the requirements of section 120(h) of the 
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, 
as amended. The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the Department of the 
Interior shall provide the Department of Defense with access to the 
property as may be required to carry out its obligations or to satisfy 
the liability of the United States. Any response actions carried out by 
the Secretary of Defense shall be conducted subject to and in 
compliance with environmental laws, including but not limited to CERCLA 
(42 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.), and undertaken in a manner consistent with 
the conservation and natural resources uses and mission for the 
property.
                                 <all>