[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4806 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4806

 To provide for a land exchange involving Federal lands in the Lincoln 
  National Forest in the State of New Mexico, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              July 9, 2004

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To provide for a land exchange involving Federal lands in the Lincoln 
  National Forest in the State of New Mexico, 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 ``Pine Springs Land Exchange Act''.

SEC. 2. LAND EXCHANGE, LINCOLN NATIONAL FOREST, NEW MEXICO.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Federal land.--The term ``Federal land'' means the 
        three parcels of land, and any improvements thereon, comprising 
        approximately 80 acres in the Lincoln National Forest, New 
        Mexico, as depicted on the map entitled ``Pine Springs Land 
        Exchange'' and dated May 25, 2004, and more particularly 
        described as S1/2SE1/4NW1/4, SW1/4SW1/4, W1/2E1/2NW1/4SW1/4, 
        and E1/2W1/2NW1/4SW1/4 of section 32 of township 17 south, 
        range 13 east, New Mexico Principal Meridian.
            (2) Non-federal land.--The term ``non-Federal land'' means 
        the parcel of land owned by Lubbock Christian University 
        comprising approximately 80 acres, as depicted on the map 
        referred to in paragraph (1) and more particularly described as 
        N1/2NW1/4 of section 24 of township 17 south, range 12 east, 
        New Mexico Principal Meridian.
    (b) Land Exchange.--
            (1) Exchange.--In exchange for the conveyance of the non-
        Federal land by Lubbock Christian University, the Secretary of 
        Agriculture shall convey to Lubbock Christian University, by 
        quit-claim deed, all right, title, and interest of the United 
        States in and to the Federal land. The conveyance of the 
        Federal land shall be subject to valid existing rights and such 
        terms and conditions as the Secretary may prescribe and may be 
        made without further administrative or environmental analyses 
        or examination.
            (2) Acceptable title.--Title to the non-Federal land shall 
        conform with the title approval standards of the Attorney 
        General applicable to Federal land acquisitions and shall 
        otherwise be acceptable to the Secretary.
            (3) Completion of exchange.--To the extent practicable, and 
        subject to paragraph (2), the Secretary shall complete the land 
        exchange within 180 days after the date of the enactment of 
        this Act.
            (4) Costs of implementing the exchange.--The costs of 
        implementing the land exchange shall be shared equally by the 
        Secretary and Lubbock Christian University.
    (c) Treatment of Map and Legal Descriptions.--The Secretary and 
Lubbock Christian University may correct any minor error in the map 
referred to in subsection (a)(1) or the legal descriptions of the 
Federal land and non-Federal land. In the event of a discrepancy 
between the map and legal descriptions, the map shall prevail unless 
the Secretary and Lubbock Christian University otherwise agree. The map 
shall be on file and available for inspection in the Office of the 
Chief of the Forest Service in Washington, D.C., and the Office of the 
Supervisor of Lincoln National Forest.
    (d) Valuation of Land to Be Conveyed.--The fair market values of 
the Federal land and non-Federal land shall be determined by an 
appraisal acceptable to the Secretary and Lubbock Christian University. 
The appraisal shall conform with the Federal appraisal standards, as 
defined in the Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land 
Acquisitions developed by the Interagency Land Acquisition Conference, 
1992, and any amendments to these standards.
    (e) Equalization of Values.--
            (1) Equalization methods.--If the fair market values of the 
        Federal land and non-Federal land are not equal, the values may 
        be equalized--
                    (A) by the payment of a cash equalization payment 
                under paragraph (2) by the Secretary or Lubbock 
                Christian University, as appropriate;
                    (B) by reducing the acreage of the Federal land to 
                be exchanged by not more than 20 acres, if the value of 
                the non-Federal land is less than the value of the 
                Federal land; or
                    (C) by using a combination of subparagraphs (A) and 
                (B).
            (2) Cash equalization payments.--Notwithstanding section 
        206(b) of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 
        (43 U.S.C. 1716(b))--
                    (A) if the value of the non-Federal land is less 
                than the value of the Federal land, the Secretary may 
                accept a cash equalization payment in excess of 25 
                percent of the value of the Federal land; or
                    (B) if the value of the Federal land is less than 
                the value of the non-Federal land, the Secretary may 
                make a cash equalization payment, subject to the 
                availability of appropriations for this purpose, in 
                excess of 25 percent of the value of the Federal land.
    (f) Treatment of Cash Equalization Payments Received.--
            (1) Deposit.--The Secretary shall deposit any cash 
        equalization payment received under subsection (e) in the fund 
        established by the Act of December 4, 1967 (commonly known as 
        the Sisk Act; 16 U.S.C. 484a). The amounts so deposited shall 
        not be paid or distributed to the State of New Mexico or 
        counties therein under any provision of law or otherwise 
        treated as moneys received from the National Forest System for 
        purposes of the Act of May 23, 1908, or the Act of March 1, 
        1911 (16 U.S.C. 500) or the Act of March 4, 1913 (16 U.S.C. 
        501).
            (2) Use of funds.--Funds deposited under paragraph (1) 
        shall be available to the Secretary, without further 
        appropriation and until expended, for the acquisition of lands 
        and interests in lands for the National Forest System in the 
        State of New Mexico.
    (g) Revocation and Withdrawal.--
            (1) Revocation of orders.--Any public orders withdrawing 
        any of the Federal land from appropriation or disposal under 
        the public land laws are revoked to the extent necessary to 
        permit disposal of the Federal land.
            (2) Withdrawal of federal land.--Subject to valid existing 
        rights, pending the completion of the land exchange, the 
        Federal land is withdrawn from all forms of location, entry and 
        patent under the public land laws, including the mining and 
        mineral leasing laws and the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 (30 
        U.S.C. 1001 et seq.).
    (h) Administration of Land Acquired by United States.--
            (1) Boundary adjustment.--Upon acceptance of title by the 
        Secretary of the non-Federal land, the acquired land shall 
        become part of the Lincoln National Forest, and the boundaries 
        of the Lincoln National Forest shall be adjusted to include the 
        land. For purposes of section 7 of the Land and Water 
        Conservation Fund Act of 1965 (16 U.S.C. 460l-9), the 
        boundaries of the Lincoln National Forest, as adjusted pursuant 
        to this paragraph, shall be considered to be boundaries of the 
        Lincoln National Forest as of January 1, 1965.
            (2) Management.--The Secretary shall manage the acquired 
        land in accordance with the Act of March 1, 1911 (commonly 
        known as the Weeks Act; 16 U.S.C. 480, 500, 513-519, 521, 552, 
        563), and in accordance with the other laws and regulations 
        applicable to National Forest System lands.
    (i) Relation to Other Laws.--Subchapters II and III of chapter 5 of 
title 40, United States Code, and the Agriculture Property Management 
Regulations shall not apply to any action taken pursuant to this 
section.
                                 <all>