[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 842 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 842

To provide for the conveyance of certain Federal lands administered by 
the Bureau of Land Management in Maricopa County, Arizona, in exchange 
  for private lands located in Yavapai County, Arizona, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 13, 2003

   Mr. Renzi (for himself and Mr. Franks of Arizona) introduced the 
    following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide for the conveyance of certain Federal lands administered by 
the Bureau of Land Management in Maricopa County, Arizona, in exchange 
  for private lands located in Yavapai County, Arizona, 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. LAND EXCHANGE, BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT LAND IN MARICOPA 
              COUNTY, ARIZONA, FOR PRIVATE LAND IN YAVAPAI COUNTY, 
              ARIZONA.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) Certain parcels of private land located in Yavapai 
        County in the State of Arizona near Lake Pleasant are 
        intermingled with land owned by the United States and 
        administered by the Secretary of the Interior through the 
        Bureau of Land Management.
            (2) A land exchange that would dispose of small isolated 
        tracts within larger blocks of contiguous parcels of land would 
        improve the management efficiency of the Federal land and serve 
        important public objectives, including--
                    (A) the enhancement of public access, aesthetics, 
                and recreational opportunities adjacent to Lake 
                Pleasant; and
                    (B) the protection and enhancement of habitat for 
                threatened and sensitive species within unified 
                landscapes under Federal management.
    (b) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) The term ``acquired land'' means the land described in 
        subsection (c)(1) to be acquired by the United States.
            (2) The term ``conveyed land'' means the land described in 
        subsection (c)(2) to be conveyed by the Secretary.
            (3) The term ``map'' means the map entitled ``Lake Pleasant 
        Land Exchange'', which shall be on file and available for 
        public inspection in the offices of the Secretary and the 
        Arizona State Director of the Bureau of Land Management.
            (4) The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of the 
        Interior, acting through the Director of the Bureau of Land 
        Management.
    (c) Land Exchange.--
            (1) Acquisition of private lands.--As consideration for the 
        conveyance of the Federal lands referred to in paragraph (2), 
        Pleasant Country Ltd. shall convey to the Secretary parcels of 
        private land, as generally depicted on the map, designated from 
        the approximately 8,000 acres of private land in the vicinity 
        of Lake Pleasant in Yavapai County, Arizona.
            (2) Conveyance of federal lands.--In exchange for the 
        private lands acquired by the Secretary under paragraph (1), 
        the Secretary shall convey to Pleasant Country Ltd. all right, 
        title, and interest of the United States in and to Bureau of 
        Land Management lands (of equal value to the acquired land) 
        located--
                    (A) in sections 13, 14, 15, 22, 23, 24, and 25, 
                township 6 north, range 2 west, Gila and Salt River 
                meridian;
                    (B) in sections 17 through 30, township 6 north, 
                range 1 west, Gila and Salt River meridian; or
                    (C) elsewhere in the State of Arizona that, before 
                the date the land exchange is completed, are determined 
                to be surplus to the needs of the United States and are 
                acceptable to both the Secretary and Pleasant Country 
                Ltd.
            (3) Conditions on acceptance.--Title to the acquired land 
        shall conform with the title approval standards applicable to 
        Federal land acquisitions, and the acquired land shall be 
        subject to valid existing rights of record. Title to the 
        conveyed land shall be acceptable to Pleasant Country Ltd., and 
        the conveyed land may be subject to only those deed 
        restrictions approved by both the Secretary and Pleasant 
        Country Ltd. before preparation of the appraisal.
    (d) Equal Value Exchange.--The values of the acquired land and the 
conveyed land shall be equal according to the appraisal conducted 
pursuant to subsection (e) and approved by both the Secretary and 
Pleasant Country Ltd.
    (e) Appraisal.--
            (1) Selection of appraiser.--The Secretary shall select a 
        qualified appraiser acceptable to both the Secretary and 
        Pleasant Country Ltd. to establish the value of the acquired 
        land and the conveyed land.
            (2) Standards.--The selected appraiser shall use nationally 
        recognized appraisal standards to establish the value of the 
        acquired land and the conveyed land, including, as appropriate, 
        the following:
                    (A) The Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal 
                Land Acquisitions (1992).
                    (B) The Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal 
                Practice.
                    (C) Section 206(d) of the Federal Land Policy and 
                Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1716(d)).
                    (D) The Federal Land Exchange Facilitation Act of 
                1988 (Public Law 100-409; 102 Stat. 1086; 43 U.S.C. 
                1701 note).
            (3) Approval.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
        the date of the enactment of this Act, all appraisals of the 
        acquired land and the conveyed land shall be completed and 
        submitted to the Secretary and Pleasant Country Ltd. for 
        approval. In the case of a dispute concerning an appraisal or 
        appraisal issue that arises under this subsection, the 
        appraisal or appraisal issue in dispute shall be resolved in 
        accordance with section 206(d) of the Federal Land Policy and 
        Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1716(d)).
    (f) Completion.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, all 
conveyances under subsection (c) shall be completed within 90 days 
after the later of the following dates:
            (1) The date on which the conditions set forth in 
        subsection (c)(3) are met.
            (2) The date on which the appraisal under subsection (e) is 
        approved by both the Secretary and Pleasant Country Ltd., or, 
        in the case of a dispute concerning an appraisal or appraisal 
        issue that arises under such subsection, the date the dispute 
        is resolved as provided in such subsection.
    (g) Relation to Other Law.--The land exchange authorized by this 
section shall not be considered a major Federal action for the purposes 
of section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)).
                                 <all>