[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6944 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6944

 To transfer administrative jurisdiction over the Joliet Training Area 
in Will County, Illinois, to the Secretary of Agriculture for inclusion 
     in the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie, to provide for the 
  conveyance of several parcels of the Joliet Training Area, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 18, 2008

    Mr. Weller of Illinois introduced the following bill; which was 
  referred to the Committee on Armed Services, and in addition to the 
   Committees on Agriculture, Transportation and Infrastructure, and 
Energy and Commerce, 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 transfer administrative jurisdiction over the Joliet Training Area 
in Will County, Illinois, to the Secretary of Agriculture for inclusion 
     in the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie, to provide for the 
  conveyance of several parcels of the Joliet Training Area, 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 ``Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie 
Expansion Act of 2008''.

SEC. 2. TRANSFER OF ADMINISTRATIVE JURISDICTION AND LAND CONVEYANCES 
              INVOLVING JOLIET TRAINING AREA, ILLINOIS.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie in Will County, 
        State of Illinois, constitutes some of the last vestiges of 
        natural prairie ecosystems in the United States, and its 
        administration by the Secretary of Agriculture pursuant to the 
        Illinois Land Conservation Act of 1995 (title XXIX of Public 
        Law 104-106; 110 Stat. 594) provides significant public 
        benefits in resource conservation and protection, wildlife 
        habitat, and public recreation.
            (2) The Joliet Training Area presently administered by the 
        Secretary of the Army (in this section referred to as the 
        ``JTA'') is adjacent to the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie, 
        but the JTA is no longer needed for military purposes.
            (3) The Illinois Land Conservation Act of 1995 requires the 
        eventual incorporation of JTA into the Midewin National 
        Tallgrass Prairie subject to meeting local land use needs as 
        provided in such Act.
    (b) Map.--For purposes of this section, the JTA comprises those 
federally owned lands and interests in lands depicted on a map entitled 
``Joliet Training Area Lands, April 2008'' (in this section referred to 
as the ``map''). The map shall be on file and available for public 
inspection in the Office of the Chief of the Forest Service.
    (c) Transfer of Jurisdiction.--Administrative jurisdiction over the 
JTA is hereby transferred, without consideration, from the Secretary of 
the Army to the Secretary of Agriculture. This transfer of 
administrative jurisdiction does not eliminate or reduce any obligation 
of the Secretary of the Army under the Illinois Land Conservation Act 
of 1995 (title XXIX of Public Law 104-106) or this section.
    (d) Management.--
            (1) Inclusion in midewin national tallgrass prairie.--The 
        JTA lands transferred by subsection (c) shall be administered 
        by the Secretary of Agriculture as part of the Midewin National 
        Tallgrass Prairie in accordance with the Illinois Land 
        Conservation Act of 1995 (title XXIX of Public Law 104-106) and 
        the laws and regulations pertaining to the National Forest 
        System.
            (2) Management plan.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall 
        manage the transferred lands consistent with the land and 
        resource management plan for the Midewin National Tallgrass 
        Prairie and include consideration of the transferred lands in 
        the next regular update of such management plan.
            (3) Effect on existing rights.--The Secretary of 
        Agriculture shall administer any valid permit, lease, or other 
        authorization on the JTA lands transferred by subsection (c) 
        under its existing terms, except that any renewal or 
        modification shall be at the option of the Secretary of 
        Agriculture on such terms and conditions as the Secretary may 
        prescribe.
    (e) Conveyance to Will County.--
            (1) Conveyance required.--Subject to valid existing rights, 
        within 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
        the Secretary of Agriculture shall convey by quitclaim deed, 
        without cash consideration, to Will County, Illinois, all 
        right, title, and interest of the United States in and to the 
        parcel of land consisting of approximately 351 acres and 
        depicted on the map as the ``Will County Conveyance Parcel''.
            (2) Restrictive covenant.--The quitclaim deed shall contain 
        restrictive covenants enforceable by the Secretary of 
        Agriculture for the benefit of the appurtenant Federal lands 
        and the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie. The covenants shall 
        require that the lands conveyed to Will County, Illinois, shall 
        be used only for the following governmental purposes:
                    (A) Parks and recreation.
                    (B) Firing ranges for small arms.
                    (C) Office and training facilities for fire 
                fighters, police, and emergency personnel.
                    (D) Public safety facilities (but not facilities 
                for incarceration).
                    (E) Offices for county and municipal governments.
            (3) Prohibited uses.--The lands conveyed under this 
        subsection shall not be used for industrial or commercial 
        purposes, including landfills, parking and transportation 
        facilities, power generation facilities, or waste water 
        treatment (except for wastes generated on site).
            (4) Reserved rights.--The quitclaim deed shall reserve in 
        the United States--
                    (A) rights or easements for public and 
                administrative access and utilities over Arsenal Road 
                and such other rights-of-way as the Secretary of 
                Agriculture shall designate;
                    (B) mineral rights;
                    (C) surface and underground waters, subject to 
                reasonable use on site by the County; and
                    (D) rights to permit Federal, State, and local law 
                enforcement, public safety, and land management 
                agencies to have access to and use of training 
                facilities located on the property as of the date of 
                the enactment of this Act or constructed after that 
                date, subject to the right of Will County to manage 
                such uses and to charge reasonable fees commensurate 
                with use as necessary to cover its operating and 
                maintenance costs.
            (5) Environmental cleanup.--With respect to the lands 
        conveyed to Will County pursuant to this subsection, the 
        Secretary of the Army shall comply with the requirements of 
        section 120 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, 
        Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9620).
            (6) Administrative costs.--Will County shall cover the cost 
        of the conveyance under this subsection, including survey and 
        similar expenses.
    (f) Conveyance to CenterPoint Properties.--
            (1) Conveyance required.--The Secretary of Agriculture 
        shall convey by quitclaim deed to CenterPoint Properties, LLC 
        (in this section referred to as ``CenterPoint''), an easement 
        to the lands depicted on the map as the ``CenterPoint 
        Conveyance Parcel''.
            (2) Purpose of easement.--The easement shall permit the 
        holder to construct roads and railroads for access to 
        appurtenant properties, subject to terms and conditions 
        prescribed by the Army Corps of Engineers pursuant to section 
        404 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 1344) and any other 
        applicable law and regulation.
            (3) Reserved rights.--The easement shall reserve in the 
        United States public access over any roads, and may prescribe 
        remedies for failure to meet any of the consideration 
        obligations of paragraph (4).
            (4) Consideration.--Consideration for the easement provided 
        by this subsection shall be as follows:
                    (A) A cash payment equal to the market value of the 
                easement based on an appraisal prepared in conformity 
                with the Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land 
                Acquisitions and approved by the Forest Service.
                    (B) An agreement or cash payment by CenterPoint to 
                fund a wetland mitigation project prescribed by the 
                Secretary of Agriculture and the Army Corps of 
                Engineers that effects the permanent enhancement, 
                restoration, and creation of wetlands and other rare 
                flora and fauna community types on the JTA and adjacent 
                lands.
                    (C) An agreement by CenterPoint to pay the 
                Secretary of Agriculture a reasonable annual fee, the 
                amount to be established annually by the Forest 
                Service, for the purpose of controlling invasive and 
                exotic species and for conducting other environmental 
                measures deemed necessary by the Forest Service on the 
                easement areas.
                    (D) A cash payment of $1,000,000 by CenterPoint to 
                a nonprofit corporation established under the laws of 
                the State of Illinois, with such corporation to be 
                designated at the sole discretion of the Secretary of 
                Agriculture, for purposes of establishing a charitable 
                foundation to fund habitat restoration at the Midewin 
                National Tallgrass Prairie.
            (5) Administrative costs.--CenterPoint shall cover all 
        costs associated with the conveyance of the easement under this 
        subsection, including costs of survey, appraisal, and document 
        preparation, and reasonable administrative costs of the 
        Department of Agriculture, including legal expenses.
    (g) Disposition of Certain Receipts.--
            (1) Payment to secretary of the army.--The cash payment 
        required by subsection (f)(4)(A) shall be paid to the Secretary 
        of the Army, and shall be availability to the Secretary of the 
        Army, without further appropriation and until expended, for any 
        purposes authorized under existing law.
            (2) Payment to secretary of agriculture.--The cash payments 
        required by subsections (f)(4)(B) and (f)(4)(C) shall be 
        deposited into the MNP Rental Fee Account established under 
        section 2915(c) of the Illinois Land Conservation Act of 1995 
        (title XXIX of Public Law 104-106; 110 Stat. 601), to be merged 
        with other funds in the MNP Rental Fee Account and availability 
        to the same extent and for the same purposes as other funds in 
        the MNP Rental Fee Account. Monies so deposited into the MNP 
        Rental Fee Account shall not be subject to transfer or 
        reprogramming for wildland fire management or any other purpose
    (h) Environmental Cleanup.--
            (1) Obligations and liabilities.--With respect to the lands 
        comprising the JTA, the Secretary of the Army shall have the 
        same obligations and liabilities for environmental clean up as 
        enumerated in sections 2912(c), 2912(d), and 2913 of the 
        Illinois Land Conservation Act of 1995 (title XXIX of Public 
        Law 104-106; 110 Stat. 597, 598).
            (2) Preliminary assessment/site inspection.--Within 180 
        days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
        of the Army shall provide a Preliminary Assessment/Site 
        Inspection to the Secretary of Agriculture for the lands 
        comprising the JTA.
            (3) Remediation plans.--Within 1 year after the date of the 
        enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Army shall develop 
        and provide to the Secretary of Agriculture plans to remediate 
        the Recognized Environmental Conditions identified by the 
        Preliminary Assessment/Site Inspection.
            (4) Completion of remediation.--Within 2 years after the 
        date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Army 
        shall certify to the Secretary of Agriculture that all 
        remediation activities have been completed.
    (i) Records.--Within 1 year after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary of the Army shall transfer to the Secretary of 
Agriculture all original records pertaining to land titles, surveys, 
utilities, and other records pertaining to the JTA.
    (j) Prairie Restoration Fund Amendment.--Section 2915(f) of the 
Illinois Land Conservation Act of 1995 (title XXIX of Public Law 104-
106; 110 Stat. 602) is amended by striking the first two sentences and 
inserting the following new sentences: ``Monies collected pursuant to 
subsections (d) and (e), as well as any other monies collected or 
received with regard to the MNP as may be provided by law, shall be 
covered into the Treasury and constitute a special fund known as the 
`Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie Restoration Fund' which funds shall 
be available until expended, without further appropriation, for 
purposes of or related to the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie as 
provided in section subsections (c), (d), and (e) of section 2914. 
Monies deposited into the Fund shall not be subject to transfer or 
reprogramming for wildland fire management or any other emergency 
purpose unless specifically authorized by Congress.''.
                                 <all>