1.This Act may be cited as the
Southern Nevada Higher Education Land
Act of 2012
.
2.
(a)Congress
finds that—
(1)southern Nevada is
one of the fastest growing regions in the United States, with 750,000 new
residents added since 2000;
(2)the Nevada System
of Higher Education serves more than 71,000 undergraduate and graduate students
in southern Nevada, with enrollment in the System expected to grow by 21
percent during the next 10 years, which would bring enrollment to a total of
85,000 students in the System;
(3)the Nevada System
of Higher Education campuses in southern Nevada comprise 1,200 acres, one of
the smallest land bases of any major higher education system in the western
United States;
(4)the University of
Nevada, Las Vegas, with 27,903 students and 3,000 faculty and staff, is the
fourth fastest-growing research university in the United States;
(5)the College of
Southern Nevada—
(A)serves more than
41,000 students each semester; and
(B)is near capacity
at each of the 3 urban campuses of the College;
(6)Pahrump, located
in rural Nye County, Nevada—
(A)has grown by 20
percent since 2000; and
(B)has a small
satellite campus of Great Basin College to serve the 40,500 residents of
Pahrump, Nevada; and
(7)the Nevada System
of Higher Education needs additional land to provide for the future growth of
the System, particularly for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, the College
of Southern Nevada, and the Pahrump campus of Great Basin College.
(b)The
purposes of this Act are—
(1)to provide
additional land for a thriving higher education system that serves the
residents of fast-growing southern Nevada;
(2)to provide
residents of the State with greater opportunities to pursue higher education
and the resulting benefits, which include increased earnings, more employment
opportunities, and better health; and
(3)to provide
communities in southern Nevada the economic and societal values of higher
education, including economic growth, lower crime rates, greater civic
participation, and less reliance on social services.
3.In this Act:
(1)The term Board of Regents means the Board of
Regents of the Nevada System of Higher Education.
(2)The
term Campuses means the Great Basin College, College of Southern
Nevada, and University of Las Vegas, Nevada, campuses.
(3)The term Federal land means each of the 3
parcels of Bureau of Land Management land identified on the maps as
Parcel to be Conveyed
, of which—
(A)approximately 40
acres is to be conveyed for the College of Southern Nevada;
(B)approximately
2,085 acres is to be conveyed for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas;
and
(C)approximately 285
acres is to be conveyed for the Great Basin College.
(4)The
term Map means each of the 3 maps entitled Southern Nevada
Higher Education Land Act
, dated July 11, 2008, and on file and
available for public inspection in the appropriate offices of the Bureau of
Land Management.
(5)The
term Secretary means the Secretary of the Interior.
(6)The
term State
means the State of Nevada.
(7)The
term System means the Nevada System of Higher Education.
4.Conveyances of
Federal land to the System
(a)
(1)Notwithstanding
section 202 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C.
1712) and section 1(c) of the Act of June 14, 1926 (commonly known as the
Recreation and Public Purposes Act
) (43 U.S.C. 869(c)) and
subject to all valid existing rights, the Secretary shall—
(A)not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, convey to the System, without consideration, all right,
title, and interest of the United States in and to the Federal land for the
Great Basin College and the College of Southern Nevada; and
(B)not later than 180
days after the receipt of certification of acceptable remediation of
environmental conditions existing on the parcel to be conveyed for the
University of Nevada, Las Vegas, convey to the System, without consideration,
all right, title, and interest of the United States in and to the Federal land
for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
(2)The
Secretary may phase the conveyance of the Federal land under paragraph (1)(B)
as remediation is completed.
(b)
(1)As a condition of the conveyance under subsection (a)(1),
the Board of Regents shall agree in writing—
(A)to pay any
administrative costs associated with the conveyance, including the costs of any
environmental, wildlife, cultural, or historical resources studies;
(B)to use the Federal
land conveyed for educational and recreational purposes;
(C)to release and
indemnify the United States from any claims or liabilities that may arise from
uses carried out on the Federal land on or before the date of enactment of this
Act by the United States or any person;
(D)as soon as
practicable after the date of the conveyance under subsection (a)(1), to erect
at each of the Campuses an appropriate and centrally located monument that
acknowledges the conveyance of the Federal land by the United States for the
purpose of furthering the higher education of the citizens in the State;
and
(E)to assist the
Bureau of Land Management in providing information to the students of the
System and the citizens of the State on—
(i)public land
(including the management of public land) in the Nation; and
(ii)the
role of the Bureau of Land Management in managing, preserving, and protecting
the public land in the State.
(2)Agreement with
nellis air force base
(A)As a precondition of the conveyance of the Federal land
for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas under subsection (a)(1)(B), the Board
of Regents shall enter into a binding interlocal agreement with Nellis Air
Force Base to preserve the long-term capability of Nellis Air Force
Base.
(B)The
interlocal agreement entered into under subparagraph (A) and any related master
plan shall require the mutual assent of the parties to the agreement.
(C)In
no case shall the use of the Federal land conveyed under subsection (a)(1)(B)
compromise the national security mission or avigation rights of Nellis Air
Force Base.
(c)
(1)The System may use the Federal land conveyed under
subsection (a)(1) for—
(A)any purpose
relating to the establishment, operation, growth, and maintenance of the
System; and
(B)any uses relating
to the purposes, including residential and commercial development that would
generally be associated with an institution of higher education.
(2)The System may—
(A)consistent with
Federal and State law, lease, or otherwise provide property or space at, the
Campuses, with or without consideration, to religious, public interest,
community, or other groups for services and events that are of interest to the
System or to any community located in southern Nevada;
(B)allow any other
communities in southern Nevada to use facilities of the Campuses for
educational and recreational programs of the community; and
(C)in conjunction
with the city of Las Vegas, North Las Vegas, or Pahrump or Clark or Nye County
plan, finance (including through the provision of cost-share assistance),
construct, and operate facilities for the city of Las Vegas, North Las Vegas,
or Pahrump or Clark or Nye County on the Federal land conveyed for educational
or recreational purposes consistent with this section.
(d)
(1)If the Federal land or any portion of the Federal land
conveyed under subsection (a)(1) ceases to be used for the System, the Federal
land, or any portion of the Federal land shall, at the discretion of the
Secretary, revert to the United States.
(2)University of
Nevada, Las VegasIf the System fails to complete the first
building or show progression toward development of the University of Nevada,
Las Vegas campus on the applicable parcels of Federal land by the date that is
50 years after the date of receipt of certification of acceptable remediation
of environmental conditions, the parcels of the Federal land described in
section 3(3)(B) shall, at the discretion of the Secretary, revert to the United
States.