[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 89 (Tuesday, July 12, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: July 12, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
RESTRICTION REDUCTIONS ON LANDS CONVEYED BY DEED UNDER THE ACT OF JUNE 
                                8, 1926

  Mr. VENTO. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
Senate bill (S. 859) to reduce the restrictions on lands conveyed by 
deed under the Act of June 8, 1926, as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                                 S. 859

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled, That 
     section 2 of the Act of June 8, 1926 (ch. 498; 44 Stat. 708), 
     is amended by--
       (1) inserting ``(a)'' before ``The conveyance'';
       (2) striking ``States.'' at the end of the first sentence 
     and inserting in lieu thereof ``States, except that such 
     restrictions on conveyances and uses shall not apply to those 
     lands upon which communication facilities were located as of 
     January 1, 1993.''; and
       (3) adding at the end thereof the following new 
     subsections:
       ``(b) Reasonable use of an access route in existence on 
     June 1, 1994, across National Forest lands shall be allowed 
     for the repair, maintenance, or improvement of the 
     communication facilities referred to in subsection (a), but 
     the Secretary of Agriculture shall not be required to improve 
     the condition of any such access route or to provide any 
     additional access route for such purposes.
       ``(c) Recreational activities on the lands identified in 
     section 1, totaling approximately one thousand four hundred 
     and forty acres, may be allowed so long as such recreational 
     use is consistent both with the protection of the watershed 
     and water supply system of the city and with the management 
     objectives for adjacent National Forest System lands. 
     Construction of structures or other improvements associated 
     with such recreational activities shall be permitted only to 
     the extent that the Secretary of Agriculture has determined 
     that such construction would be consistent with protection of 
     watershed and would not adversely affect the resources and 
     values of adjacent National Forest System lands.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Fields of Louisiana). Pursuant to the 
rule, the gentleman from Minnesota [Mr. Vento] will be recognized for 
20 minutes, and the gentleman from Utah [Mr. Hansen] will be recognized 
for 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Minnesota [Mr. Vento].


                             General Leave

  Mr. VENTO. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on 
S. 859, the Senate bill now under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Minnesota?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. VENTO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, S. 859 is a Senate-passed measure that would amend a 
1926 act that granted certain lands to the City of Kaysville, UT, in 
order to allow certain other uses of those lands, in addition to their 
use for protection of the city's watershed.
  In particular, the bill would legalize an existing radio 
communications facility that the city has permitted to be built on 
these lands.
  The Natural Resources Committee amended the first section of the bill 
to clarify that the Forest Service will not be required to provide a 
new access route or to upgrade the existing access route across 
adjacent national forest lands, and to make clear that construction of 
recreational or other facilities not now permitted on the Kaysville 
lands, but that would be permitted under the bill, would require 
clearance from the Forest Service to assure that there will be no 
adverse effects on the adjacent national forest lands.
  Finally, Mr. Speaker, the committee adopted an amendment proposed by 
the gentlewoman from Utah [Ms. Shepherd] to enable the Bureau of 
Reclamation to cooperate with other entities by allowing use of central 
Utah project facilities in ways that can assist with the conservation 
and efficient use of non-project water.
  Mr. Speaker, this is a noncontroversial measure that will assist in 
resolving a number of problems in Kaysville and elsewhere in Utah. I 
urge its adoption.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. HANSEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Minnesota [Mr. Vento], the 
chairman of the committee, for pushing this legislation and helping us 
get it through.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of S. 859. This legislation 
will resolve an existing use on patented property held by the City of 
Kaysville, UT. S. 859 will allow for the continued use of a 
communication relay station necessary for the daily operations of the 
county school bus system. This measure is supported by the 
administration and hopefully it will make it to final passage this 
Congress.
  I thank the senior Senator from Utah for his work on this measure. I 
trust the minor amendments added by Chairman Vento will not be a 
hinderance for final passage. I urge my colleagues to support S. 859.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of by time.
  Ms. SHEPHERD. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate this opportunity to speak in 
support of S. 859. When the full Natural Resources Committee considered 
this bill, it adopted my amendment that will allow communities to 
utilize existing pipelines to deliver water to their residents. This 
amendment to the Warren Act will significantly reduce local 
government's expenses, conserve water, and cut government duplication. 
In addition, since the Central Utah Project Completion Act requires 
that water be conserved through improved efficiency in water management 
and delivery systems, this legislation paves the way for the Central 
Utah Water Conservancy District to accomplish this important goal and 
to carry our Congress's intent in passing the CUP legislation.
  The district delivers water as a wholesale supplier to a number of 
cities and counties throughout Utah; it has been studying ways to work 
cooperatively with the local water systems to avoid duplication of 
facilities and increase the efficient use of existing water systems. 
The results of this study show that important benefits to water 
conservation and instream flow protections can be achieved through this 
approach.
  Recently, however, a question has been raised whether authority 
exists to move nonproject water through CUP project facilities in order 
to achieve these efficiencies. This legislation clarifies that the 
Secretary of the Interior, through the Bureau of Reclamation, may enter 
into no-CUP project water storage and carriage agreements on a space 
available basis in CUP project works. All appropriate costs will be 
recovered through the rates and charges included in each contract.
  I want to emphasize that this legislation is not an adventure into 
untested authority for water districts. This Warren Act authority 
already exists for several other Bureau of Reclamation projects in 
California and Nevada.
  S. 859 is a good bill and one that will help expenses for local 
communities while helping to conserve precious water. I urge my 
colleagues to support this legislation.
  Mr. VENTO. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Minnesota [Mr. Vento] that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the Senate bill, S. 859, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof), the rules were suspended and the Senate bill, as amended, was 
passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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