[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 175 (Tuesday, November 7, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H11801-H11803]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             EXCHANGE OF CERTAIN LANDS IN GILPIN COUNTY, CO

  Mr. COOLEY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 2437), to provide for the exchange of certain lands in 
Gilpin County, CO, as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 2437

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

       (a) Findings.--Congress finds and declares that--
       (1) certain scattered parcels of Federal land located 
     within Gilpin County, Colorado, are currently administered by 
     the Secretary of the Interior as part of the Royal Gorge 
     Resource Area, Canon City District, United States Bureau of 
     Land Management;
       (2) these land parcels, which comprises approximately 133 
     separate tracts of land, and range in size from approximately 
     38 acres to much less than an acre have been identified as 
     suitable for disposal by the Bureau of Land Management 
     through its resource management planning process and are 
     appropriate for disposal; and
       (3) even though the Federal land parcels in Gilpin County, 
     Colorado, are scattered and small in size, they nevertheless 
     by virtue of their proximity to existing communities appear 
     to have a fair market value which may be used by the Federal 
     Government to exchange for lands which will better lend 
     themselves to Federal management and have higher values for 
     future public access, use and enjoyment, recreation, the 
     protection and enhancement of fish and wildlife and fish and 
     wildlife habitat, and the protection of riparian lands, 
     wetlands, scenic beauty and other public values.
       (b) Purpose.--It is the purpose of this Act to authorize, 
     direct, facilitate and expedite the land exchange set forth 
     herein in order to further the public interest by disposing 
     of Federal lands with limited public utility and acquire in 
     exchange therefor lands with important values for permanent 
     public management and protection.

     SEC. 2. LAND EXCHANGE.

       (a) In General.--The exchange directed by this Act shall be 
     consummated if within 90 days after enactment of this Act, 
     Lake Gulch, Inc., a Colorado Corporation (as defined in 
     section 4 of this Act) offers to transfer to the United 
     States pursuant to the provisions of this Act the offered 
     lands or interests in land described herein.
       (b) Conveyance by Lake Gulch.--Subject to the provisions of 
     section 3 of this Act, Lake Gulch shall convey to the 
     Secretary of the Interior all right, title, and interest in 
     and to the following offered lands--
       (1) certain lands comprising approximately 40 acres with 
     improvements thereon located in Larimer County, Colorado, and 
     lying within the boundaries of Rocky Mountain National Park 
     as generally depicted on a map entitled ``Circle C Church 
     Camp'', dated August 1994, which shall upon their acquisition 
     by the United States and without further action by the 
     Secretary of the Interior be incorporated into Rocky Mountain 
     National Park and thereafter be administered in accordance 
     with the laws, rules and regulations generally applicable 
     to the National Park System and Rocky Mountain National 
     Park;
       (2) certain lands located within and adjacent to the United 
     States Bureau of Land Management San Luis Resource Area in 
     Conejos County, Colorado, which comprise approximately 3,993 
     acres and are generally depicted on a map entitled ``Quinlan 
     Ranches Tract'', dated August 1994; and
       (3) certain lands located within the United States Bureau 
     of Land Management Royal Gorge Resource Area in Huerfano 
     County, Colorado, which comprise approximately 4,700 acres 
     and are generally depicted on a map entitled ``Bonham Ranch-
     Cucharas Canyon'', dated June 1995: Provided, however, That 
     it is the intention of Congress that such lands may remain 
     available for the grazing of livestock as determined 
     appropriate by the Secretary in accordance with applicable 
     laws, rules, and regulations: Provided further, That if the 
     Secretary determines that certain of the lands acquired 
     adjacent to Cucharas Canyon hereunder are not needed for 
     public purposes they may be sold in accordance with the 
     provisions of section 203 of the Federal Land Policy and 
     Management Act of 1976 and other applicable law.
       (c) Substitution of Lands.--If one or more of the precise 
     offered land parcels identified above is unable to be 
     conveyed to the United States due to appraisal or other 
     problems, Lake Gulch and the Secretary may mutually agree to 
     substitute therefor alternative offered lands acceptable to 
     the Secretary.
       (d) Conveyance by the United States.--(1) Upon receipt of 
     title to the lands identified in subsection (a) the Secretary 
     shall simultaneously convey to Lake Gulch all right, title, 
     and interest of the United States, subject to valid existing 
     rights, in and to the following selected lands--
       (A) certain surveyed lands located in Gilpin County, 
     Colorado, Township 3 South, Range 72 West, Sixth Principal 
     Meridian, Section 18, Lots 118-220, which comprise 
     approximately 195 acres and are intended to include all 
     federally owned lands in section 18, as generally depicted on 
     a map entitled ``Lake Gulch Selected Lands'', dated July 
     1994;
       (B) certain surveyed lands located in Gilpin County, 
     Colorado, Township 3 South, Range 72 West, Sixth Principal 
     Meridian, Section 17, Lots 37, 38, 39, 40, 52, 53, and 54, 
     which comprise approximately 96 acres, as generally depicted 
     on a map entitled ``Lake Gulch Selected Lands'', dated July 
     1994; and
       (C) certain unsurveyed lands located in Gilpin County, 
     Colorado, Township 3 South, Range 73 West, Sixth Principal 
     Meridian, Section 13, which comprise approximately 11 acres, 
     and are generally depicted as parcels 302-304, 306 and 308-
     326 on a map entitled ``Lake Gulch Selected Lands'', dated 
     July 1994: Provided, however, That a parcel or parcels of 
     land in section 13 shall not be transferred to Lake Gulch if 
     at the time of the proposed transfer the parcel or parcels 
     are under formal application for transfer to a qualified unit 
     of local government. Due to the small and unsurveyed nature 
     of such parcels proposed for transfer to Lake Gulch in 
     section 13, and the high cost of surveying such small 
     parcels, the Secretary is authorized to transfer such section 
     13 lands to Lake Gulch without survey based on such legal or 
     other description as the Secretary determines appropriate to 
     carry out the basic intent of the map cited in this 
     subparagraph.
       (2) If the Secretary and Lake Gulch mutually agree, and the 
     Secretary determines it is in the public interest, the 
     Secretary may utilize the authority and direction of this Act 
     to transfer to Lake Gulch lands in sections 17 and 13 that 
     are in addition to those precise selected lands shown on the 
     map cited herein, and which are not under formal application 
     for transfer to a qualified unit of local government, upon 
     transfer to the Secretary of additional offered lands 
     acceptable to the Secretary or upon payment to the Secretary 
     by Lake Gulch of cash equalization money amounting to the 
     full appraised fair market value of any such additional 
     lands. If any such additional lands are located in section 13 
     they may be transferred to Lake Gulch without survey based on 
     such legal or other description as the Secretary determines 
     appropriate as long as the Secretary determines that the 
     boundaries of any adjacent lands not owned by Lake Gulch can 
     be properly identified so as to avoid possible future 
     boundary conflicts or disputes. If the Secretary determines 
     surveys are necessary to convey any such additional lands to 
     Lake Gulch, the costs of such surveys shall be paid by Lake 
     Gulch but shall not be eligible for any adjustment in the 
     value of such additional lands pursuant to section 206(f)(2) 
     of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (as 
     amended by the Federal Land Exchange Facilitation Act of 
     1988) (43 U.S.C. 1716(f)(2)).
       (3) Prior to transferring out of public ownership pursuant 
     to this Act or other authority of law any lands which are 
     contiguous to North Clear Creek southeast of the City of 
     Black 

[[Page H 11802]]
     Hawk, Colorado in the County of Gilpin, Colorado, the Secretary shall 
     notify and consult with the County and City and afford such 
     units of local government an opportunity to acquire or 
     reserve pursuant to the Federal Land Policy and Management 
     Act of 1976 or other applicable law, such easements or 
     rights-of-way parallel to North Clear Creek as may be 
     necessary to serve public utility line or recreation path 
     needs: Provided, however, That any survey or other costs 
     associated with the acquisition or reservation of such 
     easements or rights-of-way shall be paid for by the unit or 
     units of local government concerned.

     SEC. 3. TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF EXCHANGE.

       (a) Equalization of Values.--(1) The values of the lands to 
     be exchanged pursuant to this Act shall be equal as 
     determined by the Secretary of the Interior utilizing 
     comparable sales of surface and subsurface property and 
     nationally recognized appraisal standards, including, to the 
     extent appropriate, the Uniform Standards for Federal Land 
     Acquisition, the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal 
     Practice, the provisions of section 206(d) of the Federal 
     Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1716(d)), 
     and other applicable law.
       (2) In the event any cash equalization or land sale moneys 
     are received by the United States pursuant to this Act, any 
     such moneys shall be retained by the Secretary of the 
     Interior and may be utilized by the Secretary until fully 
     expended to purchase from willing sellers land or water 
     rights, or a combination thereof, to augment wildlife 
     habitat and protect and restore wetlands in the Bureau of 
     Land Management's Blanca Wetlands, Alamosa County, 
     Colorado.
       (3) Any water rights acquired by the United States pursuant 
     to this section shall be obtained by the Secretary of the 
     Interior in accordance with all applicable provisions of 
     Colorado law, including the requirement to change the time, 
     place, and type of use of said water rights through the 
     appropriate State legal proceedings and to comply with any 
     terms, conditions, or other provisions contained in an 
     applicable decree of the Colorado Water Court. The use of any 
     water rights acquired pursuant to this section shall be 
     limited to water that can be used or exchanged for water that 
     can be used on the Blanca Wetlands. Any requirement or 
     proposal to utilize facilities of the San Luis Valley 
     Project, Closed Basin Diversion, in order to effectuate the 
     use of any such water rights shall be subject to prior 
     approval of the Rio Grande Water Conservation District.
       (b) Restrictions on Selected Lands.--(1) Conveyance of the 
     selected lands to Lake Gulch pursuant to this Act shall be 
     contingent upon Lake Gulch executing an agreement with the 
     United States prior to such conveyance, the terms of which 
     are acceptable to the Secretary of the Interior, and which--
       (A) grant the United States a covenant that none of the 
     selected lands (which currently lie outside the legally 
     approved gaming area) shall ever be used for purposes of 
     gaming should the current legal gaming area ever be expanded 
     by the State of Colorado; and
       (B) permanently hold the United States harmless for 
     liability and indemnify the United States against all costs 
     arising from any activities, operations (including the 
     storing, handling, and dumping of hazardous materials or 
     substances) or other acts conducted by Lake Gulch or its 
     employees, agents, successors or assigns on the selected 
     lands after their transfer to Lake Gulch: Provided, however, 
     That nothing in this Act shall be construed as either 
     diminishing or increasing any responsibility or liability of 
     the United States based on the condition of the selected 
     lands prior to or on the date of their transfer to Lake 
     Gulch.
       (2) Conveyance of the selected lands to Lake Gulch pursuant 
     to this Act shall be subject to the existing easement for 
     Gilpin County Road 6.
       (3) The above terms and restrictions of this subsection 
     shall not be considered in determining, or result in any 
     diminution in, the fair market value of the selected land for 
     purposes of the appraisals of the selected land required 
     pursuant to section 3 of this Act.
       (c) Revocation of Withdrawal.--The Public Water Reserve 
     established by Executive order dated April 17, 1926 (Public 
     Water Reserve 107), Serial Number Colorado 17321, is hereby 
     revoked insofar as it affects the NW\1/4\ SW\1/4\ of Section 
     17, Township 3 South, Range 72 West, Sixth Principal 
     Meridian, which covers a portion of the selected lands 
     identified in this Act.

     SEC. 4. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS.

       (a) Definitions.--As used in this Act:
       (1) The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of the 
     Interior.
       (2) The term ``Lake Gulch'' means Lake Gulch, Inc., a 
     Colorado corporation, or its successors, heirs or assigns.
       (3) The term ``offered land'' means lands to be conveyed to 
     the United States pursuant to this Act.
       (4) The term ``selected land'' means lands to be 
     transferred to Lake Gulch, Inc., or its successors, heirs or 
     assigns pursuant to this Act.
       (5) The term ``Blanca Wetlands'' means an area of land 
     comprising approximately 9,290 acres, as generally depicted 
     on a map entitled ``Blanca Wetlands'', dated August 1994, or 
     such land as the Secretary may add thereto by purchase from 
     willing sellers after the date of enactment of this Act 
     utilizing funds provided by this Act or such other moneys as 
     Congress may appropriate.
       (b) Time Requirement for Completing Transfer.--It is the 
     intent of Congress that unless the Secretary and Lake Gulch 
     mutually agree otherwise the exchange of lands authorized and 
     directed by this Act shall be completed not later than 6 
     months after the date of enactment of this Act. In the event 
     the exchange cannot be consummated within such 6-month-time 
     period, the Secretary, upon application by Lake Gulch, is 
     directed to sell to Lake Gulch at appraised fair market value 
     any or all of the parcels (comprising a total of 
     approximately 11 acres) identified in section 2(d)(1)(C) of 
     this Act as long as the parcel or parcels applied for are not 
     under formal application for transfer to a qualified unit of 
     local government.
       (c) Administration of Lands Acquired by United States.--In 
     accordance with the provisions of section 206(c) of the 
     Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 
     1716(c)), all lands acquired by the United States pursuant to 
     this Act shall upon acceptance of title by the United States 
     and without further action by the Secretary concerned become 
     part of and be managed as part of the administrative unit or 
     area within which they are located.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Oregon [Mr. Cooley] will be recognized for 20 minutes and the gentleman 
from New Mexico [Mr. Richardson] will be recognized for 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Oregon [Mr. Cooley].
  (Mr. COOLEY asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. COOLEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2437, sponsored by Mr. 
McInnis, which would authorize an equal-value exchange under which the 
United States would transfer about 300 acres of BLM-managed public 
lands near the city of Black Hawk, in Gilpin County, CO, to a named 
company, which would transfer to the U.S. specified lands, amounting to 
about 8,739 acres, elsewhere in Colorado.
  The Gilpin County lands are 133 parcels, ranging from 38 acres to .01 
acre; 90 are less than 1 acre. They were originally acquired by the 
United States from France in the Louisiana Purchase. From extensive 
gold discoveries, the area is criss-crossed with patented mining 
claims; the 133 parcels are intermingled fragments that are essentially 
unmanageable, and have been identified as suitable for disposal by the 
Bureau of Land Management. However, the U.S. cannot readily realize 
their fair-market value through normal BLM disposal procedures because 
of the high costs of surveys and other necessary administrative 
expenses. H.R. 2437 is intended to enable the U.S. to obtain the value 
by the acquisition of designated lands.
  The lands that have been identified for the U.S. to receive would 
include about 40 acres within the Rocky Mountain National Park, nearly 
4,000 acres in Conejos County, and about 4,700 acres--known as Bonham 
Ranch--intermingled with BLM-managed lands along Cucharas Canyon in 
Huerfano County, CO.
  H.R. 2437 was reported favorably by the Committee on Resources by 
voice vote. I commend the sponsor of this bill on his hard work and 
urge the Members of the House to support this measure.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. RICHARDSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  (Mr. RICHARDSON asked and was given permission to revise and extend 
his remarks.)
  Mr. RICHARDSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from 
Colorado [Mr. Skaggs], the author of this bill, who developed this 
legislation, shepherded it, and it is in his congressional district. I 
wish to commend the gentleman from this good piece of legislation, 
which he has been working on for many years.
  Mr. SKAGGS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me this 
time.
  First of all, Mr. Speaker, I want to express my thanks to the 
gentleman from New Mexico [Mr. Richardson] for his help in moving this 
legislation, as well as the help of the chairman of the subcommittee, 
the gentleman from Utah [Mr. Hansen], and the gentleman from Oregon 
[Mr. Cooley], in managing this bill today. I especially appreciate, as 
well, the assistance of my colleague, the gentleman from Colorado [Mr. 
McInnis], who is the sponsor of this legislation. I have been very glad 
to have the chance to work with him on this bill.
  As the gentleman from Oregon [Mr. Cooley] indicated, this is a pretty 
straightforward proposition, one that I think serves both the local and 
the national interest in a nice way. We are exchanging some 300 acres 
in 133 separate parcels near the town of Blackhawk, CO, in my 
congressional 

[[Page H 11803]]
district, for some 8,700 acres of now privately-owned land in other 
parts of the State of Colorado.
  The current BLM-owned lands near Blackhawk are very fragmented and 
unmanageable, and really do not lend themselves at all to the normal 
sorts of appraisal and transfer processes that involve expensive 
surveys and all the rest. This bill enables both the Government and 
some interests that are proposing private development near Blackhawk to 
make a match that will be in everyone's long-term interest.
  The three major tracts that will be acquired by the Federal 
Government in exchange for these properties involve a very important 40 
acres within Rocky Mountain National Park known as the Circle C Church 
Camp, an area that the Park Service has been anxious to bring under 
Park Service management for a long time; about 4,000 acres along the La 
Jara Canyon in Conejos County, again, important for both management, 
wildlife, and recreational purposes; and some 4,700 acres in Huerfano 
County, again involving very important scenic, recreational, and 
wildlife habitat areas in a beautiful canyon there.
  This is legislation that I think has no opponents and has all of the 
right proponents, including all of the interested parties in the State 
of Colorado, the local governments, and all the rest. Again, I thank 
all involved in this on the Committee on Resources for their assistance 
in moving it along, and I urge my colleagues to vote for it.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the subcommittee chairman, Mr. Hansen, 
and Ranking Member Bill Richardson for bringing this bill to the floor 
today. I appreciate their good work, and I also greatly appreciate all 
that my colleague from Colorado, Mr. McInnis, has done in connection 
with this legislation that affects both our districts. I am very glad 
to have had the chance to work with him on this bill.
  This is a straightforward and I believe a noncontroversial measure. 
It provides for a land exchange under which the public will receive 
more than 8,700 acres of Colorado lands that are important for 
recreational and environmental purposes, in exchange for about 300 
acres near the town of Black Hawk, in Gilpin County, that are 
appropriate for development.
  Under the exchange, the Gilpin County lands, located in my 
congressional district, would be transferred from Federal ownership to 
Lake Gulch, Inc., a private firm, in exchange for Lake Gulch's transfer 
to the United States of the other lands specified in the bill.
  These Gilpin County lands comprise 133 separate parcels, ranging in 
size from 38 acres to one one-hundredth of an acre--in fact, 90 of them 
are less than an acre. These lands were originally acquired by the 
United States from France through the Louisiana Purchase. After the 
discovery of gold in Gilpin County, most of the immediately adjacent 
lands--also Federal public domain lands acquired in the same way--were 
claimed under the mining laws and thus passed into private ownership.
  However, the 133 parcels covered by the bill are still in the public 
domain. For the most part, they are left-over fragments, intermingled 
with private lands. They are essentially unmanageable, and have been 
identified as suitable for disposal by the Bureau of Land Management. 
That means that BLM has the legal authority to dispose of them for fair 
market value.
  The problem, though, is that the fragmented nature of the lands, and 
the resulting very small size of many tracts, makes it very difficult 
for the Government to obtain that fair market value because of the high 
costs of surveys and other necessary administrative expenses.
  This bill responds to that problem. It will enable the United States 
to realize the value of these Gilpin County lands by transferring them 
to the Lake Gulch corporation in exchange for other lands of equal 
value that have resources, including potential for recreational uses, 
which give them priority status for acquisition by Federal land-
management agencies.
  These lands that the United States will receive include: About 40 
acres within Rocky Mountain National Park--known as the ``Circle C 
Church Camp'' tract--that has been a long-time acquisition priority for 
the National Park Service; nearly 4,000 acres in Conejos County--known 
as the Quinlan Ranches parcel, bordering on the scenic La Jara Canyon, 
that is intermingled with Federal lands managed by the BLM and the 
Forest Service and that has recreational values as well as elk winter 
range and other wildlife habitat; and about 4,700 acres--known as the 
Bonham Ranch, now intermingled with BLM-managed lands along Cucharas 
Canyon in Huerfano County, whose acquisition will enable BLM to protect 
more than 5 miles of the scenic canyon, with its important wildlife 
habitat--including raptor nesting areas, cultural resources, and 
recreational uses.
  The bill also would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to agree 
to transfer certain additional adjacent Gilpin County lands in exchange 
for additional lands acceptable to the Secretary or payment of the fair 
market value of any such additional Gilpin County lands.
  I want to stress that the bill authorizes only an equal-value 
exchange. If it's determined that the value of the Gilpin County lands 
is greater than the value of the lands transferred to the United 
States, Lake Gulch will be required to pay the difference. Any such 
payment would be used to acquire from willing sellers land or water 
rights in the BLM-managed Blanca wetlands near Alamosa, an area with 
crucial winter habitat for bald eagles and a very productive area for 
ducks and geese.
  Mr. Speaker, this bill is good for economic development in Gilpin 
County and good for the environment and outdoor recreation in Colorado. 
The administration supports the bill, and it also has the support of 
Governor Romer, the Colorado Division of Wildlife, and affected local 
governments including Black Hawk, Central City, and Gilpin County, as 
well as local and national environmental and conservation 
organizations. I urge its passage by the House.
  Mr. RICHARDSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, the Gilpin County land parcels currently managed by the 
BLM consist of 133 parcels ranging in size from one-tenth acre to 38 
acres. I think, as the gentleman from Colorado [Mr. Skaggs] mentioned, 
this bill is pretty straight forward. These are fragments scattered in 
an area crisscrossed with patent and mining claims, making their 
management extremely difficult.
  What this legislation does, it would authorize an equal value land 
exchange, and my colleague, the gentleman from Colorado [Mr. Skaggs], 
as I said, has worked for some time on this issue with the 
administration and the local parties affected. I commend the gentleman 
from Colorado [Mr. McInnis], too, for his efforts, and my colleagues on 
the majority side. This bill has wide support.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of passage, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. COOLEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  For the record, Mr. Speaker, I want to state that the gentleman from 
Colorado [Mr. McInnis] wanted to be here, but he could not make it here 
today. I would note that for the record. I also want to thank the 
gentlemen from Colorado, Mr. McInnis and Mr. Skaggs, for their 
cooperative work on this issue. I think it is time we straightened up 
these small parcels and get some uniformity. I think this is a good 
piece of legislation, and I appreciate the statements made by the 
gentleman from New Mexico [Mr. Richardson]. I think it is helpful in a 
bipartisan way to get some of this straightened out.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back 
the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Oregon [Mr. Cooley] that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the bill, H.R. 2437, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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