[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 57 (Tuesday, April 30, 1996)]
[House]
[Pages H4137-H4138]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
AMENDING THE NATIONAL FOREST SKI AREA PERMIT ACT OF 1986
Mr. ALLARD. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 1527) to amend the National Forest Ski Area Permit Act of
1986 to clarify the authorities and duties of the Secretary of
Agriculture in issuing ski area permits on National Forest System lands
and to withdraw lands within ski area permit boundaries from the
operation of the mining and mineral leasing laws, as amended.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 1527
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SKI AREA PERMIT RENTAL CHARGE.
(a) The Secretary of Agriculture shall charge a rental
charge for all ski area permits issued pursuant to section 3
of the National Forest Ski Area Permit Act of 1986 (16 U.S.C.
497b), the Act of March 4, 1915 (38 Stat. 1101, chapter 144;
16 U.S.C. 497), or the 9th through 20th paragraphs under the
heading ``SURVEYING THE PUBLIC LANDS'' under the heading
``UNDER THE DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR'' in the Act of June
4, 1897 (30 Stat. 34, chapter 2), on National Forest System
lands. Permit rental charges for permits issued pursuant to
the National Forest Ski Area Permit Act of 1986 shall be
calculated as set forth in subsection (b). Permit rental
charges for existing ski area permits issued pursuant to the
Act of March 4, 1915, and the Act of June 4, 1897, shall be
calculated in accordance with those existing permits:
Provided, That a permittee may, at the permittee's option,
use the calculation method set forth in subsection (b).
(b)(1) The ski area permit rental charge (SAPRC) shall be
calculated by adding the permittee's gross revenues from lift
ticket/year-round ski area use pass sales plus revenue from
ski school operations (LT+SS) and multiplying such total by
the slope transport feet percentage (STFP) on National Forest
System land. That amount shall be increased by the gross
year-round revenue from ancillary facilities (GRAF)
physically located on national forest land, including all
permittee or subpermittee lodging, food service, rental
shops, parking and other ancillary operations, to determine
the adjusted gross revenue (AGR) subject to the permit rental
charge. The final rental charge shall be calculated by
multiplying the AGR by the following percentages for each
revenue bracket and adding the total for each revenue
bracket:
(A) 1.5 percent of all adjusted gross revenue below
$3,000,000;
(B) 2.5 percent for adjusted gross revenue between
$3,000,000 and $15,000,000;
(C) 2.75 percent for adjusted gross revenue between
$15,000,000 and $50,000,000; and
(D) 4.0 percent for the amount of adjusted gross revenue
that exceeds $50,000,000.
Utilizing the abbreviations indicated in this subsection
the ski area permit fee (SAPF) formula can be simply
illustrated as:
sapf=((lt+ss)stfp)+graf=agr; agr% brackets
(2) In cases where ski areas are only partially located on
national forest lands, the slope transport feet percentage on
national forest land referred to in subsection (b) shall be
calculated as generally described in the Forest Service
Manual in effect as of January 1, 1992. Revenues from Nordic
ski operations shall be included or excluded from the rental
charge calculation according to the percentage of trails
physically located on national forest land.
(3) In order to ensure that the rental charge remains fair
and equitable to both the United States and ski area
permittees, the adjusted gross revenue figures for each
revenue bracket in paragraph (1) shall be adjusted annually
by the percent increase or decrease in the national Consumer
Price Index for the preceding calendar year. No later than 3
years after the date of enactment of this Act and
periodically thereafter the Secretary shall submit to the
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the United
States Senate and the Committee on Resources of the United
States House of Representatives a report analyzing whether
the ski area permit rental charge legislated by this Act is
returning a fair market value rental to the United States
together with any recommendations the Secretary may have for
modifications of the system.
(c) The rental charge set forth in subsection (b) shall be
due on June 1 of each year and shall be paid or prepaid by
the permittee on a monthly, quarterly, annual or other
schedule as determined appropriate by the Secretary in
consultation with the permittee. Unless mutually agreed
otherwise by the Secretary and the permittee, the payment or
prepayment schedule shall conform to the permittee's schedule
in effect prior to enactment of this Act. To reduce costs to
the permittee and the Forest Service, the Secretary shall
each year provide the permittee with a standardized form and
worksheets (including annual rental charge calculation
brackets and rates) to be used for rental charge calculation
and submitted with the rental charge payment. Information
provided on such forms shall be compiled by the Secretary
annually and kept in the Office of the Chief, U.S. Forest
Service.
(d) The ski area permit rental charge set forth in this
section shall become effective on June 1, 1996 and cover
receipts retroactive to June 1, 1995: Provided, however, That
if a permittee has paid rental charges for the period June 1,
1995, to June 1, 1996, under the graduated rate rental charge
system formula in effect prior to the date of enactment of
this Act, such rental charges shall be credited toward the
new rental charge due on June 1, 1996. In order to ensure
increasing rental charge receipt levels to the United States
during transition from the graduated rate rental charge
system formula of this Act, the rental charge paid by any
individual permittee shall be--
(1) for the 1995-1996 permit year, either the rental charge
paid for the preceding 1994-1995 base year or the rental
charge calculated pursuant to this Act, whichever is higher;
(2) for the 1996-1997 permit year, either the rental charge
paid for the 1994-1995 base year or the rental charge
calculated pursuant to this Act, whichever is higher;
(3) for the 1997-1998 permit year, either the rental charge
for the 1994-1995 base year or the rental charge calculated
pursuant to this Act, whichever is higher.
If an individual permittee's adjusted gross revenue for the
1995-1996, 1996-1997, or 1997-1998 permit years falls more
than 10 percent below the 1994-1995 base year, the rental
charge paid shall be the rental charge calculated pursuant to
this Act.
(e) Under no circumstances shall revenue, or subpermittee
revenue (other than lift ticket, area use pass, or ski school
sales) obtained from operations physically located on non-
national forest land be included in the ski area permit
rental charge calculation.
(f) To reduce administrative costs of ski area permittees
and the Forest Service the terms ``revenue'' and ``sales'',
as used in this section, shall mean actual income from sales
and shall not include sales of operating equipment, refunds,
rent paid to the permittee by sublessees, sponsor
contributions to special events or any amounts attributable
to employee gratuities or employee lift tickets, discounts,
or other goods or services (except for bartered goods and
complimentary life tickets) for which the permittee does not
receive money.
(g) In cases where an area of national forest land is under
a ski area permit but the permittee does not have revenue or
sales qualifying for rental charge payment pursuant to
subsection (a), the permittee shall pay an annual minimum
rental charge of $2 for each national forest acre under
permit or a percentage of appraised land value, as determined
appropriate by the Secretary.
(h) Where the new rental charge provided for in subsection
(b)(1) results in an increase in permit rental charge greater
than one half of one percent of the permittee's adjusted
gross revenue as determined under subsection (b)(1), the new
rental charge shall be phased in over a five year period in a
manner providing for increases for approximately equal
increments.
(i) To reduce federal costs in administering the provisions
of this Act, the reissuance of a ski area permit to provide
activities similar in nature and amount to the activities
provided under the previous permit shall not constitute a
major Federal action for the purposes of the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4331 et seq.).
SEC. 2. WITHDRAWALS.
Subject to valid existing rights, all lands located within
the boundaries of ski area permits issued prior to, on or
after the date of enactment of this Act pursuant to authority
of the Act of March 4, 1915 (38 Stat. 1101, chapter 144; 16
U.S.C. 497), and the Act of June 4, 1897, or the National
Forest Ski Area Permit Act of 1986 (16 U.S.C. 497b) are
hereby and henceforth automatically withdrawn from all forms
of appropriation under the mining laws and from disposition
under all laws pertaining to mineral and geothermal leasing
and all amendments thereto. Such withdrawal shall continue
for the full term of the permit and any modification,
reissuance, or renewal thereof. Unless the Secretary requests
otherwise of the Secretary of the Interior, such withdrawal
shall be canceled automatically upon expiration or other
termination of the permit and the land automatically restored
to all appropriation not otherwise restricted under the
public land laws.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Colorado [Mr. Allard] and the gentleman from New Mexico [Mr.
Richardson] will each be recognized for 20 minutes.
[[Page H4138]]
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Colorado [Mr. Allard].
Mr. ALLARD. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
(Mr. ALLARD asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. ALLARD. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 1527,
legislation to amend the process by which the Forest Service calculates
the charges for ski areas on National Forest Service lands. This is a
good bill which simplifies 40 pages of complex Government regulations
and procedures, reduces costs on the private sector, and generates
additional revenue for the Treasury.
Mr. Speaker, there are 143 ski areas located on Forest Service land
around the country. While these ski areas represent only one-tenth of 1
percent of the land managed by the Forest Service, tens of millions of
persons enjoy skiing at such internationally renown sites as Vail,
Steamboat Springs, Aspen, Jackson Hole, Mammoth, and Sugarbush every
year. For that reason, it is important that we establish sound policy
in the management of our ski areas, which ensures continuation of this
strong public-private partnership.
As ski area operations have evolved over the years into complex
multi-season resorts, the existing graduate rate fee system for
calculating ski area permittee fees has become increasingly complex.
For example, the Forest Service has now instituted such practices as
levying a charge on facilities and services on private lands which the
Forest Service claims are related to the ski area. In 1986, Congress
recognized that the existing system for calculating fees that ski area
operators pay to the Federal Government was outdated and directed the
Forest Service to develop a new fee system.
Unfortunately, in the 10 years since Congress directed the Forest
Service to establish a new fee system, the agency has provided no new
recommendation to Congress. The Forest Service has spent a substantial
amount of money studying new ways to calculate fees, but at this point
has nothing new to suggest. Last September, the Forest Service
announced that they were prepared to scrap all their previous work and
start a new study.
Instead of further studies, what this legislation presents is a new
and simplified approach for calculating ski area permittee fees. Just
as importantly, CBO has estimated that this legislation will actually
increase revenues to the Treasury.
Mr. Speaker, this bill is a win-win-win: A win for the
administration, who will see administrative costs go down. A win for
the Treasury, where revenues will go up. And a win for the American
public, who enjoys recreational skiing on Forest Service lands, which
provide this country with some of the best recreational skiing in the
world.
I commend the bill to my colleagues and urge its passage.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. RICHARDSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I support H.R. 1527, the ski fee bill, although I do
recognize some concerns with this legislation have been expressed by
the administration and others.
I am all for simplifying the ski fee determination. The current
process used by the Forest Service is cumbersome and costly, both for
the agency and the permittees. H.R. 1527 greatly simplifies that
process.
The Federal Government should get fair market value for the use of
Federal assets. Unfortunately, as circumstances currently stand, we
cannot be assured that this bill meets that test. As the GAO has
reported to Congress, the ski industry's fee proposal that is embodied
in H.R. 1527 does not assure that the Federal Government receives fair
market value. The percentages used in the bill were designed to
generate only the same amount in revenue that the Forest Service
presently collects.
To address the question of fair market value, the bill includes
language requiring the Secretary of Agriculture to report to Congress
within 3 years on whether the bill's fee formula is achieving fair
market value. I think this is a good idea.
I should also note that the administration and others have expressed
concerns about the bill's NEPA waiver for permit renewals. That
particular language presents some policy problems. but they are not
insurmountable.
Mr. Speaker, as I noted earlier, the current Permit Fee System is
cumbersome and costly. That is why the Forest Service has been moving
to scrap it and replace it with a new fee program. Those proposed
changes however are several years off. As such, I support H.R. 1527,
with the understanding that the Congress can address this matter again
if the Secretary reports to Congress that the bill's fee schedule is
not achieving fair market value.
I particularly want to commend the advice on this legislation I
received from Mickey Blake, my constituent who operates the world-
renowned Taos Ski Valley, which happens to be the number one ski resort
in the country, with all deference to my friends from Colorado.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ALLARD. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I just want to compliment the chairman of the Committee
on Resources, the gentleman from Alaska [Mr. Young], for carrying this
valuable piece of legislation forward. I appreciate his hard work on
behalf of ski country.
Mr. RICHARDSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. ALLARD. 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 Colorado [Mr. Allard] that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 1527, 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.
The title of the bill was amended so as to read: ``A bill to further
clarify the authorities and duties of the Secretary of Agriculture in
issuing ski area permits on National Forest System lands and to
withdraw lands within ski area permit boundaries from the operation of
the mining and mineral leasing laws.''
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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