[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 121 (Monday, September 14, 1998)]
[House]
[Pages H7669-H7670]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CONVEYANCE OF FEDERAL LAND TO CITY OF TRACY, CALIFORNIA
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 2508) to provide for the conveyance of Federal land in San
Joaquin County, California, to the City of Tracy, California, as
amended.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 2508
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. LAND CONVEYANCE, FEDERAL LAND, SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY,
CALIFORNIA.
(a) Conveyance Required.--Notwithstanding any other
provision of law (including the Federal Property and
Administrative Services Act of 1949 (40 U.S.C. 471 et seq.)),
the Attorney General shall convey to the City of Tracy,
California (in this section referred to as the ``City''), all
right, title, and interest of the United States in and to two
parcels of real property, consisting of a total of
approximately 200 acres, which are located in San Joaquin
County, California, and currently administered by the Federal
Bureau of Prisons of the Department of Justice.
(b) Purpose of Conveyance.--(1) One of the parcels to be
conveyed under subsection (a) consists of approximately 150
acres and is being conveyed for the purpose of permitting the
City to use the parcel as the location of a joint secondary
and post secondary educational facility and for other
educational purposes. If the City determines that a joint
secondary and post secondary educational facility is
unfeasible for this parcel, the City shall use up to 50 acres
of the parcel for at least 30 years as the location for a
secondary school and for other educational purposes and use
up to 100 acres of the parcel as a public park and for other
recreational purposes.
(2) The other parcel to be conveyed under subsection (a)
consists of approximately 50 acres and is being conveyed for
the purpose of permitting the City to use the parcel for
economic development.
(c) Time for Conveyance.--Not later than 210 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall
complete the conveyance to the City of the parcel of real
property referred to in subsection (b)(1).
(d) Consideration.--(1) The parcel of real property
referred to in subsection (b)(1) shall be conveyed to the
City without consideration.
(2) As consideration for the conveyance of the parcel
referred to in subsection (b)(2), the City shall pay to the
Attorney General, under such terms as may be negotiated by
the City and the Attorney General, an amount equal to the
fair market value of the parcel as of the time of the
conveyance. The fair market value of the parcel shall be
determined, in consultation with the Administrator of General
Services, in accordance with Federal appraisal standards and
procedures.
(e) Conditions on Use.--(1) The use of the real property
conveyed under subsection (a) for educational purposes, as
provided in subsection (b)(1), shall be subject to the
approval of the Secretary of Education under the guidelines
for educational use conveyances under the Federal Property
and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (40 U.S.C. 471 et
seq.).
(2) If a portion of the conveyed real property is used as a
public park or for other recreational purposes, as provided
in subsection (b)(1), the use of such portion shall be
subject to the approval of the Secretary of the Interior
under the guidelines for recreational use conveyances under
the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949
(40 U.S.C. 471 et seq.).
(f) Reversionary Interests.--(1) During the 20-year period
beginning on the date the Attorney General conveys the parcel
referred to in subsection (b)(1), if the Secretary of
Education determines that the portion of the parcel that is
to be used for educational purposes is not being used for
such purposes, all right, title, and interest in and to that
portion of the parcel, including any improvements thereon,
shall revert to the Department of Justice.
(2) If a portion of the parcel referred to in subsection
(b)(1) is to be used as a public park or for other
recreational purposes, as provided in such subsection, and
the Secretary of the Interior determines that such portion is
no longer being used for such purposes, all right, title, and
interest in and to that portion of the property, including
any improvements thereon, shall revert to the Department of
Justice.
(g) Description of Property.--The exact acreage and legal
description of the real property to be conveyed under
subsection (a) shall be determined by a survey satisfactory
to the Attorney General. The cost of the survey shall be
borne by the City.
(h) Additional Terms and Conditions.--The Attorney General
may require such additional terms and conditions in
connection with the conveyance under subsection (a) as the
Attorney General considers appropriate to protect the
interests of the United States.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mrs. Morella). Pursuant to the rule, the
gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman) and the gentlewoman from the
District of Columbia (Ms. Norton) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman).
Mr. GILMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I am appearing on behalf of the gentleman from
California (Mr. Horn), who has worked on this measure. H.R. 2508 is a
bill to provide for the conveyance of Federal land in San Joaquin
County, California, to the City of Tracy, California. This piece of
legislation transfers a 200 acre parcel of real estate currently
administered by the Department of Justice to the City of Tracy,
California.
Under this measure, the City of Tracy would be required to devote a
section of the land to the establishment of a school; would also be
used for economic development. The Federal Government would retain a
reversionary interest, should the government find that the land is not
used for those purposes.
The land in question, Madam Speaker, has been sitting vacant since
1981. The proposed development of this land by the City of Tracy would
bring significant benefits to that area. The amendment in the nature of
a substitute makes minor changes to the bill, such as adjusting the
requirement that the City of Tracy, California, use a section of the
conveyed land for educational purposes and a section for economic
development. The city would be required to pay the fair market value
for the property used for economic development.
It is a bipartisan measure that will result in improved opportunities
for education, for recreation and economic development, in California's
Central Valley. Accordingly, I urge our colleagues to support this
measure.
Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman
from California (Mr. Pombo).
{time} 1500
Mr. POMBO. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York (Mr.
Gilman) for yielding me this time.
This bill, H.R. 2508, is the culmination of many years of work that
we have put in in trying to address the educational needs of the
community
[[Page H7670]]
that I am from, Tracy, California. The city and the school district
have come up with a very innovative idea, and that is to create a
school that will be a high-technology school that will take all the way
from kindergarten through post-secondary education.
Madam Speaker, as part of that, a small portion of this land would
also be dedicated for economic development. That small portion of this
land that is dedicated to economic development will be targeted toward
high-technology firms, which will have the ability to come in and set
up a cooperative effort with the school district so that the kids that
are graduated from this school, with the vocational education that they
need, can go directly from education into working for these high-
technology firms. It is an innovative idea. It is something that a lot
of people have worked extremely hard on in coming up with this plan.
But once they came up with the plan for what they were going to do,
they needed a site to locate that school. This particular site is
located just on the outskirts of town. It is currently located in an
area that is zoned either as industrial or residential. It is located
right across the street from a major residential development which is
planned for the future. It is an ideal site for this kind of a high-
technology school to be located. It is also very near the new rail
system that is being put in where people will be commuting from the
Central Valley in California over to the Bay area. So as far as a
transportation corridor, it is ideally located for a post-secondary
educational facility, as well as for the needs of the high schools in
the area.
Madam Speaker, the city has estimated that over the next 12 years,
there is going to be a need for two additional high schools to be built
in the City of Tracy. This will just be one of those additional high
schools.
I think what we have put together is a plan that is a win-win for
everyone. It is creating tax revenue for the local city. It is giving
the city a facility for economic development, as well as addressing the
needs of our kids in the Federal Government providing just the land for
a site for a school system. So, it is very positive. I think it is a
win-win situation for everybody.
Madam Speaker, I would like to thank the chairman and the ranking
member of the subcommittee who worked with me in putting together this
legislation. They were invaluable in trying to negotiate something that
was fair to the Federal taxpayer as well as fair to the local school
district and local city. I thank them for all the hard work they put
in.
Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Kucinich), the ranking
member, could not be here at this time. I am pleased to note that the
minority has worked with the gentleman from California (Mr. Pombo) and
with the majority on this matter of special concern to the gentleman,
and we have no objections to this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
CALIFORNIA AGRICULTURE IS IN CRISIS DUE TO LABOR SHORTAGE
Mr. RADANOVICH. Mr. Speaker, as a Member of Congress from the San
Joaquin Valley of California, I am proud to represent the two largest
agricultural producing counties in the United States. Currently, a
severe shortage of labor is raising concern over the economic future of
the agriculture community throughout California. Agricultural
production is nearly a $25 billion industry in the state, and
California has the largest agricultural economy in the nation. Right
now, farmers are competing for the same scarce labor force as the
raisin, table and wine grape harvest is entering its peak and tree
fruit in the state of Washington and are in need of labor. California
has not seen a labor shortage of this magnitude since World War II.
The agricultural community has worked with numerous San Joaquin
Valley Social Services Departments and Employment Development
Departments to provide needed labor from individuals who are unemployed
or entering the workforce after receiving welfare. Such actions have
failed to supply adequate labor for harvest. Agricultural groups in
Fresno, California are currently looking into the feasibility of a
program through the Fresno County Sheriff's office to allow agriculture
to use the labor involved with work furlough programs, community
service, and inmate work projects.
The agricultural labor situation can be alleviated through action by
the federal government. Under a reformed agricultural worker program,
substantial opportunities will be given to foreign workers who can
often earn significantly more in the U.S. than in their own country.
Such reform reduces illegal immigration by creating a streamlined
process to temporarily legalize individuals who choose to work in the
agricultural sector of the U.S.
I am working to include the Agricultural Job Opportunity, Benefits
and Security Act, authorized by Senator Gordon Smith (R-OR), in the
final conference language of the Commerce, Justice, State and Judiciary
appropriations measure. The act was approved as a amendment to S. 2260,
the Senate Commerce, Justice, State and Judiciary appropriations bill.
It passed by a bipartisan vote of 68-31 in the Senate. Related House
legislation did not contain the agricultural worker provision. The
Senate measure establishes a national registry within the Department of
Labor to track agricultural job seekers. Employers are required to
first hire domestic workers from the registry and are able to hire
foreign workers if domestic workers are not available. Housing or a
housing allowance must be provided by growers, and the prevailing wage
rate must be paid. The prevailing wage rate is the mid-point of all
wages earned, and it is always higher than the minimum wage.
On behalf of the farmers in the San Joaquin Valley in California, I
urge the Commerce, Justice, State, and Judiciary conferees to include
the Agricultural Job Opportunity, Benefits, and Security Act in the
final bill. I also strongly encourage all members of the House to
support its passage. A stable, reliable and affordable food supply is
dependent upon Congressional approval of this measure.
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, we have no further requests for time, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Miller of Florida). The question is on
the motion offered by the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman) that the
House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2508, 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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