[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 114 (Thursday, August 5, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10367-S10368]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           CBO COST ESTIMATE

  Mr. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, on August 3, 1999, I filed Report 134 
to accompany S. 1330, a bill to give the city of Mesquite, NV, the 
right to purchase at fair market value certain parcels of public land 
in the city, that had been ordered favorably reported on July 28, 1999. 
At the time the report was filed, the estimates by Congressional Budget 
Office were not available. The estimate is now available and concludes 
that enactment of S. 1330 ``would increase direct spending by about 
$500,000 over the 2000-2004 period.'' I ask unanimous consent that a 
copy of the CBO estimate be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:


[[Page S10368]]


                                                    U.S. Congress,


                                  Congressional Budget Office,

                                   Washington, DC, August 4, 1999.
     Hon. Frank H. Murkowski,
     Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, U.S. 
         Senate, Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
     prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 1330, a bill to 
     give the city of Mesquite, Nevada, the right to purchase at 
     fair market value certain parcels of public land in the city.
       If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
     pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contacts are Victoria 
     Heid Hall (for federal costs), who can be reached at 226-
     2860, and Marjorie Miller (for the state and local impact), 
     who can be reached at 225-3220.
     Sincerely,
                                                 Barry B. Anderson
                                   (For Dan L. Crippen, Director).
       Enclosure.


               congressional budget office cost estimate

     S. 1330--A bill to give the city of Mesquite, Nevada, the 
         right to purchase at fair market value certain parcels of 
         public land in the city
       S. 1330 provides for the conveyance of up to about 8,000 
     acres of federal land to the city of Mesquite, Nevada. 
     Because S. 1330 would affect direct spending, pay-as-you-go 
     procedures would apply to the bill. CBO estimates that 
     enacting this bill would increase direct spending by about 
     $500,000 over the 2000-2004 period. S. 1330 contains no 
     intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in 
     the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA). The bill would have 
     no significant impact on the budgets of state, local, or 
     tribal governments, other than the city of Mesquite, Nevada, 
     which would benefit from its enactment.
       S. 1330 would give the city of Mesquite, Nevada, the 
     exclusive right to purchase specified parcels of federal land 
     over the next 12 years. According to the Bureau of Land 
     Management (BLM) and the city of Mesquite, these parcels 
     comprise roughly 5,300 acres, depending on the outcome of 
     final surveys. The city would pay fair market value for the 
     acreage. Proceeds from the sale would be deposited in the 
     special account established under the Southern Nevada Public 
     Land Management Act of 1998 (SNPLM), out of which the 
     Secretary of the Interior may expend funds for land 
     acquisitions and other projects in the state of Nevada. Under 
     current law, BLM has no plans to sell the property. Based on 
     information from BLM and the city of Mesquite, we estimate 
     that these sales would result in additional federal receipts 
     of roughly $6 million over the 2000-2004 period and 
     subsequent spending of the same amount. Payments by the city 
     could be in one lump sum or over several years, which could 
     affect the total receipts from the sales. The funds deposited 
     in the SNPLM special account earn interest, which the 
     Secretary can spend. Because a lag between the deposit and 
     spending of sale proceeds is likely, we expect that enacting 
     S. 1350 would result in a net increase in direct spending 
     from the interest. Assuming all the acreage is sold to the 
     city in 2001, we estimate a net increase in direct spending 
     totaling about $500,000 over the 2000-2004 period. Estimated 
     annual budgetary effects are shown in the following table.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                By fiscal years in millions of dollars--
                               -----------------------------------------
                                 1999   2000   2001   2002   2003   2004
------------------------------------------------------------------------
       CHANGES IN DIRECT SPENDING (including offsetting receipts)
 
Estimated Budget Authority....      0     -4      2      2      1      0
Estimated Outlays.............      0     -4      2      2      1      0
------------------------------------------------------------------------

       In addition, S. 1330 provides that within one year of 
     enactment the Secretary of the Interior shall convey to the 
     city of Mesquite up to 2,560 acres of federal land to be 
     selected by the city from parcels described in the bill. The 
     land would be used to develop a new commercial airport. The 
     bill requires that the conveyance be in accordance with 49 
     U.S.C. 47125, which permits the Secretary of Transportation 
     to request that a federal agency convey land or airspace to a 
     public agency sponsoring a project such as a new airport. The 
     statute specifies that such conveyances be made only on the 
     condition that the federal government retain a reversionary 
     interest if the land is not used for an airport. Since BLM 
     has no plans to sell the property under current law, 
     conveying the property at no cost to the city would have no 
     net impact on receipts relative to current law.
       S. 1330 contains no intergovernmental mandates as defined 
     in UMRA. The city of Mesquite would benefit from enactment of 
     this legislation, which would allow it to obtain needed 
     parcels of land BLM would convey some of this land at no 
     cost. The conveyances would be voluntary on the part of the 
     city, as would any amounts spent by the city to purchase or 
     develop the land. The bill would have no significant impact 
     on the budgets of other local governments, or on state or 
     tribal governments.
       The CBO staff contacts are Victoria Heid Hall (for federal 
     costs), who can be reached at 226-2860, and Marjorie Miller 
     (for the state and local impact), who can be reached at 225-
     3220. This estimate was approved by Robert A. Sunshine, 
     Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

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