[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 95 (Monday, July 12, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H5477-H5478]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   RESOLVING BOUNDARY CONFLICTS IN BARRY AND STONE COUNTIES, MISSOURI

  Mr. BURNS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
Senate bill (S. 1167) to resolve boundary conflicts in Barry and Stone 
Counties in the State of Missouri.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                                S. 1167

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

     SECTION 1. RESOLUTION OF BOUNDARY CONFLICTS, VICINITY OF MARK 
                   TWAIN NATIONAL FOREST, BARRY AND STONE 
                   COUNTIES, MISSOURI.

       (a) Definitions.--In this section:
       (1) The term ``appropriate Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of the Army or the Secretary of Agriculture.
       (2) The term ``boundary conflict'' means the situation in 
     which the private claim of ownership to certain lands, based 
     on subsequent Federal land surveys, overlaps or conflicts 
     with Federal ownership of the same lands.
       (3) The term ``Federal land surveys'' means any land survey 
     made by any agency or department of the Federal Government 
     using Federal employees, or by Federal contract with State-
     licensed private land surveyors or corporations and 
     businesses licensed to provide professional land surveying 
     services in the State of Missouri for Table Rock Reservoir.
       (4) The term ``original land surveys'' means the land 
     surveys made by the United States General Land Office as part 
     of the Public Land Survey System in the State of Missouri, 
     and upon which Government land patents were issued conveying 
     the land.
       (5) The term ``Public Land Survey System'' means the 
     rectangular system of original Government land surveys made 
     by the United States General Land Office and its successor, 
     the Bureau of Land Management, under Federal laws providing 
     for the survey of the public lands upon which the original 
     land patents were issued.
       (6) The term ``qualifying claimant'' means a private owner 
     of real property in Barry or Stone County, Missouri, who has 
     a boundary conflict as a result of good faith and innocent 
     reliance on subsequent Federal land surveys, and as a result 
     of such reliance, has occupied or improved Federal lands 
     administered by the appropriate Secretary.
       (7) The term ``subsequent Federal land surveys'' means any 
     Federal land surveys made after the original land surveys 
     that are inconsistent with the Public Land Survey System.
       (b) Resolution of Boundary Conflicts.--The Secretary of the 
     Army and the Secretary of Agriculture shall cooperatively 
     undertake actions to rectify boundary conflicts and 
     landownership claims against Federal lands resulting from 
     subsequent Federal land surveys and correctly reestablish the 
     corners of the Public Land Survey System in Barry and Stone 
     Counties, Missouri, and shall attempt to do so in a manner 
     which imposes the least cost and inconvenience to affected 
     private landowners.
       (c) Notice of Boundary Conflict.--
       (1) Submission and contents.--A qualifying claimant shall 
     notify the appropriate Secretary in writing of a claim that a 
     boundary conflict exists with Federal land administered by 
     the appropriate Secretary. The notice shall be accompanied by 
     the following information, which, except as provided in 
     subsection (e)(2)(B), shall be provided without cost to the 
     United States:
       (A) A land survey plat and legal description of the 
     affected Federal lands, which are based upon a land survey 
     completed and certified by a Missouri State-licensed 
     professional land surveyor and done in conformity with the 
     Public Land Survey System and in compliance with the 
     applicable State and Federal land surveying laws.
       (B) Information relating to the claim of ownership of the 
     Federal lands, including supporting documentation showing 
     that the landowner relied on a subsequent Federal land survey 
     due to actions by the Federal Government in making or 
     approving surveys for the Table Rock Reservoir.
       (2) Deadline for submission.--To obtain relief under this 
     section, a qualifying claimant shall submit the notice and 
     information required by paragraph (1) within 15 years after 
     the date of the enactment of this Act.
       (d) Resolution Authorities.--In addition to using existing 
     authorities, the appropriate Secretary is authorized to take 
     any of the following actions in order to resolve boundary 
     conflicts with qualifying claimants involving lands under the 
     administrative jurisdiction of the appropriate Secretary:
       (1) Convey by quitclaim deed right, title, and interest in 
     land of the United States subject to a boundary conflict 
     consistent with the rights, title, and interest associated 
     with the privately-owned land from which a qualifying 
     claimant has based a claim.
       (2) Confirm Federal title to, and retain in Federal 
     management, any land subject to a boundary conflict, if the 
     appropriate Secretary determines that there are Federal 
     interests, including improvements, authorized uses, 
     easements, hazardous materials, or historical and cultural 
     resources, on the land that necessitates retention of the 
     land or interests in land.
       (3) Compensate the qualifying claimant for the value of the 
     overlapping property for which title is confirmed and 
     retained in Federal management pursuant to paragraph (2).
       (e) Consideration and Cost.--
       (1) Conveyance without consideration.--The conveyance of 
     land under subsection (d)(1) shall be made without 
     consideration.
       (2) Costs.--The appropriate Secretary shall--
       (A) pay administrative, personnel, and any other costs 
     associated with the implementation of this section by his or 
     her Department, including the costs of survey, marking, and 
     monumenting property lines and corners; and
       (B) reimburse the qualifying claimant for reasonable out-
     of-pocket survey costs necessary to establish a claim under 
     this section.
       (3) Valuation.--Compensation paid to a qualifying claimant 
     pursuant to subsection (d)(3) for land retained in Federal 
     ownership pursuant to subsection (d)(2) shall be valued on 
     the basis of the contributory value of the tract of land to 
     the larger adjoining private parcel and not on the basis of 
     the land being a separate tract. The appropriate Secretary 
     shall not consider the value of any Federal improvements to 
     the land. The appropriate Secretary shall be responsible for 
     compensation provided as a result of subsequent Federal land 
     surveys conducted or commissioned by the appropriate 
     Secretary's Department.
       (f) Preexisting Conditions; Reservations; Existing Rights 
     and Uses.--
       (1) Preexisting conditions.--The appropriate Secretary 
     shall not compensate a qualifying claimant or any other 
     person for any preexisting condition or reduction in value of 
     any land subject to a boundary conflict because of any 
     existing or outstanding permits, use authorizations, 
     reservations, timber removal, or other land use or condition.
       (2) Existing reservations and rights and uses.--Any 
     conveyance pursuant to subsection (d)(1) shall be subject 
     to--
       (A) reservations for existing public uses for roads, 
     utilities, and facilities; and
       (B) permits, rights-of-way, contracts and any other 
     authorization to use the property.
       (3) Treatment of land subject to special use authorization 
     or permit.--For any land subject to a special use 
     authorization or permit for access or utilities, the 
     appropriate Secretary may convert, at the request of the 
     holder, such authorization to a permanent easement prior to 
     any conveyance pursuant to subsection (d)(1).
       (4) Future reservations.--The appropriate Secretary may 
     reserve rights for future public uses in a conveyance made 
     pursuant to subsection (d)(1) if the qualifying claimant is 
     compensated for the reservation in cash or in land of equal 
     value.
       (5) Hazardous substances.--The requirements of section 
     120(h) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, 
     Compensation, and Liability Act (42 U.S.C. 9620(h)) shall not 
     apply to conveyances or transfers of jurisdiction pursuant to 
     subsection (d), but the United States shall continue to be 
     liable for the cleanup costs of any hazardous substances on 
     the lands so conveyed or transferred if the contamination by 
     hazardous substances is caused by actions of the United 
     States or its agents.
       (g) Relation to Other Conveyance Authority.--Nothing in 
     this section affects the Quiet Title Act (28 U.S.C. 2409a) or 
     other applicable law, or affects the exchange and disposal 
     authorities of the Secretary of Agriculture, including the 
     Small Tracts Act (16 U.S.C. 521c), or the exchange and 
     disposal authorities of the Secretary of the Army.
       (h) Additional Terms and Conditions.--The appropriate 
     Secretary may require such additional terms and conditions in 
     connection with a conveyance under subsection (d)(1) as the 
     Secretary considers appropriate to protect the interests of 
     the United States.
       (i) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated such sums as are necessary to carry out 
     the purposes of this Act.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Georgia (Mr. Burns) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Dooley) each 
will control 20 minutes.

[[Page H5478]]

  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Burns).
  Mr. BURNS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask the House of Representatives to pass 
S. 1167, the Senate companion to H.R. 2304. This legislation provides a 
mechanism for the Forest Service and the Army Corps of Engineers to 
resolve boundary conflicts between the Mark Twain National Forest and 
adjacent private landowners. The dispute over boundaries stems from 
recent surveys conducted by contractors to the U.S. Army Corps of 
Engineers, which have frequently been found to be severely flawed by 
the State.
  The measure sets a process for dealing with the disputed boundaries. 
A landowner would notify the Secretary of Agriculture of a disputed 
boundary, prompting a new land survey. If the Secretary determines the 
boundary conflict is the result of a reliance on a previous land 
survey, the land in dispute can be returned to the private property 
owner.
  It is important to note that the bill does not require the conveyance 
of any particular lands. Where a new survey shows that the lands in 
question were surveyed improperly, the Forest Service can either 
execute a quit claim to the land, assert Federal ownership if the 
Federal Government has improved the land, or compensate the landowner 
for the land.
  This is a case where the Federal Government has not exercised 
adequate due diligence in maintaining their land surveys to the 
detriment of their neighbors. Rather than redrawing map boundaries from 
Washington, we are creating a process where these folks can address 
their claims closer to home. The Committee on Agriculture regards this 
as an equitable solution to a local problem created by the Federal 
Government. I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. DOOLEY of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  (Mr. DOOLEY of California asked and was given permission to revise 
and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. DOOLEY of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 1167, 
which seeks to correct a number of boundary conflicts that have 
occurred in the vicinity of the Mark Twain National Forest in Barry and 
Stone Counties, Missouri.
  The boundary conflicts at issue resulted from discrepancies between 
recent land surveys conducted by the U.S. Forest Service and decades-
old surveys conducted by the Army Corps of Engineers. As a result of 
the more recent Forest Service land surveys, private property lines 
adjoining Federal lands were moved and private property landowners 
discovered that, due to their reliance on the older Army Corps of 
Engineers land surveys, they had inadvertently trespassed on Federal 
lands.
  S. 1167 will remedy these boundary conflicts by authorizing and 
directing either the Secretary of Agriculture or the Secretary of the 
Army to convey title to U.S. Forest Service land on which private 
landowners can demonstrate that they inadvertently trespassed due to 
their innocent reliance on a previous inaccurate Federal survey, or 
relied on a survey based on a previous inaccurate survey.
  This legislation largely mirrors H.R. 2304 which passed the House on 
November 17. While most of the differences between S. 1167 and H.R. 
2304 are technical, S. 1167 gives the Secretary of Agriculture or the 
Secretary of the Army more flexibility in resolving the boundary 
conflicts by explicitly allowing the appropriate Secretary to use 
existing authorities to resolve the conflicts, in addition to the 
process outlined in the legislation.
  I urge my colleagues to support this legislation so that these 
boundary conflicts can be resolved.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. BURNS. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Blunt), the distinguished majority whip.
  Mr. BLUNT. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friends both for supporting this 
bill and the gentleman from Georgia for yielding to me to talk about it 
a few minutes.
  This is a bill, as the gentleman from California said, that the House 
has passed at an earlier time. It does seem occasionally that even in a 
very small, local issue that it takes an act of Congress to resolve a 
problem that one would think that common sense would be able to 
resolve, but in this case that is not the case and it takes this bill, 
Senate bill 1167, to provide a speedy resolution to really a boundary 
dispute affecting private property owners in my district.
  The historic boundary lines neighboring the Mark Twain National 
Forest and Table Rock Lake in Missouri's Barry County and Stone County 
were blurred when the U.S. Forest Service decided in the recent past to 
restore the mid-1800s Corners Program. The only problem with restoring 
this program is that nobody, including the Corps of Engineers, had paid 
any attention to it since the mid-1880s and land surveys conducted in 
the 1970s by and for the Corps of Engineers have found that major 
discrepancies would be the case if these old markers somehow became the 
rule of how property would be determined. Instead, property has been 
based on a 1950s survey when Table Rock Lake was built.
  A fight with the Federal Government over a boundary line can really 
be an uphill battle, as we all know or could imagine. Don Ayers of 
Shell Knob in my district tells me that the Forest Service showed up on 
his property and moved his boundary by 30 feet. When they did that they 
essentially repossessed his driveway, took part of his garage and an 
outbuilding on the land that he had every reason to believe he owned 
and clearly not only had paid taxes on but had made improvements, 
including those improvements that the Forest Service said now would 
belong to them once that boundary line was moved. Recognizable and 
verifiable boundary lines are essential to private property ownership.
  This bill, sponsored by my colleague from Missouri, Senator Bond, 
sets a process for dealing with disputed boundaries in Barry and Stone 
Counties. As the gentleman from California said, we passed similar 
legislation in this body last November. This bill allows us to go ahead 
and get that job done.
  The Federal Government already owns one-third of the Nation's land, 
and inaccuracies in Federal surveys should never force landowners to 
forfeit their property. I urge my colleagues to support this 
commonsense legislation.
  Mr. BURNS. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support S. 1167.
  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 Georgia (Mr. Burns) that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the Senate bill, S. 1167.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the Senate bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________