[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 72 (Thursday, May 26, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6027-S6028]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. CRAIG:
  S. 1131. A bill to authorize the exchange of certain Federal land 
within the State of Idaho, and for other purposes; to the Committee on 
Energy and Natural Resources.
  Mr. CRAIG. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Idaho Land 
Enhancement Act of 2005. Simply put, this legislation directs the 
Secretaries of Agriculture and Interior to exchange land with the State 
of Idaho involving key parcels of land from the Boise Foothills to 
North Idaho.
  The proposed exchange is exceptional in many respects. First, the 
concept for the proposed land exchange originated from a local 
conservation effort led by the city of Boise and local conservation 
groups including the Idaho Conservation League. Since the late 1960's 
the issue of conserving the Boise Foothills has been a significant 
concern of the community. Conservation efforts have continued to grow 
in support within the community, culminating in May 2001 with the 
citizens of Boise, in one of the highest voter turnouts in city 
history, electing to tax themselves in order to provide funding to 
secure permanent public open space in the Boise Foothills.

[[Page S6028]]

  Next, the collaboration between the city of Boise, the State of 
Idaho, the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management has 
produced an agreement that has yielded a proposal benefiting the 
State's endowment beneficiaries while addressing the common threats of 
fire and hazardous fuels, invasive species, habitat fragmentation and 
unmanaged recreation associated with urban interface with Federal 
lands. The proposal uses both Bureau of Land Management and Forest 
Service land to balance an exchange with Idaho State Endowment lands on 
an equal value basis.
  Last, the process has been open, transparent, and has wide support 
throughout the State. The city of Boise has facilitated public 
meetings, provided opportunities for public comment, and has made the 
maps of the exchange available to the public. The City has met with all 
of the affected tribes and counties. In addition, the multi-agency 
group completed evaluations of timber values, minerals, cultural 
resources, water rights, legal access, wildlife, fisheries, vegetation, 
hydrology, wetlands, threatened and endangered species, and specific 
habitat. The evaluations show that no major environmental effect will 
occur as a result of the exchange. In fact, The Nature Conservancy 
independently reviewed the data and compared it to their eco-regional 
planning efforts and concluded that the exchange has ``limited 
potential to impact biodiversity values'' and they support the 
exchange.
  The city of Boise has made a substantial investment of local property 
tax dollars in the facilitation of this land exchange package. This 
exchange will complete a statewide collaborative process that 
represents a legacy of local, State and Federal cooperation benefiting 
land management interests throughout the State.
  This exchange will enhance land in both the northern and southern 
parts of the State. It is an example of how local, State, and Federal 
partners can come together to collaboratively develop an exchange in 
which the public and the land are the ultimate beneficiaries.
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