[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 89 (Tuesday, June 7, 2016)]
[House]
[Pages H3482-H3484]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           EASTERN NEVADA LAND IMPLEMENTATION IMPROVEMENT ACT

  Mr. HARDY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 1815) to facilitate certain pinyon-juniper related projects in 
Lincoln County, Nevada, to modify the boundaries of certain wilderness 
areas in the State of Nevada, and to provide for the implementation of 
a conservation plan for the Virgin River, Nevada, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 1815

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Eastern Nevada Land 
     Implementation Improvement Act''.

     SEC. 2. FACILITATION OF PINYON-JUNIPER RELATED PROJECTS IN 
                   LINCOLN COUNTY, NEVADA.

       (a) Facilitation of Pinyon-Juniper Related Projects.--
       (1) Availability of special account under lincoln county 
     land act of 2000.--Section 5(b) of the Lincoln County Land 
     Act of 2000 (Public Law 106-298; 114 Stat. 1048) is amended--
       (A) in paragraph (1)--
       (i) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ``and 
     implementation'' after ``development''; and
       (ii) in subparagraph (C)--

       (I) in clause (i), by striking ``; and'' at the end and 
     inserting a semicolon; and
       (II) by adding at the end the following:

       ``(iii) development and implementation of comprehensive, 
     cost-effective, and multijurisdictional hazardous fuels 
     reduction projects and wildfire prevention planning 
     activities (particularly for pinyon-juniper dominated 
     landscapes) and other rangeland and woodland restoration 
     projects within the County, consistent with the Ely Resource 
     Management Plan or a subsequent amendment to the plan; and''; 
     and
       (B) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(3) Cooperative agreements.--Establishment of cooperative 
     agreements between the Bureau of Land Management and the 
     County shall be required for any County-provided law 
     enforcement and planning related activities approved by the 
     Secretary regarding--
       ``(A) wilderness in the County designated by the Lincoln 
     County Conservation, Recreation, and Development Act of 2004 
     (Public Law 108-424; 118 Stat. 2403);
       ``(B) cultural resources identified, protected, and managed 
     pursuant to that Act;
       ``(C) planning, management, and law enforcement associated 
     with the Silver State OHV Trail designated by that Act; and
       ``(D) planning associated with land disposal and related 
     land use authorizations required for utility corridors and 
     rights-of-way to serve land that has been, or is to be, 
     disposed of pursuant to that Act (other than rights-of-way 
     granted pursuant to that Act) and this Act.''.
       (2) Availability of special account under lincoln county 
     conservation, recreation, and development act of 2004.--
     Section 103 of the Lincoln County Conservation, Recreation, 
     and Development Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-424; 118 Stat. 
     2406) is amended--
       (A) in subsection (b)(3)--
       (i) in subparagraph (E), by striking ``; and'' at the end 
     and inserting a semicolon;
       (ii) in subparagraph (F), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting ``; and''; and
       (iii) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(G) development and implementation of comprehensive, 
     cost-effective, and multijurisdictional hazardous fuels 
     reduction and wildfire prevention planning activities 
     (particularly for pinyon-juniper dominated landscapes) and 
     other rangeland and woodland restoration projects within the 
     County, consistent with the Ely Resource Management Plan or a 
     subsequent amendment to the plan.''; and
       (B) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(d) Cooperative Agreements.--Establishment of cooperative 
     agreements between the Bureau of Land Management and the 
     County shall be required for any County-provided law 
     enforcement and planning related activities approved by the 
     Secretary regarding--
       ``(1) wilderness in the County designated by this Act;
       ``(2) cultural resources identified, protected, and managed 
     pursuant to this Act;
       ``(3) planning, management, and law enforcement associated 
     with the Silver State OHV Trail designated by this Act; and
       ``(4) planning associated with land disposal and related 
     land use authorizations required for utility corridors and 
     rights-of-way to serve land that has been, or is to be, 
     disposed of pursuant to this Act (other than rights-of-way 
     granted pursuant to this Act) and the Lincoln County Land Act 
     of 2000 (Public Law 106-298; 114 Stat. 1046).''.
       (b) Disposition of Proceeds.--
       (1) Disposition of proceeds under lincoln county land act 
     of 2000.--Section 5(a)(2) of the

[[Page H3483]]

     Lincoln County Land Act of 2000 (Public Law 106-298; 114 
     Stat. 1047) is amended by inserting ``and the Lincoln County 
     Regional Development Authority'' after ``schools''.
       (2) Disposition of proceeds under lincoln county 
     conservation, recreation, and development act of 2004.--
     Section 103(b)(2) of the Lincoln County Conservation, 
     Recreation, and Development Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-424; 
     118 Stat. 2405) is amended by striking ``and transportation'' 
     and inserting ``transportation, and the Lincoln County 
     Regional Development Authority or any other County economic 
     development organization''.
       (c) Realign a Portion of the LCCRDA Utility Corridor.--
     Section 301(a) of the Lincoln County Conservation, 
     Recreation, and Development Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-424; 
     118 Stat. 2413) establishes a 2,640-foot wide utility 
     corridor as depicted on a map dated October 1, 2004. The 
     Secretary of the Interior shall realign a portion of the 
     corridor by removing the designation in sections 5, 6, 7, 8, 
     9, 10, 11, 14, and 15, T. 7 N., R. 68 E. and realigning the 
     corridor to sections 31, 32, and 33, T. 8 N., R. 68 E.; 
     sections 4, 5, and 6, T. 7 N., R. 68 E.; and sections 1 and 
     12, T. 7 N., 67 E. as shown on the October 1, 2004, map.
       (d) Final Corrective Patent in Clark County, Nevada.--
       (1) Validation of patent.--Patent number 27-2005-0081 
     issued by the Bureau of Land Management on February 18, 2005, 
     is affirmed and validated as having been issued pursuant to, 
     and in compliance with, the Nevada-Florida Land Exchange 
     Authorization Act of 1988 (Public Law 100-275; 102 Stat. 52), 
     the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 
     et seq.), and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 
     1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) for the benefit of the desert 
     tortoise, other species, and the habitat of the desert 
     tortoise and other species to increase the likelihood of the 
     recovery of the desert tortoise and other species.
       (2) Ratification of reconfiguration.--The process used by 
     the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the Bureau of 
     Land Management in reconfiguring the land described in 
     paragraph (1), as depicted on Exhibit 1-4 of the Final 
     Environmental Impact Statement for the Planned Development 
     Project MSHCP, Lincoln County, NV (FWS-R8-ES-2008-N0136) and 
     the reconfiguration provided for in Special Condition 10 of 
     the Army Corps of Engineers Permit No. 000005042 are 
     ratified.
       (e) Final Land Reconfiguration in Lincoln County, Nevada.--
       (1) Definitions.--In this subsection:
       (A) Map.--The term ``Map'' means the map prepared by the 
     Bureau of Land Management entitled ``Proposed Lincoln County 
     Land Reconfiguration'' and dated January 28, 2016.
       (B) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of the Interior, acting through the Director of the Bureau of 
     Land Management.
       (2) Issuance of lincoln county corrective patent.--
       (A) In general.--The Secretary may issue a corrective 
     patent for 7,548 acres of land in Lincoln County, Nevada, 
     that is depicted on the Map.
       (B) Applicable law.--A corrective patent issued under 
     subparagraph (A) shall be considered to have been issued 
     pursuant to, and in compliance with, the Nevada-Florida Land 
     Exchange Authorization Act of 1988 (Public Law 100-275; 102 
     Stat. 52).

     SEC. 3. MT. MORIAH WILDERNESS, HIGH SCHELLS WILDERNESS, AND 
                   ARC DOME WILDERNESS BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENTS.

       (a) Amendments to the Pam White Wilderness Act.--Section 
     323 of the Pam White Wilderness Act of 2006 (16 U.S.C. 1132 
     note; Public Law 109-432; 120 Stat. 3031) is amended by 
     striking subsection (e) and inserting the following:
       ``(e) Mt. Moriah Wilderness Adjustment.--The boundary of 
     the Mt. Moriah Wilderness established under section 2(13) of 
     the Nevada Wilderness Protection Act of 1989 (16 U.S.C. 1132 
     note; Public Law 101-195) is adjusted to include--
       ``(1) the land identified as the `Mount Moriah Wilderness 
     Area' and `Mount Moriah Additions' on the map entitled 
     `Eastern White Pine County' and dated November 29, 2006; and
       ``(2) the land identified as `NFS Lands' on the map 
     entitled `Proposed Wilderness Boundary Adjustment Mt. Moriah 
     Wilderness Area' and dated June 18, 2014.
       ``(f) High Schells Wilderness Adjustment.--The boundary of 
     the High Schells Wilderness established under subsection 
     (a)(11) is adjusted to include the land identified as 
     `Include as Wilderness' on the map entitled `McCoy Creek 
     Adjustment' and dated November 3, 2014, and to exclude the 
     land identified as `NFS Lands' on the map entitled `Proposed 
     Wilderness Boundary Adjustment High Schells Wilderness Area' 
     and dated June 17, 2014.''.
       (b) Amendments to the Nevada Wilderness Protection Act of 
     1989.--The Nevada Wilderness Protection Act of 1989 (16 
     U.S.C. 1132 note; Public Law 101-195; 103 Stat. 1784) is 
     amended by adding at the end the following:

     ``SEC. 12. ARC DOME BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENT.

       ``The boundary of the Arc Dome Wilderness established under 
     section 2(2) is adjusted to exclude the land identified as 
     `Exclude from Wilderness' on the map entitled `Arc Dome 
     Adjustment' and dated November 3, 2014.''.

     SEC. 4. IMPLEMENTATION OF CONSERVATION PLAN, VIRGIN RIVER, 
                   NEVADA.

       Section 3(d)(3)(B) of Public Law 99-548 (100 Stat. 3061; 
     116 Stat. 2018) is amended by striking ``development of a 
     multispecies habitat conservation plan for'' and inserting 
     ``development and implementation of a conservation plan to 
     benefit fish and wildlife species of''.

     SEC. 5. TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.

       Section 3(f)(2)(B) of Public Law 99-548 (100 Stat. 3061) is 
     amended by striking ``(v) Sec. 7.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Nevada (Mr. Hardy) and the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Clay) each will 
control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Nevada.


                             General Leave

  Mr. HARDY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include 
extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Nevada?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. HARDY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  H.R. 1815, the Eastern Nevada Land Implementation Improvement Act, 
which I introduced last year, makes several changes to the existing 
Federal land laws. The bill authorizes hazardous fuels reduction 
projects and wildfire planning for rangeland and woodland restoration 
projects in Lincoln County, Nevada. These projects will help reduce the 
risk of catastrophic wildfire and improve and protect habitat for the 
greater sage-grouse.
  The bill also authorizes the implementation of a conservation plan in 
Nevada's Virgin River region. In 2002, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service required the city of Mesquite to create a conservation plan to 
protect several species in the Lower Virgin River Basin before moving 
ahead with two land acquisitions. The city planned to use these funds 
from the Mesquite Lands Act, a law passed by Congress in 1986 that 
allowed the city to acquire and develop lands from the Federal 
Government, to complete the plan. FWS signed a memorandum of agreement 
with the city of Mesquite to carry out the law.
  This agreement expired in 2014. The Fish and Wildlife Service refused 
to sign a new memorandum of agreement or to allow the city to access 
the necessary funding because it didn't feel that the current 
legislation enabled them to implement the conservation plan. As a 
result, all efforts to advance the conservation plan and expand the 
city are at a standstill.
  This bill remedies the problem by making a technical correction to 
the Mesquite Lands Act of 1988 that will provide the necessary 
authority to the Fish and Wildlife Service to implement the 
conservation plan, after signing the new agreement with the city of 
Mesquite.
  Lastly, the bill makes several boundary adjustments that collectively 
reduce three wilderness areas to improve public access to the Big 
Canyon Trailhead, provide land to the existing Girl Scouts camp, and 
release a small dam owned and operated by the Yamba Tribe.
  It is important to know that all of the money that would be spent to 
execute these programs in this bill would come from special accounts 
that already exist. Not a single taxpayer dollar would go to pay for 
this bill. These special accounts are funded by the proceeds of the 
Federal land sales in Nevada and, in total, have a balance of $270 
million in unobligated funds. The $2 million predicted to be used for 
the purposes in H.R. 1815--protecting communities from catastrophic 
wildfires by reducing hazardous fuels and implementing a habitat 
conservation plan--would come directly from those accounts at no cost 
to the taxpayer.
  This is a well-balanced, bipartisan piece of legislation that will 
reduce wildland fire threat and greatly benefit local communities, 
wildlife and its habitat, and the future management of public lands in 
Nevada.
  I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1815.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  H.R. 1815 clarifies and updates several laws related to the 
management of Federal land in eastern Nevada. This bill is cosponsored 
by the entire Nevada delegation, and I recognize its passage is 
important to the people of eastern Nevada.
  I want to thank the majority and the sponsor for working with the 
Bureau of Land Management to address many of their concerns. Resolving 
those concerns and working with the BLM turn

[[Page H3484]]

this bill into a proposal we can support.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote in support of this 
legislation.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. HARDY. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote in support of 
this legislation also.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Nevada (Mr. Hardy) that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the bill, H.R. 1815, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. HARDY. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further 
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.

                          ____________________