[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 120 (Tuesday, July 17, 2018)]
[House]
[Pages H6339-H6340]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   JUAB COUNTY CONVEYANCE ACT OF 2018

  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 3777) to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to convey 
certain National Forest System land containing the Nephi Work Center in 
Juab County, Utah, to Juab County, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 3777

       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 ``Juab County Conveyance Act 
     of 2018''.

     SEC. 2. LAND CONVEYANCE, NEPHI WORK CENTER, JUAB COUNTY, 
                   UTAH.

       (a) Conveyance Required.--Subject to valid existing rights, 
     if the County submits a written request to the Secretary not 
     later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 
     the Secretary shall convey, without consideration and by 
     quitclaim deed, to the County all right, title, and interest 
     of the United States in and to the parcel of National Forest 
     System land, including improvements thereon, described in 
     subsection (b).
       (b) Description of Land.--
       (1) In general.--The parcel of National Forest System land 
     and improvements to be conveyed under subsection (a) is the 
     Nephi Work Center at 740 South Main Street, Nephi, Utah, 
     which consists of approximately 2.17 acres within Nephi Plat 
     B Block of the Nephi Townsite Survey as Parcels #XA00-0545-
     1111 and #XA00-0545-2, and is identified on the map entitled 
     ``Nephi Plat B'' and dated May 6, 1981.
       (2) Map and legal description.--
       (A) In general.--As soon as practical after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the 
     Committee on Natural Resources of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, 
     and Forestry of the Senate a map and legal description of the 
     parcel described in paragraph (1).
       (B) Minor modifications.--The map and legal description 
     submitted under this paragraph shall have the same force and 
     effect as if included in this Act, except that the Secretary 
     may make minor modifications of any clerical or typographical 
     errors in the map or the legal description.
       (C) Copy on file.--A copy of the map and the legal 
     description shall be on file and available for public 
     inspection in the appropriate field offices of the U.S. 
     Forest Service.
       (c) Survey.--The exact acreage and legal description of the 
     National Forest System land to be conveyed under subsection 
     (a) shall be determined by a survey satisfactory to the 
     Secretary.
       (d) Costs of Conveyance.--As a condition for the conveyance 
     under subsection (a), the County shall pay the reasonable 
     costs incurred by the Secretary for--
       (1) the survey required by subsection (c); and
       (2) any environmental or administrative analysis required 
     by law related to the conveyance.
       (e) Additional Terms and Conditions.--The conveyance under 
     subsection (a) is subject to any other terms and conditions 
     as the Secretary considers appropriate to protect the 
     interests of the United States.
       (f) Time for Completion of Conveyance.--The Secretary shall 
     complete the conveyance under subsection (a) not later than 
     one year after the date on which the County submits the 
     written request described in subsection (a).
       (g) Definitions.--In this Act:
       (1) County.--The term ``County'' means Juab County, Utah.
       (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the U.S. Forest 
     Service.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. McClintock) and the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. 
Grijalva) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.


                             General Leave

  Mr. McCLINTOCK. 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 California?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3777, introduced by Congresswoman Mia Love, would 
authorize the transfer of approximately 2.6 acres of U.S. Forest 
Service land and improvements in the city of Nephi to Juab County, 
Utah. The bill would require the county to pay all conveyance costs, 
including the cost of environmental analysis and surveying.
  This land has been designated by the U.S. Forest Service for 
administrative disposal since 2013. Under an agreement with the Forest 
Service, the county fire department houses its mitigation program on 
this site.
  On August 15, 2017, the county requested the Secretary of Agriculture 
to transfer this property to the county, which intends to use the land 
to house its wildlands fire team and equipment, with plans to construct 
a new fire station on the property.
  As fires continue to rage across the West, Congress should take every 
opportunity to give local communities the resources and support they 
need to combat these catastrophic events.
  While this transfer represents just two ten-thousandths of 1 percent 
of the 1.5 million acres of Federal land in Juab County, the new fire 
station it will facilitate could mean the difference between 
suppression and conflagration when wildfire threatens Juab County.
  The legislation would also improve fire response services to 
surrounding communities and the Federal lands, since Juab County plans 
to use this land to house its wildlands fire team equipment.
  There is strong local support from the county and its elected 
officials for this conveyance. By ensuring that the surrounding 
communities and public lands have the emergency response resources they 
need to respond to catastrophic wildfire, H.R. 3777 furthers the 
important local-Federal partnership

[[Page H6340]]

that is critical to restoring the Federal Government as a good neighbor 
to the communities it impacts.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of the measure, and I reserve the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  At the markup of H.R. 3777, we voiced our concerns that the 
conveyance authorized by this bill does not include any standard 
requirements such as, if it is sold, fair market value; if it is 
conveyed, a reversionary clause. Unfortunately, the majority rejected 
our amendment to include a reversionary clause.
  We recognize that this property was identified as suitable for 
administrative disposal, but that designation doesn't mean that it is 
worthless. We are not being greedy or unreasonable, just mindful of 
history and precedent.
  With that said, we recognize how important this conveyance is to the 
county, and we will save this particular fight for another day.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to 
the gentlewoman from Utah (Mrs. Love).
  Mrs. LOVE. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that this bill is being 
considered today. This bill is both timely and extremely important to 
my constituents.
  This summer, tens of thousands of acres have burned throughout Utah. 
Unfortunately, many regions in the State remain at high risk due to 
prolonged drought. One of these regions is Juab County, which sits 
within my district.
  Juab County consists of more than 2 million acres of land, much of 
which is covered with dry, flammable vegetation. The county is also 
experiencing a years-long drought. In fact, last year, the USDA 
designated the county as a disaster area due to the damages caused by 
the drought.
  More than 70 percent of Juab is controlled by the Federal Government. 
While significant Federal ownership and control of land in Utah is 
often a source of contention, Juab County has developed a cooperative 
and constructive relationship with their local Federal partners.
  The Forest Service currently owns a small property, just over 2 
acres, within the town of Nephi, the county seat of Juab County. It has 
been vacant and unused for years and was identified as available for 
disposal several years ago. This property is known as the Nephi Work 
Center.
  My bill, the Juab County Conveyance Act, would simply convey this 
property to the county. Juab intends to use this property to house 
their wildlands fire team, which is part of their special service fire 
district. This would enable the county to more effectively mitigate 
fire risks and protect Juab County residents and both Forest Service 
and BLM land within the county.
  As a former mayor who has dealt with fires in and around my 
community, including on public lands, I want to do all I can to help my 
constituents. This bill will benefit both the county and Federal 
agencies that own and manage lands within the county.
  We are talking about a city of about 1,000 people fighting fires on 
millions of acres. We just want to do everything we can to make sure we 
get to the fires as soon as possible and help not just protect costs, 
but the homes and the livelihoods of the families that live there.
  I urge all of my colleagues to vote in support of this bill.
  Mr. McCLINTOCK. 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 California (Mr. McClintock) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 3777, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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