[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 119 (Monday, June 29, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3964-S3965]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 2314. Ms. CORTEZ MASTO (for herself and Ms. Rosen) submitted an
amendment intended to be proposed to amendment SA 2301 proposed by Mr.
Inhofe to the bill S. 4049, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year
2021 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy,
to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:
At the end of subtitle D of title XXVIII, add the
following:
SEC. 28____. TRANSFER AND WITHDRAWAL OF BUREAU OF LAND
MANAGEMENT LAND FOR USE AS A NATIONAL CEMETERY.
(a) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Federal land.--The term ``Federal land'' means the
approximately 15 acres of Bureau of Land Management land in
Elko, Nevada, that is more particularly described as NE\1/4\
SW\1/4\ NW\1/4\, N\1/2\ SE\1/4\ SW\1/4\ NW\1/4\, sec. 8, T.
34 N., R. 55 E., of the Mount Diablo Meridian, as depicted on
the map prepared by the Bureau of Land Management, entitled
``Proposed National Cemetery-Elko Nevada'', and dated
September 9, 2015.
(2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of the Interior.
(b) Transfer of Administrative Jurisdiction.--
(1) In general.--Subject to valid existing rights,
administrative jurisdiction over the Federal land is
transferred from the Secretary to the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs for use as a national cemetery in accordance with
chapter 24 of title 38, United States Code.
(2) Legal descriptions.--
(A) In general.--As soon as practicable after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall publish in the
Federal Register a notice containing a legal description of
the Federal land.
(B) Effect.--A legal description published under
subparagraph (A) shall have the same force and effect as if
included in this section, except that the Secretary may
correct any
[[Page S3965]]
clerical and typographical errors in the legal description.
(C) Availability.--Copies of the legal description
published under subparagraph (A) shall be available for
public inspection in the appropriate offices of--
(i) the Bureau of Land Management; and
(ii) the National Cemetery Administration.
(D) Costs.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall
reimburse the Secretary for the costs incurred by the
Secretary in carrying out this paragraph, including the costs
of any surveys and other reasonable costs.
(c) Due Diligence.--Before making a determination on
whether the Federal land is appropriate for cemetery
purposes, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in coordination
with the Secretary, may complete appropriate environmental,
cultural resource, and other due diligence activities with
respect to the Federal land.
(d) Withdrawal.--Subject to valid existing rights, for any
period during which the Federal land is under the
administrative jurisdiction of the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs, the Federal land--
(1) is withdrawn from all forms of appropriation under the
public land laws, including the mining laws, the mineral
leasing laws, and the geothermal leasing laws; and
(2) shall be treated as property (as defined in section 102
of title 40, United States Code).
______