[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 118 (Monday, July 18, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H6686-H6687]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
DESERT SAGE YOUTH WELLNESS CENTER ACCESS IMPROVEMENT ACT
Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (S. 144) to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services,
acting through the Director of the Indian Health Service, to acquire
private land to facilitate access to the Desert Sage Youth Wellness
Center in Hemet, California, and for other purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
S. 144
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 ``Desert Sage Youth Wellness
Center Access Improvement Act''.
[[Page H6687]]
SEC. 2. ACCESS ROAD FOR DESERT SAGE YOUTH WELLNESS CENTER.
(a) Acquisition of Land.--
(1) Authorization.--The Secretary of Health and Human
Services, acting through the Director of the Indian Health
Service, is authorized to acquire, from willing sellers, the
land in Hemet, California, upon which is located a dirt road
known as ``Best Road'', beginning at the driveway of the
Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center at Faure Road and extending
to the junction of Best Road and Sage Road.
(2) Compensation.--The Secretary shall pay fair market
value for the land authorized to be acquired under paragraph
(1). Fair market value shall be determined--
(A) using Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land
Acquisitions; and
(B) by an appraiser acceptable to the Secretary and the
owners of the land to be acquired.
(3) Additional rights.--In addition to the land referred to
in paragraph (1), the Secretary is authorized to acquire,
from willing sellers, land or interests in land as reasonably
necessary to construct and maintain the road as required by
subsection (b).
(b) Construction and Maintenance of Road.--
(1) Construction.--After the Secretary acquires the land
pursuant to subsection (a), the Secretary shall construct on
that land a paved road that is generally located over Best
Road to facilitate access to the Desert Sage Youth Wellness
Center in Hemet, California.
(2) Maintenance.--The Secretary shall--
(A) maintain and manage the road constructed pursuant to
paragraph (1); or
(B) enter into an agreement with Riverside County,
California, to own, maintain and manage the road constructed
pursuant to paragraph (1).
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
California (Mr. Huffman) and the gentlewoman from New Mexico (Ms.
Herrell) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.
General Leave
Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous material on the measure under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from California?
There was no objection.
Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, S. 144 authorizes the Indian Health Service, or IHS, to
purchase land in Hemet, California, for the purpose of constructing a
paved road that facilitates access to the Desert Sage Youth Wellness
Center. IHS will then maintain the road or enter into an agreement with
Riverside County, California, to maintain the road.
This critical legislation will expand healthcare access to American
Indian and Alaska Native youth in California by ensuring that the
Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center can be reached by safe roadways.
Prior to 2016, indigenous youth in California experiencing substance
use disorders were forced to travel to out-of-State facilities in order
to receive care. Recognizing this added barrier to quality care, IHS
built the Desert Sage Wellness Center in Hemet, California. The center
is notable for providing culturally sensitive treatment to indigenous
youth battling substance use disorders and can hold up to 32 patients
at a time.
Unfortunately, during the center's construction, IHS was unable to
reach an agreement with adjacent property holders on the pavement and
maintenance of an access road to the facility. As a result, the center
is currently accessible only by a dirt road that is often washed out
from heavy rainfall or in a general state of disrepair.
The center remains the sole IHS youth regional treatment facility in
the State, and it is a much-needed resource to California's American
Indian and Alaska Native communities. However, the center's physical
inaccessibility poses yet another obstacle to indigenous youth seeking
care.
This bill will solve the issue by granting IHS the authority to
acquire the necessary nearby land in order to build an operational
access road to the center.
I thank Senator Feinstein for moving this important bill through the
Senate, as well as our colleague, Representative Raul Ruiz, for
championing the House version of the bill.
Mr. Speaker, I urge swift adoption of S. 144, and I reserve the
balance of my time.
Ms. HERRELL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, S. 144 would authorize the Secretary of Health and Human
Services, acting through the Director of the Indian Health Service, to
purchase land from willing sellers at fair market value to facilitate
access to the Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center in Hemet, California.
In March 2017, IHS opened California's first youth regional treatment
center in Hemet, California. The Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center was
designed as a coed inpatient facility to serve Native youth aged 12 to
17 with substance abuse and co-occurring disorders.
The facility is located approximately a half mile from a paved county
road. According to the IHS, a half-mile access road was granted under
an easement from two landowners at the time construction began on the
facility. Unfortunately, the IHS was unable to come to a purchase
agreement with the landowners by the time the construction was
completed.
To secure access to the facility, the IHS is requesting purchasing
authority since authorities previously granted have since expired for
this facility.
It is my understanding that this road has historically been dirt and
gravel, and it can be washed out in heavy rains, thus affecting access
to the facility.
Once the title to the access road is acquired, the IHS can make
improvements, specifically to pave the road, which will provide better
and safer access to the Desert Sage facility for staff, Native youth
seeking care, and visitors.
After the necessary improvements are made, S. 144 provides that the
IHS can continue to own and maintain the road, or it can enter into an
agreement with Riverside County, California, for the county to own,
maintain, and manage the road.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this
legislation, and 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. Huffman) that the House suspend the
rules and pass the bill, S. 144.
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. NORMAN. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to section 3(s) of House Resolution
8, the yeas and nays are ordered.
Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further proceedings on this motion
are postponed.
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