[Senate Report 106-402]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                       Calendar No. 792
106th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 2d Session                                                     106-402

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                 CONVEYANCE OF LAND IN POWELL, WYOMING

                                _______
                                

               September 7, 2000.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

  Mr. Murkowski, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 2069]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 2069) to permit the conveyance of certain 
land in Powell, Wyoming, having considered the same, reports 
favorably thereon without amendment and recommends that the 
bill do pass.

                         purpose of the measure

    The purpose of S. 2069 is to waive the public use 
restriction on an approximately 15,424 square foot parcel of 
land in Powell, Wyoming to provide for its sale by the city of 
Powell.

                          background and need

    In 1934 land was conveyed to the city of Powell, by the 
General Land Office (the predecessor to the Bureau of Land 
Management). The land was conveyed under the Reclamation Act in 
an effort to establish a town near the Shoshone Irrigation 
Project. The city has leased the parcel specified in S. 2069 to 
the local fire district since 1953. Modern fire fighting 
equipment currently in use by the district does not have safe 
egress from the fire hall building on the parcel due to the 
configuration of the property and traffic congestion. Long 
range planning by the district dictates that the fire hall be 
relocated to another, safer site.
    When the parcel was originally conveyed in 1934, it was 
subject to reversion if not used for public purposes. S. 2069 
will remove the restriction so that the parcel can be sold. The 
proceeds will assist in the financing of a new fire hall in a 
safer and more efficient location.

                          legislative history

    S. 2069 was introduced on February 10, 2000, by Senators 
Enzi and Thomas. The Subcommittee on Forests and Public Land 
Management held a hearing on S. 2069 on June 7, 2000. At the 
business meeting on July 13, 2000, the Committee on Energy and 
Natural Resources ordered S. 2069 reported favorably without 
amendment.

            committee recommendation and tabulation of votes

    The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in 
open business session on July 13, 2000, by a voice vote of a 
quorum present recommends that the Senate pass S. 2069.

                      section-by-section analysis

    Section 1(a) contains congressional findings.
    Subsection (b) waives the public purpose condition in the 
Act of April 16, 1906 on the parcel described in subsection (c) 
and requires the Secretary of the Interior to file the 
appropriate land record.
    Subsection (c) describes the parcel of land.

                   cost and budgetary considerations

    The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimate of the costs 
of this measure follows:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                     Washington, DC, July 19, 2000.
Hon. Frank H. Murkowski,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 2069, a bill to 
permit the conveyance of certain land in Powell, Wyoming.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Megan 
Carroll.
            Sincerely,
                                          Barry B. Anderson
                                    (For Dan L. Crippen, Director).

S. 2069--A bill to permit the conveyance of certain land in Powell, 
        Wyoming

    CBO estimates that enacting S. 2069 would have no 
significant impact on the federal budget. The bill would not 
affect direct spending or receipts; therefore, pay-as-you-go 
procedures would not apply.
    Since 1906, the town of Powell, Wyoming, has operated a 
volunteer fire department on about 1 acre of land that was 
transferred by the federal government to that town in 1934. As 
a condition of that transfer, current law requires the town to 
continue to use that land for a public purpose, or ownership of 
the land will revert back to the federal government. S. 2069 
would amend current law to waive that requirement. Based on 
information from the Bureau of Land Management and the town, 
CBO estimates that this change would not affect the federal 
budget.
    S. 2069 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act would 
impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. The 
bill would benefit Powell, Wyoming, by enabling it to sell the 
land and use the proceeds to acquire other land more suitable 
for its volunteer fire department.
    The CBO staff contact is Megan Carroll. This estimate was 
approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant Director for 
Budget Analysis.

                      regulatory impact evaluation

    In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following 
evaluation of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in 
carrying out S. 2069.
    The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of 
imposing Government-established standards or significant 
economic responsibilities on private individuals and 
businesses.
    No personal information would be collected in administering 
the program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal 
privacy.
    Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the 
enactment of S. 2069, as ordered reported.

                        executive communications

    On July 13, 2000 the Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources requested legislative reports from the Department of 
the Interior and the Office of Management and Budget setting 
forth Executive agency recommendations on S. 2069. These 
reports had not been received at the time the report on S. 2069 
was filed. When the reports become available, the Chairman will 
request that they be printed in the Congressional Record for 
the advice of the Senate. The testimony provided by the Bureau 
of Land Management at the Subcommittee hearing follows:

Statement of Pete Culp, Assistant Director, Minerals and Realty, Bureau 
                           of Land Management

    Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, I appreciate 
the opportunity to appear before you today to testify on S. 
2069 Powell, Wyoming Land Conveyance. S. 2069 would waive the 
reversionary clause to the 1906 Act for public land conveyed to 
the town of Powell, Wyoming.
    The Administration supports this wavier of the reversionary 
clause for land in Powell, Wyoming. The town has been in 
control of this land since 1906 and the sale of this land would 
benefit the local community.
    That concludes my testimony. I would be happy to respond to 
any questions.

                        Changes in Existing Law

    In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no 
changes in existing law are made by S. 2069, as ordered 
reported.

                                
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