[House Report 107-747]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



107th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                     107-747

======================================================================



 
                    WILD SKY WILDERNESS ACT OF 2002

                                _______
                                

October 11, 2002.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

  Mr. Hansen, from the Committee on Resources, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 4844]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

  The Committee on Resources, to whom was referred the bill 
(H.R. 4844) to enhance ecosystem protection and the range of 
outdoor opportunities protected by statute in the Skykomish 
River valley of the State of Washington by designating certain 
lower-elevation Federal lands as wilderness, and for other 
purposes, having considered the same, report favorably thereon 
with an amendment and recommend that the bill as amended do 
pass.
  The amendment is as follows:
  Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

  This Act may be cited as the ``Wild Sky Wilderness Act of 2002''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND STATEMENT OF POLICY.

  (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
          (1) Americans cherish the continued existence of diverse 
        wilderness ecosystems and wildlife found on their Federal lands 
        and share a strong sense of moral responsibility to protect 
        their wilderness heritage as an enduring resource to cherish, 
        protect, and bequeath undisturbed to future generations of 
        Americans.
          (2) The values an area of wilderness offer to this and future 
        generations of Americans are greatly enhanced to the degree 
        that the area is diverse in topography, elevation, life zones 
        and ecosystems, and to the extent that it offers a wide range 
        of outdoor recreational and educational opportunities 
        accessible in all seasons of the year.
          (3) Large blocks of wildlands embracing a wide range of 
        ecosystems and topography, including low-elevation forests, 
        have seldom remained undisturbed due to many decades of 
        development.
          (4) Certain wildlands on the western slope of the Cascade 
        Range in the Skykomish River valley of the State of Washington 
        offer an outstanding representation of the original character 
        of the forested landscape, ranging from high alpine meadows and 
        extremely rugged peaks to low-elevation mature and old-growth 
        forests, including groves with some of the largest and most 
        spectacular trees in Washington, with diameters of eight feet 
        and larger.
          (5) These diverse, thickly forested mountain slopes and 
        valleys of mature and old-growth trees in the Skykomish River 
        valley harbor nearly the full complement of the original 
        wildlife and fish species found by settlers of the 19th 
        century, including mountain goats, bald eagles, black bear, 
        pine marten, black-tailed deer, as well as rare and endangered 
        wildlife such as northern spotted owls and goshawks, Chinook 
        and Coho salmon, and steelhead and bull trout.
          (6) An ecologically and topographical diverse wilderness area 
        in the Skykomish River valley accessible in all seasons of the 
        year will be enjoyable to users of various kinds, such as 
        hikers, horse riders, hunters, anglers, and educational groups, 
        but also to the many who cherish clean water and clean air, 
        fish and wildlife (including endangered species such as wild 
        salmon), and pristine mountain and riverside scenery.
  (b) Statement of Policy.--Congess hereby declares that it is the 
policy of the United States:
          (1) to better serve the diverse wilderness and environmental 
        education needs of the people of the State of Washington and 
        its burgeoning metropolitan regions by granting wilderness 
        protection to certain lower elevation wildlands in the 
        Skykomish River valley of the State of Washington; and
          (2) to protect additional lands adjacent to the Henry M. 
        Jackson Wilderness designated by the Washington Wilderness Act 
        of 1984 (Public Law 98-339), in further tribute to the 
        ecologically enlightened vision of the distinguished Senator 
        from the State of Washington and former Chairman of the Senate 
        Committee on Energy and Natural Resources (formerly the Senate 
        Interior and Insular Affairs Committee).

SEC. 3. ADDITIONS TO THE NATIONAL WILDERNESS PRESERVATION SYSTEM.

  (a) Additions.--The following Federal lands in the State of 
Washington are hereby designated as wilderness and, therefore, as 
components of the National Wilderness Preservation System:
          (1) Certain lands which comprise approximately 106,000 acres, 
        as generally depicted on a map entitled ``Wild Sky Wilderness 
        Proposal'', dated August 2002, which shall be known as the Wild 
        Sky Wilderness.
  (b) Maps and Legal Descriptions.--As soon as practicable after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture shall file 
a map and a legal description for the wilderness area designated under 
this Act with the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the 
United States Senate and the Committee on Resources of the United 
States House of Representatives. The map and description shall have the 
same force and effect as if included in this Act, except that the 
Secretary of Agriculture may correct clerical and typographical errors 
in the legal description and map. The map and legal description shall 
be on file and available for public inspection in the office of the 
Chief of the Forest Service, Department of Agriculture.

SEC. 4. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS.

  (a) In General.--Subject to valid existing rights, lands designated 
as wilderness by this Act shall be managed by the Secretary of 
Agriculture in accordance with the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et 
seq.) and this Act, except that, with respect to any wilderness areas 
designated by this Act, any reference in the Wilderness Act to the 
effective date of the Wilderness Act shall be deemed to be a reference 
to the date of enactment of this Act.
  (b) New Trails.--
          (1) The Secretary of Agriculture shall consult with 
        interested parties and shall establish a hiking trail plan 
        designed to develop a system of hiking trails within or 
        adjacent to or to provide access to the wilderness designated 
        by this Act in a manner consistent with the Wilderness Act, 
        Public Law 88-577 (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.).
          (2) Within two years after the date of enactment of this Act, 
        the Secretary of Agriculture shall complete a report on the 
        implementation of the hiking trail plan required under this 
        Act. This report shall include the identification of priority 
        hiking trails for development.
  (c) Repeater Site.--Within the Wild Sky Wilderness designated under 
this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture may use helicopter access to 
construct and maintain a joint Forest Service and Snohomish County 
repeater site, in compliance with a Forest Service approved 
communications site plan, for the purposes of improving communication 
for safety, health, and emergency services.
  (d) Float Plane Access.--As provided by section 4(d)(1) of the 
Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1133(d)(1)), the use of floatplanes on Lake 
Isabel, where such use has already become established, shall be 
permitted to continue subject to such reasonable restrictions as the 
Secretary of Agriculture determines desirable.

SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION FOR LAND ACQUISITION.

  (a) In General.--The Secretary of Agriculture may acquire lands and 
interests therein, by purchase, donation, or exchange, and shall give 
priority consideration to those lands identified as ``Priority 
Acquisition Lands'' on the map described in section 3(a)(1). The 
boundaries of the Snoqualmie National Forest and the Wild Sky 
Wilderness shall be adjusted to encompass any lands acquired pursuant 
to this section.
  (b) Access.--Consistent with section 5(a) of the Wilderness Act 
(Public Law 88-577; 16 U.S.C. 1134(a)), the Secretary of Agriculture 
shall assure adequate access to private inholdings within the Wild Sky 
Wilderness.
  (c) Appraisal.--Valuation of private lands shall be determined 
without reference to any restrictions on access or use which arise out 
of designation as a wilderness area as a result of this Act.

SEC. 6. LAND EXCHANGES.

  The Secretary of Agriculture shall exchange lands and interests in 
lands, as generally depicted on a map entitled Chelan County Public 
Utility District Exchange and dated May 22, 2002, with the Chelan 
County Public Utility District in accordance with the following 
provisions:
          (1) If the Chelan County Public Utility District, within 
        ninety days after the date of enactment of this Act, offers to 
        the Secretary of Agriculture approximately 371.8 acres within 
        the Snoqualmie National Forest in the State of Washington, the 
        Secretary shall accept such lands.
          (2) Upon acceptance of title by the Secretary of Agriculture 
        to such lands and interests therein, the Secretary of 
        Agriculture shall convey to the Chelan County Public Utility 
        District a permanent easement, including helicopter access, 
        consistent with such levels as used as of date of enactment, to 
        maintain an existing snowtel site on 1.82 acres on the 
        Wenatchee National Forest in the State of Washington.
          (3) The exchange directed by this Act shall be consummated if 
        Chelan County Public Utility District conveys title acceptable 
        to the Secretary and provided there is no hazardous material on 
        the site, which is objectionable to the Secretary.
          (4) In the event Chelan County Public Utility District 
        determines there is no longer a need to maintain a snowtel site 
        to monitor the snow pack for calculating expected runoff into 
        the Lake Chelan hydroelectric project and the hydroelectric 
        projects in the Columbia River Basin, the Secretary shall be 
        notified in writing and the easement shall be extinguished and 
        all rights conveyed by this exchange shall revert to the United 
        States.

                          PURPOSE OF THE BILL

    The purpose of H.R. 4844 is to enhance ecosystem protection 
and the range of outdoor opportunities protected by statute in 
the Skykomish River valley of the State of Washington by 
designating certain lower-elevation Federal lands as 
wilderness, and for other purposes.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    Certain wildlands on the western slope of the Cascade Range 
in the Skykomish River valley of the State of Washington offer 
an outstanding representation of the original character of the 
forested landscape, ranging from high alpine meadows and 
extremely rugged peaks to low-elevation mature and old-growth 
forests, including groves with some of the largest and most 
spectacular trees in Washington, with diameters of up to eight 
feet and larger. These diverse, thickly forested mountain 
slopes and valleys of mature and old-growth trees in the 
Skykomish River valley harbor nearly the full complement of 
wildlife and fish species found by the settlers in the early 
19th century. An ecologically and topographically diverse 
wilderness area in the Skykomish River valley, accessible in 
all seasons of the year will be enjoyable to hikers, horse 
riders, anglers, hunters, educational groups and others.
    The Wild Sky Wilderness as proposed would be 106,000 acres 
adjacent to the Henry M. Jackson Wilderness and located in the 
Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forests. In addition there are 
13,000 acres of lands identified in the Northwest Forest Plan 
as matrix lands to be used for adaptive management. Designating 
the matrix lands as wilderness would preclude their use for 
adaptive management purposes. The bill also includes lands that 
do not have wilderness character and do not meet the intent of 
the Wilderness Act of 1964. This includes a lookout tower used 
as a recreational facility, lands with patented mining claims, 
and lands with recent harvest activity and open roads.

                            COMMITTEE ACTION

    H.R. 4844 was introduced on May 23, 2002 by Congressman 
Rick Larsen (D-WA). The bill was referred to the Committee on 
Resources, and within the Committee to the Subcommittee on 
Forests and Forest Health. On September 12, 2002, the Full 
Resources Committee met to consider H.R. 4844 and the 
Subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health was discharged from 
further consideration of the bill. An amendment was introduced 
by Mr. Rahall and accepted by unanimous consent. The bill, as 
amended, was then ordered reported to the House of 
Representatives by unanimous consent.

            COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

    Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of 
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the 
Committee on Resources' oversight findings and recommendations 
are reflected in the body of this report.

                   CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY STATEMENT

    Article I, section 8 of the Constitution of the United 
States grants Congress the authority to enact this bill.

                    COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII

    1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives requires an estimate and 
a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be 
incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(3)(B) 
of that rule provides that this requirement does not apply when 
the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted 
cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the 
Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
    2. Congressional Budget Act. As required by clause 3(c)(2) 
of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and 
section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, this 
bill does not contain any new budget authority, spending 
authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in tax 
expenditures. According to the Congressional Budget Office, 
H.R. 4844 could affect direct spending (including offsetting 
receipts) but they estimate that any such effects would be 
negligible.
    3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by 
clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goal or 
objective of this bill is to enhance ecosystem protection and 
the range of outdoor opportunities protected by statute in the 
Skykomish River valley of the State of Washington by 
designating certain lower-elevation Federal lands as 
wilderness, and for other purposes.
    4. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate. Under clause 
3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives and section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act 
of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate 
for this bill from the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                Washington, DC, September 23, 2002.
Hon. James V. Hansen,
Chairman, Committee on Resources,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 4844, the Wild Sky 
Wilderness Act of 2002.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Megan Carrol.
            Sincerely,
                                          Barry B. Anderson
                                    (For Dan L. Crippen, Director).
    Enclosure.

H.R. 4844--Wild Sky Wilderness Act of 2002

    Summary: H.R. 4844 would designate the Wild Sky Wilderness 
on 106,000 acres of federal lands within the Mount Baker-
Snoqualmie National Foreign in Washington and would authorize 
the Secretary of Agriculture to acquire nonfederal lands and 
interests within the proposed wilderness. The bill would 
require the Secretary to design a plan to establish hiking 
trails within the proposed wilderness and report to the 
Congress on the implementation of that plan. Finally, H.R. 4844 
would direct the Secretary to convey to a local public utility 
district a permanent easement to operate a snow-monitoring 
device on 1.82 acres of national forest land in exchange for 
roughly 372 aces of land owned by that district.
    CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 4844 would cost $18 
million over the 2003-2007 period, assuming appropriation of 
the necessary amounts. The bill could affect direct spending 
(including offsetting receipts); therefore, pay-as-you-go 
procedures would apply, but we estimate that any such effects 
would be negligible. H.R. 4844 contains no intergovernmental or 
private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates 
Reform Act (UMRA) and would impose no costs on state, local, or 
tribal governments.
    Estimated cost to the Federal Government: The estimated 
budgetary impact of H.R. 4844 is shown in the following table. 
The costs of this legislation fall within budget function 300 
(natural resources and environment).

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                       By fiscal year, in millions of dollars--
                                                                    --------------------------------------------
                                                                       2003     2004     2005     2006     2007
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                  CHANGES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION

Estimated authorization level......................................        7        5        4        1        1
Estimated outlays..................................................        7        5        4        1        1
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Basis of estimate

    CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 4844 would cost $18 
million over the 2003-2007 period, assuming appropriation of 
the necessary amounts. We also estimate that the bill could 
increase direct spending, but that any such effects would not 
be significant in any year. For this estimate, CBO assumes that 
H.R. 4844 will be enacted near the start of fiscal year 2003 
and that necessary funds will be provided near the start of 
each year. Estimates of outlays are based on historical 
spending patterns for similar activities.
            Spending subject to appropriation
    Based on information from the Forest Service, CBO estimates 
that designating the proposed wilderness would increase the 
agency's administrative costs by roughly $250,000 a year. We 
also estimate that the agency would spend: $6 million over the 
2003-2005 period to remove 41 miles of road that currently 
exist within the proposed wilderness; $4 million over the 2003-
2006 period to design and implement a system of hiking trails; 
and up to $7 million over the 2003-2005 period to acquire 
nonfederal lands and interests within the proposed wilderness.
            Direct spending
    Designating federal lands as wilderness could result in 
forgone offsetting receipts (a credit against direct spending) 
if, under current law, those lands would generate income from 
activities such as timber harvesting and mining. According to 
the Forest Service, however, these lands currently generate no 
significant receipts and are not expected to do so over the 
next 10 years. Hence, CBO estimates that any forgone receipts 
under H.R. 4844 would be negligible.
    Pay-as-you-go considerations: The Balanced Budget and 
Emergency Deficit Control Act sets up pay-as-you-go procedures 
for legislation affecting direct spending or receipts. 
Designating certain federal lands as wilderness could result in 
forgone offsetting receipts from timber harvesting and mining; 
hence, pay-as-you-go procedures would apply, but we estimate 
that any such effects would not be significant.
    Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: H.R. 4844 
contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as 
defined in UMRA and would impose no costs on state, local, or 
tribal governments.
    Estimate prepared by: Federal costs: Megan Carroll; impact 
on state, local and tribal governments: Marjorie Miller; impact 
on the private sector: Lauren Marks.
    Estimate approved by: Robert A. Sunshine, Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.

                    COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104-4

    This bill contains no unfunded mandates.

                PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL OR TRIBAL LAW

    This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or 
tribal law.

                        CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

    If enacted, this bill would make no changes in existing 
law.

                                
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