[Senate Report 107-180]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                       Calendar No. 448
107th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 2d Session                                                     107-180

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



 
    EXCHANGING LAND RIGHTS RECEIVED UNDER THE ALASKA NATIVE CLAIMS 
                             SETTLEMENT ACT

                                _______
                                

                 June 26, 2002.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

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

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 1325]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 1325) to ratify an agreement between the 
Aleut Corporation and the United States of America to exchange 
land rights received under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement 
Act for certain land interests on Adak Island, and for other 
purposes, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon 
with an amendment and recommends that the bill, as amended, do 
pass.
    The amendment is as follows:
    On page 7, line 2, strike ``Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law,'' and insert ``Notwithstanding the Federal 
Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949, as amended 
(40 U.S.C. 483-484) and the Defense Base Closure and 
Realignment Act of 1990, as amended (10 U.S.C. 2687),''.

                                PURPOSE

    The purpose of S. 1325 is to ratify an agreement between 
the Aleut Corporation and the United States to exchange land 
rights received under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act 
for certain land interest on Adak Island.

                          BACKGROUND AND NEED

    Adak Island is located in the middle of the Aleutian 
Islands chain, approximately 1,200 miles from Anchorage, 
Alaska, between the Pacific Ocean and the Bering Sea. In 1913, 
Adak Island was withdrawn as a wildlife preserve, and, in 1940, 
designated as a National Wildlife Refuge. Section 303 of the 
Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act designated Adak 
as part of the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge.
    In 1959, the northern portion of Adak Island was withdrawn 
for use by the Navy for military purposes. The Navy built 
infrastructure on the island that can support a small city of 
approximately 6,000 people. As a result of the designations and 
withdrawals made for military and wildlife purposes, Adak 
Island was not available for selection by the Aleut Corporation 
under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (``ANCSA'').
    Pursuant to the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 
1990, the Department of Defense closed the Adak Naval Complex. 
The Aleut Corporation became interested in acquiring the Adak 
Naval Complex as part of its land entitlement under ANCSA and 
offered to exchange various non-contiguous parcels elsewhere in 
the refuge. The Corporation would like to use some of the 
facilities for commercial purposes.
    In September 2000, the Aleut Corporation, the Department of 
the Navy, and the Department of the Interior completed 
negotiations on a land exchange agreement, which is expressly 
subject to congressional approval. Pursuant to the agreement, 
the Aleut Corporation would transfer approximately 47,150 acres 
of various tracts within the wildlife refuge to the Fish and 
Wildlife Service. In return, the Aleut Corporation would 
receive the same number of acres of land previously used by the 
Navy, including buildings, equipment and infrastructure. The 
Navy would transfer this land to the Secretary of the Interior, 
who in turn would convey it to the Corporation.
    Under the agreement, the Navy assumes all responsibility 
and liability for cleanup of unexploded ordnance remaining 
within the Naval complex. The Navy also assumes all 
responsibility for cleanup of the 96 contaminated landfill 
areas that make the Complex a listed superfund site. Moreover, 
prior to conveyance, the Navy agrees to abate all friable, 
accessible, and damaged asbestos-containing materials 
identified in the Navy's most recent asbestos survey.
    If any asbestos-containing materials become friable after 
the date of conveyance, the Aleut Corporation agrees to assume 
responsibility for any remediation necessary to use the 
buildings. The Corporation also agrees to carry out necessary 
remediation of lead-based paint in structures that the 
Corporation elects to use on lands transferred from the Navy.
    Pursuant to the agreement, the United States retains 
easements or long-term nominally-priced leases for use of 
various properties, including the airport and the Fish and 
Wildlife Service headquarters building. In addition, the 
Department of the Interior will agree to any reasonable request 
by the Aleut Corporation to move its headquarter to another 
building, and the Corporation will be responsible for all 
relocation expenses.
    The agreement states that the Navy will clean up the lands 
and then make a Finding of Suitability to Transfer (``FOST''). 
The Aleut Corporation will then have the option of either 
accepting or rejecting the exchange within 90 days of the FOST 
issuance, depending in part on the Corporation's success in 
obtaining financing for development of the Complex.

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    S. 1325 was introduced by Senator Murkowski on August 2, 
2001. The Committee held hearings on similar, S. 1488, in the 
105th Congress, although no further action was taken. The 
Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests held a hearing on S. 
1325 on May 9, 2002. The Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources considered S. 1325 and adopted an amendment to it at 
its business meeting on May 15, 2002. The Committee ordered the 
bill as amended favorably reported at its business meeting on 
June 5, 2002.

                        COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

    The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in 
open business session on June 5, 2002, by a voice vote of a 
quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 1325, if 
amended as described herein.

                          COMMITTEE AMENDMENT

    During its consideration of S. 1325, the Committee on 
Energy and Natural Resources adopted an amendment which 
specifies the laws excepted by section 6(a) of the bill, rather 
than creating a blanket waiver of ``any provision of law.''

                      SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

    Section 1 contains congressional findings.
    Section 2 ratifies the ``Agreement Concerning the 
Conveyance of Property at the Adak Naval Complex'' (September 
20, 2000), and any technical amendments to the Agreement. This 
section provides that any modification to the lands to be 
removed from the National Wildlife Refuge requires the 
agreement of all parties and notification of Congress, and that 
at least 36,000 acres of land be conveyed to the Aleut 
Corporation under any modified agreement.
    Section 3 provides that lands removed from the National 
Wildlife Refuge under the Agreement shall neither be considered 
part of the Alaska Maritime National Refuge nor be subject to 
any laws pertaining to it, including the conveyance 
restrictions imposed by section 22(g) of ANCSA.
    Section 4 determines that land conveyed by the United 
States under the Act shall be treated as conveyance of lands or 
interests under ANCSA, except that receipt of such lands or 
interests shall not constitute a sale or disposition of land or 
interests received pursuant to ANCSA. Public easements for 
access to lands and waters under the Agreement are deemed to 
satisfy section 17(b) of ANCSA.
    Section 5 provides that the Secretary of the Interior may 
acquire lands conveyed to the Aleut Corporation under the Act 
by purchase or exchange, on a willing seller basis only. Any 
reacquired lands shall be automatically included in the Refuge 
System.
    Section 6(a) states that notwithstanding the Federal 
Property and Administrative Services Act and the Defense Base 
Closure and Realignment Act, Department of Navy personal 
property remaining on Adak Island is deemed related to the real 
property and shall be conveyed to the Aleut Corporation at no 
additional cost.
    Subsection (b) requires the Secretary of the Interior to 
convey to the Aleut Corporation those lands identified in the 
Agreement as former landfill sites without charge to the 
Corporation's entitlement under ANCSA.
    Subsection (c) provides that any property received pursuant 
to the Act shall be treated as not developed until actually 
occupied, leased or sold by the Aleut Corporation or its wholly 
owned development subsidiary. This provision applies to 
determinations under section 21(d) of ANCSA and section 907(d) 
of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act.
    Subsection (d) states that upon conveyance to the Aleut 
Corporation of the lands described in Appendix A of the 
Agreement, the lands described in Appendix C of the Agreement 
will become unavailable for selection under ANCSA.
    Subsection (e) provides that the maps in Appendix A to the 
Agreement describe the lands to be conveyed to the Aleut 
Corporation, and shall be left on file at indicated Fish and 
Wildlife Service offices. In the case of any discrepancies, the 
maps shall control over the written legal descriptions of the 
same lands in Appendix A.

                   COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

    The following estimate of the costs of this measure has 
been provided by the Congressional Budget Office:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                     Washington, DC, June 17, 2002.
Hon. Jeff Bingaman,
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. 1325, a bill to 
ratify an agreement between the Aleut Corporation and the 
United States of America to exchange land rights received under 
the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act for certain land 
interests on Adak Island, and for other purposes.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contacts are Megan 
Carroll (for federal costs), and Marjorie Miller (for the state 
and local impact).
            Sincerely,
                                          Barry B. Anderson
                                    (For Dan L. Crippen, Director).
    Enclosure.

S. 1325--A bill to ratify an agreement between the Aleut Corporation 
        and the United States of America to exchange land rights 
        received under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act for 
        certain land interests on Adak Island, and for other purposes

    CBO estimates that implementing S. 1325 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.
    S. 1325 would ratify an agreement between the federal 
government and the Aleut Corporation, an Alaskan Native 
corporation. Under that agreement, the federal government would 
convey to the corporation about 47,000 acres of federal lands 
and improvements on Adak Island in Alaska. In exchange, the 
corporation would give up its entitlement to 47,000 acres of 
undeveloped federal lands in the Aleutian Islands, which it has 
selected under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. Under 
the agreement that would be ratified by the bill, the Fish and 
Wildlife Service (FWS) would manage those lands in the Aleutian 
Islands as part of the national wildlife refuge system.
    The lands that would be conveyed to the corporation under 
S. 1325 comprise the site of a former naval air facility that 
was closed in 1996. According to the Department of Defense 
(DoD) and the FWS, the lands currently generate no receipts and 
are not expected to do so over the next 10 years; hence, CBO 
estimates that the proposed exchange would not affect 
offsetting receipts. Based on information from DoD and the FWS, 
we also estimate that the exchange would not significantly 
affect federal costs for land management.
    S. 1325 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 
Any costs that the corporation would incur as a result of the 
agreement ratified by this bill would be voluntary.
    On May 3, 2002, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R. 
4546 as ordered reported by the House Committee on Armed 
Services on May 1, 2002. Section 2863 of that legislation is 
substantively similar to S. 1325, and our estimates of the cost 
of the proposed land exchange under both pieces of legislation 
are the same.
    The CBO staff contacts for this estimate are Megan Carroll 
(for federal costs), and Marjorie Miller (for the state and 
local impact). This estimate was approved by Robert A. 
Sunshine, 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. 1325. The bill is not a regulatory measure in 
the sense of imposing Government-established standards or 
significant 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. 1325.

                        EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

    The testimony provided by the Department of the Interior 
and the Department of the Navy at the Subcommittee hearing 
follows:

    Statement of Randal Bowman, Special Assistant to the Assistant 
  Secretary for Fish, Wildlife, and Parks, Department of the Interior

    Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to testify 
today on S. 1325, which would ratify a land exchange agreement 
negotiated between the Federal government and The Aleut 
Corporation concerning the former Naval Air Facility, Adak, and 
much of the surrounding military withdrawal on the remote Adak 
Island in the Aleutian Chain of Alaska.
    After five years of negotiations, The Department of the 
Interior, the Department of the Navy, and The Aleut Corporation 
signed a land exchange agreement in September of 2000. This 
Agreement has subsequently been renewed twice. Legislation 
ratifying the signed agreement is necessary to remove the 
former Naval Complex from the National Wildlife Refuge system. 
Legislation would also resolve several legal issues regarding 
the conveyance of real and personal property.
    Adak Island was withdrawn in 1913 as a wildlife preserve 
and in 1940 designated a National Wildlife Refuge. In 1959, the 
Secretary of the Interior withdrew and reserved the northern 
portion of the island for use by the Navy for military purposes 
in Public Land Order No. 1949. In 1980, the Alaska National 
Interest Lands Conservation Act incorporated Adak Island, and 
other refuge islands, as part of the new Alaska Maritime 
National Wildlife Refuge. The Naval Air Facility--Adak was 
operationally closed in March 1997 under the Base Realignment 
and Closure procedures. The Navy will request revocation of the 
Public Land Order as the final part of its base closure and 
cleanup.
    At its peak, the Navy-built infrastructure on Adak could 
support a small city of about 6,000 people. The Naval Complex 
is also a ``Super Fund Site'' with more than 96 contaminated 
sites. The Navy has acknowledged responsibility for cleanup and 
is currently taking remedial actions. However, it is unlikely 
that the intensively used area could be suitably rehabilitated 
for use as a wildlife refuge.
    After the base closure announcement was made, The Aleut 
Corporation offered to exchange a portion of its Alaska Native 
Claims Settlement Act entitlement, elsewhere in the Aleutian 
Islands, for the northern portion of Adak Island occupied by 
the Naval Complex. With the exception of cemetery and historic 
sites, Adak Island was not available for selection under the 
1971 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act.
    The outline of a basic exchange agreement was negotiated by 
the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Navy and The Aleut 
Corporation in December 1996. This agreement involved an 
unequal value exchange of about 47,000 acres of The Aleut 
Corporation's Alaska Native Claim Settlement Act entitlement 
for an equal number of acres including the improvements on the 
Adak Naval Complex. Negotiations were complex and required the 
resolution of issues such as indemnification, long-term 
responsibility for demolition and cleanup of the buildings not 
needed for reuse, actual exchange boundaries, the status of the 
Fish and Wildlife Service's administrative facilities on Adak 
and The Aleut Corporation's desire for an immediate master 
lease on Adak to start reuse prior to completion of an exchange 
agreement. In March of 1998, a hearing was held before the 
Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Several weeks 
after the hearing the Navy announced they had discovered 
archival evidence from World War II of additional unexploded 
ordnance (UXO). The discovery stalled negotiations and started 
an intensive ordnance and explosives cleanup on the island.
    In September of 2000, with ordnance and explosives cleanup 
underway and several significant issues regarding exchange 
boundaries resolved, the Parties signed an exchange agreement. 
This agreement has been renewed twice and is currently valid 
until December 31, 2002. Additionally, The Aleut Corporation is 
trying to establish viable businesses and a community on the 
island. The city of Adak was incorporated as a second-class 
city by the State of Alaska in spring of 2001. In March 2002, 
the Navy announced that the last uniformed Navy personnel had 
left the island. The Navy has recently signed a Finding of 
Suitability for Transfer for 32,150 acres of lands included in 
the agreement. Cleanup will continue this summer on the 
remainder (15,000 acres) of the exchange lands and presumably a 
Finding of Suitability for Transfer for this remainder can be 
finalized in 2003. It should be noted that the decision point 
for the Aleut Corporation in the signed agreement is 90 days 
after EPA concurs with the Finding of Suitability for Transfers 
signed by the Navy for the remainder of the exchange lands.
    By our actions over the last seven years, the Service has 
clearly demonstrated our commitment in helping The Aleut 
Corporation reuse the former Adak Naval Air Facility. We are 
willing to have lands with improvements on Adak removed from 
the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge in exchange for 
undeveloped land elsewhere in the Aleutians. We want the 
community of Adak to succeed. Like the Aleuts, the Alaska 
Maritime National Wildlife Refuge has a long-term commitment in 
the Aleutians. For years, the Navy presence on Adak facilitated 
our management activities in the Aleutians. We maintain a 
refuge subunit headquarters on the island and have used Adak as 
a resupply port for our 120 foot research vessel. We will 
continue working in the Aleutians and with the community of 
Adak.
    We recognize both The Aleut Corporation's desire to 
profitably convert the considerable infrastructure on Adak to a 
successful new community as well as their reluctance to expose 
their corporation to financial risk. Therefore The Aleut 
Corporation, not the Federal Government, must make their final 
decision as to whether a land exchange involving Adak is in the 
best interest of the corporation and its shareholders.
    In the end a land exchange involving national wildlife 
refuge lands must also benefit, or at least not harm, the 
National Wildlife Refuge system. Therefore, we support the 
approach S. 1315 takes of ratifying a completed exchange 
agreement between the Federal Government and The Aleut 
Corporation. We have negotiated a good agreement that gives The 
Aleut Corporation considerable land and facilities on Adak in 
exchange for their entitlement to other Aleutian islands 
valuable as wildlife habitat.
                                ------                                


      Statement of H.T. Johnson, Assistant Secretary of the Navy 
                    (Installations and Environment)

    Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee, I am H.T. 
Johnson, Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Installations and 
Environment). I appreciate the opportunity to speak to you 
today on S. 1325.


                  NAVY SUPPORTS S. 1325 AND H.R. 4546


    S. 1325 would ratify an agreement signed in September 2000 
by The Aleut Corporation (TAC), the Department of the Navy 
(DON), and the Department of Interior (DoI) to exchange land 
and related personal property. Similar language is included in 
Section 2863 of H.R. 4546. The differences between the two 
bills are not significant to the DON, and we would support 
either one.
    The legislation is the critical enabler that would allow 
Navy to dispose of property that comprised the former Naval Air 
Facility Adak (NAF Adak), Alaska, which was closed as a result 
of the 1995 round Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC). It would 
promote economic reuse of the developed portions of the base by 
native Alaskans, while enhancing the Alaska Maritime National 
Wildlife Refuge. I urge your support of this legislation. Its 
enactment this year will permit timely implementation of the 
land conveyance it authorizes.
    Let me share a bit of background about the Navy's presence 
at Adak, some details of the transfer agreement, and Navy's 
efforts to complete environmental cleanup and promote economic 
reuse.


                        NAVAL AIR FACILITY, ADAK


    Adak Island has been federal property since the United 
States acquired Alaska from Russia in 1867. Since 1913 it has 
been a federal wildlife refuge. In 1980, all of Adak Island was 
included within the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge 
established by Congress in the Alaska National Interest Lands 
Conservation Act (ANILCA), and it remains part of that wildlife 
refuge today.
    Military presence on Adak began during World War II with 
its use [occupation] as a staging area to mount a 
counteroffensive to dislodge the Japanese from Attu and Kiska 
Islands. Navy presence at Adak was officially recognized by 
Public Land Order 1949, dated August 19, 1959, which withdrew 
the northern portion of Adak Island, comprising about 76,800 
acres, for use by the Navy for military purposes. 
Notwithstanding that withdrawal, the property remains part of 
the wildlife refuge. Navy used the base to conduct a variety of 
Cold War era military activities.
    Naval Air Facility Adak was on the list of DoD 
installations recommended for closure in 1995, and the 
recommendations became final when Congress did not disapprove 
the list. The active Navy mission ceased and the base 
operationally closed in March 1997. Since then, the Navy has 
been doing environmental cleanup and property disposal 
activities.
    In most cases, closing military bases have been located 
within or near established communities and the affected local 
governments usually form a local redevelopment authority to 
plan and implement reuse. Adak was located in the unorganized 
borough of Alaska. It was not near to or part of a local 
community or within the jurisdiction of any political 
subdivision of the state. The Adak Reuse Corporation (ARC) was 
organized as a not-for-profit corporation under State of Alaska 
law, and its membership included a range of interests in the 
region. The ARC was recognized by DoD as the Adak local 
redevelopment authority, and continues to act in that capacity.
    In carrying out its responsibilities at closing bases, Navy 
seeks to achieve a number of goals:
     Close bases quickly, but in a manner that will 
preserve valuable assets to support rapid reuse and 
redevelopment.
     Give high priority to local economic development 
when disposing of available real and personal property.
     Put available property to productive use as 
quickly as possible through leases and conveyances to spur 
rapid economic recovery and reduce caretaker costs.
     Fast-track environmental cleanup by removing 
needless delays while protecting human health and the 
environment.
     Make every reasonable effort to assist the local 
redevelopment authority in obtaining the available personal 
property needed to implement its redevelopment plan.
     Coordinate Federal resources to assist community 
economic recovery.
    Navy has worked hard to apply these philosophies to the 
unique circumstances at Adak. Let me briefly outline what we 
have done.


                             LAND EXCHANGE


    Early in the closure process, TAC expressed interest in 
exchanging some of its Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act 
(ANCSA) real property interests for property at Adak. The DoI 
sought opportunities to enhance the wildlife refuge. The 
resulting framework is that the Navy would relinquish the 
withdrawn lands comprising for former NAF Adak to DoI, who 
would then convey approximately 47,150 acres on Adak to TAC in 
exchange for TAC relinquishing an equal amount of TAC Native 
Land Selections and entitlement under the Alaska Native Claims 
Settlement Act. In September 2000, DON, DoI and TAC signed an 
Agreement that sets for terms and conditions of an eventual 
exchange under which TAC will obtain title to approximately 
47,150 acres of the former Adak military reservation, as well 
as all of the remaining Navy personal property.
    Because Adak is within the wildlife refuge, special 
legislation from Congress embodied in S. 1325 and H.R. 4546 is 
needed to convey Adak property to TAC, a non-federal party, who 
will use it for non-refuge purposes.
    This exchange benefits all parties. The property occupied 
by the former NAF Adak has well over $1 billion invested in 
numerous buildings, improvements and personal property 
associated with its former military mission. Thus, TAC benefits 
by acquiring all of the developed portions of the island. 
Everything is in place to stimulate economic reuse, create jobs 
and establish a community on Adak.
    Without the exchange, the property would revert to DoI as a 
wildlife refuge. However, the developed portion of the base 
would present a liability for DoI and compromise its value as a 
wildlife habitat. The exchange benefits Interior by providing 
it with equivalent wildlife habitat, along with important 
conservation safeguards on portions of land to be transferred 
to TAC.
    The Navy benefits by terminating the land withdrawal of the 
largest single portion of BRAC real estate in a manner that 
enables the remaining infrastructure to be productively reused 
rather than being demolished at significant additional expense 
to be suitable for reversion to a wildlife refuge.
    U.S. taxpayers benefit by enhancing opportunities for 
productive use of the infrastructure constructed and supporting 
personal property acquired at taxpayers' expense, while 
enhancing the wildlife refuge in Alaska.


                         ENVIRONMENTAL CLEANUP


    In addition to the legislation, completing the conveyance 
of Adak property to TAC also requires the Navy to clean up 
environmental contamination and certify that we have taken all 
remedial action necessary to protect human health and the 
environment with respect to any hazardous substances. In 
partnership with the State of Alaska Department of 
Environmental Conservation (ADEC) and the U.S. Environment 
Protection Agency (EPA) we have made great strides toward that 
goal. Since early 1996 there has been an active Adak 
Restoration Advisory Board, comprised of interested stakeholder 
representatives and members of the public, that has been a 
primary means of sharing information and obtaining public 
comment on environmental cleanup plans. In April 2000, ADEC and 
EPA concurred in a Record of Decision that addressed all 
chemical and petroleum site issues. All of the chemical site 
remedies, and most of the petroleum site remedies are now in 
place.
    Munitions response at NAF Adak presented a more formidable 
challenge. Military actions there during World War II held the 
potential for widespread unexploded ordnance and scattered 
munitions disposal sites. A project team that includes the 
Navy, state and federal environmental regulators, as well as, 
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, TAC, and the Aleutian/
Pribilof Islands Association has been addressing unexploded 
ordnance issues. Extensive ordnance investigations in the main 
developed ``downtown'' core areas were completed in 1977 and 
1998. Additional investigations of known or suspected World War 
II era range areas and minefield locations have been carried 
out since that time. The Navy, with the concurrence of federal 
and state environmental regulators, signed a Record of Decision 
in December 2001 for all munitions response work on the 
property to be transferred to TAC.
    I am pleased to report that last month, the Navy issued a 
Finding of Suitability to Transfer (FOST) for 32,150 acres of 
the 47,150 acres intended for conveyance to TAC. A FOST for the 
remaining 15,000 acres intended for conveyance to TAC is 
planned by early 2003, when Navy expects to complete ordnance 
investigation and clearance in that area.
    In addition to the 47,150 acres proposed for conveyance to 
TAC, there are approximately 29,650 additional acres in the 
Adak military public land withdrawal, of which about 25,500 
acres are environmentally suitable for transfer now. Navy 
expects to relinquish its public land withdrawal on that 
property to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service at the appropriate 
time. Navy is still investigating ordnance issues on the 
remaining 4,150 acres, and Navy will retain that property until 
it is found to be safe for other uses. Fences and warning signs 
are in place to control access.


                           FACILITATING REUSE


    The Navy has worked very closely with ARC and TAC to enable 
reuse to move ahead. When the active military mission ended in 
March 1997, we contracted with wholly owned subsidiaries of TAC 
to protect and maintain the facilities and provide services to 
support Navy environmental cleanup activities. This enabled TAC 
to become familiar with the facilities and their operation. 
When that contract ended in September 2000, the Navy funded a 
grant of $3 million to ARC, administered by the Department of 
Commerce Economic Development Administration (EDA), to assist 
in the transition to local operation of the Adak infrastructure 
in support of reuse. The Congress has provided additional 
financial support each year.
    In June 1988, we entered into a lease with ARC authorizing 
them to use or sublease virtually the entire developed core of 
the base. That lease has enabled a number of reuse activities. 
The Navy and ARC have worked together to ``privatize'' vessel 
and aircraft fueling operations, and to commence rental housing 
operations. ARC subleased space to Adak Seafoods, which 
subsequently became Adak Fisheries. They began fish processing 
operations in a waterfront warehouse in early 1999 and continue 
in operation today, with an on-island workforce that fluctuates 
seasonally between approximately 50 and 100 people. A public 
school with grades K through 12 has been operating at Adak 
since the fall of 1998. There is also a general store serving 
the needs of the on-island population and visiting ship crews.
    The vote to incorporate a new City of Adak was held on 
April 3, 2001, and affirmed the desire of the Adak community to 
become Alaska's western-most City. We are working closely with 
officials of the new City of Adak and they are beginning to 
take on an important role in this overall transition.


                               CONCLUSION


    We have come a long way. The foundation for success is in 
place. The partnerships among the stakeholders is the glue that 
holds it all together, and we appreciate the proactive 
engagement of the ADEC and Department of Commerce EDA in 
working with all the parties to help build solutions to the 
many obstacles encountered along the way. There is still work 
to do, but the pieces are in place to get there and, most 
importantly, there appears to be a shared sense of purpose to 
do what is needed to succeed.
    Legislation embodied in S. 1325 and H.R. 4546 is the 
critical enabler to conveyance and economic reuse of the former 
NAF Adak. I urge your support for this legislation in this 
session of Congress.
    Thank you, Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee. I am 
available to respond to any questions you may have.

                        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. 1325 as ordered 
reported.

                                  
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