[House Report 108-740]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



108th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                     108-740
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        IDAHO PANHANDLE NATIONAL FOREST IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 2003

                                _______
                                

October 6, 2004.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

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

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 434]

    The Committee on Resources, to whom was referred to the 
bill (S. 434) to authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to sell 
or exchange all or part of the certain parcels of National 
Forest System land in the State of Idaho and use the proceeds 
derived from the sale or exchange for National Forest System 
purposes, having considered the same, report favorably thereon 
without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass.

                          PURPOSE OF THE BILL

    The purpose of S. 434 is to authorize the Secretary of 
Agriculture to sell or exchange all or part of certain parcels 
of National Forest System land in the State of Idaho and use 
the proceeds derived from the sale or exchange for National 
Forest System purposes.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    S. 434 would sell or exchange roughly 150 acres of National 
Forest System lands in Idaho, comprised of three separate 
parcels, and deposit the proceeds in the fund established under 
the `Sisk Act' (Public Law 90-171). Primarily, the revenue 
would be used to fund rehabilitation or construction of a 
ranger district office in the Silver Valley of the Idaho 
Panhandle National Forest. The bill also allows excess proceeds 
to be used to acquire land, or to construct or rehabilitate 
other facilities in the Panhandle National Forest. The tracts 
identified for sale or exchange are no longer needed for agency 
administrative purposes and conveyance of these tracts will 
reduce the long-term cost of administering related special use 
permits.
    The bill provides an exception to the Federal Land Policy 
and Management Act of 1976, allowing the Secretary of 
Agriculture to accept a cash equalization payment in excess of 
25% of the value of the land exchanged.

                            COMMITTEE ACTION

    S. 434 was introduced on February 25, 2003, by Senator 
Larry Craig (R-ID). The Senate passed the bill by unanimous 
consent on November 24, 2003. In the House of Representatives, 
the bill was referred to the Committee on Resources, and within 
the Committee to the Subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health. 
On April 28, 2004, the Subcommittee held a hearing on the bill. 
On September 15, 2004, the Full Resources Committee met to 
consider the bill. The Subcommittee was discharged from further 
consideration by unanimous consent. No amendments were offered 
and the bill was ordered favorably 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, credit 
authority, or an increase or decrease in revenues or tax 
expenditures. According to the Congressional Budget Office, S. 
434 would increase both offsetting receipts and the spending of 
such receipts, but it estimates that the net impact of direct 
spending would not exceed $500,000.
    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 is to authorize the Secretary of 
Agriculture to sell or exchange all or part of certain parcels 
of National Forest System land in the State of Idaho and use 
the proceeds derived from the sale or exchange for National 
Forest System 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 20, 2004.
Hon. Richard W. Pombo,
Chairman, Committee on Resources,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 434, the Idaho 
Panhandle National Forest Improvement Act of 2003.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Megan 
Carroll, who can be reached at 226-2860.
            Sincerely,
                                         Elizabeth Robinson
                               (For Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Director).
    Enclosure.

S. 434--Idaho Panhandle National Forest Improvement Act of 2003

    CBO estimates that enacting S. 434 would not significantly 
affect the federal budget. The legislation would increase both 
offsetting receipts and the spending of such receipts, but we 
estimate that the net impact on direct spending would not 
exceed $500,000. S. 434 contains no intergovernmental or 
private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates 
Reform Act and would impose no significant costs on state, 
local, or tribal governments.
    S. 434 would authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to sell 
or exchange certain federal land in Idaho. The act would 
authorize the Secretary to spend, without further 
appropriation, any proceeds from lands sales to acquire, 
construct, or rehabilitate administrative facilities within the 
Idaho Panhandle National forest.
    According to the Forest Service, the federal land to be 
sold or exchanged currently does not generate significant 
receipts and is not expected to do so over the next 10 years. 
By providing authority for the Secretary to sell that land, CBO 
expects that enacting S. 434 would increase offsetting receipts 
(a credit against direct spending) from land sales. Based on 
information from the Forest Service regarding the value of the 
affected land, CBO estimates that the proceeds from such sales 
would total between $500,000 and $750,000 in fiscal year 2005. 
We also estimate that those proceeds would largely be spent in 
the same year they are received; hence, we estimate that the 
net change in direct spending would be negligible.
    On August 1, 2003, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for S. 
434 as ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Energy and 
Natural Resources on July 23, 2003. The two versions of S. 434 
are similar, and our estimates of sale proceeds and direct 
spending are the same under both versions. Differences in our 
estimates reflect a change in the assumed enactment date.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Megan Carroll. 
This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy 
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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