[Senate Report 108-132]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                       Calendar No. 256
108th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session                                                    108-132

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        IDAHO PANHANDLE NATIONAL FOREST IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 2003

                                _______
                                

                August 26, 2003.--Ordered to be printed

     Filed, under authority of the order of the Senate of July 29 
                    (legislative day, July 21), 2003

                                _______
                                

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

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 434]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 434) 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, having considered the same, reports, 
favorably thereon with an amendment and recommends that the 
bill, as amended, do pass.
    The amendment is as follows:
    Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert in lieu 
thereof the following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Idaho Panhandle National Forest 
Improvement Act of 2003''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITION OF SECRETARY.

    In this Act, the term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of 
Agriculture.

SEC. 3. SALE OR EXCHANGE OF ADMINISTRATIVE SITES.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary may, under such terms and conditions 
as the Secretary may prescribe, sell or exchange any or all right, 
title, and interest of the United States in and to the following 
National Forest System land and improvements:
          (1) Granite/Reeder Bay, Priest Lake Parcel, T61N, R4E, Boise 
        Principal Meridian, section 17, S\1/2\NE\1/4\ (80 acres, more 
        or less).
          (2) North South Ski area, T43N, R3W, Boise Principal 
        Meridian, section 13, SE\1/4\SE\1/4\SW\1/4\, S\1/2\SW\1/4\SE\1/
        4\, NE\1/4\SW\1/4\SE\1/4\, and SW\1/4\SE\1/4\SE\1/4\ (50 acres 
        more or less).
          (3) Shoshone work camp (including easements for utilities), a 
        portion of the S\1/2\SE\1/4\ (19 acres, more or less).
    (b) Descriptions.--The Secretary may modify the descriptions in 
subsection (a) to correct errors or to make minor adjustments to the 
parcels in order to facilitate the conveyance of the parcels.
    (c) Consideration.--Consideration for a sale or exchange of land 
under subsection (a)--
          (1) shall be equal to the fair market value of the land; and
          (2) may include cash or improved or unimproved land.
    (d) Applicable Law.--Except as otherwise provided in this Act, any 
sale or exchange of National Forest System land under subsection (a) 
shall be subject to the laws applicable to the conveyance and 
acquisition of land for the National Forest System.
    (e) Valuation.--The market value of the land and the improvements 
to be sold or exchanged under this Act shall be determined by an 
appraisal that is acceptable to the Secretary and conforms with the 
Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land Acquisitions.
    (f) Cash Equalization.--Notwithstanding section 206(b) of the 
Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1716(b)), the 
Secretary may accept a cash equalization payment in excess of 25 
percent of the value of land exchanged under subsection (a).
    (g) Solicitations of Offers.--
          (1) In general.--The Secretary may solicit offers for the 
        sale or exchange of land under this section on such terms and 
        conditions as the Secretary may prescribe.
          (2) Rejection of offers.--The Secretary may reject any offer 
        made under this section if the Secretary determines that the 
        offer is not adequate or not in the public interest.
    (h) Methods of Sale.--The Secretary may sell land under subsection 
(a) at public or private sale (including at auction), in accordance 
with any terms, conditions, and procedures that the Secretary 
determines to be in the best interests of the United States.

SEC. 4. DISPOSITION OF FUNDS.

    (a) Deposit of Proceeds.--The Secretary shall deposit the proceeds 
of a sale or the cash equalization proceeds, if any, from an exchange 
under section 3(a) in the fund established under Public Law 90-171 
(commonly known as the ``Sisk Act'') (16 U.S.C. 484a).
    (b) Use of Proceeds.--Amounts deposited under subsection (a) shall 
be available to the Secretary, without further appropriation--
          (1) for the acquisition of, construction of, or 
        rehabilitation of existing facilities for, a new ranger station 
        in the Silver Valley portion of the Panhandle National Forest; 
        or
          (2) to the extent that the amount of funds deposited exceeds 
        the amount needed for the purpose described in paragraph (1), 
        for the acquisition, construction, or rehabilitation of other 
        facilities in the Panhandle National Forest.
    (c) Nondistribution of Proceeds.--Proceeds from the sale or 
exchange of land under this Act shall not be paid or distributed to 
States or counties under any provision of law, or otherwise treated as 
money received from a national forest, for purposes of--
          (1) the Act of May 23, 1908 (16 U.S.C. 500);
          (2) section 13 of the Act of March 1, 1911 (commonly known as 
        the ``Weeks Law'') (16 U.S.C. 500); or
          (3) the Act of March 4, 1913 (16 U.S.C. 501).

SEC. 5. ADMINISTRATION.

    (a) In General.--Land transferred to or otherwise acquired by the 
Secretary under this Act shall be managed in accordance with--
          (1) the Act of March 1, 1911 (commonly known as the ``Weeks 
        Law'') (16 U.S.C. 480 et seq.); and
          (2) other laws relating to the National Forest System.
    (b) Exemption From Property Management Regulations.--Part 1955 of 
title 7, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regulation), 
shall not apply to any actions taken under this Act.
    (c) Withdrawals and Revocations.--
          (1) Withdrawal.--Subject to valid existing rights, all land 
        described in section 3(a) is withdrawn from--
                  (A) location, entry, and patent under the mining 
                laws; and
                  (B) the operation of the mineral leasing, mineral 
                materials, and geothermal leasing laws.
          (2) Revocation of public land orders.--As of the date of this 
        Act, any public land order withdrawing land described in 
        section 3(a) from all forms of appropriation under the public 
        land laws is revoked with respect to any portion of the land 
        conveyed by the Secretary under this section.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary 
to carry out this Act.

                         PURPOSE OF THE MEASURE

    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, without further appropriation, for the 
construction of a new Ranger District Office on the Idaho 
Panhandle National Forest.

                          BACKGROUND AND NEED

    S. 434 authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to sell 
identified tracts of land that are no longer needed for Forest 
Service administration purposes on the Silver Valley of the 
Idaho Panhandle National Forest. Conveyance of these tracts 
will reduce the long term cost of administering the related 
special use permits. The bill will offer for sale, or exchange, 
administrative parcels on the Idaho Panhandle National Forest 
that the Forest Service has identified for disposal. The 
proceeds from these sales will be used to improve, or replace, 
the Forest Service's Ranger Station in Idaho's Silver Valley. 
The current ranger station is in dire need of repair or 
replacement.
    The Forest Service administrative parcels identified for 
disposal include land currently under permit to the Granite/
Reeder Sewer District on Priest Lake, Shoshone Camp in Shoshone 
county, and North-South Ski Bowl, south of St. Maries.

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    S. 434 was introduced by Senators Craig and Crapo on 
February 25, 2003. The Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests 
held a hearing on S. 434 on June 12, 2003. The Committee 
favorably reported the bill, with an amendment in the form of a 
substitute. A similar bill, S. 3047, was introduced in the 
107th session of Congress and a companion bill, H.R. 5638, was 
also introduced in the House of Representatives in the 107th 
Congress. No further action was taken on either bill during the 
107th Congress.

                        COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in an open 
business session on July 23, 2003, by a voice vote of a quorum 
present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 434, if amended as 
described herein.

                          COMMITTEE AMENDMENT

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources adopted an 
amendment in the nature of a substitute that dropped map 
references; included legal references for three parcels of 
land; clarified that the Secretary of Agriculture could accept 
cash, improved, or unimproved lands in consideration for the 
Federal land to be sold or exchanged; and that corrected number 
of citations to laws referred to in the bill.

                      SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

    Section 1 provides the short title.
    Section 2 defines a key term used in the bill.
    Section 3, subsection (a) authorizes the Secretary to sell 
or exchange three parcels of land: the Granite/Reeder Bay 
comprising approximately 80 acres; the North South Ski Area 
comprising approximately 50 acres; and the Shoshone Work Camp 
comprising approximately 19 acres.
    Subsection (b) authorizes the Secretary to correct errors 
and to make minor adjustments to the descriptions of the 
parcels identified in subsection (a) in order to facilitate the 
conveyance.
    Subsection (c) directs that consideration for a sale or 
exchange of land to the fair market value of the land and may 
include cash or improved or unimproved lands.
    Subsection (d) directs that any sales or exchanges shall be 
subject to the laws applicable to the National Forest System.
    Subsection (e) requires that the market value of lands 
shall be determined by an appraisal that conforms with the 
Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land Acquisitions.
    Subsection (f) states that the Secretary may accept cash 
equalization payments greater than 25 percent of land value.
    Subsection (g) provides that the Secretary can reject and 
solicit offers for the sale or exchange of land.
    Subsection (h) authorizes the Secretary to sell land at 
public or private sales.
    Section 4, subsection (a) states that the Secretary shall 
deposit any proceeds in the fund established by Public Law 90-
171.
    Subsection (b) allows the Secretary to use any proceeds to 
pay for building and improving facilities in the Silver Valley 
portion of the Idaho Panhandle National Forest and, if 
additional funds are available, other facilities on the Forest.
    Subsection (c) prohibits proceeds from being distributed to 
states or counties.
    Section 5 directs that the lands acquired by the Secretary 
of Agriculture shall be managed in accordance to the Weeks Act, 
be exempt from Part 1955 of Title 7 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations and, subject to valid existing rights, and be 
withdrawn from location, entry, and patent under the mining and 
mineral leasing laws.
    Section 6 authorizes to be appropriated such sums as are 
necessary to carry out this Act.

                    COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATION

    The Congressional Budget Office estimate of the costs of 
this measure has been requested, but was not received at the 
time the report was filed. When the report is available, the 
Chairman will request it to be printed in the Congressional 
Record for the advice of the Senate.

                      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. 434. 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 impact on personal 
privacy.
    Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the 
enactment of S. 434, as ordered reported.

                        EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATION

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources has requested 
legislative reports from the Department of Agriculture and the 
Office of Management and Budget setting forth Executive agency 
recommendations on S. 434. These reports had not been received 
at the time the report on S. 434 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 United States Forest 
Service at the Subcommittee hearing follows:

Statement of Tom Thompson, Deputy Chief, National Forest System, Forest 
                   Service, Department of Agriculture

    S. 434 authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to sell or 
exchange all or parts of certain tracts of National Forest 
System land in the State of Idaho and to use the proceeds for 
the acquisition of land and construction of a new Ranger 
District office in the Silver Valley portion of the Idaho 
Panhandle National Forest (IPNF). To the extent there are 
excess proceeds after construction of the Ranger District 
Office, the bill allows the proceeds to be used to acquire 
land, construct, or rehabilitate other facilities in the IPNF.
    The Department supports S. 434 because the tracts 
identified for sale or exchange are no longer needed for Forest 
Service administrative purposes and conveyance of these tracts 
will reduce the long term cost of administering the related 
special use permits. Additionally, the construction of a new 
Ranger District office in the Silver Valley would enhance 
public service and improve public safety.
    As S. 434 illustrates, the Department has a number of 
facilities and appurtenant administrative land excess to agency 
needs. The FY 2004 Budget contains a proposal for the 
establishment of a Facilities Acquisition and Enhancement Fund 
that would enable the Secretary to sell such units excess to 
the agency's need and to utilize proceeds from those sales for 
the acquisition or development of land and improvements for 
administrative purposes. Funds collected under this authority 
would address backlogs and administrative consolidations while 
improving efficiencies through the reconstruction of 
functionally obsolete facilities or construction of new 
facilities. To this end, the Department will submit proposed 
legislation concerning this Fund in the upcoming weeks.

                        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 the bill S. 434 as ordered 
reported.

                                
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