[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.