[Senate Report 109-172]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                       Calendar No. 273
109th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session                                                    109-172

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      CIBOLA NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE PUBLIC LAND ORDER CORRECTION

                                _______
                                

                October 27, 2005.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

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

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 1101]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the Act (H.R. 1101) to revoke a Public Land Order with 
respect to certain lands erroneously included in the Cibola 
National Wildlife Refuge, California, having considered the 
same, reports favorably thereon without amendment and 
recommends that the Act do pass.

                                PURPOSE

    H.R. 1101 revokes Public Land Order 3442, dated August 21, 
1964, insofar as it included approximately 140 acres in 
Imperial County, California in the Cibola National Wildlife 
Refuge (Cibola NWR). H.R. 1101 directs the Secretary of the 
Interior to resurvey and publish the new boundaries of the 
Refuge. The effect of the bill is to transfer administrative 
jurisdiction over the 140-acre parcel from the U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service to the Bureau of Land Management.

                          BACKGROUND AND NEED

    H.R. 1101 will correct an error made in the designation of 
the Cibola NWR. In 1964, Public Land Order 3442 withdrew 
approximately 16,600 acres of public domain lands along the 
Colorado River in California and Arizona for the Cibola NWR. 
The withdrawal erroneously included approximately 140 acres in 
Imperial County at the southern boundary of the California 
portion of the refuge.
    Prior to 1964, this property fell under the jurisdiction of 
the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and, beginning in 1962, the 
BLM issued a permit for a public recreation concession on 18 
acres of the lands now in question. Because neither the Fish 
and Wildlife Service nor the BLM recognized the mistake in 
legal descriptions on the ground, the BLM continued to renew 
the original permit and the recreational concession use has 
continued, unbroken, to the present time. However, given the 
discovery of the past mistake, neither the BLM nor the Fish and 
Wildlife Service have the authority to continue issuing the 
concession contract.

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    H.R. 1101 was introduced by Representative Hunter on March 
3, 2005 and was passed by the House of Representatives on May 
23, 2005. The bill was received in the Senate and referred to 
the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. The Subcommittee 
on Public Lands and Forests held a hearing on H.R. 1101 on July 
20, 2005. At the business meeting on September 28, 2005, the 
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources ordered H.R. 1101 
favorably reported without amendment. A similar bill, H.R. 417, 
was passed by the House in the 108th Congress, and was passed 
by the Senate with an amendment but was not acted upon by the 
House.

                        COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open 
business session on September 28, 2005, by a unanimous voice 
vote of a quorum present recommends that the Senate pass H.R. 
1101.

                      SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

    Section 1 revokes Public Land Order 3442 with respect to 
approximately 140 acres. The effect of the revocation is to 
transfer administrative jurisdiction over the lands from the 
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to the Bureau of Land 
Management. The lands to be conveyed include a BLM concession 
known as ``Walter's Camp''. The Committee understands that 
there is a proposal to expand the size and scope of the 
existing concession operation, which currently occupies 
approximately 18 acres. The Committee does not intend for the 
transfer of the 140 acres from the Fish and Wildlife Service to 
the BLM to be viewed as an endorsement of any development of 
the lands in question. The Committee expects that any 
management changes proposed by the BLM for the affected acreage 
will be made through the agency's standard planning process, 
with full opportunity for public involvement and comment from 
interested parties. These management changes should be 
consistent with existing uses and complement the purposes of 
the neighboring refuge lands.
    The Committee does not intend for the transfer of these 
lands from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to the BLM to 
result in any substantive change in the natural, cultural, and 
historical resources located on the land. The Committee expects 
that the BLM will safeguard these resources, including any 
sacred sites or trails, in consultation with affected Indian 
tribes.
    Section 2 directs the Secretary of the Interior to resurvey 
and notice of modified boundaries.

                   COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

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

H.R. 1101--An act to revoke a Public Land Order with respect to certain 
        lands erroneously included in the Cibola National Wildlife 
        Refuge, California

    CBO estimates that H.R. 1101 would have no significant 
impact on the federal budget. The legislation could increase 
both offsetting receipts and direct spending, but we estimate 
that any such effects would be negligible. Enacting the 
legislation would not affect revenues. H.R. 1101 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.
    H.R. 1101 would revoke Public Land Order 3442 as it 
pertains to 140 acres of land within the Cibola National 
Wildlife Refuge in California. By doing so, the legislation 
would effectively remove that land from the refuge and return 
it to the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). 
According to BLM, this change would allow the agency to 
renegotiate a lease with a private concessionaire who currently 
operates recreational facilities on the affected land. Based on 
information from the agency, CBO estimates that any change in 
offsetting receipts from lease payments, and subsequent 
spending of those receipts, would be negligible.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Megan Carrol. 
This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy 
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 H.R. 1101. 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 no impact on personal 
privacy.
    Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the 
enactment of H.R. 1101, as ordered reported.

                        EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

    Views of the Administration on H.R. 1101 were included in 
testimony provided by the Bureau of Land Management at the 
Subcommittee hearing as follows:

Statement of Lawrence E. Benna, Deputy Director, Operations, Bureau of 
            Land Management, U.S. Department of the Interior

    Mr. Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, I appreciate 
the opportunity to testify today in support of H.R. 1101, which 
will revoke a portion of Public Land Order 3442, dated August 
21, 1964. This Public Land Order withdrew approximately 16,600 
acres of public domain lands along the Colorado River in 
California and Arizona for the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge 
(NWR). The withdrawal erroneously included a small area of 
approximately 140 acres in Imperial County at the southern 
boundary of the California portion of the Refuge. A similar 
bill in the 108th Congress, H.R. 417, was passed by the House 
and by the Senate with an amendment, but was not enacted.
    Prior to 1964, this property fell under the jurisdiction of 
the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). In 1962, the BLM issued a 
permit for a public recreation concession on 18 acres of the 
lands now in question. The concession is known as ``Walter's 
Camp,'' and consists of a recreational vehicle park, a small 
marina, and a store, and the BLM estimates that Walter's Camp 
receives 11,000 visitors per year. Because neither the Fish and 
Wildlife Service (FWS) nor the BLM recognized the mistake in 
legal descriptions on the ground, the BLM continued to renew 
the original permit and the recreational concession use has 
continued, unbroken, to the present time. The current 
concession contract was issued by the BLM in 1980, under the 
provisions of Section 10 of the Reclamation Project Act of 1939 
for a period of 20 years. Four extensions to the current 
contract have since been issued.
    The National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 
1966, as amended, (Act) requires that all uses of refuge lands 
be compatible with the purpose for which the refuge was 
established. Section 4(a) of the Act and section 204(j) of the 
Federal Land Policy and Management Act both prohibit the 
Secretary of the Interior from revoking withdrawals of land 
within NWRs. For this reason, Congressional action is required 
to remove these lands from the Refuge System.
    Since the inclusion of these lands in Public Land Order 
3442 was a mistake, due to the prior existence of the 
concession, we believe the most equitable solution is removal 
of the lands from the refuge. There are no listed species 
inhabiting the 140 acres and the area in question is, at best, 
marginal wildlife habitat. Removal of the 140 acres of land 
from the refuge would free-up the area necessary for the 
continuation of the recreational concession, while still 
affording more than adequate protection for the nearest 
significant wildlife habitat feature, Three Fingers Lake.
    We believe that withdrawal of these lands will benefit all 
parties involved--the concessionaire, the Service, the BLM and, 
ultimately, the public. For this reason, we support the bill 
and urge prompt action on enactment of H.R. 1101.

                        CHANGES TO 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 Act H.R. 1101, as 
ordered reported.

                                  
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