[Senate Report 111-271]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


                                                       Calendar No. 541
111th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 2d Session                                                     111-271

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



 
                  BOXER ELDER UTAH LAND CONVEYANCE ACT

                                _______
                                

                 August 5, 2010.--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 H.R. 601]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the Act (H.R. 601) to provide for the conveyance of 
parcels of land to Mantua, Box Elder County, Utah, having 
considered the same, reports favorably thereon without 
amendment and recommends that the Act do pass.

                                PURPOSE

    The purpose of H.R. 601 is to provide for the conveyance 
approximately 31.5 acres of land administered by the Forest 
Service to the town of Mantua, Utah.

                          BACKGROUND AND NEED

    The town of Mantua, Utah, is a small town in Box Elder 
County in northern Utah. The town has a total area of about 5.6 
square miles, about 8 acres of which is owned by the town and 
used for a cemetery (about 4 acres), park (about 2.5 acres), 
and municipal buildings. The Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National 
Forest borders a portion of Mantua, and it includes two 
peninsula-shaped parcels of land that are largely surrounded by 
private land near the cemetery and municipal buildings. The two 
parcels were donated by Box Elder County to the United States 
in 1940. The town would like to acquire the two parcels to add 
to the existing cemetery, provide land for a new park, or to 
erect new town offices, a court and law enforcement facilities, 
or a fire station.

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    H.R. 601, sponsored by Representative Bishop, passed the 
House of Representatives by a vote of 396-1 on February 23, 
2009. Senators Bennett and Hatch introduced a companion bill 
(S. 1546) on July 30, 2009. The Subcommittee on Public Lands 
and Forests held a hearing on S. 1546 on April 21, 2010.
    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources considered 
H.R. 601 at its business meeting on June 16, 2010, and ordered 
the bill favorably reported without amendment at its business 
meeting on June 21, 2010.

                        COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open 
business session on June 21, 2010, by a voice vote of a quorum 
present, recommends that the Senate pass H.R. 601.

                      SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

    Section 1 provides the short title.
    Section 2(a) directs the Secretary of Agriculture to convey 
to the Town of Mantua, Utah, for no consideration, all right, 
title and interest of the United States in approximately 31.5 
acres of land within Wasatch-Cache National Forest, as 
generally depicted on the referenced map.
    Subsection (b) provides for a survey of the land, if 
necessary, paid for by the town.
    Subsection (c) directs that the conveyed land be used only 
for public purposes.
    Subsection (d) provides for the land to revert to the 
Secretary, at the election of the Secretary, if the land is 
used for other than public purposes.
    Subsection (e) requires the conveyance to be subject to 
such additional terms and conditions as the Secretary 
determines appropriate to protect the interests of the United 
States.

                   COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

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

H.R. 601--Box Elder Utah Land Conveyance Act

    H.R. 601 would direct the Secretary of Agriculture to 
convey, without consideration, certain lands in Utah to the 
town of Mantua. Based on information from the Forest Service, 
CBO estimates that implementing the legislation would have no 
significant impact on the federal budget. Enacting H.R. 601 
would not affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-
as-you-go procedures would not apply.
    Under the act, the Secretary would be required to convey 
about 32 acres of land within the Wasatch-Cache National Forest 
to Mantua, Utah. The conveyed land could be used by the town 
for public purposes only and would revert to the federal 
government if used for other purposes. The affected lands do 
not currently generate offsetting receipts for the federal 
government and are not expected to generate such receipts over 
the next 10 years. Any costs associated with surveying the 
lands prior to conveyance would be paid by the town.
    H.R. 601 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.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jeff LaFave. The 
estimate was approved by Sam Papenfuss, Unit Chief for Income 
Security and Education Cost Estimates, Budget Analysis 
Division.

                      REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUTION

    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. 601.
    The Act 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. 601, as ordered reported.

                   CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING

    H.R. 601, as ordered reported, does not contain any 
congressionally directed spending items, limited tax benefits, 
or limited tariff benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate.

                        EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

    The views of the Administration were included in testimony 
received by the Committee at a hearing on S. 1546 on April 21, 
2010, which is printed below:

  Testimony of Harris Sherman, Under Secretary, Natural Resources and 
                 Environment, Department of Agriculture

    Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, thank you for 
the opportunity today to present the Department's view on S. 
1546. I am Harris Sherman, USDA Under Secretary for Natural 
Resources and Environment. S. 1546 would direct the Secretary 
of Agriculture to convey, without consideration, to the Town of 
Mantua, Utah, all right, title and interest of the United 
States in approximately 31.5 acres of National Forest System 
lands in Box Elder County, Utah. These lands are currently part 
of the Unita-Wasatch-Cache National Forest. The conveyance 
would be conditioned upon the town using the conveyed land for 
public purposes. If the land is ever used for other than public 
purposes, title would revert to the United States at the 
election of the Secretary. While the Department does not object 
to these lands being made available for conveyance to Mantua, 
Utah, we object to the terms of the bill.
    The 31.5 acres in question comprise two irregular 
peninsula-shaped parcels which are surrounded on three sides by 
private land. The parcels are encumbered with several 
outstanding rights in Brigham City including three pipelines, a 
right to construct a pipeline, and use of four springs. A 
survey would be required to be made in advance of any proposed 
conveyance.
    We oppose the bill because it does not require market value 
consideration for the conveyance and because of the reverter 
provisions.
    A general public policy is that the Federal Government 
receive market value consideration for the conveyance or use of 
its property. This policy is well established in law including 
the Independent Offices Appropriation Act (31 U.S.C. 9701), 
section 102(9) of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act 
(43 U.S.C. 1701), as well as the numerous land exchange 
authorities.
    There are also practical problems with S. 1546. The land is 
required to revert to the Secretary in the event it is used for 
other than ``public purposes.'' However, public purposes are 
not defined and could cover a vast array of land uses from 
municipal waste treatment, low income housing, to industrial 
parks. This lack of public purpose definition could draw a 
future Secretary of Agriculture into future local land use 
controversies. Therefore, we oppose the Reversionary Clause 
listed in Section 2 (e).
    There are laws on the books which would accommodate the 
municipal needs of the Town of Mantua, Utah. Specifically, the 
Townsite Act of July 31, 1958 (16 U.S.C. 478a) was enacted to 
permit established communities to acquire up to 640 acres of 
National Forest land to serve indigenous community objectives. 
Consistent with the aforementioned public policy, the Townsite 
Act requires payment to the United States of the fair market 
value of the land. Similarly, the lands could be made available 
by exchange for equal value consideration.

                        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 Act H.R. 601, as 
ordered reported.


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