[Senate Report 117-5]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 21
117th Congress} { Report
SENATE
1st Session } { 117-5
======================================================================
TO AUTHORIZE THE SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, ACTING THROUGH
THE DIRECTOR OF THE INDIAN HEALTH SERVICE, TO ACQUIRE PRIVATE LAND TO
FACILITATE ACCESS TO THE DESERT SAGE YOUTH WELLNESS CENTER, IN HEMET,
CALIFORNIA, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
_______
March 24, 2021.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Schatz, from the Committee on Indian Affairs,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 144]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Indian Affairs (Committee), to which was
referred the bill (S. 144) to authorize the Secretary of Health
and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Indian
Health Service, to acquire private land to facilitate access to
the Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center in Hemet, California, and
for other purposes, having considered the same, reports
favorably thereon without amendment and recommends that the
bill do pass.
PURPOSE
The purpose of S. 144 is to authorize the Secretary of the
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), acting
through the Director of the Indian Health Service (IHS), to
acquire private land in order to facilitate access to the
Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center in Hemet, California.
BACKGROUND
The Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center (Center), which
opened in 2017, is an IHS Youth Regional Treatment Center
located in Hemet, California. The Center provides culturally
sensitive substance abuse treatment to native youth in a co-ed
residential facility. Services offered at the Center include
mental health, chemical dependency counseling, individual and
group counseling, family therapy, traditional healing services,
traditional arts and crafts, cultural activities, field-
recreation trips, educational opportunities, academic and life-
skills education, fitness program, and access to medical
specialties and dental care. Prior to the Center opening,
native youth would often travel out of state for treatment, far
from their families and homes.
SUMMARY OF THE BILL
The bill, S. 144, authorizes the HHS to acquire certain
land from willing sellers to facilitate access to the Center.
Specifically, HHS is authorized to acquire a dirt and gravel
road, known as ``Best Road,'' and other land and interests
around it in order for IHS to construct and maintain a paved
road that accesses the Center.
NEED FOR LEGISLATION
Currently, the Center is only accessible via ``Best Road;''
during extreme weather conditions, the dirt and gravel road
makes access to the Center limited to none at all. A paved road
is necessary to provide better, consistent access to the
Center, however, the HHS Secretary currently lacks
congressional authority to acquire and improve the ``Best
Road.''
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
On February 1, 2021, Senators Feinstein and Padilla
introduced S. 144, the Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center Access
Improvement Act. The Senate referred the bill to the Committee
the same day. The Committee held a duly called business meeting
to consider nine bills, including S. 144, on March 10, 2021. No
amendments were filed to S. 144. The Committee passed the bill
with eight other bills by voice vote and ordered it to be
favorably reported.
On February 1, 2021, Representatives Ruiz, Barragan,
Cardenas, Aguilar, Calvert, and Thompson introduced H.R. 667, a
companion bill to S. 144, in the House of Representatives. The
House of Representatives referred the bill to the Committees on
Natural Resources and Energy and Commerce the same day. No
further action has been taken on H.R. 667.
On September 10, 2020, Senator Feinstein introduced S.
4556, a predecessor bill upon which S. 144 is based. The Senate
referred the bill to the Committee the same day. The Committee
then held a legislative hearing on the bill on September 23,
2020. At this legislative hearing, Rear Admiral Michael D.
Weahkee, Director of the IHS, testified in support of the bill.
The Committee held a duly called business meeting to
consider four bills, including S. 4556, on November 18, 2020.
No amendments were filed to S. 4556. The Committee passed the
bill by voice vote and ordered it reported favorably. The
Committee reported the bill on December 9, 2020 and, on
December 20, 2020, the Senate passed S. 4556 without amendment
by unanimous consent. The House of Representatives received the
bill on December 21, 2020, and held it at the desk. However,
the House of Representatives took no further action on S. 4556
prior to the conclusion of the 116th Congress.
On September 25, 2019, Representatives Ruiz, Calvert,
Aguilar, and Cook introduced a companion bill, H.R. 4495, in
the House of Representatives. Representatives LaMalfa,
Barragan, Cardenas, and Harder later joined as co-sponsors. The
House of Representatives referred the bill to the Committees on
Natural Resources and Energy and Commerce. On September 26,
2019, the Committee on Energy and Commerce referred the bill to
the Subcommittee on Health. On October 3, 2019, the Committee
on Natural Resources referred the bill to the Subcommittee on
National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands. On December 2, 2019,
the Committee on Natural Resources re-referred the bill to the
Subcommittee for Indigenous Peoples of the United States. On
February 5, 2020, the Subcommittee on Indigenous Peoples held a
subcommittee hearing on H.R. 4495. Neither committee took
further action on the bill prior to the conclusion of the 116th
Congress.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1. Short title
This section provides that this bill may be cited as the
``Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center Access Improvement Act''.
Sec. 2. Access road for Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center
Subsection (a) authorizes the Secretary of the Department
of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of
the Indian Health Service, to acquire, from willing sellers,
land or interests in land located in Hemet, California to
construct and maintain the road as required in subsection (b).
This subsection also provides that the Secretary of HHS must
pay fair market value for the land to be acquired under
paragraph (1), as determined using the Uniform Appraisal
Standards for Federal Land Acquisition, and by an appraiser who
is acceptable to the Secretary and the current owners of said
land.
Subsection (b) requires the Secretary of HHS to construct,
on the acquired land, a paved road that is located over Best
Road to facilitate access to the Center. The Secretary of HHS
will be required to maintain and manage the road or enter into
an agreement with Riverside County, California, to own,
maintain, and manage Best Road.
COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
The following cost estimate, as provided by the
Congressional Budget Office, dated March 18, 2021, was prepared
for S. 144:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, March 18, 2021.
Hon. Brian Schatz,
Chairman, Committee on Indian Affairs,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 144 the Desert Sage
Youth Wellness Center Access Improvement Act.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Robert
Stewart.
Sincerely,
Phillip L. Swagel.
Enclosure.
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
S. 144 would authorize the Secretary of Health and Human
Services to purchase, pave, and maintain a road to facilitate
access to the Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center (DSYWC) in
Hemet, California. The DSYWC is one of 12 residential treatment
centers for adolescents with substance abuse disorders that is
funded by the Indian Health Service (IHS). The access road to
the facility is a half-mile long, privately owned road that is
currently unpaved. Based on information from IHS, CBO estimates
that purchasing and paving the road would cost about $1 million
over the 2021-2026 period, assuming appropriation of the
necessary amounts. In addition, the bill would authorize the
Secretary to either maintain the road on an ongoing basis or
come to an agreement with the local county to maintain the
road. Based on information about the cost of road maintenance,
a newly paved road of this length would require less than
$500,000 for maintenance costs over the 2021-2026 period.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Robert Stewart.
The estimate was reviewed by Leo Lex, Deputy Director of Budget
Analysis.
REGULATORY AND PAPERWORK IMPACT STATEMENT
Paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules of the
Senate requires each report accompanying a bill to evaluate the
regulatory and paperwork impact that would be incurred in
carrying out the bill. The Committee believes S. 144 will have
minimal impact on regulatory or paperwork requirements.
EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS
The Committee has received no communications from the
Executive Branch regarding S. 144.
CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW
On February 11, 2021, the Committee unanimously approved a
motion to waive subsection 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing
Rules of the Senate. In the opinion of the Committee, it is
necessary to dispense with subsection 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate to expedite the business of the
Senate.
[all]