[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 247 (Tuesday, December 26, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66780-66795]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-31214]



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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Title to Forest Lieu Selection Lands

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice sets forth the Agency's Nationally Significant 
lands List which identifies lands to be retained by the United States 
as part of the national Forest System; and the Final List Of Lands 
Quitclaimed By The United States in compliance with steps three and 
four of a 5-step procedure imposed by the Act of July 2, 1993. 
Following publication of this notice the Agency will file in the 
appropriate county office a disclaimer of interest for the parcels on 
the Final List Of Lands Quitclaimed By The United States.

EFFECTIVE DATE: This notice is effective December 26, 1995.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
J. Kenneth Myers, Lands Staff, Forest Service, USDA, P.O. Box 96090, 
Washington, D.C. 20090-6090, (202) 205-1248.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Certain provisions of the Act of June 4, 1897 (16 U.S.C. 473-475; 
the Organic Administration Act), which provided for the management of 
the forest reserves of the United States, included a provision known as 
``forest lieu selection.'' Under that provision, persons who had 
patented public land, or a claimant to such land, which fell within a 
proclaimed forest reserve boundary in the western United States, were 
authorized to convey or relinquish their land or claim to such land 
(``base land'') to the United States and to select an equal acreage of 
vacant public land open to settlement (``in-lieu land''). The forest 
reserves were renamed as national forests in 1905.
    In 1905, Congress repealed the forest lieu selection authorization, 
but protected previously made contracts and claims. This protection 
preserved the rights of those persons who had relinquished their 
inholdings by providing a deed to the United States, but who had not 
yet realized or exercised their selection rights under the forest lieu 
selection provision of the Organic Administration Act. In legislation 
enacted in 1922 and 1930, Congress provided further opportunity to 
resolve remaining claims by authorizing reconveyance of the base lands 
back to the former owners or their heirs or assigns. Consequently, most 
of the claims for in-lieu land were resolved.
    However, Congress became concerned about allegations of abuse of 
the provisions of the 1930 Act, which by the 1950's was leading to 
reconveyance of valuable national forest and national park lands. In 
1960, legislation was enacted to provide for compensation to people who 
had not received appropriate relief under the prior acts. Section 4 of 
the 1960 Act repealed the 1930 Act and sought to close all unresolved 
claims under the 1897 Act. The legislation provided that any base lands 
for which payment was made, or any base lands for which payment might 
have been made but for which no demand was made, would become a part of 
appropriate national forest, national park, or other Federal area. 
However, no payments were made under the 1960 Act, continuing the 
unresolved title status of some of the base lands.
    Thus, most of these base lands with questionable title have 
continued to be considered part of the national forests, although some 
have been continuously occupied by private parties since before 1960. 
Other base lands have been the subject of court decisions, raising 
further questions about the United States' claim of title.
    In the mid-1980's, the Forest Service, pursuant to a request from 
Congress, compiled a list of grantors and base lands relinquished to 
the United States under the 1897 Act provision for which selection or 
other rights were not realized or exercised. This list was submitted to 
the 98th Congress and was used by it and subsequent Congresses for 
deliberations on legislation eventually enacted as the Act of July 2, 
1993.
    The 1993 Act was enacted to finally resolve the title status of the 
remaining base lands, using a 5-step procedure to either retain or 
quitclaim all right, title, and interest in and to the base lands. The 
first step in the 5-step procedure, which required the Secretary of 
Agriculture, acting through the Forest Service, to compile and publish 
an initial list of base lands in the Federal Register, was completed by 
the Agency on December 30, 1993 (58 FR 69321). Copies of relevant 
portions of the December 30, 1993, Federal Register were distributed to 
interested parties and appropriate federal, state, and county offices. 
The Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of Land 
Management, also published an initial list of base lands located on 
public lands administered by that Agency on December 30, 1993.
    Step two, which provided a 180-day comment period ending July 2, 
1994, allowed persons to submit information on parcels not included in 
the Initial List but believed to meet the conditions set forth in the 
Act for review and possible addition to the Initial List. Numerous 
comments were submitted by individuals or their representatives 
informing the Agency of their claim or interest in parcels already 
included on the Initial List and requesting the 

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Agency to provide them with a copy of future notices concerning the 
Act. Other comments identified specific lands and requested that they 
be added to the Initial List. The Agency determined that five such 
parcels met the conditions of the Act and were thereby added to the 
Initial List. The parcels added to the Initial list during the review 
period are Arizona 30 and 53, Idaho 5, New Mexico 23, and Oregon 2a. 
Specific details on Arizona 30 and New Mexico 23 are identified in this 
notice in TABLE 1, Nationally Significant Lands List, while the details 
on Arizona 53, Idaho 5, and Oregon 2a are identified in this notice in 
TABLE 2, Final List of Lands Quitclaimed By the United States.
    During the public review and comment period the Agency identified 
numerous errors in the Initial List. These errors, which consisted 
primarily of typographical errors in legal descriptions and the 
placement of parcels in the incorrect meridian or county, have been 
corrected and are displayed as corrected in this notice. The 
information under the heading ``DEED BOOK'' and ``VOL PAGE'' was 
included in the Initial List to afford interested parties the 
opportunity to research county records on Parcel information. Since 
this information is no longer needed it is not included in this notice.
    The Agency also identified several parcels or portions of parcels 
on the Initial List which did not meet the conditions of the Act and 
therefore do not appear on either the National Significant Lands List 
or the Final List of Lands Quitclaimed By the United States. Eliminated 
from the Initial List in their entirety are: California Parcel 96, 
which is a duplicate of California Parcel 95: Utah Parcel 16, which was 
never relinquished to the United States; Utah Parcel 17, which is a 
perfected lieu selection; and Wyoming Parcel 22, the status of which 
Congress previously addressed by Private Law 89-281 and the United 
States quitclaimed its interest by deed dated December 12, 1966. 
Eliminated in part from the Initial List are: a portion of Arizona 
Parcel 12 in section 29 due to a typographical error; the SWSW of 
section 8 of South Dakota Parcel 51 which was never relinquished to the 
United States , and the SWSW of section 8 of South Dakota Parcel 56, 
which is within the boundaries of the Mount Rushmore National Memorial 
and under the jurisdiction of the Department of the Interior.
    Steps 3 and 4 require the compilation, publication, and 
distribution of a list of nationally significant lands to be retained 
by the United States and a final list of lands to be disclaimed by the 
United States. This notice, which contains Table 1, Nationally 
Significant Lands List, and Table 2, Final List of Lands Quitclaimed By 
The United States, completes the Federal Register publication 
requirements of the Act. Preparation of these tables has been 
coordinated with the Bureau of Land Management.
    The tables present the information grouped by State, by meridian, 
and by county. The first column identifies the parcel of base land by 
an agency identifier (PARCEL ID NO.). The second column lists the names 
of the individual or entity that relinquished base lands to the United 
States under the 1897 Act (GRANTOR NAME). Columns 3 through 7 show the 
legal description of the base lands by Township (T), Range (R), section 
(sec.), and the legal subdivisions of the section. The standard 
procedure for identifying legal subdivisions has been modified for 
brevity. For example, the south one-half of the north one-half of a 
section is SN, the south one-half of the northeast one-quarter of the 
southwest one-quarter of a section is SNESW, the east one-half of the 
southeast one-quarter is ESE, and so fourth. Column 8 shows the acres, 
rounded to the nearest acre, associated with the legal description of 
the parcel.

Nationally Significant Lands List Title to Which is Confirmed in the 
United States

(Step 3)

    TABLE 1, at the end of this notice, presents the list of lands 
removed from the Initial List and determined by the Agency to be 
nationally significant lands. This is the final identification of lands 
to be retained by the United States. In accordance with the provisions 
of SEC. 2(c)(2) of the Act, all right, title, and interest, in and to 
the lands identified in TABLE 1, Nationally Significant Lands List, and 
not previously vested in the United States, are vested and confirmed in 
the United States.
    Anyone claiming that any lands identified in TABLE 1, Nationally 
Significant Lands List is a ``taking'' of property has one year from 
the date of this publication to file a petition in the United States 
Court of Federal Claims for monetary compensation under the Act.
    Identification of nationally significant lands does not of itself 
entitle any party to compensation. The burden is on the claimant to 
prove a compensable taking claim.

Final List of Lands Quitclaimed by the United States

(Step 4)

    TABLE 2, at the end of this notice, presents the Final List of 
Lands Quitclaimed By the United States in accordance with the 
provisions of SEC. 2(a) of the Act. Pursuant to the Act the United 
States quitclaims to the listed owner or entryman, his heirs, devisees, 
successors, and assigns, all right, title, and interest of the United 
States in and to the land described in TABLE 2, Final List of Lands 
Quitclaimed By the United States, effective on the date of this notice.

Issuance of Disclaimer of Interest

(Step 5)

    The Agency will, within 6 months of the date of this notice, issue 
documents of disclaimer confirming the quitclaiming of all right, 
title, and interest of the United States in and to the base lands 
included in TABLE 2, Final List of Lands Quitclaimed By the United 
States, subject to valid existing rights, to the listed grantors, their 
heirs, devises, successors, and assigns. The documents of disclaimer 
will be recorded in appropriate county, Agency, and Bureau of Land 
Management records. These documents may further describe the lands 
quitclaimed where the legal descriptions listed in Table 2 are 
identified as a part or portion of an aliquot part.
    The acceptance of benefits under the Act of July 2, 1993, (Pub. L. 
103-48), or failure to seek benefits provided under this Act within the 
time allotted with respect to any base lands or other lands, will be 
considered a waiver of any claim against the United States with respect 
to those lands or to any revenues therefrom.

    Dated: December 19, 1995.
David G. Unger,
Associate Chief.

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[FR Doc. 95-31214 Filed 12-22-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-C