[106th Congress Public Law 257]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
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[DOCID: f:publ257.106]
[[Page 650]]
OREGON LAND EXCHANGE ACT OF 2000
[[Page 114 STAT. 650]]
Public Law 106-257
106th Congress
An Act
To provide for the exchange of certain land in the State of
Oregon. <<NOTE: Aug. 8, 2000 - [S. 1629]>>
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled, <<NOTE: Oregon Land
Exchange Act of 2000.>>
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Oregon Land Exchange Act of 2000''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that--
(1) certain parcels of private land located in northeast
Oregon are intermingled with land owned by the United States and
administered--
(A) by the Secretary of the Interior as part of the
Central Oregon Resource Area in the Prineville Bureau of
Land Management District and the Baker Resource Area in
the Vale Bureau of Land Management District; and
(B) by the Secretary of Agriculture as part of the
Malheur National Forest, the Wallowa-Whitman National
Forest, and the Umatilla National Forest;
(2) the surface estate of the private land described in
paragraph (1) is intermingled with parcels of land that are
owned by the United States or contain valuable fisheries and
wildlife habitat desired by the United States;
(3) the consolidation of land ownerships will facilitate
sound and efficient management for both public and private
lands;
(4) the improvement of management efficiency through the
land tenure adjustment program of the Department of the
Interior, which disposes of small isolated tracts having low
public resource values within larger blocks of contiguous
parcels of land, would serve important public objectives,
including--
(A) the enhancement of public access, aesthetics,
and recreation opportunities within or adjacent to
designated wild and scenic river corridors;
(B) the protection and enhancement of habitat for
threatened, endangered, and sensitive species within
unified landscapes under Federal management; and
(C) the consolidation of holdings of the Bureau of
Land Management and the Forest Service--
(i) to facilitate more efficient
administration, including a reduction in
administrative costs to the United States; and
[[Page 114 STAT. 651]]
(ii) to reduce right-of-way, special use, and
other permit processing and issuance for roads and
other facilities on Federal land;
(5) time is of the essence in completing a land exchange
because further delays may force the identified landowners to
construct roads in, log, develop, or sell the private land and
thereby diminish the public values for which the private land is
to be acquired; and
(6) it is in the public interest to complete the land
exchanges at the earliest practicable date so that the land
acquired by the United States can be preserved for--
(A) protection of threatened and endangered species
habitat; and
(B) permanent public use and enjoyment.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
As used in this Act--
(1) the term ``Clearwater'' means Clearwater Land Exchange--
Oregon, an Oregon partnership that signed the document entitled
``Assembled Land Exchange Agreement between the Bureau of Land
Management and Clearwater Land Exchange--Oregon for the
Northeast Oregon Assembled Lands Exchange, OR 51858'', dated
October 30, 1996, and the document entitled ``Agreement to
initiate'' with the Forest Service, dated June 30, 1995, or its
successors or assigns;
(2) the term ``identified landowners'' means private
landowners identified by Clearwater and willing to exchange
private land for Federal land in accordance with this Act;
(3) the term ``map'' means the map entitled ``Northeast
Oregon Assembled Land Exchange/Triangle Land Exchange'', dated
November 5, 1999; and
(4) the term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of the
Interior or the Secretary of Agriculture, as appropriate.
SEC. 4. BLM--NORTHEAST OREGON ASSEMBLED LAND EXCHANGE.
(a) In General.--Upon the request of Clearwater, on behalf of the
appropriate identified landowners, the Secretary of the Interior shall
exchange the Federal lands described in subsection (b) for the private
lands described in subsection (c), as provided in section 6.
(b) BLM Lands To Be Conveyed.--The parcels of Federal lands to be
conveyed by the Secretary to the appropriate identified landowners are
as follows--
(1) the parcel comprising approximately 45,824 acres located
in Grant County, Oregon, within the Central Oregon Resource Area
in the Prineville District of the Bureau of Land Management, as
generally depicted on the map;
(2) the parcel comprising approximately 2,755 acres located
in Wheeler County, Oregon, within the Central Oregon Resource
Area in the Prineville District of the Bureau of Land
Management, as generally depicted on the map;
(3) the parcel comprising approximately 726 acres located in
Morrow County, Oregon, within the Baker Resource Area of the
Vale District of Land Management, as generally depicted on the
map; and
(4) the parcel comprising approximately 1,015 acres located
in Umatilla County, Oregon, within the Baker Resource Area
[[Page 114 STAT. 652]]
in the Vale District of the Bureau of Land Management, as
generally depicted on the map.
(c) Private Lands To Be Acquired.--The parcel of private lands to be
conveyed by the appropriate identified landowners to the Secretary are
as follows--
(1) the parcel comprising approximately 31,646 acres located
in Grant County, Oregon, within the Central Oregon Resource Area
in the Prineville District of the Bureau of Land Management, as
generally depicted on the map;
(2) the parcel comprising approximately 1,960 acres located
in Morrow County, Oregon, within the Baker Resource Area in the
Vale District of the Bureau of Land Management, as generally
depicted on the map; and
(3) the parcel comprising approximately 10,544 acres located
in Umatilla County, Oregon, within the Baker Resource Area in
the Vale District of the Bureau of Land Management, as generally
depicted on the map.
SEC. 5. FOREST SERVICE--TRIANGLE LAND EXCHANGE.
(a) In General.--Upon the request of Clearwater, on behalf of the
appropriate identified landowners, the Secretary of Agriculture shall
exchange the Federal lands described in subsection (b) for the private
lands described in subsection (c), as provided in section 6.
(b) Forest Service Lands To Be Conveyed.--The National Forest System
lands to be conveyed by the Secretary to the appropriate identified
landowners comprise approximately 3,901 acres located in Grant and
Harney Counties, Oregon, within the Malheur National Forest, as
generally depicted on the map.
(c) Private Lands To Be Acquired.--The parcels of private lands to
be conveyed by the appropriate identified landowners to the Secretary
are as follows--
(1) the parcel comprising approximately 3,752 acres located
in Grant and Harney Counties, Oregon, within the Malheur
National Forest, as generally depicted on the map;
(2) the parcel comprising approximately 1,702 acres located
in Baker and Grant Counties, Oregon, within the Wallowa-Whitman
National Forest, as generally depicted on the map; and
(3) the parcel comprising approximately 246 acres located in
Grant and Wallowa Counties, Oregon, within or adjacent to the
Umatilla National Forest, as generally depicted on the map.
SEC. 6. LAND EXCHANGE TERMS AND CONDITIONS.
(a) In General.--Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the land
exchanges implemented by this Act shall be conducted in accordance with
section 206 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (43 U.S.C.
1716) and other applicable laws.
(b) Multiple Transactions.--The Secretary of the Interior and the
Secretary of Agriculture may carry out a single or multiple transactions
to complete the land exchanges authorized in this Act.
(c) <<NOTE: Deadline.>> Completion of Exchanges.--Any land exchange
under this Act shall be completed not later than 90 days after the
Secretary and Clearwater reach an agreement on the final appraised
values of the lands to be exchanged.
[[Page 114 STAT. 653]]
(d) Appraisals.--(1) The values of the lands to be exchanged under
this Act shall be determined by appraisals using nationally recognized
appraisal standards, including as appropriate--
(A) the Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land
Acquisitions (1992); and
(B) the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal
Practice.
(2) To ensure the equitable and uniform appraisal of the lands to be
exchanged under this Act, all appraisals shall determine the best use of
the lands in accordance with the law of the State of Oregon, including
use for the protection of wild and scenic river characteristics as
provided in the Oregon Administrative Code.
(3)(A) <<NOTE: Deadline.>> all appraisals of lands to be exchanged
under this Act shall be completed, reviewed and submitted to the
Secretary not later than 90 days after the date Clearwater requests the
exchange.
(B) <<NOTE: Public information.>> Not less than 45 days before an
exchange of lands under this Act is completed, a comprehensive summary
of each appraisal for the specific lands to be exchanged shall be
available for public inspection in the appropriate Oregon offices of the
Secretary, for a 15-day period.
(4) After the Secretary approves the final appraised values of any
parcel of the lands to be conveyed under this Act, the value of such
parcel shall not be reappraised or updated before the completion of the
applicable land exchange, except for any adjustments in value that may
be required under subsection (e)(2).
(e) Equal Value Land Exchange.--(1)(A) The value of the lands to be
exchanged under this Act shall be equal, or if the values are not equal,
they shall be equalized in accordance with section 206(b) of the Federal
Land Policy and Management Act (43 U.S.C. 1716(b)) or this subsection.
(B) The Secretary shall retain any cash equalization payments
received under subparagraph (A) to use, without further appropriation,
to purchase land from willing sellers in the State of Oregon for
addition to lands under the administration of the Bureau of Land
Management or the Forest Service, as appropriate.
(2) If the value of the private lands exceeds the value of the
Federal lands by 25 percent or more, Clearwater, after consultation with
the affected identified landowners and the Secretary, shall withdraw a
portion of the private lands necessary to equalize the values of the
lands to be exchanged.
(3) If any of the private lands to be acquired do not include the
rights to the subsurface estate, the Secretary may reserve the
subsurface estate in the Federal lands to be exchanged.
(f) Land Titles.--(1) Title to the private lands to be conveyed to
the Secretary shall be in a form acceptable to the Secretary.
(2) The Secretary shall convey all right, title, and interest of the
United States in the Federal lands to the appropriate identified
landowners, except to the extent the Secretary reserves the subsurface
estate under subsection (c)(2).
(g) Management of Lands.--(1) Lands acquired by the Secretary of the
Interior under this Act shall be administered in accordance with
sections 205(c) of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (43 U.S.C.
1715(c)), and lands acquired by the Secretary of Agriculture shall be
administered in accordance with sections 205(d) of such Act (43 U.S.C.
1715(d)).
(2) Lands acquired by the Secretary of the Interior pursuant to
section 4 which are within the North Fork of the John Day
[[Page 114 STAT. 654]]
subwatershed shall be administered in accordance with section 205(c) of
the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (43 U.S.C. 1715(c)), but
shall be managed primarily for the protection of native fish and
wildlife habitat, and for public recreation. The Secretary may permit
other authorized uses within the subwatershed if the Secretary
determines, through the appropriate land use planning process, that such
uses are consistent with, and do not diminish these management purposes.
SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There is authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary
to carry out this Act.
Approved August 8, 2000.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY--S. 1629:
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HOUSE REPORTS: No. 106-747 (Comm. on Resources).
SENATE REPORTS: No. 106-248 (Comm. on Energy and Natural Resources).
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 146 (2000):
Apr. 13, considered and passed Senate.
July 25, considered and passed House.
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