United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 2001-09-10 monographic deposited born digital GA 1.13:GAO-01-882 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-882 P0b002ee18038694a f:d01882 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-23 GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-882 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-882 GAO-01-882 Fair market value Land management Land transfers Other Written Product A01421

Since 1781, the federal government has transferred or sold about 1.1 billion acres to nonfederal entities under various initiatives that promoted general economic development, developed transportation systems, supported public schools, and encouraged settlement of the western frontier. Today, the Department of the Interior's Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Department of Agriculture's Forest Service administer about seventy percent of the 657 million acres that remain in federal ownership. These agencies continue to transfer and sell federal land, now under more limited circumstances and usually at the request of nonfederal entities; for example, a community wanting to develop a public park, a nonprofit group wanting land for a shooting range, or a neighboring homeowner wanting to obtain clear property title after mistakenly building part of his residence on federal land. During fiscal years 1991 through 2000, BLM alone was authorized by law to transfer land. BLM transferred about 79,000 acres during this period under four key statutes and received about $3 million. BLM and the Forest Service are both authorized by law to sell land and are directed by law to receive at least fair market value when they do so; BLM has broader authority and has sold much more land, about 56, 000 acres under three key statutes, receiving about $74 million. In contrast, the Forest Service sold only about 2,000 acres, all noncompetitively, during this period and received about $5 million, under two key statutes. When BLM and Forest Service sold land, they both generally received at least the appraised value. BLM generally offered land for competitive sale when agency personnel believed there to be more than one potential buyer for the parcel. In these sales, the agency used appraised values as starting bids--that is, as minimum sale prices--and received prices that were, on average, about eighteen percent higher than the appraised values. When BLM or the Forest Service sold land noncompetitively, they generally set the sale price at the appraised value. Some of the parcels the agencies sold noncompetitively might have been more appropriately offered for competitive sale, and in some of the noncompetitive sales, the appraised value underestimated the fair market value because it was not based on the land's current or planned use. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-882/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-882.htm GAO-01-882 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-882 Other Written Product GAO-01-882; BLM and the Forest Service: Federal Taxpayers Could Benefit More From Land Sales; Fair market value Land management Land transfers Title 16 Section 478a Title 16 Section 521c 16 U.S.C. 478a 16 U.S.C. 521c Title 43 Section 1068 Title 43 Section 1713 Title 43 Section 1721 Title 43 Section 178 Title 43 Section 321et seq. Title 43 Section 869et seq. Title 43 Section 992 Title 43 Section 993 Title 43 Section 994 43 U.S.C. 1068 43 U.S.C. 1713 43 U.S.C. 1721 43 U.S.C. 178 43 U.S.C. 321et seq. 43 U.S.C. 869et seq. 43 U.S.C. 992 43 U.S.C. 993 43 U.S.C. 994 Volume 68 Page 789 68 Stat. 789 Volume 76 Page 89 76 Stat. 89 Volume 94 Page 3381 94 Stat. 3381 Volume 112 Page 50 Volume 112 Page 2698 112 Stat. 50 112 Stat. 2698 Volume 113 Page 1501A 113 Stat. 1501A Volume 114 Page 613 Volume 114 Page 1299 Volume 114 Page 1983 Volume 114 Page 2512 Volume 114 Page 3068 114 Stat. 613 114 Stat. 1299 114 Stat. 1983 114 Stat. 2512 114 Stat. 3068 Public Law 96-586 Public Law 105-171 Public Law 105-263 Public Law 105-282 Public Law 106-113 Public Law 106-248 Public Law 106-330 Public Law 106-458 Public Law 106-526 Public Law 106-577