[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 816 Referred in Senate (RFS)]
1st Session
H. R. 816
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 15, 2005
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and
Natural Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
AN ACT
To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to sell certain parcels of
National Forest System land in Carson City and Douglas County, Nevada.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Nevada National Forest Land Disposal
Act of 2005''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) The United States owns, and the Forest Service
administers, land in small and large parcels in Carson City and
Douglas County, Nevada.
(2) Much of this Federal land is interspersed with or
adjacent to private land, which renders the Federal land
difficult, inefficient, and expensive for the Forest Service to
manage and more appropriate for disposal.
(3) In order to promote responsible and orderly development
in Carson City and Douglas County, Nevada, appropriate parcels
of the Federal land should be sold by the Federal Government
based on recommendations made by units of local government and
the public.
(b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to provide for the sale of
certain parcels of National Forest System land in Carson City and
Douglas County, Nevada.
SEC. 3. DISPOSAL OF NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM LANDS, CARSON CITY AND
DOUGLAS COUNTY, NEVADA.
(a) Disposal Required.--The Secretary of Agriculture (in this
section referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall sell any right, title,
or interest of the United States in and to the following parcels of
National Forest System lands in Carson City or Douglas County, Nevada:
(1) The parcel of land referred to as the ``Carson
Parcel'', consisting of approximately 3 acres, and more
particularly described as being a portion of the southeast
quarter, section 31, township 15 north, range 20 east, Mount
Diablo Base and Meridian.
(2) The parcel of land referred to as the ``Jacks Valley/
Highway 395 Parcel'', consisting of approximately 28 acres, and
more particularly described as being a portion of the northwest
quarter of the southeast quarter, section 6, township 14 north,
range 20 east, Mount Diablo Base and Meridian.
(3) The parcel of land referred to as the ``Indian Hills
Parcel'', consisting of approximately 75 acres, and more
particularly described as being a portion of the southwest
quarter, section 18, township 14 north, range 20 east, Mount
Diablo Base and Meridian.
(4) The parcel of land referred to as the ``Mountain House
Area Parcel'', consisting of approximately 40 acres, and more
particularly described as being a portion of the northwest
quarter of the northeast quarter, section 12, township 10
north, range 21 east, Mount Diablo Base and Meridian.
(5) The parcel of land referred to as the ``Holbrook
Junction Area Parcel'', consisting of approximately 80 acres,
and more particularly described as being a portion of the west
half of the southwest quarter, section 7, township 10 north,
range 22 east, Mount Diablo Base and Meridian.
(6) The two parcels of land referred to as the ``Topaz Lake
Parcels'', consisting of approximately 5 acres (approximately
2.5 acres per parcel), and more particularly described as being
portions of the northwest quarter, section 29, township 10
north, range 22 east, Mount Diablo Base and Meridian.
(b) Modification of Descriptions.--The Secretary may--
(1) correct typographical or clerical errors in the
descriptions of land specified in subsection (a); and
(2) for the purposes of soliciting offers for the sale of
such land, modify the descriptions based on--
(A) a survey; or
(B) a determination by the Secretary that the
modification is in the best interest of the public.
(c) Selection and Sale.--
(1) Coordination.--The Secretary shall coordinate the sale
of land under this section with the unit of local government in
which the land is located.
(2) Existing rights.--The sale of land under this section
shall be subject to all valid existing rights, such as rights-
of-way, in effect as of the date of the sale. In the case of
the parcel described in subsection (a)(2), all access rights in
and to United States Highway 395, together with any and all
abutter's rights adjacent to the westerly right-of-way line of
such highway, within the parcel shall be restricted.
(3) Zoning laws.--The sale of land under this section shall
be in accordance with local land use planning and zoning laws
and regulations.
(4) Solicitations of offers.--The Secretary shall solicit
offers for the sale of land under this section, subject to any
terms or conditions that the Secretary may prescribe. The
Secretary may reject any offer made under this section if the
Secretary determines that the offer is not adequate or not in
the public interest.
(5) Method of sale.--The Secretary shall sell the land
described in subsection (a) at public auction.
(d) Disposition of Proceeds.--
(1) Payments and deposits.--Of the gross proceeds from any
sale of land under this section, the Secretary shall--
(A) pay five percent to the State of Nevada for use
for the general education program of the State;
(B) pay five percent to the Carson Water
Subconservancy District in the State;
(C) deposit 25 percent in the fund established
under Public Law 90-171 (commonly known as the ``Sisk
Act''; 16 U.S.C. 484a); and
(D) retain and use, without further appropriation,
the remaining funds for the purpose of expanding the
Minden Interagency Dispatch Center in Minden, Nevada,
as provided in paragraph (3).
(2) Use of sisk act funds.--The amounts deposited under
paragraph (1)(C) shall be available to the Secretary until
expended, without further appropriation, for the following
purposes:
(A) Reimbursement of costs incurred by the local
offices of the Forest Service in carrying out land
sales under this section, except that the total amount
of reimbursement may not exceed 10 percent of the total
proceeds of the lands sales.
(B) The development and maintenance of parks,
trails, and natural areas in Carson City, Douglas
County, or Washoe County, Nevada, in accordance with a
cooperative agreement entered into with the unit of
local government in which the park, trail, or natural
area is located.
(3) Minden interagency dispatch center.--The Minden
Interagency Dispatch Center is located on land made available
by the State of Nevada in Minden, Nevada, and will serve as a
joint facility for the Forest Service and the Nevada Division
of Forestry for the purpose of fighting wildland fires. The
expansion of the center shall include living quarters and
office space for the Blackmountain Hotshot Crew, a guard
station for housing engines and patrol vehicles, an air traffic
control tower, a training facility, and a warehouse.
(4) Limitation.--None of the amounts made available to the
Carson Water Subconservancy District under paragraph (1)(B)
shall be used to pay the costs of litigation.
(e) Relation to Other Property Management Laws.--The land described
in subsection (a) shall not be subject to chapter 5 of title 40, United
States Code.
(f) Withdrawal.--Subject to valid existing rights, all Federal land
described in subsection (a) is withdrawn from location, entry, and
patent under the public land laws, mining laws, and mineral leasing
laws, including geothermal leasing laws.
(g) Revocation of Public Land Orders.--
(1) In general.--To facilitate the sale of parcels of land
described in subsection (a), the Secretary shall revoke any
public land orders in existence on the date of the enactment of
this Act that withdraw the parcels from all forms of
appropriation under the public land laws, to the extent that
the orders apply to land described in such subsection (a).
(2) Effective date.--A revocation under paragraph (1) shall
be effective on the date on which the instrument conveying the
parcels of land subject to the public land order is executed.
(h) Report.--The Secretary shall submit to the Committee on
Agriculture and the Committee on Resources of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and
Forestry of the Senate an annual report on all land sales made under
this section.
Passed the House of Representatives March 14, 2005.
Attest:
JEFF TRANDAHL,
Clerk.