PRIORITY LAND ACQUISITIONS, LAND EXCHANGES , AND MAINTENANCE

Amendment No. 163: Modifies language proposed by

the

Sen-

ate

that

prr>vides

funding for priority

land acquisitions and

ex-

changes.

The House had no similar provision.

The modifications to

the Senate language provide for

a total fund of $699,000,000 and

make a portion of these moneys

available

for

critical maintenance

needs.

The managers have provided

funds for high pr~o~ity l~nd ac- quisitions

and exchanges

as requested by the Administration

de-

spite serious reservations

about two particular acquisitions the

Headwaters Forest in

California and the Crown Butte/New World

Mine in Montana

(near Yellowstone National Park). Because of the

many uncertainties surrounding

these acquisitions the managers

102

have agreed to bill language outlining the specific requirements that must be met before the acquisitions can be consummated.

The

managers agree that legislation authorizing the Head- waters Forest acquisition should require a current appraisal, re- quire a completed Environmental Impact Statement on the habitat conservation plan cap t e Federal commitment at the negotiated

$250,000,000, address the issue of publ·c access and require that the State of Califor11ia's $130,000,000 cost share be available before release of the Federal funds. The managers, at the request of the Administration, have agreed that the ecretary of the nterior may

issue an opinion of value for the acquisition. The Secretary's opin- ion of value may erve as the ba is fo the acquisitio price but ^any difference between the appra · ed va e and the Secretary's opinion of va ue s ould be expla·ned ¹ⁿ writi g to the Co mittee on Re-

ourc s of the ou e of Rep esenta iv s, the enate Comm · · t · e on nergy and at ral Resource and the ouse and enate Commit- tees on Appropriat·on .

unding for the ew Wo ld ine acqu1s"t on capped at 65 000,000 and the anag r e ve s acqui "tio a o ould have a c · ent apprai l T e ecre ary of gr· c tu e may i su a opinion of val e fo he acquis · ion. The ecretary' op n · o of value ^may erve as the basi for he acquisit"o price but ^{any f-}

ence betw en th pp ^a· d al · a d e ecre· a val ation ho ld be e pain d in wr ting to ^t e Co it on so c of the e of ep e e tat'"ve , e e a e Comm"tte on ne gy

n a ra e ou ces and o and nat Co i t s on App opriations

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103

nance

funds to the Committees for approval following reprogram- ming

procedures.

The managers encourage the Secretaries

to

em-

phasize

the critical maintenance backlogs that they have identified

on

the

public lands,

which total more than $2 billion for the Forest

Service and

approximately $7 billion for the land management

agencies

in the

Department

of the Interior. Requests for additions

to

the

public lands

base should be evaluated carefully, and priority

should be given

to those acquisitions which complete

a

unit, con-

solidate lands for

more efficient management, or address critical re-

source needs.

The funds provided for

a

payment

to Humboldt County and the

funds provided for repair

and maintenance of the Beartooth High-

way are included

because

of

the unusual circumstances associated

with

the

Federal acquisition

of the Headwaters Forest and the

Crown Butte mining interests.

The managers do not intend Land

and Water

Conservation Fund moneys to be used for these pur-

poses in the future nor

to

imply that Federal land acquisitions enti- tle local or State governments

to mitigation payments either from the

Land and Water Conservation

Fund or from other sources.

Major Land Acquisitions Authorization for Headwaters Forest and Crown Butte Properties. Sections 501 through 504 authorize

two land acquisitions requested

by the Administration, to be fund-

ed from

the Land

and Water

Conservation Fund the Crown Butte

acquisition in

Montana

and

the Headwaters Forest acquisition in

California. The

managers

have

provided, in section 504, a 180-day

review period during which

the authorizing committees will exam-

ine

the issues associated with these transactions and recommend

any appropriate changes

to the relevant statutory language con-

tained herein. The managers

believe that it is appropriate that a

more measured

and thorough review of

these

complex and costly

acquisitions be

undertaken by the legislative committees of juris-

diction during

the

180

day review period. The managers have

agreed

to

allow

amendments that are reported from

the

authoriz-

ing committees

within the 180 days to be incorporated into

the

an- ticipated fiscal year 1998 supplemental appropriations bill. That

bill

is expected to be available as early as February 1998. Mter

the

180 day

review, if no modifications have been enacted,

the funds appropriated

by this Act are authorized

to

be spent, consistent with the

requirements

set forth in this title.

The

managers are concerned that

the

government not pay

more

than fair value for the Crown Butte and Headwaters

Forest

properties.

The managers expect that

at least

30 days. prior

to ^e~e­

cuting

each of these transactions, the

Secretary of

Agriculture,

with respect

to the Crown Butte acquisition, and

the Secret~!!' .of the

In- terior, with respect to the Headwaters.

Forest acquisition, shall issue

an opinion of value

to the Committee .on

Resources

of the

House of Representatives,

the Senate Committee o~ ~nergy

and Natural Resources and

the

Committees

on Appropriations of the House

and Senate

'for the

land

and

property

to be acquired by the

~ederal

government in each

tral?-?action. The re.spective Secretary

1s

expected to assume responsibility

for the basis and accuracy of

the opinion.

.

.

Head waters Forest.

Subsection (a ) of section 501 ~onta1ns the

authority for up

to $250 million to be spent for acquisition of the

•

•

-

104

Headwaters Forest and a clause ensuring that any substantial ex- pansion of the forest be specifically authorized.

Subsection

(b) makes the

authorization effective

until March

1, 1999 consistent with the anticipated timetable for completion

of

the Headwaters Forest Agreement. This leaves some latitude for unforeseen delays while providing a date certain for the trans-

actions authorized. This subsection also makes the authorization contingent on the following conditions: ⁽¹⁾ the State of California must provide its share of the cost (2 the State must approve the Pacific Lumber Company's sustained-yield plan, (3) the Pacific Lumber Company must withdraw two lawsuits, (4) an incidental take per1r1it is issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the ational Marine Fisheries Service, ' 5 there must be an appraisal, (6 to the extent the purchase price is d·fferent than the appraised value, he difference must be explained in writing to the

Commit tee on Re

ources

of the House of Rep

esentat1ves, the

Senate Com-

mittee on Energy a d atura Re ource and the ouse and Sen-

ate Committees on ppropriations (7 there m · t be a completed en ·ro mental impact statement o the habitat conservation plan and ful compl"a ce ith th atio al v onmental olicy ct, and ^{(8 t} er mu

t

be adeq ate provision for p b ·c access The au-

ho

1z ·

g co m·t e can exam e the statu

of

ach co "tion dur- Ing the · 80 da rev·e pe iod ^pec~fi d n ct·on 04.

ub ion (c per1r1· th a

ater o

^t

to b

acq ·red o a valu ^w 'ch d1f r f om he pp a· al · he ecretary of the

·or ce i ^{1 ·} i · ng o o g at uch ac io i in the

t

of the ite a e .

t in fac11· tat ¹ uanc o a o nd cie ce by re-

q a d e ecreta o Co -

e ie 1fic nd gal da d e e o · e and

t

e ¹ c ·-

d ci ct nd it imple a d fo 1

t

d c·

p h ov . g

p ^{Cl -..&·} da

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105

public safety costs associated with the controversy surrounding the Headwaters Forest.

Subsection (f) ensures that the Federal portion of the Head- waters Forest is considered Federal land for purposes of payments in lieu of taxes.

Subsection (g) limits the amount of Federal funds (above the first $100,000) that can be used each year for managing the Head- waters Forest to fifty percent of the total cost of management. This will ensure that there will be cost-sharing with other entities such as the State of California, charitable trusts and conservation groups. Language authorizing acceptance of donations is included to facilitate such cost-sharing. It is anticipated that the State of California will assume its proportional share of land management costs, but substantial funds should come from charitable founda- tions and groups that have favored acquisition of the Headwaters Forest. The Administration has consistently maintained that Fed- eral funding needed for management of the Headwaters Forest will be minimal and that the State of California will participate in funding out-year activities associated with the acquired land. No detailed dollar figures were provided by the Administration for ac- tivities related to management of the forest. The authorized level of funding for the Federal portion of the Headwaters Forest has been set at $300,000, with an exception for law enforcement and emergencies. During the 180 day review period, the Administration should submit its financial plan for the Headwaters Forest to the authorizing and appropriations committees so that the committees can evaluate whether the authorized level of funding is appro- priate.

Subsection (h ) provides to the Secretary of the Interior, with concurrence of the Governor of California, authority to manage the

Headwaters Forest in a trust. Because the property will be ac- quired jointly by the State of California and the United States, a trust arrangement allowing for management participation by both parties through a board of trustees may be a useful way to struc- ture the relationship. This matter can be considered further during the 180 day review period and regularly thereafter.

Subsection (i) requires a concise management plan for the Headwaters Forest by the Secretary of the Interior or the Head- waters Trust once the Forest is acquired. The goals of the manage- ment plan, as stated by the Administration, should be to conserve

and study the land, and the fish, wildlife and forests occurring on such land, while providing recreation opportunities, scientific study, and other rr1anagement needs. Bill language is included to make clear that the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPAJ ap- plies to development and implementation of the management p_lan, notwithstanding the option to perform some of these functions through a trust. The Administration has stated that NEPA analJ:- ses are being developed for the proposed Headwaters Forest Habi- tat Conservation Plan. The managers believe that the ew World Mine acquisition also must comply with NEPA requirements The managers expect the relevant document~ .t~ be completed prior to consummation of each of these land acquisitions.

Subsection (j) provides the Secretary of the I~terior with the flexibility to develop cooperative arrangements with the State of

106

Califor11ia for land management, allowing .- hanng of goods, serv- ices, and pe _sonnel when it is mutually beneficial and in the best interest of the United States.

Consistent with the final rule designating critical habitat for the marbled murrelet, the managers under tand that when the _ CP - are completed and Incidental take pern1its for arbled murrelets issued, critical habitat will e lifted from th - private landowners whose I d · covered by the · cidental

t

^e per111it

Crown Butte Propertie .

Section 502 authorize the acquisition of land a d interests ·n land that were to be used for de·velopment of a mine in ontana, north of Yellowstone N at1onal ark. ·The ac- qu -sition is to be made s _ bject to he following conditions: ( ) a con- . ent decree has been lodged in he litigation regarding the cleanup of historical conta · at·o - in the N _w World M rung Distnct; (2) an appra· sal of th Cro _ . irun . i -res h .· b e · com- pi ^{t ·} d a d, to the extent th p 'rcha e price is diffi rent th.an the app a sed val · , th diffi renee must be expl ·n, d in wri 1ng to the Comm tee on Re o c of e · · u e of . _ · s nt t·v · ', th S n- ate Comm"ttee o - -- nergy a d a ·ura _ sourc a d th ou - . n · ena · ommit e on · pp o nato .; d ) he - · ire- me t of the at· onal ·.·. vi onm nta · ol·cy c. ha n f lfi I d.

h · ana er ve al o ·n·c rpora ed a pr vi ion from th Au-

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107

which the significant impact of the acquisition on State revenues could have been considered.

The managers expect the Secretary of the Interior, in consulta- tion with the Governor of Montana, to study potential mineral re- source development in Montana. This study should facilitate dis- cussions between the State of Montana and the Federal govern- ment regarding future coal and other mineral development in Mon- tana. The study should identify coal and other mineral assets that may be appropriate for transfer to the State of Montana. The study also should review opportunities for developing super compliance coal which meets the standards of Phase II of the Clean Air Act;

focus, in particular, on development opportunities in the Ashland, Birney, Decker area of Montana; and examine the issue and impact of the checker board ownership pattern in Montana on coal devel- opment. The managers note that no new Federal coal reserves, other than reserves near existing mines, have been made available

in Montana since 1969. ,

Section 504 provides a 180 day period during which neither the Headwaters Forest land acquisition nor the Crown Butte land ac- quisition may occur unless separate authorizing legislation is en- acted. Within 120 days of enactment, the Secretaries of Agriculture and the Interior must individually report to the Committee on Re- sources of the House of Representatives and the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on the status of their efforts to meet the conditions set forth in this title involving the acquisition of interests to protect and preserve the Headwaters Forest and to

protect and preserve Yellowstone National Park. For each day be- yond 120 days after enactment of this Act that the appraisals re- quired in subsections 501(b)(5) and 502(b)(2) are not provided to the Committee on Resources of the House of Representatives, the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations, the 180 day pe- riod is extended by one day.

Section 505 makes a technical correction to the Land and Water Conservation Fund statute to move a provision from title II to title I.

TITLE VI FOREST RESOURCES CONSERVATION AND