[House Report 106-846]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
106th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2d Session 106-846
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WILLING SELLER AMENDMENTS OF 2000 TO THE NATIONAL TRAILS SYSTEM ACT
_______
September 14, 2000.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on
the State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Young of Alaska, from the Committee on Resources, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 2267]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Resources, to whom was referred the bill
(H.R. 2267) to amend the National Trails System Act to clarify
Federal authority relating to land acquisition from willing
sellers for the majority of the trails, and for other purposes,
having considered the same, report favorably thereon with an
amendment and recommend that the bill as amended do pass.
The amendment is as follows:
Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Willing Seller Amendments of 2000 to
the National Trails System Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) In spite of commendable efforts by the governments of
States and political subdivisions of States and private
volunteer trail groups to develop, operate, and maintain the
national scenic and national historic trails (referred to in
this Act as the ``trails''), the rate of progress towards
developing and completing the trails is slower than
anticipated.
(2) Nine national scenic and historic trails were authorized
by Congress between 1978 and 1986 with restrictions totally
excluding Federal authority for land acquisition. To complete
these trails as intended by Congress, acquisition authority to
secure necessary rights-of-way and historic sites and segments,
limited to acquisition from willing sellers only, and
specifically excluding condemnation, should be extended to the
Secretary administering those trails.
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that in order to address the problems
involving multijurisdictional authority over the national trails
system, the head of each Federal agency with jurisdiction over an
individual trail should--
(1) cooperate with appropriate officials of States and
political subdivisions of States and private persons with an
interest in the trails to pursue the development of the trails;
and
(2) be granted sufficient authority to purchase lands from
willing sellers that are critical to the completion of the
trails.
SEC. 4. INTENT.
It is the intent of Congress that lands or interests in lands for the
9 components of the National Trails System affected by this Act shall
only be acquired by the Federal Government from willing sellers.
SEC. 5. AMENDMENTS TO THE NATIONAL TRAILS SYSTEM ACT.
The National Trails System Act (16 U.S.C. 1241 et seq.) is amended--
(1) in section 5(a)--
(A) in the fourth sentence of paragraph (11)--
(i) by striking ``No lands or interest
therein outside the exterior'' and inserting
``No lands or interest in lands outside of the
exterior''; and
(ii) by inserting before the period the
following: ``without the consent of the owner
of the land or interest''; and
(B) in the fourth sentence of paragraph (14)--
(i) by striking ``No lands or interests
therein outside the exterior'' and inserting
``No land or interest in land outside of the
exterior''; and
(ii) by inserting before the period the
following: ``without the consent of the owner
of the land or interest''; and
(2) in section 10(c), by striking paragraph (1) and inserting
the following new paragraph:
``(c)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law (including any
other provision of this Act), no funds may be expended by the Federal
Government for the acquisition of any land or interest in land outside
of the exterior boundaries of existing Federal lands for the
Continental Divide National Scenic Trail, the North Country National
Scenic Trail, the Ice Age National Scenic Trail, the Potomac Heritage
National Scenic Trail, the Oregon National Historic Trail, the Mormon
Pioneer National Historic Trail, the Nez Perce National Historic Trail,
the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, or the Iditarod National
Historic Trail, except with the consent of the owner of the land or
interest. If the Federal Government fails to make payment in accordance
with a contract for sale of land or an interest in land transferred
under this paragraph, the seller may avail himself of all remedies
available under all applicable law, including electing to void the
sale.''.
Purpose of the Bill
The purpose of H.R. 2267 is to amend the National Trails
System Act to clarify Federal authority relating to land
acquisition from willing sellers for the majority of the
trails, and for other purposes.
Background and Need for Legislation
The National Trails System Act originally established 20
trails. Along nine of the 20 trails, the federal government is
not authorized to acquire any land outside of the exterior
boundaries of any federally-administered area. H.R. 2267 would
give the federal government the authority to purchase land from
willing sellers along these nine trails to secure necessary
rights-of-way and historic sites and segments. H.R. 2267
specifically provides that such purchase requires the consent
of the owner of the land or interest.
H.R. 2267 also assures that the land owner, if a willing
seller, is entitled to prompt compensation under the terms of
the sale contract. Specifically, the seller will be able to use
all remedies under the law if the federal government fails to
make payment in accordance with the contract for the sale of
land or interest. Remedies available to the seller include
voiding the sale.
The nine trails which will be affected by this legislation
are: the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail, the North
Country National Scenic Trail, the Ice Age National Scenic
Trail, the Potomac Heritage National Trail, the Oregon National
Historic Trail, the Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail, the
Nez Perce National Historic Trail, the Lewis and Clark National
Historic Trail, and the Iditarod National Historic Trail.
Committee Action
H.R. 2267 was introduced by Congressman Scott McInnis (R-
CO) on June 17, 1999. The bill was referred to the Committee on
Resources, and within the Committee to the Subcommittee on
National Parks and Public Lands. On May 9, 2000, the
Subcommittee held a hearing on the bill. On May 18, 2000, the
Subcommittee met to consider the bill. A technical amendment
was offered by Congressman James V. Hansen (R-UT). The
amendment was adopted by voice vote. No further amendments were
offered and the bill, as amended, was ordered favorably
reported to the Full Committee by voice vote. On July 26, 2000
the Resources Committee met to consider the bill. No amendments
were offered and the bill, as amended, was then ordered
favorably reported to the House of Representatives by unanimous
consent.
Committee Oversight Findings and Recommendations
Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the
Committee on Resources' oversight findings and recommendations
are reflected in the body of this report.
Constitutional Authority Statement
Article I, section 8 of the Constitution of the United
States grants Congress the authority to enact this bill.
Compliance With House Rule XIII
1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the
Rules of the House of Representatives requires an estimate and
a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be
incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(3)(B)
of that rule provides that this requirement does not apply when
the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted
cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the
Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
2. Congressional Budget Act. As required by clause 3(c)(2)
of rule XIII of the rules of the House of Representatives and
section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, this
bill does not contain any new budget authority, spending
authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in
revenues or tax expenditures.
3. Government Reform Oversight Findings. Under clause
3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives, the Committee has received no report of
oversight findings and recommendations from the Committee on
Government Reform on this bill.
4. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate. Under clause
3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives and section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act
of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate
for this bill from the Director of the Congressional Budget
Office:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, September 12, 2000.
Hon. Don Young,
Chairman, Committee on Resources,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 2267, the Willing
Seller Amendments of 2000 to the National Trails System Act.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Deborah Reis.
Sincerely,
Barry B. Anderson
(For Dan L. Crippen, Director).
Enclosure.
H.R. 2267--Willing Seller Amendments of 2000 to the National Trails
System Act
H.R. 2267 would amend the National Trails System Act to
allow the federal government to purchase land from willing
sellers for nine of the 20 national trails. Under current law,
federal agencies are not authorized to spend funds to acquire
funds to acquire land for these nine trails that is outside of
existing federal areas such as national forests or parks. (An
exception to this prohibition is that one site in each state
crossed by each trail may be acquired for an interpretive
site.)
The costs of implementing H.R. 2267 are uncertain because
the federal agencies that administer national trails have not
completed land protection plans for most of the nine trails
affected by the legislation. CBO expects that relatively little
land along the nearly 19,000 miles composing the nine trails
would be acquired because most land can probably be protected
in other ways, as it is for other trails in the system.
Nevertheless, total acquisition costs could be significant
because some of the longest trails would probably require large
areas to be purchased. For example, acquisitions for multistate
trails such as the 3,200-mile North Country National Scenic
Trail could cost over $100 million, assuming appropriation of
the necessary amounts. For some of the shorter trails, costs
would be much lower. For example, trails located primarily on
state or federal lands, such as the Iditarod National Historic
Trail in Alaska, would probably require few or no purchases. In
any case, all acquisition funding would be subject to the
appropriation of the necessary amounts and would probably be
spent over a period of several years.
Of the other 11 existing national trails (not covered by
this legislation), only the Appalachian National Scenic Trail
has ever received significant appropriated funds for land
acquisition (almost $230 million to date); the other trails
have been protected by other methods, including state
acquisition, cooperative agreements with landowners, and
inclusion in other federally administered areas.
H.R. would not affect direct spending or receipts;
therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply. The bill
contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as
defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would have no
significant impact on the budgets of state, local, or tribal
governments.
This estimate is based on information provided by the
National Park Service and the Forest Service, which administer
most of the national trails affected by this bill.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis.
The estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
Compliance With Public Law 104-4
This bill contains no unfunded mandates.
Preemption of State, Local, or Tribal Law
This bill is not intended to preempt State, local, or
tribal law.
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported
In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new
matter is printed in italic, existing law in which no change is
proposed is shown in roman):
NATIONAL TRAILS SYSTEM ACT
* * * * * * *
national scenic and national historical trails
Sec. 5. (a) National scenic and national historic trails
shall be authorized and designated only by Act of Congress.
There are hereby established the following National Scenic and
National Historic Trails:
(1) * * *
* * * * * * *
(11) The Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail, a corridor
of approximately seven hundred and four miles following the
route as generally depicted on the map identified as ``National
Trails System, Proposed Potomac Heritage Trail'' in ``The
Potomac Heritage Trail'', a report prepared by the Department
of the Interior and dated December 1974, except that no
designation of the trail shall be made in the State of West
Virginia. The map shall be on file and available for public
inspection in the office of the Director of the National Park
Service, Washington, District of Columbia. The trail shall
initally consist of only those segments of the corridor located
within the exterior boundaries of federally administered areas.
[No lands or interests therein outside the exterior] No lands
or interest in lands outside of the exterior boundaries of any
federally administered area may be acquired by the Federal
Government for the Potomac Heritage Trail without the consent
of the owner of the land or interest. The Secretary of the
Interior may designate lands outside of federally administered
areas as segments of the trail, only upon application from the
States or local governmental agencies involved, if such
segments meet the criteria established in this Act and are
administered by such agencies without expenses to the United
States. The trail shall be administered by the Secretary of the
Interior.
* * * * * * *
(14) The Nez Perce National Historic Trail, a route of
approximately eleven hundred and seventy miles extending from
the vicinity of Wallowa Lake, Oregon, to Bear Paw Mountain,
Montana, as generally depicted in ``Nez Perce (Nee-Me-Poo)
Trail Study Report'' prepared by the Department of Agriculture
and dated March 1982. The report shall be on file and available
for public inspection in the Office of the Chief of the Forest
Service, Washington, District of Columbia. The trail shall be
administered by the Secretary of Agriculture. [No lands or
interests therein outside the exterior] No land or interest in
land outside of the exterior boundaries of any federally
administered area may be acquired by the Federal Government for
the Nez Perce National Historic Trail without the consent of
the owner of the land or interest. The Secretary of Agriculture
may designate lands outside of federally administered areas as
segments of the trail upon application from the States or local
governmental agencies involved if such segments meet the
criteria established in this Act and are administered by such
agencies without expense to the United States. So that
significant route segments and sites recognized as associated
with the Nez Perce Trail may be distinguished by suitable
markers, the Secretary of Agriculture is authorized to accept
the donation of suitable markers for placement at appropriate
locations. Any such markers associated with the Nez Perce Trail
which are to be located on lands administered by any other
department or agency of the United States may be placed on such
lands only with the concurrence of the head of such department
or agency.
* * * * * * *
authorization of appropriations
Sec. 10. (a) * * *
* * * * * * *
[(c)(1) There is hereby authorized to be appropriated such
sums as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this
Act relating to the trails designated by paragraphs 5(a) (3),
(4), (5), (6), (7), (8), (9), and (10): Provided, That no such
funds are authorized to be appropriated prior to October 1,
1978: And provided further, That notwithstanding any other
provisions of this Act or any other provisions of law, no funds
may be expended by Federal agencies for the acquisition of
lands or interests in lands outside the exterior boundaries of
existing Federal areas for the Continental Divide National
Scenic Trail, the North Country National Scenic Trail, The Ice
Age National Scenic Trail, the Oregon National Historic Trail,
the Mormon Pioneer National Historic trail, the Lewis and Clark
National Historic Trail, and the Iditarod National Historic
Trail, except that funds may be expended for the acquisition of
lands or interests therein for the purpose of providing for one
trail interpretation site, as described in section 7(c), along
with such trail in each State crossed by the trail.]
(c)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law (including
any other provision of this Act), no funds may be expended by
the Federal Government for the acquisition of any land or
interest in land outside of the exterior boundaries of existing
Federal lands for the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail,
the North Country National Scenic Trail, the Ice Age National
Scenic Trail, the Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail, the
Oregon National Historic Trail, the Mormon Pioneer National
Historic Trail, the Nez Perce National Historic Trail, the
Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, or the Iditarod
National Historic Trail, except with the consent of the owner
of the land or interest. If the Federal Government fails to
make payment in accordance with a contract for sale of land or
an interest in land transferred under this paragraph, the
seller may avail himself of all remedies available under all
applicable law, including electing to void the sale.
* * * * * * *