[Senate Report 113-18]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 49
113th Congress Report
SENATE
1st Session 113-18
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POWELL SHOOTING RANGE LAND CONVEYANCE
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April 22, 2013.--Ordered to be printed
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Mr. Wyden, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 130]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the bill (S. 130) to require the Secretary of the
Interior to convey certain Federal land to the Powell
Recreation District in the State of Wyoming, having considered
the same, reports favorably thereon without amendment and
recommends that the bill do pass.
PURPOSE
The purpose of S. 130 is to direct the Secretary of the
Interior to convey approximately 322 acres of land administered
by the Bureau of Land Management near Powell, Wyoming, to the
Powell Recreation District for use as a shooting range.
BACKGROUND AND NEED
The town of Powell is located in Park County, in
northwestern Wyoming. Since 1980, the Powell Recreation
District has used approximately 322 acres of public lands as a
public shooting range. Because the lands were located within
the boundaries of an irrigation district, they were presumed to
be under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Reclamation. The
Bureau issued the original lease for the shooting range in 1980
and a renewal in 2007. Recently, it was determined that the
lands were actually administered by the Bureau of Land
Management.
In October 2005, the recreation district applied for a
transfer of the land under the Recreation and Public Purposes
Act (43 U.S.C. 869 et seq.). However, because the land had not
been identified by the BLM as appropriate for conveyance under
the R&PP Act, and because the land is contaminated with lead,
the Department of the Interior concluded that it does not have
authority to administratively transfer the land under that Act.
S. 130 directs the Secretary of the Interior to convey all
right, title, and interest, of the United States to
approximately 322 acres of land identified on the referenced
map to the Powell Recreation District for continued use as a
shooting range, or for any other public purpose allowed under
the Recreation and Public Purposes Act. The conveyance is to be
made for no cost. The District is required to pay for any
administrative costs associated with the conveyance.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
S. 130 was introduced by Senators Enzi and Barrasso on
January 24, 2013. At its business meeting on March 14, 2013,
the Committee ordered S. 130 favorably reported.
During the 112th Congress, the Committee considered similar
legislation, S. 2015, also sponsored by Senators Enzi and
Barrasso. The Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests held a
hearing on S. 2015 on March 22nd, 2012 (S. Hrg. 112-642). S.
2015 was discharged by the Committee and passed the Senate
without amendment by unanimous consent on December 30, 2012.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open
business session on March 14, 2013, by voice vote of a quorum
present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 130.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1 provides the short title, the ``Powell Shooting
Range Land Conveyance Act.''
Section 2 defines key terms used in the bill.
Section 3(a) instructs the Secretary of the Interior to
convey all right, title and interest of the Federal government
to the land described in section (b).
Subsection (b) defines the land referred to in section (a)
as 332 acres of land managed by the Bureau of Land Management,
Wind River District, Wyoming, commonly known as the ``Powell
Gun Club.''
Subsection (c) describes the map and legal description.
Subsection (d) directs the land conveyed only be used (1)
as a shooting range or (2) for other public purpose allowed
under the Recreation and Public Purpose Act (43 U.S.C. 869 et
seq.).
Subsection (e) requires the District to pay all survey cost
and administrative costs necessary for the preparation and
completion of the land conveyance.
Subsection (f) allows the land conveyed to revert back to
the United States if it ceases to be used for a public purpose
outlined in subsection (d).
Subsection (g) sets the conditions of the conveyance (1)
the District agrees to pay administrative costs and costs
associated with any environmental, wildlife, cultural, or
historical studies and (2) clarifies that the United States
will not be held liable from any claims on the lands conveyed
to the District.
COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
The following estimate of costs of this measure has been
provided by the Congressional Budget Office:
S. 130--Powell Shooting Range Land Conveyance Act
S. 130 would require the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to
convey 322 acres of federal land near Powell, Wyoming, to the
Powell Recreation District. Based on information provided by
BLM, CBO estimates that implementing the legislation would have
no significant impact on the federal budget. Enacting S. 130
would not affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-
as-you-go procedures do not apply.
The bill would require BLM to convey the affected lands,
without consideration, to the Powell Recreation District, which
currently operates a shooting range on those lands. Because the
bill requires the district to pay all administrative costs
associated with the conveyance, CBO estimates that implementing
S. 130 would have no significant impact on discretionary
spending. In addition, the affected lands are not expected to
generate receipts over the next 10 years under current law.
S. 130 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jeff LaFave. The
estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant
Director for Budget Analysis.
REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION
In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following
evaluation of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in
carrying out S. 130.
The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of
imposing Government-established standards or significant
economic responsibilities on private individuals and
businesses.
No personal information would be collected in administering
the program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal
privacy.
Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the
enactment of S. 130, as ordered reported.
CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING
S. 130, as ordered reported, does not contain any
congressionally directed spending items, limited tax benefits,
or limited tariff benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the
Standing Rules of the Senate.
EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS
Executive Communications were not requested by the Senate
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources in the 113th
Congress. The following Administration testimony references
similar legislation introduced in the 112th Congress.
The testimony provided by the Bureau of Land Management at
the March 22, 2012, Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests
hearing on S. 2015 follows.
Statement of Mike Pool, Deputy Director, Bureau of Land Management,
Department of the Interior
Thank you for the opportunity to present the views of the
Department of the Interior on S. 2015, the Powell Shooting
Range Land Conveyance Act, which conveys an isolated 322-acre
tract of public land to the Powell Recreation District
(District) in northwestern Wyoming. The Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) supports S. 2015.
BACKGROUND
Powell, Wyoming, is a town of approximately 5,000 people in
northwestern Wyoming. This region of Wyoming is generally
irrigated farmland with scattered BLM-managed public land
parcels.
In 1980, the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) granted the
District a Special Use Permit (SUP) for a 25-year period to
construct and operate a shooting range on this isolated tract
of public land southeast of the town of Powell. The District
constructed the facilities and infrastructure for the shooting
range over 30 years ago, and has operated the range ever since.
The District is a local entity created under state statute for
the purpose of providing public recreation programs. It is
funded from local property taxes and has authority to acquire
land and facilities appropriate to carry out its recreational
purposes.
The SUP for the shooting range expired in 2005. That year,
the District filed an application for a Recreation and Public
Purposes Act conveyance of this land to continue the shooting
range operations. The BOR extended the SUP pending transfer of
the land to the District. In 2010, the BLM discovered that, as
a result of a 1950 land exchange with the state of Wyoming, the
parcel is actually under the BLM's jurisdiction and not the
BOR's jurisdiction as was previously understood. The BLM has
used the authority of a Special Recreation Permit to
temporarily authorize the use of the existing shooting complex
until long-term resolution of the land use issues could be
achieved. BLM authorities for conveyance of land under the
Recreation and Public Purpose Act do not permit the transfer of
this land administratively to the District under its current
use as a shooting range.
S. 2015
S. 2015 requires the BLM to convey an isolated 322-acre
tract of public land southeast of Powell, Wyoming, to the
Powell Recreation District. The bill requires that the parcel
of land be transferred subject to valid existing rights, and be
used only as a shooting range or for any other public purpose
consistent with the Recreation and Public Purposes Act.
If the land conveyed to the District ceases to be used for
its intended purpose then the land shall, at the discretion of
the Secretary, revert to the United States.
S. 2015 requires the Powell Recreation District to pay
administrative costs to prepare the patent and transfer title
as well as costs necessary to complete environmental, wildlife,
cultural, historical studies, and NEPA review prior to the
transfer. The bill also releases and indemnifies the United
States from any claims or liabilities that may arise from uses
carried out on the land on or before the date the Act is
signed.
The BLM supports the bill as it represents an opportunity
to resolve land use issues on an isolated tract of public land
that has been used as a shooting range for over 30 years and is
identified for disposal in current land use plans. The
legislation facilitates a reasonable and practicable conveyance
of lands to the Powell Recreation District.
CONCLUSION
Thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony in
support of S. 2015.
CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW
In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no
changes in existing law are made by the bill S. 130 as ordered
reported.