
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
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[Laws in effect as of January 2, 2001]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 2, 2001 and January 28, 2002]
[CITE: 16USC544g]

 
                         TITLE 16--CONSERVATION
 
                       CHAPTER 2--NATIONAL FORESTS
 
                       SUBCHAPTER II--SCENIC AREAS
 
Sec. 544g. Land acquisition


(a) Acquisition authorized

    (1) The Secretary is authorized to acquire any lands or interests 
therein within the special management areas and the Dodson/Warrendale 
Special Purchase Unit which the Secretary determines are needed to 
achieve the purposes of sections 544 to 544p of this title: Provided, 
That any lands, waters, or interests therein owned by either State or 
any political subdivision thereof may be acquired only by donation or 
exchange.
    (2) Lands within the State of Oregon acquired by the Secretary 
pursuant to sections 544 to 544p of this title shall become part of the 
Mount Hood National Forest. Lands within the State of Washington 
acquired by the Secretary pursuant to this section shall become part of 
the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. All lands acquired by the Secretary 
pursuant to sections 544 to 544p of this title shall be subject to the 
laws and regulations pertaining to the National Forest System and 
sections 544 to 544p of this title.

(b) Limitations on eminent domain

    (1) Where authorized in subsection (a) of this section to acquire 
land or interests therein without the consent of the owner, the 
Secretary shall--
        (A) acquire only such land or interests therein as is reasonably 
    necessary to accomplish the purposes of sections 544 to 544p of this 
    title; and
        (B) do so only in cases where all reasonable efforts to acquire 
    with the consent of the owner such lands, or interests therein, have 
    failed.

    (2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this 
section, the Secretary may not acquire without the consent of the owner 
lands or interests therein which--
        (A) on November 17, 1986, were used primarily for educational, 
    religious, or charitable purposes, single-family residential 
    purposes, farming, or grazing so long as the existing character of 
    that use is not substantially changed or permitted for change;
        (B) are located in counties with land use ordinances in which 
    the Secretary has concurred pursuant to section 544f of this title, 
    unless such lands are being used, or are in imminent danger of being 
    used, in a manner incompatible with such ordinances;
        (C) are within the boundaries of the Dodson/Warrendale Special 
    Purchase Unit; or
        (D) are owned by an Indian tribe, held in trust by the United 
    States for an Indian tribe or member of an Indian tribe, or 
    otherwise administered by the United States for the benefit of an 
    Indian tribe or member of an Indian tribe.

(c) Hardship cases

    In exercising authority to acquire lands pursuant to this section 
the Secretary shall give prompt and careful consideration to any offer 
made by any person or entity owning any land, or interest in land, 
within the boundaries of a special management area. In considering such 
offer, the Secretary shall take into consideration any hardship to the 
owner which might result from any undue delay in acquiring the property.

(d) Land exchanges

    (1) The Secretary is authorized and directed, in conformance with 
the provisions of this subsection, to acquire by exchange any parcel of 
unimproved forest land at least forty acres in size within the 
boundaries of the special management areas which is owned by any private 
forest land owner if, after November 17, 1986, but within one hundred 
and eighty days after final adoption of the management plan, such 
private forest land owner offers to the United States such parcel of 
forest land.
    (2) In exercising this authority to acquire forest lands pursuant to 
this subsection, the Secretary may accept title to such lands and convey 
to the owner federally owned lands deemed appropriate by the Secretary 
within the States of Oregon and Washington, regardless of the State in 
which the transferred lands are located. Forest lands exchanged pursuant 
to this subsection shall be of approximately equal value: Provided, That 
the Secretary may accept cash from or pay cash to the grantor in such an 
exchange in order to equalize minor differences in the values of the 
properties exchanged: Provided further, That the Secretary may reserve 
in any conveyance pursuant to this subsection such easements, subsurface 
rights, and any other interests in land deemed necessary or desirable: 
Provided further, That the valuation of lands exchanged shall be 
determined in terms of forest uses for timber.
    (3) It is the intention of Congress that land exchanges pursuant to 
this subsection shall be completed no later than five years after 
November 17, 1986.
    (4) In the event that exchanges authorized by this section leave any 
private forest land owner with ownership of an uneconomic remnant of 
forest land contiguous to a special management area, the Secretary is 
authorized to acquire such forest lands as if they were within the 
boundaries of a special management area.
    (5) The following-described Federal lands and interests therein are 
hereby identified as candidate lands for exchanges conducted pursuant to 
this section: Provided, That the determination of which candidate lands 
will be exchanged, and in what sequence, shall be at the discretion of 
the Secretary. Subject to valid existing rights, such lands are hereby 
withdrawn from all forms of entry or appropriation or disposal under the 
public land laws, and from location, entry, and patent under the United 
States mining law, and from disposition under all laws pertaining to 
mineral and geothermal leasing and all amendments thereto until the 
Secretary determines such lands are no longer needed to complete 
exchanges authorized by this section: Provided, That such period shall 
not extend beyond five years:

                     GIFFORD PINCHOT NATIONAL FOREST
                      Wind River-Panther Creek Area
------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Section               Township                      Range
------------------------------------------------------------------------
      35                     4N                           7E
      36                     4N                           7E
Approx. 430
 acres.
------------------------------------------------------------------------


                            South Swift Area
------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Section               Township                      Range
------------------------------------------------------------------------
      13                     6N                           5E
      23                     6N                           5E
      17                     6N                           6E
      18                     6N                           6E
Approx. 1,920
 acres.
------------------------------------------------------------------------


                              National Area
------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Section               Township                      Range
------------------------------------------------------------------------
       6                    14N                           7E
       7                    14N                           7E
      18                    14N                           7E
      30                    14N                           7E
Approx. 2,560
 acres.
------------------------------------------------------------------------


                         Buck Creek-Willard Area
------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Section               Township                      Range
------------------------------------------------------------------------
      16                     3N                           9E
       1                     4N                           9E
       2                     4N                           9E
       3                     4N                           9E
      10                     4N                           9E
      11                     4N                           9E
      12                     4N                           9E
      15                     4N                           9E
      21                     4N                           9E
      22                     4N                           9E
      26                     4N                           9E
      27                     4N                           9E
      28                     4N                           9E
      29                     4N                           9E
      30                     4N                           9E
      31                     4N                           9E
      32                     4N                           9E
      33                     4N                           9E
      34                     4N                           9E
      35                     4N                           9E
       6                     4N                          10E
       7                     4N                          10E
       5                     5N                          10E
       6                     5N                          10E
       7                     5N                          10E
       8                     5N                          10E
       9                     5N                          10E
      30                     5N                          10E
      31                     5N                          10E
      32                     5N                          10E
Approx. 14,460
 acres.
------------------------------------------------------------------------


                         SIUSLAW NATIONAL FOREST
                            East Beaver Area
------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Section               Township                      Range
------------------------------------------------------------------------
      33                     2S                           9W
      34                     2S                           9W
       2                     3S                           9W
       3                     3S                           9W
       4                     3S                           9W
       8                     3S                           9W
       9                     3S                           9W
      17                     3S                           9W
Approx. 3,053
 acres.
------------------------------------------------------------------------


                       WILLAMETTE NATIONAL FOREST
                             Ida-McCoy Area
------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Section               Township                      Range
------------------------------------------------------------------------
      21                    10S                           6E
      28                    10S                           6E
Approx. 680
 acres.
------------------------------------------------------------------------


                       MOUNT HOOD NATIONAL FOREST
                              Estacada Area
------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Section               Township                      Range
------------------------------------------------------------------------
      15                     4S                           5E
Approx. 560
 acres.
------------------------------------------------------------------------


                             Hood River Area
------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Section               Township                      Range
------------------------------------------------------------------------
       4                     1N                           9E
      36                     1N                          10E
      31                     1N                          11E
       2                     1S                           9E
       3                     1S                           9E
       4                     1S                           9E
       5                     1S                           9E
       6                     1S                           9E
Approx. 5,800
 acres.
------------------------------------------------------------------------


                              Zig-Zag Area
------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Section               Township                      Range
------------------------------------------------------------------------
      22                     2S                           7E
      29                     2S                           7E
Approx. 280
 acres.
Total acreage: 29,743.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

(e) Appraisals

                     (1) Definition of landowner

        In this subsection, the term ``landowner'' means the owner of 
    legal or equitable title as of September 1, 2000.

                       (2) Appraisal standards

        Except as provided in paragraph (3), land acquired or conveyed 
    by purchase or exchange under this section shall be appraised in 
    conformity with the Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land 
    Acquisitions.

                    (3) Special management areas

        (A) Before April 1, 2001

            Land within a special management area for which the 
        landowner, before April 1, 2001, makes a written bona fide offer 
        to convey to the Secretary for fair market value shall be 
        appraised--
                (i) without regard to the effect of any zoning or land 
            use restriction made in response to sections 544 to 544p of 
            this title; but
                (ii) subject to any other current zoning or land use 
            restriction imposed by the State or locality in which the 
            land is located on the date of the offer.

        (B) On or after April 1, 2001

            Land within a special management area for which the 
        landowner, on or after April 1, 2001, makes a written bona fide 
        offer to convey to the Secretary for fair market value shall be 
        appraised subject to--
                (i) any zoning or land use restriction made in response 
            to sections 544 to 544p of this title; and
                (ii) any other current zoning or land use restriction 
            that applies to the land on the date of the offer.

(f) Authorization for certain land exchanges

                           (1) In general

        To facilitate priority land exchanges through which land within 
    the boundaries of the White Salmon Wild and Scenic River or within 
    the scenic area is conveyed to the United States, the Secretary may 
    accept title to such land as the Secretary determines to be 
    appropriate within the States, regardless of the State in which the 
    land conveyed by the Secretary in exchange is located, in accordance 
    with land exchange authorities available to the Secretary under 
    applicable law.

             (2) Special rule for land certain exchanges

        Notwithstanding any other provision of law--
            (A) any exchange described in paragraph (1) for which an 
        agreement to initiate has been executed as of September 30, 
        2000, shall continue; and
            (B) any timber stumpage proceeds collected under the 
        exchange shall be retained by the Forest Service to complete the 
        exchange.

(g) Boundaries

    For the purposes of section 460l-9 of this title, the boundaries of 
the scenic area, including special management areas and the Dodson/
Warrendale Special Purchase Unit shall be treated as if they were within 
the boundaries of the Mount Hood or Gifford Pinchot National Forests as 
of January 1, 1965.

(Pub. L. 99-663, Sec. 9, Nov. 17, 1986, 100 Stat. 4287; Pub. L. 104-66, 
title I, Sec. 1011(n), Dec. 21, 1995, 109 Stat. 710; Pub. L. 106-291, 
title III, Sec. 346(a), Oct. 11, 2000, 114 Stat. 999.)

                       References in Text

    The public land laws, referred to in subsec. (d)(5), are classified 
generally to Title 43, Public Lands.
    The United States mining law and the laws pertaining to mineral 
leasing, referred to in subsec. (d)(5), are classified generally to 
Title 30, Mineral Lands and Mining.
    Laws pertaining to geothermal leasing, referred to in subsec. 
(d)(5), are classified principally to chapter 23 (Sec. 1001 et seq.) of 
Title 30.


                               Amendments

    2000--Subsecs. (e) to (g). Pub. L. 106-291 added subsecs. (e) and 
(f) and redesignated former subsec. (e) as (g).
    1995--Subsec. (d)(3). Pub. L. 104-66 struck out provision at end 
requiring Secretary to report to Congress on status of negotiations with 
owners of non-Federal lands regarding land exchanges.


                          Publication of Notice

    Pub. L. 106-291, title III, Sec. 346(c), Oct. 11, 2000, 114 Stat. 
1000, provided that:
    ``(1) Not later than November 1, 2000, the Secretary of Agriculture 
shall provide notice of the provisions contained in the amendments made 
by subsections (a) and (b) [amending this section and section 544f of 
this title] through--
        ``(A) publication of a notice in the Federal Register and in 
    newspapers of general circulation in the counties in the Columbia 
    River Gorge National Scenic Area; and
        ``(B) posting of a notice in each facility of the United States 
    Postal Service located in those counties.
    ``(2) If the counties wherein special management areas are located 
provide the Forest Service administrator of the Columbia River Gorge 
National Scenic Area lists of the names and addresses of landowners 
within the special management areas as of September 1, 2000, the Forest 
Service shall send to such names and addresses by certified first class 
mail notice of the provisions contained in the amendments made by 
subsections (a) and (b);
        ``(A) The mailing shall occur within twenty working days of the 
    receipt of the list; and
        ``(B) The mailing shall constitute constructive notice to 
    landowners, and proof of receipt by the addressee shall not be 
    required.''


    Conveyance of Lands Between Skamania County and the United States

    Pub. L. 105-277, div. A, Sec. 101(e) [title III, Sec. 341], Oct. 21, 
1998, 112 Stat. 2681-231, 2681-296, provided that:
    ``Upon the condition that Skamania County conveys title acceptable 
to the Secretary of Agriculture to all right, title and interest in 
lands identified on a map dated September 29, 1998 entitled `Skamania 
County Lands to be Transferred', such lands being located on Table 
Mountain lying within the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, 
there is hereby conveyed to Skamania County, notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, the Wind River Nursery Site lands and facilities and 
all interests therein, except for the corridor of the Pacific Crest 
National Scenic Trail, as depicted on a map dated September 29, 1998, 
entitled `Wind River Conveyance', which is on file and available for 
public inspection in the Office of the Chief, USDA Forest Service, 
Washington, D.C.
    ``The conveyance of lands to Skamania County shall become 
automatically effective upon a determination by the Secretary that 
Skamania County has conveyed acceptable title to the United States to 
the Skamania County lands. Lands conveyed to the United States shall 
become part of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest and shall have the 
status of lands acquired under the Act of March 1, 1911, (commonly 
called the Weeks Act) [see Short Title note set out under section 552 of 
this title] and shall be managed in accordance with the laws and 
regulations applicable to the National Forest System.''


                             Land Exchanges

    Pub. L. 105-83, title III, Sec. 336, Nov. 14, 1997, 111 Stat. 1602, 
provided that: ``To facilitate priority land exchanges through which the 
United States will receive land within the White Salmon Wild and Scenic 
River boundaries and within the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic 
Area, the Secretary of Agriculture may, until September 30, 2000, accept 
title to such lands deemed appropriate by the Secretary within the 
States of Oregon and Washington, regardless of the State in which the 
transferred lands are located, following existing exchange 
authorities.''


                           Wind River Nursery

    Pub. L. 105-83, title III, Sec. 340, Nov. 14, 1997, 111 Stat. 1603, 
provided that:
    ``(a) The Secretary of Agriculture is authorized and directed to 
negotiate with Skamania County for the exchange of lands or interests in 
lands constituting the Wind River Nursery Site within the Gifford 
Pinchot National Forest, Washington.
    ``(b) In return for the Nursery Site properties, Skamania County is 
authorized and directed to negotiate with the Forest Service the 
conveyance of approximately 120 acres of high biodiversity, special 
management lands located near Table Mountain within the Columbia River 
Gorge National Scenic Area, title to which must be acceptable to the 
Secretary of Agriculture.
    ``(c) Before this exchange can occur, it must be of equal value and 
the Secretary and the Skamania County Board of Commissioners must agree 
on the exact parcels of land to be included in the exchange. An 
agreement signed by the Secretary of Agriculture and the Skamania County 
Board of Commissioners describing the properties involved and a 
certification that the exchange is of equal value must be completed no 
later than September 30, 1999.
    ``(d) During this two-year negotiating period, the Wind River 
Nursery property shall not be conveyed to another party. The Forest 
Service shall maintain the site in a tenantable condition.
    ``(e) Except as provided herein, the exchange shall be for equal 
value in accordance with land exchange authorities applicable to the 
National Forest System.
    ``(f) The Secretary is directed to equalize values by not only cash 
and exchange of lands, easements, reservations, and other interests in 
lands, but also by full value credit for such services as Skamania 
County provides to the Gifford Pinchot and Columbia River Gorge National 
Scenic Area and as the Secretary and Skamania County deem appropriate. 
The Secretary may accept services in lieu of cash when the Secretary can 
discern cash value for the services and when the Secretary determines 
such services would provide direct benefits to lands and resources and 
users of such lands and resources under the jurisdiction of the 
Secretary.
    ``(g) Any cash equalization which Skamania County elects to make may 
be made up to 50 percent of the fair market value of the Federal 
property, and such cash equalization may be made in installments over a 
period not to exceed 25 years. Payments received as partial 
consideration shall be deposited into the fund in the Treasury 
established under the Act of December 4, 1967 [16 U.S.C. 484a], commonly 
known as the Sisk Act, and shall be available for expenditure as 
provided in the Act except that the Secretary may not use those funds to 
purchase lands within Skamania County.
    ``(h) In defining the Federal estate to be conveyed, the Secretary 
may require such additional terms and conditions as deemed necessary in 
connection with assuring equal value and public interest considerations 
in this exchange including, but not limited to, continued research use 
of the Wind River Experimental Forest and protection of natural, 
cultural, and historic resources, existing administrative sites, and a 
scenic corridor for the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail.
    ``(i) This authorization is predicated on Skamania County's Board of 
Commissioners commitment to give foremost consideration to preservation 
of the overall integrity of the site and conservation of the educational 
and research potential of the site, including providing for access to 
and assurance of the continued administration and operation of forestry 
research on the adjacent Thornton Munger Research Natural Area.
    ``(j) The Secretary is further directed to cooperate with Skamania 
County to address applicable Federal and State environmental laws.
    ``(k) Notwithstanding the processes involved with the National 
Environmental Policy Act [of 1969, 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.] and the State 
Environmental Policy Act, should the Secretary of Agriculture and the 
Skamania County Board of Commissioners fail to reach an agreement on an 
equal value exchange defined under the terms of this legislation by 
September 30, 1999, the Wind River Nursery Site shall remain under 
Forest Service ownership and be maintained by the Forest Service in a 
tenantable condition.''

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in sections 544 to 544f, 544h, 544i, 
544l to 544p of this title.
