[Senate Report 108-5]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 13
108th Congress Report
SENATE
1st Session 108-5
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FLORIDA NATIONAL FOREST LAND MANAGEMENT ACT OF 2003
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February 11, 2003.--Ordered to be printed
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Mr. Domenici, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 117]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the bill (S. 117) to authorize the Secretary of
Agriculture to sell or exchange certain land in the State of
Florida, and for other purposes, having considered the same,
reports favorably thereon without amendment and recommends that
the bill do pass.
PURPOSE OF THE MEASURE
The purpose of S. 117 is to authorize the Secretary of
Agriculture to sell or exchange certain land in the State of
Florida.
BACKGROUND AND NEED
Early Spanish explorers were impressed by the tall stately
trees and lawn-like underbrush typical of the Southeast's
longleaf pine forests, which now occupy just 3 million of their
original 90 million acres. Today, thick palmetto and other
undergrowth have fundamentally changed the landscape's
character.
In the Apalachicola National Forest in Florida, the Forest
Service is trying to bring back the longleaf pine forests. The
tool of choice to clear away palmetto and other undergrowth is
prescribed fire, which leaves only the thick-barked longleaf
pines and wiregrass. Prescribed fire mimics the work of
lightning-caused fires in the era before recent decades of fire
suppression.
Prescribed burns, however, are difficult to implement
because private inholders are concerned that their homes could
be at risk. Acquisition of these parcels is important because
private inholdings adjacent to Post Office Bay are being
considered for sale as small acreage second homes and vacation
sites. Just recently, 1,180 acres of a major 2,500 acre
inholding has been purchased.
S. 117 would assist the Secretary of Agriculture's efforts
to acquire this inholding, as part of the Forest Service's
effort to use prescribed fire to restore longleaf pine forests
by allowing sale or exchange of certain lands.
S. 117 would authorize the Forest Service to sell or
exchange 17 noncontiguous parcels of land in Okaloosa County,
in Florida's Panhandle, that have been returned to the Forest
Service by the Department of Defense. These parcels are high in
value, some have potential buyers, and several are encumbered
with urban structures, such as baseball fields and the county
fairgrounds.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
S. 117 was introduced by Senator Graham on January 9, 2003.
A similar bill, S. 2652, was introduced by Senator Graham in
the 107th Congress. The Subcommittee on Public Lands and
Forests held a hearing on S. 2652 on July 30, 2002. The
Committee favorably reported the bill with amendments on
October 3, 2002 and the Senate passed S. 2652, as amended, as
part of amendment 4975 to S. 198 on November 19, 2002. At its
business meeting on February 5, 2003, the Committee ordered S.
117 favorably reported without amendment.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in
open business session on February 5, 2003, by a voice vote of a
quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 117 as
described herein.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1 entitles the bill the ``Florida National Forest
Land Management Act of 2003''.
Section 2 defines key terms used in the bill.
Section 3 authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to sell
or exchange 17 parcels of Federal land in the State of Florida
and is self-explanatory.
Section 4 specifies that land acquired by the United States
will be administered in accordance with laws and regulations
applicable to the National Forest System, and is self-
explanatory.
COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
The following estimate of costs of this measure has been
provided by the Congressional Budget Office:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, February 6, 2003.
Hon. Pete V. Domenici,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 117, the Florida
National Forest Land Management Act of 2003.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Megan
Carroll.
Sincerely,
Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Director.
Enclosure.
S. 117--Florida National Forest Land Management Act of 2003
CBO estimates that enacting S. 117 would not significantly
affect the federal budget. The bill would increase offsetting
receipts and the spending of such receipts, but we estimate
that the net impact on direct spending would not exceed
$500,000 a year. S. 117 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.
S. 117 would authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to sell
or exchange certain federal lands in Florida. The bill would
authorize the Secretary to spend, without further
appropriation, any proceeds from land sales to acquire
nonfederal lands and interests in that state and to reimburse
federal administrative costs incurred under the bill.
According to the Forest Service, the federal lands to be
sold or exchanged currently generate no significant receipts
and are not expected to do so over the next 10 years. By
providing authority for the Secretary to sell those lands, CBO
expects that enacting S. 117 would increase offsetting receipts
(a credit against direct spending) from land sales. Based on
information from the Forest Service regarding the value of the
affected lands, CBO estimates that the proceeds from such sales
would total $2 million in each of fiscal years 2004 through
2006. We also estimate that those amounts would largely be
spent in the same year they are received; hence, we estimate
that the net change in direct spending would not exceed
$500,000 a year.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Megan Carroll.
This estimate was approved by Paul R. Cullinan, Chief for Human
Resources Cost Estimates Unit of the Budget Analysis Division.
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. 117. The bill is not a regulatory measure in
the sense of imposing government-established standards or
significant 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. 117, as ordered reported.
EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS
On, February 5, 2003, the Committee requested legislative
reports from the Department of Agriculture and the Office of
Management and Budget setting forth Executive Agency
recommendations on S. 117. These reports had not been received
at the time the report on S. 117 was filed. When the reports
become available, the Chairman will request that they be
printed in the Congressional Record for the advice of the
Senate.
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. 117, as ordered
reported.