16 U.S.C. § 1285a — Lease of Federal lands

(a) Authority of Secretary; restrictive covenants Where appropriate in the discretion of the Secretary, he may lease federally owned land (or any interest in it) which is within the boundaries of any component of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System and which has been acquired by the Secretary under this chapter. Such lease must be subject to such restrictive covenants as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this chapter. (b) Offer to prior owner Any land to be leased by the Secretary under this section must be offered first for such lease to the person who owned such land immediately before its acquisition by the United States.