16 U.S.C. § 460jj–1 — Land acquisition

submitted 48 years ago by Pub. L. 95-450 to r/title-16-CONSERVATION · 567 words · no verdicts yet

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The Secretary may buy, trade, or accept donated land to build the Arapaho National Recreation Area. Owners who want to sell get priority consideration. Colorado state land can only be donated or traded, not bought.

(a) Determination of necessity; "scenic easement" defined - (1) The Secretary can get land or lesser rights in land - including mineral rights and scenic easements - through donation, purchase, exchange, or bequest, whenever needed to set up and run the Arapaho National Recreation Area. To decide which private property is needed, the Secretary uses the county's approved zoning plan to find properties whose use doesn't fit the area's purpose. (2) A "scenic easement" is the right to control how land is used to carry out this subchapter. It doesn't stop a landowner from continuing any use that fits the area's overall management plan. (b) Privately owned land - When buying land this way, the Secretary must give quick, careful attention to any offer from a private landowner in the recreation area, considering any hardship the owner would face from delay. Purchases must be "willing buyer, willing seller" - no forced sales. (c) Exchange of property; cash equalization - When trading for land, the Secretary can accept non-federal land in the recreation area and give back federal land in Colorado that's classified as suitable for exchange and under the Secretary's control. The traded lands should be worth about the same. If not, the difference is paid in cash - to the landowner or to the Secretary - but that cash payment can never be more than 25% of the total land value, and the Secretary should try to keep it as small as possible. The Secretary can use the same procedures used for exchanging other national forest land. (d) State land - Land owned by the State of Colorado or its local governments can only be acquired by donation or exchange, not purchase. (e) Transfer of Federal land - Any other federal land inside the Arapaho National Recreation Area automatically moves to the Secretary's control at no cost. All land acquired or transferred this way becomes part of the recreation area and of the nearby national forest - except that the Colorado-Big Thompson water project keeps operating under the Bureau of Reclamation, not the Forest Service.

the actual law source: uscode.house.gov ↗public domain

(a) Determination of necessity; “scenic easement” defined

(1)

The Secretary is authorized to acquire by donation, purchase with donated or appropriated funds, exchange, or bequest, any lands or lesser interests therein, including mineral interests and scenic easements, which the Secretary determines are needed to establish and manage the Arapaho National Recreation Area. In determining what private property is needed to establish and manage the Arapaho National Recreation Area the Secretary shall utilize the approved county zoning plan to identify those properties whose use or intended use is not in conformance with the overall intent of this subchapter.

(2)

As used in this section, the term “scenic easement” means the right to control the use of land in order to carry out this subchapter, but shall not preclude the continuation of any use that is compatible with the overall management plan for the Arapaho National Recreation Area developed pursuant to subsection (c) of section 460jj of this title.

(b) Privately owned land

In exercising the authority conferred by this section to acquire lands, the Secretary shall give prompt and careful consideration to any offer made by an individual owning any land, or interest in land, within the Arapaho National Recreation Area. In considering any such offer, the Secretary shall take into consideration any hardship to the owner which might result from any undue delay in acquiring the property. Purchases made under this authority shall be made on a willing buyer, willing seller basis.

In exercising the authority conferred by this section to acquire property by exchange, the Secretary may accept title to any non-Federal land, or interests therein, located within the Arapaho National Recreation Area and the Secretary may convey in exchange therefor any federally owned lands or interests inlands within the State of Colorado which are classified by the Secretary as suitable for exchange and which are under the Secretary’s administrative jurisdiction. The values of any lands or interests in lands so exchanged shall be approximately equal, or if they are not approximately equal, they shall be equalized by the payment of cash to the grantor or to the Secretary so long as payment does not exceed 25 per centum of the total value of the land or interest in land. In utilizing cash equalization in exchanges the Secretary shall try to reduce the amount of the payment of money to as small an amount as possible. In the exercise of his exchange authority, the Secretary may utilize authorities and procedures available to him in making exchanges of national forest lands.

(d) State land

Any land or interest in land owned by the State of Colorado or any of its political subdivisions may be acquired only by donation or exchange.

(e) Transfer of Federal land

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any Federal lands or interests in lands located within the Arapaho National Recreation Area shall be transferred without consideration to the administrative jurisdiction of the Secretary for use by the Secretary in carrying out this subchapter. Lands within the Arapaho National Recreation Area acquired by the Secretary or transferred to the Secretary’s administrative jurisdiction shall become part of that recreation area and of the national forest within or adjacent to which they are located: Provided, That the operation and facilities of the Colorado Big Thompson project shall remain under the jurisdiction of the United States Bureau of Reclamation.

Source credit: (Pub. L. 95–450, § 5, Oct. 11, 1978, 92 Stat. 1096.)

history & why it existsrecord from the source credit

1978Enacted · Pub. L. 95-450 · 92 Stat. 1096

A history note hasn’t been published yet. The record shows enactment by Pub. L. 95-450 on 1978-10-11.

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