16 U.S.C. § 8461 — Partnership agreements to modernize federally owned campgrounds, resorts, cabins, and visitor centers on Federal recreational lands and waters

submitted 1 year ago by Pub. L. 118-234 to r/title-16-CONSERVATION · 962 words · no verdicts yet

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This law lets the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management partner with states, tribes, nonprofits, or companies to fix up existing federal campgrounds, resorts, cabins, and visitor centers. Partners must invest at least $500,000 within three years and can operate the site for up to 30 years. The government keeps ownership of the land and any structures built.

(a) Definitions. "Covered activity" means capital improvements — building, rebuilding, or major maintenance of structures or infrastructure — plus anything needed to run or maintain the facility. "Covered recreation facility" means a federally owned campground, resort, cabin, or visitor center that already existed on January 4, 2025, on land run by the Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management. "Eligible entity" means a state, tribal, or local government, a nonprofit, or a private company. (b) Pilot program. The agencies must set up a pilot program letting them sign agreements with, or issue land-use permits to, an eligible entity to run covered activities at a covered recreation facility — whether or not that entity was already an authorized concessionaire there on January 4, 2025. (c) Minimum number of agreements. Within three years of January 4, 2025, the agency must sign at least one such agreement or permit in every region of the National Forest System, and in at least five states where the Bureau of Land Management manages recreational land. (d) Requirements. Before signing an agreement, the eligible entity must submit a development plan describing its planned investments for the first three years, its annual maintenance spending, and any other terms the agency requires. Each agreement or permit must: last no more than 30 years; require the entity, within three years, to spend, escrow, or deposit into a special Treasury account at least $500,000 (or a set percentage of expected receipts, whichever the agency decides) for covered activities; require the entity to operate and maintain the facility properly; include any terms needed for a special use permit, including a required fee payment; require the entity to pay the government a fee or share revenue, based either on the standard special-use-permit fee or on the value of the rights granted, factoring in the entity's investment — part of which can be offset by extra work the entity performs beyond routine upkeep; state that the entity gets no ownership interest from its spending, that any structures built become U.S. property, and that the entity alone pays for removing improvements when the agreement ends; and include any other terms the agency requires. (e) Land use fee retention. Fees or shared revenue collected under this section stay available, without needing further appropriation, to be spent on recreation at the specific site where they were collected.

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

(a) Definitions

In this section:

(1) Covered activity

The term “covered activity” means—

(A)

a capital improvement, including the construction, reconstruction, and nonroutine maintenance of any structure, infrastructure, or improvement, relating to the operation of, or access to, a covered recreation facility; and

(B)

any activity necessary to operate or maintain a covered recreation facility.

(2) Covered recreation facility

The term “covered recreation facility” means a federally owned campground, resort, cabin, or visitor center that is—

(A)

in existence on January 4, 2025; and

(B)

located on Federal recreational lands and waters administered by—

(i)

the Chief of the Forest Service; or

(ii)

the Director of the Bureau of Land Management.

(3) Eligible entity

The term “eligible entity” means—

(A)

a unit of State, Tribal, or local government;

(B)

a nonprofit organization; and

(C)

a private entity.

(b) Pilot program

The Secretaries shall establish a pilot program under which the Secretary concerned may enter into an agreement with, or issue or amend a land use authorization to, an eligible entity to allow the eligible entity to carry out covered activities relating to a covered recreation facility, subject to the requirements of this section and the terms of any relevant land use authorization, regardless of whether the eligible entity holds, on January 4, 2025, an authorization to be a concessionaire for the covered recreation facility.

Not later than 3 years after January 4, 2025, the Secretary concerned shall enter into at least 1 agreement or land use authorization under subsection (b) in—

(1)

a unit of the National Forest System in each region of the National Forest System; and

(2)

Federal recreational lands and waters administered by the Director of the Bureau of Land Management in not fewer than 5 States in which the Bureau of Land Management administers Federal recreational lands and waters.

(d) Requirements

(1) Development plans

Before entering into an agreement or issuing a land use authorization under subsection (b), an eligible entity shall submit to the Secretary concerned a development plan that—

(A)

describes investments in the covered recreation facility to be made by the eligible entity during the first 3 years of the agreement or land use authorization;

(B)

describes annual maintenance spending to be made by the eligible entity for each year of the agreement or land use authorization; and

(C)

includes any other terms and conditions determined to be necessary or appropriate by the Secretary concerned.

(2) Agreements and land use authorizations

An agreement or land use authorization under subsection (b) shall—

(A)

be for a term of not more than 30 years, commensurate with the level of investment;

(B)

require that, not later than 3 years after the date on which the Secretary concerned enters into the agreement or issues or amends the land use authorization, the applicable eligible entity shall expend, place in an escrow account for the eligible entity to expend, or deposit in a special account in the Treasury for expenditure by the Secretary concerned, without further appropriation, for covered activities relating to the applicable covered recreation facility, an amount or specified percentage, as determined by the Secretary concerned, which shall be equal to not less than $500,000, of the anticipated receipts for the term of the agreement or land use authorization;

(C)

require the eligible entity to operate and maintain the covered recreation facility and any associated infrastructure designated by the Secretary concerned in a manner acceptable to the Secretary concerned and the eligible entity;

(D)

include any terms and conditions that the Secretary concerned determines to be necessary for a special use permit issued under section 580d of this title, including the payment described in subparagraph (E) or the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), as applicable;

(E)

provide for payment to the Federal Government of a fee or a sharing of revenue—

(i)

consistent with—

(I)

the land use fee for a special use permit authorized under section 580d of this title; or

(II)

the value to the eligible entity of the rights provided by the agreement or land use authorization, taking into account the capital invested by, and obligations of, the eligible entity under the agreement or land use authorization; and

(ii)

all or part of which may be offset by the work to be performed at the expense of the eligible entity that is separate from the routine costs of operating and maintaining the applicable covered recreation facility and any associated infrastructure designated by the Secretary concerned, as determined to be appropriate by the Secretary concerned;

(F)

include provisions stating that—

(i)

the eligible entity shall obtain no property interest in the covered recreation facility pursuant to the expenditures of the eligible entity, as required by the agreement or land use authorization;

(ii)

all structures and other improvements constructed, reconstructed, or nonroutinely maintained by that entity under the agreement or land use authorization on land owned by the United States shall be the property of the United States; and

(iii)

the eligible entity shall be solely responsible for any cost associated with the decommissioning or removal of a capital improvement, if needed, at the conclusion of the agreement or land use authorization; and

(G)

be subject to any other terms and conditions determined to be necessary or appropriate by the Secretary concerned.

(e) Land use fee retention

A land use fee paid or revenue shared with the Secretary concerned under an agreement or land use authorization under this section shall be available for expenditure by the Secretary concerned for recreation-related purposes on the unit or area of Federal recreational lands and waters at which the land use fee or revenue is collected, without further appropriation.

Source credit: (Pub. L. 118–234, title I, § 153, Jan. 4, 2025, 138 Stat. 2868.)

history & why it existsrecord from the source credit

2025Enacted · Pub. L. 118-234 · 138 Stat. 2868

A history note hasn’t been published yet. The record shows enactment by Pub. L. 118-234 on 2025-01-04.

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