House passes 4 local swap bills

E&E News
By Corbin Hiar
November 14, 2014

In less than 20 minutes, the House approved four bills yesterday involving land transfers of no more than 1,600 acres.

The first and most substantial measure, H.R. 5167, hit the floor at 12:25 p.m. Representatives amended the title and passed the bill four minutes later.

H.R. 5167, authored by Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska), directs the General Services Administration on behalf of the Interior Department to convey about 1,518 acres in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska to the Olgoonik Corp., an Alaska Native village corporation.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) has introduced a companion measure, S. 2684, in the upper chamber. But it has not yet been marked up in committee.

The next bill considered and quickly passed was H.R. 3326. California Democratic Rep. Jared Huffman's legislation directs the Department of Agriculture to convey about 100 acres of federal land in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest near the Weaverville Airport if California's Trinity Public Utility District conveys some 47 acres of land adjacent to public land administered by the Redding Field Office of the Bureau of Land Management.

No senators have introduced a bill related to Huffman's land swap legislation.

The House then approved H.R. 4846, another measure without a Senate companion. Introduced by Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.), the bill would adjust the boundary of the Arapaho National Forest in Colorado to incorporate about 93 acres of land and restrict public motorized use within the new boundary.

Finally, lawmakers passed H.R. 4867 at 12:43 p.m. The bill, by Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-Calif.), would provide for certain lands and rights to be transferred between Banning, Calif.; Lloyd Fields; and the Morongo Band of Mission Indians.

The legislation, also known as the "Economic Development Through Tribal Land Exchange Act," is related to S. 2847, introduced by Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) on Sept. 17 and referred to committee.