§ 544g — Land Acquisition

(1) The Secretary is authorized to acquire any lands or interests therein within the special management areas and the Dodson/Warrendale Special Purchase Unit which the Secretary determines are needed to achieve the purposes of sections 544 to 544p of this title: Provided, That any lands, waters, or interests therein owned by either State or any political subdivision thereof may be acquired only by donation or exchange. (2) Lands within the State of Oregon acquired by the Secretary pursuant to sections 544 to 544p of this title shall become part of the Mount Hood National Forest. Lands within the State of Washington acquired by the Secretary pursuant to this section shall become part of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. All lands acquired by the Secretary pursuant to sections 544 to 544p of this title shall be subject to the laws and regulations pertaining to the National Forest System and sections 544 to 544p of this title. (1) Where authorized in subsection (a) of this section to acquire land or interests therein without the consent of the owner, the Secretary shall— (A) acquire only such land or interests therein as is reasonably necessary to accomplish the purposes of sections 544 to 544p of this title; and (B) do so only in cases where all reasonable efforts to acquire with the consent of the owner such lands, or interests therein, have failed. (2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, the Secretary may not acquire without the consent of the owner lands or interests therein which— (A) on November 17, 1986, were used primarily for educational, religious, or charitable purposes, single-family residential purposes, farming, or grazing so long as the existing character of that use is not substantially changed or permitted for change; (B) are located in counties with land use ordinances in which the Secretary has concurred pursuant to section 544f of this title, unless such lands are being used, or are in imminent danger of being used, in a manner incompatible with such ordinances; (C) are within the boundaries of the Dodson/Warrendale Special Purchase Unit; or (D) are owned by an Indian tribe, held in trust by the United States for an Indian tribe or member of an Indian tribe, or otherwise administered by the United States for the benefit of an Indian tribe or member of an Indian tribe. (c) In exercising authority to acquire lands pursuant to this section the Secretary shall give prompt and careful consideration to any offer made by any person or entity owning any land, or interest in land, within the boundaries of a special management area. In considering such offer, the Secretary shall take into consideration any hardship to the owner which might result from any undue delay in acquiring the property. (1) The Secretary is authorized and directed, in conformance with the provisions of this subsection, to acquire by exchange any parcel of unimproved forest land at least forty acres in size within the boundaries of the special management areas which is owned by any private forest land owner if, after November 17, 1986, but within one hundred and eighty days after final adoption of the management plan, such private forest land owner offers to the United States such parcel of forest land. (2) In exercising this authority to acquire forest lands pursuant to this subsection, the Secretary may accept title to such lands and convey to the owner federally owned lands deemed appropriate by the Secretary within the States of Oregon and Washington, regardless of the State in which the transferred lands are located. Forest lands exchanged pursuant to this subsection shall be of approximately equal value: Provided, That the Secretary may accept cash from or pay cash to the grantor in such an exchange in order to equalize minor differences in the values of the properties exchanged: Provided further, That the Secretary may reserve in any conveyance pursuant to this subsection such easements, subsurface rights, and any other interests in land deemed necessary or desirable: Provided further, That the valuation of lands exchanged shall be determined in terms of forest uses for timber. (3) It is the intention of Congress that land exchanges pursuant to this subsection shall be completed no later than five years after November 17, 1986. (4) In the event that exchanges authorized by this section leave any private forest land owner with ownership of an uneconomic remnant of forest land contiguous to a special management area, the Secretary is authorized to acquire such forest lands as if they were within the boundaries of a special management area. (5) The following-described Federal lands and interests therein are hereby identified as candidate lands for exchanges conducted pursuant to this section: Provided, That the determination of which candidate lands will be exchanged, and in what sequence, shall be at the discretion of the Secretary. Subject to valid existing rights, such lands are hereby withdrawn from all forms of entry or appropriation or disposal under the public land laws, and from location, entry, and patent under the United States mining law, and from disposition under all laws pertaining to mineral and geothermal leasing and all amendments thereto until the Secretary determines such lands are no longer needed to complete exchanges authorized by this section: Provided, That such period shall not extend beyond five years:GIFFORD PINCHOT NATIONAL FORESTWind River-Panther Creek AreaSectionTownshipRange354N7E364N7EApprox. 430 acres.South Swift AreaSectionTownshipRange136N5E236N5E176N6E186N6EApprox. 1,920 acres.National AreaSectionTownshipRange 614N7E 714N7E1814N7E3014N7EApprox. 2,560 acres.Buck Creek-Willard AreaSectionTownshipRange163N 9E 14N 9E 24N 9E 34N 9E104N 9E114N 9E124N 9E154N 9E214N 9E224N 9E264N 9E274N 9E284N 9E294N 9E304N 9E314N 9E324N 9E334N 9E344N 9E354N 9E 64N10E 74N10E 55N10E 65N10E 75N10E 85N10E 95N10E305N10E315N10E325N10EApprox. 14,460 acres.SIUSLAW NATIONAL FORESTEast Beaver AreaSectionTownshipRange332S9W342S9W 23S9W 33S9W 43S9W 83S9W 93S9W173S9WApprox. 3,053 acres.WILLAMETTE NATIONAL FORESTIda-McCoy AreaSectionTownshipRange2110S6E2810S6EApprox. 680 acres.MOUNT HOOD NATIONAL FORESTEstacada AreaSectionTownshipRange154S5EApprox. 560 acres.Hood River AreaSectionTownshipRange 41N 9E361N10E311N11E 21S 9E 31S 9E 41S 9E 51S 9E 61S 9EApprox. 5,800 acres.Zig-Zag AreaSectionTownshipRange222S7E292S7EApprox. 280 acres.Total acreage: 29,743. (1) In this subsection, the term “landowner” means the owner of legal or equitable title as of September 1, 2000. (2) Except as provided in paragraph (3), land acquired or conveyed by purchase or exchange under this section shall be appraised in conformity with the Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land Acquisitions. (A) Land within a special management area for which the landowner, before April 1, 2001, makes a written bona fide offer to convey to the Secretary for fair market value shall be appraised— (i) without regard to the effect of any zoning or land use restriction made in response to sections 544 to 544p of this title; but (ii) subject to any other current zoning or land use restriction imposed by the State or locality in which the land is located on the date of the offer. (B) Land within a special management area for which the landowner, on or after April 1, 2001, makes a written bona fide offer to convey to the Secretary for fair market value shall be appraised subject to— (i) any zoning or land use restriction made in response to sections 544 to 544p of this title; and (ii) any other current zoning or land use restriction that applies to the land on the date of the offer. (1) To facilitate priority land exchanges through which land within the boundaries of the White Salmon Wild and Scenic River or within the scenic area is conveyed to the United States, the Secretary may accept title to such land as the Secretary determines to be appropriate within the States, regardless of the State in which the land conveyed by the Secretary in exchange is located, in accordance with land exchange authorities available to the Secretary under applicable law. (2) Notwithstanding any other provision of law— (A) any exchange described in paragraph (1) for which an agreement to initiate has been executed as of September 30, 2000, shall continue; and (B) any timber stumpage proceeds collected under the exchange shall be retained by the Forest Service to complete the exchange. (g) For the purposes of sections 100506(c) and 200306 of title 54, the boundaries of the scenic area, including special management areas and the Dodson/Warrendale Special Purchase Unit shall be treated as if they were within the boundaries of the Mount Hood or Gifford Pinchot National Forests as of January 1, 1965.