On Monday, July 23, 2012, the House is scheduled to consider H.R. 4484, the Y Mountain Access Enhancement Act, under a suspension of the rules requiring a two-thirds majority vote for approval. The bill was introduced on April 24, 2012, by Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) and referred to the Committee on Natural Resources. The bill was reported, as amended, by unanimous consent on July 11, 2012.

H.R. 4484 would require the Secretary of Agriculture to convey approximately 80 acres of National Forest System land located in the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest to Brigham Young University within one year of the University’s request. The University would be required to pay the Secretary the appraised “fair market value” for the land, which would be deposited into the general treasury.  The bill would require the University to continue to allow the same reasonable public access to the trailhead and portion of the Y Mountain Trail. The exact acreage of the land conveyed would be determined by a survey that the University would be required to pay for.

According to the Natural Resources Committee, the Y Mountain is the location of the familiar white block letter “Y” in Provo, Utah, overlooking Utah Valley and the Brigham Young University campus. The Y was constructed in 1906 and has been part of the Provo landscape ever since. Currently, the University owns and maintains the trailhead and much of the trail leading up to the 380-foot tall by 130-foot wide landmark. The remaining property is owned by the U.S. Forest Service, but is used by the University under a permit that has typically been renewed every 10 years. The University seeks to guarantee its ability to maintain the Y and surrounding grounds without the risk of losing the right through the permitting process. To that end, H.R. 4484 requires the Secretary of Agriculture to convey, at fair market value, approximately 80 acres of the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest, in Provo, Utah, to Brigham Young University for fair market value. Additionally, the legislation requires the university to continue to allow public access to the Y as it has for decades.

According to CBO, enacting the legislation would increase federal revenue (and thus reduce the deficit) by less than $500,000.