| Sponsor | Lee (Utah) |
| Date | June 18, 2012 (112th Congress, 2nd Session) |
| Staff Contact | Andy Koenig |
On Monday, June 18, 2012, the House is scheduled to consider S. 684, a bill to provide for the conveyance of certain parcels of land to the town of Alta, Utah, under a suspension of the rules requiring a two-thirds majority for approval. The bill was introduced on March 30, 2011, by Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) and was approved by the Senate on November 2, 2011 by unanimous consent. It was then referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources, which held a mark up and reported the bill without amendment by voice vote on April 16, 2012.
S. 684 would direct the Secretary of Agriculture to convey all federal interest in certain parcels of land within the Wasatch-Cache National Forest to the town of Alta, Utah. Under the bill, the Secretary would be required to convey the land within one year of the date that the town submits a request. According to the bill, the land conveyed would consist of approximately 2 acres of land under the jurisdiction of the National Forest Service. The conveyance would be determined by a survey under the direction of the Secretary, but land conveyed would not exceed two acres and would be used only for public purposes. The bill would also require the town to pay the administrative and survey costs related to the conveyance.
According to House Report 112-434, Alta, Utah, is a small ski town that operates most of its municipal infrastructure on National Forest System land under a variety of special-use permits. S. 684 would convey a maximum of two acres of federal land located underneath three municipal buildings to Alta to provide for greater certainty and flexibility in the maintenance and use of those buildings. Under the bill, those buildings would still have to be used for the purposes specified in their current special-use permits.
According to CBO, the bill would cost less than $200,000 over a ten year period due to fewer offsetting receipts (a credit against spending) resulting from the loss of easement payments from the town of Alta, Utah.