[DOCID: f:sr315.110]
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Calendar No. 667
110th Congress Report
SENATE
2d Session 110-315
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SOUTHERN NEVADA READINESS CENTER ACT
_______
April 10, 2008.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Bingaman, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 815]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the Act (H.R. 815) to provide for the conveyance of
certain land in Clark County, Nevada, for use by the Nevada
National Guard, having considered the same, reports favorably
thereon with an amendment and recommends that the Act, as
amended, do pass.
The amendment is as follows:
Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert in lieu
thereof the following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Southern Nevada Readiness Center
Act''.
SEC. 2. NEVADA NATIONAL GUARD LAND CONVEYANCE.
(a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, Clark
County, Nevada, may convey, without consideration, to the Nevada
Division of State Lands for use by the Nevada National Guard
approximately 51 acres of land in Clark County, Nevada, as generally
depicted on the map entitled ``Southern Nevada Readiness Center Act''
and dated October 4, 2005.
(b) Limitation.--If the land described in subsection (a) ceases to be
used by the Nevada National Guard, the land shall revert to Clark
County, Nevada, for management in accordance with the Southern Nevada
Public Land Management Act of 1998 (Public Law 105-263; 112 Stat.
2343).
PURPOSE
The purpose H.R. 815 is to authorize the Secretary of the
Interior to convey, without consideration and notwithstanding
any other provision of law, between 35 and 50 acres of Federal
land in Clark County, Nevada, to the Nevada Division of State
Lands, for use by the Nevada National Guard.
BACKGROUND AND NEED
H.R. 815 would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to
convey lands in Clark County, Nevada, to the Nevada Division of
State Lands for use by the Nevada National Guard. The lands to
be conveyed are within the disposal boundary of lands
identified for sale as part of the Southern Nevada Public Lands
Management Act (SNPLMA; Public Law 105-263). These lands are
located within the Airport Environs Overlay District for
McCarran International Airport, and SNPLMA requires that the
land be managed in accordance with airport noise compatibility
planning agreements. That law also requires that the lands be
sold at public auction, for no less than fair market value,
with the sale proceeds distributed among the Bureau of Land
Management, the Southern Nevada Water Authority and the State
of Nevada's general education fund. H.R. 815 would waive this
requirement, allowing the land to be conveyed without
consideration for use by the Nevada National Guard.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
H.R. 815, sponsored by Rep. Porter, passed the House of
Representatives by a voice vote on April 17, 2007. A Senate
companion measure, S. 1608, was introduced by Senators Ensign
and Reid on June 13, 2007. The Subcommittee on Public Lands and
Forests held a hearing on both bills on September 20, 2007. (S.
Hrg. 110-216.)
During the 109th Congress, the House of Representatives
passed a similar measure, H.R. 4382. That bill was not
considered in the Senate.
At its business meeting on January 30, 2008, the Committee
on Energy and Natural Resources ordered H.R. 815 favorably
reported, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open
business session on January 30, 2008, by a voice vote of a
quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass H.R. 815, if
amended as described herein.
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
During its consideration of H.R. 815, the Committee adopted
an amendment in the nature of a substitute. The amendment
corrected the acreage reference in the bill and added a
reversionary clause, as recommended by the Bureau of Land
Management at the subcommittee hearing on the bill. The
amendment is explained in detail in the section-by-section
analysis, below.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1 contains the short title, the ``Southern Nevada
Readiness Center Act.''
Section 2(a) provides that notwithstanding any other
provision of law, Clark County, Nevada, may convey
approximately 51 acres of land in Clark County to the Nevada
Division of State Lands for use by the Nevada National Guard,
as generally depicted on the referenced map. The conveyance is
to be made without consideration.
Subsection (b) states that if the land described in
subsection (a) ceases to be used by the Nevada National Guard,
the land shall revert to Clark County, Nevada, for management
in accordance with the Southern Nevada Public Lands Management
Act of 1998 (Public Law 105-263).
COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
The following estimate of costs of this measure has been
provided by the Congressional Budget Office:
H.R. 815--Southern Nevada Readiness Center Act
CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 815 would not
significantly affect the federal budget. Under the Southern
Nevada Public Land Management Act (SNPLMA), the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) conveyed certain federal land to Clark County,
Nevada. That act specifies that, if the county ever conveys the
land, it must charge fair market value and give a portion of
the proceeds to BLM. The agency could use such proceeds,
without further appropriation, to acquire environmentally
sensitive property and complete certain projects in Nevada.
H.R. 815 would authorize Clark County to convey to the
state of Nevada, for no consideration, about 51 acres of land
originally conveyed to the county under SNPLMA. The state would
likely establish a National Guard facility on any land it
receives under the legislation. Based on information from BLM,
CBO expects that the county would not sell the affected land
under current law; therefore, we estimate it would generate no
significant receipts (or subsequent direct spending) over the
next 10 years. We also estimate that H.R. 815 would not affect
federal costs for land management, which are subject to
appropriation.
H.R. 815 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and
would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
Enacting this legislation would benefit the state of Nevada and
Clark County.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Mark Grabowicz.
This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Assistant
Director for Budget Analysis.
REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION
In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following
evaluation of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in
carrying H.R. 815. The Act is not a regulatory measure in the
sense of imposing Government-established standards or
significant economic responsibilities on private individuals
and businesses.
No personal information would be collected in administering
the program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal
privacy.
Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the
enactment of H.R. 815, as ordered reported.
CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING
H.R. 815, as reported, does not contain any congressionally
directed spending items, limited tax benefits, or limited
tariff benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the Standing Rules
of the Senate.
EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS
The testimony provided by the Bureau of Land Management at
the September 20, 2007 Subcommittee hearing on H.R. 815
follows:
Statement of Michael Nedd, Assistant Director, Minerals, Realty and
Resource Protection, Bureau of Land Management
Mr. Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, thank you for
the opportunity to testify on S. 1608, the Southern Nevada
Readiness Center Act. S. 1608 would convey without
consideration between 35 and 50 acres of land from Clark
County, Nevada, to the Nevada Division of State Lands for use
by the Nevada National Guard for defense and security training.
All right, title, and interest to these lands was conveyed by
the BLM to Clark County, Nevada, in 1999, as directed by
Section 4(g) of the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act
of 1998 (SNPLMA), for inclusion in the McCarran Airport
Cooperative Management Area (CMA).
The CMA was established in 1992 through an agreement
between Clark County and BLM to manage development around
McCarran Airport, which services the greater Las Vegas area. As
directed by SNPLMA, approximately 5,000 acres of public lands
was conveyed by the BLM to Clark County for inclusion in the
CMA boundary. SNPLMA requires that Clark County manage the
lands in the CMA in accordance with 49 U.S.C. 47504, relating
to airport noise compatibility planning, so that development in
the CMA is compatible with the nature of airport operations.
Further, section (4)(g) of SNPLMA requires that any conveyance
of CMA lands by Clark County be for fair market value, and the
revenue distributed according to the formula outlined in
Section (4)(g) of SNPLMA.
The BLM is mindful that S. 1608 conveys the CMA lands from
one public entity to another for important national defense and
security purposes. In balancing these considerations against
the provisions of SNPLMA that require the sale of CMA lands for
fair market value, the BLM supports the bill and the conveyance
of the CMA lands for no consideration. However, we suggest that
the bill be amended to include a provision that if the State of
Nevada ceases to use the lands for the purpose intended in S.
1608, the lands revert to the County to be managed consistent
with the provisions of SNPLMA. We also recommend an amendment
to correct the acreage identified in S. 1608 from ``between 35
and 50 acres'' to ``approximately 51 acres.''
Thank you for the opportunity to testify on S. 1608. We
look forward to working with the sponsor and the Committee on
this important piece of legislation.
CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW
In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no
changes in existing law are made by the bills S. 1608 and H.R.
815, as ordered reported.
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