[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 36, Volume 2]
[Revised as of July 1, 2008]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 36CFR254.10]

[Page 359]
 
              TITLE 36--PARKS, FORESTS, AND PUBLIC PROPERTY
 
          CHAPTER II--FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
 
PART 254_LANDOWNERSHIP ADJUSTMENTS--Table of Contents
 
                        Subpart A_Land Exchanges
 
Sec. 254.10  Bargaining; arbitration.

    (a) Unless the parties to an exchange agree in writing to suspend or 
modify the deadlines contained in paragraphs (a)(1) through (a)(4) of 
this section, the parties shall adhere to the following:
    (1)(i) Within 180 days from the date of receipt of the appraisal(s) 
for review and approval by the authorized officer, the parties to an 
exchange may agree on the appraised values or may initiate a process of 
bargaining or some other process to determine values. Bargaining or any 
other process must be based on an objective analysis of the valuation in 
the appraisal report(s) and is a means of reconciling differences in 
such report(s). Bargaining or another process to determine values may 
involve one or more of the following actions:
    (A) Submission of the disputed appraisal(s) to another qualified 
appraiser for review:
    (B) Request for additional appraisals;
    (C) Involvement of an impartial third party to facilitate resolution 
of the value disputes, or
    (D) Use of some other acceptable and commonly recognized practice 
for resolving value disputes.
    (ii) Any agreement based upon bargaining must be in writing and made 
part of the administrative record of the exchange. Such agreement must 
contain a reference to all relevant appraisal information and state how 
the parties reconciled or compromised appraisal information to arrive at 
an agreement based on market value.
    (2) If within 180 days from the date of receipt of the appraisal(s) 
for review and approval by the authorized officer, the parties to an 
exchange cannot agree on values but wish to continue with the land 
exchange, the appraisal(s), at the initiative of either party, must be 
submitted to arbitration, unless, in lieu of arbitration, the parties 
have employed a process of bargaining or some other process to determine 
values. If arbitration occurs, it must be conducted in accordance with 
the real estate valuation arbitration rules of the American Arbitration 
Association. The Secretary or an official to whom such authority has 
been delegated shall appoint an arbitrator from a list provided by the 
American Arbitration Association.
    (3) Within 30 days after completion of arbitration, the parties 
involved in the exchange must determine whether to proceed with the 
exchange, modify the exchange to reflect the findings of the arbitration 
or any other factors, or withdraw from the exchange. A decision to 
withdraw from the exchange may be made upon written notice by either 
party at this time or at any other time prior to entering into a binding 
exchange agreement.
    (4) If the parties agree to proceed with an exchange after 
arbitration, the values established by arbitration are binding upon all 
parties for a period not to exceed 2 years from the date of the 
arbitration decision.
    (b) Arbitration is limited to the disputed valuation of the lands 
involved in a proposed exchange and an arbitrator's award decision is 
limited to the value estimate(s) of the contested appraisal(s). An 
arbitrator may not include in an award decision recommendations 
regarding the terms of a proposed exchange, nor may an arbitrator's 
award decision infringe upon the authority of the Secretary to make all 
decisions regarding management of Federal lands and to make public 
interest determinations.