Programs: Lands-and-Realty: Regional-Information: Nevada: SNPLMA

Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act (SNPLMA)

The Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act (SNPLMA) became law in October 1998. It allows the Bureau of Land Management to sell public land within a specific boundary around Las Vegas, Nevada. The revenue derived from land sales is split between the State of Nevada General Education Fund (5%), the Southern Nevada Water Authority (10%), and a special account available to the Secretary of the Interior for:

Parks, Trails, and Natural Areas
Capital Improvements
Conservation Initiatives
Multi-Species Habitat Conservation Plan (MSHCP)
Environmentally Sensitive Land Acquisitions
Hazardous Fuels Reduction and Wildfire Prevention
Eastern Nevada Landscape Restoration Project
Lake Tahoe Restoration Projects

Other provisions in the SNPLMA direct certain land sale and acquisition procedures, direct the BLM to convey title of land in the McCarran Airport noise zone to Clark County, and provide for the sale of land for affordable housing.

If you are having trouble finding the information you need, or have suggestions on how we might improve our site content, please inform the Assistant District Manager, SNPLMA, by calling (702) 515-5044.

Additional Legislation

Mesquite

Mesquite Lands Act of 1986, Public Law 99-548 - Oct. 27, 1986

- Mesquite Lands Act of 1988, currently unavailable

- Public Law 104-208 - Sep. 30, 1996 (Amendment to the Mesquite Lands Act of 1988)

- Sec. 133. Conveyance of Land to City of Mesquite, Nevada. Section 3 of Public Law 99-548 (100 Stat. 3061; 110 Stat. 3009-202) is amended by adding to the end the following:

(e) Fifth Area.--

(1) Right to purchase.--

(A) In general.--

For a period of 12 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the City of Mesquite, Nevada, subject to all appropriate environmental reviews, including compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act, shall have the exclusive right to purchase the parcels of public land described in paragraph (2).

(B) Applicability.--

Subparagraph (A) shall apply to a parcel of land described in paragraph (2) that has not been identified for disposal in the 1998 Bureau of Land Management Las Vegas Resource Management Plan only if the conveyance is made under subsection (f).

(2) Land description.--

The parcels of public land referred to in paragraph (1) are as follows:

(A) In T. 13 S., R. 70 E., Mount Diablo Meridian, Nevada:

(i) The portion of sec. 27 north of Interstate Route 15.

(ii) Sec. 28: NE \1/4\, S \1/2\ (except the Interstate Route 15 right-of-way).

(iii) Sec. 29: E \1/2\ NE \1/4\ SE \1/4\, SE \1/4\ SE \1/4\.

(iv) The portion of sec. 30 south of Interstate Route 15.

(v) The portion of sec. 31 south of Interstate Route 15.

(vi) Sec. 32: NE \1/4\ NE \1/4\ (except the Interstate Route 15 right-of-way), the portion of NW \1/4\ NE \1/4\ south of Interstate Route 15, and the portion of W \1/2\ south of Interstate Route 15.

(vii) The portion of sec. 33 north of Interstate Route 15.

(B) In T. 13 S., R. 69 E., Mount Diablo Meridian, Nevada: [Page 113 STAT. 1501A-167]

(i) The portion of sec. 25 south of Interstate Route 15.

(ii) The portion of sec. 26 south of Interstate Route 15.

(iii) The portion of sec. 27 south of Interstate Route 15.

(iv) Sec. 28: SW \1/4\ SE \1/4\.

(v) Sec. 33: E \1/2\.

(vi) Sec. 34.

(vii) Sec. 35.

(viii) Sec. 36.

(3) Notification.--

Not later than 10 years after the date of the enactment of this subsection, the city shall notify the Secretary which of the parcels of public land described in paragraph (2) the city intends to purchase.

(4) Conveyance.--

Not later than 1 year after receiving notification from the city under paragraph (3),the Secretary shall convey to the city the land selected for purchase.

(5) Withdrawal.--

Subject to valid existing rights, until the date that is 12 years after the date of the enactment of this subsection, the parcels of public land described in paragraph (2) are withdrawn from all forms of entry and appropriation under the public land laws, including the mining laws, and from operation of the mineral leasing and geothermal leasing laws.

(6) Use of proceeds.--

The proceeds of the sale of each parcel--

(A) shall be deposited in the special account established under section 4(e)(1)(C) of the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act of 1998 (112 Stat. 2345); and

(B) shall be available for use by the Secretary--

(i) to reimburse costs incurred by the local offices of the Bureau of Land Management in arranging the land conveyances directed by this Act; and

(ii) as provided in section 4(e)(3) of that Act (112 Stat. 2346).

(f) Sixth Area.--

(1) In general.--

Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this subsection, the Secretary shall convey to the City of Mesquite, Nevada, in accordance with section 47125 of title 49, United States Code, and subject to all appropriate environmental reviews, including compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act, up to 2,560 acres of public land to be selected by the city from among the parcels of land described in paragraph (2).

(2) Land description.--

The parcels of land referred to in paragraph (1) are as follows:

(A) In T. 13 S., R. 69 E., Mount Diablo Meridian, Nevada:

(i) The portion of sec. 28 south of Interstate Route 15 (except S \1/2\ SE \1/4\).

(ii) The portion of sec. 29 south of Interstate Route 15.

(iii) The portion of sec. 30 south of Interstate Route 15. [Page 113 STAT. 1501A-168]

(iv) The portion of sec. 31 south of Interstate Route 15.

(v) Sec. 32.

(vi) Sec. 33: W \1/2\.

(B) In T. 14 S., R. 69 E., Mount Diablo Meridian, Nevada:

(i) Sec. 4.

(ii) Sec. 5.

(iii) Sec. 6.

(iv) Sec. 8.

(C) In T. 14 S., R. 68 E., Mount Diablo Meridian, Nevada:

(ii) Sec. 12.

(3) Withdrawal.--

Subject to valid existing rights, until the date that is 12 years after the date of the enactment of this subsection, the parcels of public land described in paragraph (2) are withdrawn from all forms of entry and appropriation under the public land laws, including the mining laws, and from operation of the mineral leasing and geothermal leasing laws.

(4) If the land conveyed pursuant to this section is not utilized by the city as an airport, it shall revert to the United States, at the option of the Secretary.

(5) Nothing in this section shall preclude the Secretary from applying appropriate terms and conditions as identified by the required environmental review to any conveyance made under this section.

SNPLMA Links

Fall 2016 Sale Docs

Download Documents for the SNPLMA Land Sale Scheduled for November 30, 2016

Legislation

Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act of 1998 "As Amended", Public Law 105 263 (PDF File)

Related Public Laws

Lincoln County Conservation, Recreation, and Development Act of 2004, Public Law 108-424 H.R. 4593 (17 page PDF)

Clark County Conservation of Public Land and Natural Resources Act of 2002, Public Law 107-282 H.R. 5200 (26 page PDF)

Fiscal Year 2004 Appropriations Act amending the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act of 1998, Public Law 105-263 H.R. 2691 (2 page PDF)

Lake Tahoe Restoration Act

Mesquite Land Sales: See bottom center of this web page, under "Additional Legislation"

Ivanpah Valley Airport Public Lands Transfer Act (4 page PDF)

Implementation

SNPLMA IMPLEMENTATION

An agreement for implementation of the SNPLMA, entitled The Federal Partners Charter, was first developed in 1999 by a team of representatives from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), USDA Forest Service (USFS), and the National Park Service (NPS). The purpose of the agreement was to address how the Federal agencies could work together to implement those portions of the SNPLMA that require coordination both within the Department of the Interior and between the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture. The team also addressed the requirements related to coordination and consultation with the State of Nevada, local governments, and interested parties. The Federal Partners Charter outlined a collaborative process for developing a recommendation for the Secretary of the Interior regarding the SNPLMA Special Account expenditures and served to guide the development of the Round 1 Recommendation for expenditures. The Charter was renamed the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act (SNPLMA) Implementation Agreement in May 2000. The lessons learned since Round 1 in executing the process have proven valuable in modifying the terms of the Implementation Agreement in order to make the process more efficient and effective over time. A continuous improvement approach was adopted, and the Implementation Agreement has been revised on a relatively frequent basis to address process changes and improvements, and to reflect amendments to the SNPLMA legislation.

The Implementation Agreement is expected to continue to evolve during the life of the SNPLMA. Maintenance of the Implementation Agreement is the responsibility of the Partners Working Group (PWG). BLM prepares draft revisions based on processes put into place with the Executive Committee since the previous version was approved; SNPLMA Division recommendations; Executive Committee decisions approved through the decision memorandum process regarding changes in policy, processes, or procedures; comments and suggestions from Federal managers and SNPLMA Subgroup members; and PWG recommendations. The BLM distributes the draft revisions for review and comment by the category subgroups and others involved in implementation of the SNPLMA. A final draft accepted by the PWG is then submitted to the Executive Committee for approval. All proposed changes must be approved by the Executive Committee before they take effect except those effective as of the date of any prior Executive Committee decisions.

→ Changes to the Implementation Agreement to Delegate Approval Authority for the Majority of Project Modification Decision Memoranda, January 15, 2014

→ POC DM Approved 04-05-13

→ Refine Conditional & Other Time Ext Rules Approved

→ Process for Off-cycle High Value Land Acquisistions

→ PTNA Subgroup Changes

→ Implementation Agreement - Part I, February 5, 2013

→ Implementation Agreement - Part II - Appendices, February 5, 2013

→ Appendix L: Project Modification Request Form (MS Word), February 5, 2013

→ Appendix J: Document Retention, Funding, Reimbursement and Closeout Requirements for All Project Categories, February 5, 2013

→ Appendix J-1 (MS Word): Sample Project Initiation Letter, February 5, 2013

→ Appendix J-2: Certification Regarding Lobbying, February 5, 2013

→ Process Flow Chart