§ 1716. Exchanges of public lands or interests therein within the National Forest System
3,238 words·~15 min read·
/usc/title-43/section-1716A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
(a)Authorization and limitations on authority of Secretary of the Interior and Secretary of Agriculture A tract of public land or interests therein may be disposed of by exchange by the Secretary under this Act and a tract of land or interests therein within the National Forest System may be disposed of by exchange by the Secretary of Agriculture under applicable law where the Secretary concerned determines that the public interest will be well served by making that exchange: Provided, That when considering public interest the Secretary concerned shall give full consideration to better Federal land management and the needs of State and local people, including needs for lands for the economy, community expansion, recreation areas, food, fiber, minerals, and fish and wildlife and the Secretary concerned finds that the values and the objectives which Federal lands or interests to be conveyed may serve if retained in Federal ownership are not more than the values of the non-Federal lands or interests and the public objectives they could serve if acquired.
(b)Implementation requirements; cash equalization waiver In exercising the exchange authority granted by subsection
(a)or by section 1715(a) of this title, the Secretary concerned may accept title to any non-Federal land or interests therein in exchange for such land, or interests therein which he finds proper for transfer out of Federal ownership and which are located in the same State as the non-Federal land or interest to be acquired. For the purposes of this subsection, unsurveyed school sections which, upon survey by the Secretary, would become State lands, shall be considered as “non-Federal lands”. The values of the lands exchanged by the Secretary under this Act and by the Secretary of Agriculture under applicable law relating to lands within the National Forest System either shall be equal, or if they are not equal, the values shall be equalized by the payment of money to the grantor or to the Secretary concerned as the circumstances require so long as payment does not exceed 25 per centum of the total value of the lands or interests transferred out of Federal ownership. The Secretary concerned and the other party or parties involved in the exchange may mutually agree to waive the requirement for the payment of money to equalize values where the Secretary concerned determines that the exchange will be expedited thereby and that the public interest will be better served by such a waiver of cash equalization payments and where the amount to be waived is no more than 3 per centum of the value of the lands being transferred out of Federal ownership or $15,000, whichever is less, except that the Secretary of Agriculture shall not agree to waive any such requirement for payment of money to the United States. The Secretary concerned shall try to reduce the amount of the payment of money to as small an amount as possible.
(c)Status of lands acquired upon exchange by Secretary of the Interior Lands acquired by the Secretary by exchange under this section which are within the boundaries of any unit of the National Forest System, National Park System, National Wildlife Refuge System, National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, National Trails System, National Wilderness Preservation System, or any other system established by Act of Congress, or the boundaries of the California Desert Conservation Area, or the boundaries of any national conservation area or national recreation area established by Act of Congress, upon acceptance of title by the United States shall immediately be reserved for and become a part of the unit or area within which they are located, without further action by the Secretary, and shall thereafter be managed in accordance with all laws, rules, and regulations applicable to such unit or area.
(d)Appraisal of land; submission to arbitrator; determination to proceed or withdraw from exchange; use of other valuation process; suspension of deadlines
(1)No later than ninety days after entering into an agreement to initiate an exchange of land or interests therein pursuant to this Act or other applicable law, the Secretary concerned and other party or parties involved in the exchange shall arrange for appraisal (to be completed within a time frame and under such terms as are negotiated by the parties) of the lands or interests therein involved in the exchange in accordance with subsection
(f)of this section.
(2)If within one hundred and eighty days after the submission of an appraisal or appraisals for review and approval by the Secretary concerned, the Secretary concerned and the other party or parties involved cannot agree to accept the findings of an appraisal or appraisals, the appraisal or appraisals shall be submitted to an arbitrator appointed by the Secretary from a list of arbitrators submitted to him by the American Arbitration Association for arbitration to be conducted in accordance with the real estate valuation arbitration rules of the American Arbitration Association. Such arbitration shall be binding for a period of not to exceed two years on the Secretary concerned and the other party or parties involved in the exchange insofar as concerns the value of the lands which were the subject of the appraisal or appraisals.
(3)Within thirty days after the completion of the arbitration, the Secretary concerned and the other party or parties involved in the exchange shall determine whether to proceed with the exchange, modify the exchange to reflect the findings of the arbitration or any other factors, or to withdraw from the exchange. A decision to withdraw from the exchange may be made by either the Secretary concerned or the other party or parties involved.
(4)Instead of submitting the appraisal to an arbitrator, as provided in paragraph
(2)of this section,1 the Secretary concerned and the other party or parties involved in an exchange may mutually agree to employ a process of bargaining or some other process to determine the values of the properties involved in the exchange.
(5)The Secretary concerned and the other party or parties involved in an exchange may mutually agree to suspend or modify any of the deadlines contained in this subsection.
(e)Simultaneous issue of patents or titles Unless mutually agreed otherwise by the Secretary concerned and the other party or parties involved in an exchange pursuant to this Act or other applicable law, all patents or titles to be issued for land or interests therein to be acquired by the Federal Government and lands or interest therein to be transferred out of Federal ownership shall be issued simultaneously after the Secretary concerned has taken any necessary steps to assure that the United States will receive acceptable title.
(f)New rules and regulations; appraisal rules and regulations; “costs and other responsibilities or requirements” defined
(1)Within one year after August 20, 1988, the Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture shall promulgate new and comprehensive rules and regulations governing exchanges of land and interests therein pursuant to this Act and other applicable law. Such rules and regulations shall fully reflect the changes in law made by subsections
(d)through
(i)of this section and shall include provisions pertaining to appraisals of lands and interests therein involved in such exchanges.
(2)The provisions of the rules and regulations issued pursuant to paragraph
(1)of this subsection governing appraisals shall reflect nationally recognized appraisal standards, including, to the extent appropriate, the Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land Acquisitions: Provided, however, That the provisions of such rules and regulations shall—
(A)ensure that the same nationally approved appraisal standards are used in appraising lands or interest therein being acquired by the Federal Government and appraising lands or interests therein being transferred out of Federal ownership; and
(B)with respect to costs or other responsibilities or requirements associated with land exchanges—
(i)recognize that the parties involved in an exchange may mutually agree that one party (or parties) will assume, without compensation, all or part of certain costs or other responsibilities or requirements ordinarily borne by the other party or parties; and
(ii)also permit the Secretary concerned, where such Secretary determines it is in the public interest and it is in the best interest of consummating an exchange pursuant to this Act or other applicable law, and upon mutual agreement of the parties, to make adjustments to the relative values involved in an exchange transaction in order to compensate a party or parties to the exchange for assuming costs or other responsibilities or requirements which would ordinarily be borne by the other party or parties.
As used in this subparagraph, the term “costs or other responsibilities or requirements” shall include, but not be limited to, costs or other requirements associated with land surveys and appraisals, mineral examinations, title searches, archeological surveys and salvage, removal of encumbrances, arbitration pursuant to subsection
(d)of this section, curing deficiencies preventing highest and best use, and other costs to comply with laws, regulations and policies applicable to exchange transactions, or which are necessary to bring the Federal or non-Federal lands or interests involved in the exchange to their highest and best use for the appraisal and exchange purposes. Prior to making any adjustments pursuant to this subparagraph, the Secretary concerned shall be satisfied that the amount of such adjustment is reasonable and accurately reflects the approximate value of any costs or services provided or any responsibilities or requirements assumed.
(g)Exchanges to proceed under existing laws and regulations pending new rules and regulations Until such time as new and comprehensive rules and regulations governing exchange of land and interests therein are promulgated pursuant to subsection
(f)of this section, land exchanges may proceed in accordance with existing laws and regulations, and nothing in the Act shall be construed to require any delay in, or otherwise hinder, the processing and consummation of land exchanges pending the promulgation of such new and comprehensive rules and regulations. Where the Secretary concerned and the party or parties involved in an exchange have agreed to initiate an exchange of land or interests therein prior to the day of enactment of such subsections, subsections
(d)through
(i)of this section shall not apply to such exchanges unless the Secretary concerned and the party or parties involved in the exchange mutually agree otherwise.
(h)Exchange of lands or interests of approximately equal value; conditions; “approximately equal value” defined
(1)Notwithstanding the provisions of this Act and other applicable laws which require that exchanges of land or interests therein be for equal value, where the Secretary concerned determines it is in the public interest and that the consummation of a particular exchange will be expedited thereby, the Secretary concerned may exchange lands or interests therein which are of approximately equal value in cases where—
(A)the combined value of the lands or interests therein to be transferred from Federal ownership by the Secretary concerned in such exchange is not more than $150,000; and
(B)the Secretary concerned finds in accordance with the regulations to be promulgated pursuant to subsection
(f)of this section that a determination of approximately equal value can be made without formal appraisals, as based on a statement of value made by a qualified appraiser and approved by an authorized officer; and
(C)the definition of and procedure for determining “approximately equal value” has been set forth in regulations by the Secretary concerned and the Secretary concerned documents how such determination was made in the case of the particular exchange involved.
(2)As used in this subsection, the term “approximately equal value” shall have the same meaning with respect to lands managed by the Secretary of Agriculture as it does in the Act of January 22, 1983 (commonly known as the “Small Tracts Act”).
(i)Segregation from appropriation under mining and public land laws
(1)Upon receipt of an offer to exchange lands or interests in lands pursuant to this Act or other applicable laws, at the request of the head of the department or agency having jurisdiction over the lands involved, the Secretary of the Interior may temporarily segregate the Federal lands under consideration for exchange from appropriation under the mining laws. Such temporary segregation may only be made for a period of not to exceed five years. Upon a decision not to proceed with the exchange or upon deletion of any particular parcel from the exchange offer, the Federal lands involved or deleted shall be promptly restored to their former status under the mining laws. Any segregation pursuant to this paragraph shall be subject to valid existing rights as of the date of such segregation.
(2)All non-Federal lands which are acquired by the United States through exchange pursuant to this Act or pursuant to other law applicable to lands managed by the Secretary of Agriculture shall be automatically segregated from appropriation under the public land law, including the mining laws, for ninety days after acceptance of title by the United States. Such segregation shall be subject to valid existing rights as of the date of such acceptance of title. At the end of such ninety day period, such segregation shall end and such lands shall be open to operation of the public land laws and to entry, location, and patent under the mining laws except to the extent otherwise provided by this Act or other applicable law, or appropriate actions pursuant thereto.
(Pub. L. 94–579, title II, § 206, Oct. 21, 1976, 90 Stat. 2756; Pub. L. 100–409, §§ 3, 9, Aug. 20, 1988, 102 Stat. 1087, 1092.)
Connections519 cite this · traces to 4
Cited by 519 sections · top 60
public-private-law
- Public Law 116-260Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021
- Public Law 114-328National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017
- Public Law 117-263James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023
- Public Law 113-291Carl Levin and Howard P. ‘Buck’ McKeon National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015
- Public Law 115-334Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018
- Public Law 113-79Agricultural Act of 2014
- Public Law 116-9John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act
U.S. Code
- § 1701Congressional declaration of policy
- § 580dUse of Forest Service structures or improvements and land by public and private agencies, etc.; terms
- § 1719Mineral interests; reservation and conveyance requirements and procedures
- § 1715Acquisitions of public lands and access over non-Federal lands to National Forest System units
- § 1260Permit approval or denial
- § 2306Special provisions
- § 460kkEstablishment
- § 15927Oil shale, tar sands, and other strategic unconventional fuels
- § 539pSoutheast Arizona land exchange and conservation
- § 1718Documents of conveyance; terms, covenants, etc.
- § 1723Temporary revocation authority
- § 545bOpal Creek Wilderness and Scenic Recreation Area
- § 521bReport of Secretary of Agriculture prior to purchase or exchange of land; contents; waiting period
- § 539kKelly Butte Special Management Area
statutes-at-large
- Public Law 101–634To effect an exchange of lands between the United States Forest Service and the Salt Lake City Corporation within the State of Utah, and for other purposes
- Public Law 106–301To provide for the exchange of certain lands within the State of Utah
- Public LawMaking appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2017, and for other purposes
- Public Law 100–559To redesignate Salinas National Monument in the State of New Mexico, and for other purposes
- Public Law 105–74To require the Secretary of the Interior to exchange certain lands located in Hinsdale County, Colorado
- Public Law 97–179To authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to sell the portion of the Tahoe National Forest known as Blyth Arena
- Public Law 102–293To authorize a transfer of administrative jurisdiction over certain land to the Secretary of the Interior, and for other purposes
- Public Law 106–257To provide for the exchange of certain land in the State of Oregon
- Public Law 107–329To provide for the acquisition of land and construction of an interagency administrative and visitor facility at the entrance to American Fork Canyon, Utah, and for other purposes
- Public Law 112–79To provide for the exchange of certain land located in the Arapaho-Roosevelt National Forests in the State of Colorado, and for other purposesDec. 23, 2011[[S. 278](/us/bill/112/s/278)] Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,Su
- Public Law 108–346To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to exchange certain lands in the Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests in the State of Colorado
- Public Law 100–409Entitled the “Federal Land Exchange Facilitation Act of 1988”
- Public Law 108–152To authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to sell or exchange certain land in the State of Florida, and for other purposes
- Public Law 99–632To provide for the transfer of certain lands in the State of Arizona, and for other purposes
- Public Law 112–103To provide for the conveyance of approximately 140 acres of land in the Ouachita National Forest in Oklahoma to the Indian Nations Council, Inc., of the Boy Scouts of America, and for other purposes
- Public Law 109–470To provide for a land exchange involving private land and Bureau of Land Management land in the vicinity of Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, for the purpose of removing private land from the required safety zone surrounding munitions storage bunkers at Holloman Air Force Base
- Public Law 117–263To authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2023 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes
- Public Law 106–272To authorize the development and maintenance of a multi-agency campus project in the town of Jackson, Wyoming
- Public Law 110–234To provide for the continuation of agricultural programs through fiscal year 2012, and for other purposes
- Public Law 104–333To provide for the administration of certain Presidio properties at minimal cost to the Federal taxpayer, and for other purposes
- Public Law 95–87To provide for the cooperation between the Secretary of the Interior and the States with respect to the regulation of surface coal mining operations, and the acquisition and reclamation of abandoned mines, and for other purposes
- Public Law 115–334To provide for the reform and continuation of agricultural and other programs of the Department of Agriculture through fiscal year 2023, and for other purposes
- Public Law 94–579To establish public land policy; to establish guidelines for Its administration; to provide for the management, protection, development, and enhancement of the public lands; and for other purposes
- Public Law 110–246To provide for the continuation of agricultural and other programs of the Department of Agriculture through fiscal year 2012, and for other purposes
- Public Law 109–372To authorize the exchange of certain Federal land within the State of Idaho, and for other purposes
register
- NoticesPublic Land Order
- NoticesPublic Land Order (PLO)
- Rules and RegulationsNotice of availability and notice of realty action
- NoticesNotice of termination and opening order
- Notices1
- Rules and RegulationsRay Plan Amendment Record of Decision and Notice of Decision for the Ray Land Exchange
- Presidential DocumentsFinal rule
- NoticesPublic land order
- NoticesPublic land order
statute-compilations
Traces to 4 documents
U.S. Code
- Acquisitions of public lands and access over non-Federal lands to National Forest System units§ 1715
- Exchange of lands in national forests; public schools; deposit of funds by school authority with insufficient exchange land; limitations on use§ 484a
- Congressional declaration of policy§ 1701
- Congressional findings and declaration of policy§ 1601
20 references not yet in our index
- 1
- Pub. L. 94–579, title II, § 206
- 90 Stat. 2756
- Pub. L. 100–409
- 102 Stat. 1087
- Pub. L. 94–579
- 90 Stat. 2743
- Pub. L. 97–465
- 96 Stat. 2535
- Pub. L. 100–409, § 3(b)
- Pub. L. 100–409, § 9
- Pub. L. 100–409, § 3(c)
- Pub. L. 100–409, § 3(a)
- Pub. L. 100–409, § 2
- 102 Stat. 1086
- Pub. L. 100–409, § 4
- 102 Stat. 1090
- Pub. L. 100–409, § 5
- Public Law 92–203
- Public Law 96–487
Citation graph
cites case law
§ 1716
Exchanges of public lands or interests therein within the National Forest System
Bills×300
Stat.×107
Fed. Reg.×45
Pub. L.×24
Stat. Comp.×22
U.S.C.×21
Cite1
Pub. L.Pub. L. 94–579, title II, § 206
Stat.90 Stat. 2756
Pub. L.Pub. L. 100–409
Stat.102 Stat. 1087
Cites 24 · showing 9Cited by 519 across 6 sources