Clifton Opportunities Now for Vibrant Economic Yields Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2997) to direct the Secretary of the Interior to convey to Mesa County, Colorado, certain Federal land in Colorado, and for other purposes, as amended.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 2997

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Clifton Opportunities Now for Vibrant Economic Yields Act'' or as the ``CONVEY Act''. SEC. 2. CONVEYANCE OF FEDERAL LAND TO MESA COUNTY, COLORADO.

(a) Definitions.--In this section:

(1) Clifton parcel.--The term ``Clifton parcel'' means the approximately 31.1 acres of Federal land depicted as ``31.1 Acres to be Conveyed to Mesa County'' on the map titled ``Clifton Opportunities Now for Vibrant Economic Yields (CONVEY) Act'' and dated April 19, 2023.

(2) County.--The term ``County'' means Mesa County, Colorado.

(3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of the Bureau of Land Management.

(b) In General.--Notwithstanding the Secretarial Order dated August 26, 1902, and the Secretarial Order dated July 25, 1908, the Secretary shall convey to the County, as soon as practicable, all rights, title, and interest of the United States in and to the Clifton parcel.

(c) Requirements.--The conveyance under this section shall be--

(1) subject to valid existing rights; and

(2) for not less than fair market value, as determined in accordance with subsection (d).

(d) Appraisal.--

(1) In general.--The fair market value of the Clifton parcel shall be determined by an independent appraisal obtained by the Secretary.

(2) Appraisal standards.--The appraisal required by paragraph (1) shall be conducted in accordance with the--

(A) Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land Acquisitions; and

(B) Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice.

(e) Costs of Conveyance.--The County shall pay all costs associated with the conveyance required under subsection (b), including all costs associated with any survey conducted for the purpose of accomplishing such conveyance.

(f) Proceeds From Conveyance.--The proceeds from the conveyance required under subsection (b) shall be--

(1) deposited into the Federal Land Disposal Account established by the Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act (43 U.S.C. 2301 et seq.); and

(2) available for expenditure under that Act.

(g) Map and Legal Description.--

(1) In general.--As soon as practicable after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall finalize a map and a legal description of all land to be conveyed under this Act.

(2) Controlling document.--In the case of a discrepancy between the map and the legal description created under paragraph (1), the map shall control.

(3) Corrections.--The Secretary and the County, by mutual agreement, may correct any minor errors in the map or the legal description created under paragraph (1).

(4) Map on file.--The map and the legal description created under paragraph (1) shall be kept on file and available for public inspection in each appropriate office of the Bureau of Land Management.

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Mr. WESTERMAN. 2997, the bill now under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I strongly support Representative Boebert's bill, the Clifton Opportunities Now for Vibrant Economic Yields Act, or the CONVEY Act.

H.R. 2997 conveys land from the Federal Government to Mesa County in Colorado. As the House Committee on Natural Resources considered and ultimately passed this bill through our committee last year, it was clear Representative Boebert had done good work to build consensus and solve an important issue in a local Colorado community.

The bill is good policy. Representative Boebert worked with her constituents, county leaders, and the Bureau of Land Management to draft legislation they all support.

Many of our Western States are largely owned by the Federal Government. In Colorado, over 36 percent of the land is federally owned. In Mesa County, an astonishing 72 percent of the land is owned by the Federal Government, and this presents many local challenges.

As communities grow in proximity to Federal lands, there simply is not enough space for new homes, schools, hospitals, or other necessities to sustain a growing population. Large swaths of Federal land limit the tax base to support the local community. While creative solutions have been enacted by Congress to address this issue, there are still setbacks to communities lacking a strong tax base.

The growing population in this Colorado community has encouraged county leaders to seek out new land for development. The land in question is on the Bureau's disposal list, meaning the agency has determined it no longer wants to manage the land and the land does not serve the taxpayers' interest.

While both the Bureau of Land Management and Mesa County are supportive of this land exchange, the process has continued to run into bureaucratic delays. Mesa County has been working for 5 years to acquire a mere 31 acres--let me repeat that: 5 years to acquire 31 acres--all because of bureaucratic delays. We now need an act of Congress to speed up this process.

This is evidence of a much larger problem. There should not be excessive delays preventing the conveyance of land when all parties agree this land would be put to more productive use outside of Federal management and there is a willing buyer.

The House Committee on Natural Resources will continue to conduct oversight on how we can expedite the process of disposing of unwanted Federal land, especially land that could be better utilized to support small, rural communities and their economies.

While the committee continues its work to address the larger issue of Federal land management, I applaud Representative Boebert for her leadership in addressing this important issue for her constituents.

Mr. Speaker, I support the bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. WESTERMAN. Boebert), the author of the legislation.

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Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, once again, I thank Representative Boebert for her hard work and leadership and the effort she put into crafting this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I urge the adoption of the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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