H.R. 1016 — Introduced in House

I 113th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 1016 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES March 6, 2013 Mr. Peters of California (for himself, Mrs. Davis of California, and Mr. Vargas) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform A BILL To amend title 39, United States Code, to authorize the United States Postal Service to sell, at fair market value, any post office building subject to relocation, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Community Post Office Relocation Act. 2. Sale of post office buildings subject to relocation (a) In general Chapter 4 of title 39, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 417. Authority to sell buildings containing post offices subject to relocation (a) In addition to the authority provided under section 401(5), the Postal Service may sell, at fair market value, to an eligible buyer fee simple title to a covered post office building. (b) (1) Beginning on the date on which the Postal Service makes an announcement, as described in paragraph (2), that a covered post office building is for sale, an eligible buyer shall have 30 days to make an offer to the Postal Service for the purchase of such building. (2) The announcement under paragraph (1) shall be posted prominently in a publicly accessible space in the covered post office building subject to sale. (c) (1) The Postal Service shall enter into negotiations for the sale of such building with the eligible buyer that submits the first offer, as determined by postmark date, during such 30-day period. If such negotiations fail, then the Postal Service shall enter into negotiations for sale with each subsequent eligible buyer, as determined by postmark date, that submits an offer during such 30-day period until a sale is made or until all such eligible buyers are exhausted. (2) If an offer under paragraph (1) is for the fair market value of such building, and all other relevant conditions have been met with respect to making a successful sale within 45 days after the postmark date of such offer, the Postal Service shall sell such building to such buyer. (3) The fair market value of a post office building sold by the Postal Service under this section shall be determined by an independent professional appraiser, licensed within the State in which such building is located, mutually agreed upon by the Postal Service and the eligible buyer. (d) (1) After the sale of a covered post office building to an eligible buyer under this section, the Postal Service may lease, at fair market value, such building from such buyer for purposes of operating a post office in such building. (2) If the Postal Service does not require all of the space in such building while operating a post office pursuant to paragraph (1), the eligible buyer may use the remaining space for any purpose permitted under Federal, State, or local law or regulation. (e) If an eligible buyer makes a covered post office purchased under this section available for sale, the Postal Service shall have the right of first refusal to purchase such building at fair market value or at the price of such purchase plus any improvements, whichever is less. (f) For purposes of this section— (1) the term covered post office building means a building owned by the Postal Service that contains a post office subject to relocation (as that term is described in section 241.4 of title 39, Code of Federal Regulations); and (2) the term eligible buyer means a private organization— (A) that is described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of such Code; (B) that operates primarily within the geographic area served by a covered post office building subject to sale under this section; and (C) that has been in operation within such area for at least 5 years prior to the date on which the announcement of the sale of the building is made (as described in subsection (b)(1)). . (b) Technical amendment The table of sections of chapter 4 of title 39, United States Code, is amended by adding after the item relating to section 416 the following new item: 417. Authority to sell buildings containing post offices subject to relocation. .