H.R. 2365 — Introduced in House

I 115th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 2365 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES May 4, 2017Mr. Cook introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources A BILL To convey certain Federal land in California to Apple Valley, California, Twentynine Palms, California, Barstow, California, and Victorville, California. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Desert Community Lands Act. 2. Conveyance for Apple Valley Off-Highway Vehicle Recreation Area (a) Definitions In this section: (1) Town The term Town means the town of Apple Valley, California. (2) Secretary The term Secretary means the Secretary of the Interior. (b) Conveyance of federal land to town (1) Conveyance required Not later than 5 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall convey to the Town, without consideration, all right, title, and interest of the United States in and to the surface estate of the approximately 4,630 acres of land generally depicted as Proposed Conveyance Area on the entitled Conveyance to Town of Apple Valley and dated June 1, 2015. Such land shall be known and designated as the Apple Valley Off-Highway Vehicle Recreation Area. (2) Existing rights and mineral estate The conveyance under this subsection— (A) is subject to valid existing rights; and (B) does not include the mineral estate. (c) Use of conveyed land (1) In general The land conveyed under subsection (b) may be used by the Town for any public purpose authorized in paragraph (2), consistent with the Act of June 14, 1926 (commonly known as the Recreation and Public Purposes Act; 43 U.S.C. 869 et seq.). (2) Authorized purposes The purposes of the conveyance under subsection (b) are to allow the Town to use the conveyed land to provide— (A) a suitable location for the establishment of a centralized off-road vehicle recreation park; (B) the public with opportunities for off-road vehicle recreation, including a location for races, competitive events, training and other commercial services that directly support a centralized off-road vehicle recreation area and Town park; and (C) a designated area and facilities that would discourage unauthorized use of off-highway vehicles in areas that have been identified by the Federal Government, the State of California, or the County as containing environmentally sensitive land. (3) Disposal prohibited The land conveyed under subsection (b) may not be disposed of by the Town without the approval of the Secretary. (d) Management plan The Secretary may develop a special management plan for the Apple Valley Off-Highway Vehicle Recreation Area to enhance the safe use of off-highway vehicles for recreational purposes. 3. Conveyance to City of Twentynine Palms, California (a) Conveyance required Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall convey to the city of Twentynine Palms, California, without consideration, all right, title, and interest of the United States in and to the surface estate of the land generally depicted as Proposed Conveyance to Twentynine Palms on the map entitled Proposed Conveyance to Twentynine Palms and dated September 18, 2015. (b) Existing rights and mineral estate The conveyance under this section— (1) is subject to valid existing rights; and (2) does not include the mineral estate. 4. Conveyance to City of Barstow, California (a) Conveyance required Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall convey to the city of Barstow, California, without consideration, all right, title, and interest of the United States in and to the surface estate of the land generally depicted as Proposed Conveyance on the map entitled Proposed Conveyance to the City of Barstow and dated January 13, 2017. (b) Existing rights and mineral estate The conveyance under this section— (1) is subject to valid existing rights; and (2) does not include the mineral estate. 5. Conveyance to City of Victorville, California (a) Conveyance required Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall convey to the City of Victorville, California, without consideration, all right, title, and interest of the United States in and to the surface estate of the land generally depicted as Proposed Conveyance on the map entitled Proposed Conveyance to the City of Victorville and dated April 25, 2017. (b) Existing rights and mineral estate The conveyance under this subsection— (1) is subject to valid existing rights; and (2) does not include the mineral estate.