Description:
H.R. 255 would direct the Forest Service to exchange, at the request of San Bernardino County, California, 73 acres of federal land in the San Bernardino National Forest for 71 acres of land owned by the county. The bill would require the county to pay any administrative costs associated with the land exchange. H.R. 255 also would direct the Forest Service to relocate a portion of the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail that is currently located on the federal lands to be exchanged. Using information from the Forest Service, CBO estimates that relocating the trail would cost less than $500,000; such spending would be subject to the availability of appropriated funds. Most of those costs would be for environmental reviews and trail construction. Enacting H.R. 255 could affect direct spending; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures apply. CBO expects that the value of the federal lands to be conveyed would exceed the value of the county lands. Under the bill, the county would be required to adjust the acreage of the land exchange or to make a cash equalization payment. Any payments would be recorded in the budge as offsetting receipts, which are treated as reductions in direct spending, and would be available to the Forest Service to spend without further appropriation for acquiring land within the San Bernardino National Forest. CBO estimates that any such payment would be offset by subsequent direct spending; thus, the net effect on direct spending would be negligible.
