§ 494. — Calaveras Bigtree National Forest.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 16USC494]
TITLE 16--CONSERVATION
CHAPTER 2--NATIONAL FORESTS
SUBCHAPTER I--ESTABLISHMENT AND ADMINISTRATION
Sec. 494. Calaveras Bigtree National Forest
The Secretary of Agriculture, to secure and protect for all time the
big trees scientifically known as Sequoia washingtoniana, is empowered,
in his discretion, to obtain for the United States the complete title to
any or all of the following-described lands in the State of California:
In township 4 north, range 15 east, Mount Diablo meridian, the northeast
quarter of section 1; in township 4 north, range 16 east, Mount Diablo
meridian, the north half of section 6; in township 5 north, range 15
east, Mount Diablo meridian, the southwest quarter of section 14, south
half of section 15, north half of section 22, northwest quarter of
section 23, and southeast quarter of section 36, and in township 5
north, range 16 east, Mount Diablo meridian, the west half of section
28, the east half and southwest quarter of section 29, the southeast
quarter of section 30, all of sections 31, 32, and the northwest quarter
of section 33. And such area or areas, as fast as complete title is
acquired, shall be permanently held by the United States and shall be
known as the Calaveras Bigtree National Forest and shall be
administered, and protected, by the Secretary of Agriculture from the
funds appropriated for the administration of National Forest land to
prolong the existence, growth, and promote the reproduction of said big
trees. The owners of land acquired hereunder shall convey to the United
States full title to any of the above-described areas approved for said
national forest by the Secretary of Agriculture, the completeness of
such title to be determined by the Secretary of the Interior in each
case, and shall be reimbursed therefor only in one or both of the
following ways: (1) They may be given the right to file with the
Secretary of the Interior, within sixty days after such conveyance,
selections of surveyed, unappropriated, nonmineral public lands or of
nonmineral national forest lands, and if the lands so selected shall be
found subject to selection and of the actual value in lands and stumpage
substantially equal to that of the lands and stumpage conveyed they may
be patented to said owners in lieu of the conveyed lands. In any case
where any part of the lands selected is national forest land, the
approval of the Secretary of Agriculture shall first be secured with
respect to such part, or (2) the Secretary of Agriculture may grant to
any such conveying owner the right to cut from national forest land an
amount of timber and wood substantially equal to the amount of timber
and wood on the land acquired by the United States under the provisions
of this section.
(Feb. 18, 1909, ch. 143, 35 Stat. 626; May 7, 1912, ch. 105, Sec. 1, 37
Stat. 108.)
Codification
A proviso of the section as originally enacted ``That nothing
contained in this Act shall warrant an appropriation from the Treasury
to carry out the terms of this Act,'' was superseded by the
appropriation of a sum for the purposes of the Act by section 2 of act
May 7, 1912.
Amendments
1912--Act May 7, 1912, changed provisions of original act as to
modes of reimbursement of owners of lands taken.
Transfer of Lands in Calaveras Big Trees National Forest to State of
California
Pub. L. 101-436, Oct. 17, 1990, 104 Stat. 993, provided that:
``SECTION 1. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
``(a) Findings.--The Congress finds and declares that--
``(1) in order to protect certain outstanding examples of
ponderosa pine, sugar pine, and giant sequoia trees located in the
North and South Calaveras Groves, on the western slope of the Sierra
Nevada Mountains, the State of California has established the
Calaveras Big Trees State Park;
``(2) for similar purposes, the United States has designated
certain adjacent Federal lands, amounting to approximately 379
acres, as the Calaveras Big Trees National Forest; and
``(3) this National Forest (managed as part of the Stanislaus
National Forest) is the smallest National Forest in the United
States and could be more appropriately and efficiently managed as
part of the Calaveras Big Trees State Park.
``(b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to improve the management
of the lands located in the Calaveras Big Trees National Forest, and to
protect certain examples of ponderosa pine, sugar pine, and giant
sequoia trees, by unifying the management of the lands in such National
Forest and in the California Calaveras Big Trees State Park.
``SEC. 2. LAND CONVEYANCE.
``(a) Conveyance.--Subject to valid existing rights and the
provisions of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture (hereinafter in
this Act referred to as the `Secretary') is authorized and directed to
convey all right, title, and interest of the United States in and to
lands and interests therein within the Calaveras Big Trees National
Forest, as generally depicted on a map numbered 20435 and dated June 5,
1989, prepared by the California Department of Parks and Recreation, to
the State of California for inclusion within the Calaveras Big Trees
State Park.
``(b) Map and Description.--As soon as practicable after the
enactment of this Act [Oct. 17, 1990], the Secretary shall submit a map
and legal description of the lands referred to in subsection (a) to the
Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs [now Committee on Natural
Resources] of the United States House of Representatives, and the
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate. Such map and
legal description shall have the same force and effect as if included in
this Act, except that any clerical or typographical errors in such map
or legal description may be corrected. The Secretary shall place such
map and legal description on file, and make them available for public
inspection, in the Office of the Chief of the Forest Service.
``(c) Conditions of Conveyance.--Conveyance of the lands and
interests described in subsection (a) of this section shall be subject
to the following conditions:
``(1) The conveyance shall take place only if within two years
after the date of enactment of this Act [Oct. 17, 1990], there is
concluded an agreement between the State of California and the
Secretary whereby the State of California agrees to provide to the
United States, in exchange for the lands described in subsection (a)
and pursuant to terms and conditions which the Secretary finds
acceptable, consideration of approximately equal value. Such
consideration shall include either lands in California that the
Secretary finds suitable for addition to, and are contiguous to, one
or more units of the National Forest System, cash payment, or
monetary grants awarded to the United States after June 1, 1990, or
any combination thereof.
``(2) No harvest of timber (except as may be necessary for the
control of fire, insects, or disease) and no mining, mineral
leasing, or geothermal exploration or development shall be permitted
on such lands;
``(3) Any action by the State of California to convey any
portion of such lands or interests to any entity other than the
United States shall be void ab initio and shall result in the
reversion to the United States of all right, title, and interest in
such lands;
``(4) Any action by the State of California to permit the use of
any portion of such lands for any purpose prohibited by this
subsection or any purpose incompatible with the continued ability of
such lands to support ponderosa pine, sugar pine, or giant sequoia
trees, shall result in the reversion of all right, title, and
interest in such lands to the United States. Any such lands which
revert to the United States shall be incorporated into the
Stanislaus National Forest and managed to preserve and protect the
stands of ponderosa pine, sugar pine, and giant sequoia trees
located on such lands.
``(5) The Secretary, acting through the Forest Service, shall be
afforded by appropriate officials of the State of California
reasonable opportunities to collect seeds from trees located on such
lands for scientific or silvicultural purposes.
``(6) The Secretary, upon prior notification to the State of
California, shall be entitled at any time to enter upon such lands
for the purpose of monitoring the management of such lands and the
compliance of the State of California with the provisions of this
subsection.
``(7) The conveyance shall be subject to the following
reservations or exceptions:
``(A) existing ditches and canals as authorized by the Act
of August 30, 1890 (43 U.S.C. 945); and
``(B) any existing rights-of-way to provide the United
States and its assigns access to federally owned lands.
``(d) Enforcement.--Upon the request of the Secretary, the Attorney
General shall bring any action or take any other steps necessary to
enforce the provisions of subsection (c) of this section.
``(e) Timing, Value, and Status.--(1) Conveyance of lands to the
State of California pursuant to this Act shall occur when the agreement
described in paragraph (1) of subsection (c) has been reached. The
restrictions and conditions specified in paragraphs (2), (3), (4), (5),
(6), and (7) of subsection (c) shall be included in the instruments of
conveyance of lands to the State of California.
``(2) Effective upon the conveyance to the State of California of
lands described in subsection (a) of this section, or two years after
the date of enactment of this Act [Oct. 17, 1990], whichever is sooner,
the National Forest designation of such lands shall terminate. Any such
lands not conveyed to the State of California shall thereupon be
incorporated into the Stanislaus National Forest and managed to preserve
and protect the stands of ponderosa pine, sugar pine, and giant sequoia
trees located on such lands.
``(3) Any lands conveyed to the United States pursuant to this Act
shall be deemed national forest lands and managed according to the laws
governing the management of the National Forest System. If any such
lands are outside existing boundaries of one or more National Forests,
the Secretary shall modify such boundaries as he deems appropriate to
include such lands.
``(4) Values of the respective lands exchanged between the United
States and the State of California pursuant to this Act shall be of
`approximately equal value' as that term is defined by regulations
implementing the Act of January 12, 1983, known as the Small Tracts Act
(16 U.S.C. 521c-521i).''
