H.R. 1214 would increase the amount of land the Forest Service could sell or exchange under the Small Tracts Act. Based on information provided by the agency, CBO estimates that enacting the legislation would increase offsetting receipts, which are treated as reductions in direct spending, by about $1 million over the 2016-2025 period. Therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures apply. Enacting the bill would not affect revenues.
Under the Small Tracts Act, the Forest Service is authorized to sell or exchange parcels of land meeting certain criteria specified in the law. Over the 2010-2014 period, the agency received proceeds from the sale of lands under that act totaling about $250,000. H.R. 1214 would increase the cap on the value of lands eligible to be sold under the act from $150,000 to $500,000. The bill also would allow the agency to use the Small Tracts Act to dispose of certain other types of properties, including cemeteries, landfills, and sewage treatment plants.
Based on information provided by the Forest Service, CBO estimates that enacting the bill would increase offsetting receipts by less than $150,000 a year, on average, over the 2016-2025 period. CBO expects that allowing the agency to dispose of more valuable lands would have a small effect on offsetting receipts because there are few parcels eligible for disposal under the Small Tracts Act that would be valued above the current $150,000 cap. CBO also expects that allowing the Forest Service to dispose of cemeteries, landfills, and sewage treatment plants would have a minimal effect on offsetting receipts because those types of properties generally have low market values.
H.R. 1214 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
