Reasonable Right-of-Way Fees Act of 2003

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation be authorized to meet on Wednesday, July 23, 2003, at 9:30 a.m. on Public Interest and Localism in SR-253.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate, on Wednesday, July 23 at 10 a.m. to consider pending calendar business.

Agenda

Agenda Item 2: S. 391--A bill to enhance ecosystem protection and the range of outdoor opportunities protected by statute in the Skykomish River valley of the State of Washington by designating certain lower- elevation Federal lands as wilderness, and for other purposes.

Agenda Item 3: S. 434--A bill to authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to sell or exchange all or part of certain parcels of National Forest System land in the State of Idaho and use the proceeds derived from the sale or exchange for National Forest System purposes.

Agenda Item 4: S. 435--A bill to provide for the conveyance by the Secretary of Agriculture of the Sandpoint Federal Building and adjacent land in Sandpoint, Idaho, and for other purposes.

Agenda Item 5: S. 452--A bill to require that the Secretary of the Interior conduct a study to identify sites and resources, to recommend alternatives for commemorating and interpreting the Cold War, and for other purposes.

Agenda Item 6: S. 714--A bill to provide for the conveyance of a small parcel of Bureau of Land Management land in Douglas County, Oregon, to the county to improve management of and recreational access to the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area, and for other purposes.

Agenda Item 9: S. 1003--A bill to clarify the intent of Congress with respect to the continued use of established commercial outfitter hunting camps on the Salmon River.

Agenda Item 10: H.R. 417--To revoke a Public Land Order with respect to certain lands erroneously included in the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge, California.

Agenda Item 11: H.R. 622--To provide for the exchange of certain lands in the Coconino and Tonto National Forests in Arizona, and for other purposes.

Agenda Item 12: H.R. 762--To amend the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 and the Mineral Leasing Act to clarify the method by which the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture determine the fair market value of certain rights-of-way granted, issued, or renewed under these Acts.

Agenda Item 13: H.R. 1012--To establish the Carter G. Woodson Home National Historic Site in the District of Columbia, and for other purposes.

In addition, the Committee may turn to any other measures that are ready for consideration.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Foreign Relations be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, July 23, 2003 at 9:30 a.m. to hold a Business Meeting.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Foreign Relations be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, July 23, 2003 at 2:45 p.m. to hold a hearing on Iraq: Status and Prospects for Reconstruction--Next Steps.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions be authorized to meet in Executive Session during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, July 23, 2003.

Agenda

S.__, Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2003

Presidential Nominations: Daniel Pipes, of Pennsylvania, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the United States Institute of Peace; Charles Edward Horner, of the District of Columbia, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the United States Institute of Peace; Stephen David Krasner, of California, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the United States Institute of Peace; Eric Dreiband, of Virginia, to be General Counsel of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

Any additional nominees cleared for action.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Indian Affairs be authorized to meet on Wednesday, July 23, 2003, at 10:00 a.m. in Room 485 of the Russell Senate Office Building to conduct a hearing on S. 556, a Bill to Reauthorize the Indian Health Care Improvement Act.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on the Judiciary be authorized to meet to conduct a markup on Wednesday, July 23, 2003, at 9:00 a.m. in Hart Room 216.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on the Judiciary be authorized to meet to conduct a hearing on ``Oversight Hearing: Law Enforcement and Terrorism'' on Wednesday, July 23, 2003, at 10:00 a.m. in the Hart Senate Office Building Room 216.

Agenda

The Honorable Robert S. Mueller, Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice, Washington, DC; The Honorable Asa Hutchinson, Under Secretary for Border & Transportation Security, Department of Homeland Security, Washington, DC.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on the Judiciary be authorized to meet to conduct an Executive Nominations hearing on Wednesday, July 23, 2003, at 2:00 p.m. in the Dirksen Senate Office Building Room 226.

Agenda

Panel I: Senators.

Panel II: Rene Alexander Acosta to be Assistant Attorney General, Civil Rights Division, United States Department of Justice and Daniel J. Bryant to be Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Policy, United States Department of Justice.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate Committee on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights be authorized to meet to conduct a hearing on ``Agriculture, Consolidation and the Smithfield/Farmland Deal'' on Wednesday, July 23, 2003, at 4:00 p.m. in Room 138 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building.

Agenda

Panel I: Senator Tim Johnson.

Panel II: Mr. Joseph Sebring, CEO, John Morrell, Inc., Cincinnati, OH; Mr. William Hughes, Administrator, Division of Agricultural Development, Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, Madison, WI; Dr. Luther Tweeten, Agriculture Consultant, Columbus, OH; Mr. Russ Kremer, President, Missouri Farmers' Union, Jefferson City, MO; Mr. Patrick Bell, Farmer, Kenansville, NC; and Mr. Michael Stumo, General Counsel, Organization for Competitive Markets, Winstead, CT.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Subcommittee on Housing and Transportation of the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on July 23, 2003, at 2:30 p.m. to conduct a hearing on ``Enhancing the Role of the Private Sector in Public Transportation.''

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry be authorized to conduct a hearing during the session of the Senate on Thursday, June 12, 2003. The purpose of this hearing is to discuss the United States Department of Agriculture's implementation of the Agricultural Risk Protection Act of 2000 and related crop insurance issues.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on June 12, 2003, at 10:00 a.m. to conduct a hearing on ``expanding homeownership opportunities.''

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation be authorized to meet on Thursday, June 12, 2003, at 9:30 a.m. on Global Overfishing.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Finance be authorized to meet in open Executive Session during the session on Thursday, June 12, 2003, at 9:00 a.m., to consider an original bill entitled, The Prescription Drug and Medicare Improvement Act of 2003; to consider S. 312, ``Availability of SCHIP Allotments for Fiscal Years 1998 through 2001''.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Foreign Relations be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, June 12, 2003, at 9:30 a.m., to hold a Hearing on Beyond Iraq: Repercussions of Iraq Stabilization and Reconstruction Policies.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions be authorized to meet for a hearing on TWA/American Airline Workforce Integration during the session of the Senate on Thursday, June 12, 2003 at 2:00 p.m. in SD- 430.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on the Judiciary be authorized to meet to conduct a markup on Thursday, June 12, 2003, at 9:30 a.m. in Dirksen Room 226.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on the Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Property Rights be authorized to meet to conduct a markup on Thursday, June 12, 2003, immediately following the Full Committee markup scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. in Dirksen Room 226.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, June 12, at 2:30 p.m. in Room SD-366 to receive testimony on S. 434--a bill to authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to sell or exchange all or part of certain parcels of National Forest System land in the State of Idaho and use the proceeds derived from the sale or exchange for National Forest System resources; S. 435--a bill to provide for the conveyance by the Secretary of Agriculture of the Sandpoint Federal Building and adjacent land in Sandpoint, Idaho, and for other purposes; S. 490--a bill to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to convey certain land in the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit Nevada, to the Secretary of the Interior, in trust for the Washoe Indian Tribe of Nevada and California; H.R. 762--to amend the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 and the Mineral Leasing Act and for other purposes; S. 1111--a bill to provide suitable grazing arrangements on National Forest System land to persons that hold a grazing permit adversely affected by the standards and guidelines contained in the record of decision of the Sierra Nevada Forest Plan Amendment and pertaining to the Willow Flycatcher and the Yosemite Toad; and H.R. 622--to provide for the exchange of certain lands in the Coconino and Tonto National Forests in Arizona, and for other purposes.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Subcommittee on Science, Technology, and Space be authorized to meet on Thursday, June 12, 2003, at 2:30 p.m. on Cloning.

Mr. President, I would like to announce for the information of the Senate and the public that a hearing has been scheduled before the Subcommittee on Public Land and Forests of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

The hearing will be held on Thursday, June 12, at 2:30 p.m. in SD-366 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building.

The purpose of the hearing is to receive testimony on S. 434--A bill to authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to sell or exchange all or part of certain parcels of National Forest System land in the State of Idaho and use the proceeds derived from the sale or exchange for National Forest System Resources; S. 435--A bill to provide for the conveyance by the Secretary of Agriculture of the Sandpoint Federal Building and adjacent land in Sandpoint, Idaho, and for other purposes; S. 490--A bill to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to convey certain land in the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit Nevada, to the Secretary of the Interior, in trust for the Washoe Indian Tribe of Nevada and California; H.R. 762--To amend the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 and the Mineral Leasing Act and for other purposes; S. 1111--A bill to provide suitable grazing arrangements on National Forest System land to persons that hold a grazing permit adversely affected by the standards and guidelines contained in the Record of Decision of the Sierra Nevada Forest Plan Amendment and pertaining to the Willow Flycatcher and the Yosemite Toad; H.R. 622--To provide for the exchange of certain lands in the Coconino and Tonto National Forests in Arizona, and for other purposes. (Contact: Frank Gladics 202-224-2878 or Dick Bouts 202-224-7545).

Because of the limited time available for the hearing, witnesses may testify by invitation only. However, those wishing to submit written testimony for the hearing record should send two copies of their testimony to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, United States Senate, Washington, D.C. 20510-6150.

For further information, please contact the staff as indicated above.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me this time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 762, the Reasonable Right-of-Way Fees Act of 2003, which I introduced February 13, 2003.

This bill will help to facilitate the deployment of critical infrastructure to States that are made up largely of Federal lands, such as Wyoming and almost every western State. While exploring ways to bring advanced telecommunications services and pipeline infrastructure to Wyoming, I found that Federal land management agencies were considering ways which would actually discourage deployment of critical infrastructure. The Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service had started down a road to abandon a commonsense right-of-way fee schedule that had been in place for many years by charging a per- line fee for fiberoptic deployment instead of a fee based on linear footage of the pipe. In other words, when fiberoptics were being deployed to rural areas, the agencies wanted to charge a right-of-way fee for every single line that went down the pipe which would obviously make it financially impossible to deploy fiberoptics to rural areas. My bill ensures that rights-of-way fees are reasonable and that private users of public lands pay a fair price for that privilege.

This bill creates a policy that protects the value of our Federal lands and at the same time helps to ensure that these Federal lands continue to be available to a multitude of compatible uses. This bill will not increase the environmental impact of the rights-of-way corridors, nor will it reduce any environmental monitoring. I am confident as we work to place the Reasonable Right-of-Way Fee Act into law that there is little public interest in turning our Federal lands into roadblocks on the information superhighway or along the path of any of our Nation's critical infrastructures.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

(Ms. BORDALLO asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, investigations conducted by the Department of the Interior's Inspector General and the General Accounting Office have provided ample evidence that the right-of-way fees currently being charged by the Federal land management agencies are far below fair market values. States, local governments, and private individuals all charge significantly more than the Federal Government for rights-of-way across lands that they own. This undercharging for the use of Federal public lands means that large corporations, who stand to make vast profits from the use of those lands, are not being required to pay the American people a fair rate of return for that privilege.

As a result, we share, the gentlewoman from Wyoming's desire to correct this problem. This legislation will require the agencies to review their existing fee schedules and the land valuations which underlie them to ensure that they represent current values. In addition, Mr. Speaker, this measure will ensure that once these new fees have been promulgated, they will be adjusted annually for inflation. This approach is a significant improvement over the status quo and should move us closer to a system that adequately compensates the taxpayers for the use of their lands.

We would like to thank the gentlewoman from Wyoming (Mrs. Cubin) for her willingness to work together on this legislation, and we do support