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Managing America: Public Land

TheWeekInCongress.com (TM)

Week Ending June 22, 2007

S.277 A bill to modify the boundaries of Grand Teton National Park to include certain land within the GT Park Subdivision, and for other purposes.

This bill would allow the Secretary of Interior to add 49 acres to the Grand Teton Park’s total Acreage. The 49 acres are included in an area called the Lost Creek drainage between Grand Teton National Park and the Bridger-Teton National Forest. One acre is owned by the Gerald Halpin family that donated seven other lots private organizations including the National Fish and Wildlife foundation, the National Park Foundation and the Grand Teton National Park Foundation.

All now want to donate those lots to the National Park but the land is outside the existing Park boundary. Because the law establishing the Park prohibited expansion without the approval of Congress we now have this bill.

The Secretary is authorized to accept the donations and expand Park boundaries to include them. Necessary sums are authorized. CBO calculates less than $500,000 will be spent on surveys and related acquisition costs.

Grand Teton Park began with over 38,000 acres donated by John D. Rockefeller in 1949.

The bill was amended in the Senate to rename the Park visitor’s center the “Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center” after the recently deceased Congressman from Wyoming.

Sponsor:  Senator Craig Thomas (WY)

Vote:  Passed Senate by Unanimous Consent June 19, 2007

Cost to the taxpayers: “CBO estimates that implementing S. 277 would cost less than $500,000, mostly for surveys and appraisals. Enacting S. 277 would not affect revenues or direct spending.”

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