§ 715s.
Participation of local governments in revenue from areas administered by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service
(c)
Payment to counties
(1)
The Secretary shall pay out the fund, for each fiscal year beginning with the fiscal year ending September 30, 1979, to each county in which is situated any fee area whichever of the following amounts is greater:
(A)
An amount equal to the product of 75 cents multiplied by the total acreage of that portion of the fee area which is located within such county.
(B)
An amount equal to three-fourths of 1 per centum of the fair market value, as determined by the Secretary, of that portion of the fee area (excluding any improvements thereto made after the date of Federal acquisition) which is located within such county.
(C)
An amount equal to 25 per centum of the net receipts collected by the Secretary in connection with the operation and management of such fee area during such fiscal year; but if a fee area is located in two or more counties, the amount each such county is entitled to shall be the amount which bears to such 25 per centum the same ratio as that portion of the fee area acreage which is within such county bears to the total acreage of such fee area.
(2)
At the end of each fiscal year the Secretary shall pay out of the fund for such fiscal year to each county in which any reserve area is situated, an amount equal to 25 per centum of the net receipts collected by the Secretary in connection with the operation and management of such area during such fiscal year: Provided, That when any such area is situated in more than one county the distributive share to each county from the aforesaid receipts shall be proportional to its acreage of such reserve area.
(3)
For purposes of this section, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Virgin Islands shall each be treated as a county.
(4)
(A)
For purposes of determining the fair market value of fee areas under paragraph (1)(B), the Secretary shall—
(i)
appraise before September 30, 1979, all fee areas for which payments under this section were not authorized for fiscal years occurring before October 1, 1977; and
(ii)
appraise all other fee areas, within five years after October 17, 1978, in the order in which such areas were first established by the Service.
After initial appraisal under clause (i) or (ii), each fee area shall thereafter be reappraised by the Secretary at least once during each five-year period occurring after the date of the initial appraisal. Until any fee area referred to in clause (ii) is initially appraised under this subparagraph, the fair market value of such area shall be deemed to be that adjusted cost of the area which was used to determine payments under this subsection for fiscal year 1977; and in no case may the amount of any payment to any local government under paragraph (1)(B) with respect to any fee area be less than the amount paid under paragraph (2)(A) of this subsection (as in effect on September 30, 1977) with respect to such area.
(B)
The Secretary shall make the determinations required under this subsection in such manner as the Secretary considers to be equitable and in the public interest. All such determinations shall be final and conclusive.
(5)
(A)
Each county which receives payments under paragraphs (1) and (2) with respect to any fee area or reserve area shall distribute, under guidelines established by the Secretary, such payments on a proportional basis to those units of local government (including, but not limited to, school districts and the county itself in appropriate cases) which have incurred the loss or reduction of real property tax revenues by reason of the existence of such area. In any case in which a unit of local government other than the county acts as the collecting and distributing agency for real property taxes, the payments under paragraphs (1) and (2) shall be made to such other unit which shall distribute the payments in accordance with the guidelines.
(B)
The Secretary may prescribe regulations under which payments under this paragraph may be made to units of local government in cases in which subparagraph (A) will not effect the purposes of this paragraph.
(C)
Payments received by units of local government under this subsection may be used by such units for any governmental purpose.
(g)
Definitions
As used in this section—
(1)
The term “Secretary” means the Secretary of the Interior.
(2)
The term “fee area” means any area which was acquired in fee by the United States and is administered, either solely or primarily, by the Secretary through the Service.
(3)
The term “reserve area” means any area of land withdrawn from the public domain and administered, either solely or primarily, by the Secretary through the Service.
(4)
The term “Service” means the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
(5)
The term “county” means any county, parish, or organized or unorganized borough.
([June 15, 1935, ch. 261], title IV, § 401, [49 Stat. 383]; 1939 Reorg. Plan No. II, § 4(f), eff. July 1, 1939, 4 F.R. 2731, [53 Stat. 1433]; 1940 Reorg. Plan No. III, § 3, eff. June 30, 1940, 5 F.R. 2108, [54 Stat. 1232]; [Oct. 31, 1951, ch. 654, § 2(13)], [65 Stat. 707]; [Pub. L. 88–523], Aug. 30, 1964, [78 Stat. 701]; [Pub. L. 89–669, § 8(b)], Oct. 15, 1966, [80 Stat. 930]; [Pub. L. 93–205, § 13(b)], Dec. 28, 1973, [87 Stat. 902]; [Pub. L. 93–509, § 4], Dec. 3, 1974, [88 Stat. 1603]; [Pub. L. 95–469, § 1(a)], Oct. 17, 1978, [92 Stat. 1319]; [Pub. L. 97–258, § 5(b)], Sept. 13, 1982, [96 Stat. 1068].)