Press Releases
Congressman Gosar Introduces Bullhead City, Arizona’s Common Sense Land Exchange
Washington,
January 24, 2019
Tags:
Natural Resources
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Congressman Gosar Introduces Bullhead City, Arizona’s Common Sense Land Exchange WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Representative Paul A. Gosar, D.D.S. (AZ-04), introduced H.R. 755, the Black Mountain Range and Bullhead City Land Exchange Act of 2019. This bipartisan legislation authorizes Bullhead City to donate the 1,100 acre mountainous property currently owned by the City to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in exchange for 345.2 acres of land in Bullhead City, known as Section 12, held by the Bureau of Reclamation in cooperation with the BLM. U.S. Representative Paul A Gosar, D.D.S. said, “This bipartisan land exchange is good for Bullhead City, good for BLM, good for local species, good for tourism and good for families. I am thrilled to see strong support from both sides of the aisle for this legislation and appreciate Senator McSally taking the lead in the Senate. I applaud Mayor Brady, Council Member Clark and City Manager Cotter for bringing this common sense bill to our attention. Improving recreational opportunities along the Colorado River will have lasting benefits for future generations.” Bullhead City Mayor Tom Brady stated, “I commend Congressman Gosar in his support of the Black Mountain Range and Bullhead City Land Exchange Act of 2019.The consensus, bipartisan legislation aims to improve recreational opportunities along the Colorado River while simultaneously improving the Department of Interior’s management of important parcels of the Black Mountain Range. The support for this legislation has been encouraging and I look forward to working with our delegation to enact this measure as soon as practicable.” Background: On Thursday, January 24, 2019, U.S. Representative Paul Gosar, D.D.S introduced H.R.755, the Black Mountain Range and Bullhead City Land Exchange Act of 2019. The legislation was drafted at the request of Bullhead City in collaboration with local stakeholders. The bill authorizes Bullhead City to donate the 1,100 acre mountainous property currently owned by the City to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in exchange for 345.2 acres of land in Bullhead City, known as Section 12, held by the Bureau of Reclamation in cooperation with the BLM. The 1,100 acre property in the Black Mountain range in the middle of nowhere and is difficult to get to by car as it takes a lot of time to travel on a windy, dirt road. The 2007 BLM Lake Havasu Resource Management Plan identified Section 12 as land available for disposal and today Bullhead City leases nearly all of Section 12 from the BLM. Section 12 is a highly disturbed area, along the Colorado River, that is mostly dirt. However, it is easily accessible and along a main corridor within the city limits. On December 15, 2015, Don Laughlin donated approximately 1,100 acres of mountainous, environmentally-sensitive on a 4,500-foot mountaintop in the Black Mountain range in Arizona between Bullhead City and Golden Valley Arizona. The donated parcel, which includes a house, underground bunker and fish pond, appraised at approximately $7.7 million in 2015. Bullhead City has been caring for and maintaining the property, to keep the value high for the land exchange that can’t take place prior to December 15, 2020, as a result of the 2015 deal. The property supports a large variety of desert plants and animals. The bill ensures there is no cost to the federal government as the city is required to pay for all land survey, appraisal, and other costs required to facilitate the exchange and the bill requires that the value of the exchanged parcels be equal. A map of the Black Mountain Range and Bullhead City Land Exchange of 2019 can be found HERE. The text of the legislation can be found HERE Cosponsors of this bill include: U.S. Representatives Andy Biggs (AZ-05), Ruben Gallego (AZ-07), Ann Kirkpatrick (AZ-02), Debbie Lesko (AZ-08) and David Schweikert (AZ-06). Senators Martha McSally (R-AZ) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) introduced bipartisan, companion legislation in the U.S. Senate. ### |