GovTrack’s Bill Summary
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H.R. 3874 (112th): Black Hills Cemetery Act
- Introduced:
- Feb 01, 2012 (112th Congress, 2011–2013)
- Sponsor:
- Rep. Kristi Noem [R-SD0]
- Status:
- Died (Passed House)
- See Instead:
- This bill was re-introduced as H.R. 291 on Jan 15, 2013. See H.R. 291 for current action on this subject.
The bill’s title was written by the bill’s sponsor. H.R. stands for House of Representatives bill.
- Full Title
"To provide for the conveyance of certain cemeteries that are located on National Forest System land in Black Hills National Forest, South Dakota.".
- Summary
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No summaries available.
- Text
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Last updated May 16, 2012.
4 pages
- Primary Source
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View on THOMAS (The Library of Congress)
GovTrack gets most information from THOMAS, which is updated generally one day after events occur. Activity since the last update may not be reflected here.
- Citation
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Library of Congress Summary
The summary below was written by the Congressional Research Service, which is a nonpartisan division of the Library of Congress.
5/15/2012--Passed House amended.
(This measure has not been amended since it was reported to the House on May 10, 2012.
The summary of that version is repeated here.) Black Hills Cemetery Act - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) to convey to the local communities in South Dakota that are currently managing certain community cemeteries all interest of the United States in:
(1) the parcels of National Forest System land that contain the cemeteries, and
(2) up to an additional two acres adjoining each cemetery to ensure that such conveyances include unmarked gravesites and allow for the expansion of those cemeteries.
Requires:
(1) each such conveyance to be subject to the condition that the recipient accept the conveyed real property in the condition it is in at the time of conveyance,
(2) the conveyed lands to continue to be used in the same manner and for the same purposes as they were used immediately before their conveyance, and
(3) the recipients of the parcels of the real property conveyed under this Act to bear the cost of the survey for their particular parcel.
House Republican Conference Summary
The summary below was written by the House Republican Conference, which is the caucus of Republicans in the House of Representatives.
This summary can be found at http://www.gop.gov/bill/112/2/hr3874.
Background
According to testimony from the bill’s sponsor, “The Black Hills is home to a number of [historic pioneer-era] cemeteries. Many of these originated in old mining towns of the 1800s and have a unique significance to the surrounding communities. These include the Englewood Cemetery, Galena Cemetery, Hayward Cemetery, Mountain Meadows Cemetery, Roubaix Cemetery, Nemo Cemetery, Rockerville, Silver City Cemetery, and another cemetery that I hope will get included into the final version of the bill, which is the Cold Springs Cemetery. These cemeteries are currently being managed by local cemetery associations or community groups in each of their surrounding areas, but have been technically owned by the U.S. Forest Service since the 1900s. This causes unnecessary liability for the U.S. Forest Service because of the responsibility for upkeep and dealing with possible vandalism or damage to the property.”
Summary
H.R. 3874 would require the Secretary of Agriculture to convey parcels of National Forest System land containing nine cemeteries and associated public lands in the Black Hills of western South Dakota to local organizations for no consideration. In addition, the legislation would direct the Secretary to convey a supplementary two acres adjoining each cemetery parcel to ensure that the land includes unmarked graves and allow for future expansion. According to the Natural Resources Committee, total acreage conveyed under the legislation would be minimal. Under the legislation, local communities would assume ownership of the property as-is.
Cost
According to CBO, under the bill the Forest Service would spend less than $200,000 to conduct the necessary surveys and evaluate the historical significance of each site for inclusion in the National Register, assuming availability of appropriated funds.
House Democratic Caucus Summary
The House Democratic Caucus does not provide summaries of bills.
So, yes, we display the House Republican Conference’s summaries when available even if we do not have a Democratic summary available. That’s because we feel it is better to give you as much information as possible, even if we cannot provide every viewpoint.
We’ll be looking for a source of summaries from the other side in the meanwhile.