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News from Rep. Stephanie Herseth
For Immediate Release
Contact: Russ Levsen, 202-226-4449

HOUSE RESOURCES COMMITTEE REVIEWS BLUNT RESERVOIR/PIERRE CANAL LEGISLATION

Herseth Bill Would Allow South Dakota Lease Holders to Buy Back Nearly 14,000 Acres from Federal Government

February 8, 2006, Washington, D.C. - The House Resources Subcommittee on Water and Power today reviewed legislation sponsored by U.S. Rep. Stephanie Herseth to allow South Dakotans to buy back up to 13,775 acres of land from the federal government. The bill's next step will be to be heard in front of the full Resources Committee.

Herseth's bill, the Blunt Reservoir and Pierre Canal Land Conveyance Act of 2005, was crafted in response to a now defunct irrigation plan authorized in the Flood Control Act of 1944. That authorization led the Bureau of Reclamation to acquire approximately 19,000 acres in Hughes and Sully Counties before the project was abandoned in 1977. Today, many of the original landowners and their descendants continue to lease the land from the federal government as preferential lease holders. Herseth's bill would give the preferential lease holders, who now use almost 13,775 acres, the opportunity to buy back the land.

Herseth, a member of the Resources Committee, said the bill was a victory for private property rights, the local tax-base and wildlife mitigation. In her opening statement, she said, "The Pierre Canal and Blunt Reservoir Project will never be restarted and yet, the federal government continues to expend resources managing lands acquired for that purpose. The most sensible solution is to remove these lands from federal ownership."

Herseth's bill would also transfer 5,462 acres of non-preferentially-leased lands and unleased lands to the South Dakota Department of Game Fish and Parks. The transfer will support the State's plan to restore wildlife habitat that was lost due to the construction of the Missouri River dams.

Below is Herseth's opening statement from the hearing.

Representative Stephanie Herseth

Water and Power Subcommittee Hearing

"The Blunt Reservoir and Pierre Canal Land Conveyance Act"

February 8, 2006

Thank you Chairman Radanovich and Ranking Member Napolitano for considering the "Blunt Reservoir and Pierre Canal Land Conveyance Act" in today's Water and Power Subcommittee hearing.

Though I am not a member of this subcommittee, this is the second time I have had the opportunity to participate in one of your legislative hearings. Last year, I sat here to support a bill that will help Rapid City, South Dakota meet its future water needs. Today, I am here to support a bill that will bring closure to an irrigation project that was abandoned almost 30 years ago.

The Blunt Reservoir and Pierre Canal Land Conveyance Act was crafted in response to a now defunct irrigation plan, authorized in the Flood Control Act of 1944. To support that authorization, the Bureau of Reclamation acquired approximately 19,000 acres in South Dakota's Hughes and Sully Counties before abandoning the project in 1977. Even though the canal and irrigation projects will never be restarted, the Bureau of Reclamation retains ownership of the land and continues to lease it to the original landowners and their descendants.

The first formal attempt to deauthorize the project occurred in the early 1980's when South Dakota's government supported a proposal to acquire the Bureau of Reclamation lands for wildlife habitat. Opposition from the original landowners, who are now the preferential leaseholders, halted this proposal and initiated the discussion that has led to today's compromise bill.

The Blunt Reservoir and Pierre Land Conveyance Act will convey some of the 19,000 acres to the state but most will be available for purchase by the preferential lease holders. The benefits of this compromise are twofold - the people who have waited nearly 30 years to buy back land they have continued to farm and work will finally be able to do so. Second, the land conveyed to the state will be used to restore wildlife habitat that was destroyed during the construction of the Missouri River Dams.

I am pleased to look out into the audience and see two individuals who can speak to both sides of this story and whose work has allowed us to be here today - Darla Pollman Rogers, who has tirelessly represented the original landowners, and John Cooper, the South Dakota Secretary of Game Fish and Parks. The story behind this legislation is an important one and should be told. The testimony we are about to hear will do just that.

The Pierre Canal and Blunt Reservoir Project will never be restarted and yet, the federal government continues to expend resources managing lands acquired for that purpose. The most sensible solution is to remove these lands from Federal ownership and I'm pleased that today's hearing is an opportunity to further that process. Thank you.

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