City and Forest Service would exchange specified Colorado lands

The Secretary of Agriculture would exchange about 78 acres of federal forest land for about 40 acres of land owned by Greeley if the required conditions are met. The exchange covers the federal land and city land shown on the bill’s May 3, 2026, map. The city land excludes all city-owned water rights. The Secretary must approve the city land’s title and accept a Phase I environmental assessment for each parcel. The exchange remains subject to existing rights and other terms, restrictions, reservations, and easements set by the Secretary. The city must offer all of its rights in the covered land, except its water rights. The Secretary would complete the simultaneous exchange within 3 years after receiving the city’s offer, unless both sides agree to a later date.

The city would equalize any shortfall in the value of land it conveys by providing agreed additional land, paying cash, or both. The value rules apply to the federal land, the city’s covered land, and any additional city land offered for the exchange. Additional land may not exceed 40 acres. A mutually agreed independent appraiser would determine values, subject to the Secretary’s review and approval. If the city land is worth more than the federal land, the city would donate the excess value and the United States would not pay cash for it. Any additional land must be suitable, acceptable in title and condition, and conveyed without the city’s water rights. The city would pay the exchange’s appraisal, survey, title, environmental, legal, and closing costs. The value and cost rules would apply when the parties carry out the exchange described in the bill.

Land the United States receives would be added to the Roosevelt National Forest and managed under the applicable federal land rules. Land inside the Cache la Poudre Wilderness or Wild and Scenic River would join and be managed under the special laws governing those areas. The United States would reserve permanent access for public nonmotorized travel on the Seaman Reservoir and Wintersteen trails, consistent with existing public access. The United States would also reserve permanent motorized and nonmotorized access for administration, emergencies, inspections, maintenance, repairs, reconstruction, and resource management. Greeley would pay for surveys, and the Secretary would finalize the map and legal descriptions. These management and access provisions would apply to land acquired through the exchange after the exchange is completed.