Title 16, ConservationRelease 119-110
§460bb–2 Acquisition Policy
Title 16 › CHAPTER 1 — NATIONAL PARKS, MILITARY PARKS, MONUMENTS, AND SEASHORES › SUBCHAPTER LXXXVI — GOLDEN GATE NATIONAL RECREATION AREA › § 460bb–2
Summary
The Secretary may get land, buildings, water, or rights inside the recreation area by donation, purchase, exchange, or transfer. Land owned by the State of California or its local governments can only be taken by donation. The Secretary can also buy land next to the area to avoid extra costs, and then swap or sell any unneeded land through the General Services Administration for no less than fair market value. Federal property inside the area is moved to the Secretary’s control, while existing uses can continue if agreed with the former agency. With a permit from the Secretary of the Army, the Secretary may build or run facilities on Army-permitted land. New construction on lands still controlled by other federal departments is not allowed, though existing buildings may be rebuilt or replaced with similar-size structures after the Secretary consults, holds a public hearing nearby, and gives at least one week’s notice. This construction limit does not stop expansion of Letterman General Hospital or the Western Medical Institute of Research. Certain military and Coast Guard properties are handled specially. Fort Cronkhite, Fort Barry, and the westerly half of Fort Baker were given to the Secretary but the Army may keep using needed parts until they no longer need them. The Coast Guard radio station and several points (Point Bonita, Point Diablo, Point Montara, Lime Point) stay with the Coast Guard until they are excess, then move to the Secretary; the Coast Guard can keep operating navigational aids under plans agreed with the Secretary. The easterly half of Fort Baker, about 1.7 acres of Fort Miley, Pillar Point, and other lands remain under military or Navy control until declared excess, then transfer. The Army must give the Secretary irrevocable use of 100 acres of Baker Beach and, within a reasonable time, 45 acres of Crissy Army Airfield. Owners of improved homes (built before June 1, 1971, or before October 1, 1978 in added areas) or agricultural land (in regular farm use on January 1, 1978) may keep a right to live there for up to 25 years or for life; the purchase price is reduced by the value of that right. If the right is used against the park’s purposes, the Secretary can end it and pay the owner the remaining fair value. Choosing to keep that right means the owner gives up relocation benefits under sections 4623–4626 of title 42 and is not a “displaced person” under section 4601(6) of title 42. The Secretary may pay land over up to 10 years with interest not higher than comparable U.S. market yields, may defer payment on some buys with interest not above the Treasury borrowing rate, will manage State-donated lands and add them to the park, and will follow the scenic and recreational easement documents for the San Francisco water department property dated January 15, 1969 (including agreed amendments after December 28, 1980) and may seek agreements to create a connecting trail. Judges’ and condemnation payment rules in related federal statutes apply as stated in the law.
Full Legal Text
Title 16, §460bb–2
Conservation, Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)Authority of Secretary; exchange of property; disposal of certain lands; transfer from Federal agency to administrative jurisdiction of Secretary; facilities and improvements under permit from Secretary of the Army
Within the boundaries of the recreation area, the Secretary may acquire lands, improvements, waters, or interests therein, by donation, purchase, exchange or transfer. Any lands, or interests therein, owned by the State of California or any political subdivision thereof, may be acquired only by donation. When any tract of land is only partly within such boundaries, the Secretary may acquire all or any portion of the land outside of such boundaries in order to minimize the payment of severance costs. Land so acquired outside of the boundaries may be exchanged by the Secretary for non-Federal lands within the boundaries. Any portion of land acquired outside the boundaries and not utilized for exchange shall be reported to the General Services Administration for disposal under chapters 1 to 11 of title 40 and division C (except section 3302, 3307(e), 3501(b), 3509, 3906, 4710, and 4711) of subtitle I of title 41: Provided, That no disposal shall be for less than fair market value. Except as hereinafter provided, Federal property within the boundaries of the recreation area is hereby transferred without consideration to the administrative jurisdiction of the Secretary for the purposes of this subchapter, subject to the continuation of such existing uses as may be agreed upon between the Secretary and the head of the agency formerly having jurisdiction over the property. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary may develop and administer for the purposes of this subchapter structures or other improvements and facilities on lands for which he receives a permit of use and occupancy from the Secretary of the Army.
(b)Transfer of certain properties to administrative jurisdiction of Secretary; military properties, reservation of use and occupancy by Secretary of the Army; radio receiver station, retention of jurisdiction when not superfluous
Fort Cronkhite, Fort Barry, and the westerly one-half of Fort Baker, in Marin County, California, as depicted on the map entitled “Golden Gate Military Properties” numbered NRAGG–20,002 and dated January 1972, which shall be on file and available for public inspection in the offices of the National Park Service, are hereby transferred to the jurisdiction of the Secretary for purposes of this subchapter, subject to continued use and occupancy by the Secretary of the Army of those lands needed for existing air defense missions, reserve activities and family housing, until he determines that such requirements no longer exist. The Coast Guard Radio Receiver Station, shall remain under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating. When this station is determined to be excess to the needs of the Coast Guard, it shall be transferred to the jurisdiction of the Secretary for purposes of this subchapter.
(c)Military property; public service facilities: construction, maintenance, and determinations of identity and location by Secretary of the Army
The easterly one-half of Fort Baker in Marin County, California, shall remain under the jurisdiction of the Department of the Army. When this property is determined by the Department of Defense to be excess to its needs, it shall be transferred to the jurisdiction of the Secretary for purposes of this subchapter. The Secretary of the Army shall grant to the Secretary reasonable public access through such property to Horseshoe Bay, together with the right to construct and maintain such public service facilities as are necessary for the purposes of this subchapter. The precise facilities and location thereof shall be determined between the Secretary and the Secretary of the Army.
(d)Presidio of San Francisco; use and occupation of certain acreage by Secretary
Upon enactment, the Secretary of the Army shall grant to the Secretary the irrevocable use and occupancy of one hundred acres of the Baker Beach area of the Presidio of San Francisco, as depicted on the map referred to in subsection (b).
(e)Use and occupancy of airfield acreage by Secretary
The Secretary of the Army shall grant to the Secretary within a reasonable time, the irrevocable use and occupancy of forty-five acres of the Crissy Army Airfield of the Presidio, as depicted on the map referred to in subsection (b).
(f)Transfer of remainder to administrative jurisdiction of Secretary; use and occupancy by Coast Guard under permit from Secretary
When all or any substantial portion of the remainder of the Presidio is determined by the Department of Defense to be excess to its needs, such lands shall be transferred to the jurisdiction of the Secretary for purposes of this subchapter. The Secretary shall grant a permit for continued use and occupancy for that portion of said Fort Point Coast Guard Station necessary for activities of the Coast Guard.
(g)Transfer of certain Coast Guard properties to administrative jurisdiction of Secretary; navigational aids: maintenance and operation by Coast Guard and plans for access to new installations
Point Bonita, Point Diablo, Point Montara, and Lime Point shall remain under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating. When this property is determined to be excess to the needs of the Coast Guard, it shall be transferred to the jurisdiction of the Secretary for purposes of this subchapter. The Coast Guard may continue to maintain and operate existing navigational aids: Provided, That access to such navigational aids and the installation of necessary new navigational aids within the recreation area shall be undertaken in accordance with plans which are mutually acceptable to the Secretary and the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating and which are consistent with both the purposes of this subchapter and the purpose of existing statutes dealing with establishment, maintenance, and operation of navigational aids.
(h)Transfer of certain property of Navy Department to administrative jurisdiction of Secretary
That portion of Fort Miley comprising approximately one and seven-tenths acres of land presently used and required by the Secretary of the Navy for its inshore, underseas warfare installations shall remain under the administrative jurisdiction of the Department of the Navy until such time as all or any portion thereof is determined by the Department of Defense to be excess to its needs, at which time such excess portion shall be transferred to the administrative jurisdiction of the Secretary for purposes of this subchapter. That property known as the Pillar Point Military Reservation, under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of Defense shall be transferred to the administrative jurisdiction of the Secretary at such time as the property, or any portion thereof, becomes excess to the needs of the Department of Defense.
(i)New construction; limitation; notice and public hearing; exceptions
New construction and development within the boundaries described in section 460bb–1(a) of this title on lands under the administrative jurisdiction of a department other than that of the Secretary is prohibited, except that improvements on lands which have not been transferred to his administrative jurisdiction may be reconstructed or demolished. Any such structure which is demolished may be replaced with an improvement of similar size, following consultation with the Secretary or his designated representative, who shall conduct a public hearing at a location in the general vicinity of the area, notice of which shall be given at least one week prior to the date thereof. The foregoing limitation on construction and development shall not apply to expansion of those facilities known as Letterman General Hospital or the Western Medical Institute of Research.
(j)Owner’s reservation of right of use and occupancy for residential purposes for fixed term of years or for life; election by owner; adjustment of compensation; termination of use and occupancy inconsistent with statutory purposes and upon tender of sum for unexpired right; lease of Federal lands: restrictive covenants, offer to prior owner or leaseholder
The owner of improved residential property or of agricultural property on the date of its acquisition by the Secretary under this subchapter may, as a condition of such acquisition, retain for himself and his or her heirs and assigns a right of use and occupancy for a definite term of not more than twenty-five years, or, in lieu thereof, for a term ending at the death of the owner or the death of his or her spouse, whichever is later. The owner shall elect the term to be reserved. Unless the property is wholly or partly donated to the United States, the Secretary shall pay to the owner the fair market value of the property on the date of acquisition minus the fair market value on that date of the right retained by the owner. A right retained pursuant to this section shall be subject to termination by the Secretary upon his or her determination that it is being exercised in a manner inconsistent with the purposes of this subchapter, and it shall terminate by operation of law upon the Secretary’s notifying the holder of the right of such determination and tendering to him or her an amount equal to the fair market value of that portion of the right which remains unexpired. Where appropriate in the discretion of the Secretary, he or she may lease federally owned land (or any interest therein) which has been acquired by the Secretary under this subchapter, and which was agricultural land prior to its acquisition. Such lease shall be subject to such restrictive covenants as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this subchapter. Any land to be leased by the Secretary under this section shall be offered first for such lease to the person who owned such land or who was a leaseholder thereon immediately before its acquisition by the United States.
(k)“Improved and agricultural property” defined
The term “improved property”, as used in subsection (j) of this section, means a detached, noncommercial residential dwelling, the construction of which was begun before June 1, 1971, or, in the case of areas added by action of the Ninety-fifth Congress, October 1, 1978, together with so much of the land on which the dwelling is situated, the said land being in the same ownership as dwelling, as the Secretary shall designate to be reasonably necessary for the enjoyment of the dwelling for the sole purpose of noncommercial residential use, together with any structures accessory to the dwelling which are situated on the land so designated. The term “agricultural property” as used in this subchapter means lands which are in regular use for agricultural, ranching, or dairying purposes as of January 1, 1978, together with residential and other structures related to the above uses of the property as such structures exist on said date.
(l)Relocation assistance benefits and rights; waiver through retention of right of use and occupancy; displaced person status of owner
Whenever an owner of property elects to retain a right of use and occupancy as provided for in this subchapter, such owner shall be deemed to have waived any benefits or rights accruing under section 4623, 4624, 4625, and 4626 of title 42, and for the purposes of those sections such owner shall not be considered a displaced person as defined in section 4601(6) of title 42.
(m)Acquisition of land; contract authority; installment payments; interest rate; provisions applicable to judgments against United States
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary shall have the same authority with respect to contracts for the acquisition of land and interests in land for the purposes of this subchapter as was given the Secretary of the Treasury for other land acquisitions by section 3171 of title 40 relating to purchase of sites for public buildings, and the Secretary and the owner of land to be acquired under this subchapter may agree that the purchase price will be paid in periodic installments over a period that does not exceed ten years, with interest on the unpaid balance thereof at a rate which is not in excess of the current average market yield on outstanding marketable obligations of the United States with remaining periods to maturity comparable to the average maturities on the installments. Judgments against the United States for amounts in excess of the deposit in court made in condemnation actions shall be subject to the provisions of section 1304 of title 31 and section 2414 and 2517 of title 28.
(n)Management of State donated lands
The Secretary shall accept and shall manage in accordance with this subchapter, any land and improvements adjacent to the recreation area which are donated by the State of California or its political subdivisions. The boundaries of the recreation area shall be changed to include such donated lands.
(o)Payment deferral; scheduling; interest rate
In acquiring those lands authorized by the Ninety-fifth Congress for the purposes of this subchapter, the Secretary may, when agreed upon by the landowner involved, defer payment or schedule payments over a period of ten years and pay interest on the unpaid balance at a rate not exceeding that paid by the Treasury of the United States for borrowing purposes.
(p)San Francisco water department property; scenic and recreational easement
With reference to those lands known as the San Francisco water department property shown on map numbered NRA GG–80,000–A, the Secretary shall administer such land in accordance with the provisions of the documents entitled “Grant of Scenic Easement”, and “Grant of Scenic and Recreational Easement”, both executed on January 15, 1969, between the city and county of San Francisco and the United States, including such amendments to the subject document as may be agreed to by the affected parties subsequent to December 28, 1980. The Secretary is authorized to seek appropriate agreements needed to establish a trail within this property and connecting with a suitable beach unit under the jurisdiction of the Secretary.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
References in Text
Upon enactment, referred to in subsec. (d), probably means the date of enactment of this subchapter by Pub. L. 92–589, which was Oct. 27, 1972. Codification In subsec. (a), “chapters 1 to 11 of title 40 and division C (except section 3302, 3307(e), 3501(b), 3509, 3906, 4710, and 4711) of subtitle I of title 41” substituted for “the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (63 Stat. 377), as amended” on authority of Pub. L. 107–217, § 5(c), Aug. 21, 2002, 116 Stat. 1303, which Act enacted Title 40, Public Buildings, Property, and Works, and Pub. L. 111–350, § 6(c), Jan. 4, 2011, 124 Stat. 3854, which Act enacted Title 41, Public Contracts. “Section 3171 of title 40 relating to purchase of sites for public buildings” substituted in subsec. (m) for “section 34 of the Act of
May 30, 1908, relating to purchase of sites for public buildings (35 Stat. 545)” on authority of Pub. L. 107–217, § 5(c), Aug. 21, 2002, 116 Stat. 1303, the first section of which enacted Title 40, Public Buildings, Property, and Works. In subsec. (m), “section 1304 of title 31” substituted for “the Act of
July 27, 1956 (70 Stat. 624) [31 U.S.C. 724a]” on authority of Pub. L. 97–258, § 4(b), Sept. 13, 1982, 96 Stat. 1067, the first section of which enacted Title 31, Money and Finance.
Amendments
1980—Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 96–607, § 1001(3), inserted reference to Point Montara. Subsec. (h). Pub. L. 96–607, § 1001(4), transferred to the jurisdiction of the Secretary the Pillar Point Military Reservation at such time as the property, or any portion thereof, becomes excess to the needs of the Department of Defense. Subsec. (p). Pub. L. 96–607, § 1001(5), added subsec. (p). 1978—Subsec. (i). Pub. L. 95–625, § 317(b), in revising the text, substituted provision prohibiting new
Construction
and development in the recreation area on lands under the administrative jurisdiction of a department other than that of the Secretary but authorized re
Construction
or demolition of improvements upon the nontransferred lands of such agency after consultations with the Secretary and upon notice and hearing for prior provision limited to new
Construction
and development on property under administrative jurisdiction of the Department of the Army required to accommodate facilities being relocated from property being transferred to administrative jurisdiction of the Secretary or directly related to the essential missions of the Sixth United States Army. Subsec. (j). Pub. L. 95–625, § 317(c), substituted provision making the subsection applicable to improved residential property and agricultural property for prior provision for application to improved property of a noncommercial residential nature and authorized lease of Federally-owned lands, subject to restrictive covenants, with first offer to prior owner or leaseholder. Subsec. (k). Pub. L. 95–625, § 317(d), defined “improved property” to include residential dwelling, the
Construction
of which was begun, in the case of areas added by action of the Ninety-fifth Congress, October 1, 1978, and included definition of “agricultural property”. Subsecs. (n), (o). Pub. L. 95–625, § 317(e), added subsecs. (n) and (o).
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Transfer of Functions
For transfer of authorities, functions, personnel, and assets of the Coast Guard, including the authorities and functions of the Secretary of Transportation relating thereto, to the Department of Homeland Security, and for treatment of related references, see section 468(b), 551(d), 552(d), and 557 of Title 6, Domestic Security, and the Department of Homeland Security Reorganization Plan of November 25, 2002, as modified, set out as a note under section 542 of Title 6.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
16 U.S.C. § 460bb–2
Title 16, Conservation
Last Updated
Sep 22, 2026
Release point: 119-110