16 U.S.C. § 475 — Purposes for which national forests may be

Page 927 TITLE 16—CONSERVATION § 477 1 See References in Text note below. 1100, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Or- ganization and Employees. ‘‘Secretary of the Interior or such officer as he may designate’’ substituted in text for ‘‘Commissioner of the General Land Office’’ on authority of Reorg. Plan No. 3 of 1946, set out in the Appendix to Title 5. ‘‘Bureau of Land Management’’ substituted for ‘‘Gen- eral Land Office’’ on authority of Reorg. Plan No. 3 of 1946, set out in the Appendix to Title 5. The ‘‘General Land Office’’ was abolished by Reorg. Plan No. 3 of 1946 with its functions consolidated with that of the Graz- ing Service to form a new agency in the Department of the Interior to be known as the Bureau of Land Man- agement. For transfer of functions of other officers, employees, and agencies of Department of the Interior, with cer- tain exceptions, to Secretary of the Interior, with power to delegate, see Reorg. Plan No. 3 of 1950, §§ 1, 2, eff. May 24, 1950, 15 F.R. 3174, 64 Stat. 1262, set out in the Appendix to Title 5. § 475. Purposes for which national forests may be established and administered All public lands designated and reserved prior to June 4, 1897, by the President of the United States under the provisions of section 471 1 of this title, the orders for which shall be and re- main in full force and effect, unsuspended and unrevoked, and all public lands that may here- after be set aside and reserved as national for- ests under said section, shall be as far as prac- ticable controlled and administered in accord- ance with the following provisions. No national forest shall be established, except to improve and protect the forest within the boundaries, or for the purpose of securing favorable conditions of water flows, and to furnish a continuous sup- ply of timber for the use and necessities of citi- zens of the United States; but it is not the pur- pose or intent of these provisions, or of said sec- tion, to authorize the inclusion therein of lands more valuable for the mineral therein, or for ag- ricultural purposes, than for forest purposes. (June 4, 1897, ch. 2, § 1, 30 Stat. 34.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT Section 471 of this title, referred to in text, was re- pealed by Pub. L. 94–579, title VII, § 704(a), Oct. 21, 1976, 90 Stat. 2792. CODIFICATION ‘‘National forests’’ and ‘‘national forest’’ substituted in text for ‘‘public forest reserves’’ and ‘‘public forest reservation’’, respectively, on authority of act Mar. 4, 1907, ch. 2907, 34 Stat. 1269, which provided that forest reserves shall hereafter be known as national forests. § 476. Repealed. Pub. L. 94–588, § 13, Oct. 22, 1976, 90 Stat. 2958 Section, acts June 4, 1897, ch. 2, § 1, 30 Stat. 35; June 9, 1900, ch. 804, 31 Stat. 661; Feb. 1, 1905, ch. 288, § 1, 33 Stat. 628; June 30, 1906, ch. 3913, 34 Stat. 684; Mar. 3, 1925, ch. 457, § 3, 43 Stat. 1132; May 27, 1952, ch. 337, 66 Stat. 95, authorized the Secretary of Agriculture to sell timber from national forests. See section 472a of this title. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries VALIDATION OF TIMBER SALES CONTRACTS Pub. L. 94–588, § 15, Oct. 22, 1976, 90 Stat. 2960, provided that: ‘‘(a) Timber sales made pursuant to the Act of June 4, 1897 (30 Stat. 35, as amended; 16 U.S.C. 476), prior to the date of enactment of this section [Oct. 22, 1976] shall not be invalid if the timber was sold in accord with Forest Service silvicultural practices and sales procedures in effect at the time of the sale, subject to the provisions of subsection (b) of this section. ‘‘(b) The Secretary of Agriculture is directed, in de- veloping five-year operating plans under the provisions of existing fifty-year timber sales contracts in Alaska, to revise such contracts to make them consistent with the guidelines and standards provided for in the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974, as amended [16 U.S.C. 1600 et seq.], and to reflect such revisions in the contract price of timber. Any such action shall not be inconsistent with valid contract rights approved by the final judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction.’’ § 477. Use of timber and stone by settlers The Secretary of Agriculture may permit, under regulations to be prescribed by him, the use of timber and stone found upon national for- ests, free of charge, by bona fide settlers, min- ers, residents, and prospectors for minerals, for firewood, fencing, buildings, mining, prospecting, and other domestic purposes, as may be needed by such persons for such pur- poses; such timber to be used within the State or Territory, respectively, where such national forests may be located. (June 4, 1897, ch. 2, § 1, 30 Stat. 35; Feb. 1, 1905, ch. 288, § 1, 33 Stat. 628.) Editorial Notes CODIFICATION ‘‘National forests’’ substituted in text for ‘‘reserva- tions’’ on authority of act Mar. 4, 1907, ch. 2907, 34 Stat. 1269, which provided that forest reserves shall hereafter be known as national forests. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS Act Feb. 1, 1905 transferred certain functions with re- gard to administration of public forests from Secretary of the Interior to Secretary of Agriculture. Executive Documents TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS Enforcement functions of Secretary or other official in Department of Agriculture, insofar as they involve lands and programs under jurisdiction of that Depart- ment, related to compliance with provisions of sections 473, 474 to 482, and 551 of this title with respect to pre- construction, construction, and initial operation of transportation system for Canadian and Alaskan nat- ural gas transferred to Federal Inspector, Office of Fed- eral Inspector for Alaska Natural Gas Transportation System, until first anniversary of date of initial oper- ation of Alaska Natural Gas Transportation System, see Reorg. Plan No. 1 of 1979, §§ 102(f), 203(a), 44 F.R. 33663, 33666, 93 Stat. 1373, 1376, effective July 1, 1979, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organiza- tion and Employees. Office of Federal Inspector for the Alaska Natural Gas Transportation System abolished and functions and authority vested in Inspector trans- ferred to Secretary of Energy by section 3012(b) of Pub. L. 102–486, set out as an Abolition of Office of Federal Inspector note under section 719e of Title 15, Commerce and Trade. Functions and authority vested in Sec- retary of Energy subsequently transferred to Federal Coordinator for Alaska Natural Gas Transportation Projects by section 720d(f) of Title 15.