S. 909 — La Paz County Solar Energy and Job Creation Act

This section establishes definitions for terms used in the Act, including (1) "County" as La Paz County, Arizona; (2) "Federal land" as approximately 3,400 acres of Bureau of Land Management land designated as "Federal Land To Be Conveyed" on the map; (3) "Map" as the map entitled "BLM Arizona—La Paz County Land Conveyance Map, Bureau of Land Management—Colorado River District, Yuma Field Office" and dated June 29, 2023; and (4) "Secretary" as the Secretary of the Interior.

This section directs the Secretary to convey specified federal land in La Paz County, Arizona, to the county as soon as practicable after receiving a request, notwithstanding the land use planning requirements of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA, 43 U.S.C. 1712, 1713). The conveyance is subject to (1) valid existing rights and necessary terms and conditions; (2) exclusion of any federal land containing significant cultural, environmental, wildlife, or recreational resources; (3) payment by the county of fair market value as determined by appraisal under uniform federal standards and all related costs (including surveys and appraisals); (4) county commitments to protect tribal cultural artifacts through avoidance, minimization of impacts, coordination with the Colorado River Indian Tribes, and reburial allowances; and (5) withdrawal of the land from mining and mineral leasing laws, with proceeds deposited into the Federal Land Disposal Account established under the Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act for use in accordance with that Act. (Thus, the conveyance bypasses FLPMA's multiple-use planning process, which requires systematic interdisciplinary analysis and public involvement prior to public land dispositions.)