Why I voted Yes on S. 404
I voted Yes on S. 404, to modify a land grant patent issued by the Secretary of the Interior.
S. 404 would amend a land patent issued for Whitefish Point in Chippewa County, Michigan, to execute a "Human Use/Natural Resource Plan" developed for the area.
In 1998, the Interior Department issued a land patent to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society for ownership of several acres of land in Chippewa County. In 2000, the land patent was reissued to correct an error in the original patent, but a dispute between the Historical Society and the Michigan Audubon Society led to a lawsuit in 1999. The suit was resolved in 2002 with the development of a Human Use/Natural Resource Management Plan for Whitefish Point. Because that occurred after a reissue of the patent in 2000, the terms of the management plan are not incorporated into the land patent. This legislation seeks to update the patent to account for the resolution of the suit.
The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the bill would have no effect on the federal budget.
S. 404 was approved by a vote of 380 – 0.
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