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Show SOUTHERN UTAH NEWS WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 17, 1997 Community GAO rules Congressional approval required for RS 2477 changes 11 r 1 In response to inquiries from Utah Congressman Chris Can- non and 29 of his Congressional colleagues, the Acting Comptrol- ler General of the United States has ruled that Secretary Bab- bitt cannot administratively LOAN regulate or invalidate existing rights-of-wa- y under Revised Statue (RS) 2477, without prior Congressional approval. For decades the access rights guaranteed under RS 2477 have been relied upon in property selection, purchase and development," said Congressman Cannon. Secretary Babbitt has repeatedly tried to bureaucratically undermine these rights when access roads cross federal land, attempting to lock up parcels of both public and private land by denying people access." The Congressional request resulted from Babbitts propensity to arbitrarily issue regulations which create disputes as to states rights under RS 2477. Of particular concern to Congressman Cannon and Utah officials, is the vast amount of School Trust Land that would be landlocked without access roads over federal property. A portion of funding for Utah schools is derived from leasing these properties for farming, ranching, mining and other resource development operations. This ruling is a big win for Western land owners and land users especially for our school trust lands, the value ofwhich is severely influenced by the availability ofaccess to it," concluded Cannon. nssaswin li h tfr- r. s r iL1- ' y'i ' , 'V v ' J 'i E 200 S r' v 5 I 1 64 ' 'V I ? (I " I . ? ; ' -- I 'Kerch 644-CS0- 0 (ijhl (ill'll '; Cash in on low rates. With so many of our loans on sale it s the perfect time to get the money you need for that new roof, boat, or dream vacation. But these unusual rates with unusual savings are only for a limited time. ZIONS BANK Member FDIC U |