Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act Restrictions and ...

BLM Reports Spending
$3.2 Million on FLTFA
Administrative Activities
Between the time FLTFA was enacted and July 20, 2007, BLM reports
spending $3.2 million on FLTFA administrative expenses to conduct land
sales under the act. The three other agencies do not have land sale
expenses under the program. The BLM Nevada offices spent 81 percent of
the revenue, or $2.6 million. BLM offices in Arizona, California, New
Mexico, and Oregon each spent over $100,000, and the remaining five
states spent a combined total of less than $50,000. States with the most
active sales programs generally spent the most FLTFA revenue. For
example, Nevada field offices conducted 106 of the 265 total sales under
FLTFA, or 40 percent of the sales. Table 7 summarizes administrative
expenditures by state as reported by BLM’s Division of Business Services.
Table 7: BLM Reported Administrative Expenditures by State, July 25, 2000,
through July 20, 2007
State Expenditure amount
Arizona $103,636
California 123,119
Colorado 37,173
Idaho 652
Montana 0
New Mexico 171,712
Nevada 2,574,074
Oregon/Washington 145,930
Utah 7,319
Wyoming 4,022
Other a
4,319
Total $3,171,956
Source: GAO analysis of BLM’s Division of Business Services data.
a In addition to BLM state and field office expenditures, the Division of Business Services spent $2,595
and the BLM headquarters office spent $1,724—a total of $4,319.
BLM spent little FLTFA revenue on the administrative costs of land sales
during the first 3 years of the program. According to the BLM FLTFA
program lead, there was little incentive for BLM to sell its land because the
MOU was not in place. Spending has generally increased since then, with a
spike in fiscal year 2006. Figure 10 shows FLTFA expenditures from its
enactment to July 2007.
Page 38 GAO-08-196 Federal Land Management