Federal Land Acquisition

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reported on the status of federal agencies' implementation of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, focusing on sections of the act which set a completion deadline of December 2, 1985.

GAO identified eight sections of the act requiring federal agency implementation by the deadline and found that: (1) agencies did not meet the deadline on any of the sections; (2) the development of management plans for the Steese Conservation Area and the White Mountains Recreation Area, and a report to Congress on various activities in the Tongass Forest, ran over the deadline date by a few months; (3) draft reports to Congress on the Arctic Refuge and the Stikine River region were issued on the deadline date; and (4) comprehensive conservation plans for wildlife refuges, boundary, development, and management plans for certain wild and scenic rivers, conservation and management plans for national parks, and a review of land in parks and refuges for additional designations as wilderness areas will be substantially delayed.