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Code of Federal Regulations, Title 23-Highways

CHAPTER I-BUREAU OF PUBLIC ROADS, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Part 15-Rules and Regulations for Administering Forest Highways

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AUTHORITY: §§ 15.1 to 15.10 issued under sec. 6, 54 Stat. 869, Reorg. Plan 7 of 1949, 14 F.R. 5228; 23 U.S.C. 23b. Interpret or apply sec. 23, 42 Stat. 218, as amended, 23 U.S.C. 23.

$15.1 Definition

For the purpose of the regulations in this part the following terms, respectively, shall mean:

(a) Commissioner. The Commissioner of Public Roads, Bureau of Public Roads, Department of Commerce.

(b) Forester. The Chief of the Forest Service of the Department of Agriculture.

(c) State. Any State, Territory, or insular possession eligible to receive forest highway funds.

(d) State highway department. As defined in the Federal Highway Act, the term "State highway department" includes any State department, commission, board, or official having adequate powers and suitably equipped and organized to discharge to the satisfaction of the Secretary of Commerce the duties herein required.

(e) County authorities. The commissioners, supervisors, or other officials charged by law with the selection of roads in a county, township, road district, or town, and with the expenditure of funds for road building and maintenance.

(f) Division engineer. The division engineer of the Bureau of Public Roads.

(g) District engineer. The district engineer of the Bureau of Public Roads.

(h) Regional forester. The regional forester of the Forest Service.

(i) Forest roads. Roads wholly or partly within, adjoining or adjacent to and serving the national forests.

(j) Forest highways. Those forest roads of primary importance to the State, counties or communities and which are selected and designated by the Commissioner and the Forester as constituent parts of a forest highway system.

(k) Forest highway fund. Any authorization or appropriation for forest highways.

(1) Forest highway program. List of forest highway projects for surveys, construction and maintenance, and the estimated amounts of Forest Highway Funds required, as approved by the Commissioner and Forester.

(m) Construction. Any improvement involving original construction or reconstruction.

(n) Highway planning survey. The engineering and economic investigations of highways and highway transportation conducted by the highway departments of the States and the Bureau of Public Roads.

(0) Maintenance. The preserving and keeping of each roadway, road structure and road facility as nearly as possible in its original condition as constructed, or as subsequently improved, to provide satisfactory and safe highway service.

§ 15.2 Apportionment

(a) The Secretary of Agriculture shall prepare, and certify to the Secretary of Commerce annually, a tabulation showing the areas and value of the national forest land in each State, including the value of forage and timber. This tabulation shall serve as the basis of apportionment for the forest highway fund.

(b) On or before January 1 of each year, or as otherwise provided by legislation, the Secretary of Commerce shall apportion among the several States and Puerto Rico the forest highway funds authorized for the next succeeding fiscal year in the same percentage as the amounts apportioned for expenditure in each State, Alaska, and Puerto Rico from funds authorized for forest highways for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1958, which percentage is based upon a determination of the area and value of the land owned by the United States within the national forests, as certified to the Secretary of Commerce by the Secretary of Agriculture as of June 30, 1955.1

(c) Ten percent of the amount so apportioned to each State shall be placed in a reserve and the balance shall be made available, immediately after apportionment, for the forest highway program. Deductions will be made from the reserve to cover administrative requirements of the Bureau of Public Roads including purchase of equipment, administration by the Forest Service, and in special cases to provide additional funds for programed projects. Any balances in the reserve will be released for programing not later than the date of the apportionment of the succeeding fiscal year authorization.

§ 15.3 The forest highway system

(a) Forest highways designated under § 15.1 (j), shall be classified as follows:

Class (1) On the Federal-aid primary system.
Class (2)-On the Federal-aid secondary system.

Class (3) Other forest highways.

(b) Proposed modifications, when jointly agreed upon and rec ommended by the State highway department, the regional forester,

1 Effective date July 26, 1960.

the district engineer and the division engineer shall be forwarded with necessary supporting data, including revised sketch maps and route descriptions, to the Commissioner and the Forester for approval.

$15.4 Selection of the forest highway program

(a) For each apportionment of funds authorized by Congress for forest highways, the district engineer shall request the State highway department to submit a list of forest highway projects proposed for financing with such funds, supported by a map showing the location of the proposed projects. The State highway department shall also submit its recommendations on all projects proposed by counties, communities, or other agencies. Copies of the State's submission shall be forwarded to the division engineer, who shall furnish a copy to the regional forester. The regional forester may request the division engineer to make any investigations necessary to obtain further information on any project proposed by the State or county.

(b) Following receipt of the maps, lists and recommendations required by paragraph (a) of this section, the division engineer shall arrange for a joint conference with the State highway department, the regional forester, and the district engineer for consideration of projects to be included in a program. Projects included in the forest highway program shall be based upon the following considerations:

(1) Provision for the maintenance of forest highways existing or under construction.

(2) The completion of necessary surveys.

(3) Findings of the highway planning survey.

(4) Benefit to forest development, protection, and administration, as indicated by the transportation plan of the Forest Service.

(5) Requirements for the production of timber, and mining. (6) Construction correlation with military requirements and with adjacent Federal and State road programs.

(7) The economy of continuity of operations.

(8) Ability of cooperators to maintain adequately the improve

ment.

(c) A joint report of this conference, in the form of a recommended forest highway program, shall be filed by the division. engineer with the Commissioner, and by the regional forester with the Forester.

(d) Approval of the jointly recommended forest highway program shall be by the Administrator and the Forester or their duly authorized representatives.2

(e) The program amount for any project may be increased by the Commissioner by not to exceed 25 percent, the additional funds required in connection with cost increases to be obtained from any unprogramed balances, or in special cases, from the reserve. Any construction project substantially deviating from the project as approved in the forest highway program or on which

2 Effective date July 26, 1960.

the cost will exceed by more than 25 percent the expenditure authorized therein, shall constitute a program revision to be approved by the Commissioner and the Forester.

§ 15.5 Cooperative agreements

(a) A cooperative agreement for any project which involves financial contributions from cooperators shall be approved by the Commissioner prior to beginning work.

(b) Negotiations for cooperative agreements shall be conducted by the division engineer and the detailed provisions shall be agreed upon by him and the cooperator. All cooperative agreements shall be prepared on forms furnished by the Bureau of Public Roads for execution by the Commissioner and the cooperator.

(c) Construction projects under a cooperative agreement involving forest highway funds shall not be advertised and no contracts shall be let, nor shall any construction be started, without the prior approval of the division engineer.

§ 15.6 Surveys

(a) Surveys, and the preparation of construction plans, specifications and cost estimates, may be made for any improvement that is to be considered for inclusion in a future forest highway program. Such surveys may be made on routes that ultimately may become a part of the forest highway system as well as present forest highway routes.

(b) Before the completion of a survey, the regional forester shall be notified in writing so that he shall have opportunity to examine the surveyed line or the location map and to indicate any details of location desirable for the protection or development of the national forests.

§ 15.7 Construction

(a) No construction shall be undertaken upon any designated part of the forest highway system by any Federal agency until a survey and cost estimate have been approved by the division engineer and the State highway department, unless otherwise specifically authorized by the Commissioner; but the Forest Service at its expense may make temporary repairs on forest highways or construct timber utilization roads on the forest highway system following as closely as practicable surveys made by the Bureau of Public Roads at the request of the Forest Service.

(b) Approval of plans, specifications and estimates shall be by the Commissioner, or his duly authorized representative, following which the division engineer may advertise projects carried in the approved forest highway program.

(c) The construction of forest highways will be performed by the contract method, unless otherwise authorized by the Commissioner. The Commissioner, or his duly authorized representative, shall accept or reject proposals from bidders on any forest highway construction projects and execute any necessary contracts and supporting bonds therefor. If it is impracticable to construct a project or any part thereof by the contract method, the Commissioner may proceed with force account construction

as authorized by paragraph (d), section 23, of the Federal Highway Act, as amended and supplemented.

(d) Construction work on projects shall not be considered complete until the project has been inspected and approved by the division engineer and the cooperating agency, nor until the regional forester has approved the clearing and disposal of refuse. §15.8 Maintenance

Maintenance of forest highways shall be the responsibility of the cooperating agency unless otherwise approved by the Commissioner. However, maintenance of projects during their construction and for a specified period after completion of construction may be the responsibility of the Bureau of Public Roads in accordance with a Cooperative Agreement between the cooperator and the Bureau of Public Roads.

$15.9 Records and accounting

(a) The Commissioner shall keep all records which he deems necessary of survey, construction, and maintenance costs for projects under his supervision.

(b) Each equipment depot under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Public Roads shall be operated on a self-sustaining basis. Work done in the equipment depots will be charged on an actual cost basis, including overhead. Projects on which equipment is used will be charged with the cost of such equipment on a depreciation or appropriate rental basis.

(c) Cooperative funds contributed by any cooperator shall be deposited in the United States Treasury to the credit of the fund up for Cooperative Work, Forest Highways, Bureau of Public

Roads.

§15.10 Commissioner's report

Not later than December 15 of each year, the Commissioner shall submit to the Secretary of Commerce and to the Secretary of Agriculture a report covering the operations on the forest highway system for the preceding fiscal year, including the current status of surveys, construction and maintenance, and with such recommendations as he shall consider desirable.

These regulations shall take effect upon publication in the FEDERAL REGISTER and shall supersede all prior rules and regulations heretofore promulgated for administering forest highways. Approved February 21, 1950. [SEAL]

Recommended:

A. J. LOVELAND, Acting Secretary of Agriculture. C. V. WHITNEY,

Acting Secretary of Commerce.

C. M. GRANGER,

Acting Chief, Forest Service,
Department of Agriculture.
THOS. H. MACDONALD,

Commissioner of Public Roads,
Comm

Bureau of Public Roads.

[F.R. Doc. 50-2392; Filed, Mar. 21, 1950; 9:03 a.m.]

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