S 2280: A bill to transfer administrative jurisdiction over certain parcels of Federal land in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, and for other purposes.

S 2280 in plain English: This bill is early in the legislative process and detailed text is not yet available. Sponsor: Sen. Justice, James C. [R-WV] (R) · Status: Held at the desk.

Stated purpose

This bill transfers administrative control over certain federally owned land parcels in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia between two federal agencies — moving roughly 25 acres from the National Park Service to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and moving about 71.51 acres in the other direction, from CBP to the National Park Service.

Arguments supporters make

• CBP gets land it needs to support federal law enforcement training without having to buy new property, making better use of existing federal assets.
• The National Park Service gains significantly more acreage than it gives up, expanding the historical park for public benefit at no cost.
• The built-in reversion clause ensures that if CBP no longer needs the 25 acres for training, the land automatically returns to the park, protecting its long-term preservation.

Arguments opponents make

• Removing 25 acres from a national historical park boundary sets a precedent for converting protected historic land to law enforcement use, which critics may see as undermining preservation goals.
• A training facility for a law enforcement agency operating within or adjacent to a historic park could change the character of the area and affect the visitor experience nearby.
• The transfer is done without independent valuation or public compensation, meaning the public receives no financial accounting for the change in use of parkland assets.

Tradeoffs

The bill trades a smaller piece of park land for a larger piece of non-park federal land, gaining net acreage for the historical park while giving a law enforcement agency room to expand its training operations — balancing historic preservation interests against federal training infrastructure needs on the same fixed pool of already-federal land.

Current status in Congress: Passed Senate.

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