United States. Public Land Law Review Commission

The Public Land Law Review Commission was established by Congress on September 19, 1964, (P.L. 88-606) "to study existing laws and procedures relating to the administration of the public lands of the United States." The Commission went beyond an intensive review of existing laws and launched a comprehensive examination of the public lands and their resources and uses. Following its organizational meeting July 14, 1965, the Commission functioned until December 1970 when its existence came to an end. Since then a series of regional meetings has been held for the purpose of conveying the importance of the public lands to the people and the potential significance of the Commission's final recommendations.

From the description of Reports, 1964-1971. (Iowa State University). WorldCat record id: 19496203

A.B. "Bert" Curtis was born on a ranch near Salem, Oregon, August 1, 1903. His parents, Charles Garret Curtis of Independence, Missouri, and Elizabeth Ann Milne, who was born near Dundee, Scotland, were early pioneers. The family moved to Orofino, Idaho, in 1912 where Charles Curtis operated a hotel for a time before returning to ranching.

Having attended high school in both Orofino and Plummer, Bert entered the University of Idaho where he remained for one year. He then attended Lewiston State Normal School where he received his teacher's diploma after two years of study. He taught and coached athletics in Fernwood for a while, then returned to the University of Idaho for two more years. On December 21, 1920, A.B. Curtis married Alene Honeywell of Clear Lake, South Dakota. They had five children, four sons and a daughter.

In 1927 Curtis was appointed Assistant Chief Fire Warden for the Clearwater Timber Protective Association; a year later he was appointed Chief. In 1945 he was made Chief Fire Warden and Manager of the Potlatch Timber Protective Association, and in that same year he became State Fire Warden. In 1966 the Clearwater and Potlatch Timber Protective Associations combined and Curtis remained Chief Fire Warden of the new organization until he retired in August 1968. He was president of two mining concerns, Orofino Lime Products and Oxford Copper Mining Company near Pierce. He represented Idaho as a Director on the Inland Waterways Association, and was a founding member of the University of Idaho Advisory Research Council. In 1956 he received a national award for outstanding service in state, federal, and private forestry. From 1965 to 1970 he represented the timber interest as a member of the Advisory Council of the Public Land Law Review Commission.

In 1951 Bert Curtis was elected mayor of Orofino, a position he held for some 20 years. In 1958 he tried unsuccessfully to unseat Gracie Pfost, the Democratic incumbent representing Idaho's First District in the U.S. House of Representatives.

At the time this inventory was prepared (October 1980) Curtis was still living in Orofino.

THE PUBLIC LAND LAW REVIEW COMMISSION

Public law 88-606 passed by Congress in 1964 established the Public Land Law Review Commission to conduct a comprehensive review of the policies applicable to the use, management, and disposition of the public lands of the United States. Public lands, as defined by the law and included in the commission study, were public domain, federal reservations other than Indian, all national forests, wildlife refuges and ranges; these lands comprised about one-third of the area of the nation. The law also set a deadline of December 31, 1968, for the commission to make its final report to the President. After Congressional hearings held in April 1967 an eighteen month extension was granted.

The commission was composed of nineteen members, six appointed by the President of the United States, six by the president of the Senate and six by the Speaker of the House; the nineteenth member was chosen by the first eighteen to act as chairman. Due to election results in the years of the commission's existence the membership changed slightly. The first organizational meeting was held on July 14, 1965. An advisory council of eight federal government and twenty-five non federal government members was appointed by the commission; governors of the states were also asked to name representatives to work with the commission and advisory council.

The commission held public hearings in various sections of the country and the members of the commission, advisory council and governors' representatives toured the public lands of each area after the meetings. Reports on many aspects of public land problems were written, many by outside agencies, and from these reports the commission compiled its final report, One Third of the Nation's Land, which it presented to President Richard Nixon on June 27, 1970. The commission ceased to exist on December 22, 1970.

From the guide to the Papers, 1964-1970, (University of Idaho Library Special Collections and Archives)