Church asks panel for land exchange

Arkansas deacon takes case to House

WASHINGTON — An Arkansas deacon asked lawmakers Tuesday to help his Garland County congregation acquire the federal land where its members have worshipped for generations. Trey Bassett made his case before the House Natural Resources Committee’s federal lands subcommittee, urging passage of H.R. 5923, the Walnut Grove Land Exchange Act. While he was lobbying on Capitol Hill, the state’s U.S. senators, John Boozman and Tom Cotton, were introducing similar legislation on the congregation’s behalf in that chamber. Bassett, along with other Walnut Grove Community Church members, wants to swap roughly 6 acres of woodland adjacent to the Ouachita National Forest for the 4 acres where their sanctuary stands and their loved ones are buried. The nondenominational congregation was built on federal forest land 80 years ago beside the cemetery. Located roughly 10 miles west of Jessieville, it sits along Arkansas 298 in a sparsely populated area north of Lake Ouachita. For years, church members were allowed to use the land free of charge, according to Bassett. In exchange, they tended the cemetery, which contains graves dating to the late 1800s. Things changed early in the 21st century, after their long-term special-use permit expired, Bassett said. Currently, the church pays the U.S. Forest Service roughly $700 a year for the right to occupy the land and utilize the burial ground. They can’t make any changes to the land without government permission and they have a hard time making long-term plans, he said. “The special-use permit requires a yearly renewal with the Forest Service … which has authority to increase the rates or simply not renew the permit if they choose,” he told the subcommittee. “However unlikely, it is within the Forest Service’s power to walk away from the permit for any reason, essentially evicting us.” The U.S. Forest Service was created in 1905. The church moved to its current site in 1938, holding its first service in 1939. The earliest headstones in the graveyard date to the 19th century. Bassett, who also serves as the church treasurer, said congregants have been seeking a land swap for more than two decades, but the forest service has been unresponsive. Forest Service officials can’t comment on prior property discussions because of the pending legislation, an agency spokesman said in May, when the legislation was first filed. U.S. Rep. Bruce Westerman, a Republican from Hot Springs who introduced the House bill, said the transaction would benefit both sides. “It’s a shame that we couldn’t have just made this trade with the Forest Service without an act of Congress, but the church has been working on this diligently for over 20 years,” he told the subcommittee. “The Walnut Grove Community church exemplifies, I think, life in rural Arkansas and all across rural America,” Westerman said. “They have regular worship services. They also have weddings, they have funerals, they have community gatherings. The church has even served as a command post during a time of natural disaster. … These churches are very important for the spiritual well-being of these communities, but also, they serve a very practical purpose.” In an interview after the hearing, Westerman said the legislation could get committee approval later this week. “Hopefully we’re going to get some traction on this,” he said.