14_Contracting_Package_WY_GRP_10XP_Wagonhound_Land_and_Livestock_(Middleton_Trust).pdf

GRASSLAND PROTECTION PROGRAM

TITLE SEARCH REQUEST

Line Item 14

1) Landowners Name(s): Wagonhound Land & Livestock Co. (formerly Benny R

Middleton Trust and Pauline P Middleton Trust)

2) Location of land:

a. State: Wyoming

b. County: Converse

c. Section, Township: Sections 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 17, and 18 of Township 30 North, Range 73 West of the 6th P.M.

d. Acreage of Easement Area: 2,413.38 ac

3) Statement of Work

4) Legal Description of Easement Area

5) Survey of Easement Area

STATEMENT OF WORK

TITLE REPORT FOR NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE (NRCS)

EASEMENT PROGRAMS

I. OBJECTIVE

The objective of this contract is to obtain a title report relating to conservation easements on behalf of the United States of America, acting by and through the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), U.S. Department of Agriculture, pursuant to Title II of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (Public Law 113-79).

II. BACKGROUND

The Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) authorizes the acquisition of easement rights from willing landowners for the purpose of restoring and protecting wetlands and associated upland and riparian rights. NRCS is an agency within the U.S. Department of Agriculture that is responsible for administration of this program.

III. SCOPE

The contractor must coordinate and facilitate the following service:

1. Provide the title report, including copies of all instruments that created rights, interests, or encumbrances on the property, for the easement boundary and ingress-egress descriptions.

IV. STANDARDS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The acquisition of the program easement and any access easement is governed by the following requirements:

a. Department of Justice Title Standards 2016;

b. Attorney General’s title regulations (1970), with two amendments (1974, 1990);

c. Department of Justice's Procedural Guide for the Acquisition of Real Property by

Governmental Agencies (1972); and

d. NRCS regulations and policies governing the NRCS program under which the easement is being acquired.

The contractor will perform the same services which are customarily provided in a commercial transaction, including chain of title, determination of ownership and interest share of surface and subsurface rights, and all underlying documents. The contractor is responsible for having up-to-date knowledge of the requirements of the State’s laws on title searches, closing real estate transactions and title clearance. The title insurance company and its issuing agents must be on the U.S. Attorney General’s list of approved companies and must comply with the State’s laws, including title insurance reserves requirements. The contractor must be licensed to do title insurance business in the state. The title insurance company must be approved by the State’s insurance commissioner

V. DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES

The contractor must obtain the following:

1. Copies of all instruments that created rights, interests, or encumbrances on the proposed easement property

2. Title report, which must cover both the easement area and access for ingress and egress, and must commit to issuing the final title policy to the United States of America on the American Land Title Association (ALTA) U.S. Policy Form 9/28/91 (Revised 12/3/12)1.

The title report must be from a licensed title insurance company. The title search will be for a sufficient period of time for the title company to insure the title without objectionable exceptions, and will determine all owners of record, outstanding mortgages, liens, judgments or pending suits, outstanding tax claims, easements, or rights-of-way of any type, including whether oil, gas, and mineral interests have been severed, and any other exceptions that may cloud the title of the easement to be purchased. The title commitment must include a legible copy of all underlying documents of any type, whether oil, gas, and mineral interests have been severed, mortgages, bankruptcies, and any other exceptions that may cloud the title of the easement to be purchased.

Title search services and title commitment must be provided within 15 business days of receiving the request from NRCS. The contractor will be provided with a legal description of the property to be searched.

VI. PAYMENT

The payment will occur upon receipt and approval of the title report. NRCS will process the Contractor’s payment through the Invoice Processing Platform (IPP) http://www.ipp.gov/ for services rendered.

VII. CONFLICT OF INTEREST

The contractor will not provide services that inure to its benefit or that of a spouse, child, partner, or business associate.

VIII. AUTHORITY

Only the NRCS Contracting Officer may authorize a modification to this contract. Any questions or requests may be directed to the Contracting Officer identified on the signed contract.

IX. NON-DISCLOSURE

1 For easement acquisitions in Texas, the T-11 U.S. Policy and T-12 U.S. Endorsement may substituted any place the ALTA U.S. Policy Form 9/28/91 (Revised 12/3/12) is mentioned in this document.

Work performance required by this Scope of Work will involve access to potentially sensitive information about governmental and landowner issues. All Contractor personnel must comply with the terms of AGAR 452.224-70, Confidentiality of Information, as well as provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974, 5 U. S. C. 552a. Additionally, the Contractor's employees shall comply with privacy of personal information relating to natural resources conservation programs in accordance with Section 1244 of Title II of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-171).

X. CIVIL RIGHTS AND PROGRAM DELIVERY

By signing this agreement the Contractor assures the Department of Agriculture that the program or activities provided for under this agreement will be conducted in compliance with all applicable Federal civil rights laws, rules, regulations, and policies.

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