By Jack Fitzpatrick | Cronkite News
Congress is one step closer to fixing a property dispute over the boundary of Coconino National Forest, which cuts through 26 neighboring properties as a result of a 50-year-old surveying error.
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee approved a House bill Thursday that would let the affected property owners repurchase their land from the government, a total of 2.67 acres, for a combined $20,000.
The bill is “a bad deal” but is better than no deal at all, said Esther Stewart, a homeowner who will have to pay about $4,000 to buy back a house she already paid full price for in 1990. Stewart said she will have to pay the most out of any of the group.
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