[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2451 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







105th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2451

    To improve protection and management of the Chattahoochee River 
           National Recreation Area in the State of Georgia.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 9, 1998

 Mr. Coverdell introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
       referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To improve protection and management of the Chattahoochee River 
           National Recreation Area in the State of Georgia.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
            (1)(A) the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area in 
        the State of Georgia is a nationally significant resource; and
            (B) the recreation area has been adversely affected by land 
        use changes occurring inside and outside the recreation area;
            (2) the population of the metropolitan Atlanta area 
        continues to expand northward, leaving dwindling opportunities 
        to protect the scenic, recreational, natural, and historical 
        values of the 2,000-foot-wide corridor adjacent to each bank of 
        the Chattahoochee River and its impoundments in the 48-mile 
        segment known as the ``area of national concern'';
            (3)(A) the State of Georgia has enacted the Metropolitan 
        River Protection Act to ensure protection of the corridor 
        located within 2,000 feet of each bank of the Chattahoochee 
        River, or the corridor located within the 100-year floodplain, 
        whichever is larger; and
            (B) that corridor includes the area of national concern;
            (4) since establishment of the Chattahoochee River National 
        Recreation Area, visitor use of the recreation area has shifted 
        dramatically from waterborne to water-related and land-based 
        activities; and
            (5)(A) the State of Georgia and political subdivisions of 
        the State along the Chattahoochee River have indicated 
        willingness to join in a cooperative effort with the United 
        States to link existing units of the recreation area through a 
        series of linear corridors to be established within the area of 
        national concern and elsewhere on the river; and
            (B) if Congress appropriates funds in support of such a 
        cooperative effort, funding from the State, political 
        subdivisions of the State, private foundations, corporate 
        entities, private individuals, and other sources will be 
        available to fund more than half the estimated cost of the 
        cooperative effort.
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
            (1) to increase the level of protection of the open spaces 
        within the area of national concern along the Chattahoochee 
        River and to enhance visitor enjoyment of the open spaces by 
        adding land-based linear corridors to link existing units of 
        the recreation area;
            (2) to ensure that the Chattahoochee River National 
        Recreation Area is managed to standardize acquisition, 
        planning, design, construction, and operation of the linear 
        corridors; and
            (3) to authorize the appropriation of Federal funds to 
        cover a portion of the costs of the Federal, State, local, and 
        private cooperative effort to add additional areas to the 
        recreation area so as to establish a series of linear corridors 
        linking existing units of the recreation area and to protect 
        other open spaces of the Chattahoochee River corridor.

SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO CHATTAHOOCHEE RIVER NATIONAL RECREATION AREA ACT.

    (a) Boundaries.--Section 101 of the Act entitled ``An Act to 
authorize the establishment of the Chattahoochee River National 
Recreation Area in the State of Georgia, and for other purposes'', 
approved August 15, 1978 (16 U.S.C. 460ii), is amended--
            (1) in the third sentence, by inserting after ``numbered 
        CHAT-20,003, and dated September 1984,'' the following: ``and 
        on the maps entitled `Chattahoochee River National Recreation 
        Area, Interim Boundary Map #1', `Chattahoochee River National 
        Recreation Area, Interim Boundary Map #2', and `Chattahoochee 
        River National Recreation Area, Interim Boundary Map #3', dated 
        ______,'';
            (2) by striking the fourth sentence and inserting the 
        following: ``After July 1, 1999, the Secretary of the Interior 
        (referred to in this Act as the `Secretary') may modify the 
        boundaries of the recreation area to include other land within 
        the river corridor of the Chattahoochee River by submitting a 
        revised map or other boundary description to Congress. The 
        revised boundaries shall take effect on the date that is 180 
days after the date of submission unless, within the 180-day period, 
Congress enacts a Joint Resolution disapproving the revised boundaries. 
The revised map or other boundary description shall be prepared by the 
Secretary after consultation with affected landowners, the State of 
Georgia, and affected political subdivisions of the State.''; and
            (3) in the next-to-last sentence, by striking ``may not 
        exceed approximately 6,800 acres.'' and inserting ``may not 
        exceed 10,000 acres.''.
    (b) Acquisition of Property.--Section 102 of the Act entitled ``An 
Act to authorize the establishment of the Chattahoochee River National 
Recreation Area in the State of Georgia, and for other purposes'', 
approved August 15, 1978 (16 U.S.C. 460ii-1), is amended--
            (1) in the first sentence of subsection (a), by inserting 
        before the period at the end the following: ``, except that 
        land and interests in land within the Addition Area depicted on 
        a map described in section 101 may not be acquired without the 
        consent of the owner''; and
            (2) by striking subsection (f).
    (c) Cooperative Agreements.--Section 103 of the Act entitled ``An 
Act to authorize the establishment of the Chattahoochee River National 
Recreation Area in the State of Georgia, and for other purposes'', 
approved August 15, 1978 (16 U.S.C. 460ii-2), is amended by striking 
subsection (b) and inserting the following:
    ``(b) Cooperative Agreements.--The Secretary may enter into 
cooperative agreements with the State of Georgia, political 
subdivisions of the State, and other entities to ensure standardized 
acquisition, planning, design, construction, and operation of the 
recreation area.''.
    (d) Funding.--Section 105 of the Act entitled ``An Act to authorize 
the establishment of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area 
in the State of Georgia, and for other purposes'', approved August 15, 
1978 (16 U.S.C. 460ii-4), is amended--
            (1) by striking subsection (a) and inserting the following:
    ``(a) Funding.--
            ``(1) Authorization of appropriations.--In addition to 
        funding and the donation of land and interests in land by the 
        State of Georgia, local government authorities, private 
        foundations, corporate entities, and individuals, and funding 
        that may be made available as a result of the settlement of 
        litigation, there is authorized to be appropriated for land 
        acquisition for the recreation area $25,000,000.
            ``(2) Donations.--The Secretary may accept a donation of 
        funds or land or an interest in land to carry out this Act.''; 
        and
            (2) in subsection (c)--
                    (A) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (3) as 
                subparagraphs (A) through (C), respectively, and 
                indenting appropriately;
                    (B) by striking ``(c) Within'' and inserting the 
                following:
    ``(c) General Management Plan.--
            ``(1) Initial plan.--Within'';
                    (C) in paragraph (1) (as designated by subparagraph 
                (B)), by striking ``transmit to'' and all that follows 
                through ``Representatives'' and inserting ``transmit to 
                the Committee on Resources of the House of 
                Representatives''; and
                    (D) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) Revised plan.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Not later than 3 years after the 
                date of enactment of this subparagraph, the Secretary 
                shall submit to the committees specified in paragraph 
                (1) a revised general management plan to provide for 
                the protection, enhancement, enjoyment, development, 
                and use of areas added to the recreation area after the 
                date of submission of the initial general management 
                plan.
                    ``(B) Public participation.--In preparing the 
                revised plan, the Secretary shall encourage the 
                participation of the State of Georgia and affected 
                political subdivisions of the State, private 
                landowners, interested citizens, public officials, 
                groups, agencies, educational institutions, and other 
                entities.''.
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