[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1564 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1564

 To require the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study regarding 
                          Fort King, Florida.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 26, 1999

 Mr. Stearns introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                         Committee on Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To require the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study regarding 
                          Fort King, Florida.

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

SECTION 1. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds that--
            (1) the Second Seminole War, 1835-1842, is an important 
        period of conflict in the history of the Nation and lasted 
        longer than any other armed conflict in which the Nation 
        participated, except the Vietnam War;
            (2) Fort King, in central Florida, played an important 
        historic role in the Second Seminole War as the site of the 
        outbreak of hostilities between the United States Government 
        and the Seminole Indians of Florida, who were led by Seminole 
        Indian Chief Osceola;
            (3) Fort King represents a unique site for exploration and 
        interpretation of the attack that ignited the Second Seminole 
        War on December 28, 1835; and
            (4) Fort King and the surrounding area contain materials 
        and artifacts used in the attack and in the life of the 
        Seminole Indians.

SEC. 2. REQUIREMENT OF STUDY.

    The Secretary of the Interior (hereinafter in this Act referred to 
as the ``Secretary'') shall conduct a study to identify potential means 
to preserve, develop, and interpret Fort King, in central Florida, and 
the surrounding area. As part of the study, the Secretary shall propose 
alternatives for cooperation in the preservation and interpretation of 
Fort King and shall provide recommendations with respect to the 
suitability and feasibility of establishing Fort King as a unit of the 
National Park System.

SEC. 3. FINDINGS INCLUDED IN STUDY.

    The study required by section 2 shall contain, but need not be 
limited to, findings with respect to--
            (1) the role played by Fort King in the Second Seminole 
        War;
            (2) identification of the historical, cultural, and 
        archaeological material found in Fort King and the surrounding 
        area relating to life at the time of and preceding the Second 
        Seminole War;
            (3) the types of Federal, State, and local programs that 
        are available to preserve and develop Fort King and the 
        surrounding area and to make the fort and the surrounding area 
        accessible for public use and enjoyment; and
            (4) the potential use of, and coordination with, Federal, 
        State, and local programs to manage, in the public interest, 
        the historical and cultural resources found at and around Fort 
        King.

SEC. 4. CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW.

    The Secretary shall submit a report detailing the results of the 
study required by section 2 to the committees of jurisdiction of the 
House of Representatives and the Senate not later than 12 months after 
the date of the enactment of this Act.
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