[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2627 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2627

    To direct the Secretary of the Interior to provide funding for 
 rehabilitation of the Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier National Park, 
 to authorize funds for maintenance of utilities related to the Park, 
                        and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 24, 2000

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To direct the Secretary of the Interior to provide funding for 
 rehabilitation of the Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier National Park, 
 to authorize funds for maintenance of utilities related to the Park, 
                        and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) the historical significance of the 52-mile Going-to-
        the-Sun Road in Glacier National Park, Montana, is recognized 
        by its--
                    (A) listing on the National Register of Historic 
                Places in 1983;
                    (B) designation as a National Historic Engineering 
                Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers in 
                1985; and
                    (C) designation as a National Historic Landmark in 
                1997;
            (2) in 1997, recommendations of the Federal Highway 
        Administration concerning, and an engineering study of, the 
        Road verified significant structural damage to the Road has 
        occurred since the Road opened in 1932;
            (3) infrastructure at most of the developed areas in the 
        Park is inadequate for cold-season (fall, winter, and spring) 
        operation, and maintenance backlog needs exist for normal 
        summer operation;
            (4) the Many Glacier Hotel and Lake McDonald Lodge are on 
        the National Register of Historic Places and are National 
        Historic Landmarks;
            (5) other accommodations operated by the concessionaire 
        that have possessory interest and are listed on the National 
        Register of Historic Places are the Rising Sun Motor Inn and 
        Swiftcurrent Motel;
            (6) the historic hotels in the Park, operated under 
        concession agreements with the National Park Service, are 
        essential for public use and enjoyment of the Park;
            (7) visitors to the Park deserve safe hotels in the Park 
        that meet basic needs and expectations;
            (8) the historic hotels in the Park have deteriorated 
        significantly and need substantial repair;
            (9) repairs of the hotels in the Park have been deferred 
        for so long that, absent any changes to the Federal law 
        governing concessionaires and the availability of historic tax 
        credits for up to 39.5 years, the remodeling costs for the 
        hotels exceed the capacity of the hotel concessionaire to 
        finance the repairs with hotel revenues;
            (10) the remodeling costs of Park hotels are so high that 
        the concessionaire will need to finance the cost of those 
        repairs by borrowing the remodeling expenses and repaying them 
        over time out of net hotel income, which by current law is 
        limited to 20-year concession agreements;
            (11) the season of operation for hotels is about 4 months 
        because the developed areas of the Park lack--
                    (A) water, sewer, and fire protection systems that 
                can operate in freezing conditions;
                    (B) building insulation; and
                    (C) heating systems;
            (12) because of many factors, including the high projected 
        costs of remodeling, the relatively short tourist season in the 
        Park, and the requirement that concession agreements may not 
        exceed 20 years, concessionaires are unable to carry out the 
        scope of remodeling that is needed for the hotels in the Park;
            (13) the National Park Service Concessions Management 
        Improvement Act of 1998 (16 U.S.C. 5951 et seq.) is based on 
        sound principles and is achieving its basic purposes, but there 
        appear to be selected instances in which the National Park 
        Service needs additional authority to conduct demonstration 
        projects; and
            (14) a demonstration project is needed to carry out repairs 
        of the historic hotels in the Park.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Committee.--The term ``Committee'' means the Going-to-
        the-Sun Road Citizens' Advisory Committee.
            (2) Park.--The term ``Park'' means Glacier National Park, 
        Montana.
            (3) Road.--The term ``Road'' means Going-to-the-Sun Road, 
        located in the Park.
            (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Interior.

SEC. 3. GOING-TO-THE-SUN ROAD FEASIBILITY STUDY AND REHABILITATION 
              PLAN.

    (a) Feasibility Study.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than June 30, 2001, the 
        Secretary, in consultation with the Committee, shall complete a 
        feasibility study for rehabilitation of the Road.
            (2) Inclusions.--The feasibility study shall include--
                    (A) alternative plans for rehabilitation of the 
                Road, including--
                            (i) a ranking of the feasibility of each 
                        plan;
                            (ii) an estimate of the length of time 
                        necessary to complete each plan;
                            (iii) a description of which mitigation 
                        efforts would be used to preserve resources and 
                        minimize adverse economic effects of each plan;
                            (iv) an analysis of the costs and benefits 
                        of each plan;
                            (v) an estimate of the cost of each plan;
                    (B) an analysis of long-term maintenance needs, 
                standards, and schedules for the Road, alternatives to 
                accomplish the work, maintenance staff needs, and 
                associated cost estimates; and
                    (C) a complete environmental analysis that meets 
                any applicable requirement of--
                            (i) the National Environmental Policy Act 
                        of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.);
                            (ii) the National Historic Preservation Act 
                        (16 U.S.C. 470 et seq.); and
                            (iii) any other applicable law.
            (3) Submission.--Not later than 30 days after completion of 
        the feasibility study, the Secretary shall submit to the 
        Committee on Resources in the House of Representatives and the 
        Committee on Energy and Natural Resources in the Senate a copy 
        of the study.
    (b) Rehabilitation Plan.--
            (1) In general.--As soon as practicable after completing 
        the study and environmental analysis under subsection (a), the 
        Secretary shall--
                    (A) consider the recommendations of the Committee;
                    (B) make any decision documented in the 
                environmental analysis process; and
                    (C) select and implement a rehabilitation plan for 
                the Road.
            (2) Authorized actions.--In implementing a rehabilitation 
        plan under this subsection, the Secretary may--
                    (A) use funds to--
                            (i) rehabilitate the Road; and
                            (ii) carry out transportation system 
                        improvements or impact mitigation activities 
                        outside the Park, if recommended in the 
                        feasibility study and by the Committee; and
                    (B) seek funding for any long-term maintenance 
                needs identified in the feasibility study.
            (3) Authorization of appropriations.--There is authorized 
        to be appropriated to the Secretary to implement the 
        rehabilitation plan (including the cost of any necessary 
        environmental or cultural documentation and monitoring), 
        $200,000,000.
    (c) Continuation of Maintenance.--Nothing in this section affects 
the duty of the Secretary to continue the program in effect on the day 
before the date of the enactment of this Act to preserve, maintain, and 
address safety concerns relating to the Road.

SEC. 4. MAINTENANCE AND UPGRADE OF UTILITY
              SYSTEMS.

    (a) In General.--As soon as practicable after funds are made 
available under this section, the Secretary shall begin the upgrade and 
continue the maintenance of utility systems that serve the Park and 
facilities relating to the Park.
    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this section, $20,000,000.

SEC. 5. HOTEL REHABILITATION.

    (a) Competitive Leases of Property.--Notwithstanding section 3(k) 
of Public Law 91-383 (commonly known as the ``National Park System 
General Authorities Act'') (16 U.S.C. 1a-2) or any other provision of 
law, subject to subsection (b), the Secretary may enter into a 
competitive lease of Federal property in the Park under which a lessee 
may provide visitor services to visitors to the area.
    (b) Mandatory Conditions of Leases.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall enter into a lease 
        under subsection (a) only after determining that the provision 
        of visitor services--
                    (A) is necessary and appropriate for the 
                accommodation of visitors to the Park, taking into 
                consideration the value of providing additional visitor 
                services (including conference facilities) for groups 
                of visitors in the early spring and late fall months, 
                especially as those additional services may provide 
                extra revenue needed to finance improvements for the 
                historic hotels in Glacier National Park; and
                    (B) is consistent with section 402 of the National 
                Park Service Concessions Management Improvement Act of 
                1998 (16 U.S.C. 5952).
            (2) Terms and conditions.--The Secretary shall include in a 
        lease under this subsection appropriate terms and conditions to 
        ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, that--
                    (A) any visitor service provided is--
                            (i) adequate; and
                            (ii) available at a reasonable rate--
                                    (I) to be approved by the Secretary 
                                in accordance with section 406 of the 
                                National Park Service Concessions 
                                Management Improvement Act of 1998 (16 
                                U.S.C. 5951 et seq.); and
                                    (II) that may be at such a level as 
                                to allow any investment in capital 
                                improvements for visitor services to be 
                                recovered within a reasonable amount of 
                                time by the concessionaire that 
                                financed the improvements;
                    (B) the leased property will be properly maintained 
                by the lessee, and, with respect to historic property 
                that may be leased, preserved, and maintained in a 
                manner consistent with the historic character of the 
                property, as determined by the Secretary; and
                    (C) assure the lessee of adequate protection 
                against any loss of investment in an improvement to 
                real property that the lessee may make to the leased 
                property (including an obligation of the United States 
                to compensate the lessee for any loss of investment in 
                an improvement to real property in any circumstances 
                that the Secretary determines to be prudent).
    (c) Leasehold Surrender Value.--In any contract for improvements, 
the Secretary shall recognize the leasehold surrender value of any 
existing lease that the Secretary may require to be surrendered in any 
action that is associated with approving an improvement to visitor 
services under this section.
                                 <all>