[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3691 Introduced in House (IH)]







107th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 3691

 To amend the National Trails System Act to designate the Old Spanish 
                  Trail as a National Historic Trail.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            February 6, 2002

  Mrs. Wilson of New Mexico introduced the following bill; which was 
                 referred to the Committee on Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the National Trails System Act to designate the Old Spanish 
                  Trail as a National Historic Trail.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Old Spanish National Historic Trail 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds that--
            (1) the Old Spanish Trail served as a major trade route 
        from Santa Fe, New Mexico, to Los Angeles, California, between 
        1829 and 1848;
            (2) the Old Spanish Trail begins in northern New Mexico and 
        runs in a westerly or northwesterly direction through Colorado, 
        Utah, Arizona, and Nevada before ending in southern California;
            (3) Native Americans, immigrants, sheep ranchers, weavers, 
        military groups, explorers, and trappers used the Old Spanish 
        Trail during the development of the West;
            (4) the travelers promoted cultural interaction among 
        Europeans, Spaniards, Mexicans, Native Americans, and other 
        people of the United States;
            (5) much of the historic character of the Old Spanish Trail 
        is related to--
                    (A) the route of the trail through the natural 
                environment; and
                    (B) the existence of landscapes relatively 
                unchanged since the trail period;
            (6) currently, many sections of the Old Spanish Trail 
        appear as the routes appeared to traders and other travelers in 
        the 19th century; and
            (7) the Old Spanish Trail is a symbol of the cultural 
        interaction between ethnic groups, nations, and the commercial 
        exchange that made possible the development and growth of the 
        United States.

SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION.

    Section 5(a) of the National Trails System Act (16 U.S.C. 1244(a)) 
is amended--
            (1) by redesignating the second paragraph (21) as paragraph 
        (22); and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(23) Old spanish national historic trail.--
            ``(A) In general.--The Old Spanish National Historic Trail, 
        beginning in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and ending in Los Angeles, 
        California.
            ``(B) Map.--A map generally depicting the trail shall be on 
        file and available for public inspection in the office of the 
        Director of the National Park Service.
            ``(C) Administration.--The trail shall be administered by 
        the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of 
        the National Park Service (referred to in this paragraph as the 
        `Secretary').
            ``(D) Land acquisition.--The United States shall not 
        acquire for the trail any land or interest in land outside the 
        exterior boundary of any federally managed area without the 
        consent of the owner of the land or interest in land.
            ``(E) Volunteer groups; consultation.--The Secretary 
        shall--
                    ``(i) encourage volunteer trail groups to 
                participate in the development and maintenance of the 
                trail; and
                    ``(ii) consult with other Federal, State, local, 
                and tribal agencies in the administration of the 
                trail.''.
                                 <all>