[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5125 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]
H.R.5125
One Hundred Seventh Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE SECOND SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Wednesday,
the twenty-third day of January, two thousand and two
An Act
To amend the American Battlefield Protection Act of 1996 to authorize
the Secretary of the Interior to establish a battlefield acquisition
grant program.
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 ``Civil War Battlefield Preservation
Act of 2002''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) Civil War battlefields provide a means for the people of
the United States to understand a tragic period in the history of
the United States.
(2) According to the Report on the Nation's Civil War
Battlefields, prepared by the Civil War Sites Advisory Commission,
and dated July 1993, of the 384 principal Civil War battlefields--
(A) almost 20 percent are lost or fragmented;
(B) 17 percent are in poor condition; and
(C) 60 percent have been lost or are in imminent danger of
being fragmented by development and lost as coherent historic
sites.
(b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to act quickly and proactively to preserve and protect
nationally significant Civil War battlefields through conservation
easements and fee-simple purchases of those battlefields from
willing sellers; and
(2) to create partnerships among State and local governments,
regional entities, and the private sector to preserve, conserve,
and enhance nationally significant Civil War battlefields.
SEC. 3. BATTLEFIELD ACQUISITION GRANT PROGRAM.
The American Battlefield Protection Act of 1996 (16 U.S.C. 469k) is
amended--
(1) by redesignating subsection (d) as paragraph (3) of
subsection (c), and indenting appropriately;
(2) in paragraph (3) of subsection (c) (as redesignated by
paragraph (1))--
(A) by striking ``Appropriations'' and inserting
``appropriations''; and
(B) by striking ``section'' and inserting ``subsection'';
(3) by inserting after subsection (c) the following:
``(d) Battlefield Acquisition Grant Program.--
``(1) Definitions.--In this subsection:
``(A) Battlefield report.--The term `Battlefield Report'
means the document entitled `Report on the Nation's Civil War
Battlefields', prepared by the Civil War Sites Advisory
Commission, and dated July 1993.
``(B) Eligible entity.--The term `eligible entity' means a
State or local government.
``(C) Eligible site.--The term `eligible site' means a
site--
``(i) that is not within the exterior boundaries of a
unit of the National Park System; and
``(ii) that is identified in the Battlefield Report.
``(D) Secretary.--The term `Secretary' means the Secretary
of the Interior, acting through the American Battlefield
Protection Program.
``(2) Establishment.--The Secretary shall establish a
battlefield acquisition grant program under which the Secretary may
provide grants to eligible entities to pay the Federal share of the
cost of acquiring interests in eligible sites for the preservation
and protection of those eligible sites.
``(3) Nonprofit partners.--An eligible entity may acquire an
interest in an eligible site using a grant under this subsection in
partnership with a nonprofit organization.
``(4) Non-federal share.--The non-Federal share of the total
cost of acquiring an interest in an eligible site under this
subsection shall be not less than 50 percent.
``(5) Limitation on land use.--An interest in an eligible site
acquired under this subsection shall be subject to section 6(f)(3)
of the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 (16 U.S.C.
460l-8(f)(3)).
``(6) Reports.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than 5 years after the date of
the enactment of this subparagraph, the Secretary shall submit
to Congress a report on the activities carried out under this
subsection.
``(B) Update of battlefield report.--Not later than 2 years
after the date of the enactment of this subsection, the
Secretary shall submit to Congress a report that updates the
Battlefield Report to reflect--
``(i) preservation activities carried out at the 384
battlefields during the period between publication of the
Battlefield Report and the update;
``(ii) changes in the condition of the battlefields
during that period; and
``(iii) any other relevant developments relating to the
battlefields during that period.
``(7) Authorization of appropriations.--
``(A) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated
to the Secretary from the Land and Water Conservation Fund to
provide grants under this subsection $10,000,000 for each of
fiscal years 2004 through 2008.
``(B) Update of battlefield report.--There are authorized
to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry out paragraph
(6)(B), $500,000.''; and
(4) in subsection (e)--
(A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``as of'' and all that
follows through the period and inserting ``on September 30,
2008.''; and
(B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ``and provide
battlefield acquisition grants'' after ``studies''.
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.