[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3017 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







108th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3017

  To provide for the settlement of the claims of Swain County, North 
Carolina, against the United States under the agreement dated July 30, 
                                 1943.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           November 19, 2004

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To provide for the settlement of the claims of Swain County, North 
Carolina, against the United States under the agreement dated July 30, 
                                 1943.

    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 ``Swain County Settlement Act of 
2004''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSE.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
            (1) an agreement dated July 30, 1943, between the Secretary 
        of the Interior, the State of North Carolina, the Tennessee 
        Valley Authority, and Swain County, North Carolina, provided 
        that the Department of the Interior would construct a road 
        along the north shore of the Fontana Reservoir to replace a 
        road flooded by the construction of Fontana Dam and the filling 
        of the Reservoir;
            (2) as of the date of enactment of this Act, the road has 
        not been completed;
            (3) a 1962 National Park Service study of the proposed road 
        found that the construction of the road would result in severe 
        ``damage to the landscape and natural park values'';
            (4) there are additional environmental concerns relating to 
        the road construction, including concerns relating to the 
        exposure of Anakeesta rock that produces acids and metals that 
        leach into streams and kill aquatic life;
            (5) the proposed road would cut through the Great Smoky 
        Mountains National Park, the most visited park in the National 
        Park system;
            (6) in 2000, the National Park Service estimated that the 
        cost of building the proposed road would be $150,000,000, 
        excluding planning, design, and environmental compliance costs;
            (7) as of June 2004, the public review process conducted by 
        the National Park Service found that 88 percent of respondents 
        favored a cash settlement over constructing the road; and
            (8) on February 11, 2003, the Swain County Board of 
        Commissioners passed a resolution supporting a settlement as a 
        substitute for the construction of the road.
    (b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to settle and quiet all 
claims arising out of the agreement referred to in subsection (a)(1).

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Agreement.--The term ``agreement'' means the agreement 
        of July 30, 1943, between the Secretary, the State, the 
        Tennessee Valley Authority, and the County relating to the 
        replacement of a road in the County flooded by the construction 
        of Fontana Dam and the filling of Fontana Reservoir.
            (2) County.--The term ``County'' means Swain County, North 
        Carolina.
            (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Treasury.
            (4) State.--The term ``State'' means the State of North 
        Carolina.

SEC. 4. SETTLEMENT OF CLAIMS.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary shall offer to compensate the County for the 
road not being built in an amount determined by the parties to the 
agreement, taking into consideration the estimated cost of the proposed 
road.
    (b) Payment.--Not later than 60 days after the date on which the 
County accepts the offer under subsection (a), the Secretary shall, 
using amounts made available under section 5, pay to the County the 
amount of compensation determined under subsection (a).
    (c) Deposit.--Amounts paid to the County under subsection (b) shall 
be deposited in an account in accordance with any rules and regulations 
established by the North Carolina Local Government Commission.
    (d) Use.--
            (1) Principal.--The principal of amounts deposited under 
        subsection (c) shall be expended by the County only as 
        authorized under a resolution approved by \2/3\ of the 
        registered voters of the County.
            (2) Interest.--Any interest accrued on amounts deposited 
        under subsection (c) shall be expended only for purposes 
        approved by a majority vote of the governing body of the 
        County.
            (3) Limitation.--No amounts made available under this Act 
        shall be used to make payments to an agent or attorney for 
        services rendered with respect to the claims settled by this 
        Act.
    (e) Satisfaction of Claims.--Acceptance by the County of the 
payment by the Secretary under subsection (b) constitutes full 
settlement of the claims of the County (including any person or entity 
making a claim by, through, or under the County) against the United 
States, the Department of the Interior, and the Tennessee Valley 
Authority under the agreement.

SEC. 5. FUNDING.

    (a) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated such sums as are necessary to carry out this Act.
    (b) Transfer of Funds.--There is transferred to the Secretary to 
carry out this Act any unobligated balance of the $16,000,000 
originally made available for the construction of and improvements to 
North Shore Road in the County under section 378 of the Department of 
Transportation and Related Agencies Appropriation Act, 2001 (114 Stat. 
1356A-40).
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