[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1205 Introduced in House (IH)]






109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1205

 To amend the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage 
Corridor Act of 1994 to extend the authorization for that corridor, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 9, 2005

Mr. Simmons (for himself and Mr. Neal of Massachusetts) introduced the 
    following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage 
Corridor Act of 1994 to extend the authorization for that corridor, 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.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) Thousands of individuals, hundreds of nonprofits, 
        businesses, local and regional organizations, 35 towns and 2 
        states have worked under the designation of the National 
        Heritage Corridor to preserve and enhance the significant 
        natural, historic, cultural, and scenic resources of The Last 
        Green Valley.
            (2) The Green Valley Institute, a partnership with the 
        Universities of Connecticut and Massachusetts Cooperative 
        Extension System, has significantly improved the information 
        base from which land use and natural resource conservation 
        decisions are made by primarily volunteer municipal officials.
            (3) The Green Valley Institute has been recognized with 8 
        State and national awards for public education in the past 3 
        years.
            (4) Significant historic structures have been identified 
        and restored under the programs of the National Heritage 
        Corridor.
            (5) The National Heritage Corridor has assembled museums, 
        attractions, landscapes, and businesses into cohesive 
        interpretive projects that tell the stories of The Last Green 
        Valley for residents and tourists alike.
            (6) The National Heritage Corridor has developed agri-
        tourism programs, data collection and analysis, and continuing 
        education in its vision of sustaining the traditional land-
        based economy of the region.
            (7) Recreational tourism has been enhanced by the many 
        trails, greenways, river access, and interpretive projects of 
        the National Heritage Corridor.
            (8) Each of the 35 municipal governments within the 
        National Heritage Corridor has signed a voluntary, non-binding 
        community compact accepting the goals and objectives of the 
        National Heritage Corridor's management plan and formalizing 
        their commitment to balance conservation and growth and their 
        collective vision for the watershed.
            (9) The National Heritage Corridor has consistently 
        leveraged an average of $16 for every Federal dollar invested 
        for the past 10 years.
            (10) Reauthorization at this time will leverage significant 
        multi-year commitments towards self-sufficiency for the 
        programs and projects that are fulfilling the mission of the 
        National Heritage Corridor.

SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF AUTHORIZATION FOR THE QUINEBAUG AND SHETUCKET 
              RIVERS VALLEY NATIONAL HERITAGE CORRIDOR.

    The Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage 
Corridor Act of 1994 (Public Law 103-449) is amended--
            (1) in section 106, by striking ``September 30, 2009'' and 
        inserting ``September 30, 2027''; and
            (2) in section 109, by striking ``$10,000,000'' and 
        inserting ``$20,000,000''.
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