[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1949 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1949

 To amend the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage 
 Corridor Act of 1994, to increase the authorization of appropriations 
  and modify the date on which the authority of the Secretary of the 
                   Interior terminates under the Act.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 19, 2007

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage 
 Corridor Act of 1994, to increase the authorization of appropriations 
  and modify the date on which the authority of the Secretary of the 
                   Interior terminates under the Act.

    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 ``Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers 
Valley National Heritage Corridor Amendments Act of 2007''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds as follows:
            (1) Thousands of individuals, hundreds of nonprofit 
        organizations, businesses, local and regional organizations, 35 
        towns, and 2 States have worked to preserve and enhance the 
        significant natural, historic, cultural, and scenic resources 
        of the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage 
        Corridor, and area which is commonly known as ``The Last Green 
        Valley''.
            (2) The Green Valley Institute, a partnership between the 
        University of Connecticut and the cooperative extension system 
        of the University of Massachusetts, has significantly improved 
        the information base available to the primarily volunteer 
        municipal officials that are responsible for making land use 
        and natural resource conservation decisions with respect to the 
        Last Green Valley.
            (3) During the 5 years preceding the date of the enactment 
        of this Act, the Green Valley Institute was recognized with 8 
        State or national awards for public education.
            (4) Significant historic structures have been identified 
        and restored under the programs carried out in the Heritage 
        Corridor.
            (5) Museums, attractions, landscapes, and businesses have 
        been assembled into cohesive interpretive projects that tell 
        the stories of The Last Green Valley for residents and 
        tourists.
            (6) As part of the vision to sustain the traditional land-
        based economy of the region, the Heritage Corridor has--
                    (A) developed agritourism and continuing education 
                programs for the region; and
                    (B) collected and analyzed data relating to the 
                vision.
            (7) Recreational tourism has been enhanced by the many 
        trails, greenways, river access, and interpretive projects in 
        the Heritage Corridor.
            (8) Each of the 35 municipal governments within the 
        Heritage Corridor has signed a voluntary and non-binding 
        community compact in which the governments--
                    (A) accept the goals and objectives of the 
                management plan for the Heritage Corridor; and
                    (B) formalize the commitment of the governments to 
                balance conservation and growth and the collective 
                vision for the watershed.
            (9) During the past 11 years, the Heritage Corridor has 
        consistently leveraged an average of $19 for every Federal 
        dollar invested in the Heritage Corridor.
            (10) The Heritage Corridor has adopted, and is 
        implementing, a comprehensive plan, titled ``The Trail to 2015, 
        A Sustainability Plan for The Last Green Valley'', to become 
        self-sufficient by the year 2015.
            (11) Reauthorizing the Heritage Corridor would leverage 
        significant multi-year commitments and ensure self-sufficiency 
        by 2015 for the programs and projects that are fulfilling the 
        mission of the Heritage Corridor.

SEC. 3. QUINEBAUG AND SHETUCKET RIVERS VALLEY NATIONAL HERITAGE 
              CORRIDOR.

    (a) Termination of Authority.--Section 106(b) of the Quinebaug and 
Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage corridor Act of 1994 (16 
U.S.C. 461 note; Public Law 103-449) is amended by striking ``September 
30, 2009'' and inserting ``September 30, 2015''.
    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 109(a) of the 
Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage Corridor Act of 
1994 (16 U.S.C. 461 note; Public Law 103-449) is amended by striking 
``$10,000,000'' and inserting ``$16,000,000''.
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