[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 11 (Friday, January 26, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Page S510]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. HUTCHISON:
  S. 1539. A bill to establish the Los Caminos del Rio National 
Heritage Area along the Lower Rio Grande Texas-Mexico border, and for 
other purposes; to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.


       the los caminos del rio national heritage area act of 1996

 Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, along the Lower Rio Grande from 
Laredo, TX to the Gulf of Mexico, are found resources of immense 
economic, natural, scenic, historical, and cultural value. On both the 
United States and Mexican sides of the Rio Grande, important historical 
themes and resources of local, State, national, and international 
importance characterize the river communities and counties along the 
Lower Rio Grande. These include early 16th- and 17th-century Spanish 
and French explorations, 18th-century river settlements founded under 
the Spanish Crown, 18th-century ranches where the first American 
cowboys rode, Texas independence and establishment of the Republic of 
the Rio Grande in 1840, the first battle of the Mexican-American War in 
1846, the last land battle of the American Civil War fought near the 
mouth of the Rio Grande in 1865, a thriving steamboat trade in the late 
19th-century, and the development of the Rio Grande Valley as an 
agricultural empire. Today, the Lower Rio Grande is one of the most 
complex ecological systems in the United States, with a remarkable 
variety of species including 600 different vertebrates, such as the 
plain chachalaca, the only member of the curassow family found in the 
United States, and 11,000 different and unique plants, like the Texas 
strawberry cactus.
  Given the remarkable diversity and international importance of this 
area, local and regional governments, Federal and State agencies, 
businesses, private citizens and organizations in the United States and 
Mexico have expressed a desire to work cooperatively to preserve the 
most significant components of the natural and cultural heritage 
throughout the region, while accommodating sustainable growth and 
development.
  Mr. President, in conjunction with these efforts, I am pleased to 
introduce today the Los Caminos del Rio National Heritage Area Act of 
1996. This act will designate the Lower Rio Grande as a congressionally 
authorized national heritage area, thereby recognizing the unique and 
binational importance of the Lower Rio Grande region.
  The Los Caminos del Rio National Heritage Area Act of 1996 recognizes 
the special importance of the Lower Rio Grande region as a living 
historical legacy of the United States and Mexico. Los Caminos del Rio 
will create partnerships between public and private entities to finance 
projects and initiatives throughout the Lower Rio Grande while 
requiring local governments and private entities to share costs with 
the Federal Government. Furthermore, it will promote cooperation 
between Mexico and the United States while enhancing the economies of 
the many Rio Grande communities.
  Mr. President, in a time of fiscal constraints, national heritage 
areas are fiscally sound, budget-conscious alternatives to the 
traditional national park designation. That is why Senator Ben 
Nighthorse Campbell has introduced legislation to encourage such 
partnerships as an alternative to the traditional national park 
designation and why I am now introducing the Los Caminos del Rio 
National Heritage Area Act of 1996.
  Additionally, I should like to point out that my bill pays particular 
and close attention to the rights of private property owners. I have 
listened to and worked with various property advocacy groups in order 
to craft a bill that specifically addresses concerns through concrete 
protections preventing property rights infringement and diminishment of 
value. For example, my bill prohibits conditioning of Federal 
assistance on enactment or modification of any land-use restrictions, 
mandates quarterly public hearings within the heritage area, and 
specifically states that nothing in the bill shall modify, enlarge, or 
diminish any authority of Federal, State, or local government to 
regulate any zoning or use of land, including fish and wildlife 
management. I hope to continue working with these property groups as 
this legislation moves toward passage.
  The Los Caminos del Rio heritage project, which began in 1990 with a 
grant awarded to the Texas Historical Commission, has become a crucial 
unifier of the Lower Rio Grande region, facilitating contacts between 
small communities and their State and Federal Governments and with 
private philanthropy. That same process has occurred in Mexico, where 
border communities that have traditionally felt abandoned and 
overlooked have been able to take advantage of Los Caminos del Rio. 
Because they are part of a regional project, they are now part of 
national and State tourism and conservation programs.
  Mr. President, I look forward to working with Senator Campbell and 
others in passing this legislation to designate Los Caminos del Rio as 
a National Heritage Area, to establish guidelines for the designation 
of other such areas, and to offer security for owners of private 
property within such areas.
                                 ______