[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 129 (Sunday, October 10, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1862]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             NORTHERN RIO GRANDE NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                             HON. TOM UDALL

                             of new mexico

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, October 6, 2004

  Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of S. 
211, which includes language to establish the Northern Rio Grande 
National Heritage Area. I am pleased to have sponsored H.R. 505, 
companion legislation to S. 211 as introduced and passed in the Senate. 
That version of the Senate legislation only provided for establishment 
of the Northern Rio Grande National Heritage Area. The bill before us 
today, however, includes an additional 100 pages of legislative 
language pertaining to other heritage area designations. Nevertheless I 
am pleased that we will be moving one step closer to making the 
Northern Rio Grande Heritage area a reality.
  The establishment of the Northern Rio Grande National Heritage Area 
is a citizen-driven effort to protect the remaining significant 
resources representative of the Spanish and Pueblo colonial era in 
north-central New Mexico. The bill identifies the northern New Mexico 
counties of Rio Arriba, Santa Fe and Taos as a National Heritage Area--
an elite designation from Congress reserved for areas regarded as a 
significant resource.
  Northern New Mexico boasts many sites of historic and cultural 
signficiance. Our state is a blend of pueblo and Hispanic cultures, 
making it a very unique and special place in our country. This 
legislation would identify many of the sites that tell northern New 
Mexico's story, help preserve them and, in the process, allow them to 
be more thoroughly enjoyed by New Mexicans and visitors to our state. 
Preservation would directly lead to economic development of this area 
through enhanced tourism.
  The legislation creates a non-profit corporation governed by a 15 to 
25 member board of trustees charged with developing a management plan 
for the heritage area. The board will consist of representatives from 
the state, affected counties, tribes, cities and others. The 
corporation's plan would consist of recommendations for identifying, 
conserving and preserving cultural, historical and natural resources 
within the heritage area, along with strategies to promote tourism of 
the region's natural and cultural assets.
  The Northern Rio Grande Heritage Area is supported by the city of 
Espanola, the city of Santa Fe, Santa Fe County, Rio Arriba County, 
Taos. County, La Jicarita Enterprise Community, the Chimayo Cultural 
Preservation Association, and the Eight Northern Pueblos. I urge my 
colleagues to join me and these communities and organizations in 
support of this legislation by voting for its passage today.

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