[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 36 (Tuesday, March 4, 2008)]
[House]
[Pages H1192-H1193]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  AUTHORIZING SECRETARY OF INTERIOR TO LEASE LANDS IN VIRGIN ISLANDS 
                             NATIONAL PARK

  Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 1143) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to lease 
certain lands in Virgin Islands National Park, and for other purposes, 
as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 1143

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act, the following definitions apply:
       (1) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of the Interior.
       (2) RUE.--The term ``RUE'' means the retained use estate 
     entered into by the Jackson Hole Preserve and the United 
     States on September 30, 1983.
       (3) Park.--The term ``park'' means Virgin Islands National 
     Park.
       (4) CBI.--The term ``CBI'' means CBI Acquisitions, LLC.
       (5) Resort.--The term ``Resort'' means Caneel Bay Resort on 
     the island of St. John in Virgin Islands National Park.

     SEC. 2. LEASE AGREEMENT.

       (a) Authorization.--The Secretary may enter into a lease 
     agreement with CBI governing the use of property for the 
     continued management and operation of the Resort.
       (b) Additional Lands.--Any lease entered into pursuant to 
     this Act shall include the property covered by the RUE and 
     any associated property owned by CBI donated to the National 
     Park Service.
       (c) Terms.--The lease agreement authorized under subsection 
     (a) shall--
       (1) require that operations and maintenance of the Resort 
     are conducted in a manner consistent with the preservation 
     and conservation of the resources and values of the Park as 
     well as the best interests of the Resort;
       (2) be for the minimum number of years practicable to 
     enable the lessee to secure financing for any necessary 
     improvements to the Resort, taking into account the financial 
     obligations of CBI, but in any event shall not exceed 40 
     years;
       (3) prohibit any transfer, assignment or sale of the lease 
     or otherwise convey or pledge any interest in the lease 
     without prior written notification to and approval by the 
     Secretary;
       (4) prohibit any increase in the number of guest 
     accommodations available at the Resort;
       (5) prohibit any increase in the overall size of the 
     Resort;
       (6) prohibit the sale of partial ownership shares or 
     timeshares in the Resort;
       (7) be designed to facilitate transfer of all property 
     covered by the lease to Federal administration upon 
     expiration of the lease; and
       (8) include any other provisions determined by the 
     Secretary to be necessary to protect the Park and the public 
     interest.
       (d) Appraisals.--The Secretary shall require appraisals to 
     determine the fair market value of all property covered by 
     the RUE and any property, including the value, if any, of the 
     surrendered term of the RUE, owned by CBI to be donated, or 
     otherwise conveyed, to the National Park Service. Such 
     appraisals shall be conducted pursuant to the Uniform 
     Appraisal Standards for Federal Land Acquisition.
       (e) Compensation.--
       (1) In general.--The lease authorized by this Act shall--
       (A) require payment to the United States of the property's 
     fair market value rent, taking into account the value of any 
     associated property transferred by CBI as well as the value, 
     if any, of the surrendered term of the RUE;
       (B) include a provision--
       (i) allowing recalculation of the amount of the payment 
     required under this subsection, at the request of the 
     Secretary or CBI, in the event of extraordinary unanticipated 
     changes in conditions anticipated at the time the lease was 
     finalized; and
       (ii) providing for binding arbitration in the event the 
     Secretary and CBI are unable to agree upon an adjustment to 
     the payment in these circumstances.
       (2) Distribution.--Eighty percent of the payment to the 
     United States required by this subsection shall be available 
     to the Secretary, without further appropriation, for 
     expenditure within the Park. The remaining twenty percent 
     shall be deposited in the Treasury.
       (3) Applicability of certain law.--Section 321 of the Act 
     of June 30, 1932 (40 U.S.C. 1302), relating to the leasing of 
     buildings and property of the United States, shall not apply 
     to the lease entered into by the Secretary pursuant to this 
     Act.

     SEC. 3. RETAINED USE ESTATE.

       As a condition of the lease, CBI shall relinquish to the 
     Secretary all rights under the RUE and transfer, without 
     compensation, ownership of improvements covered by the RUE to 
     the United States.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
West Virginia (Mr. Rahall) and the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Bishop) 
will each control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from West Virginia.


                             General Leave

  Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from West Virginia?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. REYES. Mr. Speaker, I wish to commend our distinguished colleague 
from the Virgin Islands, a valuable member of our Committee on Natural 
Resources and the chairwoman of our Insular Affairs Subcommittee, Donna 
Christensen, for sponsoring the pending legislation, H.R. 1143.
  The bill would authorize the National Park Service to continue its 
successful relationship with Caneel Bay Resort, ensure that park 
resources are protected, and allow the resort to undertake needed 
maintenance and improvement programs that will benefit visitors to 
Virgin Islands National Park and the Caneel Bay Resort well into the 
future.
  Congresswoman Christensen deserves our thanks for her work in 
ensuring that visitor services at Virgin Islands National Park are 
available and that resources are protected.
  I fully support passage of the pending bill and urge its adoption by 
the House today.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BISHOP of Utah. Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak on H.R. 1143 and 
yield myself such time as I may consume.
  This has been adequately explained by Chairman Rahall. We support 
this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no additional speakers, and I yield back the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. REYES. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the 
gentlelady from the Virgin Islands, Dr. Christensen.
  Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. I thank the chairman for yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in, of course, strong support of H.R. 1143, 
legislation I introduced to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to 
enter into a new arrangement, a lease with the owners of Caneel Bay 
Resort in my congressional district.
  I want to also thank Chairman Rahall as well as Chairman Grijalva for 
not only supporting the passage of this bill, but for traveling to my 
district to see for themselves the importance of Caneel Bay to the 
island and to the people of St. John.
  Mr. Speaker, Caneel Bay traces its roots to Laurence Rockefeller's 
coming to the island of St. John in 1952. He purchased the then-
existing resort facilities and also acquired more than 5,000 
surrounding acres to protect the area. In 1956, he donated the 
additional land to create the Virgin Islands National Park. At the same 
time, he created Caneel Bay Resort, comprising 170 acres, which 
continues to complement and to be environmentally consistent with the 
natural beauty of the park's setting.
  Mr. Rockefeller subsequently decided to transfer the land underlying 
Caneel Bay to the National Park Service, while retaining the 
improvements and continuing the Caneel Bay operations. He accomplished 
this through the execution of a series of unique agreements generally 
known as a retained use estate, or RUE.
  H.R. 1143 became necessary because the RUE is slated to expire in 
2023, and its current owners require more than the remaining 15 years 
to provide the capital and long-term financing necessary to reverse the 
decline of the facilities over the years and to return it to the 
grandeur and stature that it deserves.

[[Page H1193]]

  Mr. Speaker, other than the Virgin Islands National Park, Caneel Bay 
Resort is perhaps the single most important entity to the tourism-based 
economy of St. John, and it's also important to the economy of the 
Virgin Islands in general. It is not an exaggeration to say that Caneel 
Bay helped to establish the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Island of St. 
John in particular, as a major tourist destination point, playing a 
prominent role in the island's economic renaissance of the mid-1900s.

                              {time}  1415

  Since its founding in October of 1956, it has been and remains a 
paradise of choice for generations of families, many of whom return 
every year.
  It's also the largest employer on St. John, employing approximately 
475 workers, many of whom spend their entire career spanning two or 
three decades, and some even more than that as employees of Caneel.
  In conclusion, Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the Natural Resources 
staff director, Jim Zoia, and the staff of the National Parks, Forest 
and Public Lands Subcommittee, in particular former staff director Rick 
Healy and current staff director Dave Watkins, for their hard work in 
making it possible for H.R. 1143 to be on the floor today. I also want 
to thank the full committee ranking member, Don Young, and subcommittee 
ranking member, Rob Bishop, and their staffs for their support as well.
  I urge my colleagues to support the passage of this bill, which is 
very important to the economy of the Virgin Islands.
  Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from West Virginia (Mr. Rahall) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1143, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. BISHOP of Utah. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

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