[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 52 (Thursday, March 26, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3904-S3905]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. LEVIN (for himself, Ms. Snowe, Ms. Stabenow, Ms. Collins, 
        and Mr. Schumer):
  S. 715. A bill to establish a pilot program to provide for the 
preservation and rehabilitation of historic lighthouses; to the 
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, today, with Senators Snowe, Stabenow, 
Collins and Schumer, I introduce The National Lighthouse Stewardship 
Act. This legislation creates a three-year competitive grant program at 
the Department of the Interior that will help to pay for the 
preservation and rehabilitation of historic lighthouses in Michigan and 
across the country. The grants will help nonprofit organizations, which 
serve as caretakers for these historic landmarks, to help them preserve 
and rehabilitate the historic lighthouses and keep them accessible to 
the public.
  This legislation complements a bill that was enacted in October 2000, 
the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act, which I joined Sen. 
Frank Murkowski in offering. With the Coast Guard getting out of the 
lighthouse business, the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act 
helped facilitate the process of transferring historic lighthouses from 
the government to non-profit historical organizations who would take 
over the responsibility for their care. It established an expedited 
process through the Government Services Agency to help ease lighthouse 
transfers by helping to cut through the bureaucratic red tape. As a 
result of the law, 46 lighthouses to date--9 in Michigan--have been 
transferred to custodians who will preserve them and keep them 
accessible to the public.
  Many of these lighthouse structures are in need of significant repair 
and rehabilitation, which is now the responsibility of their nonprofit 
custodians. Unfortunately, after obtaining custody of the lighthouses, 
many of the nonprofit organizations have struggled to raise the funds 
to adequately restore and maintain the lighthouses. To address this 
problem our legislation establishes a pilot program that would enable 
state and nonprofit groups to apply for competitive grants to help with 
restoration and maintenance efforts. This pilot program would authorize 
the secretary to distribute $20 million a year for 3 years.
  Funding for Lighthouse restoration is important to Michigan and to 
the Nation's historic preservation efforts. There are approximately 740 
lighthouses in 31 coastal states. Michigan alone has over 120 
lighthouses, more than any other State. They draw thousands of visitors 
to Michigan and other States each year and create jobs throughout our 
States. Michigan's and the Nation's lighthouses are national treasures 
that beautify our shorelines. These historic lighthouses are part of 
our Nation's rich maritime heritage. The grants are needed to help 
nonprofit organizations, which serve as caretakers for the historic 
landmarks, to maintain the beauty of the lighthouses and keep them 
accessible to the public.
  My office worked closely with lighthouse preservation groups in 
drafting this legislation. The Michigan Lighthouse Fund in my home 
state was invaluable in providing information on the needs of our 
Nation's lighthouses. This week in Washington, the American Lighthouse 
Coordinating Committee is meeting to coincide with the introduction of 
this act. These funds are desperately needed by these groups who work 
tirelessly to preserve our Nation's maritime heritage.
  This funding would help ensure our lighthouses remain cultural 
beacons for generations to come. America's lighthouses are national 
treasures that we cannot let deteriorate to the point beyond repair. I 
hope my colleagues will support the swift enactment of the National 
Lighthouse Stewardship Act.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that letters of support be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be placed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                               American Lighthouse


                                       Coordinating Committee,

                                     Evanston, IL, March 26, 2009.
       Members of the United States Senate: I'm writing to urge 
     your support of the National Lighthouse Stewardship Act of 
     2009 as introduced by Senators Levin and Stabenow (MI), and 
     Snowe (ME).
       Since passage of the National Lighthouse Preservation Act 
     of 2000, responsibility for management of many historic 
     lighthouses has been transferred from the US Coast Guard to 
     the public sector. While these facilities remain the property 
     of the federal government, the cost for their preservation 
     and programming is borne by local government and nonprofit 
     organizations with very limited economic resources. As a 
     result, these agencies require assistance in meeting the 
     demands of maintaining historic lighthouses so that they are 
     safe and accessible. The proposed National Lighthouse 
     Stewardship Act of 2009 recognizes the important role of this 
     new generation of administrative organizations in properly 
     managing these facilities. And, it provides a means by which 
     some dedicated funding is made available from the US 
     Government to support projects that will maintain structural 
     integrity.
       Since this transfer program began, historic lighthouses 
     still brighten our lives and are now adaptively used for many 
     different purposes that include museums and centers of 
     education for the interpretation of U.S. maritime history; as 
     facilities to aid in environmental research of oceans and 
     Great Lakes; and to promote local and regional tourism. This 
     has resulted in an overwhelmingly positive public response 
     and is testimony to Americans' desire to preserve and use 
     these built resources.
       Passage of the National Lighthouse Stewardship Act of 2009 
     is essential to the continued success of this federal 
     transfer program and mirrors public sentiment for the 
     preservation of historic lighthouse properties to benefit 
     public interests.
       The American Lighthouse Coordinating Committee (ALCC) is a 
     consortium of organizations and individuals across the United 
     States that actively engage in the operation of historic 
     lighthouse properties and which strongly supports adoption of 
     this legislation.
       Respectfully submitted, this 26th day of March 2009.
                                                 Donald J. Terras,
     President.
                                  ____



                                 Michigan Lighthouse Alliance,

                                                   March 20, 2009.
     Senator Carl Levin,
     Russell Office Building,
     U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Levin: We are writing to you in support of 
     your bill to redirect the nominal port fees towards 
     lighthouse restoration grant programs. The amount of money 
     your office has identified that could be coming to those of 
     us on the front lines of the restoration effort would make a 
     huge difference in the quality of our work.
       Most lighthouses are located in out of the way places. As 
     such, the number of people living around these remote 
     structures is limited, and thus the local funding available 
     for work is limited. It is difficult to keep the numbers of 
     volunteers and find resources for materials in such a 
     challenging situation.
       But to see a large increase in the available grant funds 
     not only in our home state of Michigan, but throughout the 
     US, would surely help us get these wonderful icons of our 
     collective maritime history restored and ready for the next 
     generations to learn from and support as well. Being able to 
     attract the next generations of stewards is a constant 
     subject of conversation in our circles, and having sufficient 
     funding available to make this volunteer effort attractive 
     would really help out.
       In addition, MLA would like to make a request. As you know 
     things are very tight in our state budget now, and it would 
     be extremely helpful for us if a small part of our state 
     allocation could go towards a full time MLA staff person who 
     could support the grant program by visiting our members and

[[Page S3905]]

     reaching out with education on how to fill out the grant 
     requests, and other technical support. Right now our Alliance 
     is all volunteer as well, and we love what we do, but often 
     lament the loss of the staff person we had at MI SHPO. As the 
     representative voice now for all of Michigan's lighthouse 
     groups, we can be much more supportive and effective if we 
     had funding for a full time staffer.
       Thank you as always for all you have done to advance the 
     lighthouse movement in Michigan and throughout the country. 
     You can count on the MLA and it's dozens of member groups and 
     their volunteers to be behind you on this bill, just ask for 
     what help you need!
           Sincerely,
         Buzz Hoerr, President, Harbor Beach Lighthouse 
           Preservation; Lou Schillinger, Vice President, Port 
           Austin Reef Light Association; Sally Frye, Sec'y/
           Treasurer, Fox Point Lighthouse Association; Ann Method 
           Green, DeTour Reef Light Preservation Society; John 
           Gronberg, Holland Harbor Lighthouse Historical 
           Commission; Dick Moehl, Great Lakes Lightkeepers 
           Association; Jeff Shook, Michigan Lighthouse 
           Conservancy; Susan Skibbe, Thunder Bay Island; Gail 
           Vander Stoep, Michigan State University.

  Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, I rise in support of the National 
Lighthouse Stewardship Act, which will create a 3-year competitive 
grant program to be administered by the Department of the Interior that 
will help preserve and rehabilitate historic lighthouses across the 
country.
  In my State of Maine, we are lucky to be home to 83 lighthouses. 
Further, there are approximately 740 lighthouses in 31 other States. 
The Coast Guard has not traditionally had the resources to maintain the 
lighthouses which are now being transferred under the National 
Lighthouse Preservation Act from Federal ownership to non-profit 
historical societies who have taken on the responsibility. Helping to 
provide the resources necessary to ensure these lighthouses are not 
lost would be a boost to both tourism and jobs. Failure to do so would 
potentially harm not only the existence of an historic emblem of my 
State and our Nation--but also a key economic catalyst for tourism that 
is part and parcel of my home State and the livelihood of many of her 
citizens.
  Each lighthouse tells a different story and each one is as integral 
to the history and narrative of our State as the magnificent landscapes 
on which they proudly stand. That is why in 1995, I introduced a bill 
that would later become law to establish the Maine Lights Program. We 
succeeded in preserving this significant component of American heritage 
through collaboration among the Federal Government, the State of Maine, 
local communities, and private organizations, while at the same time, 
relieving what had become a costly strain on the U.S. Coast Guard.
  Across the country, responsibility for the care of our lighthouses 
has been assumed by non-profit historic societies--many of which are 
struggling in these uncertain economic times. This bill would authorize 
$20 million for a three-year competitive grant pilot program that would 
provide grants to stewards of historic lighthouses to help them 
preserve and rehabilitate the lighthouses under their care.
  I believe that the essential word in my previous sentence is 
``stewards''--because the structures are still federally owned 
property. It is not private property; it is not city or town property, 
or even state property; but federal property. It is also imperative to 
note that these lighthouses are operable aids to navigation. 
Lighthouses may seem a quaint relic of a bygone era, however they are 
not. Daily, lighthouses lead our nation's mariners and fishermen away 
from danger.
  Given that the maintenance of lighthouses is now being transferred 
under the National Lighthouse Preservation Act from Federal ownership 
to non-profit historical societies, the task of providing the required 
resources to ensure the longevity and viability of these lighthouses 
would also represent a welcomed economic boost both to tourism and to 
job creation.
  The fact is, tourism has become increasingly crucial to Maine's 
economy, as manufacturing jobs have fled our State, not to mention our 
Nation. In fact, in 2006, the most recent year for which statistics are 
available, approximately 1/5 of State sales tax revenues were 
attributable to tourism, and, when income and fuel taxes are added, the 
Maine State government collected $429 million tourism-related tax 
dollars in that year.
  The Maine State Planning Office, which has quantified more precisely 
the pivotal role tourism plays in the Maine economy, found that in 
2006, tourism generated $10 billion in sales of goods and services, 
140,000 jobs, and $3 billion in earnings. Tourism accounts for one in 
five dollars of sales throughout Maine's economy and supported the 
equivalent of one in six Maine jobs. The planning office also 
discovered that an estimated 10 million overnight trips and 30 million 
day trips were taken that year in Maine, with travelers spending nearly 
$1 billion on lodging, $3 billion on food, and $1 billion on 
recreational activities.
  But those statistics are from 3 years ago . . . before the economy 
began to unravel at an accelerating rate, and so given these economic 
times confronting all of us, the financial necessity of our 
lighthouses, especially to tourism, has grown, not dissipated.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill and send a message not only 
that historic preservation of our Nation's prominent buildings and 
structures--like our lighthouses--continues to be in the national 
interest, but also that tourism--especially international tourism--is 
an industry we should be striving to support as a key component of 
reviving our ailing economy.
                                 ______