[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 86 (Monday, June 17, 2013)]
[House]
[Pages H3663-H3664]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             ROTA CULTURAL AND NATURAL RESOURCES STUDY ACT

  Mr. BISHOP of Utah. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass 
the bill (H.R. 674) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to study 
the suitability and feasibility of designating prehistoric, historic, 
and limestone forest sites on Rota, Commonwealth of the Northern 
Mariana Islands, as a unit of the National Park System.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                H.R. 674

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS.

       (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Rota 
     Cultural and Natural Resources Study Act''.
       (b) Findings.--Congress finds as follows:
       (1) The island of Rota was the only major island in the 
     Mariana Islands to be spared the destruction and large scale 
     land use changes brought about by World War II.
       (2) The island of Rota has been described by professional 
     archeologists as having the most numerous, most intact, and 
     generally the most unique prehistoric sites of any of the 
     islands of the Mariana Archipelago.
       (3) The island of Rota contains remaining examples of what 
     is known as the Latte Phase of the cultural tradition of the 
     indigenous Chamorro people of the Mariana Islands. Latte 
     stone houses are remnants of the ancient Chamorro culture.
       (4) Four prehistoric sites are listed on the National 
     Register of Historic Places: Monchon Archeological District 
     (also known locally as Monchon Latte Stone Village), Taga 
     Latte Stone Quarry, the Dugi Archeological Site that contains 
     latte stone structures, and the Chugai Pictograph Cave that 
     contains examples of ancient Chamorro rock art. Alaguan Bay 
     Ancient Village is another latte stone prehistoric site that 
     is surrounded by tall-canopy limestone forest.
       (5) In addition to prehistoric sites, the island of Rota 
     boasts historic sites remaining from the Japanese period 
     (1914-1945). Several of these sites are on the National 
     Register of Historic Places: Nanyo Kohatsu Kabushiki Kaisha 
     Sugar Mill, Japanese Coastal Defense Gun, and the Japanese 
     Hospital.
       (6) The island of Rota's natural resources are significant 
     because of the extent and intact condition of its native 
     limestone forest that provides habitat for several federally 
     endangered listed species, the Mariana crow, and the Rota 
     bridled white-eye birds, that are also native to the island 
     of Rota. Three endangered plant species are also found on 
     Rota and two are endemic to the island.
       (7) Because of the significant cultural and natural 
     resources listed above, on September 2005, the National Park 
     Service, Pacific West Region, completed a preliminary 
     resource assessment on the island of Rota, Commonwealth of 
     the Northern Mariana Islands, which determined that the 
     ``establishment of a unit of the national park system 
     appear[ed] to be the best way to ensure the long term 
     protection of Rota's most important cultural resources and 
     its best examples of its native limestone forest.''.

     SEC. 2. NPS STUDY OF SITES ON THE ISLAND OF ROTA, 
                   COMMONWEALTH OF THE NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS.

       (a) Study.--The Secretary of the Interior shall--
       (1) carry out a study regarding the suitability and 
     feasibility of designating prehistoric, historic, and 
     limestone forest sites on the island of Rota, Commonwealth of 
     the Northern Mariana Islands, as a unit of the National Park 
     System; and
       (2) consider management alternatives for the island of 
     Rota, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
       (b) Study Process and Completion.--Except as provided by 
     subsection (c) of this section, section 8(c) of Public Law 
     91-383 (16 U.S.C. 1a-5(c)) shall apply to the conduct and 
     completion of the study required by this section.
       (c) Submission of Study Results.--Not later than 3 years 
     after the date that funds are made available for this 
     section, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 
     Natural Resources of the House of Representatives and the 
     Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate a 
     report describing the results of the study.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Utah (Mr. Bishop) and the gentleman from the Northern Mariana Islands 
(Mr. Sablan) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Utah.


                             General Leave

  Mr. BISHOP of Utah. I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 
5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks, and include 
extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Utah?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. BISHOP of Utah. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, this bill authorizes a study for the suitability and 
feasibility of designating this particular area as part of a unit of 
the National Park System. I think it is a wise concept in which to go 
to find out the cultural and natural resources that are on this 
particular area and look forward to its further designation.
  With that, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. SABLAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 674, the Rota Cultural and 
Natural Resources Study Act. The bill authorizes the Secretary of the 
Interior to determine whether it would be suitable and feasible to add 
certain cultural, archeological, historical, and natural resources on 
the island of Rota in the Northern Marianas to the National Park 
System.
  The House has already voted to authorize the suitability and 
feasibility study for Rota on two separate occasions, but the other 
body did not follow through, so here we are again. The third time may 
be the charm.
  Mindful of the previous House votes, I will not preach to the choir, 
but I do think that it is worth reminding my colleagues that a Park 
Service reconnaissance survey reported in 2005 that Rota contains 
natural, archaeological, and historical features of national 
significance. These include precontact village sites of the Chamorro 
people, who discovered and populated the Mariana Islands 3,500 years 
ago.
  I also want to remind my colleagues, because we're all mindful of 
cost, that the Congressional Budget Office finds the bill will not 
affect direct spending or revenues.
  Finally, I want to thank Chairman Hastings and Ranking Member Markey 
of the Natural Resources Committee for their support of H.R. 674. I 
also want to thank Chairman Bishop and Ranking Member Grijalva of the 
Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation for their 
help in bringing this measure to the floor today. I urge my colleagues 
to support passage of H.R. 674.
  At this time, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman 
from American Samoa (Mr. Faleomavaega).
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, this is getting to be an island 
occasion or something. But at any rate, I do thank the gentleman from 
Utah and the gentleman from the Northern Marianas for allowing me to 
comment on this proposed legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 674, the Rota Cultural 
and Natural Resources Act.
  First, I want to thank the gentleman from the Commonwealth of the 
Northern Mariana Islands, my dear friend Mr. Sablan, for his authorship 
of this important piece of legislation that will authorize the 
Secretary of the Interior to study the suitability and feasibility of 
designating prehistoric, historic, and limestone forest sites on Rota, 
the southernmost island of CNMI, as a unit of the National Park System.
  This legislation is critical to CNMI and will enable the preservation 
of village sites of the ancient Chamorro people and Rota's native 
limestone forests that provide a habitat for locally and federally 
endangered listed bird species, including the Mariana crow and the Rota 
bridled white-eye birds.
  Mr. Speaker, this legislation previously passed the House in the last 
Congress, but, unfortunately, the Senate did not have time in its 
agenda to address the legislation prior to the end

[[Page H3664]]

of the Congress. Leaders of Rota unanimously support this legislation. 
Additionally, the National Park Service, after completing a preliminary 
resources assessment of Rota in 2005, concluded that designating Rota 
as part of the National Park System appeared to be the best way to 
ensure the long-term protection of Rota's prehistoric and historic 
natural and man-made habitat structures.
  Mr. Speaker, again, I commend Mr. Sablan for his leadership. I urge 
my colleagues to support this bill.
  I want to also share with my colleagues a little bit of history.

                              {time}  1730

  Twenty miles away from the island of Rota is the island called Tinian 
in the Northern Mariana Islands. This is where the Enola Gay was 
launched and delivered the two atomic bombs that were dropped in the 
war in Japan, which brought about the closing of World War II, 
especially against Japan.
  So in terms of historical perspectives, Rota, Tinian, the Northern 
Mariana Islands, I think you've made a tremendous contribution for the 
betterment of our country.
  And, again, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
  Mr. BISHOP of Utah. I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. SABLAN. Mr. Speaker, before I yield back my time, I'd also like 
to thank the gentleman from American Samoa for his support of the bill. 
And because he mentioned Tinian, the Enola Gay and the Boxcar did fly 
from Tinian to bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki and ended the war against 
Japan.
  Those airplanes, I'd like to also note for the record, originated and 
took off from Utah before they came to the Mariana Islands. So there's 
that connection here.
  So Mr. Bishop is actually the one who reminded me that while they 
took off from Tinian, it was in Utah that they started the flight to 
Tinian and eventually flew to Japan.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. BISHOP of Utah. Mr. Speaker, he did steal my thunder. They did 
train and start in Wendover, Utah, which was part of my district until 
the legislature became involved in district lines in this last session.
  I urge my colleagues to support this particular piece of legislation 
and remind them that any costs that would be associated with this study 
has to be appropriated. We have another chance to look at that. I 
firmly support it.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Utah (Mr. Bishop) that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the bill, H.R. 674.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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