[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 23 (Wednesday, February 6, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H1372-H1374]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
REVIVING AMERICA'S SCENIC BYWAYS ACT OF 2019
Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
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bill (H.R. 831) to direct the Secretary of Transportation to request
nominations for and make determinations regarding roads to be
designated under the national scenic byways program, and for other
purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows
H.R. 831
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Reviving America's Scenic
Byways Act of 2019''.
SEC. 2. NATIONAL SCENIC BYWAYS PROGRAM.
(a) Request for Nominations.--Not later than 90 days after
the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of
Transportation shall issue a request for nominations with
respect to roads to be designated under the national scenic
byways program, as described in section 162(a) of title 23,
United States Code. The Secretary shall make the request for
nominations available on the appropriate website of the
Department of Transportation.
(b) Designation Determinations.--Not later than 1 year
after the date on which the request for nominations required
under subsection (a) is issued, the Secretary shall make
publicly available on the appropriate website of the
Department of Transportation a list specifying the roads,
nominated pursuant to such request, to be designated under
the national scenic byways program.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from
the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton) and the gentleman from Louisiana
(Mr. Graves) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia.
General Leave
Ms. NORTON. Madam 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 H.R. 831.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from the District of Columbia?
There was no objection.
Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
The National Scenic Byways Program was created in 1991 in the
Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act--ISTEA, as it was
called--and, since that time, has helped designate and provide funding
for 150 scenic roads across the country.
In the consolidation of Federal highways programs in MAP-21, which
was enacted in 2012, funding for a separate National Scenic Byways
Program was eliminated; however, the authority of the Department of
Transportation to continue to designate roads was retained.
Unfortunately, the Department of Transportation has not designated any
new scenic byways since the dedicated program was eliminated in 2012.
Madam Speaker, this legislation will ensure that there is a process
once again for States, Tribes, and Federal land management agencies to
request designations for roads that meet the scenic byways criteria.
I thank the sponsor of this legislation, Mr. Cicilline, who has
supported efforts to preserve the scenic beauty of our country's
natural and man-made environments as co-chair of the Congressional
America the Beautiful Caucus for introducing this legislation, and I
strongly support H.R. 831 and urge my colleagues to join in passing
this legislation.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GRAVES of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 831, and I thank my friend,
the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Cicilline) for carrying the ball
on this one.
Madam Speaker, our scenic byways, the national program, has a few
mottos. One of them is: No two experiences are the same. Another one
is: Exploring the heart and soul of America.
Madam Speaker, some of the top or most visited tourist destinations
in the United States are areas like Central Park and other areas of
Manhattan. You have Las Vegas, our own Union Station, Disneyland,
Disney World, and the Golden Gate Bridge.
{time} 1245
But some of the real experiences in America are in some of these more
scenic areas, and we have such extraordinary treasures in our country.
There is much more to America.
By reopening the scenic byways designations, we are giving access to,
we are bringing attention to some of these great places, some of these
great experiences in helping to highlight those and bring tourists to
those areas.
In my home State of Louisiana, we have two right now. Number one, we
have the Louisiana Great River Road, a scenic byway which goes along
the length of the Mississippi River, through my hometown of Baton
Rouge; and, also, the Wetlands Cultural Byway that goes through our
wetland areas in south Louisiana's Sportsman's Paradise.
Madam Speaker, it really is just incredible. Years ago, the
Department of Tourism in Louisiana came up with a motto saying, ``the
Atchafalaya Basin, America's Foreign Country,'' and I really think that
applies to much of south Louisiana, which is home and where I
represent. It is such a unique place in terms of the food, the culture,
the people. We need to bring more attention to some of these treasures
that America has.
I thank, again, my friend from Rhode Island, for carrying the ball on
this.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I yield as much time as he may consume to
the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Cicilline), my good friend and the
sponsor of this legislation.
Mr. CICILLINE. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding,
and I am particularly delighted to be here in support of this
legislation with the Speaker pro tempore on the rostrum, who
understands the value of scenic byways in our beautiful country.
I rise today in strong support of this bipartisan legislation,
Reviving America's Scenic Byways Act.
The National Scenic Byways Program was established by Congress in
1991 in order to recognize, preserve, and enhance designated roadways
throughout the United States. Since that time, 150 roads across the
country have received the scenic byway designation. However, no new
designations have been made since 2009.
Under this program, the Secretary of Transportation designates
certain roads as all-American roads or national scenic byways based on
one or more archaeological, cultural, historic, natural, recreational,
or scenic qualities that capture the unique characteristics of a
region.
The National Scenic Byways Program is a national asset that showcases
our Nation's natural grandeur, our history, and our culture, as well as
being a very significant economic driver of tourism. It has been
identified by Brand USA, the organization created by Congress to
promote travel to the United States, as a core element in promoting
international visitation to the United States and creating tourism-
related jobs.
According to the National Scenic Byway Foundation, State departments
of transportation report approximately 60 State scenic byways, and
nearly 30 States are interested and prepared to seek designation as a
national scenic byway or an all-American road.
For example, in my own State, roadways such as Paradise Avenue on
Aquidneck Island in Newport and Route 102 are really excellent
candidates for designation and all the benefits that will follow.
This bill will allow those States to once again apply for scenic
byway designations and directs the Department of Transportation to
announce new designations within 1 year of requesting nominations.
I thank the chairman of the committee and the ranking member for
their work. I urge passage of this legislation, and conclude by, again,
thanking the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Graves), who is the lead
Republican on this legislation, for his partnership, his passion about
this issue, his presence here today, and his words in support of the
legislation.
Mr. GRAVES of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Rodney Davis).
Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague,
Mr. Graves, for the surprising yielding.
This is a program, and this bill needs to be passed.
My district in central and southwestern Illinois contains numerous
scenic byways, and I am excited that this bill is such a bipartisan
bill, too.
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This bipartisan bill needs to pass because the Department of
Transportation has got to undertake a process to designate the scenic
byways in my district, in Rhode Island, in Louisiana, and throughout
this Nation, designate them under this program. This good fix is a
message of bipartisanship that the President delivered last night on
this floor, and I certainly hope this bill passes.
Mr. GRAVES of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of
my time.
Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, you see the bipartisan nature of this
bill, and it doesn't require us to appropriate any funds, but we can
imagine what States would do with this designation on their own.
Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton) that the House
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 831.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Ms. NORTON. Madam 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, further
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
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