[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 186 (Wednesday, November 20, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H9088-H9089]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SANTA MONICA MOUNTAINS NATIONAL RECREATION AREA BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENT 
                               STUDY ACT

  Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 1487) to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a 
special resource study of portions of the Los Angeles coastal area in 
the State of California to evaluate alternatives for protecting the 
resources of the coastal area, and for other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 1487

       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 ``Santa Monica Mountains 
     National Recreation Area Boundary Adjustment Study Act''.

     SEC. 2. RESOURCE STUDY OF THE LOS ANGELES COASTAL AREA, 
                   CALIFORNIA.

       (a) Definitions.--In this section:
       (1) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of the Interior.
       (2) Study area.--The term ``study area'' means the 
     coastline and adjacent areas to the Santa Monica Bay from 
     Will Rogers State Beach to Torrance Beach, including the 
     areas in and around Ballona Creek and the Baldwin Hills and 
     the San Pedro section of the City of Los Angeles, excluding 
     the Port of Los Angeles north of Crescent Avenue.
       (b) Special Resource Study.--
       (1) Study.--The Secretary shall conduct a special resource 
     study of the study area.
       (2) Contents.--In conducting the study under paragraph (1), 
     the Secretary shall--
       (A) evaluate the national significance of the study area;
       (B) determine the suitability and feasibility of 
     designating the study area as a unit of the National Park 
     System;
       (C) consider other alternatives for preservation, 
     protection, and interpretation of the study area by the 
     Federal Government, State or local government entities, or 
     private and nonprofit organizations;
       (D) consult with interested Federal agencies, State or 
     local governmental entities, private and nonprofit 
     organizations, or any other interested individuals; and
       (E) identify cost estimates for any Federal acquisition, 
     development, interpretation, operation, and maintenance 
     associated with the alternatives.
       (3) Applicable law.--The study required under paragraph (1) 
     shall be conducted in accordance with section 100507 of title 
     54, United States Code.
       (4) Report.--Not later than 3 years after the date on which 
     funds are first made available for the study under paragraph 
     (1), 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 that 
     describes--
       (A) the results of the study; and
       (B) any conclusions and recommendations of the Secretary.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Huffman) and the gentleman from California (Mr. 
McClintock) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California (Mr. Huffman).


                             General Leave

  Mr. HUFFMAN. 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 materials on the measure under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 1487, introduced by my colleague Ted Lieu from 
California, would direct the National Park Service to conduct a special 
resource study to determine the suitability and feasibility of 
designating a new national recreation area along the Santa Monica Bay 
coastline or incorporating the area into the existing Santa Monica 
Mountains National Recreation Area.
  Expanding the National Park Service to include this area would 
significantly enhance recreational and public lands access in one of 
our Nation's most congested, polluted, and park-poor regions, Los 
Angeles County.

[[Page H9089]]

  Although our public lands belong to all Americans, many simply don't 
have the opportunity or the resources to visit these incredible places. 
H.R. 1487 would help us take an important step toward ensuring that 
public lands access exists for all Americans, and I thank my colleague 
Congressman Lieu for championing this proposal.
  Mr. Speaker, I strongly urge my colleagues to support this bill, and 
I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 1487 authorizes a special resource study of 
portions of the Los Angeles coastal area in California to evaluate 
alternatives for land management, including designating the coastal 
area as a unit of the National Park System.
  While I do not oppose authorizing a special resource study of this 
area, I hope that Congress will exercise caution before adding 
significant amounts of coastline to the existing Santa Monica Mountains 
National Recreation Area, which is already struggling to manage its 
current resources and is increasingly beginning to resemble Lincoln's 
story of a farmer who said, ``I ain't greedy for land. I just want what 
joins mine.''
  In 2018, because of bad land management, the vast majority of this 
same area burned in the massive Woolsey fire. More than 21,000 of the 
23,595 National Park Service acres, about 88 percent of the land, were 
burned. This included most of the Western Town at Paramount Ranch, the 
1926 Peter Strauss Ranch home, most of the joint National Park Service/
UCLA La Kretz Research Center, two ranger residences, and an attached 
archives building.
  Further, the National Park Service is already stretched perilously 
thin and facing a nearly $12 billion deferred maintenance backlog that 
we discussed in an earlier bill.
  Although I recognize that this measure simply authorizes a study and 
doesn't transfer any land or jurisdiction, it is imperative that we 
take into account the realities that our parks are facing and the 
devastating consequences of a land management policy that can only be 
described as benign neglect. As we are discovering, the consequences 
are anything but benign.
  Mr. Speaker, with that caveat, I urge adoption of the measure, and I 
reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Ted Lieu).
  Mr. TED LIEU of California. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congressman Huffman 
for his leadership and for supporting this legislation, and I thank 
Congressman McClintock for supporting this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1487, the Santa Monica 
Mountains National Recreation Area Boundary Adjustment Study Act.
  In the 1970s, Congress established the Santa Monica Mountains 
National Recreation Area to preserve natural and historic sites and to 
provide recreational, educational, scientific, and public health 
benefits to our greater Los Angeles community.
  Today, it spans more than 150,000 acres in Los Angeles and Ventura 
Counties, including parts of the Santa Monica Bay Watershed in my 
congressional district. Much of the Santa Monica Bay Watershed, 
however, remains outside of the national recreation area. This includes 
several miles of beaches and acres of wetlands that stand to benefit 
greatly from Federal resources.
  My bill would commission the National Park Service to conduct a 3-
year special resource study to determine whether to expand the boundary 
of the existing Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area or 
create a new national recreation area altogether.
  The study would cover the entire Santa Monica Bay coastline, from 
Venice Beach to Torrance Beach, as well as the Ballona Wetlands, 
Ballona Creek, Baldwin Hills, and the San Pedro coastline.
  While conducting the study, the National Park Service will consult 
with State and local government groups, community groups, nonprofits, 
and residents.
  The study would become a basis for future congressional action to 
modify the national recreation area borders. Expanding the national 
recreation area would allow the watershed to benefit from available 
Federal, scientific, and infrastructure resources, enabling better 
conservation and recreational use. It would also help Federal agencies 
enter into cooperative agreements to manage the land and carry out 
improvement projects aimed at connecting trails, building wildlife 
corridors, and more.
  Importantly, all of this would be accomplished without affecting 
private property rights or creating unfunded mandates on State or local 
governments.
  The Los Angeles coastal region stands to benefit tremendously from 
increased Federal resources to preserve open space for conservation and 
recreation, and I am proud to have the support of many of my colleagues 
in the Los Angeles delegation. I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of 
H.R. 1487.
  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I would urge adoption of the measure 
with the caveats I have already discussed, and I yield back the balance 
of my time.
  Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, I urge an ``aye'' vote with no caveats, and 
I thank the gentleman, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Huffman) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1487, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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