[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 13]
[House]
[Pages 19507-19508]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



             EFFIGY MOUNDS NATIONAL MONUMENT ADDITIONS ACT

  Mr. HANSEN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 3745) to authorize the addition of certain parcels to the 
Effigy Mounds National Monument, Iowa, as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 3745

       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 ``Effigy Mounds National 
     Monument Additions Act''.

     SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) Map.--The term ``map'' means the map entitled 
     ``Proposed Boundary Adjustments/Effigy Mounds National 
     Monument'', numbered 394/800 35, and dated May 1999.
       (2) Monument.--The term ``Monument'' means the Effigy 
     Mounds National Monument, Iowa.
       (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of the Interior.

     SEC. 3. ADDITIONS TO EFFIGY MOUNDS NATIONAL MONUMENT.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary may acquire by purchase, 
     from willing sellers only, each of the parcels described in 
     subsection (b).
       (b) Parcels.--The parcels referred to in subsection (a) are 
     the following:
       (1) Ferguson/kistler tract.--The parcel consisting of 
     approximately 1054 acres of undeveloped, privately-owned land 
     located in portions of secs. 28, 29, 31, 32, and 33, T. 95 
     N., R. 3 W., Fairview Township, Allamakee County, Iowa, as 
     depicted on the map.
       (2) Riverfront tract.--The parcel consisting of 
     approximately 50 acres of bottom land located between the 
     Mississippi River and the north unit of the Monument in secs. 
     27 and 34, Fairview Township, Allamakee County, Iowa, as 
     depicted on the map.
       (c) Boundary Adjustment.--On acquisition of a parcel 
     described in subsection (b), the Secretary shall modify the 
     boundary of the Monument to include the parcel. Any parcel 
     included within the boundary of the Monument pursuant to this 
     subsection shall be administered by the Secretary as part of 
     the Monument.
       (d) Availability of Map.--The map shall be on file and 
     available for public inspection in appropriate offices of the 
     National Park Service.
       (e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
     to be appropriated to carry out this Act $750,000.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from

[[Page 19508]]

Utah (Mr. Hansen) and the gentleman from Puerto Rico (Mr. Romero-
Barcelo) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Hansen).
  Mr. HANSEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3745, introduced by the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. 
Nussle), authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to purchase two 
tracts of land from willing sellers for addition into the Effigy Mounds 
National Monument. The gentleman from Iowa (Mr. Nussle) deserves credit 
for crafting this legislation which protected the rights of property 
owners while also helping to expand the Effigy Mounds for the public 
enjoyment.
  Mr. Speaker, Effigy Mounds is located in northeastern Iowa along the 
Mississippi River and borders Wisconsin. Currently, the 1,481-acre 
Monument protects approximately 200 mound sites built by Eastern 
Woodland Indians from about 500 BC to 1300 AD. Although prehistoric 
mounds are common from the Midwest to the Atlantic Seaboard, they 
seldom are found in an effigy outline of mammals, birds, or reptiles. 
The 200 mounds, including the 29 effigy mounds, are thought to have 
served a variety of purposes such as territory markers, burials, or 
other cultural activities.
  H.R. 3745 authorizes the acquisition of two parcels of land from 
willing sellers in order to expand the boundaries of the existing 
monument. The Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation has negotiated the 
purchase of the Ferguson-Kistler Tract which represents the largest of 
the parcels. This tract also contains two effigy mounds and numerous 
other historic and prehistoric sites. The State of Iowa owns the second 
parcel.
  Mr. Speaker, an amendment was passed during committee proceedings on 
this bill which excluded those landowners not wanting to be within the 
boundaries. The gentleman from Iowa (Mr. Nussle) worked hard to make 
sure these property owners are protected. Now this bill is ready to 
move forward.
  I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 3745, as amended.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. ROMERO-BARCELO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, the National Park Service has identified several parcels 
of land near the existing boundaries of the Effigy Mounds National 
Monument in Northeastern Iowa that would be valuable additions to the 
Monument.
  H.R. 3745, as introduced by the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. Nussle) 
would have authorized the Secretary to purchase all of these parcels 
from willing sellers only and to adjust the boundaries of the Monument 
to include these lands, once they were acquired. As introduced, the 
bill was identical to legislation sponsored by Senator Grassley.
  However, members of the majority staff of the Subcommittee on 
National Parks and Public Lands contacted the owners of the tracts 
included in the legislation; and after those contacts, three of these 
owners no longer wish to be included in the legislation. As a result, 
an amendment was adopted by the committee striking these parcels from 
the bill.
  It is unfortunate that this change was made. It is difficult to 
imagine what could have caused these landowners concerns given that the 
bill specifies that the properties may only be purchased if the owners 
want to sell and may only be added to the Monument after they are 
acquired.
  The only effect of passage of the bill as introduced would have been 
to add the Federal Government to the list of potential buyers if and 
when these landowners decided to sell their property. Adoption of the 
committee amendment, however, means that approval of a second measure 
allowing the Federal Government to bid on these properties if they ever 
come on the market will be required.
  As introduced, H.R. 3745 was a straightforward bill allowing the 
Federal Government to bid on significant lands near a national 
monument. We continue to support this legislation, but the changes made 
to the bill make it more likely that lands which might have been 
preserved will someday be developed.
  We urge our colleagues to support H.R. 3745 as well as the future 
legislation that will be required to complete the process of adding 
these important parcels to this national monument.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. HANSEN. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield such time as he may 
consume to the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. Nussle), the author of this 
bill.
  Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Speaker, I would like to first thank the gentleman 
from Utah (Chairman Hansen) who has been a strong advocate and 
supporter of this legislation, who has held hearings. As my colleagues 
can tell by his opening statement here today, as well as the gentleman 
from Puerto Rico (Mr. Romero-Barcelo), the ranking member, they know 
quite a bit about this very small, yet very significant historical 
monument in northeast Iowa.
  This year we have the opportunity to expand this monument and 
preserve more mounds. This is a project that the Iowa Natural Heritage 
Foundation has put together. It is a plan to purchase 1,000 acres, as 
has been said.
  This parcel of land that we talk about today has been sought after by 
the National Park Service since the Monument's establishment by 
proclamation by President Truman back in 1949. So this has been a long 
time in coming. This is a very significant day.
  Anthropologists estimate that there were thousands of these Indian 
burial mounds built on the North American continent. However, effigy 
mounds are primarily located today in northeast Iowa, southeastern 
Minnesota, and western Wisconsin. They were constructed, by some 
estimates, over the course of the last 2,500 years.
  The mounds inside the Effigy Mounds National Monument are a 
representative and very outstanding example of a significant phase of 
prehistoric American Indian mound-building culture. The tract that we 
talked about here today would be a valuable addition to the monument 
because not only of its natural beauty and historical significance, but 
this tract is known to contain four additional mounds, two linear forms 
as well as two bears, the outline of a bear. It includes not only 
endangered plant and animal species along the Yellow River, but 
additionally, and interestingly enough, this property was the site of 
Iowa's first sawmill, which was powered by water and managed by none 
other than Jefferson Davis.
  I believe that expanding the Monument's current boundaries to include 
the Ferguson-Kistler Tract would be a wise step.
  Mr. Speaker, I am a very strong supporter of private lands and 
private ownership. Iowa has less than 2 percent of its land in other 
than privately owned hands. We do not come to this floor without 
concern for private property, and that is why this bill has been 
crafted for willing sellers only. But we have willing sellers.
  This is a strong piece of legislation to enhance the beauty and 
historical significance of this park. I ask my colleagues to support 
H.R. 3745. I thank the committee and the gentleman from Utah (Chairman 
Hansen) for their diligent work on this.
  Mr. ROMERO-BARCELO. Mr. Speaker, I have no requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. HANSEN. 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 Utah (Mr. Hansen) that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the bill, H.R. 3745, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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