[Senate Report 105-397]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                       Calendar No. 616
105th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE

 2d Session                                                     105-397
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DELAWARE WATER GAP NATIONAL RECREATION AREA CITIZEN ADVISORY COMMISSION

                                _______
                                

  October 9 (legislative day, October 2), 1998.--Ordered to be printed

_______________________________________________________________________


  Mr. Murkowski, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 1175]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 1175) to reauthorize the Delaware Water 
Gap National Recreation Area Citizen Advisory Commission for 10 
additional years, having considered the same, reports favorably 
thereon without amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.

                         Purpose of the Measure

    The purpose of S. 1175 is to extend the authorization for 
the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area Citizen 
Advisory Committee for ten additional years.

                          Background and Need

    Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area was established 
by Congress in 1965. The park consists of 40 miles of the 
middle Delaware River, and 70,000 acres of land along the 
river's shores in Western New Jersey and Eastern Pennsylvania.
    The Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Advisory 
Commission (Commission) was established on October 31, 1988 by 
Public Law 100-573. The Commission provides local governments 
the opportunity to coordinate local planning with park managers 
and provides local residents with a voice in the management and 
operation of the park. The Commission has a number of standing 
committees that assist with issues facing the Recreation Area.
    The Commission consists of two members appointed by the 
Secretary; two members appointed by each of the governors of 
New Jersey and Pennsylvania; and one member chosen by the 
county administrators from each of the five surrounding New 
Jersey and Pennsylvania counties. The authorization for the 
Commission expires in 1998.

                          Legislative History

    S. 1175 was introduced by Senators Lautenberg and 
Torricelli on September 15, 1997 and referred to the Committee 
on Energy and Natural Resources. The Subcommittee on National 
Parks, Historic Preservation, and Recreation held a hearing on 
S. 1175 on September 17, 1998.
    At its business meeting on September 24, 1998, the 
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources ordered S. 1175, 
favorably reported.

            Committee Recommendation and Tabulation of Votes

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open 
business session on September 24, 1998, by a unanimous voice 
vote of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 
1175, as described herein.

                           Summary of S. 1175

    S. 1175 amends Public Law 101-573 to extend the 
authorization for Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area 
Citizen Advisory Commission for an additional ten years.

                   Cost and Budgetary Considerations

    The following estimate of costs of this measure has been 
provided by the Congressional Budget Office:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                Washington, DC, September 25, 1998.
Hon. Frank H. Murkowski,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, U.S. Senate, 
        Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 1175, a bill to 
reauthorize the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area 
Citizen Advisory Commission for 10 additional years.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Deborah Reis.
            Sincerely,
                                         June E. O'Neill, Director.
    Enclosure.

               Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate

S. 1175--A bill to reauthorize the Delaware Water Gap National 
        Recreation Area Citizen Advisory Commission for 10 additional 
        years

    S. 1175 would extend for an additional 10 years the life of 
the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area Citizen 
Advisory Commission. The commission, which advises the National 
Park Service (NPS) on management of the recreation area, would 
otherwise expire on October 31, 1998.
    CBO estimates that implementing S. 1175 would have no 
significant impact on the federal budget. At present, the NPS 
provides the advisory commission with minor technical 
assistance but no financial aid. Based on information obtained 
from the NPS, CBO expects that this arrangement would continue 
throughout the additional 10 years of the commission's 
existence.
    S. 1175 would not affect direct spending or receipts; 
therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply. The bill 
contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as 
defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would have no 
significant impact on the budgets of state, local, or tribal 
governments.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis. 
This estimate was approved by Robert A. Sunshine, Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

                      Regulatory Impact Evaluation

    In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following 
evaluation of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in 
carrying out S. 1175. The bill is not a regulatory measure in 
the sense of imposing Government-established standards of 
significant economic responsibilities on private individuals 
and businesses.
    No personal information would be collected in administering 
the program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal 
privacy.
    Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from 
enactment of S. 1175, as ordered reported.

                        Executive Communications

    On September 3, 1998, the Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources requested legislative reports from the Department of 
the Interior and the Office of Management and Budget setting 
forth Executive agency recommendations on S. 1175. These 
reports had not been received at the time the report on S. 1175 
was filed. When these reports became available, the Chairman 
will request that they be printed in the Congressional Record 
for the advice of the Senate. The testimony of the Department 
of the Interior at the Subcommittee hearing follows:

 Statement of Destry Jarvis, Assistant Director for External Affairs, 
            National Park Service Department of the Interior

    Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to present the 
views of the Department of the Interior on S. 1175, a bill to 
reauthorize the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area's 
Citizen Advisory Commission for an additional ten years. The 
Department does not oppose enactment of this bill.
    The purpose of the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation 
Area Citizen's Advisory Commission (CAC) is to advise the 
Secretary of the Interior on issues relating to the management 
and operation of the National Recreation Area. Without this 
legislation the current ten-year life of the CAC will expire on 
October 31, 1998. The bill would have the CAC expire on October 
31, 2008.
    The Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area was 
established in 1965 as an alternative to the Tocks Island Dam, 
a project ultimately deauthorized in 1992. The heart of the 
70,000-acre recreation area is a 40-mile stretch of the 
Delaware River that was designated as a unit of the National 
Wild and Scenic Rivers system in 1978. Delaware Water Gap 
National Recreation Area is today the 10th most-visited park in 
the National Park System.
    An important role for the Citizen's Advisory Commission has 
been to actively solicit public input on issues of concern to 
park visitors, neighbors and partners. The CAC holds quarterly 
public meetings on issues relating to the management and 
operation of the recreation area. If the Congress does not 
reauthorize the CAC, the National Park Service would continue 
to seek the views of its various constituencies through similar 
public meetings.
    This concludes my prepared remarks. I would be happy to 
answer any questions you may have regarding this legislation.

                        Changes in Existing Law

    In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by 
the bill S. 1175, as ordered reported, are shown as follows 
(existing law proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black 
brackets, new matter is printed in italic, existing law in 
which no change is proposed is shown in roman):

                 (Public Law 101-573, October 31, 1988)

SEC. 5. TERMINATION OF COMMISSION.

    The Commission shall terminate on the date that is [10] 20 
years after the date of the enactment of this Act.