[Senate Report 106-117]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                       Calendar No. 225
106th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session                                                    106-117

======================================================================



 
            PENNSYLVANIA BATTLEFIELDS PROTECTION ACT OF 1999

                                _______
                                

                 July 21, 1999.--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. 581]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 581) to protect the Paoli and Brandywine 
Battlefields in Pennsylvania, to authorize a Valley Forge 
Museum of the American Revolution at Valley Forge National 
Historical Park, and for other purposes, having considered the 
same, reports favorably thereon with an amendment and an 
amendment to the title and recommends that the bill, as 
amended, do pass.
    The amendments are as follows:
    1. Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert in 
lieu thereof the following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Pennsylvania Battlefields Protection 
Act of 1999''.

               TITLE I--PAOLI AND BRANDYWINE BATTLEFIELDS

SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS.

    In this title:
          (1) Brandywine battlefield.--The term ``Brandywine 
        Battlefield'' means land in an area generally known as the 
        Meetinghouse Road Corridor, located in Chester County, 
        Pennsylvania, as depicted on the Brandywine map.
          (2) Brandywine map.--The term ``Brandywine map'' means the 
        map entitled ``Brandywine-Meetinghouse Road Corridor'', 
        numbered 80,000 and dated April 1999.
          (3) Paoli battlefield.--The term ``Paoli Battlefield'' means 
        the area located in the borough of Malvern, Pennsylvania, as 
        generally depicted on the Paoli map.
          (4) Paoli map.--The term ``Paoli map'' means the map entitled 
        ``Paoli Battlefield'', numbered 80,000 and dated April 1999.
          (5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of 
        the Interior.
          (6) State.--The term ``State'' means the State of 
        Pennsylvania.
          (7) Park.--The term ``Park'' means the Valley Forge National 
        Historical Park.

SEC. 102. SPECIAL RESOURCE STUDY.

    (a) In general.--Not later than 6 months after the date funds are 
made available, the Secretary shall complete a special resource study 
on the Paoli Battlefield and not later than 18 months after the date 
funds are made available, the Secretary shall complete a special 
resource study on the Brandywine Battlefield, as described in 
subsection (b). In conducting the studies, the Secretary shall consult 
with the State, the borough of Malvern, the Brandywine Conservancy and 
other interested groups and organizations.
    (b) Components.--The resource studies described in subsection (a) 
shall--
          (1) identify the full range of resources and historic themes 
        associated with the Brandywine Battlefield and the Paoli 
        Battlefield, including the relationship of resources and 
        historic themes to the American Revolutionary War and the 
        Valley Forge National Historical Park; and
          (2) identify the alternatives for National Park Service 
        involvement at the sites, including cost estimates for any 
        necessary acquisition, development, interpretation, operation, 
        and maintenance associated with the alternatives identified.
    (c) Report.--Not later than 10 days after the completion of the 
studies, the Secretary shall submit a report describing the findings 
and recommendations of the study to the Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources of the Senate and the Committee on Resources of the United 
States House of Representatives.
    (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated such sums as are necessary to carry out this title.

            TITLE II--VALLEY FORGE NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK

SEC. 201. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
          (1) Valley Forge National Historical Park was established as 
        a unit of the National Park System in 1976;
          (2) the National Park Service acquired various land and 
        structures associated with the Park, including a visitor 
        center, from the State of Pennsylvania;
          (3) the Park maintains an extensive collection of--
                  (A) artifacts, books, and other documents associated 
                with the Continental Army's winter encampment during 
                1777 and 1778 at Valley Forge;
                  (B) Revolutionary War-era artifacts of military life;
                  (C) important archaeological resources; and
                  (D) numerous structures and associated artifacts;
          (4) during the period 1982 and 1997, the National Park 
        Service completed a general management plan, a long-range 
        interpretive plan, and a strategic business plan that 
        established goals and priorities for management of the Park;
          (5) the plans described in paragraph (4)--
                  (A) identify inadequacies in the visitor center and 
                interpretive programs of the Park;
                  (B) call for the development of a new or 
                significantly renovated visitor center that would make 
                the Park's collection accessible to the public through 
                exhibits and research facilities; and
                  (C) call for improvements to the interpretation of 
                the landscape and the circulation into and through the 
                Park;
          (6) the Valley Forge Historical Society was established in 
        1918 as a nonprofit organization to preserve and interpret for 
        future generations the significant history and artifacts of the 
        American Revolution in their historic setting at Valley Forge;
          (7) the Society has amassed valuable holdings of artifacts, 
        art, books, and other document relating to the encampment of 
        Washington's Continental Army at Valley Forge during 1777 and 
        1778, the American Revolution, and the American colonial era;
          (8) the Society continues to acquire additional important 
        collections through bequests, exchanges, and other 
        acquisitions;
          (9) the Society's collection is housed in a facility that is 
        inadequate to properly maintain, preserve, and display the ever 
        growing collection;
          (10) the Society would like to develop an up-to-date museum 
        and education facility;
          (11) the Society and the National Park Service have discussed 
        the idea of a joint museum, education, and visitor facility 
        that would directly support the historical, educational, and 
        interpretive activities and needs of the Park and the Society;
          (12) the joint facility described in paragraph (11) would--
                  (A) combine 2 outstanding museum collections; and
                  (B) provide an enhanced experience at Valley Forge 
                for visitors, scholars, and researchers; and
          (13) the Society has submitted a proposal to raise funds to 
        construct a new museum, education, and visitor center on Park 
        property that would be planned, developed, and operated jointly 
        with the Park.
    (b) Purpose.--The purpose of this title is to authorize the 
Secretary of the Interior to enter into an agreement with the Society 
to construct and operate a museum within the boundary of the Park.

SEC. 202. DEFINITIONS.

    In this title:
          (1) Museum.--The term ``Museum'' means the Valley Forge 
        Museum of the American Revolution.
          (2) Park.--The term ``Park'' means the Valley Forge National 
        Historical Park.
          (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of 
        the Interior.
          (4) Society.--The term ``Society'' means the Valley Forge 
        Historical Society.

SEC. 203. VALLEY FORGE MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION AUTHORIZATION.

    (a) Valley Forge Museum Agreement.--The Secretary, in administering 
the Park, is authorized to enter into an agreement with the Society to 
facilitate the planning, construction, and operation of the Museum on 
Federal land within the Park.
    (b) Specific Purposes of Agreement.--The agreement described in 
subsection (a) shall--
          (1) authorize the Society--
                  (A) to operate the Museum in cooperation with the 
                Secretary;
                  (B) to provide Museum programs and services related 
                to the story of Valley Forge and the American 
                Revolution to visitors to the Park;
                  (C) to engage, as a nonprofit organization, in 
                activities appropriate for the operation of a museum 
                that may include--
                          (i) charging fees;
                          (ii) conducting events; and
                          (iii) selling merchandise, tickets, and food 
                        to visitors to the Museum; and
                  (D) to occupy any structure constructed for the term 
                specified in the agreement described in subsection (a), 
                subject to--
                          (i) the conveyance by the Society to the 
                        United States of the right, title, and interest 
                        in any structure to be constructed at the Park; 
                        and
                          (ii) the right of the Society, that shall not 
                        be transferred or conveyed without the express 
                        consent of the Secretary, to occupy and use and 
                        structure--
                                  (I) for the exhibition, preservation, 
                                and interpretation of artifacts 
                                associated with the Valley Forge story 
                                and the American Revolution;
                                  (II) to enhance visitor experience to 
                                the Park;
                                  (III) to conduct appropriately 
                                related activities of the Society 
                                consistent with its mission; and
                          (iii) any other terms and conditions as may 
                        be determined by the Secretary;
          (2) authorize the Secretary to undertake at the Museum 
        activities related to the management of the Park, including the 
        provision of appropriate visitor information, interpretive 
        facilities,and programs related to the Park; and
          (3) provide that the Society's revenues from the Museum's 
        facilities and services shall be used to offset the expenses of 
        the operation of the Museum.

SEC. 204. PRESERVATION AND PROTECTION.

    Nothing in the title authorizes the Secretary or the Society to act 
in derogation of the preservation and protection of the values and 
resources of the Park.

    2. Amend the title so as to read: ``A bill to direct the 
Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study 
to determine the suitability and feasibility of the inclusion 
of the Brandywine Battlefield and the Paoli Battlefield in the 
National Park System as part of Valley Forge National 
Historical Park, to authorize a Valley Forge Museum of the 
American Revolution at Valley Forge National Historical Park, 
and for other purposes.''

                         purpose of the measure

    The purpose of S. 581, as ordered reported, is to authorize 
the Secretary of the Interior to conduct special resource study 
to assess the full range of resources and historic themes 
associated with the Brandywine Battlefield and the Paoli 
Battlefield as well as alternatives for National Park Service 
involvement at the two battlefield sites in the Commonwealth of 
Pennsylvania.
    S. 581 also authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to 
enter into an agreement with the Valley Forge Historical 
Society to facilitate the planning, construction and operation 
of a museum at Valley Forge National Historical Park.

                          background and need

    Paoli Battlefield.--In September 1777, a British military 
force of over 18,000 invaded Pennsylvania with the intent of 
capturing the city of Philadelphia. General George Washington 
ordered Anthony Wayne's brigade of approximately 2,000 soldiers 
to move behind the British lines to harass its supply train. 
While Wayne was in Paoli in Malvern, Pennsylvania, his troops 
were attacked by a British force of about 1,200 soldiers. At 
least 53 Americans were killed, over 150 were wounded and 71 
were captured. Local farmers buried the American dead at the 
edge of the battlefield.
    The Paoli Battlefield property is privately owned by the 
Malvern Preparatory School and officials intend to see the land 
in order to strengthen the school's endowment. However, they 
have agreed to provide the local community the opportunity to 
purchase the land for historical preservation purposes.
    Brandywine Battlefield.--During the 1777 British campaign 
to capture Philadelphia, British General William Howe defeated 
General George Washington's Continental Army of 12,500 soldiers 
on the banks of Brandywine Creek.
    The Meetinghouse Road Corridor, adjacent to the state-owned 
Brandywine Battlefield and National Historic Landmark, was the 
location of the largest engagement of the American Revolution. 
The Meetinghouse Road Corridor section of the battlefield site 
is privately owned and is currently threatened by development.
    Valley Forge National Historical Park.--Valley Forge was 
the site of the Continental Army's winter encampment, 1777-78. 
It contains General Washington's headquarters, original 
earthworks, monuments and markers and reconstructed log 
structures. The former state park was designed at the Valley 
Forge National Historical Park on July 4, 1976. Boundary 
changes were made in 1980. The part currently includes 
approximately 3,466 acres, of which approximately 3,000 are 
federally owned.
    The existing park museum is inadequate and antiquated. The 
Valley Forge Historical Society, a park ``friends'' group and 
non-profit organization, is willing to assist the park to 
facilitate the planning, construction and operation of a new 
museum.

                          legislative history

    S. 581 was introduced by Senator Specter on March 10, 1999. 
The Subcommittee on National Parks, Historic Preservation and 
Recreation held a hearing on S. 581 on April 22, 1999.
    At its business meeting on June 30, 1999, the Committee on 
Energy and Natural Resources ordered S. 581, favorably 
reported, as amended.

                        committee recommendation

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open 
business session on June 16, 1999, by a unanimous voice vote of 
a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 581, if 
amended as described herein.

                          committee amendment

    During its consideration of S. 581, the Committee adopted 
an amendment in the nature of a substitute, and an amendment to 
the title.
    In addition to making several technical, clarifying and 
conforming changes, the amendment directs the Secretary of the 
Interior to conduct a special resource study to identify the 
full range of resources and historic themes associated with the 
Brandywine Battlefield and the Paoli Battlefield as well as 
identify the alternatives for National Park Service involvement 
at the battlefield sites. The amendment also removes the 
financial assistance provision included in S. 581 as 
introduced.
    The amendment also authorizes the Secretary of the Interior 
to enter into an agreement with the Valley Forge Historical 
Society to facilitate the planning, construction and operation 
of a new museum within the park.
    The title was amended to reflect the revised purposes of 
the bill.

                      section-by-section analysis

    Section 1: designates the bill's short title as the 
``Pennsylvania Battlefields Protection Act of 1999.''

               TITLE I--PAOLI AND BRANDYWINE BATTLEFIELDS

    Section 101 defines key terms.
    Section 102(a) directs that the National Park Service 
conduct a special resource study on Paoli Battlefield within 6 
months after funds are made available and a special resource 
study on Brandywine Battlefield within 18 months after funds 
are made available. The studies are to be conducted in 
consultation with the State, the borough of Malvern, the 
Brandywine Conservancy and other interested groups and 
organizations.
    Subsection (b) mandates that the studies identify the full 
range of resources and themes including the relationship to 
Valley Forge National Historical Park. The various alternatives 
for National Park Service involvement at the two sites must 
include cost estimates for any acquisition, development, 
interpretation, operation and maintenance.
    Subsection (c) directs that within 10 days of their 
completion, reports that describe the findings and 
recommendations must be submitted to the Senate Committee on 
Energy and Natural Resources and the House of Representatives 
Committee on Resources.
    Subsection (d) authorizes the appropriation of funds 
necessary to carry out this title.

            TITLE II--VALLEY FORGE NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK

    Section 201 lists Congressional findings which include the 
roles of the National Park Service and the Valley Forge 
Historical Society at Valley Forge National Historical Park. It 
contains a synopsis of recent discussions between the two 
organizations concerning a proposal for a new museum, education 
and visitor center. The purpose of the title is to authorize a 
cooperative agreement between the Secretary of the Interior and 
the Valley Forge National Historical Society to construct and 
operate a museum within the park.
    Section 202 defines key terms.
    Section 203(a) authorizes an agreement between the 
Secretary of the Interior and the Valley Forge Historical 
Society for the planning, construction and operation of the 
museum on Federal land within the park.
    Subsection (b)(1) provides the specific responsibilities of 
the Society which include: operating the museum, in cooperation 
with the National Park Service; providing programs and visitor 
services; charging fees; conducting events; selling 
merchandise, tickets and food to visitors to the museum. The 
Society may occupy space, as specified in the agreement, with 
conveyance of the right, title and interest to the National 
Park Service. Any transfer of responsibility from the Society 
to any other group must be approved by the National Park 
Service and must be for the exhibition, preservation and 
interpretation of artifacts associated with the Valley Forge 
story and the American Revolution.
    Paragraph (a) authorizes the Secretary to undertake 
activities at the museum, related to the management of the 
park, including providing visitor information, interpretive 
facilities and programs.
    Paragraph (3) provides that the Society's revenues from the 
museum's facilities and services are to be used to offset the 
expenses of operating the museum.
    Section 204 states that nothing in the title authorizes the 
Secretary or the Society to act in derogation of the 
preservation and protection of the values and resources of the 
park.

                   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, July 7, 1999.
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. 581, the 
Pennsylvania Battlefields Protection Act of 1999.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Deborah Reis.
            Sincerely,
                                          Barry B. Anderson
                                    (For Dan L. Crippen, Director).
    Enclosure.

S. 581--Pennsylvania Battlefields Protection Act of 1999

    Assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts, CBO 
estimates that implementing S. 581 would cost the federal 
government between $1 million and $2 million over the next five 
years. S. 581 would not affect direct spending or receipts; 
therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply. S. 581 
contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as 
defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would not 
affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments.
    Title I would direct the National Park Service (NPS) to 
conduct resource studies of the Paoli Battlefield and the 
Brandywine Battlefield. The studies would identify alternatives 
for agency involvement at the two sites, including estimates of 
any associated costs.
    Title II would authorize the NPS to execute an agreement 
with the Valley Forge National Historical Society under which 
the society would construct a museum within the boundaries of 
the Valley Forge National Historical Park. This title would 
authorize the NPS to provide visitor information and 
interpretive facilities and programs at the museum. Although 
the museum would be owned by the federal government, the 
society would operate and maintain it with collections from 
fees and sales of merchandise.
    Assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts, CBO 
estimates that the NPS would spend $250,000 to complete 
resource studies of the two battlefields. We estimate that the 
agency would spend an additional $0.5 million to $1 million to 
execute the agreement with the Valley Forge National Historical 
Society and provide interpretive materials for the museum. 
These estimates are based on information provided by the NPS.
    The CBO staff contact is Deborah Reis. This estimate was 
approved by Paul N. Van de Water, 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. 581. 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. 581, as ordered reported.

                        executive communications

    On May 25, 1999, 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 views on S. 581. These reports had not been 
received at the time the report on S. 581 was filed. When the 
reports become avaialble, the Chairman will request that they 
be printed in the Congressional Record for the advice of the 
Senate. The testimony provided by the National Park Service at 
the Subcommittee hearing follows:

    Statement of Katherine Stevenson, Associate Director, Cultural 
    Resources Stewardship and Partnerships, National Park Service, 
                       Department of the Interior

    Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to appear 
before this subcommittee to present the views of the Department 
of the Interior on S. 581, a bill that addresses the protection 
and preservation of key resources of the Revolutionary War in 
the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The Department supports 
enactment of S. 581 if amended to clarify that Federal funds 
would be authorized to support land acquisition only and not 
ongoing operations.
    Title 1 of this bill authorizes the Secretary of the 
Interior to provide up to $2.5 million to the borough of 
Malvern, Pennsylvania, for the protection and preservation of 
the area known as the Paoli Battlefield. It also authorizes up 
to $3.0 million to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, a 
political subdivision of the commonwealth, or the Brandwine 
Conservancy, for the protection and preservation of land in an 
area generally known as the Meetinghouse Road Corridor.
    The bill further authorizes the Secretary to enter into 
cooperative agreements for the preservation, interpretation and 
management of battlefield resources. All the funds provided by 
the Secretary are to be matched dollar for dollar by funds 
contributed by non-federal sources. The Secretary is directed 
to conduct a study of the full range of the resources and 
historic themes associated with the Paoli Battlefield and the 
Brandywine Battlefield and their relationship to the Valley 
Forge National Historical Park, and to identify alternatives 
for future National Park Service involvement at the sites, 
along with cost estimates for such alternatives.
    In Title 2 of S. 581, the Secretary is authorized to enter 
into an agreement, under appropriate terms and conditions, with 
the Valley Forge Historical Society to construct the Valley 
Forge Museum of the American Revolution on park property. If 
the Secretary were to enter into such an agreement with the 
Historical Society, the facility would be planned, developed 
and operated jointly with the Valley Forge National Historical 
Park. The bill specifically provides that the revenues from the 
museum's facilities and services are to be retained and used to 
offset the expenses of the museum's operation. Such an 
agreement would also authorize the Society, as a non-profit 
organization, to engage in appropriate museum operations 
including charging fees, conducting events, and selling 
merchandise, tickets and food to visitors of the museum.
    The Philadelphia Campaign, crucial to the outcome of the 
war for independence, forever linked Paoli Battlefield, 
Brandywine Battlefield, and Valley Forge. The Philadelphia 
Campaign is one of the most critical chapters in the 
Revolutionary War. It commenced in the late summer of 1777 when 
the British main forces were moved from New York to 
Philadelphia in an attempt to capture the capital of the United 
States and, in the process, engage and destroy the Continental 
forces under the command of George Washington. Washington chose 
the hilly terrain along the Brandywine River as the location to 
mount the defense against the land attack on the capital while 
the Delaware River approach was heroically defended by a small 
contingent of troops at Fort Mifflin. The battle at Brandywine 
on September 11, 1777, was the largest battle of the war. The 
British, boasting a force of over 18,000 met General 
Washington's 12,500 unseasoned troops. Washington's army could 
have been totally destroyed. Yet, while Washington's forces 
were not successful in repelling the invasion, the Americans 
demonstrated the ability to engage the British Army and remain 
a viable fighting force.
    A week later, Washington ordered Anthony Wayne's brigade of 
approximately 2,000 to get behind the British army and harass 
its supply train. Wayne delayed 2 days, only to be surprised on 
September 20, by a bayonet attack by night by a highly 
professional but smaller force of about 1,200. The result was a 
rout, and the death of at least 53 Americans with over 150 
wounded and 71 captured. The bodies of the American dead were 
left on the field, to be buried by local farmers in a mass 
grave at the edge of the battlefield, where they remain today. 
This seemingly minor encounter--swiftly known as The Paoli 
Massacre--was viewed by both sides as an atrocity and would 
serve to heighten the resolve of the American forces.
    American fortune never seemed lower. By September 22, 
Philadelphia's fate was sealed. When the British under General 
Cornwallis entered Philadelphia on September 26, the 
Continental Congress had already fled. Washington made one more 
attempt to regain the city, only to lose at Germantown.
    By the end of the season, Washington and his troops 
withdrew to their now famous winter encampment at Valley Forge. 
At this strategic location, the Americans both endured 
unspeakable hardship and at the same time reformed and emerged 
the next year a renewed and reinvigorated fighting force. This 
story of resolve and rebirth is a fundamental part of the 
American character, a crucible not only of an army, but also of 
a people.
    This is an important story, and the threatened sites of 
Brandywine and Paoli should not be lost. The proposed 
partnership among state and local governments and non-profit 
organizations with the federal government is the best available 
means of protecting these important resources.
The need for a protection strategy for Branywine and Paoli
    Although the NPS has not conducted a special resources 
study that would enable us to consider NPS protection, it is 
clear that the Paoli Battlefield and the Brandywine Battlefield 
are in immediate jeopardy. Both are subject to intense 
development pressure, and without prompt action the remaining 
open vistas and historic landscapes will be lost. This bill 
provides the additional tools needed by the National Park 
Service to work with the partners who have stepped forward to 
offer their assistance and cooperative funding. The 
authorization of matching land acquisition funding by the 
National Park Service, ownership and management by the 
partners, and the ability to enter into cooperative agreements 
and to provide technical assistance to the state and local 
governments and non-profit groups, will ensure that there are 
alternatives for landowners to consider before selling their 
land. We recommend amending the bill to clarify that Federal 
appropriations would be for land acquisition only and would be 
subject to the availability of funds and NPS national 
priorities. In addition, the amounts authorized for Federal 
appropriations for the Paoli Battlefield should be reduced. 
They currently reflect the total cost of acquisition and not 
the Federal-half that would be matched.
    The national significance of the Brandywine Battlefield was 
formally recognized by the federal government in 1961 when it 
was designated a National Historic Landmark by the Secretary of 
Interior. The battlefield is a large area that ranges over two 
counties and a number of townships. It includes the Brandywine 
Battlefield State Park unit, but the vast majority of the 
resource is privately held. This pastoral landscape along the 
banks of the Brandywine River is renowned not only for its 
Revolutionary War history but the landscape paintings of Andrew 
Wyeth, who has lived his entire life in this area.
    The agricultural lands that are so essential to the 
battlefield, lands that have been farmed for over three hundred 
years, are not threatened by suburban growth. The Department of 
the Interior has included the battlefield in its Report to 
Congress on Threatened National Historic Landmarks for the past 
seven years due to the development activity that is occurring. 
Fortunately it is not too late to save the critical heart of 
the Brandywine Battlefield where the key military events 
unfolded in September of 1777.
    Over the past decade there has been an exemplary planning 
effort that has involved all of the local, state and federal 
government entities as well as conservation organizations and 
other private interests who have been brought together to 
pursue their common purpose of preserving the battlefield for 
posterity. This planning effort has produced accurate and 
reliable maps that document the critical zones of battle. This 
information has been used to analyze the current ownership and 
to produce a priority list of tracts that must be protected if 
the battlefield is to be preserved. Most of the land under this 
plan would be protected by easement which will allow it to 
remain in agricultural use as it has since before the battle.
    The Paoli battlefield is also threatened, and could be 
developed in this calendar year. The entire battlefield is 
currently intact, and in fact continues in its original use as 
a cornfield. The borough of Malvern has agreed to hold and 
manage the 40-acre site, and patriotic and veterans 
organizations are confident they will be able to provide the 
matching funds for acquisition with a partnership commitment 
from the NPS.
    The National Park Service supports the need for a study to 
evaluate the various alternatives for the future of these 
battlefields, their connection with Valley Forge NHP, and the 
role that the Park Service could play in the long-term 
preservation of these resources. It has been suggested that 
such a study may lead to a proposal for an affiliated status of 
Paoli and Brandywine with the Valley Forge National Historical 
Park, rather than a proposal for new units of the park system. 
Such a study has never been done, and the feasibility for these 
sites to be jointly or cooperatively interpreted remains to be 
fully considered. The National Park Service, in accordance with 
the National Parks Omnibus Management Act of 1998, has placed 
the Brandywine and Paoli battlefields on our list of areas we 
are asking Congress to authorize the NPS to study for possible 
inclusion with the National Park System. Congress would achieve 
the same purpose by enacting the study provision of this 
legislation.
Partnership opportunity with the Valley Forge Historical Society
    When Valley Forge National Historical Park was established 
in 1976 it inherited from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania a 
visitor center/museum that, although new, was poorly designed. 
It is not visitor friendly. The visitor must walk more than 300 
yards from the parking lot to the visitor center and then must 
go up a flight of stairs and outside to the auditorium, next 
door, to see the park orientation film. The office space is 
inadequate and the structure fails to provide enough 
environmentally safe and secure space to house the historic 
collections acquired when the park was transferred to the 
federal government, let alone those items acquired in the 23 
years since becoming a national park. As a result, the 
collections are stored in 18th to mid-20th century structures, 
in various locations that do not or cannot achieve an 
environment conducive to preservation. In addition, there is no 
available area within the park that can be established for 
scholarly research of these collections.
    From the beginning, the national park recognized the role 
that the Washington Memorial Chapel and the Valley Forge 
Historical Society played in memorializing Valley Forge. Since 
1990 the museum has been housed in a wing adjacent to the 
chapel. When constructed, there was no true understanding of 
the space and environment needed to preserve, display and 
provide for the scholarly research of a collection. In 
addition, the chapel has experienced growth in its 
congregation, but is limited in its ability to enlarge.
    Today, the historical society is faced with an opportunity 
and a dilemma. In accordance with an agreement reached in June 
of 1998 by the society and the chapel, the historical society 
is required to construct a new headquarters and facility to 
display and interpret its outstanding collection. In a space of 
four and a half years, the society must select a site, raise 
the necessary funds, and build the facility.
    Although the society has the option of building on its own 
land adjacent to the heart of the park, the National Park 
Service believes a substantial development at this location 
would not be in the best interest of the purposes of the Valley 
Forge National Historical Park. We support Title 2 of this 
legislation because it gives us the opportunity to find a 
solution that will avoid an inappropriate development. It will 
also enhance the visitor experience, by housing the society's 
outstanding collection and the park's collection in the same 
facility, and by developing in a public/private partnership a 
first-class facility better than either the society or the 
service might be able to do it on its own. The facility could 
be appropriately placed within the planned development zone at 
the entrance of the park. An unfortunate third alternative 
would be avoided, of the Society developing its facility at 
some distance from the park, losing all opportunity for shared 
energy and combined resources and collections this legislation 
envisions.
    Knowing the inadequacies of both the park's and the 
society's facilities, along with the intertwined mission both 
the service and the society have in presenting the story of the 
Valley Forge winter encampment of 1777-1778, the organizations 
entered into discussions in 1977 to evaluate the construction 
of a joint facility. Such a facility would meet the needs of 
both organizations, provide quality space for the collections 
to be housed within it, and most importantly, directly serve 
the visitor's understanding of the role Valley Forge played in 
the winning of our country's independence and defining our 
national character.
    This legislation is needed to permit the revenues of the 
proposed museum operation and related activities to offset 
operating and management expenses. It will allow Valley Forge 
Historical Society to charge fees, rent space for events, and 
sell merchandise and food within the museum building, a 
structure owned by the National Park Service and operated 
jointly by the Valley Forge Historical Society and the National 
Park Service. The funds generated by these activities will be 
used to defray ongoing costs of operations, maintenance and 
repair of the building and exhibits, and for the periodic 
replacement, improvement and modification of the exhibits and 
building. This legislation does not authorize, or would we 
support, the use of Federal funds to construct this facility.
    The National Park Service supports the authorization to 
enter into an agreement with the historical society that will 
allow both parties to achieve our mutual goals for Valley 
Forge. We have some technical amendments we would like to 
present to the committee to insure that the correct map 
references are noted in the bill.
    This concludes my prepared remarks. I would be pleased to 
answer any questions that you may have.

                        changes in existing law

    In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no 
changes in existing law are made by S. 581, as ordered 
reported.

                                  
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