[Senate Report 106-208]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



106th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session                                                    106-208

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



 
            NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM NEW AREA STUDY ACT OF 2000

                November 2, 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. 1349]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 1349) to direct the Secretary of the 
Interior to conduct special resource studies to determine the 
national significance of specific sites as well as the 
suitability and feasibility of their inclusion as units of the 
National Park System, having considered the same, reports 
favorably thereon with amendments and recommends that the bill, 
as amended, do pass.
    The amendments are as follows:
    On page 2, strike line 15 and all that follows through page 
3 line 7, and insert the following:

``SEC. 4. STUDIES.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary shall submit to the 
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the 
Committee on Resources of the House of Representatives a report 
on the findings, conclusions, and recommendations of each study 
under section 5 within three fiscal years following the date on 
which funds are first made available for each study.''
    ``(b) Contents.--In conducting the studies authorized by 
this Act, the Secretary shall use the criteria for the study of 
areas for potential inclusion in the National Park System in 
accordance with section 8 of Public Law 92-383, as amended by 
section 303 of the National Park System New Area Study Act (16 
U.S.C. 1a-5).''.
    On page 3, strike line 8 and all that follows through line 
24, and insert the following:

``SEC. 5. STUDY AREAS. THE SECRETARY SHALL CONDUCT STUDIES OF THE 
                    FOLLOWING:

    ``(a) Bioluminescent Bay, Puerto Rico;
    ``(b) Civil Rights Sites, multi-state;
    ``(c) Gaviota Coast Seashore, California;
    ``(d) Kate Mullany House, New York;
    ``(e) Low Country Gullah Culture, multi-state;
    ``(f) Walden Pond and Woods, Massachusetts;
    ``(g) World War II Sites, Commonwealth of the Northern 
Marianas;
    ``(h) Loess Hills, Iowa;
    ``(i) Anderson Cottage, District of Columbia;
    ``(j) Fort Hunter Liggett, California;
    ``(k) upon the request the government of the Republic of 
Palau, World War II Sites, Palau; and
    ``(l) upon the request of the government of the Federated 
States of Micronesia, Nan Madol in the State of Ponape.''.

                         Purpose of the Measure

    The purpose of S. 1349, as ordered reported, is to 
authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct 12 special 
resource studies to determine the national significance of 
specific sites as well as the suitability and feasibility of 
their inclusion as units of the National Park System.

                          Background and Need

    Section 303 of Title III of Public Law 105-391 amended the 
National Park System General Authorities Act to require the 
Secretary of the Interior, on an annual basis, to submit to the 
Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and the House 
of Representatives Committee on Resources, a list of areas 
recommended for study for potential inclusion in the National 
Park System. The first list was submitted on March 19, 1999 and 
this legislation reflects that submission. Preliminary costs 
estimates for each study range from $50,000 to $400,000.

                          Legislative History

    S. 1349 was introduced by Senator Thomas, at the request of 
the Administration, on July 12, 1999. The Subcommittee on 
National Parks, Historic Preservation and Recreation held a 
hearing on S. 1349 on July 29, 1999.
    At its business meeting on October 20, 1999, the Committee 
on Energy and Natural Resources ordered S. 1349 favorably 
reported, as amended.

                        Committee Recommendation

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open 
business session on October 20, 1999, by a unanimous voice vote 
of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 1349, 
if amended as described herein.

                          Committee Amendments

    During the consideration of S. 1349, the Committee adopted 
several amendments. A study for Brandywine and Paoli 
Battlefields in Pennsylvania was deleted from the list of 
authorized studies while studies for Loess Hills in Iowa, 
Anderson Cottage in the District of Columbia and Fort Hunter 
Liggett in California were added. A study for World War II 
Sites in Palau is authorized if requested by the government of 
the Republic of Palau and a study for Nan Madol in the State of 
Ponape is authorized if requested by the government of the 
Federated States of Micronesia.

                      Section-by-Section Analysis

    Section 1 designates the bill's short title as the 
``National Park System New Area Study Act of 2000''.
    Section 2 lists the finding that the Secretary of the 
Interior has complied with Public Law 105-391 and submitted a 
list of areas recommended for study for potential inclusion in 
the National Park System; and the purpose is to direct the 
Secretary of the Interior to conduct special resource studies 
to determine the national significance of specific sites as 
well as the suitability and feasibility of their inclusion as 
units of the National Park System.
    Section 3 defines ``Secretary'' to mean the Secretary of 
the Interior.
    Section 4 requires the Secretary, within 3 fiscal years 
after funds are made available, to submit individual resource 
studies to the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 
and the House of Representatives Committee on Resources. Each 
study must use the criteria for the study of areas in 
accordance with section 8 of Public Law 91-383, as amended by 
section 303 of the 1998 National Park System Study Act.
    Section 5 directs the Secretary to conduct the following 
studies: (1) Bioluminescent Bay, Puerto Rico; (2) Civil Rights 
Trail, multi-state; (3) Gaviota Coast Seashore, California; (4) 
Kate Mullany House, New York; (5) Low Hills Gullah Culture, 
multi-state; (6) Walden Pond and Woods, Massachusetts; (7) 
World War II Sites, Commonwealth of Northern Marianas; (8) 
Loess Hills, Iowa; (9) Anderson Cottage, District of Columbia; 
(10) Fort Hunter Liggett, California; (11) World War II Sites, 
Palau, upon the request of the government of the Republic of 
Palau; and (12) Nan Modol, State of Ponape, upon the request of 
the government of the Federated States of Micronesia.
    Section 6 authorizes the appropriation of funds necessary 
to carry out this Act.

                   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, October 29, 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. 1349, the National 
Park System New Area Study Act of 2000.
    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.

               congressional budget office cost estimate

S. 1349--National Park System New Area Study Act of 2000: As ordered 
        reported by the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural 
        Resources on October 20, 1999

    CBO estimates that implementing S. 1349 would have no 
effect on the federal budget. We estimate that the federal 
government would spend about $1 million over the next three 
years to carry out the studies required by the legislation, but 
appropriations for this purpose are already authorized under 
existing law. The bill would not affect direct spending or 
receipts; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply. 
S. 1349 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 National Park System New Area Study Act requires the 
National Park Service (NPS) to submit a list of potential park 
areas to the Congress each year. The Congress then chooses the 
areas to be studied by enacting legislation. That act 
authorizes the appropriation of $2 million annually for 
conducting studies of the approved areas.
    S. 1349 lists 12 areas to be studied under the methodology 
set forth in current law. The NPS would have three years to 
determine the national significance of these areas and the 
feasibility of making them units of the National Park System. 
The bill also would authorize the appropriation of whatever 
amounts are necessary for the studies. Because appropriations 
for this purpose are already authorized, CBO estimates that 
carrying out the studies would have no additional impact on the 
federal budget.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis. 
This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

                      regulatory impact evaluation

    In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of the 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. 1349. 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. 1349, as ordered reported.

                        executive communications

    The legislative report received by the Committee from the 
Department of the Interior setting forth Executive agency 
recommendation relating to the S. 1349, are set forth below:
                        Department of the Interior,
                                   Office of the Secretary,
                                   Washington, DC October 25, 1999.
Hon. Frank Murkowski,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: This letter presents the Department's 
view on S. 1349, a bill directing the Secretary to conduct 
special resource studies to determine the national significance 
of specific sites as well as the suitability and feasibility of 
their inclusion as units of the National Park System.
    The Department supports this legislation with amendments 
that are explained within this legislative report.
    S. 1349 authorizes nine new area studies, also referred to 
as special resource studies. These studies were proposed by the 
Administration in a letter sent to the Committee earlier this 
year, pursuant to the requirement in the National Parks Omnibus 
Management Act of 1998 (Public Law 105-391). A tenth study on 
that list, Loess Hills, in the State of Iowa, was considered by 
this Committee separately earlier this year. Since the time the 
list was developed, the Administration decided to request two 
more candidates for studies: Anderson Cottage, the summer home 
of President Lincoln, in Washington, DC, and Fort Hunter 
Liggett, in California.
    Each year, the National Park Service receives numerous 
requests and suggestions for potential new areas for the 
National Park System. We narrow the list to a relatively small 
number of proposals that, in our collective judgment, represent 
areas or themes that are not adequately represented in the 
National Park System and that offer the greatest potential for 
being determined to be nationally significant, feasible, and 
suitable according to specified criteria.
    Proposing an area for study does not mean that we expect to 
conclude that the area should be managed by the NPS. In fact, 
most of our studies over the past 20 years have focused on 
alternatives to direct acquisition and management by the NPS. 
While we believe that all of the candidates on our list are 
worthy of our attention, we expect the study process to help 
identify ways to protect many of these sites through action by 
States, local governments, private entities, and other Federal 
agencies. We certainly recognize that new area must be 
evaluated in light of the competing demands for funds and staff 
in existing units of the National Park System.
    The Department has determined that the areas listed in 
Section 5 of S. 1349, along with Loess Hills, Anderson Cottage, 
and Fort Hunter Liggett, are our priorities or studies to be 
authorized for FY 2000 and beyond.

Anderson Cottage, Washington, DC

    Located at the United States Soldiers' and Airman's Home in 
Washington, DC, a National Historic Landmark, the cottage 
served as the summer White House for President Abraham Lincoln 
from 1862 to 1864. It was while at the cottage that Lincoln 
wrote a draft of the Emancipation Proclamation and made many of 
the important decision of his presidency. Presidents Hayes, 
Arthur, and Garfield continued summer use of the cottage during 
their respective terms. The study evaluates methods of 
protection and interpretation of the house. It includes 
recommendations on management and visitor use, and address the 
potential for restoration of the house.

Bioluminescent Bay of Mosquito Lagoon, Puerto Rico

    Located near Vieques Island off the east coast of Puerto 
Rico, this bay contains a concentration of billions of single-
celled dinoflagellates that creates and illusion of light under 
water at night. Designated as a National Natural Landmark in 
1980, this site is considered the best example of a 
bioluminescent bay in the Untied States. The survival of 
bioluminescent bays depends on the perpetuation of the delicate 
balance between the exchange of water with the sea and the 
input of organic matter from mangroves. The study evaluates 
methods of protection and interpretation of this extraordinary 
and fragile site.

Brandywine and Paoli Battlefields, Pennsylvania

    Brandywine is where General George Washington's untrained 
and outnumbered troops fought an immense battle to defend the 
capital city, Philadelphia, against British invasion. Pauli 
where a brigade of Continental soldiers led by Anthony Wayne 
were overwhelmed in a brutal nighttime attack, and where 53 
American dead were buried in a mass grave. Both sites, still 
largely rural, are threatened by development. The study 
examines the full range of resources and historic themes 
represented by the battlefields and their relationship to those 
of Valley Forge National Historical Park.

Civil Rights Sites, Multi-state

    This study consists of two parts. One is a National 
Historic Landmark theme study to define the time frame and 
primary locations for the Civil Rights Movement. It includes a 
prioritized list of potential National Historic Landmarks or 
for recognition on the National Register of Historic Places. 
The other is an examination of options for connecting three 
sites that represent key points in the movement: the R.R. Moton 
School and Museum in Farmville, Virginia; the FW Woolworth 
Building in Greensboro; North Carolina; and Shaw University in 
Raleigh, North Carolina.

Fort Hunter Liggett, California

    Land containing outstanding natural and cultural resources 
on this 165,000 Army Reserve base on the Monterey Peninsula has 
been offered to federal agencies as a result of a base-closing 
decision. The area contains relatively undisturbed and 
expansive biological communities, which include rare species of 
plants and animals. It also contains the fourth oldest and most 
historically evocative Spanish mission in California, among 
other historical resources. The study evaluates, in cooperation 
with the U.S. Army, U.S. Forest Service, and California State 
Parks, the feasibility of joint resource protection and 
increased visitor opportunities while the Fort continues its 
military reserves and civilian training functions.

Gaviota Coast Seashore, California

    The area extending from Coal Oil Point at Santa Barbara to 
the northern boundary of Vandenberg Air Force Base is the 
largest remaining intact relatively undeveloped coastline in 
Southern California, but it is poised for rapid growth. This 
stretch of coastline includes a large expanse of mainland 
Mediterranean ecosystem and is exceptionally rich in plant and 
animal species. The area will be evaluated for its potential as 
a national seashore.

Kate Mullany House, New York

    Recently designated as a National Historic Landmark as 
recommended in the Labor History Theme Study, this Troy 
residence was the home of an Irish immigrant who led the all-
female Collar Laundry Union in the 1860's, and became one of 
America's leading female labor leaders. The study evaluates the 
suitability and feasibility of establishing the house as a 
National Historic Site.

Low Country Gullah Culture, Multi-state

    The study would identify themes and sites that represent 
the Gullah people of coastal South Carolina and Georgia and 
their connection to the Black Seminoles of Florida, Oklahoma, 
Texas, and northern Mexico. The study includes the compilation 
of existing research on the Gullahs, a determination of 
national significance of properties related to Gullah history, 
and a report on strategies for commemorating the connection 
between the Gullahs and the Black Seminoles.

Nan Madol, State of Ponape, Federated States of Micronesia

    Nan Madol, a National Historic Landmark, is an intricate 
19-square-mile complex of waterways and stone buildings from 
the perished Pai Pan civilization. Constructed between 400 and 
1700 A.D., the village was built from basalt columns that form 
high-walled rectangular enclosures. The study evaluates methods 
of protection and interpretation.

Walden Woods and Pond, Massachusetts

    The study would evaluate lands and sites in Concord and 
Lincoln associated with Henry David Thoreau near Walden Pond, a 
National Historic Landmark, to assess their significance and 
relationship to the landmark. The study explores alternative 
methods of protecting and interpreting these lands, which were 
integral to the development of Thoreau's philosophy of ecology, 
conservation, and man's relationship to nature, which he 
explored in his book Walden.

World War II Sites, Republic of Palau and Commonwealth of the Northern 
        Marianas

    Peleliu Battlefield was the scene of one of the bloodiest 
battles of the Pacific War. The Island of Tinian includes the 
North Field airfield, where the Enola Gay and Boch's Car were 
loaded with the first atomic bombs to be used. Marpi Plateau, 
on Saipan Island, was where ground fighting of the Northern 
Marianas Campaign culminated. All three are National Historic 
Landmarks. The study evaluates methods of protection and 
interpretation of the cultural and natural resources of these 
sites.
    Cost estimates for these studies range from $50,000 to 
$400,000. We estimate that it would cost about $1.1 million to 
start all of the studies list above, along with Loess Hills, in 
FY 2000. Any additional studies approved by Congress, would, of 
course, raise the total cost estimate further.
    Completion of on-going special resource studies previously 
approved by Congress is expected to require about $763,000 in 
FY 2000. Despite a limited budget, we hope that Congress 
authorizes the studies this year, so that we can begin the 
studies as soon as funds are available, and so that we have the 
flexibility to apply funds to projects where personnel are 
available to work on them.
    There are three changes we recommend to S. 1349. First, we 
suggest amending Section 4(a) to provide three years for each 
study, rather than two years for all the studies, from the time 
funding is made available. Most of the proposed studies will 
take much less than three years, but if the legislation is to 
provide a standard length of time for the studies, we would 
like that time frame to be three years to assure adequate 
opportunities for public involvement and analysis. In addition, 
this change is consistent with the time frame called for in 
Section 303 of the National Parks Omnibus Management Act.
    Second, we recommend amending Section 4(b) to reference the 
requirements for new area studies that are listed in Section 
303 of the National Parks Omnibus Management Act. Section 4(b) 
of S. 1349 as drafted includes some, but not all, of the 
criteria for studies that are included in Section 303. 
Referencing existing law helps prevent any confusion about 
which requirements apply to studies authorized by this 
legislation.
    Third, we recommend amending Section 5 so that it contains 
not only the names of the sites or themes for study, but also 
descriptions of the studies, similar to studies authorized by 
Congress in the past. These descriptions help to provide clear 
direction from Congress about the areas and resources to be 
studied.
    The Office of Management and Budget advises that there is 
no objection to the presentation of this report from the 
standpoint of the Administration's program.
            Sincerely,
                                           Donald J. Barry,
               Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks.

                        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. 1349, as ordered 
reported.

                                  
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