[Senate Report 106-211]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                       Calendar No. 367
106th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session                                                    106-211

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



 
UPPER DELAWARE SCENIC AND RECREATIONAL RIVER MONGAUP VISITOR CENTER ACT 
                                OF 1999

                                _______
                                

                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 H.R. 20]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred to the bill (H.R. 20) to authorize the Secretary of 
the Interior to construct and operate a visitor center for the 
Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River on land owned by 
the State of New York, having considered the same, reports 
favorably thereon with an amendment and recommends that the 
act, as amended, do pass.
    The amendment is as follows:
    At the end of bill add the following section:

``SEC. 4. EXTENSION OF ADVISORY COUNCIL AUTHORIZATION.

    ``Section 704(f)(1) of the National Parks and Recreation 
Act of 1978 (Public Law 95-625; 16 U.S.C. 1274 note) is amended 
in the last sentence by striking `20' and inserting `30'.''

                         Purpose of the Measure

    The purpose of H.R. 20, as ordered reported, is to 
authorize construction and operation of a visitor center for 
the Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River on land owned 
by the State of New York and to extend the authorization for 
the Upper Delaware Citizens Advisory Council for 10 additional 
years.

                          Background and Need

    The Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River in New 
York and Pennsylvania was authorized as a Wild and Scenic River 
and unit of the National Park System in 1978. The enabling 
legislation limited Federal land acquisition, along the 75 mile 
stretch of the river, to not more than 450 acres. Currently out 
of approximately 55,575 acres, only 30 acres are Federally 
owned. The Upper Delaware is managed in cooperation with State 
and local governments, as well as other Federal agencies. The 
law also established the seventeen-member Upper Delaware 
Citizens Advisory Council to encourage public involvement in 
the development and implementation of plans and programs. After 
one 10 year-extension, the authority for the council expired in 
1998.
    A river management plan was approved by the Secretary of 
the Interior in 1987. The plan established the Upper Delaware 
Council, along with a small support staff, to provide an 
oversight and advisory role for the management of Upper 
Delaware Scenic and Recreational River. The plan also called 
for the National Park Service to build and operate a visitor 
facility in the Mongaup area in New York. The proposed location 
of the center is on land owned by the New York State Department 
of Environmental Conservation. In 1993 the New York State 
Legislature authorized the Federal development of a visitor 
center under terms of a 99-year no-cost lease. The State 
legislation limits the building to not more than 100,000 square 
feet and not taller than 2 stories in height.

                          Legislative History

    H.R. 20 was passed by the House of Representatives on 
October 12, 1999 and was referred to the Committee on Energy 
and Natural Resources on October 13, 1999.
    On October 13, 1999 the Subcommittee on National Parks, 
Historic Preservation, and Recreation held a hearing on similar 
legislation, S. 167, sponsored by Senator Moynihan and S. 1366, 
introduced by Senator Murkowski at the request of the 
Administration.
    At its business meeting on October 20, 1999, the Committee 
on Energy and Natural Resources ordered H.R. 20, 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 H.R. 20, 
if amended as described herein.

                          Committee Amendment

    An amendment adds a new section to extend the authorization 
for the Upper Delaware Citizens Advisory Council for 10 
additional years. This reauthorization provision was included 
in the Senate companion measure, S. 167.

                      Section-by-Section Analysis

    Section 1 designates the bill's short title as the ``Upper 
Delaware Scenic and Recreational River Mongaup Visitor Center 
Act of 1999''.
    Section 2 lists the findings that the river management 
plan, developed in accordance with Public Law 95-625 (the 
river's enabling legislation) called for the National Park 
Service to build and operate a visitor contact facility in the 
southern end of the river corridor; that the authority for 
Federally owned land is limited; and that the State of New York 
authorized a 99-year lease between the New York State 
Department of Environmental Conservation and the National Park 
Service for the construction and operation of a visitor center 
on State-owned land. The site is to be in the vicinity of 
Mongaup in the town of Deerpark, Orange County, New York.
    Section 3 authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, subject 
to the availability of appropriated funds, to enter into a 99-
year lease with the State of New York to construct and operate 
a visitor center for Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational 
River on land owned by the State.
    Section 4 amends section 704(f)(1) of Public law 95-625 to 
extend the authority for the Upper Delaware Citizens Advisory 
Council for another 10 years, for a total of 30 years, with the 
authority expiring in 2008.

                   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 27, 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 H.R. 20, the Upper 
Delaware Scenic and Recreational River Mongaup Visitor Center 
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.

 H.R. 20--Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River Mongaup Visitor 
                           Center Act of 1999

    H.R. 20 would authorize the National Park Service (NPS) to 
enter into a 99-year lease with the state of New York for 
state-owned land located near the Delaware Scenic and 
Recreational River. The act also would authorize the NPS to 
construct and operate a visitor center on the leased land. 
Finally, the legislation would extend the life of the Upper 
Delaware Citizens Advisory Council (UDCAC) for an additional 10 
years. The council, which had advised the NPS on managing the 
area, expired in February 1999.
    Based on information provided by the NPS and assuming 
appropriation of the necessary amounts, CBO estimates that the 
agency would spend about $7 million over the next four years to 
construct a visitor center on land leased from New York. We 
estimate that the costs of the long-term lease would be 
negligible. Once the center has been completed, the NPS would 
spend about $600,000 annually to operate it.
    CBO estimates that extending the life of the UDCAC would 
have no significant effect on federal spending. Until the 
council expired, the NPS provided it with about $10,000 
annually for administrative expenses such as travel.
    H.R. 20 would not affect direct spending or receipts; 
therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply. The act 
contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as 
defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would impose no 
costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
    On September 29, 1999, CBO submitted a cost estimate for 
H.R. 20 as ordered reported by the House Committee on Resources 
on September 22, 1999. The House version of the legislation did 
not include the extension of the UDCAC.
    The CBO staff contact 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 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 H.R. 20. 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 H.R. 20, as ordered reported.

                        Executive Communications

    The Committee did not request Executive views on H.R. 20. 
However, the legislative report received by the Committee from 
the Department of the Interior setting forth Executive agency 
recommendation relating to the S. 167, the companion bill, is 
set forth below.

                   U.S. Department of the Interior,
                                   Office of the Secretary,
                                  Washington, DC, October 15, 1999.
Hon. Frank Murkowski,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: This letter responds to your request for 
views on S. 167, a bill to extend the authorization for the 
Upper Delaware Citizens Advisory Council for an additional ten 
years and to authorize the construction and operation of a 
visitor center for the Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational 
River in New York and Pennsylvania.
    The Department supports enactment of legislation to 
authorize the Secretary of the Interior to construct and 
operate a visitor center on New York State owned land, and does 
not oppose extension of the Upper Delaware Citizens Advisory 
Council (``Council''). The Upper Delaware Scenic and 
Recreational River was authorized as a National Wild and Scenic 
River and a unit of the National Park System in 1978. Unlike in 
most units of the National Park System, federal land 
acquisition was strictly limited by the unit's enabling 
legislation. As a result, the Upper Delaware Scenic and 
Recreational River is administered through a carefully balanced 
partnership among federal, state and local governments. The 
National Park Service was assigned the primary responsibility 
of managing the recreational use on the river.
    A river management plan was prepared for the Upper Delaware 
Scenic and Recreational River in November 1986. The plan 
specifically calls for the NPS to build and operate a visitor 
facility in the Mongaup area. This goal is a significant 
obligation, given the limited acquisition authority, coupled 
with the partnership commitment by the federal government on 
the Upper Delaware, as defined in the approved Final River 
Management Plan. S. 167 authorizes the construction and 
operation of the visitor center on non-federal land as 
recommended in the river management plan.
    Currently, no public facility exists to provide visitors an 
orientation as they enter this unit of the National Park 
System. Despite interim program measures, most first-time, as 
well as many repeat, visitors to the Upper Delaware are not 
aware of its federal designation and significance, or 
understand the limitations regarding public access and 
facilities within its boundary. The purpose of the proposed 
visitor center would be to orient visitors to public facilities 
and programs, commercially operated services within the river 
corridor, information on river safety, and laws concerning 
private property. Basic visitor services like restrooms, 
telephones and area maps would be provided, and information on 
locally provided visitor and recreational services. The center 
would serve as the park's primary visitor contact facility from 
which educational programs would be offered on the region's 
natural and cultural history.
    The strategic location for the Mongaup Visitor Center could 
enable it to attract the majority of the Upper Delaware's 
approximately 300,000 annual visitors, as well as countless 
sightseers who drive along scenic Route 97. The proposed site 
is located on a 55-acres tract of undeveloped land within a 
region that reputedly hosts the largest wintering population of 
American Bald Eagles in the northeastern United States. The 
visitor center would not exceed the 10,000 square feet or the 
two-story height specified by New York State, and would include 
exhibits designed to educate the public about the biology of 
the American Bald Eagle. The visitor center would be a year-
round facility, with extended hours during the peak summer 
months of June, July and August.
    S. 167 enables the NPS to fulfill its obligation to 
construct and operate the Mongaup Visitor Center and ensure the 
level and quality of service expected from an established unit 
of the National Park System. Without a central facility as 
proposed in S. 167, the ability of the NPS to carry out its 
role and responsibility, as outlined in the approved River 
Management Plan, with regard to resource protection and pubic 
education, cannot be fully realized.
    Section 2 of S. 167 authorizes the visitor center by 
amending Section 704(d) of Public Law 95-625. The Department 
recommends that the Committee adopt the language in S. 1366, a 
stand-alone bill, that addresses the construction and operation 
of the visitor center issue. The language of S. 1366 is similar 
to the language of H.R. 20 that is currently moving in the 
House, having been reported by the House Resources Committee on 
September 22, 1999.
    With regard to the extension of the Council, we do not 
oppose its extension. The Council's authority expired on 
February 6, 1999. The Council played an important role in the 
early years of the park's establishment and in the development 
of the park's river management plan. Recently, the Council has 
not been as active as it had been in the past. Several of the 
positions on the council have been vacant for the past few 
years and there have been a number of times when the council 
has not had a quorum at its meetings.
    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, changes in existing law by H.R. 
20, as ordered reported, are shown as follows (existing law 
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new 
matter in printed in italic, existing law in which no change is 
proposed is shown in roman);

                 [Public Law 95-625, November 10, 1978]

    Sec. 704.(a) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

    (f)(1) At the earliest practicable date following enactment 
of this act, but not later than one hundred and twenty days 
thereafter, there shall be established an Upper Delaware 
Citizens Advisory Council. The Advisory Council shall encourage 
maximum public involvement in the development and 
implementation of the plans and programs authorized by this 
section. It shall report to the Commission and the Secretary 
from time to time during preparation of the management plan. 
Following completion of the management plan, it shall report to 
the Secretary and the Governors of the directly affected States 
no less frequently than once each year its recommendations, if 
any, for improvement in the programs authorized by this Act, or 
in the programs of other agencies which may relate to land or 
water use in the Upper Delaware River region. The Advisory 
Council shall terminate [20] 30 years after the date on which 
it is established.

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