[Senate Report 106-23]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]





                                                        Calendar No. 50


106th Congress                                                   Report
  1st Session                    SENATE                          106-23

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



 
   MINUTEMAN MISSILE NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE ESTABLISHMENT ACT OF 1999

                                _______
                                

                 March 17, 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. 382]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 382) to establish the Minuteman Missile 
National Historic Site in the State of South Dakota, and for 
other purposes, having considered the same, reports favorably 
thereon without amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.

                         Purpose of the Measure

    The purpose of S. 382, as ordered reported, is to establish 
the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site in South Dakota as 
a unit of the National Park System.

                          Background and Need

    During the Cuban missile crisis of 1962, the United States 
and the Soviet Union came closer to nuclear war than at any 
other time in history. As the world watched, Soviet leader 
Nikita Khrushchev and President John F. Kennedy engaged in a 
showdown over the U.S. demands that the Soviet Union remove its 
missiles from Cuba. It was at this point that the Minuteman 
Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) was developed.
    The Minuteman missile played a critical role in the Cold 
War arms race as America's first push button nuclear missile. 
Once the launch command was given and the keys were turned, a 
Minuteman missile could deliver its nuclear warhead to a Soviet 
target within 30 minutes or less.
    Concerned over a missile gap, the United States raced to 
catch up with the perceived military superiority of the 
Soviets. During the Cold War years, the U.S. Air Force deployed 
over 1,000 Minuteman missiles in underground silos throughout 
the central United States. Minuteman missiles were 
inconspicuous, silent, and unknown to the casual observer.
    The Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) required the 
deactivation of the nation's Minuteman Missile force including 
the 150 missiles and 15 launch facilities at Ellsworth Air 
Force Base, South Dakota. In 1993, the National Park Service 
and the Air Force entered into a cooperative agreement to 
temporarily preserve two representative Minuteman sites, Delta 
One and Delta Nine at Ellsworth Air Force Base, until their 
long-term preservation could be evaluated.
    In the same year, the Air Force requested and funded a 
Special Resource Study to assess the suitability and 
feasibility of adding the site to the National Park System. The 
National Park Service study was completed in June 1997, and 
found that the two Minuteman sites met the criteria for 
eligibility and suitability as a unit of the National Park 
System.
    Since Delta One and Delta Nine and most of surrounding 
lands are Federally owned, there would be minimal acquisition 
costs for the site.

                          Legislative History

    S. 382 was introduced on February 4, 1999 by Senators 
Johnson and Daschle and referred to the Committee on Energy and 
Natural Resources. The Subcommittee on National Parks, Historic 
Preservation, and Recreation held a hearing on S. 382 on 
February 24, 1999.
    During the 105th Congress a similar bill, S. 2284 was 
introduced by Senators Johnson and Daschle on July 9, 1998. The 
Subcommittee on National Parks, Historic Preservation and 
Recreation held a hearing on S. 2284 on July 23, 1998.
    At its business meeting on September 24, 1998, the 
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources ordered S. 2284 
favorably reported as amended. S. 2284 was passed by the Senate 
without amendment on October 7, 1998. No further action was 
taken in the House of Representatives.
    At its business meeting on March 4, 1999, the Committee on 
Energy and Natural Resources ordered S. 382, favorably 
reported.

                        committee recommendation

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open 
business session on March 4, 1999, by a unanimous voice vote of 
a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 382, as 
described herein.

                      section-by-section analysis

    Section 1 designates the bill's short title as the 
``Minuteman Missile National Historic Site Act of 1999''.
    Section 2 lists the findings and purposes of the bill, 
including a finding that the proposed Minuteman missile sites, 
Delta 1 and Delta 9, have national significance as the best 
preserved examples of Cold War missile facilities. This Act 
would ensure these sites are preserved, protected and 
interpreted for future generations. The site would also 
interpret the role of the Minuteman II system as a key 
component to preserve world peace and in the broader context of 
the Cold War and to complement programs at the South Dakota Air 
and Space Museum at Ellsworth Air Force Base.
    Section 3 (a) establishes the ``Minuteman Missile National 
Historic Site'', in the State of South Dakota, as a unit of the 
National Park System. The historic site includes the areas 
surrounding the launch control facilities known as Delta 1 and 
Delta 9, as depicted on the map referred to as ``Minuteman 
Missile National Historic Site'', numbered 406/80,008 and dated 
September, 1998. The map is to be on file and available for 
public inspection in appropriate offices of the National Park 
Service.
    Subsection (b) provides that the Historic Site is to be 
administered in accordance with this Act and with laws 
generally applicable to units of the National Park System 
including the Act of August 25, 1916 (16 U.S.C. 1, 2-4) and the 
Act of August 21, 1935 (16 U.S.C. 461-467).
    Subsection (c) directs the Secretary to consult with the 
Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of State to ensure that 
administration of the historic site is in compliance with 
applicable treaties.
    Subsection (d) authorizes the Secretary to enter into 
cooperative agreements with institutions and individuals to 
provide for the preservation, development, and interpretation 
of the site.
    Subsection (e) authorizes the acquisition of lands by 
donation, purchase with donated or appropriated funds, exchange 
or transfer from another Federal agency. Lands owned by the 
State of South Dakota may only be acquired by donation or 
exchange. The Secretary may not acquire any lands that are 
contaminated with hazardous substances, unless all remedial 
action necessary to protect human health and the environment 
has been taken pursuant to such Act.
    Subsection (f) requires the Secretary to submit to Congress 
a General Management Plan within three years after enactment of 
this Act. In developing the plan, the Secretary is to consider 
coordinating or consolidating management and personnel 
functions with Badlands National Park. The plan shall include 
an evaluation of locations for a visitor facility and 
administrative site. When an appropriate location is determined 
the boundary of the historic site shall then be modified to 
include the selected site.
    Section 4 authorizes the necessary funding to carry out 
this Act. The section directs the Secretary of the Air Force to 
transfer to the National Park Service any funds specifically 
appropriated to the Air Force for the maintenance and 
preservation of the facilities. Nothing in this Act affects the 
use of Legacy Resource Management funds by the Air Force that 
were directed to be used for resource preservation and treaty 
compliance.

                   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, March 11, 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. 382, the Minuteman 
Missile National Historic Site Establishment 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.

               congressional budget office cost estimate

S. 382--Minuteman Missile National Historic Site Establishment Act of 
        1999

    Assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts, CBO 
estimates that implementing S. 382 would cost the federal 
government about $8.4 million over the next five years. 
Subsequent ongoing costs after this period would be about $0.7 
million annually. S. 382 would not affect direct spending or 
receipts; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply.
    S. 382 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.
    S. 382 would establish the Minuteman Missile National 
Historic Site in South Dakota as a unit of the National Park 
System. The new park unit would consist of the Delta 1 and 
Delta 9 launch facilities and one of two support facility areas 
that are under consideration for a visitor and administrative 
site. The NPS would have three years in which to complete a 
general management plan for the new park unit, including an 
evaluation of the alternative areas for the visitor and 
administrative facility.
    Based on information provided by the National Park Service 
(NPS), CBO estimates that the government would spend about 
$350,000 over the next three fiscal years to develop the 
general management plan for the Minuteman unit. The NPS would 
incur additional costs of about $8 million over the 2000-2004 
period to establish and begin operating the site, most of which 
would be used to build a visitor and administrative center. In 
subsequent years, the agency would spend about $0.7 million to 
operate and maintain the new park.
    The CBO staff contact 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. 382. 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. 382, as ordered reported.

                        executive communications

    A representative from the National Park Service testified 
in support of S. 382 at a hearing before the Subcommittee on 
National Parks, Historic Preservation and Recreation on 
February 24, 1999.

                        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. 382, as ordered 
reported.

                                
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