[Senate Report 106-392]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                       Calendar No. 768


106th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 2d Session                                                     106-392

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



 
              SAINT HELENA ISLAND NATIONAL SCENIC AREA ACT

                                _______
                                

                August 25, 2000.--Ordered to be printed

   Filed under authority of the order of the Senate of July 26, 2000

                                _______
                                

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

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 468]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the Act (H.R. 468) to establish the Saint Helena 
Island National Scenic Area, having considered the same, 
reports favorably thereon with an amendment and recommends that 
the Act, as amended, do pass.
    The amendment is as follows:
    On page 4, lines 1-5; Strike the first sentence and insert 
the following:

          ``Within 3 years of the acquisition of 50% of the 
        land authorized for acquisition under section 7, the 
        Secretary shall develop an amendment to the land and 
        resources management plan for the Hiawatha National 
        Forest which will direct management of the scenic 
        area.''.

                         purpose of the measure

    The purpose of H.R. 468 is to establish the Saint Helena 
Island National Scenic Area.

                          background and need

    The owners of most of Saint Helena Island, an island in the 
Straits of Mackinac in Lake Michigan, have put their 240 acre 
parcel up for sale. H.R. 468 authorizes the purchase of this 
land to preserve and protect its outstanding resources. The 
bill also establishes the Saint Helena Island National Scenic 
Area to be managed as part of the Hiawatha National Forest. 
H.R. 468 also authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to 
acquire up to 10 acres of land, including improvements, on the 
mainland to provide access and facilities for the scenic area.

                          legislative history

    H.R. 468 was introduced on February 2, 1999, by Congressman 
Dale Kildee. On September 21, 1999, H.R. 468 passed the House 
by a vote of 410-2. The Subcommittee on Forests and Public Land 
Management held a hearing on H.R. 468 on June 8, 2000. At the 
business meeting on July 13, 2000, the Committee on Energy and 
Natural Resources ordered H.R. 468 reported favorably with an 
amendment.

            committee recommendation and tabulation of votes

    The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in 
open business session on July 13, 2000, by a voice vote of a 
quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass H.R. 468 if 
amended as described herein.

                          committee amendment

    During the consideration of H.R. 468, the Committee adopted 
an amendment thataddresses the Administration's concerns on the 
timing of the development of a management plan for the National Scenic 
Area.

                      section-by-section analysis

    Section 1 states that the short title is the ``Saint Helena 
Island National Scenic Area Act.''
    Section 2 gives the purposes of the Act and establishes the 
Saint Helena Island National Scenic Area effective upon 
conveyance of satisfactory title of the whole of Saint Helena 
Island except for the portion owned by the Great Lakes 
Lighthouse Keepers Association.
    Section 3 specifies the boundaries of the scenic area and 
extends the Hiawatha National Forest to encompass the scenic 
area.
    Section 4(a) requires the Secretary of Agriculture to 
administer the scenic area similar to other National Forest 
System lands.
    Subsection (b) requires the Secretary to develop creation 
of a management plan for the scenic area within three years of 
the acquisition of at least half of the land authorized for 
purchase, and requires that the plan address several specified 
management considerations.
    Subsection (c) requires that the management plan be 
developed in consultation with State and local government 
officials and provide for full public participation.
    Section 5 preserves the existing jurisdiction of the State 
of Michigan for fish and wildlife responsibility.
    Section 6 withdraws the lands in the scenic area from 
mineral leasing, subject to existing rights, except for common 
materials for road and facility construction needs.
    Section 7(a) requires the Secretary to acquire from willing 
sellers, lands or interests therein.
    Subsection (b) authorizes the Secretary to acquire not more 
than 10 acres on the mainland to provide access to the scenic 
area.
    Section 8 authorizes appropriations as necessary for the 
acquisition of land, interest in land, or structures within the 
scenic area and for an administrative site, as well as what may 
be necessary for development and implementation of the 
management plan.

                   cost and budgetary considerations

    The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimate of the costs 
of this measure follows:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                     Washington, DC, July 19, 2000.
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. 468, the Saint 
Helena Island National Scenic Area Act.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Megan 
Carroll.
            Sincerely,
                                          Barry B. Anderson
                                    (For Dan L. Crippen, Director).
    Enclosure.

H.R. 468--Saint Helena Island National Scenic Area Act

    CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 468 would cost about 
$3 million over the 2001-2005 period, subject to the 
appropriation of the estimated amounts. Because the legislation 
would not affect direct spending or receipts, pay-as-you-go 
procedures would not apply. H.R. 468 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.
    H.R. 468 would direct the Secretary of Agriculture to 
acquire almost 240 acres of privately owned land comprising 
most of Saint Helena Island in Lake Michigan to establish the 
Saint Helena Island National Scenic Area. H.R. 468 also would 
authorize the Secretary to acquire up to 10 acres of land, 
including improvements, on the mainland to provide access and 
facilities for the proposed scenic area. The acquired land 
would be managed as part of the Hiawatha National Forest. Once 
the Secretary has acquired half of the land authorized for the 
scenic area, H.R. 468 would direct the Secretary to develop a 
management plan for the area.
    Based on information from the Forest Service and recent 
information from landowners on the island, CBO estimates that 
the agency would spend about $2 million to acquire the land, 
plus another $600,000 to establish and manage the scenic area, 
including developing a management plan for the island, 
constructing basic facilities, and surveying the area. Once the 
national scenic area is established, ongoing administrative 
costs would total about $50,000 each year. Such spending would 
be subject to the appropriation of the necessary amounts.
    On July 14, 1999, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R. 
468 as ordered reported by the House Committee on Resources on 
June 30, 1999. The two versions of this legislation are 
substantively the same. CBO's estimate of the cost to acquire 
the land on Saint Helena Island is now about $500,000 higher 
than our estimate in June 1999.
    The CBO staff contact is Megan Carroll. This estimate was 
approved by Robert A. Sunshine, 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. 468.
    The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of 
imposing Government-established standards or 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 the 
enactment of H.R. 468, as ordered reported.

                        executive communications

    On July 13, 2000 the Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources requested legislative reports from the Department of 
Agriculture and the Office of Management and Budget setting 
forth Executive agency recommendations on H.R. 468. These 
reports had not been received at the time the report on H.R. 
468 was filed. When the reports become available, the Chairman 
will request that they be printed in the Congressional Record 
for the advice of the Senate. The testimony provided by the 
Forest Service at the Subcommittee hearing follows:

   Statement of Jack Craven, Director of Lands, Forest Service, U.S. 
                       Department of Agriculture

    Mr. Chairman, and members of the subcommittee, thank you 
for the opportunity to present the Administration's views 
concerning H.R. 468, an Act to establish the Saint Helena 
Island National Scenic Area. The Administration supports this 
bill with a minor amendment.
    This bill would establish the Saint Helena Island National 
Scenic Area in the State of Michigan to be included within the 
Hiawatha National Forest. It would authorize the purchase of 
private land on the island from willing sellers. The creation 
of the Saint Helena Island National Scenic Area would preserve 
and protect this outstanding resource. The island provides 
habitat for rare, threatened, and endangered plant species, and 
a great blue heron rookery. The addition of this land to the 
Hiawatha National Forest would provide opportunities for 
recreation experiences in a primitive setting outside of 
wilderness. For these reasons, the Administration supports this 
legislation if the following consideration is given.
    The bill would require the Forest Service to develop a 
management plan within three years of enactment. We would 
recommend that the bill direct the management plan be developed 
after 50% of the lands within the scenic area are acquired by 
the Forest Service.
    This concludes my testimony. I would be glad to answer any 
questions 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 H.R. 468, as ordered 
reported.

                                
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