[House Report 107-562]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



107th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                     107-562

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           SUSQUEHANNA NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE EXPANSION ACT

                                _______
                                

 July 10, 2002.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

  Mr. Hansen, from the Committee on Resources, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 4807]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Resources, to whom was referred the bill 
(H.R. 4807) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to 
acquire the property in Cecil County, Maryland, known as 
Garrett Island for inclusion in the Susquehanna National 
Wildlife Refuge, having considered the same, report favorably 
thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass.

                          PURPOSE OF THE BILL

    The purpose of H.R. 4807 is to authorize the Secretary of 
the Interior to acquire the property in Cecil County, Maryland, 
known as Garrett Island for inclusion in the Susquehanna 
National Wildlife Refuge.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    On June 23, 1942, President Roosevelt issued Executive 
Order 9185 establishing the Susquehanna National Wildlife 
Refuge in Cecil County, Maryland. This area, which was closed 
to hunting, contained thousands of acres of submerged aquatic 
vegetation providing superb habitat for a large population of 
diving ducks.
    In 1978, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service opened the 
closed area to hunting because the aquatic vegetation had 
largely disappeared and waterfowl use had declined to the point 
where federal protection was no longer necessary. As a result, 
the size of the refuge was reduced to the four acres of Battery 
Island which had been the site of a U.S. Coast Guard lighthouse 
since the 1920's. The Susquehanna Refuge has been further 
reduced by erosion and it is managed as a non-staffed satellite 
of the larger Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge.
    Garrett Island is located at the mouth of the Susquehanna 
River and it is the only rocky island in the tidal waters of 
the Chesapeake Bay. It is a link between the river and the bay. 
The island is about a mile and a half wide, is comprised of 
approximately 198 acres, and rises to 115 feet above sea level. 
The island is currently owned by a group of private land 
conservators who donated 15 percent of the island to the Cecil 
Land Trust. It is estimated that the cost to the federal 
government of purchasing the remaining acreage would be 
$300,000.
    Garrett Island has been occupied by humans for generations. 
It was the site of Maryland's second settlement in the early 
1600's. In the mid-1800's, the B&O railroad purchased the 
island as a base for a bridge they built across the Susquehanna 
River and named it after its Chairman of the Board, John W. 
Garrett. Today, the island has no permanent residents and there 
is limited public use including bird watching, fishing and 
picnicking. The island has a variety of archeological, natural 
and wildlife resources. It provides high-quality habitat for 44 
different avian populations and dozens of fish species, 
including 14 kinds of ducks, eagles, Canadian geese, common 
loons and tundra swans.

                            COMMITTEE ACTION

    H.R. 4808 was introduced on May 22, 2002, by Congressman 
Wayne T. Gilchrest (R-MD), and was referred to the Committee on 
Resources. On June 3, 2002, the bill was referred within the 
Committee to the Subcommittee on Fisheries Conservation, 
Wildlife and Oceans. On June 12, 2002, the Subcommittee held a 
hearing on the bill. On June 20, 2002, the Subcommittee met to 
mark up the bill. There were no amendments and the bill was 
then forwarded to the FullCommittee by unanimous consent. On 
June 26, 2002, the full Resources Committee met to consider the 
measure. There were no amendments to the bill. The legislation was then 
ordered favorably reported to the House of Representatives by unanimous 
consent.

            COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

    Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of 
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the 
Committee on Resources' oversight findings and recommendations 
are reflected in the body of this report.

                   CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY STATEMENT

    Article I, section 8 of the Constitution and Article IV, 
section 3 of the United States grant Congress the authority to 
enact this bill.

                    COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII

    1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives requires an estimate and 
a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be 
incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(3)(B) 
of that rule provides that this requirement does not apply when 
the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted 
cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the 
Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
    2. Congressional Budget Act. As required by clause 3(c)(2) 
of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and 
section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, this 
bill does not contain any new budget authority, spending 
authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in 
revenues or tax expenditures. According to the Congressional 
Budget Office, enactment of this legislation could result in 
the expenditure of $800,000 for land acquisition and annual 
administrative costs thereafter of less than $200,000, subject 
to appropriations.
    3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. The purpose of 
this bill is to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to 
acquire the property in Cecil County, Maryland, known as 
Garrett Island for inclusion in the Susquehanna National 
Wildlife Refuge.
    4. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate. Under clause 
3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives and section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act 
of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate 
for this bill from the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                      Washington, DC, July 3, 2002.
Hon. James V. Hansen,
Chairman, Committee on Resources,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 4807, the 
Susquehanna National Wildlife Refuge Expansion 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. 4807--Susquehanna National Wildlife Refuge Expansion Act

    H.R. 4807 would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to 
acquire Garrett Island, a 198-acre island located at the mouth 
of the Susquehanna River in Cecil County, Maryland. The bill 
would direct the Secretary to manage the acquired lands as a 
unit of the Susquehanna National Wildlife Refuge.
    Assuming the availability of appropriated funds, and based 
on information from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, CBO 
estimates that the agency would spend up to $800,000 to acquire 
the island in 2003. We also estimate that the agency would 
spend less than $200,000 annually to manage the island and to 
make payments to Cecil County under the Refuge Revenue Sharing 
Act, assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts.
    H.R. 4807 would not affect direct spending or receipts; 
therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply. H.R. 4807 
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 CBO staff contact for this estimate is Megan Carroll. 
This estimate was approved by Robert A. Sunshine, Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.

                    COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104-4

    This bill contains no unfunded mandates.

                PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL OR TRIBAL LAW

    This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or 
tribal law.

                        CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

    If enacted, this bill would make no changes in existing 
law.

                                  
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