[House Report 107-707]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



107th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                     107-707

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ADJUSTING THE BOUNDARIES OF THE SALT RIVER BAY NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK 
      AND ECOLOGICAL PRESERVE LOCATED IN ST. CROIX, VIRGIN ISLANDS

                                _______
                                

October 1, 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. 5097]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Resources, to whom was referred the bill 
(H.R. 5097) to adjust the boundaries of the Salt River Bay 
National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve located in St. 
Croix, Virgin Islands, having considered the same, report 
favorably thereon with an amendment and recommend that the bill 
as amended do pass.
    The amendment is as follows:
    Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
following:

SECTION 1. BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENT.

    The first sentence of section 103(b) of the Salt River Bay National 
Historical Park and Ecological Preserve at St. Croix, Virgin Islands, 
Act of 1992 (16 U.S.C. 410tt-1(b)) is amended to read as follows: ``The 
park shall consist of approximately 1015 acres of lands, waters, and 
interests in lands as generally depicted on the map entitled `Salt 
River Bay National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve, St. Croix, 
U.S.V.I.', numbered 141/80002, and dated May 2, 2002.''.

                          Purpose of the Bill

    The purpose of H.R. 5097 is to adjust the boundaries of the 
Salt River Bay National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve 
located in St. Croix, Virgin Islands.

                  Background and Need for Legislation

    The Salt River Bay National Historical Park and Ecological 
Preserve was established by Congress in 1992 (16 U.S.C. 410tt). 
Located on the north coast of the island of St. Croix, about 
six miles from Christiansted, it includes the only known place 
in present-day U.S. territory where members of Christopher 
Columbus' expedition landed. Among its pre-Columbian 
archaeological finds have been the only ceremonial ball court 
ever discovered in the Lesser Antilles. Some of its many 
natural and environmental treasures include one of the few 
carbonate submarine canyons in the world and the largest and 
last remaining mangrove estuarine system in the U.S. Virgin 
Islands, if not the entire Caribbean.
    To provide better service and a more rewarding experience 
for Park visitors, it is important for the National Park 
Service (NPS) to have a place where visitors can come to learn 
about the Park and receive assistance from NPS personnel. There 
is currently no such NPS facility at the Park. The NPS recently 
identified a two-story, 4800 square foot house at the site that 
can easily be converted to a visitor station, museum, and 
operation center that will house enforcement and maintenance 
personnel and all Park functions. Because this facility is 
presently outside the current Park boundary, H.R. 5097 was 
introduced to expand the boundary of the Park to include the 
site of this new facility as well as to include 15.4 acres of 
land that has been offered as a donation to the park.

                            Committee Action

    H.R. 5097 was introduced on July 11, 2002, by Delegate 
Donna Christensen (D-VI). The bill was referred to the 
Committee on Resources and within the Committee to the 
Subcommittee on National Parks, Recreation, and Public Lands. 
On September 12, 2002, the Full Resources Committee met to 
consider the bill. The Subcommittee on National Parks, 
Recreation, and Public Lands was discharged from further 
consideration of H.R. 5097 by unanimous consent. Delegate 
Christensen offered an amendment in the nature of a substitute 
to correct the map title and number cited in the bill as well 
as the acreage associated with the boundary expansion. It was 
agreed to by unanimous consent. The bill as amended 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 of the United 
States grants 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.
    3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. This bill does 
not authorize funding and therefore, clause 3(c)(4) of rule 
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives does not 
apply.
    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, September 25, 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. 5097, a bill to 
adjust the boundaries of the Salt River Bay National Historical 
Park and Ecological Preserve located in St. Croix, Virgin 
Islands.
    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. 5097--A bill to adjust the boundaries of the Salt River Bay 
        National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve located in St. 
        Croix, Virgin Islands

    H.R. 5097 would expand the boundary of the Salt River Bay 
National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve by roughly 30 
acres. Assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts, CBO 
estimates that implementing the legislation would cost the 
federal government between $6 million and $8 million over the 
next three or four years and about $0.3 million annually 
thereafter. H.R. 5097 would not affect receipts or direct 
spending; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply.
    The bill 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.
    CBO estimates that the National Park Service (NPS) would 
spend between $2 million and $3 million in 2003 to purchase an 
existing house on about nine acres of land adjacent to the 
part. We expect that the remaining acreage would be donated to 
the NPS, also in that year. We estimate it would cost between 
$4 million and $5 million to develop the house into a 
multipurpose visitor and administrative center and to improve 
road access. Finally, CBO estimates that it would cost $0.3 
million a year to operate the new center starting in 2005 or 
2006. These estimates are based on information provided by the 
NPS and assume appropriation of the necessary amounts.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis. 
The estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy 
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 Made by the Bill, as Reported

    In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by 
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law 
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new 
matter is printed in italic, existing law in which no change is 
proposed is shown in roman):

    SECTION 103 OF THE SALT RIVER BAY NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK AND 
     ECOLOGICAL PRESERVE AT ST. CROIX, VIRGIN ISLANDS, ACT OF 1992


SEC. 103. SALT RIVER BAY NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK AND ECOLOGICAL 
                    PRESERVE AT ST. CROIX, VIRGIN ISLANDS.

    (a) * * *
    (b) Area Included.--[The park shall consist of 
approximately 912 acres of land, waters, submerged lands, and 
interests therein within the area generally depicted on the map 
entitled ``Salt River Study Area--Alternative `C' '' in the 
``Alternatives Study and Environmental Assessment for the 
Columbus Landing Site, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands'', 
prepared by the National Park Service and dated June 1990.] The 
park shall consist of approximately 1015 acres of lands, 
waters, and interests in lands as generally depicted on the map 
entitled ``Salt River Bay National Historical Park and 
Ecological Preserve, St. Croix, U.S.V.I.'', numbered 141/80002, 
and dated May 2, 2002. The map shall be on file and available 
for public inspection in the offices of the National Park 
Service, Department of the Interior, and the Offices of the 
Lieutenant Governor of St. Thomas and St. Croix, Virgin 
Islands.

                                  
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