[Senate Report 107-273]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 590
107th Congress Report
SENATE
2d Session 107-273
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VIRGINIA KEY BEACH PARK IN BISCAYNE BAY, FLORIDA
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September 11, 2002.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Bingaman, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 2109]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the Act (H.R. 2109) to authorize the Secretary of the
Interior to conduct a special resource study of Virginia Key
Beach Park in Biscayne Bay, Florida, for possible inclusion in
the National Park System, having considered the same, reports
favorably thereon without amendment and recommends that the Act
do pass.
PURPOSE
The purpose of H.R. 2109 is to authorize the Secretary of
the Interior to conduct a special resource study of Virginia
Key Beach Park in Biscayne Bay, Florida, to evaluate the site
for possible inclusion in the National Park System.
BACKGROUND AND NEED
Virginia Key Beach Park consists of a 77-acre area on the
southeastern flank of Virginia Key, a 1,000-acre island two
miles east of Miami. Virginia Key is a relatively unspoiled by
development, and is non-residential. Island attractions include
many ponds, rivers and waterways, a tropical hardwood hammock,
and a large wildlife conservation area.
Virginia Key Beach also played a role in the civil rights
struggle. Until August 1, 1945, all beaches in the Miami area
were closed to African Americans. As a result of a civil rights
protest in May 1945, Dade County created a separate public
beach at Virginia Key Beach for African-Americans on August 1,
1945. The beaches remained segregated until civil rights laws
opened all the beaches in the area to all races.
In 1982, the Virginia Key Beach property was granted to the
city of Miami from the county. In 1999, with an eye toward
acknowledgment and restoration of the historical aspects of the
area, the city of Miami designated the Virginia Key Beach Park
Civil Rights Task Force to examine the site and give advice
concerning the future of the beach.
On the task force's recommendation, the Virginia Key Beach
Park Trust was established in January 2001. The site was
included on the National Register of Historical Places in July
2002. A National Park Service special resource study would
gather the data collected through these efforts and help
determine the best way to recognize and protect Virginia Key
Beach.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
H.R. 2109 was introduced by Representative Carrie Meek on
June 7, 2001. The bill passed the House of Representatives by a
voice vote on April 30, 2002. Companion legislation, S. 1312,
was introduced by Senators Nelson of Florida and Graham on
August 2, 2001. The Subcommittee on National Parks held a
hearing on H.R. 2109 and S. 1312 on June 12, 2002. At the
business meeting on July 31, 2002 the Committee on Energy and
Natural Resources ordered H.R. 2109 favorably reported.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open
business session on July 31, 2002, by a voice vote of a quorum
present, recommends that the Senate pass H.R. 2109.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1 requires that the Secretary of the Interior
examine the area of the Virginia Key Beach Park in Biscayne
Bay, Florida and report to the designated congressional
committees on the suitability and viability of establishing the
site as a National Park System unit. In conducting the study
the Secretary must use the criteria for the study of areas for
potential inclusion in the National Park System contained in
section 8 of Public Law 91-383.
COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
The following estimate of the cost of this measure has been
provided by the Congressional Budget Office:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, August 9, 2002.
Hon. Jeff Bingaman,
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. 2109, an act to
authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special
resource study of Virginia Key Beach Park in Biscayne Bay,
Florida, for possible inclusion in the National Park System.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact for this
estimate is Deborah Reis.
Sincerely,
Barry B. Anderson
(For Dan L. Crippen, Director).
Enclosure.
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE COST ESTIMATE
H.R. 2109--An act to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct
a special resource study of Virginia Key Beach Park in Biscayne
Bay, Florida, for possible inclusion in the National Park
System
H.R. 2109 would require the National Park Service (NPS) to
evaluate the national significance of Virginia Key Beach Park
and the suitability and feasibility of establishing it as a
unit of the National Park System. The legislation would require
the agency to report to the Congress on its findings upon
conclusion of the study.
Based on information provided by the NPS, CBO estimates
that completing the required study and report would cost the
federal government $50,000 over the next three to four years,
assuming the availability of appropriated funds. H.R. 2109
would not affect direct spending or receipts; therefore, pay-
as-you-go procedures would not apply. The legislation 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 March 26, 2002, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R.
2109 as ordered reported by the House Committee on Resources on
March 20, 2002. The two versions of the legislation are
identical, as are the cost estimates.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis.
The 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. 2109. 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. 2109, as ordered reported.
EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS
The pertinent legislative report received by the Committee
from the Department of the Interior setting forth Executive
agency recommendations relating to H.R. 2109 is set forth
below:
U.S. Department of the Interior,
Office of the Secretary,
Washington, DC, July 25, 2002.
Hon. Jeff Bingaman,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: This letter sets forth the views of the
Department of the Interior on S. 1312 and H.R. 2109. These
bills would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct
a special resource study of Virginia Key Beach in Biscayne Bay,
Florida, where a recreational community for African Americans
flourished at a time when non-whites were prohibited from using
other beaches in the Miami area.
The Department supports both bills, but we prefer H.R. 2109
as passed by the House on April 30. However, we did not request
additional funding for this study in Fiscal Year 2003.
Altogether, there are 39 studies pending, of which we hope to
transmit at least 4 to Congress by the end of 2002. We have
concerns about adding new funding requirements for new park
units, national trails, wild and scenic rivers or heritage
areas at the same time that we are trying to eliminate the
deferred maintenance backlog. The Department will identify in
each study all of the acquisition, one-time, and operational
costs of the proposed site. At this time the costs are unknown.
S. 1312 and H.R. 2109 authorize the Secretary of the
Interior to conduct a special resource study of Virginia Key
Beach Park in Biscayne Bay, Florida. The study would evaluate
the site's national significance and the suitability and
feasibility of designating it as a unit of the National Park
System. The bill calls for the study to be completed under the
guidelines in Section 8 of P.L. 91-383, the National Park
Service General Authorities Act of 1970, as amended, which
contains the criteria for studying areas for potential
inclusion in the National Park System. The guidelines specify
that studies consider other alternatives for protection of the
subject area besides direct management by the National Park
Service.
Virginia Key Beach Park is a 77-acre site on the
southeastern side of Virginia Key, an island of approximately
1,000 acres located two miles east of downtown Miami, Florida
and about one mile southwest of the southern tip of Miami
Beach. Although there has been some limited development, the
island is non-residential and includes ponds and waterways, a
tropical hardwood hammock, and a large wildlife conservation
area.
In the summer of 1945, at the ``whites-only'' Baker's
Haulover Beach in north Dade County, a group of black men led
by Judge Lawson E. Thomas staged a protest of thesegration laws
that prohibited black persons from using the public beaches of Miami
and Dade County. In response to the protest, county officials created a
public beach for the black community on Virginia Key, which opened on
August 1, 1945.
The beach at Virginia Key had been used by African
Americans for at least the two previous decades. During World
War II, the Navy used Virginia Key Beach for training African
Americans servicemen who were not permitted to train in the
waters along the ``whites-only'' beaches. It was not until
1945, however, that the county began building recreational
facilities there and making the beach more accessible by
providing ferry boat service until the completion of the
Rickenbacker Causeway in 1949 allowed access by automobile.
Virginia Key Beach Park had bathhouses, picnic pavilions, a
concession stand, and a carousel and other amenities. The beach
remained segregated through the 1950's until civil rights laws
opened all the public beaches in the area. Still, through the
next two decades. Virginia Key Beach remained a popular
destination for many in the black community. In 1982, the area
was transferred from the county to the City of Miami with the
stipulation that the area be kept open and maintained as a
public park and recreation area. However, the city closed
Virginia Key Beach Park shortly after the transfer, citing the
high cost of maintenance and operations. After nearly 20 years
of non-use, the bathhouse, concessions building and other
facilities have fallen into disrepair.
At the present time, efforts are underway locally to
promote recognition and restoration of Virginia Key Beach Park.
In 1999, the City of Miami appointed the Virginia Key Park
Civil Rights Task Force to study and make recommendations for
the site, one of which was to establish a more permanent entity
to carry on the work of the task force. The Virginia Key Beach
Park Trust was established in January, 2001, to implement the
task forces' recommendations. A nomination for the National
Register of Historic Places is currently being prepared for the
site. A special resource study conducted by the National Park
Service would draw from the information compiled through these
efforts and facilitate decisions about appropriate means to
recognize and protect this site.
We recommend that the committee approve the language used
in H.R. 2109 as passed by the House rather than that used in S.
1312. H.R. 2109 was amended by the House to change the name of
the area to be studied from ``Virginia Key Beach'' to
``Virginia Key Beach Park.'' Although the names have been used
interchangeably, using the term ``Virginia Key Beach Park''
helps clarify that the study is focused on the 77-acre
recreation site and does not include the entire beach of
Virginia Key. It is also consistent with the name that is being
used for the site in the nomination for the National Register
of Historic Places.
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,
Craig Manson,
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, the Committee notes that no
changes in existing law are made by the Act H.R. 2109, as
ordered reported.