[Senate Report 108-8]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                        Calendar No. 16
108th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session                                                      108-8

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               FORT BAYARD NATIONAL HISTORIC LANDMARK ACT

                                _______
                                

               February 11, 2003.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

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

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 214]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 214) to designate Fort Bayard Historic 
District in the State of New Mexico as a National Historic 
Landmark, and for other purposes, having considered the same, 
reports favorably thereon with an amendment and recommends that 
the bill, as amended, do pass.
    The amendment is as follows:
    Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert in lieu 
thereof the following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Fort Bayard National Historic 
Landmark Act''.

SEC. 2. FORT BAYARD NATIONAL HISTORIC LANDMARK.

    (a) Designation.--The Fort Bayard Historic District in Grant 
County, New Mexico, as listed on the National Register of Historic 
Places, is hereby designated as the Fort Bayard National Historic 
Landmark.
    (b) Administration.--
          (1) Designation of the Fort Bayard Historic District as a 
        National Historic Landmark shall not prohibit any actions which 
        may otherwise be taken by the property owner with respect to 
        the property.
          (2) Nothing in this Act shall affect the administration of 
        the Fort Bayard Historic District by the State of New Mexico.

SEC. 3. COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary, in consultation with the State of 
New Mexico, may enter into cooperative agreements with appropriate 
public or private entities, for the purposes of protecting historic 
resources at Fort Bayard and providing educational and interpretive 
facilities and programs for the public. The Secretary shall not enter 
into any agreement or provide assistance to any activity affecting Fort 
Bayard State Hospital without the concurrence of the State of New 
Mexico.
    (b) Technical and Financial Assistance.--The Secretary may provide 
technical and financial assistance with any entity with which the 
Secretary has entered into a cooperative agreement under subsection 
(a).

SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated each sums as may be 
necessary to carry out this Act.

                                PURPOSE

    The purpose of S. 214 is to designate the Fort Bayard 
Historic District in New Mexico as a National Historic 
Landmark.

                          BACKGROUND AND NEED

    Fort Bayard was established in 1866 in southeastern New 
Mexico to protect Silver city and other nearby mining 
communities during ongoing fights with Apache Indians living in 
the area. Fort Bayard functioned as an Army post until 1899. 
Its soldiers, many of them African-American, or Buffalo 
Soldiers, protected area settlers. These Buffalo Soldiers were 
a mainstay of the Army during the late Apache wars and fought 
heroically in numerous skirmishes. Like many soldiers who 
served at Fort Bayard, some of the Buffalo Soldiers remained in 
the area following their discharge. Lines of headstones noting 
the names of men and their various Buffalo Soldier units remain 
in the older section of what is now Fort Bayard National 
Cemetery. In 1992, these soldiers were recognized for their 
bravery when a Buffalo Soldier Memorial statue was dedicated at 
the center of the Fort Bayard parade ground.
    By the end of the 19th century, it was clear that the era 
of the western frontier, at least from the Army's perspective, 
had ended. Following the departure of the 9th U.S. Cavalry, the 
War Department authorized the surgeon-general to establish a 
general hospital for use as a military sanatorium, the first 
dedicated to the treatment of officers and enlisted men of the 
Army suffering from pulmonary tuberculosis. At 6,100 feet above 
sea level, and with a dry, sunny climate, the fort lay within 
what proponents of climatological therapy termed the ``zone of 
immunity.''
    In 1920, the War Department closed the sanatorium and the 
United States Public Health Service assumed control of the 
facility. The facility was later transferred to the Veterans' 
Bureau. In 1965, the Fort Bayard facility, comprising over 480 
acres, was transferred to the State of New Mexico, which 
continues to operate the facility for various medical treatment 
programs.
    The Fort Bayard Historic District was listed on the 
National Register for Historic Places in July 2002, reflecting 
the historic significance of both the original Army post, and 
the subsequent medical facility.

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    S. 214 was introduced by Senators Bingaman and Domenici on 
January 23, 2003. During the 107th Congress the Committee 
considered similar legislation sponsored by Senator Bingaman, 
S. 2880. The Subcommittee on National Parks held a hearing on 
the bill on September 19, 2002. The Committee ordered S. 214 
favorably reported on October 4, 2002. The text of the bill was 
adopted by the Senate as part of an amendment to H.R. 980, 
which passed the Senate by unanimous consent on November 19, 
2002.
    At its business meeting on February 5, 2003, the Committee 
ordered S. 214 favorably reported, as amended.

                        COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

    The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in 
open business session on February 5, 2003, by a voice vote of a 
quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 214, if 
amended as described herein.

                          COMMITTEE AMENDMENT

    During its consideration of S. 214, the Committee adopted 
an amendment in the nature of a substitute. The amendment 
deletes section 2 from the bill, which contained congressional 
findings. The amendment also makes minor clarifying changes to 
sections 2 and 3 (as redesignated). The amendment is explained 
in detail in the section-by-section analysis, below.

                      SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

    Section 1 entitled the bill the ``Fort Bayard National 
Historic Landmark Act.''
    Section 2(a) designates the Fort Bayard Historic District 
in Grant County, New Mexico, as a National Historic Landmark.
    Subsection (b) makes clear that designation of the site as 
a National Historic Landmark shall not prohibit any actions 
which may otherwise be taken by the property owner with respect 
to the property. This provision is consistent with the 
Department of the Interior's regulations applicable to National 
Historic Landmarks (36 CFR part 65).
    Section 3(a) authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, in 
consultation with the State of New Mexico, to enter into 
cooperative agreements with appropriate public or private 
entities for the purposes of protecting historic resources at 
Fort Bayard and providing educational and interpretive 
facilities and programs for the public.
    Subsection (b) authorizes the Secretary to provide 
technical and financial assistance with any entity with the 
Secretary has entered into a cooperative agreement.
    Section 4 authorizes the appropriation of such sums as may 
be necessary to carry out the Act.

                   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, February 7, 2003.
Hon. Pete V. Domenici,
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. 214, the Fort Bayard 
National Historic Landmark Act.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Deborah Reis.
            Sincerely,
                                     Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Director.
    Enclosure.

S. 214--Fort Bayard National Historic Landmark Act

    S. 214 would designate the Fort Bayard Historic District in 
New Mexico as the Fort Bayard National Historic Landmark. The 
bill would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to execute 
cooperative agreements with nonfederal entities and to provide 
technical and financial assistance to such entities for 
historic preservation and interpretive activities. For those 
purposes, the bill would authorize the appropriation of 
whatever amounts are necessary.
    The cost of providing technical and financial assistance 
under S. 214 is uncertain because the National Park Service 
(NPS) has not conducted any evaluation of the landmark's 
resources. Based on preliminary information available from the 
NPS at this time and assuming the availability of appropriated 
funds, CBO estimates that such assistance would cost about 
$100,000 over the next three to four years.
    S. 214 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.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis. 
This estimate was approved by Paul R. Cullinan, Chief for Human 
Resources Cost Estimates Unit of the Budget Analysis Division.

                      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. 214. The Act is not a regulatory measure in the 
sense of imposing Government-established standards or 
significant 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 S. 214.

                        EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

    On February 6, 2003, the Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources requested legislative reports from the Department of 
the Interior and the Office of Management and Budget setting 
forth Executive agency recommendations on S. 214. These reports 
had not been received at the time the report on S. 214 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.

                        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 bill S. 214, as ordered 
reported.

                                
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