[House Report 109-338]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



109th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 1st Session                                                    109-338

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   FRENCH COLONIAL HERITAGE NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE STUDY ACT OF 2005

                                _______
                                

 December 13, 2005.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on 
            the State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

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

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 1728]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

  The Committee on Resources, to whom was referred the bill 
(H.R. 1728) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to study 
the suitability and feasibility of designating the French 
Colonial Heritage Area in the State of Missouri as a unit of 
the National Park System, and for other purposes, 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. SHORT TITLE.

  This Act may be cited as the ``French Colonial Heritage National 
Historic Site Study Act of 2005''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

  In this Act:
          (1) Area.--The term ``Area'' means the French Colonial 
        Heritage Area, which includes the Bequette-Ribault, St. Gemme-
        Amoureaux, and Wilhauk homes, and the related and supporting 
        historical assets located in Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri.
          (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of 
        the Interior, acting through the Director of the National Park 
        Service.

SEC. 3. STUDY.

  (a) In General.--Not later than 3 years after the date on which funds 
are made available to carry out this Act, the Secretary shall, in 
consultation with the State of Missouri--
          (1) complete a study on the suitability and feasibility of 
        designating the Area as a unit of the National Park System, 
        which shall include the potential impact that designation of 
        the area as a national heritage area is likely to have on land 
        within the proposed area or bordering the proposed area that is 
        privately owned at the time that the study is conducted; and
          (2) submit to the Committee on Resources of the House of 
        Representatives and the Committee on Energy and Natural 
        Resources of the Senate a report describing the findings of the 
        study.
  (b) Contents.--The study under subsection (a) shall be conducted in 
accordance with Public Law 91-383 (16 U.S.C. 1a-1 et seq.).

                          PURPOSE OF THE BILL

    The purpose of H.R. 1728 is to authorize the Secretary of 
the Interior to study the suitability and feasibility of 
designating the French Colonial Heritage Area in the State of 
Missouri as a unit of the National Park Service.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    H.R. 1728 would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to 
complete a study on the suitability and feasibility of 
designating the French Colonial Heritage Area as a unit of the 
National Park System. The French Colonial Heritage Area 
includes the Bequette-Ribault, St. Gemme-Amoureaux, and Wilhauk 
homes, and the related and supporting historical assets in Ste. 
Genevieve County, Missouri. The Area contains some of the only 
existing examples of the French Colonial period settlement, 
including two of the five poteaux-en-terre (post-in-the-ground) 
vertical log French buildings remaining in North America, 
dating from circa 1785, in addition to several other important 
historical resources. Moreover, the Area is located within the 
expanded boundaries of Ste. Genevieve National Historic 
District, a National Historic Landmark. Currently, no unit of 
the National Park System has comparable historic features 
providing the cultural backdrop required to adequately 
interpret the story of the early French in the New World.

                            COMMITTEE ACTION

    H.R. 1728 was introduced on April 20, 2005, by Congressman 
Russ Carnahan (D-MO). The bill was referred to the Committee on 
Resources, and within the Committee to the Subcommittee on 
National Parks. On November 16, 2005, the Committee on 
Resources met to consider the bill, at which time the 
Subcommittee on National Parks was discharged from further 
consideration of the bill by unanimous consent. Congressman 
Stevan Pearce (R-NM) offered an amendment in the nature of a 
substitute which removed the Findings and Authorization of 
Appropriations sections of the bill as well as added language 
directing the Secretary of the Interior to study potential 
impacts a designation would have on private property owners. 
The amendment was adopted by unanimous consent. The bill, as 
amended, was 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 tax 
expenditures. According to the Congressional Budget Office, 
enactment of this bill would increase offsetting receipts and 
direct spending, but ``any net change in direct spending would 
be negligible.''
    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:

H.R. 1728--French Colonial Heritage National Historic Site Study Act of 
        2005

    H.R. 1728 would direct the Secretary of the Interior to 
conduct a study to determine the suitability and feasibility of 
establishing an area of historical houses in Ste. Genevieve, 
Missouri, as a unit of the National Park System. Based on 
information provided by the National Park Service and assuming 
the availability of appropriated funds, CBO estimates that 
carrying out the proposed study would cost about $200,000 over 
the next three years. Enacting H.R. 1728 would not affect 
direct spending or revenues.
    The bill 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 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

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

                                  
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