[House Report 110-250]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



110th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 1st Session                                                    110-250

======================================================================



 
            STAR-SPANGLED BANNER NATIONAL HISTORIC TRAIL ACT

                                _______
                                

 July 23, 2007.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

  Mr. Rahall, from the Committee on Natural Resources, submitted the 
                               following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 1388]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

  The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred the 
bill (H.R. 1388) to amend the National Trails System Act to 
designate the Star-Spangled Banner Trail in the States of 
Maryland and Virginia and the District of Columbia as a 
National Historic Trail, 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 ``Star-Spangled Banner National Historic 
Trail Act''.

SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION OF TRAIL.

  Section 5(a) of the National Trails System Act (16 U.S.C. 1244(a)) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
          ``(__) Star-spangled banner national historic trail.--
                  ``(A) In general.--The Star-Spangled Banner National 
                Historic Trail, a trail consisting of water and 
                overland routes totaling approximately 290 miles, 
                extending from Tangier Island, Virginia, through 
                southern Maryland, the District of Columbia, and 
                northern Virginia, in the Chesapeake Bay, Patuxent 
                River, Potomac River, and north to the Patapsco River, 
                and Baltimore, Maryland, commemorating the Chesapeake 
                Campaign of the War of 1812 (including the British 
                invasion of Washington, District of Columbia, and its 
                associated feints, and the Battle of Baltimore in 
                summer 1814), as generally depicted on the map titled 
                `Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail', 
                numbered T02/80,000, and dated June 2007.
                  ``(B) Map.--The map referred to in subparagraph (A) 
                shall be maintained on file and available for public 
                inspection in the appropriate offices of the National 
                Park Service.
                  ``(C) Administration.--Subject to subparagraph 
                (E)(ii), the trail shall be administered by the 
                Secretary of the Interior.
                  ``(D) Land acquisition.--No land or interest in land 
                outside the exterior boundaries of any federally 
                administered area may be acquired by the United States 
                for the trail except with the consent of the owner of 
                the land or interest in land.
                  ``(E) Public participation.--The Secretary of the 
                Interior shall--
                          ``(i) encourage communities, owners of land 
                        along the trail, and volunteer trail groups to 
                        participate in the planning, development, and 
                        maintenance of the trail; and
                          ``(ii) consult with other affected landowners 
                        and Federal, State, and local agencies in the 
                        administration of the trail.
                  ``(F) Interpretation and assistance.--Subject to the 
                availability of appropriations, the Secretary of the 
                Interior may provide, to State and local governments 
                and nonprofit organizations, interpretive programs and 
                services and technical assistance for use in--
                          ``(i) carrying out preservation and 
                        development of the trail; and
                          ``(ii) providing education relating to the 
                        War of 1812 along the trail.''.

                          Purpose of the Bill

    The purpose of H.R. 1388 is to amend the National Trails 
System Act to designate the Star-Spangled Banner Trail in the 
State of Maryland, the Commonwealth of Virginia and the 
District of Columbia as a National Historic Trail.

                  Background and Need for Legislation

    H.R. 1388 would designate the Star-Spangled Banner Trail in 
Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia as a national 
historic trail to commemorate the events of the Chesapeake 
campaign in America's war against the British from 1812-1814.
    The United States declared war on Britain in June 1812, 
after enduring years of naval blockades, trade restrictions 
with the European continent, and the seizure of American ships 
and sailors in the ongoing war between Britain and France. With 
only a small army and practically no navy, the young nation was 
ill-prepared to face Britain--then the world's preeminent naval 
power.
    The war was fought in the West and along the Canadian 
border with Indian allies on both sides. Along the Atlantic 
Coast, a punishing British naval blockade devastated American 
agricultural trade. In 1814, a series of British raids along 
the shores of the Chesapeake Bay culminated in the burning of 
Washington.
    In September of that year, the British turned on Baltimore, 
a busy port and a key base for the privateers who had been 
plaguing British ships in the West Indies. At Fort McHenry, the 
British met fierce resistance and were repelled.
    Today, many historians see the War of 1812 as the 
definitive end of the American Revolution--so much so that the 
war is sometimes referred to as America's ``Second War of 
Independence.''
    H.R. 1388 would establish a series of routes and water 
trails totaling approximately 290 miles. The trail would trace 
the historic routes used by British and American troops during 
the war--from the invasion of Maryland to the battle of 
Bladensburg and the June 1814 battles between the British Navy 
and the American Chesapeake Flotilla in St. Leonard's Creek in 
Calvert County.
    The trail would end in Baltimore at Fort McHenry, where in 
1814 Georgetown lawyer Francis Scott Key, watching from the 
harbor as the fort endured a 25-hour bombardment, wrote the 
poem that would become our national anthem.
    H.R. 1388 follows a National Park Service (NPS) feasibility 
study ordered by the 106th Congress (Public Law 106-135), which 
found that five of eight trail segments studied fully met the 
criteria for national historic trails. The National Park 
Service, in testimony before the National Parks, Forests and 
Public Lands Subcommittee on May 15, 2007, recommended historic 
trail designation for these five segments.
    The bill would allow the NPS to acquire non-federal land 
along the trail only by the consent of the landowner; the study 
anticipates no fee-simple acquisition.

                            Committee Action

    H.R. 1388 was introduced on March 7, 2007, by Rep. John P. 
Sarbanes (D-MD). The bill was referred to the Committee on 
Natural Resources, and within the Committee to the Subcommittee 
on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands. On May 15, 2007, 
the Subcommittee held a hearing on the bill.
    At the Full Committee markup on June 27, 2007, the 
Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands was 
discharged from further consideration of the bill. Rep. 
Sarbanes offered an amendment in the nature of a substitute 
making three mostly technical changes requested by the National 
Park Service. These clarified the extent of the trail and 
included changes relating to the provision of interpretive 
services and programs and for technical assistance. The 
amendment also added a map reference to a new map, which shows 
only the five trail segments to be designated by the bill.
    The amendment was agreed to by voice vote. The bill, as 
amended, was then ordered favorably reported by a rollcall vote 
of 23 yeas and 10 nays, as follows:


            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 Natural 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:

H.R. 1388--Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail Act

    H.R. 1388 would amend the National Trails Systems Act to 
designate the Star-Spangled Banner Trail as a National Historic 
Trail. The trail of nearly 300 miles would cover parts of 
Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia. The National 
Park Service (NPS) would administer the trail and coordinate 
the efforts of public and private entities on trail 
administration, planning, development, and maintenance.
    Based on information provided by the NPS and assuming the 
availability of appropriated funds, CBO estimates that 
establishing, developing, and administering the proposed 
historic trail would cost about $2 million over the 2008-2012 
period. Of this amount, we estimate that the NPS would spend 
about $300,000 over the next two years to prepare a 
comprehensive management plan for the trail. We estimate that 
the remaining $1.7 million would be spend over the following 
three years for archeological surveys, development of access 
sites, and interpretive materials.
    H.R. 1388 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 May 31, 2007, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for S. 
797, the Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail Act, as 
ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources on May 23, 2007. The two bills are identical, as are 
the CBO cost estimates.
    The CBO staff contacts for this estimate are Deborah Reis 
and David Reynolds. 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.

                           Earmark Statement

    H.R. 1388 does not contain any congressional earmarks, 
limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined in 
clause 9(d), 9(e) or 9(f) of rule XXI.

                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 (new matter is 
printed in italic and existing law in which no change is 
proposed is shown in roman):

NATIONAL TRAILS SYSTEM ACT

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


              NATIONAL SCENIC AND NATIONAL HISTORIC TRAILS

  Sec. 5. (a) National scenic and national historic trails 
shall be authorized and designated only by Act of Congress. 
There are hereby established the following National Scenic and 
National Historic Trails:
  (1)  * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  (--) Star-spangled banner national historic trail.--
                  (A) In general.--The Star-Spangled Banner 
                National Historic Trail, a trail consisting of 
                water and overland routes totaling 
                approximately 290 miles, extending from Tangier 
                Island, Virginia, through southern Maryland, 
                the District of Columbia, and northern 
                Virginia, in the Chesapeake Bay, Patuxent 
                River, Potomac River, and north to the Patapsco 
                River, and Baltimore, Maryland, commemorating 
                the Chesapeake Campaign of the War of 1812 
                (including the British invasion of Washington, 
                District of Columbia, and its associated 
                feints, and the Battle of Baltimore in summer 
                1814), as generally depicted on the map titled 
                ``Star-Spangled Banner National Historic 
                Trail'', numbered T02/80,000, and dated June 
                2007.
                  (B) Map.--The map referred to in subparagraph 
                (A) shall be maintained on file and available 
                for public inspection in the appropriate 
                offices of the National Park Service.
                  (C) Administration.--Subject to subparagraph 
                (E)(ii), the trail shall be administered by the 
                Secretary of the Interior.
                  (D) Land acquisition.--No land or interest in 
                land outside the exterior boundaries of any 
                federally administered area may be acquired by 
                the United States for the trail except with the 
                consent of the owner of the land or interest in 
                land.
                  (E) Public participation.--The Secretary of 
                the Interior shall--
                          (i) encourage communities, owners of 
                        land along the trail, and volunteer 
                        trail groups to participate in the 
                        planning, development, and maintenance 
                        of the trail; and
                          (ii) consult with other affected 
                        landowners and Federal, State, and 
                        local agencies in the administration of 
                        the trail.
                  (F) Interpretation and assistance.--Subject 
                to the availability of appropriations, the 
                Secretary of the Interior may provide, to State 
                and local governments and nonprofit 
                organizations, interpretive programs and 
                services and technical assistance for use in--
                          (i) carrying out preservation and 
                        development of the trail; and
                          (ii) providing education relating to 
                        the War of 1812 along the trail.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                                  
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