[Senate Report 110-163]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                       Calendar No. 361
110th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session                                                    110-163

======================================================================
 
   DESIGNATION OF JIM WEAVER LOOP TRAIL, WILLAMETTE NATIONAL FOREST, 
                                 OREGON

                                _______
                                

               September 17, 2007.--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. 247]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the Act (H.R. 247) to designate a Forest Service trail 
at Waldo Lake in the Willamette National Forest in the State of 
Oregon as a national recreation trail in honor of Jim Weaver, a 
former Member of the House of Representatives, having 
considered the same, reports favorably thereon without 
amendment and recommends that the Act do pass.

                                PURPOSE

    The purpose of H.R. 247 is to designate a 19.6-mile trail 
around Waldo Lake, on the Willamette National Forest in Oregon, 
as a national recreation trail under the National Trails System 
Act, to be known as the ``Jim Weaver Loop Trail.''

                          BACKGROUND AND NEED

    Jim Weaver represented Oregon's Fourth Congressional 
District in the House of Representatives from 1975 to 1987, an 
area that includes Lane County and the Willamette National 
Forest. During his tenure in Congress, Representative Weaver 
was a member of the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs 
(now known as the Natural Resources Committee) and was a 
proponent of many natural resource conservation measures, 
including the designation of new wilderness areas north of 
Waldo Lake in the Oregon Wilderness Act of 1984.
    H.R. 247 designates a Forest Service trail as the ``Jim 
Weaver Loop Trail'' in honor of Congressman Weaver.

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    H.R. 247, sponsored by Congressman DeFazio, passed the 
House of Representatives by a voice vote on March 5, 2007. The 
Subcommittee on National Parks held a hearing on the bill on 
May 15, 2007, and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 
ordered H.R. 247 favorably reported on July 25, 2007.

                        COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open 
business session on July 25, 2007, by a voice vote of a quorum 
present, recommends that the Senate pass H.R. 247.

                         SUMMARY OF THE MEASURE

    H.R. 247 designates Forest Service trail 3590 in the 
Willamette National Forest in Lane County, Oregon as the ``Jim 
Weaver Loop Trail.'' The trail extends 19.6 miles around Waldo 
Lake. The Secretary of Agriculture is directed to prepare, 
install, and maintain an appropriate sign at the trailhead to 
indicate the name of the trail.

                   COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

    The following estimate of costs of this measure has been 
provided by the Congressional Budget Office:

                                                     July 26, 2007.
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. 247, an act to 
designate a Forest Service trail at Waldo Lake in the 
Willamette National Forest in the state of Oregon as a national 
recreation trail in honor of Jim Weaver, a former Member of the 
House of Representatives.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Tyler 
Kruzich.
            Sincerely,
                                                   Peter R. Orszag.
    Enclosure.

H.R. 247--An act to designate a Forest Service trail at Waldo Lake in 
        the Willamette National Forest in the state of Oregon as a 
        national recreation trail in honor of Jim Weaver, a former 
        Member of the House of Representatives

    H.R. 247 would designate approximately 20 miles of trail 
around Waldo Lake in the Willamette National Forest in Oregon 
as the ``Jim Weaver Loop Trail.'' The Secretary of Agriculture 
would be required to install and maintain an interpretive sign 
at the trailhead of the Jim Weaver Loop Trail detailing the 
life and career of Congressman Weaver. CBO estimates that 
implementing H.R. 247 would not have a significant effect on 
the federal budget. Enacting H.R. 247 would not affect direct 
spending or revenues.
    H.R. 247 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal 
governments.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Tyler Kruzich. 
This 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. 247. The Act 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. 247, as ordered reported.

                        EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

    The testimony provided by the Department of Agriculture at 
the May 15, 2007, hearing on H.R. 247 follows:

Statement of Joel Holtrop, Deputy Chief, National Forest System, Forest 
Service, Department of Agriculture

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *



h.r. 247, designation of ``jim weaver loop trail,'' willamette national 
                                 forest


    Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, thank you for 
the opportunity to provide the views of the Department of 
Agriculture on these bills: S. 1057, New River Wild and Scenic 
River Act of 2007; S. 1281, Snake Headwaters Legacy Act of 
2007; and H.R. 247, which designates a Forest Service trail in 
the Willamette National Forest as a National Recreation Trail 
in honor of Jim Weaver, a former member of the House of 
Representatives.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *



  h.r. 247, designation of the ``jim weaver loop trail,'' willamette 
                            national forest


    H.R. 247 would designate a 19.6 mile trail known as Trail 
3590, the Waldo Lake Loop, on the Willamette National Forest as 
a national recreation trail in honor of Jim Weaver, former 
member of the House of Representatives from Oregon. The trail 
would be a component of the National Trails System and would be 
renamed the ``Jim Weaver Loop Trail.'' The bill would also 
authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to prepare, install, and 
maintain an interpretive sign honoring the life and career of 
Congressman Jim Weaver.
    The Department supports enactment of this legislation to 
honor former Representative Jim Weaver.
    This concludes my prepared statement and I would be pleased 
to answer any questions you may have.

                        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. 247, as 
ordered reported.

                                  
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