[House Report 113-635]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
113th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2d Session 113-635
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REPLACEMENT OF JOHN H. CHAFEE COASTAL BARRIER RESOURCES SYSTEM MAP FOR
GASPARILLA ISLAND UNIT, FLORIDA
_______
December 1, 2014.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Hastings of Washington, from the Committee on Natural Resources,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 1810]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred
the bill (H.R. 1810) to revise the boundaries of John H. Chafee
Coastal Barrier Resources System Gasparilla Island Unit in
Florida, having considered the same, report favorably thereon
without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass.
PURPOSE OF THE BILL
The purpose of H.R. 1810 is to revise the boundaries of
John H. Chafee Coastal Barrier Resources System Gasparilla
Island Unit in Florida.
BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION
Coastal barriers are natural landscape features that
protect the mainland, lagoons, wetlands and salt marshes from
the full force of wind, wave and tidal energy. Major types of
coastal barriers include fringing mangroves, barrier islands,
barrier spits and bay barriers. Composed of sand and other
loose sediments, these elongated, narrow land forms are dynamic
ecosystems and prone to frequent disruption by storms. They are
the first line of defense against the strong winds, huge waves
and powerful storm surges that accompany hurricanes. Despite
their vulnerability, these areas are attractive places to
locate private homes and resorts.
The John H. Chafee Coastal Barrier Resources System is made
up of coastal barrier units delineated on maps adopted by
Congress. These units consist of undeveloped sections of
coastal barrier islands and the associated aquatic habitat
which lies behind these barriers. The System was created by the
Coastal Barrier Resources Act of 1982 (CBRA) and was expanded
by the Coastal Barrier Improvement Act of 1990. It affects
properties along the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico and the
Great Lakes. There are no units along the Pacific Ocean.
The System was initially comprised of 186 units totaling
666 miles of shoreline and 452,834 acres of undeveloped,
unprotected coastal barriers on the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico
coasts. Except for very minor technical changes to account for
natural accretion and erosion, boundaries cannot be adjusted
unless Congress passes a law adopting revised maps. The entire
Coastal Barrier Resources System, including ``Otherwise
Protected Areas'' has 856 units and more than 3 million acres
of fastland and associated aquatic habitat. The U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service of the Department of the Interior manages the
System.
Inclusion of property in the System does not prevent
private development of land nor does it prevent actions
necessary to process and issue federal permits necessary for
development. However, it does place significant restrictions on
the availability of any new federal assistance to develop the
property. After October 1, 1983, no new federal flood insurance
can be issued for properties in the System. For those
homeowners who were issued flood insurance policies before the
deadline, the policies remain in force. However, if the
property is damaged more than 50 percent of its value, and a
claim is placed, the claim will be paid but the insurance
policy cannot be renewed. In addition, if an insured structure
in the System is substantially expanded or replaced with more
intensive development, insurance coverage is lost.
There are 271 ``Otherwise Protected Areas'' (OPAs)
comprising approximately 1.7 million acres which include
national wildlife refuge lands, national parks and seashores,
state parks, military bases and conservation lands owned by
private organizations. While federal flood insurance is not
available within these areas, unlike the System units, OPAs are
eligible for other federal financial assistance. When OPAs were
included in the System, they were delineated with rudimentary
mapping tools based upon pre-existing boundary data. As a
result of technological advancements in geographic information
systems, databases and digital mapping techniques, OPA
boundaries have been shown to have embedded inaccuracies. The
Fish and Wildlife Service continues to uncover cases where OPA
boundaries do not coincide with the actual legal land
boundaries.
H.R. 1810 would affect a 132-acre CBRA Unit in Florida (FL-
70P) established in 1990 as an OPA and located near Fort Myers.
The unit was designed to coincide with the boundaries of the
Gasparilla State Park and no changes have been made since it
was established. The bill is written to accurately reflect the
boundaries of the State Park. By so doing, approximately 6
acres of privately-owned land containing 25 privately owned
homes, one residential structure owned by Lee County and one
restaurant would be removed from the system. This mapping
mistake has been confirmed by aerial photography, maps and
public records reviewed by Lee County, Florida, and Florida
Park Service officials who have indicated that this property
was never within the boundaries of Gasparilla State Park.
According to the Lee County Property Appraiser, the 25
homes were built between 1993 and 1999. While initially the
property owners were able to obtain federal flood insurance, a
number of those policies have been cancelled. As a result,
these homeowners either have had to obtain private insurance or
forgo insurance which makes it difficult to sell the property.
This bill will correct an honest mapping mistake and allow
affected homeowners to maintain Federal flood insurance. By
enacting the Fish and Wildlife Service's map, 1,741 acres would
be added to the System including 73 acres of fastland and 1,668
acres of associated aquatic habitat. The net effect will be
that 1,735 acres will be added to the System.
COMMITTEE ACTION
H.R. 1810 was introduced on April 26, 2013, by Congressman
Trey Radel (R-FL) (Congressman Curt Clawson (R-FL) has
subsequently become the primary sponsor of the bill). The bill
was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and within
the Committee to the Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife,
Oceans, and Insular Affairs. On April 8, 2014, the Subcommittee
on Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans, and Insular Affairs held a
hearing on the bill. On July 16, 2014, the Natural Resources
Committee met to consider the bill. The Subcommittee on
Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans, and Insular Affairs was discharged
by unanimous consent. The bill was then adopted and 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 Natural Resources' oversight findings and
recommendations are reflected in the body of this report.
COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII
1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(1) 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)(2)(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. 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. 1810--A bill to revise the boundaries of John H. Chafee Coastal
Barrier Resources System Gasparilla Island Unit in Florida
H.R. 1810 would update a map of the Coastal Bather
Resources System (CBRS) near Boca Raton, Florida. Based on
information from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, CBO
estimates that implementing the legislation would have no
significant effect on the federal budget. Because H.R. 1810
could affect direct spending, pay-as-you-go procedures apply.
However, we estimate that any net change in direct spending
would be negligible over the 2015-2024 period. Enacting the
bill would not affect revenues.
The bill would revise CBRS maps for the Gasparilla Island
Unit within the system and, on net, would add 1,750 acres of
land to the CBRS. The modified maps would exclude certain
private acreage, which would enable owners of about 30
structures to purchase federal flood insurance. CBO estimates
that, relative to current law, enacting H.R. 1810 could
increase premium collections of the National Flood Insurance
Fund by less than $100,000 annually. Such collections would be
offset by new mandatory spending for underwriting and
administrative expenses and new flood insurance claims over the
2015-2024 period.
H.R. 1810 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 contacts for this estimate are Jeff LaFave
and Daniel Hoople. The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo,
Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
2. Section 308(a) of 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, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in
revenues or tax expenditures. CBO estimates that implementing
the legislation would have no significant effect on the federal
budget. According to CBO, relative to current law, enacting
H.R. 1810 could increase premium collections of the National
Flood Insurance Fund by less than $100,000 annually. Such
collections would be offset by new mandatory spending for
underwriting and administrative expenses and new flood
insurance claims over the 2015-2024 period.
3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by
clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goal or
objective of this bill is to revise the boundaries of John H.
Chafee Coastal Barrier Resources System Gasparilla Island Unit
in Florida.
EARMARK STATEMENT
This bill does not contain any Congressional earmarks,
limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined
under clause 9(e), 9(f), and 9(g) of rule XXI of the Rules of
the House of Representatives.
COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104-4
This bill contains no unfunded mandates.
COMPLIANCE WITH H. RES. 5
Directed Rule Making. The Chairman does not believe that
this bill directs any executive branch official to conduct any
specific rule-making proceedings.
Duplication of Existing Programs. This bill does not
establish or reauthorize a program of the federal government
known to be duplicative of another program. Such program was
not included in any report from the Government Accountability
Office to Congress pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111-139
or identified in the most recent Catalog of Federal Domestic
Assistance published pursuant to the Federal Program
Information Act (Public Law 95-220, as amended by Public Law
98-169) as relating to other programs.
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.