[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.