[House Report 115-970]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


115th Congress   }                                  {         Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session      }                                  {         115-970

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



 
                     FDR HISTORIC PRESERVATION ACT

                                _______
                                

 September 25, 2018.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on 
            the State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

Mr. Bishop of Utah, from the Committee on Natural Resources, submitted 
                             the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 5420]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred 
the bill (H.R. 5420) to authorize the acquisition of land for 
addition to the Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic 
Site in the State of New York, 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 ``FDR Historic Preservation Act''.

SEC. 2. HOME OF FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE.

  (a) Land Acquisition.--The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to 
acquire by donation, purchase from a willing seller using donated 
funds, or exchange, the approximately 89 acres of land identified as 
the ``Morgan Property'' and generally depicted on the map titled ``Home 
of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site, Proposed Park 
Addition'', numbered 384/138,461 and dated May 2017.
  (b) Availability of Map.--The map referred to in subsection (a) shall 
be available for public inspection in the appropriate offices of the 
National Park Service.
  (c) Boundary Adjustment; Administration.--Upon acquisition of the 
land referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Interior 
shall--
          (1) adjust the boundary of the Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt 
        National Historic Site to reflect the acquisition; and
          (2) administer such land as part of the Home of Franklin D. 
        Roosevelt National Historic Site in accordance with applicable 
        laws.

                          PURPOSE OF THE BILL

    The purpose of H.R. 5420 is to authorize the acquisition of 
land for addition to the Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National 
Historic Site in the State of New York.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    The Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site, 
located in Hyde Park, New York, was designated on January 15, 
1944, to preserve the birthplace and life-long home of the 32nd 
President of the United States.\1\ The centerpiece of the 
nearly 850-acre property, President Roosevelt's home called 
Springwood, was built around 1793 and purchased by Roosevelt's 
father in 1867.\2\ By 1915, Franklin and his mother, Sara, had 
completed extensive renovations to the structure and the home's 
interior.\3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\The National Parks: Index 1916-2016. Washington, D.C.: U.S. 
Government Publishing Office, 2016.
    \2\``Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area.'' Hudson River 
Valley National Heritage Area. Accessed August 29, 2018. http://
www.hudsonrivervalley.com/sites/Home-of-Franklin-D-Roosevelt-National-
Historic-Site/details.
    \3\Ibid.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Inherited by FDR upon his mother's death in 1941, the home 
and much of the estate were transferred to the federal 
government at the President's request. Known as his summer 
White House, FDR entertained many visiting heads of state at 
the home. President Roosevelt also helped design and build the 
first Presidential library on the property.\4\ The interior 
remains as it was during Roosevelt's lifetime. The grounds 
feature flower gardens, outbuildings, and miles of walking 
trails. The estate's rose garden contains the graves of 
Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt.\5\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \4\The National Parks: Index 1916-2016. Washington, D.C.: U.S. 
Government Publishing Office, 2016.
    \5\``Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area.'' Hudson River 
Valley National Heritage Area. Accessed August 29, 2018. http://
www.hudsonrivervalley.com/sites/Home-of-Franklin-D-Roosevelt-National-
Historic-Site/details.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Since its addition to the National Park System in 1944, the 
site's boundaries have been modified several times to include 
new land. The Scenic Hudson Land Trust (SHLT) owns 
approximately 89 acres adjacent to the site that it wishes to 
sell to the National Park Service. The property is largely 
unimproved (expect for a small house and garage) and is subject 
to a conservation easement that has been held by the SHLT since 
1995. The SHLT advocates that the property provides important 
context to visitors, and that its addition will provide better 
connectivity to a section of the Hyde Park Trail that links the 
Home of FDR National Historic Site with the Vanderbilt Mansion 
National Historic Site to the north.
    H.R. 5420 authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to 
acquire by donation, purchase from willing seller (SHLT) using 
donated funds, or exchange, approximately 89 acres of land 
adjacent to the Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic 
Site, and to incorporate the parcel into the site.

                            COMMITTEE ACTION

    H.R. 5420 was introduced on March 29, 2018, by Congressman 
John J. Faso (R-NY). The bill was referred to the Committee on 
Natural Resources, and within the Committee to the Subcommittee 
on Federal Lands. On September 5, 2018, the Natural Resources 
Committee met to consider the bill. The Subcommittee was 
discharged by unanimous consent. Congressman Tom McClintock (R-
CA) offered an amendment designated #1; it was adopted by 
unanimous consent. No additional amendments were offered, and 
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 Natural Resources' oversight findings and 
recommendations are reflected in the body of this report.

      COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII AND CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET ACT

    1. Cost of Legislation and the Congressional Budget Act. 
With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(2) and (3) of 
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and 
sections 308(a) and 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 
1974, the Committee has received the following estimate for the 
bill from the Director of the Congressional Budget Office:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                Washington, DC, September 20, 2018.
Hon. Rob Bishop,
Chairman, Committee on Natural Resources,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 5420, the FDR 
Historic Preservation Act.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Janani 
Shankaran.
    Sincerely,
                                                Keith Hall,
                                                          Director.
    Enclosure.

H.R. 5420--FDR Historic Preservation Act

    H.R. 5420 would authorize the National Park Service (NPS) 
to acquire 89 acres of land, known as the Morgan Property, for 
the Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site by 
means of donation, purchase using donated funds, or through a 
land exchange. Upon acquisition, that land would be 
administrated by the NPS as part of the site.
    Using information from the Scenic Hudson Land Trust, which 
currently owns the Morgan Property, and based on recent sale 
prices of comparable tracts of land, CBO estimates that the 
cost to acquire the property would be about $1 million. If the 
NPS purchases the property with donated funds, it would 
increase direct spending. However, that increase would be 
offset by donations for the purchase, which are recorded as 
reductions in direct spending, so that the net effect on direct 
spending would be negligible.
    CBO estimates that any costs to manage and maintain the 
additional land would be less than $500,000 over the 2019-2023 
period; such spending would be subject to the availability of 
appropriated funds.
    Because enacting H.R. 5420 could affect direct spending, 
pay-as-you-go procedures apply. The bill would not affect 
revenues.
    CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 5420 would not increase 
net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four 
consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2029.
    H.R. 5420 contains no intergovernmental or private sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA). 
The bill would authorize a land exchange between the federal 
government and a private property owner, which could have a 
small incidental effect on local property taxes. That effect, 
however, would not result from an intergovernmental mandate as 
defined in UMRA.
    The CBO staff contacts for this estimate are Janani 
Shankaran (for federal costs) and Zach Byrum (for mandates). 
The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
    2. 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 authorize the acquisition of land 
for addition to the Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National 
Historic Site in the State of New York.

                           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. This bill does not contain any 
directed rule makings.
    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 to existing 
law.

                                 [all]