[Senate Report 115-406]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


                                                      Calendar No. 693
115th Congress     }                                     {      Report
                                 SENATE
 2d Session        }                                     {     115-406

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



 
                   CAMP NELSON NATIONAL MONUMENT ACT

                                _______
                                

                December 4, 2018.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

        Ms. Murkowski, from the Committee on Energy and Natural 
                   Resources, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 5655]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the bill (H.R. 5655) to establish the Camp Nelson 
Heritage National Monument in the State of Kentucky as a unit 
of the National Park System, and for other purposes, having 
considered the same, reports favorably thereon with an 
amendment in the nature of a substitute and an amendment to the 
title and recommends that the bill, as amended, do pass.
    The amendments are as follows:
    1. Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Camp Nelson National Monument Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
          (1) Map.--The term ``Map'' means the map entitled ``Camp 
        Nelson National Monument Nicholasville, Kentucky'', numbered 
        532/144,148, and dated September 2018.
          (2) Monument.--The term ``Monument'' means the Camp Nelson 
        National Monument established by section 3(a)(1).
          (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of 
        the Interior, acting through the Director of the National Park 
        Service.

SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF CAMP NELSON NATIONAL MONUMENT.

    (a) Establishment.--
          (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), there is 
        established as a unit of the National Park System the Camp 
        Nelson National Monument in the State of Kentucky to preserve, 
        protect, and interpret, for the benefit of present and future 
        generations, the nationally significant historic resources of 
        Camp Nelson and the role of Camp Nelson in the Civil War, 
        Reconstruction, and African American history and civil rights.
          (2) Sufficient land or interests.--The Monument shall not be 
        established until after the date on which the Secretary has 
        determined that sufficient land or interests in land have been 
        acquired within the boundary of the Monument to constitute a 
        manageable unit.
    (b) Boundary.--The boundary of the Monument shall be the boundary 
generally depicted on the Map.
    (c) Availability of Map.--The Map shall be on file and available 
for public inspection in the appropriate offices of the National Park 
Service.
    (d) Acquisition Authority.--The Secretary may only acquire any land 
or interest in land located within the boundary of the Monument by--
          (1) donation;
          (2) purchase from a willing seller with donated or 
        appropriated funds; or
          (3) exchange.
    (e) Administration.--
          (1) In general.--The Secretary shall administer the Monument 
        in accordance with--
                  (A) this Act; and
                  (B) the laws generally applicable to units of the 
                National Park System, including--
                          (i) section 100101(a), chapter 1003, and 
                        sections 100751(a), 100752, 100753, and 102101 
                        of title 54, United States Code; and
                          (ii) chapter 3201 of title 54, United States 
                        Code.
          (2) Management plan.--
                  (A) In general.--Not later than 3 years after the 
                date on which funds are first made available to the 
                Secretary to prepare a general management plan for the 
                Monument, the Secretary shall prepare a general 
                management plan for the Monument in accordance with 
                section 100502 of title 54, United States Code.
                  (B) Submission to congress.--On completion of the 
                general management plan, the Secretary shall submit to 
                the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of 
                Representatives and the Committee on Energy and Natural 
                Resources of the Senate the general management plan.
    (f) No Buffer Zones.--
          (1) In general.--Nothing in this Act, the establishment of 
        the Monument, or the management of the Monument creates a 
        buffer zone outside of the Monument.
          (2) Activity or use outside monument.--The fact that an 
        activity or use can be seen, heard, or detected from within the 
        Monument shall not preclude the conduct of the activity or use 
        outside of the Monument.

    2. Amend the title so as to read: ``An Act to establish the 
Camp Nelson National Monument in the State of Kentucky as a 
unit of the National Park System, and for other purposes.''.

                                PURPOSE

    The purpose of H.R. 5655 is to establish the Camp Nelson 
National Monument in the State of Kentucky as a unit of the 
National Park Service (NPS).

                          BACKGROUND AND NEED

    Located in Jessamine County, Kentucky, Camp Nelson was 
originally built as an Army supply depot, hospital, and 
garrison in 1863.
    African-Americans were barred from joining the Union Army 
at the beginning of the Civil War. On July 17, 1862, however, 
Congress passed two significant laws that ultimately led to the 
enlistment of African-Americans in the Army. The Second 
Confiscation Act (12 Stat. 589, 591) declared that ``all slaves 
of persons who shall hereafter be engaged in rebellion against 
the government of the United States . . . shall be forever free 
of their servitude, and not again held as slaves.'' The Militia 
Act (12 Stat. 597, 599) authorized President Lincoln ``to 
receive into the service of the United States,'' African-
Americans to construct entrenchments, perform camp service, and 
``any other labor . . . as the President may prescribe.'' It 
further provided that any former slave who ``render[ed] any 
such service to the Army would ``forever thereafter be free.'' 
The Emancipation Proclamation, issued by President Lincoln on 
January 1, 1863, further declared that former slaves would ``be 
received into the armed service of the United States,'' (12 
Stat. 1268, 1269), and the War Department's General Order 143 
provided for the formation of African-American battle regiments 
beginning in May 1863.
    Thereafter, Camp Nelson became one of the country's largest 
recruitment and training centers for African-American soldiers 
during the Civil War. At least 10,000 African-Americans 
enlisted or trained at Camp Nelson. Eight regiments of African-
American soldiers were formed there and others were stationed 
there.
    Many of the men who enlisted at Camp Nelson brought their 
families with them. Although the camp was not designed to serve 
as a refugee shelter, it became a makeshift refugee camp for 
African-Americans escaping slavery. Since Kentucky had not 
seceded from the Union, it was not covered by the Emancipation 
Proclamation, and slavery remained legal in the state until 
after the Civil War and the ratification of the 13th Amendment.
    In November 1864, the Army forcibly expelled about 400 of 
these refugees, over 100 of whom died from exposure. 
Ultimately, these events led to an official change in policy by 
the United States Army regarding the treatment and care of 
refugees at U.S. Army posts. It also led to the enactment of 
legislation that freed the wife and children of any person 
``mustered into the military or naval service of the United 
States'' (13 Stat. 571).
    The enlistment of soldiers, who were legally freed upon 
enlistment, and the passage of the March 1865 Act freeing their 
families, made Camp Nelson one of the largest emancipation 
centers in the United States. Today, the site of Camp Nelson 
has a well-preserved landscape, earthen fortifications, depot 
magazine, historic roads, one period building, and 
archeological deposits.
    In 2012, the Camp Nelson Historic and Archeological 
District in Jessamine County, Kentucky, was nominated through a 
grant from the Kentucky Heritage Council, Kentucky African-
American Heritage Commission, and the Jessamine County Fiscal 
Court for inclusion in the NPS's National Historic Landmark's 
Program, to which it was accepted in March of 2013. The Camp 
Nelson Historic and Archeological District is made up of 
approximately 600 acres, in southern Jessamine County, six 
miles south of Nicholasville, Kentucky. This district includes 
the well-preserved archeological remains and landscape of a 
large Civil War era Union Army supply depot, recruitment camp, 
hospital facility, and African American refugee camp. The 
district consists of documented and as-yet undocumented 
archeological remains within the entire area enclosed by the 
proposed boundaries.
    In recognition of the historical significance of Camp 
Nelson, on October 26, 2018, President Trump proclaimed the 
site a National Monument pursuant to his authority under the 
Antiquities Act. (54 U.S.C. 320301.)
    H.R. 5655 establishes, as a unit of the NPS, the Camp 
Nelson National Monument in the State of Kentucky to preserve, 
protect, and interpret for the benefit of present and future 
generations, the nationally significant historic resources of 
Camp Nelson and its role in the American Civil War, 
Reconstruction, and African American history and civil rights.

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    H.R. 5655 was introduced by Rep. Barr in the House of 
Representatives on April 27, 2018. On May 21, 2018, the 
Committee on Natural Resources reported H.R. 5655 (H. Rept. 
115-695). On June 5, 2018, the House of Representatives passed 
H.R. 5655 by a vote of 376-4.
    Companion legislation, S. 3287 was introduced by Senator 
McConnell on July 26, 2018. The Subcommittee on National Parks 
held a hearing on S. 3287 and H.R. 5655 on August 15, 2018.
    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources met in open 
business session on October 2, 2018, and ordered H.R. 5655 
favorably reported, as amended.

                        COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

    The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in 
open business session on October 2, 2018, by a majority voice 
vote of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass H.R. 
5655, if amended as described herein.

                          COMMITTEE AMENDMENT

    During its consideration of H.R. 5655, the Committee 
adopted an amendment in the nature of a substitute. The 
amendment updated the map, name of the monument, and 
definitions. The amendment also struck the requirement for 
written agreement from land owners as a condition for 
establishing the monument, replacing it with a requirement for 
sufficient land or interest in land. The amendment further 
updated the acquisition authority of the Secretary of the 
Interior (Secretary) to include purchase from a willing seller 
with donated or appropriated funds. The amendment also strikes 
the private property protection language, and updates the 
buffer zone language. The Committee also adopted an amendment 
to the title to remove ``Heritage'' from the title of the 
National Monument.

                      SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1. Short title

    Section 1 contains the short title.

Section 2. Definitions

    Section 2 contains key definitions.

Section 3. Establishment of Camp Nelson National Monument

    Subsection (a) establishes the Camp Nelson National 
Monument in the State of Kentucky as a unit of the NPS to 
preserve, protect, and interpret, for the benefit of present 
and future generations, the nationally significant historic 
resources of Camp Nelson and the role of Camp Nelson in the 
Civil War, Reconstruction, and African American history and 
civil rights. The Monument shall not be established until the 
Secretary determines that a sufficient quantity of land or land 
interests have been acquired to constitute a manageable park 
unit.
    Subsection (b) specifies that the Monument's boundary shall 
be as generally depicted on the Map.
    Subsection (c) specifies that the Map shall be on file and 
available for public inspection.
    Subsection (d) specifies that the Secretary may only 
acquire land or land interests within the Monument's boundary 
by donation; purchase from a willing seller with donated or 
appropriated funds; or exchange.
    Subsection (e) requires the Secretary to administer the 
Monument in accordance with this Act and the laws generally 
applicable National Park System units. The Secretary is 
directed to prepare a general management plan in accordance 
with applicable law within three years after funds are first 
made available for its preparation and submit the general 
management plan to the House Natural Resources Committee and 
the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee upon 
completion.
    Subsection (f) states that nothing in this Act, the 
establishment of the Monument, or the management of the 
Monument creates a buffer zone outside of the Monument. This 
subsection further makes clear that an activity which can be 
seen, heard, or detected from within the Monument shall not 
preclude the conduct of the activity or use outside of the 
Monument.

                   COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

    The following estimate of the costs of this measure has 
been provided by the Congressional Budget Office:
    H.R. 5655 would establish the Camp Nelson National Monument 
in Nicholasville, Kentucky. Under the act, the site would 
become a unit of the National Park System and would be owned 
and operated by the National Park Service (NPS). The bill would 
direct the NPS to acquire land for the monument by means of 
donation, purchase using donated or appropriated funds, or 
through a land exchange. Based on the experience of creating 
other system units, CBO expects that the monument would not be 
formally established for several years.
    Using information from the NPS on the costs of operating 
new system units, CBO estimates that the agency would incur 
about $200,000 annually in administrative costs in the 
monument's early years. The act also would require the NPS to 
develop a general management plan for the monument. Based on 
the costs of similar projects, CBO estimates that developing 
the plan would cost less than $500,000. In total, CBO estimates 
that implementing H.R. 5655 would cost about $1 million over 
the 2019-2023 period; such spending would be subject to the 
availability of appropriated funds.
    Enacting H.R. 5655 would not affect direct spending or 
revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply.
    CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 5655 would not increase 
net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four 
consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2029.
    H.R. 5655 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
    On May 11, 2018, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R. 
5655, the Camp Nelson Heritage National Monument Act, as 
ordered reported by the House Committee on Natural Resources on 
May 8, 2018. The two pieces of legislation are similar, and 
CBO's estimates of their budgetary effects are the same.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jon Sperl. The 
estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, 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. 5655. 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. 5655, as ordered reported.

                   CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING

    H.R. 5655, as ordered reported, does not contain any 
congressionally directed spending items, limited tax benefits, 
or limited tariff benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate.

                        EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

    The testimony provided by the Department of the Interior at 
the August 15, 2018, hearing on S. 3287 and H.R. 5655 follows:

Statement of P. Daniel Smith, Deputy Director, Exercising the Authority 
of the Director, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior

    Chairman Daines, Ranking Member King, and members of the 
Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to provide the 
Department of the Interior's views on S. 3287 and H.R. 5655, 
bills to establish the Camp Nelson Heritage National Monument 
in the State of Kentucky as a unit of the National Park System, 
and for other purposes.
    The Department supports enactment of S. 3287 and H.R. 5655 
with amendments described later in this statement. As a 
nationally significant Civil War site, where the major 
landowner has indicated a desire to donate property for 
inclusion in the National Park System, Camp Nelson represents 
an exceptional opportunity to preserve and interpret for future 
generations a critical chapter in Civil War history.
    S. 3287 and H.R. 5655 would authorize the Secretary of the 
Interior to establish Camp Nelson Heritage National Monument as 
a unit of the National Park System after meeting specified 
requirements. The proposed boundary of the monument includes 
land within the Camp Nelson National Historic Landmark. The 
bills include authorities for land acquisition and 
administration that are commonly included in legislation 
establishing a unit of the National Park System.
    Camp Nelson is nationally significant as one of the 
nation's largest recruitment and training centers for African 
American soldiers during the American Civil War and as the site 
of a large refugee camp for the wives and children of the 
African American soldiers who were escaping slavery and seeking 
freedom. Reactions to the November 1864 expulsion of Camp 
Nelson refugees led to official changes in U.S. Army policy 
regarding the care of refugees at U.S. Army posts, and assisted 
in the passage of an act of Congress that freed all wives and 
children of U.S. Colored Troops. Events at Camp Nelson also 
influenced the policies and practices of abolitionists and 
health reformers.
    Camp Nelson has excellent archeological integrity and its 
resources have the potential to provide nationally significant 
data on questions related to Civil War era economic conditions, 
social relationships, settlement patterns, material supply, and 
the daily life of its racially and socially diverse military 
and civilian populations, as well as data on questions related 
to camp fortification, and building design and layout. The 
information gained from these archeological resources has the 
potential to add to our understanding of the transformation of 
African American families from enslaved to free, and the 
survival and persistence of these families and their culture in 
the face of tremendous adversity.
    Camp Nelson Historic and Archeological District was added 
to the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom in 2008 
and designated as a National Historic Landmark in 2013. The 
majority of land included in the Landmark is owned by Jessamine 
County and managed as a park open to the public. Camp Nelson 
Civil War Heritage Park protects and interprets what remains of 
the historic Civil War-era Camp Nelson site. Because of its 
rural location, the Camp Nelson site is one of the best-
preserved Civil War era depots, hospitals, recruiting centers, 
and refugee campsites in the nation. Much of the site retains a 
high level of integrity and the landscape primarily consists of 
pastures, open fields, and woodlands. Camp Nelson's well 
preserved landscape includes numerous features from the Civil 
War era, including earthen fortifications, entrenchments, a 
depot magazine, building foundations, and historic road 
remnants. The Oliver Perry House (``White House'') is the only 
surviving extant structure associated with Camp Nelson's 
historic period of significance.
    Strong local support for including the site in the National 
Park System has been indicated through public meetings and 
comments. In addition, Jessamine County, the primary landowner 
within the proposed boundary, is prepared to donate its 
holdings for inclusion in the new unit. All funding for the 
unit would be subject to National Park Service priorities and 
the availability of appropriations.
    The Department recommends that S. 3287 and H.R. 5655 be 
amended in the following ways:
    First, S. 3287 and H.R. 5655 would name the site the ``Camp 
Nelson Heritage National Monument''. The Department recommends 
removing ``Heritage'' from the name, which would make it 
consistent with the name used for the National Historic 
Landmark designation. The word ``Heritage'' does not provide 
any additional historical significance or meaning to the site.
    Second, S. 3287 and H.R. 5655 provide land acquisition 
authority by means of donation, purchase with donated funds, or 
exchange. The Department recommends amending the bills to also 
include the authority to purchase lands with appropriated 
funds. Such authority is common for other National Park Service 
units. That authority would allow the owners of private 
property within the boundary the opportunity to sell their 
lands to the Federal government. Even if the owners are not 
interested in selling their land at the current time, this 
authority provides the flexibility for them to make that 
decision in the future if circumstances change. Before the 
National Park Service would seek to acquire any property, 
whether by purchase, donation, or exchange, it would take into 
consideration the condition of any structures on the property 
that would add to the Service's deferred maintenance backlog. 
Any funding to purchase land would be subject to future 
appropriations from Congress.
    Third, S. 3287 and H.R. 5655 include a reference to a map 
that was developed by the National Park Service in consultation 
with the sponsor of H.R. 5655, Representative Barr, as well as 
local landowners. However, based on additional conversations 
with these landowners, the National Park Service would 
recommend referencing an updated map. We would be pleased to 
provide that map to the bill sponsors and the Committee.
    Fourth, S. 3287 and H.R. 5655 include two conditions for 
establishing Camp Nelson Heritage National Monument as a unit 
of the National Park System: (1) entering into an agreement for 
donation of the property, and (2) acquiring sufficient land to 
constitute a manageable unit. Because land must be acquired 
prior to the establishment of the Monument, an agreement 
evidencing an intent to donate land is a precondition that does 
not need to be included in the legislation. We therefore 
recommend striking the first condition.
    Finally, H.R. 5655, but not S. 3287, contains language 
stipulating that no private or non-Federal property shall be 
managed as part of the Monument without the written consent of 
the landowner. This provision is unnecessary as the National 
Park Service does not currently have authority to manage non-
Federal property as part of a unit in this manner. Furthermore, 
the addition of this language could be read to suggest that it 
does have such authority. The Department recommends striking 
this provision from H.R. 5655.
    Mr. Chairman, this concludes my statement. I would be 
pleased to answer any questions you or other members of the 
Subcommittee 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 H.R. 5655 as ordered 
reported.

                                  [all]