[House Report 117-568]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


117th Congress    }                                    {       Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session       }                                    {      117-568

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



 
                   FORT SAN GERONIMO PRESERVATION ACT

                                _______
                                

 November 16, 2022.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on 
            the State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Grijalva, from the Committee on Natural Resources, submitted the 
                               following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 2444]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred 
the bill (H.R. 2444) to establish Fort San Geronimo del 
Boqueron in Puerto Rico as an affiliated area of the National 
Park System, and for other purposes, having considered the 
same, reports favorably thereon with an amendment and 
recommends 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 ``Fort San Geronimo Preservation Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

  In this Act:
          (1) Fort san geronimo del boqueron.--The term ``Fort San 
        Geronimo del Boqueron'' (also known as ``Fortin de San Geronimo 
        del Boqueron'') means the fort and grounds listed on the 
        National Register of Historic Places and located near Old San 
        Juan, Puerto Rico.
          (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of 
        the Interior.

SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF AFFILIATED AREA.

  (a) In General.--Fort San Geronimo del Boqueron in Puerto Rico is 
established as an affiliated area of the National Park System.
  (b) Description of Affiliated Area.--The affiliated area shall 
consist of the area generally depicted on the map titled ``Fort San 
Geronimo Proposed Affiliated Area'', numbered 910/176698, and dated 
July 2021.
  (c) Administration.--The affiliated area shall be managed in 
accordance with--
          (1) this Act; and
          (2) any law generally applicable to units of the National 
        Park System.
  (d) Management Entity.--The Institute of Puerto Rican Culture shall 
be the management entity for the affiliated area.
  (e) Cooperative Agreements.--The Secretary may provide technical 
assistance and enter into cooperative agreements with the management 
entity for the purpose of providing financial assistance for the 
marketing, marking, interpretation, and preservation of the affiliated 
area.
  (f) Limited Role of the Secretary.--Nothing in this section 
authorizes the Secretary to acquire property at the affiliated area or 
to assume managerial or financial responsibility for the operation, 
maintenance, or management of the affiliated area.
  (g) Management Plan.--
          (1) In general.--The Secretary, in consultation with the 
        management entity, shall develop a management plan for the 
        affiliated area.
          (2) Transmittal.--Not later than 3 years after the date on 
        which funds are first made available to carry out this section, 
        the Secretary shall submit the management plan developed under 
        paragraph (1) to the Committee on Natural Resources of the 
        House of Representatives and the Committee on Energy and 
        Natural Resources of the Senate.
  (h) Private Property Protection.--Nothing in this Act affects the 
land use rights of private property owners adjacent to Fort San 
Geronimo del Boqueron.
  (i) No Buffer Zones.--
          (1) In general.--Nothing in this Act shall be construed to 
        create buffer zones outside of Fort San Geronimo del Boqueron.
          (2) Activity or use outside fort san geronimo del boqueron.--
        The fact that an activity or use can be seen, heard, or 
        detected from within Fort San Geronimo del Boqueron shall not 
        preclude, limit, control, regulate, or determine the conduct or 
        management of activities or uses outside of Fort San Geronimo 
        del Boqueron.

                          PURPOSE OF THE BILL

    The purpose of H.R. 2444 is to establish Fort San Geronimo 
del Boqueron in Puerto Rico as an affiliated area of the 
National Park System.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    H.R. 2444 would establish Fort San Geronimo del Boqueron as 
an affiliated area of the National Park System. The affiliated 
area would consist of the Fort and grounds listed on the 
National Register of Historic Places located near Old San Juan, 
Puerto Rico, and be managed in accordance with the laws 
applicable to units of the National Park System. As affiliated 
areas are sites that are managed and owned by non-federal 
entities, the bill identifies the Institute of Puerto Rican 
Culture, a state government agency in Puerto Rico, as the 
management entity for the site and authorizes NPS to enter into 
cooperative agreements with the Institute for technical and 
financial assistance.
    Fort San Geronimo del Boqueron was built as part of the 
massive fortification system by Spanish military engineers 
between the 16th and 19th centuries to protect San Juan from 
foreign invasions and became a centerpiece of the city's first 
line of defense. The Fort played a crucial role in the British 
siege on San Juan in April 1797--the last attack on Puerto Rico 
by a major European power--and is the only surviving 
fortification on the Island from the 1797 Battle of San Juan. 
The Fort was repaired by 1799, largely in its original design, 
and continued to be used as a Spanish military post in the 19th 
century. After Puerto Rico became a U.S. territory in 1898, the 
U.S. Navy used Fort San Geronimo as a military post until 1921. 
It was then transferred into private possession and was 
eventually acquired by the Government of Puerto Rico in the 
1940s. In 1983, Fort San Geronimo was listed individually in 
the National Register of Historic Places\1\ and, in 1997, it 
was listed as a contributing resource of the ``Advanced Defense 
Line'' National Register of Historic Places historic 
district.\2\ Today, Fort San Geronimo is owned and managed by 
the Institute of Puerto Rican Culture.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\NPS, Nat'l Reg. of Historic Places Inventory--Nomination Form, 
Fortin de San Geronimo de Boqueron (1983), available at https://
catalog.archives.gov/id/131518690 (showing approval at page 4).
    \2\NPS, Nat'l Reg. of Historic Places Registration Form, Linea 
Avanzada [Advanced Defense Line] (1997), available at https://
catalog.archives.gov/id/131518706.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

                            COMMITTEE ACTION

    H.R. 2444 was introduced on April 12, 2021, by 
Representative Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colon (R-PR). The bill was 
referred solely to the Committee on Natural Resources, and 
within the Committee to the Subcommittee on National Parks, 
Forests, and Public Lands. On May 27, 2021, the Subcommittee 
held a hearing on the bill. On July 14, 2021, the Natural 
Resources Committee met to consider the bill. The Subcommittee 
was discharged by unanimous consent. Rep. Gonzalez-Colon 
offered an amendment designated Gonzalez-Colon #1. The 
amendment was agreed to by unanimous consent. The bill, as 
amended, was adopted and ordered favorably reported to the 
House of Representatives by unanimous consent.

                                HEARINGS

    For the purposes of clause 3(c)(6) of House rule XIII, the 
following hearing was used to develop or consider this measure: 
hearing by the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and 
Public Lands held on May 27, 2021.

            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, as well as clause 3(d) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, 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, February 7, 2022.
Hon. Raul M. Grijalva,
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. 2444, the Fort San 
Geronimo Preservation Act.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Sofia Guo.
            Sincerely,
                                         Phillip L. Swagel,
                                                          Director.
    Enclosure.

    
    

    H.R. 2444 would designate Fort San Geronimo del Boqueron in 
Puerto Rico as an affiliated area of the National Park System 
to be managed by the Institute of Puerto Rican Culture. The 
bill would authorize the National Park Service (NPS) to provide 
technical and financial assistance to the Institute to assist 
with marketing, interpretation, and preservation efforts. H.R. 
2444 also would require the NPS to develop a management plan 
for the area within three years of enactment.
    Based on the cost of the NPS assisting other affiliated 
areas, CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 2444 would cost $1 
million over the 2022-2026 period; such spending would be 
subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Sofia Guo. The 
estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Director 
of Budget Analysis.
    2. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by 
clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goals and 
objectives of this bill are to establish Fort San Geronimo del 
Boqueron in Puerto Rico as an affiliated area of the National 
Park System.

                           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.

                 UNFUNDED MANDATES REFORM ACT STATEMENT

    According to CBO, this bill contains no unfunded mandates 
as defined by the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.

                           EXISTING PROGRAMS

    This bill does not establish or reauthorize a program of 
the federal government known to be duplicative of another 
program.

                  APPLICABILITY TO LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

    The Committee finds that the legislation does not relate to 
the terms and conditions of employment or access to public 
services or accommodations within the meaning of section 
102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act.

               PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL, OR TRIBAL LAW

    Any preemptive effect of this bill over state, local, or 
tribal law is intended to be consistent with the bill's 
purposes and text and the Supremacy Clause of Article VI of the 
U.S. Constitution.

                        CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

    If enacted, this bill would make no changes to existing 
law.

        SUPPLEMENTAL, MINORITY, ADDITIONAL, OR DISSENTING VIEWS

    None.

                                  [all]