[Senate Report 117-58]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 255
117th Congress } { Report
SENATE
2d Session } { 117-58
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AMACHE NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE DESIGNATION
_______
January 19 (legislative day, January 18), 2022.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Manchin, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany 2497]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the bill (H.R. 2497), to establish the Amache National
Historic Site in the State of Colorado as a Unit of the
National Park System, and for other purposes, having considered
the same, reports favorably thereon with amendments and
recommends that the bill, as amended, do pass.
AMENDMENT
The amendment is as follows:
On page 6, strike lines 17 and 18 and insert the following:
(1) Effect.--Nothing in this Act affects the
authority of the town of Granada, Colorado, with
respect to the operation and maintenance
On page 7, strike line 1 and insert the following:
(2) Determination.--The Secretary shall provide the
town of
On page 7, strike lines 6 through 20 and insert the
following:
(3) New Water Infrastructure.--The Secretary may
permit the town of Granada, Colorado, to construct or
install new water infrastructure, systems, or
appurtenances--
(A) consistent with applicable laws;
(B) limited to the areas determined to be
necessary under paragraph (2); and
(C) in a manner that ensures the
preservation, protection, and proper management
of the National Historic Site.
(4) Acceptance of Donated Water Infrastructure.--The
Secretary may accept, for addition to and
administration as part of the National Historic Site,
the donation of water infrastructure, systems, or
appurtenances within the boundary of the National
Historic Site, including associated water rights, if
the water infrastructure, systems, or appurtenances are
no longer used by the town of Granada, Colorado.
PURPOSE
The purpose of H.R. 2497 is to authorize the Secretary of
the Interior to establish the Amache National Historic Site in
the State of Colorado as a unit of the National Park System.
BACKGROUND AND NEED
The Granada Relocation Center was located in southeastern
Colorado, and was used to incarcerate civilians of Japanese
ancestry during World War II in accordance with President
Roosevelt's 1942 Executive Order. The relocation center--also
known as Camp Amache--was one of 10 sites in the United States
holding primarily U.S. citizens. Before its closure in 1945,
more than 10,000 people had been incarcerated in Camp Amache.
H.R. 2497 designates the Amache National Historic Site to
preserve, protect, and interpret for the benefit of present and
future generations resources associated with: (1) the
incarceration of civilians of Japanese ancestry during World
War II at Amache, also known as the ``Granada Relocation
Center,'' and the military service of incarcerees at the
Granada Relocation Center; (2) public reaction in the State to
the incarceration of Japanese Americans; and (3) the transition
of the incarcerees and their descendants following the closure
of the Granada Relocation Center and their resettlement in the
State and other States.
In 2019, Congress enacted legislation directing the
National Park Service to undertake a special resource study to
assess the suitability and feasibility of designating the
Amache site as a unit of the National Park System. The study is
underway, but has not yet been completed.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
Representatives Neguse and Buck introduced H.R. 2497 on
April 14, 2021. The bill has 6 additional cosponsors. H.R. 2497
passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 416 to 2 on
July 29, 2021. A Senate companion measure, S. 1284, was
introduced by Senators Bennett and Hickenlooper on April 21,
2021. The bill has 1 additional cosponsor.
The Subcommittee on National Parks held a hearing on H.R.
2497 and S. 1284 on October 6, 2021.
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
During its consideration of H.R. 2497, the Committee
adopted a clarifying amendment that states nothing in the bill
affects the town's ability to operate and maintain its water
infrastructure and projects in the National Historic Site.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in
open business session on November 18, 2021, by a majority voice
vote of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass H.R.
2497, as amended as described herein. Senator Lee asked to be
recorded as voting no.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1. Short title
Section 1 establishes the short title of the Act as
``Amache National Historic Site Act.''
Sec. 2. Definitions
Section 2 provides definitions for the bill.
Sec. 3. Amache National Historic Site
Subsection (a) establishes the Amache National Historic
Sites as a unit of the National Park System, subject to the
requirements of subsection (c).
Subsection (b) notes the purpose of the National Historic
Site in preserving the history of the incarcerated civilians of
Japanese ancestry during World War II at Amache, also known as
the Granada Relocation Center.
Subsection (c) provides that the National Historic Site
shall not be established until the date on which the Secretary
of the Interior determines that sufficient land within the
exterior boundary of the National Historic Site has been
acquired to constitute a management unit.
Subsection (d) requires the Secretary, after making the
determination in subsection (c), to publish in the Federal
Register notice of the establishment of the National Historic
Site.
Subsection (e) requires a map to be available and on file
for public inspection in the appropriate offices of the
National Park Service.
Subsection (f) permits the Secretary to acquire lands by
donation or purchase with donated or appropriated funds. The
Secretary may acquire personal property associated with the
purposes of the National Historic Site only by donation.
Subsection (g) provides that any lands or interests in land
acquired under subsection (f) shall be included in the
boundary.
Subsection (h) requires the preparation of a general
management plan not later than 3 years after the date on which
funds are first made available, and to submit the plan to
Congress upon completion.
Subsection (i) permits the Secretary to establish
facilities for administration, visitor services, and curation
of personal property outside the exterior boundaries of, and in
the vicinity of, the National Historic Site.
Subsection (j) permits the Secretary to enter into
agreements to establish and operate facilities outside the
boundary and for purposes of carrying out the Act.
Subsection (k) provides that nothing in the bill affects
water rights, interstate water compacts, or State jurisdiction
over any water law.
Subsection (l) provides that nothing in this Act affects
the town's ability to operate and maintain its water
infrastructure and projects located within the boundary of the
National Historic Site.
COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
The Congressional Budget Office has not estimated the costs
of H.R. 2497 as passed by the Senate. The Committee has
requested, but has not yet received, the Congressional Budget
Office's estimate of the cost of H.R. 2497 as ordered reported.
When the Congressional Budget Office completes its cost
estimate, it will be posted on the Internet at www.cbo.gov.
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. 2497. The bill 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. 2497, as ordered reported.
CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING
H.R. 2497, 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 United States Department of
the Interior at the October 6, 2021, hearing on H.R. 2497
follows:
Statement of Joy Beasley, Associate Director for Cultural Resources,
Partnerships and Science, Naional Park Service, U.S. Department of the
Interior
Chairman King, Ranking Member Daines, and members of the
Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to present the
views of the Department of the Interior (Department) on H.R.
2497 and S. 1284, bills to establish the Amache National
Historic Site in the State of Colorado as a unit of the
National Park System, and for other purposes.
The Department recognizes the important contribution to
America's story that is represented by the site known as
Amache, where Japanese Americans were incarcerated during World
War II. Congress authorized the Amache Special Resource Study
as part of the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management,
and Recreation Act (P.L. 116-9), enacted on March 12, 2019. The
NPS completed civic engagement in May 2021 and the public
comment period for the Special Resource Study closed on June
30, 2021. The NPS is working closely with both internal and
external subject matter experts to ensure the study captures
the complexities and nuances of the history of Japanese
American WWII incarceration. After reviewing all comments, the
NPS will draft its assessment of whether the site meets the
congressionally established criteria for inclusion in the
National Park System, and the Department will transmit the
study and recommendations to Congress.
H.R. 2497 and S. 1284 would establish the Amache National
Historic Site as a unit of the National Park System when the
Secretary of the Interior acquires sufficient land within the
boundary of the site to constitute a manageable unit. The
boundaries of the unit would be determined by a map that would
be developed after enactment of the bill. The NPS would be
required to develop a management plan for the site that does
not interfere with existing use of existing facilities at the
site. The bill would also allow for the establishment of
administrative, visitor service, and curatorial facilities
outside the boundaries of the site and for entering into
agreements with other public and private entities to establish
those facilities and for other purposes.
Originally known as the Granada Relocation Center, Amache
was one of ten incarceration sites established by the War
Relocation Authority during World War II to forcibly remove,
illegally detain, and incarcerate U.S. citizens and legal
residents of Japanese ancestry from the West Coast of the
United States under the terms of Executive Order 9066. Amache
was constructed on approximately 10,000 acres of land and held
about 10,000 people of Japanese descent between 1942 and 1945.
It is located approximately one mile from the Town of Granada
in southeastern Colorado. Amache was designated by the
Secretary of the Interior as a National Historic Landmark on
February 10, 2006.
The site is currently owned by the Town of Granada and
maintained by the Amache Preservation Society. At the site,
visitors can observe a historic cemetery, a monument, concrete
building foundations, a road network, and other elements of the
historic landscape that remain intact. Recent efforts to
preserve Amache have led to the restoration of the original
water tower, the reconstruction of a guard tower and
residential barracks, and the current rehabilitation of a
historic recreation hall. The NPS has provided technical and
financial assistance for preservation and interpretation of the
site through the Japanese American Confinement Sites Grant
Program.
We appreciate the changes the House made to H.R. 2497 after
the bill's introduction. If the Committee decides to act on
this legislation, we would like S.1284 to reflect the same
amendments that were made to H.R. 2497.
Chairman King, Ranking Member Daines, thank you for the
opportunity to appear before you today. I would be happy 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 bill as ordered
reported.
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