[Senate Report 118-145]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 297
118th Congress} { Report
SENATE
1st Session } { 118-145
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BIG BEND NATIONAL PARK BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENT
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December 20, 2023.--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 S. 1059]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the bill (S. 1059) to adjust the boundary of Big Bend
National Park in the State of Texas, and for other purposes,
having considered the same, reports favorably thereon without
amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.
PURPOSE
The purpose of S. 1059 is to adjust the boundary of Big
Bend National Park in the State of Texas to include
approximately 6,100 acres of land.
BACKGROUND AND NEED
Established as a national park in 1944, Big Bend National
Park encompasses over 801,000 acres, the largest protected area
of the Chihuahuan Desert in the United States. The park is home
to a large variety of biological diversity, including more than
1,200 species of plants, over 450 species of birds, 56 species
of reptiles, and 75 species of mammals; archeological sites
dating back nearly 10,000 years; historic ranching and mining
sites; and significant paleontological and geological
resources.
S. 1059 authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to expand
the park boundary to acquire approximately 6,100 acres of lands
on the west side of the park. The acquisition would include the
historic 3,800-acre Fulcher Ranch, which would protect
significant fossil beds, important watershed and riparian
habitat associated with Terlingua Creek, and cultural aspects
and pioneer homesteads.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
Senators Cornyn and Lujan introduced S. 1059 on March 29,
2023. The Subcommittee on National Parks held a hearing on S.
1059 on June 21, 2023. Representative Gonzales introduced a
companion measure, H.R. 1544, in the House of Representatives
on March 10, 2023.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in
open business session on September 21, 2023, by a voice vote of
a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 1059.
Senator Lee asked to be recorded as voting no.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OR SUMMARY
Section 1. Short title
Section 1 provides the short title, the ``Big Bend National
Park Boundary Adjustment Act.''
Section 2. Definitions
This section defines key terms used in the bill.
Section 3. Big Bend National Park Boundary Adjustment
Subsection (a) authorizes the Secretary of the Interior
(Secretary) to acquire approximately 6,100 acres of land or
interests in land for inclusion in the Big Bend National Park
boundary.
Subsection (b) requires the referenced map depicting the
boundary expansion to be on file and available for public
inspection in the appropriate offices of the National Park
Service.
Subsection (c) provides that following the acquisition of
land or interests in land, the Secretary shall update the
boundary of the national park and administer the acquired lands
of the park in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.
Subsection (d) prohibits the use of eminent domain or
condemnation in carrying out this Act.
COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
The cost estimate provided by the Congressional Budget
Office for S. 1059 follows:
S. 1059 would revise the boundary of the Big Bend National
Park in Texas to include an additional 6,100 acres of land. The
legislation stipulates that the Department of the Interior
acquire the land through donation, purchase, or exchange. S.
1059 specifically prohibits the use of eminent domain (the
ability to take private property for public use) or
condemnation to acquire the land.
Using information from the National Park Service (NPS) and
local landowners, CBO expects the agency would acquire most of
the land by donation within the first year following enactment.
Using information about similar land management activities, CBO
estimates that any costs incurred by the NPS to manage the
additional land would be insignificant; that spending would be
subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Matthew
Pickford. The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss,
Deputy Director of Budget Analysis.
Phillip L. Swagel,
Director, Congressional Budget Office.
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 S. 1059. 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 S. 1059, as ordered reported.
CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING
S. 1059, 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 of the National Park Service from the
Subcommittee on National Parks June 21, 2023, hearing on S.
1059 follows:
Statement of Michael A. Caldwell, Associate Director, Park Planning,
Facilities, and Lands, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the
Interior
Chairman King, Ranking Member Daines, and members of the
Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to provide the
Department of the Interior's views on S. 1059, a bill to adjust
the boundary of Big Bend National Park in the State of Texas,
and for other purposes.
The Department supports S. 1059 with an amendment.
S. 1059 would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to
acquire lands within an approximately 6,100-acre area along the
western boundary of Big Bend National Park through donation,
purchase from willing sellers, or exchange. After acquisition,
the boundary of the park would be adjusted to include the
acquired lands.
Big Bend National Park was established by Congress in 1935
to preserve and protect the largest and most representative
area of the Chihuahuan Desert in the United States for the
benefit and enjoyment of present and future generations. The
park's diverse habitats from the lowlands of the Rio Grande up
to the high Chisos Mountains support an extraordinary range of
biological resources. The park, which currently encompasses
over 800,000 acres, also includes rich geological diversity,
with remarkable paleontological resources spanning 130 million
years.
The 6,100-acre area that would be authorized to be included
in the park by S. 1059, known as the Terlingua Creek/
Rattlesnake Mountain area, contains four miles of intact rare
desert riparian habitat whose protection is vital to the water
quality of the Rio Grande downstream, scientifically
significant paleontological resources, and important cultural
resources that complement the purpose and mission of Big Bend
National Park.
Over half of the lands within the proposed addition area
are under contract to be purchased by the Big Bend Conservancy,
the park's philanthropic partner. Lands within boundary would
be eligible for acquisition for the park if landowners chose to
sell or donate them at any point in the future. Support for
adding this area to the park is strong in the surrounding
community and with local and state government.
While the Department supports S. 1059, we recommend
deleting section 3(d), which would prohibit the use of eminent
domain or condemnation. Section 3(a) provides the authority to
acquire land only from ``willing sellers'', which is sufficient
to protect against the use of condemnation, and therefore
section 3(d) is unnecessary. We would be pleased to provide a
recommended amendment for this purpose.
Chairman King, 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 S. 1059 as ordered
reported.
[all]