A bill to provide for the conduct of a study of the suitability and feasibility of establishing the Trail of the Ancients National Heritage Area in the Four Corners region of the States of Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Trail of the Ancients National 
Heritage Area Study Act of 2005''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) the Four Corners region, 1 of the areas of greatest 
        archaeological interest in the United States, provides access 
        to numerous examples of the Ancestral Puebloan culture;
            (2) the Four Corners region highlights areas and sites at 
        which--
                    (A) the earliest inhabitants were Paleo-Americans, 
                nomadic people who traveled through and lived in the 
                area as early as 10,000 B.C.; and
                    (B) the Ancestral Puebloan Indians lived from 
                approximately 1 to 1300 A.D.;
            (3) the region features sites that chronicle the Ute and 
        Navajo Indian cultures;
            (4) the archaeological sites of the region have been well-
        preserved by the semi-arid climate of the region;
            (5) national and international recognition of sites in the 
        region has contributed to the wealth of information about the 
        people who have inhabited the area;
            (6) the region features the Trail of the Ancients Scenic 
        Byway in the States of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah, 
        and other designated byways and highways, including San Juan 
        Skyway in the State of Colorado and the Utah Bicentennial 
        Highway; and
            (7) designating the Trail of the Ancients National Heritage 
        Area as a unit of the National Park System--
                    (A) would link many of the cultural and recreation 
                sites in the region for the benefit of the traveling 
                public and communities in the region; and
                    (B) would not--
                            (i) impose restrictions on private 
                        property; or
                            (ii) require acquisition of additional 
                        land.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Heritage area.--The term ``Heritage Area'' means the 
        Trail of the Ancients National Heritage Area.
            (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Interior.
            (3) State.--The term ``State'' means each of the States of 
        Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah.
            (4) Study area.--The term ``study area'' means the Four 
        Corner region, consisting of--
                    (A) portions of--
                            (i) San Juan County, Utah;
                            (ii) Montezuma and Dolores Counties, 
                        Colorado;
                            (iii) Apache and Navajo Counties, Arizona; 
                        and
                            (iv) San Juan and McKinley Counties, New 
                        Mexico; and
                    (B) portions of the reservations of the Ute 
                Mountain Ute, Navajo, and Hopi Tribes, in the States.

SEC. 4. TRAIL OF THE ANCIENTS NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA STUDY.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary, in cooperation with the Four 
Corners Heritage Council, shall conduct a study to assess the 
feasibility and suitability of designating the study area as the Trail 
of the Ancients National Heritage Area.
    (b) Requirements.--The study shall include analysis, documentation, 
and determinations on whether--
            (1) the study area--
                    (A) has an assemblage of natural, historic, 
                cultural, educational, scenic, or recreational 
                resources that--
                            (i) represent distinctive aspects of the 
                        heritage of the United States worthy of 
                        recognition, conservation, interpretation, and 
                        continuing use; and
                            (ii) are best managed--
                                    (I) through partnerships among 
                                public and private entities; and
                                    (II) by combining diverse and 
                                sometimes noncontiguous resources and 
                                active communities;
                    (B) reflects traditions, customs, beliefs, and 
                folklife that are a valuable part of the heritage of 
                the United States;
                    (C) provides outstanding opportunities to conserve 
                natural, historical, cultural, or scenic features;
                    (D) provides outstanding recreational and 
                educational opportunities; and
                    (E) has resources important to any identified theme 
                of the study area that retain a degree of integrity 
                capable of supporting interpretation;
            (2) residents, business interests, nonprofit organizations, 
        the Federal Government, and State, local, and tribal 
        governments within the study area--
                    (A) are involved in the planning of the Heritage 
                Area;
                    (B) have demonstrated support for the Heritage 
                Area; and
                    (C) have developed a conceptual financial plan that 
                outlines the roles of all participants (including the 
                Federal Government) in the management of the Heritage 
                Area;
            (3) there is a potential management entity to work in 
        partnership with residents, business interests, nonprofit 
        organizations, and Federal, State, local, and tribal 
        governments within the study area to develop the Heritage Area 
        consistent with continued, State, local, and tribal economic 
        activity; and
            (4) a conceptual boundary map has been developed that is 
        supported by the public.
    (c) Consultation.--In conducting the study, the Secretary and the 
Four Corners Heritage Council shall consult with appropriate Federal, 
State, local, and tribal governments, interested organizations, and 
affected communities within the study area.

SEC. 5. REPORT.

    Not later than 3 fiscal years after the date on which funds are 
made available to carry out the study, the Secretary shall submit to 
the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the 
Committee on Resources of the House of Representatives a report that 
describes the findings, conclusions, and recommendations of the study.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary 
to carry out this Act.

Summary: Trail of the Ancients National Heritage Area Study Act of 2005 - Directs the Secretary of the Interior, in cooperation with the Four Corners Heritage Council, to conduct a study to assess the feasibility and suitability of designating the Four Corners region comprised of parts of San Juan County, Utah, Montezuma and Dolores Counties, Colorado, Apache and Navajo Counties, Arizona, and San Juan and McKinley Counties, New Mexico, and parts of the reservations of the Ute Mountain Ute, Navajo, and Hopi Tribes in those States as the Trail of the Ancients National Heritage Area.