59–006 

110TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 1st Session 110–92 

STEEL INDUSTRY NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE ACT 

APRIL 17, 2007.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of 

the Union and ordered to be printed 

Mr. RAHALL, from the Committee on Natural Resources, 

submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany H.R. 285] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred the 

bill (H.R. 285) to establish the Steel Industry National Historic Site 

in the State of Pennsylvania, having considered the same, report 

favorably thereon with an amendment and recommend 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 ‘‘Steel Industry National Historic Site Act’’. 

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 

(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following: 

(1) Certain sites and structures in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania symbolize in physical form the heritage of the steel industry of the United States. 

(2) Certain buildings and other structures in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania are nationally significant historical resources, including the United States 

Steel Homestead Works, the Carrie Furnace complex, and the Hot Metal 

Bridge. 

(3) Despite substantial efforts for cultural preservation and historical interpretation by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and by individuals and public 

and private entities in the Commonwealth, these buildings and other structures 

may be lost without the assistance of the Federal Government. 

(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are to ensure the preservation, interpretation, visitor enjoyment, and maintenance of the nationally significant historical 

and cultural sites and structures described in subsection (a) for the benefit and inspiration of present and future generations. 

SEC. 3. STEEL INDUSTRY NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE, PENNSYLVANIA. 

(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Steel Industry National Historic Site is hereby established as a unit of the National Park System in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. 


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(b) DESCRIPTION.— (1) INCLUSION OF CERTAIN PROPERTY.—Subject to paragraph (2), the historic 

site shall consist of the following properties, each of which relate to the former 

United States Steel Homestead Works, as depicted on the map entitled ‘‘Steel 

Industry National Historic Site’’, dated November 2003, and numbered 80,000: 

(A) The historic location of the Battle of Homestead site in the borough 

of Munhall, Pennsylvania, consisting of approximately 3 acres of land, including the pumphouse and water tower and related structures, within the 

property bounded by the Monongahela River, the CSX railroad, Waterfront 

Drive, and the Damascus-Marcegaglia Steel Mill. 

(B) The historic location of the Carrie Furnace complex in the boroughs 

of Swissvale and Rankin, Pennsylvania, consisting of approximately 35 

acres of land, including blast furnaces 6 and 7, the ore yard, the cast house, 

the blowing engine house, the AC power house, and related structures, 

within the property bounded by the proposed southwesterly right-of-way 

line needed to accommodate the Mon/Fayette Expressway and the relocated 

CSX railroad right-of-way, the Monongahela River, and a property line 

drawn northeast to southwest approximately 100 yards east of the AC 

power house. 

(C) The historic location of the Hot Metal Bridge, consisting of the Union 

railroad bridge and its approaches, spanning the Monongahela River and 

connecting the mill sites in the boroughs of Rankin and Munhall, Pennsylvania. 

(2) AVAILABILITY OF MAP.—The map referred to in paragraph (1) shall be 

available for public inspection in an appropriate office of the National Park 

Service. 

(c) ACQUISITION OF PROPERTY.—To further the purposes of this section, the Secretary of the Interior may acquire, only by donation, property for inclusion in the 

historic site as follows: 

(1) Any land or interest in land with respect to the property identified in subsection (b)(1). 

(2) Up to 10 acres of land adjacent to or in the general proximity of the property identified in such subsection, for the development of visitor, administrative, 

museum, curatorial, and maintenance facilities. 

(3) Personal property associated with, and appropriate for, the interpretation 

of the historic site. 

(d) PRIVATE PROPERTY PROTECTIONS.—Nothing in this Act shall be construed—

(1) to require any private property owner to permit public access (including 

Federal, State, or local government access) to the private property; or 

(2) to modify any provision of Federal, State, or local law with regard to public access to or use of private property. 

(e) ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary of the Interior shall administer the historic 

site in accordance with this Act and the provisions of law generally applicable to 

units of the National Park System, including the Act of August 25, 1916 (16 U.S.C. 

1 et seq.), and the Act of August 21, 1935 (16 U.S.C. 461 et seq.). 

(f) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—Until such time as the Secretary of the Interior has acquired the property identified in subsection (b)(1), as depicted on the map referred to in such subsection, the Secretary may enter into a cooperative agreement with any interested individual, public or private agency, organization, or 

institution to further the purposes of the historic site. 

(2) CONTRARY PURPOSES.—Any payment made by the Secretary pursuant to 

a cooperative agreement under this subsection shall be subject to an agreement 

that conversion, use, or disposal of the project so assisted for purposes contrary 

to the purpose of the historic site, as determined by the Secretary, shall result 

in a right of the United States to reimbursement of all funds made available 

to such a project or the proportion of the increased value of the project attributable to such funds as determined at the time of such conversion, use, or disposal, whichever is greater. 

(g) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary of the Interior may provide technical 

assistance to any person for—

(1) the preservation of historic structures within the historic site; and 

(2) the maintenance of the natural and cultural landscape of the historic site. 

(h) GENERAL MANAGEMENT PLAN.—

(1) PREPARATION.—Not later than three years after the date on which funds 

are first made available to carry out this Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall 

prepare a general management plan for the historic site that will incorporate 

or otherwise address substantive comments made during the consultation required by paragraph (2). 


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(2) CONSULTATION.—The Secretary shall prepare the general management 

plan in consultation with—

(A) an appropriate official of each appropriate political subdivision of the 

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania that has jurisdiction over all or a portion 

of the lands included in the historic site; 

(B) an appropriate official of the Steel Industry Heritage Corporation; and 

(C) private property owners in the vicinity of the historic site. 

(3) SUBMISSION OF PLAN TO CONGRESS.—Upon the completion of the general 

management plan, the Secretary shall submit a copy of the plan to the Committee on Natural Resources of the United States House of Representatives and 

the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the United States Senate. 

(i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is authorized to be appropriated 

not more than $30,000,000 for development of the historic site. 

PURPOSE OF THE BILL

The purpose of H.R. 285, as ordered reported, is to establish the 

Steel Industry National Historic Site in the Commonwealth of 

Pennsylvania. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

H.R. 285 would combine sites associated with the Homestead 

Steel Works, located just outside of Pittsburgh, PA, and designate 

them as the ‘‘Steel Industry National Historic Site.’’

The Homestead Steel Works includes a number of nationally significant sites and structures important to labor and steelworker 

history and the development of integrated steelmaking operations. 

It was here that the infamous ‘‘Battle of Homestead’’ occurred in 

1892 between striking steelworkers and armed guards hired by the 

company’s owners. Plant operations were considered pivotal in the 

development of the American iron and steel industry and helped 

identify Pittsburgh as the capital of ‘‘Big Steel.’’

The national historic site would include three specific sites: the 

U.S. Steel Homestead Works; the Carrie Furnace Complex; and the 

Hot Metal Bridge, totaling approximately 38 acres. The sites would 

be acquired by donation only and would be administered by the National Park Service as a unit of the National Park System. 

Similar legislation was approved by the Committee in the 107th 

and 108th Congresses and the legislation passed the House as part 

of another measure in the 108th Congress. 

COMMITTEE ACTION

H.R. 285 was introduced on January 5, 2007 by Rep. Mike Doyle 

(D–PA). The bill was referred to the Committee on Resources, and 

within the Committee to the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands. On March 7, 2007, the Full Natural Resources Committee met to consider the bill. The Subcommittee on 

National Parks, Forests and Public Lands was discharged from further consideration of the bill by unanimous consent. Subcommittee 

Chairman Raul Grijalva (D–AZ) offered an amendment to limit the 

authorization of appropriations for development of the historic site. 

The amendment was adopted by voice vote. The bill as amended 

was then ordered favorably reported to the House of Representatives by voice vote. 


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SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1. Short title 

Provides that this Act may be cited as the ‘‘Steel Industry National Historic Site Act.’’

Section 2. Findings and purposes 

This section provides a number of findings on the historical importance of the site and states that the purposes of the Act are to 

ensure the preservation, interpretation, visitor enjoyment, and 

maintenance of the nationally significant historical and cultural 

sites and structures of the area for the benefit and inspiration of 

present and future generations. 

Section 3. Establishment and administration of the historic site 

This section establishes the historic site as a unit of the National 

Park System. It references a map of the boundaries of the historic 

site and provides for the acquisition of property only by donation. 

The section also provides for administration of the historic site in 

accordance with the provisions of law generally applicable to units 

of the National Park System and also authorizes cooperative agreements to assist in the administration of the site. The section further directs the development and submission of a general management plan for the historic site. Finally, it provides that there is authorized to be appropriated not more than $30,000,000 for development of the site. 

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 Resources’ oversight findings and recommendations are reflected in 

the body of this report. 

CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY STATEMENT

Article I, section 8 of the Constitution of the United States 

grants Congress the authority to enact this bill. 

COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII

1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of 

the House of Representatives requires an estimate and a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(3)(B) of that Rule provides 

that this requirement does not apply when the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974. 

2. Congressional Budget Act. As required by clause 3(c)(2) of rule 

XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 

308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, this bill does not 

contain any new budget authority, spending authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in revenues or tax expenditures. 

3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by 

clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goal or objective 

of this bill is to establish the Steel Industry National Historic Site. 


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4. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate. Under clause 

3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and 

section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate for this bill from the 

Director of the Congressional Budget Office: 

H.R. 285—Steel Industry National Historic Site Act 

Summary: H.R. 285 would establish the Steel Industry National 

Historic Site (NHS) in Pennsylvania as a unit of the National Park 

System. Assuming appropriation of the amounts authorized or estimated to be necessary, CBO estimates that developing and operating the new site would cost about $40 million over the next five 

years. The National Park Service (NPS) could incur other costs to 

implement this legislation, but such costs would depend on presently unknown factors such as the condition of property that may 

be acquired by the federal government and the need for mitigating 

environmental or other safety hazards. Enacting H.R. 285 would 

not affect direct spending or revenues. 

Under H.R. 285, the Steel Industry NHS would consist of three 

or more separate properties in southwestern Pennsylvania—the 

Battle of Homestead site (between 3 acres and 5 acres and related 

structures), the 35-acre Carrie Furnace complex (including blast 

furnaces, an ore yard, and related buildings), the hot metal bridge 

over the Monongahela River, and possibly up to 10 acres of nearby 

land that may be acquired by the NPS for visitor and administrative facilities. H.R. 285 would authorize the NPS to acquire all of 

these sites (as well as related personal property) by donation only. 

In addition to managing the NHS, the Park Service could provide 

technical and financial assistance to local parties for their preservation and management efforts. The agency also would prepare a 

general management plan for the site within three years of the 

bill’s enactment. Finally, the bill would authorize the appropriation of $30 million for development of the site. 

H.R. 285 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) 

and would impose no costs on State, local, or tribal governments. 

Estimated cost to the Federal Government: The estimated budgetary impact of H.R. 285 is shown in the following table. The costs 

of this legislation fall within budget function 300 (natural resources 

and environment). 

By fiscal year, in millions of dollars— 

2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 

CHANGES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION 

Estimated Authorization Level ................................................................................ 2 7 27 2 2 

Estimated Outlays ................................................................................................... 2 5 14 12 7

Basis of estimate: CBO estimates that one-time planning and development costs to establish the Steel Industry NHS would be $31 

million over the five years following the bill’s enactment. Of this 

amount, about $1 million would be used for the preparation of a 

general management plan, historic structures report, environmental assessments, and other requisite studies. The remaining 

$30 million—specifically authorized by the bill for site development—would be spent on design and construction of administrative 


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and visitor facilities and creation of an interpretive program over 

the 2009–2012 period. Implementing H.R. 285 could involve other 

one-time costs, such as mitigation of hazardous conditions and environmental contamination, but CBO has no basis for estimating 

any such costs, which we assume would not be included in the bill’s 

authorization to appropriate $30 million. 

We estimate that administering the new NHS would increase NPS costs by $1 million in 2008 and by $2 million a year for 2009 

through 2012. (After 2012, annual costs would be about $3 million, 

CBO estimates.) Annual costs would include routine NPS operating 

expenses, services to secure and maintain special property such as 

the bridge and blast furnaces, and technical assistance to nonfederal participant organizations. 

This estimate is based on information provided by the nonprofit 

Steel Industry Heritage Corporation, the NPS, and other federal, 

state, and local agencies. For this estimate, CBO assumes that any 

significant contamination or other safety hazards located on donated property would be corrected before or soon after federal acquisition. If the NPS should acquire contaminated or unsafe property, the federal government could be liable for future third-party 

damages, but CBO has no basis for estimating the likelihood or 

amount of such costs. 

Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: H.R. 285 contains 

no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in 

UMRA and would impose no costs on State, local, or tribal governments. 

Estimate prepared by: Federal Costs: Deborah Reis; Impact on 

State, Local, and Tribal Governments: Marjorie Miller; Impact on 

the Private Sector: Amy Petz. 

Estimate approved by: Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis. 

COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104–4

This bill contains no unfunded mandates. 

EARMARK STATEMENT

H.R. 285 does not contain any congressional earmarks, limited 

tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined in clause 9(d), 9(e) 

or 9(f) of rule XXI. 

PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL OR TRIBAL LAW

This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or tribal law. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

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

Æ 


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