IB 

Union Calendar No. 215

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1798

[Report No. 108–365] 

To establish the Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area in the 

State of Connecticut and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 11, 2003

Mrs. JOHNSON of Connecticut (for herself and Mr. OLVER) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Resources 

NOVEMBER 17, 2003

Additional sponsor: Mr. PETERSON of Pennsylvania 

NOVEMBER 17, 2003 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 

House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on April 11, 2003] 

A BILL

To establish the Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage 

Area in the State of Connecticut and the Commonwealth 

of Massachusetts, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Upper Housatonic Val3 ley National Heritage Area Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 

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

6 (1) The upper Housatonic Valley, encompassing 

7 29 towns in the hilly terrain of western Massachusetts 

8 and northwestern Connecticut, is a singular geo9 graphical and cultural region that has made signifi10 cant national contributions through its literary, artis11 tic, musical, and architectural achievements, its iron, 

12 paper, and electrical equipment industries, and its 

13 scenic beautification and environmental conservation 

14 efforts. 

15 (2) The upper Housatonic Valley has 139 prop16 erties and historic districts listed on the National 

17 Register of Historic Places including—

18 (A) five National Historic Landmarks—

19 (i) Edith Wharton’s home, The Mount, 

20 Lenox, Massachusetts; 

21 (ii) Herman Melville’s home, Arrow22 head, Pittsfield, Massachusetts; 

23 (iii) W.E.B. DuBois’ Boyhood Home24 site, Great Barrington, Massachusetts; 

25 (iv) Mission House, Stockbridge, Mas26 sachusetts; and 

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1 (v) Crane and Company Old Stone 

2 Mill Rag Room, Dalton, Massachusetts; and 

3 (B) four National Natural Landmarks—

4 (i) Bartholomew’s Cobble, Sheffield, 

5 Massachusetts, and Salisbury, Connecticut; 

6 (ii) Beckley Bog, Norfolk, Connecticut; 

7 (iii) Bingham Bog, Salisbury, Con8 necticut; and 

9 (iv) Cathedral Pines, Cornwall, Con10 necticut. 

11 (3) Writers, artists, musicians, and vacationers 

12 have visited the region for more than 150 years to 

13 enjoy its scenic wonders, making it one of the coun14 try’s leading cultural resorts. 

15 (4) The upper Housatonic Valley has made sig16 nificant national cultural contributions through such 

17 writers as Herman Melville, Nathaniel Hawthorne, 

18 Edith Wharton, and W.E.B. DuBois, artists Daniel 

19 Chester French and Norman Rockwell, and the per20 forming arts centers of Tanglewood, Music Mountain, 

21 Norfolk (Connecticut) Chamber Music Festival, Ja22 cob’s Pillow, and Shakespeare & Company. 

23 (5) The upper Housatonic Valley is noted for its 

24 pioneering achievements in the iron, paper, and elecVerDate jul 14 2003 01:07 Nov 18, 2003 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H1798.RH H1798
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1 trical generation industries and has cultural resources 

2 to interpret those industries. 

3 (6) The region became a national leader in sce4 nic beautification and environmental conservation ef5 forts following the era of industrialization and defor6 estation and maintains a fabric of significant con7 servation areas including the meandering Housatonic 

8 River. 

9 (7) Important historical events related to the 

10 American Revolution, Shays’ Rebellion, and early 

11 civil rights took place in the upper Housatonic Val12 ley. 

13 (8) The region had an American Indian presence 

14 going back 10,000 years and Mohicans had a forma15 tive role in contact with Europeans during the seven16 teenth and eighteenth centuries. 

17 (9) The Upper Housatonic Valley National Her18 itage Area has been proposed in order to heighten ap19 preciation of the region, preserve its natural and his20 torical resources, and improve the quality of life and 

21 economy of the area. 

22 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are as fol23 lows: 

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1 (1) To establish the Upper Housatonic Valley 

2 National Heritage Area in the State of Connecticut 

3 and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. 

4 (2) To implement the national heritage area al5 ternative as described in the document entitled 

6 ‘‘Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area 

7 Feasibility Study, 2003’’. 

8 (3) To provide a management framework to fos9 ter a close working relationship with all levels of gov10 ernment, the private sector, and the local communities 

11 in the upper Housatonic Valley region to conserve the 

12 region’s heritage while continuing to pursue compat13 ible economic opportunities. 

14 (4) To assist communities, organizations, and 

15 citizens in the State of Connecticut and the Common16 wealth of Massachusetts in identifying, preserving, in17 terpreting, and developing the historical, cultural, sce18 nic, and natural resources of the region for the edu19 cational and inspirational benefit of current and fu20 ture generations. 

21 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

22 In this Act: 

23 (1) HERITAGE AREA.—The term ‘‘Heritage 

24 Area’’ means the Upper Housatonic Valley National 

25 Heritage Area, established in section 4.

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1 (2) MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—The term ‘‘Manage2 ment Entity’’ means the management entity for the 

3 Heritage Area designated by section 4(d). 

4 (3) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The term ‘‘Manage5 ment Plan’’ means the management plan for the Her6 itage Area specified in section 6.

7 (4) MAP.—The term ‘‘map’’ means the map enti8 tled ‘‘Boundary Map Upper Housatonic Valley Na9 tional Heritage Area’’, numbered P17/80,000, and 

10 dated February 2003. 

11 (5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

12 the Secretary of the Interior. 

13 (6) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State 

14 of Connecticut and the Commonwealth of Massachu15 setts. 

16 SEC. 4. UPPER HOUSATONIC VALLEY NATIONAL HERITAGE 

17 AREA. 

18 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the Upper 

19 Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area. 

20 (b) BOUNDARIES.—The Heritage Area shall be com21 prised of—

22 (1) part of the Housatonic River’s watershed, 

23 which extends 60 miles from Lanesboro, Massachusetts 

24 to Kent, Connecticut; 

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1 (2) the towns of Canaan, Colebrook, Cornwall, 

2 Kent, Norfolk, North Canaan, Salisbury, Sharon, and 

3 Warren in Connecticut; and 

4 (3) the towns of Alford, Becket, Dalton, 

5 Egremont, Great Barrington, Hancock, Hinsdale, 

6 Lanesboro, Lee, Lenox, Monterey, Mount Washington, 

7 New Marlboro, Pittsfield, Richmond, Sheffield, Stock8 bridge, Tyringham, Washington, and West Stock9 bridge in Massachusetts. 

10 (c) AVAILABILITY OF MAP.—The map shall be on file 

11 and available for public inspection in the appropriate of12 fices of the National Park Service, Department of the Inte13 rior. 

14 (d) MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—The Upper Housatonic 

15 Valley National Heritage Area, Inc. shall be the manage16 ment entity for the Heritage Area. 

17 SEC. 5. AUTHORITIES, PROHIBITIONS AND DUTIES OF THE 

18 MANAGEMENT ENTITY. 

19 (a) DUTIES OF THE MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—To fur20 ther the purposes of the Heritage Area, the management en21 tity shall—

22 (1) prepare and submit a management plan for 

23 the Heritage Area to the Secretary in accordance with 

24 section 6; 

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1 (2) assist units of local government, regional 

2 planning organizations, and nonprofit organizations 

3 in implementing the approved management plan 

4 by—

5 (A) carrying out programs and projects 

6 that recognize, protect and enhance important 

7 resource values within the Heritage Area; 

8 (B) establishing and maintaining interpre9 tive exhibits and programs within the Heritage 

10 Area; 

11 (C) developing recreational and educational 

12 opportunities in the Heritage Area; 

13 (D) increasing public awareness of and ap14 preciation for natural, historical, scenic, and 

15 cultural resources of the Heritage Area; 

16 (E) protecting and restoring historic sites 

17 and buildings in the Heritage Area that are con18 sistent with heritage area themes; 

19 (F) ensuring that signs identifying points 

20 of public access and sites of interest are posted 

21 throughout the Heritage Area; and 

22 (G) promoting a wide range of partnerships 

23 among governments, organizations and individ24 uals to further the purposes of the Heritage Area; 

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1 (3) consider the interests of diverse units of gov2 ernment, businesses, organizations and individuals in 

3 the Heritage Area in the preparation and implemen4 tation of the management plan; 

5 (4) conduct meetings open to the public at least 

6 semi-annually regarding the development and imple7 mentation of the management plan; 

8 (5) submit an annual report to the Secretary for 

9 any fiscal year in which the management entity re10 ceives Federal funds under this Act, setting forth its 

11 accomplishments, expenses, and income, including 

12 grants to any other entities during the year for which 

13 the report is made; 

14 (6) make available for audit for any fiscal year 

15 in which it receives Federal funds under this Act, all 

16 information pertaining to the expenditure of such 

17 funds and any matching funds, and require in all 

18 agreements authorizing expenditures of Federal funds 

19 by other organizations, that the receiving organiza20 tions make available for such audit all records and 

21 other information pertaining to the expenditure of 

22 such funds; and 

23 (7) encourage by appropriate means economic 

24 development that is consistent with the purposes of 

25 the Heritage Area. 

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1 (b) AUTHORITIES.—The management entity may, for 

2 the purposes of preparing and implementing the manage3 ment plan for the Heritage Area, use Federal funds made 

4 available through this Act to—

5 (1) make grants to the State of Connecticut and 

6 the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, their political 

7 subdivisions, nonprofit organizations and other per8 sons; 

9 (2) enter into cooperative agreements with or 

10 provide technical assistance to the State of Con11 necticut and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 

12 their subdivisions, nonprofit organizations, and other 

13 interested parties; 

14 (3) hire and compensate staff, which shall in15 clude individuals with expertise in natural, cultural, 

16 and historical resources protection, and heritage pro17 gramming; 

18 (4) obtain money or services from any source in19 cluding any that are provided under any other Fed20 eral law or program; 

21 (5) contract for goods or services; and 

22 (6) undertake to be a catalyst for any other ac23 tivity that furthers the purposes of the Heritage Area 

24 and is consistent with the approved management 

25 plan.

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1 (c) PROHIBITIONS ON THE ACQUISITION OF REAL

2 PROPERTY.—The management entity may not use Federal 

3 funds received under this Act to acquire real property, but 

4 may use any other source of funding, including other Fed5 eral funding outside this authority, intended for the acqui6 sition of real property. 

7 SEC. 6. MANAGEMENT PLAN. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—The management plan for the Her9 itage Area shall—

10 (1) include comprehensive policies, strategies and 

11 recommendations for conservation, funding, manage12 ment and development of the Heritage Area; 

13 (2) take into consideration existing State, coun14 ty, and local plans in the development of the manage15 ment plan and its implementation; 

16 (3) include a description of actions that govern17 ments, private organizations, and individuals have 

18 agreed to take to protect the natural, historical and 

19 cultural resources of the Heritage Area; 

20 (4) specify the existing and potential sources of 

21 funding to protect, manage, and develop the Heritage 

22 Area in the first 5 years of implementation; 

23 (5) include an inventory of the natural, histor24 ical, cultural, educational, scenic, and recreational re25 sources of the Heritage Area related to the themes of 

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1 the Heritage Area that should be preserved, restored, 

2 managed, developed, or maintained; 

3 (6) describe a program of implementation for the 

4 management plan including plans for resource protec5 tion, restoration, construction, and specific commit6 ments for implementation that have been made by the 

7 management entity or any government, organization, 

8 or individual for the first 5 years of implementation; 

9 and 

10 (7) include an interpretive plan for the Heritage 

11 Area. 

12 (b) DEADLINE AND TERMINATION OF FUNDING.—

13 (1) DEADLINE.—The management entity shall 

14 submit the management plan to the Secretary for ap15 proval within 3 years after funds are made available 

16 for this Act. 

17 (2) TERMINATION OF FUNDING.—If the manage18 ment plan is not submitted to the Secretary in ac19 cordance with this subsection, the management entity 

20 shall not qualify for Federal funding under this Act 

21 until such time as the management plan is submitted 

22 to the Secretary. 

23 SEC. 7. DUTIES AND AUTHORITIES OF THE SECRETARY. 

24 (a) TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—The 

25 Secretary may, upon the request of the management entity, 

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1 provide technical assistance on a reimbursable or non-reim2 bursable basis and financial assistance to the Heritage Area 

3 to develop and implement the approved management plan. 

4 The Secretary is authorized to enter into cooperative agree5 ments with the management entity and other public or pri6 vate entities for this purpose. In assisting the Heritage 

7 Area, the Secretary shall give priority to actions that in 

8 general assist in—

9 (1) conserving the significant natural, historical, 

10 cultural, and scenic resources of the Heritage Area; 

11 and 

12 (2) providing educational, interpretive, and rec13 reational opportunities consistent with the purposes of 

14 the Heritage Area. 

15 (b) APPROVAL AND DISAPPROVAL OF MANAGEMENT

16 PLAN.—

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall approve 

18 or disapprove the management plan not later than 90 

19 days after receiving the management plan. 

20 (2) CRITERIA FOR APPROVAL.—In determining 

21 the approval of the management plan, the Secretary 

22 shall consider whether—

23 (A) the management entity is representative 

24 of the diverse interests of the Heritage Area in25 cluding governments, natural and historic reVerDate jul 14 2003 01:07 Nov 18, 2003 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H1798.RH H1798
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1 source protection organizations, educational in2 stitutions, businesses, and recreational organiza3 tions; 

4 (B) the management entity has afforded 

5 adequate opportunity, including public hearings, 

6 for public and governmental involvement in the 

7 preparation of the management plan; 

8 (C) the resource protection and interpreta9 tion strategies contained in the management 

10 plan, if implemented, would adequately protect 

11 the natural, historical, and cultural resources of 

12 the Heritage Area; and 

13 (D) the management plan is supported by 

14 the appropriate State and local officials whose 

15 cooperation is needed to ensure the effective im16 plementation of the State and local aspects of the 

17 management plan. 

18 (3) ACTION FOLLOWING DISAPPROVAL.—If the 

19 Secretary disapproves the management plan, the Sec20 retary shall advise the management entity in writing 

21 of the reasons therefore and shall make recommenda22 tions for revisions to the management plan. The Sec23 retary shall approve or disapprove a proposed revi24 sion within 60 days after the date it is submitted. 

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1 (4) APPROVAL OF AMENDMENTS.—Substantial 

2 amendments to the management plan shall be re3 viewed by the Secretary and approved in the same 

4 manner as provided for the original management 

5 plan. The management entity shall not use Federal 

6 funds authorized by this Act to implement any 

7 amendments until the Secretary has approved the 

8 amendments. 

9 SEC. 8. DUTIES OF OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES. 

10 Any Federal agency conducting or supporting activi11 ties directly affecting the Heritage Area shall—

12 (1) consult with the Secretary and the manage13 ment entity with respect to such activities; 

14 (2) cooperate with the Secretary and the man15 agement entity in carrying out their duties under this 

16 Act and, to the maximum extent practicable, coordi17 nate such activities with the carrying out of such du18 ties; and, 

19 (3) to the maximum extent practicable, conduct 

20 or support such activities in a manner which the 

21 management entity determines will not have an ad22 verse effect on the Heritage Area.

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1 SEC. 9. REQUIREMENTS FOR INCLUSION OF PRIVATE PROP2 ERTY. 

3 (a) NOTIFICATION AND CONSENT OF PROPERTY OWN4 ERS REQUIRED.—No privately owned property shall be pre5 served, conserved, or promoted by the management plan for 

6 the Heritage Area until the owner of that private property 

7 has been notified in writing by the management entity and 

8 has given written consent for such preservation, conserva9 tion, or promotion to the management entity. 

10 (b) LANDOWNER WITHDRAW.—Any owner of private 

11 property included within the boundary of the Heritage Area 

12 shall have their property immediately removed from the 

13 boundary by submitting a written request to the manage14 ment entity. 

15 SEC. 10. PRIVATE PROPERTY PROTECTION. 

16 (a) ACCESS TO PRIVATE PROPERTY.—Nothing in this 

17 Act shall be construed to—

18 (1) require any private property owner to allow 

19 public access (including Federal, State, or local gov20 ernment access) to such private property; or 

21 (2) modify any provision of Federal, State, or 

22 local law with regard to public access to or use of pri23 vate property. 

24 (b) LIABILITY.—Designation of the Heritage Area 

25 shall not be considered to create any liability, or to have 

26 any effect on any liability under any other law, of any priVerDate jul 14 2003 01:07 Nov 18, 2003 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H1798.RH H1798
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1 vate property owner with respect to any persons injured 

2 on such private property. 

3 (c) RECOGNITION OF AUTHORITY TO CONTROL LAND

4 USE.—Nothing in this Act shall be construed to modify the 

5 authority of Federal, State, or local governments to regulate 

6 land use. 

7 (d) PARTICIPATION OF PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNERS

8 IN HERITAGE AREA.—Nothing in this Act shall be con9 strued to require the owner of any private property located 

10 within the boundaries of the Heritage Area to participate 

11 in or be associated with the Heritage Area. 

12 (e) EFFECT OF ESTABLISHMENT.—The boundaries 

13 designated for the Heritage Area represent the area within 

14 which Federal funds appropriated for the purpose of this 

15 Act may be expended. The establishment of the Heritage 

16 Area and its boundaries shall not be construed to provide 

17 any nonexisting regulatory authority on land use within 

18 the Heritage Area or its viewshed by the Secretary, the Na19 tional Park Service, or the management entity. 

20 SEC. 11. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro22 priated for the purposes of this Act not more than 

23 $1,000,000 for any fiscal year. Not more than a total of 

24 $10,000,000 may be appropriated for the Heritage Area 

25 under this Act. 

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1 (b) MATCHING FUNDS.—Federal funding provided 

2 under this Act may not exceed 50 percent of the total cost 

3 of any assistance or grant provided or authorized under this 

4 Act. 

5 SEC. 12. SUNSET. 

6 The authority of the Secretary to provide assistance 

7 under this Act shall terminate on the day occurring 15 

8 years after funds are first made available for this Act.

Union Calendar No. 215

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1798

[Report No. 108

–365] 

A BILL

To establish the Upper Housatonic Valley National 

Heritage Area in the State of Connecticut and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and for other purposes. 

NOVEMBER 17, 2003

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 

and ordered to be printed