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Union Calendar No. 216

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1862

[Report No. 108–366] 

To establish the Oil Region National Heritage Area. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 29, 2003

Mr. PETERSON of Pennsylvania (for himself, Mr. GREENWOOD, Mr. ENGLISH, 

Mr. DOYLE, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. KANJORSKI, Mr. MURTHA, Ms. HART, 

Mr. PLATTS, Mr. HOEFFEL, Mr. BRADY of Pennsylvania, Mr. GERLACH, 

Mr. FATTAH, Mr. HOLDEN, and Mr. SHERWOOD) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Resources 

NOVEMBER 17, 2003

Additional sponsors: Mr. WELDON of Pennsylvania, and Mr. CANNON

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 29, 2003] 

A BILL

To establish the Oil Region National Heritage Area.

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; DEFINITIONS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Oil 

3 Region National Heritage Area Act’’. 

4 (b) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this Act, the 

5 following definitions shall apply: 

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

7 Area’’ means the Oil Region National Heritage Area 

8 established in section 3(a). 

9 (2) MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—The term ‘‘manage10 ment entity’’ means the Oil Heritage Region, Inc., or 

11 its successor entity. 

12 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

13 the Secretary of the Interior. 

14 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 

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

16 (1) The Oil Region of Northwestern Pennsyl17 vania, with numerous sites and districts listed on the 

18 National Register of Historic Places, and designated 

19 by the Governor of Pennsylvania as one of the State 

20 Heritage Park Areas, is a region with tremendous 

21 physical and natural resources and possesses a story 

22 of State, national, and international significance. 

23 (2) The single event of Colonel Edwin Drake’s 

24 drilling of the world’s first successful oil well in 1859 

25 has affected the industrial, natural, social, and polit26 ical structures of the modern world. 
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1 (3) Six national historic districts are located 

2 within the State Heritage Park boundary, in 

3 Emlenton, Franklin, Oil City, and Titusville, as well 

4 as 17 separate National Register sites. 

5 (4) The Allegheny River, which was designated 

6 as a component of the national wild and scenic rivers 

7 system in 1992 by Public Law 102–271, traverses the 

8 Oil Region and connects several of its major sites, as 

9 do some of the river’s tributaries such as Oil Creek, 

10 French Creek, and Sandy Creek. 

11 (5) The unspoiled rural character of the Oil Re12 gion provides many natural and recreational re13 sources, scenic vistas, and excellent water quality for 

14 people throughout the United States to enjoy. 

15 (6) Remnants of the oil industry, visible on the 

16 landscape to this day, provide a direct link to the 

17 past for visitors, as do the historic valley settlements, 

18 riverbed settlements, plateau developments, farmlands, 

19 and industrial landscapes. 

20 (7) The Oil Region also represents a cross section 

21 of American history associated with Native Ameri22 cans, frontier settlements, the French and Indian 

23 War, African Americans and the Underground Rail24 road, and immigration of Swedish and Polish indi25 viduals, among others. 
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1 (8) Involvement by the Federal Government shall 

2 serve to enhance the efforts of the Commonwealth of 

3 Pennsylvania, local subdivisions of the Common4 wealth of Pennsylvania, volunteer organizations, and 

5 private businesses, to promote the cultural, national, 

6 and recreational resources of the region in order to 

7 fulfill their full potential. 

8 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to enhance 

9 a cooperative management framework to assist the Com10 monwealth of Pennsylvania, its units of local government, 

11 and area citizens in conserving, enhancing, and inter12 preting the significant features of the lands, water, and 

13 structures of the Oil Region, in a manner consistent with 

14 compatible economic development for the benefit and inspi15 ration of present and future generations in the Common16 wealth of Pennsylvania and the United States. 

17 SEC. 3. OIL REGION NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA. 

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

19 Oil Region National Heritage Area. 

20 (b) BOUNDARIES.—The boundaries of the Heritage 

21 Area shall include all of those lands depicted on a map enti22 tled ‘‘Oil Region National Heritage Area’’, numbered 

23 OIRE/20,000 and dated October, 2000. The map shall be 

24 on file in the appropriate offices of the National Park Serv25 ice. The Secretary of the Interior shall publish in the Fed-
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1 eral Register, as soon as practical after the date of the en2 actment of this Act, a detailed description and map of the 

3 boundaries established under this subsection. 

4 (c) MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—The management entity 

5 for the Heritage Area shall be the Oil Heritage Region, Inc., 

6 the locally based private, nonprofit management corpora7 tion which shall oversee the development of a management 

8 plan in accordance with section 5(b). 

9 SEC. 4. COMPACT. 

10 To carry out the purposes of this Act, the Secretary 

11 shall enter into a compact with the management entity. The 

12 compact shall include information relating to the objectives 

13 and management of the area, including a discussion of the 

14 goals and objectives of the Heritage Area, including an ex15 planation of the proposed approach to conservation and in16 terpretation and a general outline of the protection meas17 ures committed to by the Secretary and management entity. 

18 SEC. 5. AUTHORITIES AND DUTIES OF MANAGEMENT

19 ENTITY. 

20 (a) AUTHORITIES OF THE MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—

21 The management entity may use funds made available 

22 under this Act for purposes of preparing, updating, and 

23 implementing the management plan developed under sub24 section (b). Such purposes may include—
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1 (1) making grants to, and entering into coopera2 tive agreements with, States and their political sub3 divisions, private organizations, or any other person; 

4 (2) hiring and compensating staff; and 

5 (3) undertaking initiatives that advance the pur6 poses of the Heritage Area. 

7 (b) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The management entity 

8 shall develop a management plan for the Heritage Area 

9 that—

10 (1) presents comprehensive strategies and rec11 ommendations for conservation, funding, manage12 ment, and development of the Heritage Area; 

13 (2) takes into consideration existing State, coun14 ty, and local plans and involves residents, public 

15 agencies, and private organizations working in the 

16 Heritage Area; 

17 (3) includes a description of actions that units 

18 of government and private organizations have agreed 

19 to take to protect the resources of the Heritage Area; 

20 (4) specifies the existing and potential sources of 

21 funding to protect, manage, and develop the Heritage 

22 Area; 

23 (5) includes an inventory of the resources con24 tained in the Heritage Area, including a list of any 

25 property in the Heritage Area that is related to the 
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1 themes of the Heritage Area and that should be pre2 served, restored, managed, developed, or maintained 

3 because of its natural, cultural, historic, recreational, 

4 or scenic significance; 

5 (6) describes a program for implementation of 

6 the management plan by the management entity, in7 cluding plans for restoration and construction, and 

8 specific commitments for that implementation that 

9 have been made by the management entity and any 

10 other persons for the first 5 years of implementation; 

11 (7) lists any revisions to the boundaries of the 

12 Heritage Area proposed by the management entity 

13 and requested by the affected local government; and 

14 (8) includes an interpretation plan for the Her15 itage Area. 

16 (c) DEADLINE; TERMINATION OF FUNDING.—

17 (1) DEADLINE.—The management entity shall 

18 submit the management plan to the Secretary within 

19 2 years after the funds are made available for this 

20 Act. 

21 (2) TERMINATION OF FUNDING.—If a manage22 ment plan is not submitted to the Secretary in ac23 cordance with this subsection, the management entity 

24 shall not qualify for Federal assistance under this 

25 Act. 
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1 (d) DUTIES OF MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—The manage2 ment entity shall—

3 (1) give priority to implementing actions set 

4 forth in the compact and management plan; 

5 (2) assist units of government, regional planning 

6 organizations, and nonprofit organizations in—

7 (A) establishing and maintaining interpre8 tive exhibits in the Heritage Area; 

9 (B) developing recreational resources in the 

10 Heritage Area; 

11 (C) increasing public awareness of and ap12 preciation for the natural, historical, and archi13 tectural resources and sites in the Heritage Area; 

14 (D) the restoration of any historic building 

15 relating to the themes of the Heritage Area; 

16 (E) ensuring that clear signs identifying ac17 cess points and sites of interest are put in place 

18 throughout the Heritage Area; and 

19 (F) carrying out other actions that the 

20 management entity determines to be advisable to 

21 fulfill the purposes of this Act; 

22 (3) encourage by appropriate means economic 

23 viability in the Heritage Area consistent with the 

24 goals of the management plan; 
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1 (4) consider the interests of diverse governmental, 

2 business, and nonprofit groups within the Heritage 

3 Area; and 

4 (5) for any year in which Federal funds have 

5 been provided to implement the management plan 

6 under subsection (b)—

7 (A) conduct public meetings at least annu8 ally regarding the implementation of the man9 agement plan; 

10 (B) submit an annual report to the Sec11 retary setting forth accomplishments, expenses 

12 and income, and each person to which any grant 

13 was made by the management entity in the year 

14 for which the report is made; and 

15 (C) require, for all agreements entered into 

16 by the management entity authorizing expendi17 ture of Federal funds by any other person, that 

18 the person making the expenditure make avail19 able to the management entity for audit all 

20 records pertaining to the expenditure of such 

21 funds. 

22 (e) PROHIBITION ON THE ACQUISITION OF REAL

23 PROPERTY.—The management entity may not use Federal 

24 funds received under this Act to acquire real property or 

25 an interest in real property. 
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1 SEC. 6. DUTIES AND AUTHORITIES OF THE SECRETARY. 

2 (a) TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—

4 (A) OVERALL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary 

5 may, upon the request of the management entity, 

6 and subject to the availability of appropriations, 

7 provide technical and financial assistance to the 

8 management entity to carry out its duties under 

9 this Act, including updating and implementing 

10 a management plan that is submitted under sec11 tion 5(b) and approved by the Secretary and, 

12 prior to such approval, providing assistance for 

13 initiatives. 

14 (B) OTHER ASSISTANCE.—If the Secretary 

15 has the resources available to provide technical 

16 assistance to the management entity to carry out 

17 its duties under this Act (including updating 

18 and implementing a management plan that is 

19 submitted under section 5(b) and approved by 

20 the Secretary and, prior to such approval, pro21 viding assistance for initiatives), upon the re22 quest of the management entity the Secretary 

23 shall provide such assistance on a reimbursable 

24 basis. This subparagraph does not preclude the 

25 Secretary from providing nonreimbursable as26 sistance under subparagraph (A).
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1 (2) PRIORITY.—In assisting the management en2 tity, the Secretary shall give priority to actions that 

3 assist in the—

4 (A) implementation of the management 

5 plan; 

6 (B) provision of educational assistance and 

7 advice regarding land and water management 

8 techniques to conserve the significant natural re9 sources of the region; 

10 (C) development and application of tech11 niques promoting the preservation of cultural 

12 and historic properties; 

13 (D) preservation, restoration, and reuse of 

14 publicly and privately owned historic buildings; 

15 (E) design and fabrication of a wide range 

16 of interpretive materials based on the manage17 ment plan, including guide brochures, visitor 

18 displays, audio-visual and interactive exhibits, 

19 and educational curriculum materials for public 

20 education; and 

21 (F) implementation of initiatives prior to 

22 approval of the management plan. 

23 (3) DOCUMENTATION OF STRUCTURES.—The Sec24 retary, acting through the Historic American Build25 ing Survey and the Historic American Engineering 
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1 Record, shall conduct studies necessary to document 

2 the industrial, engineering, building, and architec3 tural history of the Heritage Area. 

4 (b) APPROVAL AND DISAPPROVAL OF MANAGEMENT

5 PLANS.—The Secretary, in consultation with the Governor 

6 of Pennsylvania, shall approve or disapprove a manage7 ment plan submitted under this Act not later than 90 days 

8 after receiving such plan. In approving the plan, the Sec9 retary shall take into consideration the following criteria: 

10 (1) The extent to which the management plan 

11 adequately preserves and protects the natural, cul12 tural, and historical resources of the Heritage Area. 

13 (2) The level of public participation in the devel14 opment of the management plan. 

15 (3) The extent to which the board of directors of 

16 the management entity is representative of the local 

17 government and a wide range of interested organiza18 tions and citizens. 

19 (c) ACTION FOLLOWING DISAPPROVAL.—If the Sec20 retary disapproves a management plan, the Secretary shall 

21 advise the management entity in writing of the reasons for 

22 the disapproval and shall make recommendations for revi23 sions in the management plan. The Secretary shall approve 

24 or disapprove a proposed revision within 90 days after the 

25 date it is submitted. 
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1 (d) APPROVING CHANGES.—The Secretary shall review 

2 and approve amendments to the management plan under 

3 section 5(b) that make substantial changes. Funds appro4 priated under this Act may not be expended to implement 

5 such changes until the Secretary approves the amendments. 

6 (e) EFFECT OF INACTION.—If the Secretary does not 

7 approve or disapprove a management plan, revision, or 

8 change within 90 days after it is submitted to the Secretary, 

9 then such management plan, revision, or change shall be 

10 deemed to have been approved by the Secretary. 

11 SEC. 7. DUTIES OF OTHER FEDERAL ENTITIES. 

12 Any Federal entity conducting or supporting activities 

13 directly affecting the Heritage Area shall—

14 (1) consult with the Secretary and the manage15 ment entity with respect to such activities; 

16 (2) cooperate with the Secretary and the man17 agement entity in carrying out their duties under this 

18 Act and, to the maximum extent practicable, coordi19 nate such activities with the carrying out of such du20 ties; and 

21 (3) to the maximum extent practicable, conduct 

22 or support such activities in a manner that the man23 agement entity determines shall not have an adverse 

24 effect on the Heritage Area. 
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1 SEC. 8. SUNSET. 

2 The Secretary may not make any grant or provide any 

3 assistance under this Act after the expiration of the 15-year 

4 period beginning on the date that funds are first made 

5 available for this Act. 

6 SEC. 9. REQUIREMENTS FOR INCLUSION OF PRIVATE

7 PROPERTY. 

8 (a) NOTIFICATION AND CONSENT OF PROPERTY OWN9 ERS REQUIRED.—No privately owned property shall be pre10 served, conserved, or promoted by the management plan for 

11 the Heritage Area until the owner of that private property 

12 has been notified in writing by the management entity and 

13 has given written consent for such preservation, conserva14 tion, or promotion to the management entity. 

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

16 property included within the boundary of the Heritage Area 

17 shall have their property immediately removed from the 

18 boundary by submitting a written request to the manage19 ment entity. 

20 SEC. 10. PRIVATE PROPERTY PROTECTION. 

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

22 Act shall be construed to—

23 (1) require any private property owner to allow 

24 public access (including Federal, State, or local gov25 ernment access) to such private property; or 
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1 (2) modify any provision of Federal, State, or 

2 local law with regard to public access to or use of pri3 vate property. 

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

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

6 any effect on any liability under any other law, of any pri7 vate property owner with respect to any persons injured 

8 on such private property. 

9 (c) RECOGNITION OF AUTHORITY TO CONTROL LAND

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

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

12 land use. 

13 (d) PARTICIPATION OF PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNERS

14 IN HERITAGE AREA.—Nothing in this Act shall be con15 strued to require the owner of any private property located 

16 within the boundaries of the Heritage Area to participate 

17 in or be associated with the Heritage Area. 

18 (e) EFFECT OF ESTABLISHMENT.—The boundaries 

19 designated for the Heritage Area represent the area within 

20 which Federal funds appropriated for the purpose of this 

21 Act may be expended. The establishment of the Heritage 

22 Area and its boundaries shall not be construed to provide 

23 any nonexisting regulatory authority on land use within 

24 the Heritage Area or its viewshed by the Secretary, the Na25 tional Park Service, or the management entity. 
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1 SEC. 11. USE OF FEDERAL FUNDS FROM OTHER SOURCES. 

2 Nothing in this Act shall preclude the management en3 tity from using Federal funds available under Acts other 

4 than this Act for the purposes for which those funds were 

5 authorized. 

6 SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro8 priated to carry out this Act—

9 (1) not more than $1,000,000 for any fiscal year; 

10 and 

11 (2) not more than a total of $10,000,000. 

12 (b) 50 PERCENT MATCH.—Financial assistance pro13 vided under this Act may not be used to pay more than 

14 50 percent of the total cost of any activity carried out with 

15 that assistance.

Union Calendar No. 216

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1862

[Report No. 108–366] 

A BILL

To establish the Oil Region National Heritage 

Area. 

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