19–010

Calendar No. 203

108TH CONGRESS REPORT " SENATE ! 1st Session 108–95

NATIONAL TRAILS SYSTEM WILLING SELLER ACT

JULY 11, 2003.—Ordered to be printed 

Mr. DOMENICI, from the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

together with 

MINORITY VIEWS 

[To accompany S. 651]

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 

referred the bill (S. 651) to amend the National Trails System Act 

to clarify Federal authority relating to land acquisition from willing 

sellers for the majority of the trails in the System, and for other 

purposes, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon 

with an amendment and recommends that the bill, as amended, do 

pass. 

The amendment is as follows: 

Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert in lieu thereof 

the following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

This Act may be cited as ‘‘National Trails System Willing Seller Act’’. 

SEC. 2. AUTHORITY TO ACQUIRE LANDS FROM WILLING SELLERS FOR CERTAIN TRAILS. 

(a) OREGON NATIONAL HISTORIC TRAIL.—Section 5(a)(3) of the National Trails System Act (16 U.S.C. 1244(a)(3)) is amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘No 

lands or interests therein outside the exterior boundaries of any Federally administered area may be acquired by the Federal government for the trail except with the 

consent of the owner thereof. The authority of the Federal government to acquire 

fee title under this paragraph shall be limited to an average of not more than onequarter miles on either side of the trail.’’. 

(b) MORMON PIONEER NATIONAL HISTORIC TRAIL.—Section 5(a)(4) of the National 

Trails System Act (16 U.S.C. 1244(a)(4)) is amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘No lands or interests therein outside the exterior boundaries of any Federally administered area may be acquired by the Federal government for the trail except with the consent of the owner thereof. The authority of the Federal government 

to acquire fee title under this paragraph shall be limited to an average of not more 

than one-quarter mile on either side of the trail.’’. 

2

(c) CONTINENTAL DIVIDE NATIONAL SCENIC TRAIL.—Section 5(a)(5) of the National 

Trails System Act (16 U.S.C. 1244(a)(5)) is amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘No lands or interests therein outside the exterior boundaries of any Federally administered area may be acquired by the Federal government for the trail except with the consent of the owner thereof. The authority of the Federal government 

to acquire fee title under this paragraph shall be limited to an average of not more 

than one-quarter mile on either side of the trail.’’. 

(d) LEWIS AND CLARK NATIONAL HISTORIC TRAIL.—Section 5(a)(6) of the National 

Trails System Act (16 U.S.C. 1244(a)(6)) is amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘No lands or interests therein outside the exterior boundaries of any Federally administered area may be acquired by the Federal government for the trail except with the consent of the owner thereof. The authority of the Federal government 

to acquire fee title under this paragraph shall be limited to an average of not more 

than one-quarter mile on either side of the trail.’’. 

(e) IDITAROD NATIONAL HISTORIC TRAIL.—Section 5(a)(7) of the National Trails 

System Act (16 U.S.C. 1244(a)(7)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘No lands or interests therein outside the exterior boundaries of any Federally administered area may be acquired by the Federal government for the trail except 

with the consent of the owner thereof. The authority of the Federal government for 

the trail except with the consent of the owner thereof. The authority of the Federal 

government to acquire fee title under this paragraph shall be limited to an average 

of not more than one-quarter mile on either side of the trail.’’. 

(f) NORTH COUNTRY NATIONAL SCENIC TRAIL.—Section 5(a)(8) of the National 

Trails System Act (16 U.S.C. 1244(a)(8)) is amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘No lands or interests therein outside the exterior boundaries of any Federally administered area may be acquired by the Federal government for the trail except with the consent of the owner thereof.’’. 

(g) ICE AGE NATIONAL SCENIC TRAIL.—Section 5(a)(10) of the National Trails System Act (16 U.S.C. 1244(a)(10)) is amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘No 

lands or interests therein outside exterior boundaries of any Federally administered 

area may be acquired by the Federal government for the trail except with the consent of the owner thereof.’’.

(h) POTOMAC HERITAGE NATIONAL SCENIC TRAIL.—Section 5(a)(11) of the National 

Trails System Act (16 U.S.C. 1244(a)(11)) is amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘No lands or interests therein outside the exterior boundaries of any Federally administered area may be acquired by the Federal government for the trail except with the consent of the owner thereof.’’. 

(i) NEZ PERCE NATIONAL HISTORIC TRAIL.—Section 5(a)(14) of the National Trails 

System Act (16 U.S.C. 1244(a)(14)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘No lands or interests therein outside the exterior boundaries of any Federally administered area may be acquired by the Federal government for the trail except 

with the consent of the owner thereof. The authority of the Federal government to 

acquire fee title under this paragraph shall be limited to an average of not more 

than one-quarter mile on either side of the trail.’’. 

SEC. 3. CONFORMING AMENDMENT. 

Section 10(c) of the National Trails System Act (16 U.S.C. 1249(c)) is amended to 

read as follows: 

‘‘(c)(1) Except as otherwise provided in this Act, there is authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this Act relating to the trails designated by section 5(a). 

‘‘(2) Not more than $500,000 may be appropriated for the purposes of land acquisition and interest therein for the Natchez Trace National Scenic Trail designated by 

section 5(a)(12) of this Act, and not more than $2,000,000 may be appropriated for 

the purposes of the development of such trail. The administering agency for the trail 

shall encourage volunteer trail groups to participate in the development of the 

trail.’’.

PURPOSE OF THE MEASURE

The purpose of S. 651, as ordered reported, is to amend the National Trails System Act to authorize the Federal Government to 

acquire lands and interest in lands of nine units of the National 

Trails System that presently lack such authority. 

3

BACKGROUND AND NEED

Congress enacted the National Trails System Act in 1968 to provide for the increasing outdoor recreation needs and to promote the 

preservation of outdoor areas and historic resources of the Nation 

by instituting a national system of recreation, scenic and historic 

trails. 

Most of the 22 national and scenic trails in the system provide 

for Federal acquisition authority to complete the trails, in many 

cases from willing sellers only. There is no existing Federal acquisition authority, however, for nine of the trails. 

In the absence of willing seller acquisition authority, Federal 

trail managers are unable to purchase lands or easements to protect trails when development threatens important links in the landscapes of the national scenic or historic trails. In some cases, sections of the trails can be moved from roads and critical historic 

sites can be preserved through willing seller authority. 

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

S. 651 was introduced by Senators Allard and Levin on March 

18, 2003. Similar legislation, S. 324, was introduced by Senator 

Levin on February 6, 2003. The Subcommittee on National Parks 

held a hearing on S. 651 and S. 324 on May 6, 2003. During the 

107th Congress, the Committee considered similar legislation, S. 

1069 sponsored by Senators Levin and others. Companion legislation, H.R. 834, introduced by Representative McInnis, and passed 

the House of Representatives by a vote of 409–3 on March 13, 

2001. The Subcommittee on National Parks held a hearing on S. 

1069 and H.R. 834 on March 7, 2002. At the business meeting on 

July 31, 2002, the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources ordered S. 1069, as amended, favorably reported. The text of S. 1069, 

as reported, was adopted as an amendment to H.R. 37, an unrelated trail measure. H.R. 37 passed the Senate by unanimous consent on November 20, 2002. 

At the business meeting on June 25, 2003, the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources ordered S. 651, as amended, favorably 

reported. 

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open business session on June 25, 2003, by a majority vote of a quorum 

present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 651, if amended as 

described herein. Senators Thomas, Craig, and Kyl requested that 

they be recorded as voting in the negative on the measure. 

COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS

During the consideration of S. 651, the Committee adopted an 

amendment in the nature of a substitute. The amendment: deletes 

congressional findings; with respect to six of the trails, limits fee 

acquisition to one-quarter mile on either side of the trail; and 

makes other clarifying and technical changes. The amendment is 

explained in detail in the section-by-section analysis, below. 

4

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1 contains the short title, the ‘‘National Trails System 

Willing Seller Act.’’

Section 2 amends section 5(a) of the National Trails System Act 

(16 U.S.C. 1244(a)) to provide the authority to acquire lands from 

willing sellers for the North Country National Scenic Trail, Ice Age 

National Scenic Trail, and Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail. 

This section also provides willing seller authority, but limits fee acquisition authority to one-quarter mile on either side of the trail for 

the Oregon National Historic Trail, Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail, Continental Divide National Scenic Trail, Lewis and 

Clark National Historic Trail, Iditarod National Historic Trail, and 

Nez Perce National Historic Trail. 

The Committee recognizes that some landowners are concerned 

that, if they sell an easement to the Federal Government for a national scenic or historic trail, they might later be held personally 

liable for injuries to persons using the trail. The Committee does 

not believe that should be the case. It is well settled that where 

a landowner sells an easement to another, the owner of the easement, rather than the owner of the underlying estate, is responsible for maintaining the easement in a safe condition. It is equally 

well settled that abutting landowners are not liable to trespassers 

who wander off the easement and injure themselves on abutting 

lands. 

The Committee has addressed these concerns before, when it 

amended the National Trails System Act in 1983. Section 7 of the 

Act, as amended in 1983, directs the Secretaries of the Interior and 

Agriculture to work with the States to develop ‘‘appropriate measures to protect landowners from trespass resulting from trail use 

and from unreasonable personal liability and property damage 

caused by trail use.’’ Most States now have recreational use statutes that protect landowners from liability for injuries not only to 

trespassers, but those who use private land for recreational purposes with the landowner’s permission. 

The Committee expects the Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture to use their existing authorities to protect willing sellers of 

less than all of their land from trespass by persons using national 

scenic and historic trails and to ensure that they are adequately 

protected from unreasonable personal liability and property damage caused by trail use. The Secretaries may include appropriate 

terms and conditions addressing these concerns in their agreements with willing sellers. 

The Committee is also aware that some property owners have expressed concerns over continued use of remaining property. That is 

an issue that the Committee expects the property owner and the 

Secretary to resolve as part of the negotiations. There is nothing 

in the Act that limits a landowner from retaining rights of access 

or other rights if agreeable to the Secretary. Concerns that a Secretary may use a limited acquisition as a basis for attempts to regulate activities on adjacent property are equally unfounded. Ultimately, of course, landowners may refuse to sell if their concerns 

about trespass and liability as well as continued use and enjoyment 

of their property remain unanswered. 

5

Section 3 amends section 10(c) of the National Trails System Act 

(16 U.S.C. 1249(c)) to authorize such sums as may be necessary to 

implement the provisions of this Act relating to the trails designated by section 5(a) and sets limits on appropriations for the 

Natchez Trace National Scenic Trail. 

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

The following estimate of the cost of this measure has been provided by the Congressional Budget Office:

U.S. CONGRESS, 

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE, 

Washington, DC, July 1, 2003. 

Hon. PETE V. DOMENICI, 

Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 

U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 651, the National Trails 

System Willing Seller Act. 

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Deborah Reis. 

Sincerely, 

DOUGLAS HOLTZ-EAKIN, 

Director. 

Enclosure. 

S. 651—National Trails System Willing Seller Act 

S. 651 would amend the National Trails System Act to allow the 

federal government to purchase land from willing sellers for nine 

of the 23 national trails currently in the system. Under current 

law, federal agencies are not authorized to spend funds to acquire 

land for these nine trails that is outside of existing federal areas 

such as national forests or parks. (An exception to this prohibition 

is that one site in each state crossed by each trail may be acquired 

for an interpretive site.) 

The costs of implementing S. 651 are uncertain because the federal agencies that administer the national trails have not completed land protection plans for most of the trails that would be affected by the legislation. CBO expects that relatively little land 

along the nearly 19,000 miles composing the nine trails would be 

acquired because most land can probably be protected in other 

ways, as it is for most other trails in the system. Under the bill, 

total acquisition costs could be significant, however, because some 

of the longest trails would probably require large areas to be purchased. For example, land acquisition for multistate trails such as 

the 3,200-mile North Country National Scenic Trail could cost over 

$100 million, assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts. 

For some of the shorter trails, costs would be much lower. For example, trails located primarily on state or federal lands, such as 

the Iditarod National Historic Trail in Alaska, would probably require few or no purchases. In any case, all acquisition funding 

would be subject to the appropriation of the necessary amounts and 

would be spend over a period of several years. This estimate is 

based on information provided by the National Park Service and 

6

the Forest Service, which administer most of the national trails affected by the bill. 

Of the other 14 existing national trails (not covered by this legislation), only the Appalachian National Scenic Trail has ever received significant appropriated funds for land acquisition (almost 

$230 million to date); other trails have been protected by other 

methods, including state acquisition, cooperative agreements with 

landowners, and inclusion in other federally administered areas. 

S. 651 would not affect direct spending or revenues. The bill contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined 

in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would have no significant impact on the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis. The estimate was approved by Paul R. Cullinan, Chief for the Human Resources Estimates Unit of the Budget Analysis Division.

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. 651. 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. 651, as ordered reported. 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

On May 12, 2003, the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources requested legislative reports from the Department of the 

Interior and the Office of Management and Budget setting forth 

Executive agency recommendations on S. 651. These reports had 

not been received at the time the report on S. 651 was filed. When 

the reports become available, the Chairman will request that they 

be printed in the Congressional Record for the advice of the Senate. 

The testimony provided by the National Park Service at the Subcommittee hearing follows:

STATEMENT BY D. THOMAS ROSS, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, 

RECREATION AND CONSERVATION, NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, thank 

you for the opportunity to appear before you today to 

present the Department’s views on S. 651, the National 

Trails System Willing Seller Act. S. 651 would amend the 

National Trails System Act to provide land acquisition authority from willing sellers, but specifically exclude the use 

of condemnation, for nine national scenic and national historic trails established between 1978 and 1986. 

The Department supports the 23 long-distance trails, 15 

national historic trails, 8 scenic trails, and 900 national 

recreation trails that make up the approximately 50,000 

miles of trails in the National Trails System. National 

7

trails are a popular way of linking together thousands of 

significant historic sites and drawing attention to local cultural and natural resources. This network of trails has 

provided millions of visitors across the country with rewarding and enjoyable outdoor experiences. Thousands of 

volunteers each year work tirelessly to plan promote, 

build, maintain and otherwise care for these trails. 

Trails can provide an important opportunity to promote 

citizen involvement and bring together communities. It is 

this type of opportunity that is at the center of the Department’s plan to implement a new environmentalism and 

what Secretary Norton has termed the ‘‘Four C’s’’—Communication, Consultation, and Cooperation, all in the service of Conservation. The focus of the Four C’s is the belief 

that enduring conservation springs from partnerships involving the people who live on, work on, and love the land. 

One example of this version is the Secretary’s Cooperative 

Conservation Initiative (CCI), which builds on existing 

conservation partnership programs and provides new and 

expanded opportunities for landowners, land managers, 

and others to participate in projects that foster innovation 

and create incentives for stewardship. 

Consistent with this version, we have developed a set of 

principles that will serve as an important guide for all 

land transactions conducted by the Department. The principles include: 

1. Integrity: Transactions shall meet the highest ethical 

standards and comply with all applicable laws, rules, regulations and codes of professional conduct. 

2. Good Faith: Transactions shall occur in good faith and 

only with willing parties. 

3. Transparency: Transactions shall be pursued transparently with appropriate opportunities for public participation. 

4. Mission: Transactions shall promote fulfillment of Departmental and Bureau missions. 

5. Citizen Stewardship: Transactions shall be consistent 

with the promotion of private stewardship. 

6. Innovation: Transactions shall employ easements, donations and other alternatives to fee title when appropriate.

7. Congressional Direction: The Department shall provide technical assistance and policy recommendations to 

Congress, when requested, and in a manner consistent 

with these principles. 

Within this framework, the Department recognizes the 

positive role the Federal government could play in the protection of these trails with the authority provided under S. 

651. For example, landowners wishing to donate land cannot do so under current law because the prohibition on 

using funds to acquire lands has meant that activities required for a donation to occur, such as land protection 

plans or pre-acquisition services (surveys, tract maps, inventories, priority lists), also cannot be funded. The current prohibition also applies to the acquisition of interest 

8

in lands, and thus, the Federal government cannot purchase easements from interested landowners. It is paramount that we work closely with private landowners, the 

community, private volunteer groups, and State and local 

governments to discover creative solutions for trail protection that may not result in fee simple acquisition. To ensure that such alternative solutions are fully explored, we 

have provided a proposed amendment at the end of this 

testimony. 

In addition to the considerations in our proposed amendment, we understand that several additional steps would 

have to occur before purchase of a trail segment from a 

willing seller occurs including: developing a land protection 

plan; undergoing a public reviews process; and requesting, 

obtaining and prioritizing appropriate funding. 

The National Trails System Act was initially developed 

by Congress principally to offer Federal assistance and 

support for protecting the land base of the Appalachian 

National Scenic Trail. When the act was passed in 1968, 

both the previously existing Appalachian and Pacific Crest 

National Scenic Trails were established as the two initial 

components of the National Trails System and 14 more 

trails were proposed for study as potential additions to the 

National Trail System. The core authorities of the act addressed how to establish nationally significant trails. 

In 1978, the national historic trails category was added 

to the National Trails System accompanied by authorization of four historic trails (Oregon, Mormon Pioneer, Lewis 

and Clark, and Iditarod). National historic trails were seen 

as primarily commemorative with only limited need for acquisition authority. Amendments added to the National 

Trails System Act prohibited expenditures by Federal 

agencies to acquire lands or interests in lands for these 

trails outside of existing Federal areas. Amendments 

added in 1980 and 1983 made this prohibition applicable 

to the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail, as well as 

to the North Country, Ice Age, and Potomac Heritage National Scientific Scenic Trails. This means the generic land 

acquisition authorities provided in Section 7 of the National Trails System Act cannot be used on any of these 

scenic and historic trails. 

Since 1983, most of the trails established under the National Trails System Act have had language similar to the 

following sentence: ‘‘No lands or interests therein outside 

the exterior boundaries of any federally administered area 

may be acquired by the United States for the Pony Express National Historic Trail except with the consent of 

the owner thereof.’’ This ‘‘willing seller authority’’ falls 

somewhere between the full land acquisition authority 

used to protect the Appalachian and Pacific Crest National 

Scenic Trails and the ban on Federal funding for acquiring 

segments that fall outside of national parks and forests on 

the nine trails included in this bill.

From its beginning, the National Trails System was premised on the establishment, operation, and maintenance of 

9

national trails as collaborative partnership efforts. For 

land protection, specifically, state governments and nonprofit partners are encouraged to protect what they can of 

the national trails, with the Federal government embarking on land acquisition only as a last resort. For example, 

in Wisconsin, an arrangement was set up for the Ice Age 

National Scenic Trail under which the State of Wisconsin 

took the lead in acquiring trail lands, with support from 

the Ice Age Park and Trail Foundation and coordination by 

the National Park Service. Further, trail nonprofit partners have been encouraged to develop land trusts to acquire critical lands. This bill is supported by a broad coalition of trail organizations across America. 

Along historic trails, the major means of protecting the 

trail corridor has been through a voluntary certification 

process. These five-year renewable agreements between 

the Federal Trail agency and the landowner have enabled 

trail sites and segments to remain in private ownership 

and still receive Federal government as part of a national 

trail. The advantages to certification are that it is less 

costly for the government and the land remains in private 

(or State) ownership, continuing to generate taxes. 

It would be impossible to estimate funding requirements 

associated with this bill at the time, as the number of willing sellers is unknown, whether donation, easements, of 

fee simple acquisition would be employed is unknown, and 

the cost of the land segments for each trail would vary due 

to geographic location and the long time span over which 

the acquisition work would take place. The Administration 

will identify the costs for each trail on a case-by-case basis. 

By bringing the land acquisition authority on these nine 

trails in line with those in the majority of national scenic 

and national historic trails in the National Trail System, 

S. 651 would allow the Federal government to assist in the 

protection of these trails, through donation, easements, 

and, as a last reserve resort, fee simple acquisition from 

landowners actively interested in selling land for trail protection. 

Mr. Chairman, this concludes my prepared testimony. I 

would be happy to answer any questions you or your committee may have.

PROPOSED AMENDMENT

On p. 4, line 3, after ‘‘thereof.’’ insert ‘‘In acquiring lands or interests therein, the Federal Government shall employ easements, donations, and other alternatives to fee title when appropriate.’’

On p. 4, line 10, after ‘‘thereof.’’ insert ‘‘In acquiring lands or interests therein, the Federal Government shall employ easements, 

donations, and other alternatives to fee title when appropriate.’’

On p. 4, line 17, after ‘‘thereof.’’ insert ‘‘In acquiring lands or interests therein, the Federal Government shall employ easements, 

donations, and other alternatives to fee title when appropriate.’’

On p. 4, line 24, after ‘‘thereof.’’ insert ‘‘In acquiring lands or interests therein, the Federal Government shall employ easements, 

donations, and other alternatives to fee title when appropriate.’’

10

On p. 5, line 7, after ‘‘thereof.’’ insert ‘‘In acquiring lands or interests therein, the Federal Government shall employee easements, 

donations, and other alternatives to fee title when appropriate.’’ On p. 5, line 14, after ‘‘thereof.’’ insert ‘‘In acquiring lands or interests therein, the Federal Government shall employee easements, 

donations, and other alternatives to fee title when appropriate.’’ On p. 5, line 21. after ‘‘thereof.’’ insert ‘‘In acquiring lands or interests therein, the Federal Government shall employee easements, 

donations, and other alternatives to fee title when appropriate.’’ On p. 6, line 2, after ‘‘thereof.’’ insert ‘‘In acquiring lands or interests therein, the Federal Government shall employee easements, 

donations, and other alternatives to fee title when appropriate.’’ On p. 6, line 7, after ‘‘thereof.’’ insert ‘‘In acquiring lands or interests therein, the Federal Government shall employee easements, 

donations, and other alternatives to fee title when appropriate.’’

(11)

MINORITY VIEWS OF SENATORS THOMAS, CRAIG, AND KYL 

On June 25, 2003, the Committee considered and passed S. 651, 

the ‘‘National Trails System Willing Seller Act.’’ Although we believe the bill authors constructed this measure with meritorious intentions, we have concerns about the unintended impacts from implementation of this legislation and the structure of S. 651 as approved by the Committee. 

We are avid supporters of the national trails system as well as 

public access and recreation on federal land. However, we are also 

extremely concerned with maintaining private landowners’ rights 

to preserve their use and future enjoyment of their property. 

The locations where trail proponents are seeking to acquire easements, rights-of-way and fee-title interests involve lands that have 

traditionally supported agriculture, timber and mineral extraction. 

These adjacent private landowners are not only dependent on federal lands to access their own property; they also utilize public 

lands for grazing and sub-surface resource development. Determining the applicable management tools for trails and other uses 

poses substantial impacts for all lands. Directives developed under 

the guise of view-shed or other types of protection could unduly 

harm and restrict the rights and future enjoyment of private resources. 

We appreciate the Committee’s efforts to improve the bill by limiting acquisition authority for the nine trails discussed in S. 651 to 

one-quarter mile and expressing the views about use through Report language. However, the exclusion of legislative language to 

protect future resource development and access to private lands related to the trails forces us to oppose the legislation in its current 

form.

CRAIG THOMAS. 

LARRY E. CRAIG. 

JON KYL. 

(12)

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by the bill S. 

651, as ordered reported, are shown as follows (existing law proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new matter is 

printed in italic, existing law in which no change is proposed is 

shown in roman):

A. NATIONAL TRAILS SYSTEM ACT 

(Public Law 90–543; Approved October 2, 1968) 

AN ACT To establish a national trails system, and for other purposes 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 

United States of America in Congress assembled, 

SHORT TITLE

SECTION 1. This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Trails System 

Act’’. 

* * * * * * *

NATIONAL SCENIC AND NATIONAL HISTORICAL TRAILS

SEC. 5. (a) National scenic and national historic trails shall be 

authorized and designated only by Act of Congress. There are hereby established the following National Scenic and National Historic 

Trails: 

(1) * * *

(3) The Oregon National Historic Trail, a route of approximately two thousand miles extending from near Independence, 

Missouri, to the vicinity of Portland, Oregon, following a route 

as depicted on maps identified as ‘‘Primary Route of the Oregon Trail 1841–1848’’, in the Department of the Interior’s Oregon Trail study report dated April 1977, and which shall be 

on file and available for public inspection in the office of the 

Director of the National Park Service. The trail shall be administered by the Secretary of the Interior, No lands or interests 

therein outside the exterior boundaries of any Federally administered area may be acquired by the Federal government for the 

trail except with the consent of the owner thereof. The authority 

of the Federal government to acquire fee title under this paragraph shall be limited to an average of not more than one-quarter mile on either side of the trail. 

(4) The Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail, a route of 

approximately one thousand three hundred miles extending 

from Nauvoo, Illinois, to Salt Lake City, Utah, following the 

primary historical route of the Mormon Trail as generally deVerDate Jan 31 2003 19:41 Jul 13, 2003 Jkt 019010 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6604 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR095.XXX SR095
13

picted on a map, identified as ‘‘Mormon Trail Vicinity Map, figure 2’’ in the Department of the Interior Mormon Trail study 

report dated March 1977, and which shall be on file and available for public inspection in the office of the Director, National 

Park Service, Washington, D.C. The trail shall be administered 

by the Secretary of the Interior. No lands or interests therein 

outside the exterior boundaries of any Federally administered 

area may be acquired by the Federal government for the trail 

except with the consent of the owner thereof. The authority of 

the Federal government to acquire fee title under this paragraph shall be limited to an average of not more than one-quarter mile on either side of the trail. 

(5) The Continental Divide National Scenic Trail, a trail of 

approximately thirty-one hundred miles, extending from the 

Montana-Canada border to the New Mexico-Mexico border, following the approximate route depicted on the map, identified 

as ‘‘Proposed Continental Divide National Scenic Trail’’ in the 

Department of the Interior Continental Divide Trail study report dated March 1977 and which shall be on file and available 

for public inspection in the office of the Chief, Forest Service, 

Washington, D.C. The Continental Divide National Scenic 

Trail shall be administered by the Secretary of Agriculture in 

consultation with the Secretary of the Interior. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 1246(c) of this title, the use 

of motorized vehicles on roads which will be designated segments of the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail shall be 

permitted in accordance with regulations prescribed by the appropriate Secretary. No lands or interests therein outside the 

exterior boundaries of any Federally administered area may be 

acquired by the Federal government for the trail except with the 

consent of the owner thereof. The authority of the Federal government to acquire fee title under this paragraph shall be limited to an average of not more than one-quarter mile on either 

side of the trail. 

(6) The Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, a trail of 

approximately three thousand seven hundred miles, extending 

from Wood River, Illinois, to the mouth of the Columbia River 

in Oregon, following the outbound and inbound routes of the 

Lewis and Clark Expedition depicted on maps identified as, 

‘‘Vicinity Map, Lewis and Clark Trail’’ study report dated April 

1977. The map shall be on file and available for public inspection in the office of the Director, National Park Service, Washington, D.C. The trail shall be administered by the Secretary 

of the Interior. No lands or interests therein outside the exterior 

boundaries of any Federally administered area may be acquired 

by the Federal government for the trail except with the consent 

of the owner thereof. The authority of the Federal government 

to acquire fee title under this paragraph shall be limited to an 

average of not more than one-quarter mile on either side of the 

trail. 

(7) The Iditarod National Historic Trail, a route of approximately two thousand miles extending from Seward, Alaska, to 

Nome, Alaska, following the routes as depicted on maps identified as ‘‘Seward-Nome Trail’’, in the Department of the InteVerDate Jan 31 2003 19:41 Jul 13, 2003 Jkt 019010 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6604 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR095.XXX SR095
14

rior’s study report entitled ‘‘The Iditarod Trail (Seward-Nome 

Route) and other Alaskan Gold Rush Trails’’ dated September 

1977. The map shall be on file and available for public inspection in the office of the Director, National Park Service, Washington, D.C. The trail shall be administered by the Secretary 

of the Interior. No lands or interests therein outside the exterior 

boundaries of any Federally administered area may be acquired 

by the Federal government for the trail except with the consent 

of the owner thereof. The authority of the Federal government 

to acquire fee title under this paragraph shall be limited to an 

average of not more than one-quarter mile on either side of the 

trail.

(8) The North County National Scenic Trail, a trail of approximately thirty-two hundred miles, extending from eastern 

New York State to the vicinity of lake Sakakawea in North Dakota, following the approximate route depicted on the map 

identified as ‘‘proposed North Country Trail—Vicinity Map’’ in 

the Department of the Interior ‘‘North County Trail Report’’, dated June 1975. The map shall be on file and available for 

public inspection in the office of the Director, National Park 

Service, Washington, District of Columbia. The trail shall be 

administered by the Secretary of the Interior. No lands or interests therein outside the exterior boundaries of any Federally 

administered area may be acquired by the Federal government 

for the trail except with the consent of the owner thereof. 

* * * * * * *

(10) The Ice Age National Scenic Trail, a trail of approximately one thousand miles, extending from Door County, Wisconsin, to Interstate Park in Saint Croix County, Wisconsin, 

generally following the route described in ‘‘On the Trail of the 

Ice Age—A Hiker’s and Biker’s Guide to Wisconsin’s Ice Age 

National Scientific Reserve and Trail’’, by Henry S. Reuss, 

Member of Congress, dated 1980. The guide and maps shall be 

on file and available for public inspection in the Office of the 

Director, National Park Service, Washington, District of Columbia. Overall administration of the trail shall be the responsibility of the Secretary of the Interior pursuant to subsection 

(d) of this section. The State of Wisconsin, in consultation with 

the Secretary of the Interior, may, subject to the approval of 

the Secretary, prepare a plan for the management of the trail 

which shall be deemed to meet the requirements of subsection 

(e) of this section. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 

1246(c) of this title, snowmobile use may be permitted on segments of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail where deemed appropriate by the Secretary and the managing authority responsible for the segment. No lands or interests therein outside the 

exterior boundaries of any Federally administered area may be 

acquired by the Federal government for the trail except with the 

consent of the owner thereof.

(11) The Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail, a corridor 

of approximately seven hundred and four miles following the 

route as generally depicted on the map identified as ‘‘National 

Trails System, Proposed Potomac Heritage Trail’’ in the ‘‘The 

Potomac Heritage Trail’’, a report prepared by the Department 

15

of the Interior and dated December 1974, except that no designation of the trail shall be made in the State of West Virginia. The map shall be on file and available for public inspection in the office of the Director of the National Park Service, 

Washington, District of Columbia. The trail shall initially consist of only those segments of the corridor located within the 

exterior boundaries of federally administered areas. No lands 

or interest therein outside of federally administered areas as 

segments of the trail, only upon application from the States or 

local governmental agencies involved, if such segments meet 

the criteria established in this chapter and are administered 

by such agencies without expense to the United States. The 

trail shall be administered by the Secretary of the Interior. No 

lands or interests therein outside the exterior boundaries of any 

Federally administered area may be acquired by the Federal 

government for the trail except with the consent of the owner 

thereof. 

* * * * * * *

(14) The Nez Perce National Historic Trail, a route of approximately eleven hundred and seventy miles extending from 

the vicinity of Wallowa Lake, Oregon, to Bear Paw Mountain, 

Montana, as generally depicted in ‘‘Nez Perce (Nee-Me-Poo) 

Trail Study Report’’ prepared by the Department of Agriculture 

and dated March 1982. The report shall be on file and available for public inspection in the Office of the Chief of the Forest Service, Washington, District of Columbia. The trail shall 

be administered by the Secretary of Agriculture. No lands or 

interests therein outside the exterior boundaries of any federally administered area may be acquired by the Federal Government for the Nez Perce National Historic Trail. The Secretary 

of Agriculture may designate lands outside of federally administered areas as segments of the trail upon application from 

the States or local governmental agencies involved in such segments meet the criteria established in this chapter and are administered by such agencies without expense to the United 

States. So that significant route segments and sites recognized 

as associated with the Nez Perce Trail may be distinguished by 

suitable markers, the Secretary of Agriculture is authorized to 

accept the donation of suitable markers for placement at appropriate locations. Any such markers associated with the Nez 

Perce Trail which are to be located on lands administered by 

any other department or agency of the United States may be 

placed on such lands only with the concurrence of the head of 

such department or agency. No lands or interests therein outside the exterior boundaries of any Federally administered 

areas may be acquired by the Federal government for the trail 

except with the consent of the owner thereof. The authority of 

the Federal government to acquire fee title under this paragraph shall be limited to an average of not more than one-quarter mile on either side of the trail. 

* * * * * * *

16

AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS

SEC. 10. (a)(1) * * *

* * * * * * *

ø(c)(1) There is hereby authorized to be appropriated such sums 

as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this chapter relating to the trails designated by section 1244(a)(3), (4), (5), (6), (7), 

(8), (9), and (10) of this title: Provided, That no such funds are authorized to be appropriated prior to October 1, 1978: And provided 

further, That notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter 

or any other provisions of law, no funds may be expended by Federal agencies for the acquisition of lands or interests in lands outside the exterior boundaries of existing Federal areas for the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail, the North Country National 

Scenic Trail, The Ice Age National Scenic Trail, the Oregon National Historic Trail, the Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail, 

the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, and the Iditarod National Historic Trail, except that funds may be expended for the acquisition of lands or interests therein for the purpose of providing 

for one trail interpretation site, as described in section 1246(c) of 

this title, along with such trail in each State crossed by the trail. 

(2) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, there is authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this charter relating to the trails designated 

by section 1244(a) of this title. Not more than $500,000 may be appropriated for the purposes of acquisition of land and interests 

therein for the trail designated by section 1244(a)(12) of this title, 

and not more than $2,000,000 may be appropriated for the purposes of the development of such trail. The administering agency 

for the trail shall encourage volunteer trail groups to participate in 

the development of the trail.¿

(c)(1) Except as otherwise provided in this Act, there is authorized 

to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to implement the 

provisions of this Act relating to the trails designated by section 

5(a). 

(2) Not more than $500,000 may be appropriated for the purposes 

of land acquisition and interests therein for the Natchez Trace National Scenic Trail designated by section 5(a)(12) of this Act, and 

not more than $2,000,000 may be appropriated for the purposes of 

the development of such trail. The administering agency for the trail 

shall encourage volunteer trail groups to participate in the development of the trail.

Æ