II 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 599 

To redesignate the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore as the ‘‘Indiana Dunes 

National Park’’, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 9, 2017 

Mr. DONNELLY (for himself and Mr. YOUNG) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To redesignate the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore as 

the ‘‘Indiana Dunes National Park’’, 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, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Indiana Dunes Na5 tional Park Designation Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that— 

8 (1) the Great Lakes form the largest freshwater 

9 system on Earth; 

10 (2) Lake Michigan is— 


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1 (A) the second largest Great Lake by vol2 ume; and 

3 (B) the only Great Lake located wholly 

4 within the United States; 

5 (3) the southern shore of Lake Michigan in6 cludes some of the most geologically and biologically 

7 diverse areas in the United States; 

8 (4) the unique features that comprise the 

9 southern shore of Lake Michigan, also known as the 

10 ‘‘Indiana Dunes’’, were formed over a period of 

11 12,000 years by natural forces, including glaciers, 

12 wind, and water; 

13 (5) glacial melting and fluctuations in the water 

14 level resulted in the formation of as many as 7 

15 shorelines along the southern shore of Lake Michi16 gan; 

17 (6) the process by which the southern shore of 

18 Lake Michigan was formed resulted in the bio19 logically diverse beaches, sand dunes, and inter-dune 

20 wetlands that can be seen in the southern shore of 

21 Lake Michigan today; 

22 (7) Indian tribes, including the Miami and Pot23 awatomi Indian tribes, inhabited the Indiana Dunes 

24 region for over 10,000 years; 


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1 (8) local conservation efforts to preserve the In2 diana Dunes began as early as 1899 when Henry 

3 Cowles, a botanist from the University of Chicago 

4 who is known for being one of the founders of con5 temporary ecological study and thought, published 

6 an article entitled ‘‘Ecological Relations of the Vege7 tation on Sand Dunes of Lake Michigan’’ in the Bo8 tanical Gazette, bringing international attention to 

9 the intricate ecosystems on the Indiana Dunes; 

10 (9) on October 30, 1916, 1 month after the es11 tablishment of the National Park Service, Stephen 

12 Mather, the first Director of the National Park 

13 Service, held hearings in Chicago, Illinois, to gauge 

14 public sentiment on establishing a large portion of 

15 the southern shore of Lake Michigan as one of the 

16 first national parks in the United States, to be 

17 known as the ‘‘Sand Dunes National Park’’; 

18 (10) over 400 people attended the hearings in 

19 Chicago, Illinois, of which— 

20 (A) 42 people, including Henry Cowles, 

21 spoke in favor of the proposal to establish the 

22 national park; and 

23 (B) there were no opponents to the pro24 posal to establish the national park; 


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1 (11) plans for a Sand Dunes National Park 

2 were delayed because the United States entered 

3 World War I and national focus shifted away from 

4 national parks to national defense; 

5 (12) local conservation efforts to preserve the 

6 Indiana Dunes persisted after World War I and cul7 minated in— 

8 (A) the establishment of Indiana Dunes 

9 State Park in 1925; and 

10 (B) the enactment in 1966 of Public Law 

11 89–761 (16 U.S.C. 460u et seq.), which estab12 lished the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore; 

13 (13) the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore 

14 was subsequently expanded in 1976, 1980, 1986, 

15 and 1992; 

16 (14) the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore 

17 and the adjacent Indiana Dunes State Park are 

18 comprised of over 15,000 acres of dunes, oak savan19 nas, swamps, bogs, marshes, prairies, rivers, and 

20 forests that are preserved for public enjoyment, in21 cluding 15 miles of shoreline along Lake Michigan 

22 that extend from Gary, Indiana, to Michigan City, 

23 Indiana; 

24 (15) the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore 

25 is— 


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1 (A) one of the most biologically diverse 

2 units of the National Park System, containing 

3 2,336 unique species, including 896 animal spe4 cies and 1,407 plant species; 

5 (B) a cherished cultural landmark that at6 tracts millions of visitors each year; and 

7 (C) an especially important feeding and 

8 resting area for migrating land and water birds, 

9 including 350 unique species of birds; and 

10 (16) institutions such as the Dunes Learning 

11 Center— 

12 (A) attract youth and other community 

13 members to the Indiana Dunes; and 

14 (B) provide the youth and other commu15 nity members with insight on the biodiversity 

16 and historical significance of the Indiana 

17 Dunes. 

18 SEC. 3. DESIGNATION OF INDIANA DUNES NATIONAL PARK. 

19 (a) DESIGNATION.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The first section of Public 

21 Law 89–761 (16 U.S.C. 460u) is amended— 

22 (A) in the first sentence— 

23 (i) by striking ‘‘National Lakeshore’’ 

24 and inserting ‘‘National Park’’; and 


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1 (ii) by striking ‘‘(hereinafter referred 

2 to as the ‘lakeshore’)’’ and inserting ‘‘(re3 ferred to in this Act as the ‘Park’)’’; and 

4 (B) in the second sentence, by striking 

5 ‘‘lakeshore’’ and inserting ‘‘Park’’. 

6 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Sections 2 

7 through 24 of Public Law 89–761 (16 U.S.C. 460u– 

8 1 through 460u–24) are amended— 

9 (A) by striking ‘‘Lakeshore’’ each place it 

10 appears and inserting ‘‘Park’’; and 

11 (B) by striking ‘‘lakeshore’’ each place it 

12 appears and inserting ‘‘Park’’. 

13 (b) REFERENCES.—Any reference in any law, regula14 tion, document, record, map, or other paper of the United 

15 States to the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore shall be 

16 considered to be a reference to the ‘‘Indiana Dunes Na17 tional Park’’. 

Æ 


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