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108TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 2d Session 108–655 

HARPERS FERRY NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK 

BOUNDARY REVISION ACT OF 2004 

SEPTEMBER 7, 2004.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State 

of the Union and ordered to be printed 

Mr. POMBO, from the Committee on Resources, 

submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 1576] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Resources, to whom was referred the bill (S. 

1576) to revise the boundary of Harpers Ferry National Historical 

Park, and for other purposes, having considered the same, report 

favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill 

do pass. 

PURPOSE OF THE BILL

The purpose of S. 1576 is to revise the boundary of Harpers 

Ferry National Historical Park and for other purposes. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

Located at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers 

in West Virginia, Harpers Ferry is the site of a former federal armory that was captured by abolitionist John Brown and his followers in 1859. The site was elevated to national park status in 

1944 by act of Congress. 

In 2001, at the direction of Congress, the National Park Service 

undertook outreach efforts and public meetings to explain the options for expanding the boundary of the Historical Park. The National Park Service transmitted the results of the outreach efforts 

to Congress in a report titled ‘‘Report to the Senate Appropriations 

Committee of the United States Congress on the Public Outreach 

Program at Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, in Harpers 

Ferry, West Virginia, to Explain the Options to Expand the Park’s 

Boundaries and Determine if there is a Public Consensus for ExVerDate Aug 04 2004 00:24 Sep 11, 2004 Jkt 029006 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR655.XXX HR655
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pansion’’ (September 2002). The report concluded that there exists 

an overwhelming public consensus (94%) for expansion of the Park. 

S. 1576 would incorporate into the boundary of the Park and provide protection for nine parcels of land currently threatened by development. Such parcels include sites related to the historical 

events that took place in Harpers Ferry, including the following: 

properties on School House Ridge, which was the position of Confederate General Stonewall Jackson during the battle for Harpers 

Ferry in 1862; the Werner tract, which protects the southern 

viewshed of the Park; a portion of the Appalachian National Scenic 

Trail that contains Civil War campgrounds; and Potoma Wayside 

that protects part of the view Thomas Jefferson described in his 

Journals on the State of Virginia. 

COMMITTEE ACTION

Senator Robert Byrd introduced S. 1576 on September 3, 2003. 

The Senate passed the bill on May 19, 2004, by unanimous consent. It was referred to the House Committee on Resources and 

within the Committee to the Subcommittee on National Parks, 

Recreation and Public Lands. On June 15, 2004, the Subcommittee 

conducted a hearing on the bill. On July 8, 2004, the Subcommittee 

met to mark up the bill. No amendments were offered and the bill 

was forwarded to the Full Resources Committee by unanimous consent. On July 14, 2004, the Full Resources Committee met to consider the bill. No amendments were offered and the bill was ordered favorably reported to the House of Representatives by unanimous consent. 

COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII 

of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee on Resources’ oversight findings and recommendations are reflected in 

the body of this report. 

CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY STATEMENT

Article I, section 8 and Article IV, section 3 of the Constitution 

of the United States grant Congress the authority to enact this bill. 

COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII 

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

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

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

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

XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 

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

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

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3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by 

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

of this bill is to revise the boundary of Harpers Ferry National Historical Park. 

4. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate. Under clause 

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

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

Director of the Congressional Budget Office: 

S. 1576—Harpers Ferry National Historical Park Boundary Revision Act of 2003 

S. 1576 would expand the boundary of the Harpers Ferry National Historical Park in West Virginia by about 1,240 acres. The 

act would authorize the National Park Service (NPS) to acquire the 

added acreage by purchase, donation, or exchange, except that 

lands that are already owned by the federal government would be 

acquired by transfer. Finally, the act would authorize the appropriation of whatever amounts are necessary for these purposes. 

Assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts, CBO estimates that implementing S. 1576 would cost the federal government about $5 million over the next year or two. Of this amount, 

we estimate that $4 million would be used to purchase about 190 

acres of private property, and $1 million would be used to develop 

that land. The remaining acreage that would be added to the park 

is either already owned by the federal government or would be donated by the nonprofit Civil War Preservation Trust. CBO estimates that additional costs to operate and maintain those additional lands would be less than $200,000 a year. This estimate is 

based on information provided by the NPS. 

S. 1576 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. 

On March 25, 2004, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for S. 1576 

as ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on March 9, 2004. The two versions of the legislation are identical, as are the estimated costs. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis. This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis. 

COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104–4 

This bill contains no unfunded mandates. 

PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL OR TRIBAL LAW

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

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 

House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by the bill, 

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

existing law in which no change is proposed is shown in roman): 

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ACT OF JUNE 30, 1944 

AN ACT To provide for the establishment of the Harpers Ferry National Monument. 

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

United States of America in Congress assembled, øThat, in order to 

carry out the purposes of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior is 

authorized to acquire lands or interests in lands, by donation, purchase with donated or appropriated funds, or exchange, within the 

boundaries as generally depicted on the drawing entitled ‘‘Boundary Map, Harpers Ferry National Historical Park’’, numbered 384– 

80,021A and dated April 1979, which shall be on file and available 

for public inspection in the offices of the National Park Service, Department of the Interior: Provided, That after advising the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the 

Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives, 

in writing, the Secretary may make minor revisions in the boundary, when necessary, by publication of a revised drawing or other 

boundary description in the Federal Register, but the total acreage 

shall not exceed two thousand five hundred and five acres: Provided further, That nothing herein shall be deemed to authorize the 

acquisition, without consent of the owner, of a fee simple interest 

in lands within the boundaries in which a less than fee interest has 

previously been acquired by the Secretary of the Interior. The Secretary is authorized to acquire, by donation only, approximately 

twenty-seven acres of land or interests therein which are outside 

the boundary of the Harpers Ferry National Historical Park and 

generally depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Proposed Bradley and Ruth 

Nash Addition—Harpers Ferry National Historical Park,’’ dated 

April 1, 1989 and numbered 385–80056. Such map shall be on file 

and available for public inspection in the offices of the National 

Park Service, Department of the Interior, Washington, District of 

Columbia. When acquired, such lands or interests therein shall become a part of the park, subject to the laws and regulations applicable thereto. Any Federal land within the area designated by the 

Secretary of the Interior as necessary for monument purposes shall 

be transferred to the administration of the Department of the Interior and when so transferred shall become a part of the monument: 

Provided, That the Federal department or agency having administration over such land shall agree in advance to such transfer.¿ 

SECTION 1. HARPERS FERRY NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—To carry out the purposes of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior (referred to in this Act as the ‘‘Secretary’’) is 

authorized to acquire, by purchase from a willing seller with donated or appropriated funds, by donation, or by exchange, land or 

an interest in land within the boundaries as generally depicted on 

the map entitled ‘‘Boundary Map, Harpers Ferry National Historical Park’’, numbered 385–80,021A, and dated April 1979. 

(b) BRADLEY AND RUTH NASH ADDITION.—The Secretary is authorized to acquire, by donation only, approximately 27 acres of 

land or interests in land that are outside the boundary of the Harpers Ferry National Historical Park and generally depicted on the 

map entitled ‘‘Proposed Bradley and Ruth Nash Addition—Harpers 

Ferry National Historical Park’’, numbered 385–80056, and dated 

April 1, 1989. 

(c) BOUNDARY EXPANSION.— 

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(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized to acquire, by 

purchase from a willing seller with donated or appropriated 

funds, by donation, or by exchange, land or an interest in land 

within the area depicted as ‘‘Private Lands’’ on the map entitled 

‘‘Harpers Ferry National Historical Park Proposed Boundary 

Expansion,’’ numbered 385/80,126, and dated July 14, 2003. 

(2) ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary shall— 

(A) transfer to the National Park Service for inclusion in 

the Harpers Ferry National Historical Park (referred to in 

this Act as the ‘‘Park’’) the land depicted on the map referred to in paragraph (1) as ‘‘U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Lands’’ and revise the boundary of the Park accordingly; and 

(B) revise the boundary of the Park to include the land 

depicted on the map referred to in paragraph (1) as ‘‘Appalachian NST’’ and exclude that land from the boundary of 

the Appalachian National Scenic Trail. 

(d) MAXIMUM NUMBER OF ACRES.—The number of acres of the 

Park shall not exceed 3,745. 

(e) MAPS.—The maps referred to in this section shall be on file 

and available for public inspection in the appropriate offices of the 

National Park Service. 

(f) ACQUIRED LAND.—Land or an interest in land acquired under 

this section shall become a part of the Park, subject to the laws (including regulations) applicable to the Park. 

(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are authorized to 

be appropriated such sums as are necessary to carry out this section. 

SEC. 2. The property acquired under the provisions of section 1 

of this Act shall constitute the Harpers Ferry National Monument 

and shall be a public national memorial commemorating historical 

events at or near Harpers Ferry. The Director of the National Park 

Service under the direction of the Secretary øof the Interior¿, shall 

have the supervision, management, and control of such national 

monument, and shall maintain and preserve it for the benefit and 

enjoyment of the people of the United States, subject to the provisions of the Act of August 25, 1916 (39 Stat. 535), entitled ‘‘An Act 

to establish a National Park Service, and for other purposes’’, as 

amended. 

SEC. 3. The Secretary øof the Interior¿ is authorized to— 

(1) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

Æ