II 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 26 

To establish the Northern Appalachian Economic Development Commission, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 8, 2006 

Ms. SNOWE (for herself and Ms. COLLINS) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public 

Works 

A BILL 

To establish the Northern Appalachian Economic 

Development Commission, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Northern Appalachian Economic Development Commis6 sion Act of 2006’’. 

7 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

8 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 

Sec. 4. Northern Appalachian Economic Development Commission. 


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Sec. 5. Local development districts; certification and administrative expenses. 

Sec. 6. Regional development strategy. 

Sec. 7. Economic development grants. 

Sec. 8. Program development criteria. 

Sec. 9. Approval of development strategies and projects. 

Sec. 10. Records. 

Sec. 11. Annual report. 

Sec. 12. Consent of state. 

Sec. 13. Private property protection and lack of regulatory effect. 

Sec. 14. Authorization of appropriations. 

Sec. 15. Termination of Commission. 

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds that— 

3 (1) the Northern Appalachian region in the 

4 States of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and 

5 New York is abundant in natural resources and rich 

6 in potential, but— 

7 (A) the economic growth of the Northern 

8 Appalachian region lags behind much of the 

9 United States; and 

10 (B) the people of the Northern Appa11 lachian region have not shared in the economic 

12 prosperity of the United States; 

13 (2) manufacturing sector losses and outmigra14 tion in the region have contributed greatly to the 

15 difficulties of the region with respect to entrepre16 neurial development and sustainability; 

17 (3) the historic reliance of the region on a few 

18 basic industries and agriculture has failed to provide 

19 an adequate base for the protection of the natural 


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1 resources of, and vigorous self-sustaining growth in, 

2 the region; 

3 (4) small communities and rural communities 

4 across the region continue to face economic shifts, 

5 outmigration, and uncertainty; 

6 (5) small businesses are fueling the economic 

7 growth of the United States by— 

8 (A) producing over 50 percent of the Gross 

9 Domestic Product; and 

(B) creating 3 10 ⁄4 of all new jobs in the 

11 United States; 

12 (6) economic development of the region is fea13 sible, desirable, and urgently needed; 

14 (7) entrepreneurship is a critical element in the 

15 establishment of self-sustaining communities that 

16 create jobs and contribute broadly to economic and 

17 community development; 

18 (8) the Northern Appalachian region has his19 toric significance, recreational values, ecological val20 ues, and productive capacity that should be pre21 served to help drive development and maintain com22 munity well-being in the region; 

23 (9) the amount of funding available through ex24 isting Federal programs should be increased to adeVerDate Aug 31 2005 21:57 Dec 14, 2006 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S26.IS S26

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1 quately address economic, community, and conserva2 tion needs in the region; 

3 (10) the qualifying criteria of many Federal 

4 programs exclude or underrepresent the unique land 

5 ownership patterns and socioeconomic characteristics 

6 of the Northern Appalachian region; 

7 (11) State and local governments and the peo8 ple of the region have made progress in addressing 

9 the economic problems of the region while striving 

10 to— 

11 (A) conserve the natural resource base; 

12 (B) maintain the working forests; 

13 (C) preserve open space; and 

14 (D) provide opportunities for recreation 

15 and tourism; 

16 (12) providing Federal assistance to the region 

17 is necessary to— 

18 (A) address the special economic and con19 servation challenges of the region; and 

20 (B) promote development on a coordinated 

21 and concerted regional basis; 

22 (13) economic development of the region is fea23 sible, desirable, and urgently needed; 

24 (14) Federal assistance for the region should 

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1 cluding manufacturing, tourism, forestry, natural re2 sources, agriculture, and outdoor recreation; and 

3 (15) in order to provide support and develop 

4 economic opportunities in the region, consideration 

5 should be given to State and local government and 

6 economic development organizations that promote 

7 small business and entrepreneurship for purposes of 

8 determining how to allocate Federal assistance 

9 under this Act in the region. 

10 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

11 In this Act: 

12 (1) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

13 means the Northern Appalachian Economic Develop14 ment Commission established by section 4(a). 

15 (2) CONSERVATION.—The term ‘‘conservation’’ 

16 means— 

17 (A) the preservation and protection of pro18 ductive working forests; and 

19 (B) valuing the ecological and recreational 

20 uses of productive working forests. 

21 (3) FEDERAL GRANT PROGRAM.—The term 

22 ‘‘Federal grant program’’ means a Federal grant 

23 program to provide assistance in carrying out eco24 nomic, community, or conservation development ac25 tivities. 


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1 (4) LOCAL DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT.—The 

2 term ‘‘local development district’’ means a local de3 velopment district designated under section 5(a). 

4 (5) NONPROFIT ENTITY.—The term ‘‘nonprofit 

5 entity’’ means any entity with tax-exempt or non6 profit status, as defined by the Internal Revenue 

7 Service. 

8 (6) REGION.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘Region’’ 

10 means the area in the States of New York, 

11 Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine that is 

12 comprised of— 

13 (i) all counties or political subdivision 

14 or census tracts within counties that 

15 have— 

16 (I) a population density of less 

17 than 500 individuals per square mile; 

18 and 

19 (II)(aa) a per capita income less 

20 than 75 percent of the national aver21 age; 

22 (bb) a poverty level greater than 

23 125 percent of the national average; 


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1 (cc) an unemployment level 

2 greater than 200 percent of the na3 tional average; or 

4 (dd) a decline in population over 

5 the 10-year period ending on the date 

6 of enactment of this Act; or 

7 (ii) all counties that are identified by 

8 the Commission as— 

9 (I) economically distressed coun10 ties; or 

11 (II) economically distressed sub12 regions within counties that do not 

13 qualify as economically distressed 

14 counties. 

15 (B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘Region’’ 

16 does not include a county or other political sub17 division that is eligible for assistance from the 

18 Appalachian Regional Commission. 

19 SEC. 4. NORTHERN APPALACHIAN ECONOMIC DEVELOP20 MENT COMMISSION. 

21 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is established the 

23 Northern Appalachian Economic Development Com24 mission to provide advisory strategic guidance and 

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1 nomic development, community development, and 

2 natural resource conservation in the Region. 

3 (2) COMPOSITION.—The Commission shall be 

4 composed of— 

5 (A) a Federal member, to be appointed by 

6 the President, with the advice and consent of 

7 the Senate; and 

8 (B) the Governor of each State in the Re9 gion that elects to participate in the Commis10 sion. 

11 (3) COCHAIRPERSON.—The Commission shall 

12 be headed by— 

13 (A) the Federal member, who shall serve— 

14 (i) as the Federal cochairperson; and 

15 (ii) as a liaison between the Federal 

16 Government and the Commission; and 

17 (B) a State cochairperson, who— 

18 (i) shall be a Governor of a partici19 pating State in the Region; and 

20 (ii) shall be elected by the State mem21 bers for a term of not less than 1 year. 

22 (b) STATE ALTERNATES.— 

23 (1) APPOINTMENT.—The State member of a 

24 participating State may have a single alternate, who 


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1 shall be appointed by the Governor of the State from 

2 among the cabinet or personal staff of the Governor. 

3 (2) SERVICE.—An alternate appointed under 

4 paragraph (1) shall serve on the Commission in the 

5 event of the absence, death, disability, removal, or 

6 resignation of the member for whom the individual 

7 is an alternate. 

8 (c) DECISIONS.—A decision by the Commission shall 

9 require the affirmative vote of— 

10 (1) the Federal cochairperson; and 

11 (2) a majority of the State members. 

12 (d) AUTHORITY.—The authority of the Commis13 sion— 

14 (1) is limited to providing financial support and 

15 advisory coordination for natural resource conserva16 tion and economic development activities in the Re17 gion; and 

18 (2) does not include— 

19 (A) any power of eminent domain or other 

20 authority to compel the sale of land from an 

21 unwilling seller; or 

22 (B) any zoning or other regulatory author23 ity over land use. 

24 (e) DUTIES.—The Commission shall— 


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1 (1) assess the capital assets of the Region 

2 based on available research, demonstration projects, 

3 assessments, and evaluations of the Region prepared 

4 by Federal, State, or local agencies, local develop5 ment districts, or other appropriate sources, includ6 ing the Northern Forest Economic Adjustment 

7 Strategy funded by the Economic Development Ad8 ministration; 

9 (2) in consultation with private landowner rep10 resentatives from each State in the Region, to be ap11 pointed by the forest products association of the ap12 plicable State, develop advisory strategies for the 

13 Region to help coordinate ongoing efforts to advance 

14 economic development and natural resource con15 servation throughout the Region; and 

16 (3) encourage and support industrial, commer17 cial, and other economic development projects and 

18 natural resource conservation that would foster de19 velopment, including through— 

20 (A) providing direct grants to support the 

21 projects; and 

22 (B) facilitating the coordinated application 

23 of Federal, State, county, local, and private 

24 funding sources. 


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1 (f) HEARINGS.—In carrying out subsection (e), the 

2 Commission may hold such hearings, meet and act at such 

3 times and places, take such testimony, receive such evi4 dence, and print and distribute a description of such pro5 ceedings and reports of the Commission as the Commis6 sion considers advisable to carry out this Act. 

7 (g) FEDERAL AGENCY COOPERATION.—A Federal 

8 agency shall— 

9 (1) cooperate with the Commission; and 

10 (2) provide, on request of the Federal cochair11 person, appropriate assistance in carrying out this 

12 Act, in accordance with applicable Federal laws (in13 cluding regulations). 

14 (h) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Administrative expenses of 

16 the Commission, shall be paid— 

17 (A) by the Federal Government, in an 

18 amount equal to 50 percent of the administra19 tive expenses; and 

20 (B) by the States in the Region partici21 pating in the Commission, in an amount equal 

22 to 50 percent of the administrative expenses. 

23 (2) COMPENSATION.— 

24 (A) FEDERAL COCHAIRPERSON.—The Fed25 eral cochairperson shall be compensated at a 


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1 rate established under Federal law, as deter2 mined by the President. 

3 (B) STATE MEMBERS AND ALTERNATES.— 

4 Each State member and alternate shall be com5 pensated at a rate established under State law. 

6 (C) ADDITIONAL PERSONNEL.—The Com7 mission may appoint and fix the compensation 

8 of an executive director and such other per9 sonnel as are necessary to enable the Commis10 sion to carry out the duties of the Commission. 

11 SEC. 5. LOCAL DEVELOPMENT DISTRICTS; CERTIFICATION 

12 AND ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES. 

13 (a) DESIGNATION OF LOCAL DEVELOPMENT DIS14 TRICT.—The State may designate local development dis15 tricts to receive assistance under this Act, including— 

16 (1) a planning district in existence on the date 

17 of enactment of this Act that is recognized by the 

18 Economic Development Administration of the De19 partment of Commerce; or 

20 (2) a developed district recognized by the State; 

21 or 

22 (3) an entity designated by the Commission 

23 that satisfies the criteria development by the Eco24 nomic Development Administration for a local devel25 opment district. 


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1 (b) ADMINISTRATIVE GRANTS TO LOCAL DEVELOP2 MENT DISTRICTS.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission may pro4 vide a grant to a local development district for use 

5 in paying administrative expenses of the local devel6 opment district. 

7 (2) CONDITIONS FOR GRANTS.— 

8 (A) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The amount of a 

9 grant under paragraph (1) shall not exceed 80 

10 percent of the administrative expenses of the 

11 local development district receiving the grant. 

12 (B) LOCAL SHARE.—The contributions of 

13 a local development district for administrative 

14 expenses may be in cash or in kind, fairly evalu15 ated, including space, equipment, and services. 

16 (c) DUTIES OF LOCAL DEVELOPMENT DISTRICTS.— 

17 A local development district shall— 

18 (1) operate as a lead organization serving 

19 multicounty areas in the Region at the local level; 

20 and 

21 (2) serve as a liaison between State and local 

22 governments, nonprofit organizations (including 

23 community-based groups and educational institu24 tions), the business community, and citizens that— 


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1 (A) are involved in multijurisdictional plan2 ning; and 

3 (B) provide technical assistance to poten4 tial grantees. 

5 SEC. 6. REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

7 date of enactment of this Act, the Commission shall de8 velop an integrated development strategy for the Region 

9 (including 5-year regional outcome targets), taking into 

10 consideration the Northern Forest Economic Adjustment 

11 Strategy funded by the Economic Development Adminis12 tration. 

13 (b) STATE DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—In accordance with policies 

15 established by the Commission, each State member 

16 shall submit to the Commission a development strat17 egy for the area of the Region represented by the 

18 State member. 

19 (2) CONTENTS.—A State development strategy 

20 submitted under paragraph (1) shall— 

21 (A) reflect the goals, objectives, and prior22 ities identified in the development strategy for 

23 the Region developed under subsection (a); and 

24 (B) be consistent with State wildlife and 

25 open space planning efforts. 


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1 (3) CONSULTATION.—In developing a develop2 ment strategy, a State shall— 

3 (A) consult with— 

4 (i) local development districts; 

5 (ii) units of local government; 

6 (iii) institutions of higher education; 

7 and 

8 (iv) nongovernmental entities; and 

9 (B) take into consideration the goals, ob10 jectives, priorities, and recommendations of the 

11 entities described in subparagraph (A). 

12 (c) PUBLIC PARTICIPATION.—The Commission and 

13 applicable State and local development districts shall en14 courage and assist, to the maximum extent practicable, 

15 public participation in the development, revision, and im16 plementation of all development strategies and programs 

17 under this Act. 

18 (d) LIMITATIONS.—A development strategy developed 

19 by the Commission or a State under subsection (a) or (b), 

20 respectively— 

21 (1) shall be advisory only; and 

22 (2) shall not supercede any other plan, strategy, 

23 or policy prepared by— 

24 (A) a Federal, State, or local agency; 

25 (B) a local development district; or 


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1 (C) any other appropriate entity. 

2 SEC. 7. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT GRANTS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission may approve 

4 grants to States, local development districts, and public 

5 and nonprofit entities for projects— 

6 (1) to develop the infrastructure of the Region 

7 for the purpose of facilitating development (except 

8 that grants for this purpose may only be made to a 

9 State or local government); 

10 (2) to assist the Region in obtaining job train11 ing, employment-related education, and business de12 velopment; 

13 (3) to assist the Region in community develop14 ment; 

15 (4) to provide assistance to severely distressed 

16 and underdeveloped areas; 

17 (5) to conserve the resource base of the Region 

18 to— 

19 (A) maintain working forests; 

20 (B) enhance habitat and open space; or 

21 (C) maintain the ecological integrity of the 

22 Region; and 

23 (6) to otherwise achieve the purposes of this 

24 Act. 


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1 (b) FUNDING.—Funds for grants under subsection 

2 (a) may be provided— 

3 (1) entirely from appropriations to carry out 

4 this section; 

5 (2) in combination with funds available under 

6 another Federal or State grant program; or 

7 (3) from any other source. 

8 (c) ELIGIBLE PROJECTS.—The Commission may pro9 vide assistance, make grants, enter into contracts, and 

10 otherwise provide funds to eligible entities in the Region 

11 for projects that promote— 

12 (1) job training or employment-related edu13 cation; 

14 (2) local planning and leadership development; 

15 (3) basic public infrastructure, including high16 tech infrastructure and productive natural resource 

17 conservation; 

18 (4) technical assistance for the modernization 

19 and diversification of the forest products industry to 

20 support value-added forest products enterprises; 

21 (5) forest and land-related cultural, nature22 based, and heritage tourism; 

23 (6) entrepenurship, including projects that— 

24 (A) support business development; 


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1 (B) support the advancement of, and pro2 vide entrepreneurship training and education 

3 to, aspiring entrepreneurs, existing businesses, 

4 and students; 

5 (C) provide access to capital, including by 

6 facilitating the establishment of small business 

7 venture capital funds; 

8 (D) develop and support business innova9 tion; 

10 (E) support existing entrepreneur and 

11 small business development programs and 

12 projects; and 

13 (F) support projects for small business in14 novation research; and 

15 (7) any other project facilitating development in 

16 the Region. 

17 (d) FEDERAL SHARE.—Notwithstanding any provi18 sion of law limiting the Federal share under any grant 

19 program, funds made available to carry out this section 

20 may be used to increase the Federal share under a grant 

21 program, as the Commission determines appropriate. 

22 SEC. 8. PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT CRITERIA. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—In considering projects to be pro24 vided assistance under this Act and in establishing a pri25 ority ranking of the requests for assistance provided by 


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1 the Commission, the Commission shall follow procedures 

2 that ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, consider3 ation of— 

4 (1) the relationship of a project to overall re5 gional development in the State and the Region; 

6 (2) the per capita income and poverty and un7 employment rates and other socioeconomic indicators 

8 in an area, including outmigration; 

9 (3) the financial resources available to the ap10 plicants for assistance seeking to carry out the 

11 project, with emphasis on ensuring that projects are 

12 adequately financed to maximize the probability of 

13 successful development; 

14 (4) the importance of the project in relation to 

15 other projects that may be in competition for the 

16 same funds; 

17 (5) the prospects that the project for which as18 sistance is sought will improve, on a continuing rath19 er than a temporary basis, the opportunities for em20 ployment, the average level of income, economic de21 velopment, or natural resource integrity of the area 

22 served by the project; and 

23 (6) the extent to which the project design pro24 vides for detailed outcome measurements by which 


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1 grant expenditures and the results of the expendi2 tures may be evaluated. 

3 (b) NO RELOCATION ASSISTANCE.—No financial as4 sistance authorized by this Act shall be used to assist an 

5 establishment in relocating from 1 area to another. 

6 (c) REDUCTION OF FUNDS.—Funds may be provided 

7 for a project in a State under this Act only if the Commis8 sion determines that the level of Federal or State financial 

9 assistance provided under a law other than this Act, for 

10 the same type of program or project in the same area of 

11 the State within the Region, will not be reduced as a result 

12 of funds made available by this Act. 

13 SEC. 9. APPROVAL OF DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES AND 

14 PROJECTS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall review any 

16 State or regional development strategy or any multistate 

17 subregional strategy that is proposed for development 

18 under this Act. 

19 (b) EVALUATION BY STATE MEMBER.—An applica20 tion for a grant or any other assistance for a project under 

21 this Act shall be made through, and evaluated for approval 

22 by, the State member of the Commission representing the 

23 applicant. 

24 (c) CERTIFICATION.—An application for a grant or 

25 other assistance for a project shall be approved only on 


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1 certification by the State member and Federal cochair2 person that the application for the project— 

3 (1) describes ways in which the project complies 

4 with any applicable State development strategy; 

5 (2) meets applicable criteria; 

6 (3) provides adequate assurance that the pro7 posed project will be properly administered, oper8 ated, and maintained; and 

9 (4) otherwise meets the requirements of this 

10 Act. 

11 (d) VOTES FOR DECISIONS.—On certification of an 

12 application for a grant or other assistance for a specific 

13 project under this section, an affirmative vote of the Com14 mission under section 4(c) shall be required for approval 

15 of the application. 

16 SEC. 10. RECORDS. 

17 (a) RECORDS OF THE COMMISSION.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall main19 tain accurate and complete records of all trans20 actions and activities of the Commission. 

21 (2) AVAILABILITY.—All records of the Commis22 sion shall be available for audit and examination by 

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1 troller General) and Governors of participating 

2 States. 

3 (b) RECORDS OF RECIPIENTS OF FEDERAL ASSIST4 ANCE.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—A recipient of Federal funds 

6 under this Act shall, as required by the Commission, 

7 maintain accurate and complete records of trans8 actions and activities financed with Federal funds 

9 and report on the transactions and activities to the 

10 Commission. 

11 (2) AVAILABILITY.—All records required under 

12 paragraph (1) shall be available for audit by the 

13 Comptroller General of the United States, and the 

14 Commission (including authorized representatives of 

15 the Comptroller General and the Commission). 

16 SEC. 11. ANNUAL REPORT. 

17 Not later than 180 days after the end of each fiscal 

18 year, the Commission shall submit to the President and 

19 to Congress a report describing the activities carried out 

20 under this Act. 

21 SEC. 12. CONSENT OF STATE. 

22 Nothing in this Act requires any State to engage in 

23 or accept any program under this Act without the consent 

24 of the State. 


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1 SEC. 13. PRIVATE PROPERTY PROTECTION AND LACK OF 

2 REGULATORY EFFECT. 

3 (a) ACCESS TO PRIVATE PROPERTY.—Nothing in 

4 this Act— 

5 (1) requires a private property owner to permit 

6 public access (including access by the Federal Gov7 ernment or State or local governments) to private 

8 property; or 

9 (2) modifies any provision of Federal, State, or 

10 local law with respect to public access to, or use of, 

11 private property. 

12 (b) LIABILITY.—Nothing in this Act creates any li13 ability, or has any effect on liability under any other law, 

14 of a private property owner with respect to any persons 

15 injured on the private property. 

16 (c) RECOGNITION OF AUTHORITY TO CONTROL

17 LAND USE.—Nothing in this Act modifies any authority 

18 of the Federal Government or State or local governments 

19 to regulate land use. 

20 SEC. 14. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro22 priated to the Commission to carry out this Act 

23 $40,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 through 2012, 

24 to remain available until expended. 

25 (b) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Not more than 5 

26 percent of the amounts made available under subsection 


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1 (a) for a fiscal year may be used for administrative ex2 penses of the Commission. 

3 SEC. 15. TERMINATION OF COMMISSION. 

4 The Commission shall terminate on October 1, 2010. 

Æ 


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