79–010

Calendar No. 635

106TH CONGRESS REPORT

2d Session " ! SENATE 106–317

UPPER HOUSATONIC VALLEY NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA

STUDY ACT OF 2000

JUNE 27, 2000.—Ordered to be printed

Mr. MURKOWSKI, from the Committee on Energy and Natural

Resources, submitted the following

REPORT

[To accompany S. 2421]

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was

referred the bill (S. 2421) to direct the Secretary of the Interior to

conduct a study of the suitability and feasibility of establishing an

Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area in Connecticut

and Massachusetts, having considered the same, reports favorably

thereon without amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.

PURPOSE OF THE MEASURE

The purpose of S. 2421 is to direct the Secretary of the Interior

to conduct a study of the suitability and feasibility of establishing

an Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area in Connecticut

and Massachusetts.

BACKGROUND AND NEED

The Housatonic River region of New England is home to many

of the nation’s first industrial iron sites, which produced iron used

to make weapons for the Revolutionary War. Furthermore, the area

includes homes of historical significance belonging to Edith Wharton and author Herman Melville as well as the Monument Mountain Reservation, where Melville and Nathaniel Hawthorne picnicked. The area also has great outdoor recreational resources and

is the base for much of Connecticut’s tourism business.

S. 2421 authorizes the National Park Service to conduct a study

to determine the feasibility and suitability of designating the

Upper Housatonic Valley as a National Heritage Area.

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LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

S. 2421 was introduced by Senators Lieberman, Dodd, Kerry, and

Kennedy on April 13, 2000. Testimony from witnesses on this bill

was included in the record of the hearing held by the Subcommittee on National Parks, Historic Preservation, and Recreation on May 25, 2000. At its business meeting on June 7, 2000,

the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources ordered S. 2421

favorably reported.

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION AND TABULATION OF VOTES

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open business session on June 7, 2000, by a unanimous vote of a quorum

present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 2421 as described

herein.

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1 designates the bill’s short title.

Section 2 defines the term ‘‘Secretary’’ as the Secretary of the Interior, and describes the areas in Connecticut and Massachusetts

that comprise the ‘‘Study Area.’’

Section 3 directs the Secretary to conduct a study of the Study

Area that addresses 8 specific elements with respect to the area’s

resources, community support, and existence of a potential management entity. The Secretary must consult with State Historic

Preservation Officers, State Historical Societies, and other appropriate organizations, and must complete and submit the report to

Congress within 3 years after the date of enactment of this legislation.

Section 4 authorizes the appropriation of $300,000 to carry out

the purposes of this legislation.

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, June 9, 2000.

Hon. FRANK H. MURKOWSKI,

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. 2421, the Upper Housatonic

Valley National Heritage Area Study Act of 2000.

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

to provide them. The CBO staff contacts for this estimate are Deborah Reis and Ali Aslam.

Sincerely,

BARRY B. ANDERSON

(For Dan L. Crippen, Director).

Enclosure.

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S. 2421—Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area Study

Act of 2000

S. 2421 would direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a

study to determine the suitability and feasibility of establishing an

Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area in Connecticut

and Massachusetts. The bill would require the Secretary to report

on the national, historical, and cultural resources within the study

area which merit recognition and conservation.

Assuming appropriation of the authorized amounts, CBO estimates that the federal government would spend about $300,000

over the next three years to implement S. 2421. The bill would not

affect direct spending or receipts; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply. S. 2421 contains no intergovernmental or

private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal

governments.

The CBO staff contacts for this estimate are Deborah Reis and

Ali Aslam. The estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

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. 2421. 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. 2421, as ordered reported.

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

On May 23, 2000, 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. 2421. These reports had

not been received at the time the report on S. 2421 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 OF KATHERINE H. STEVENSON, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, CULTURAL RESOURCE STEWARDSHIP AND PARTNERSHIPS, NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF

THE INTERIOR

Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to appear

before the subcommittee to present the views of the Department of the Interior on S. 2421, a bill to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study of the suitability

and feasibility of establishing an Upper Housatonic Valley

National Heritage Area in Connecticut and Massachusetts.

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The Department of the Interior supports this legislation.

S. 2421 would authorize a suitability and feasibility study

to determine the potential for establishing a national heritage area along sixty miles of the Upper Housatonic

River, in twenty-six towns in Connecticut and Massachusetts. State historic preservation officers, State historical

societies and other appropriate organizations would be

consulted in conducting the study.

The study would include a number of components we believe are helpful for public review. These components are

based on our experience with heritage areas previously

designated by Congress. The components include analysis

and documentation that the study area:

1. Has an assemblage of natural, historic, or cultural resources representing distinctive aspects of

American heritage worthy of recognition, conservation,

interpretation, and continued use, and are best managed through partnerships among public and private

entities, and by combining diverse and sometimes noncontiguous resources and active communities;

2. Reflects traditions, customs, beliefs, and folklife

that are a valuable part of the national story;

3. Provides outstanding opportunities to conserve

natural, cultural, historic, and/or scenic features;

4. Provides outstanding recreational and educational

opportunities;

5. Contains resources important to the identified

theme or themes of the study area that retain a degree of integrity capable of supporting interpretation;

6. Includes residents, business interests, non-profit

organizations, and local and State governments involved in the planning who have demonstrated support for the concept of a national heritage area;

7. Has a potential management entity to work in

partnership with residents, business interests, nonprofit organizations and local and state governments

to develop a heritage area consistent with continued

local and state economic activity;

8. Is depicted on a conceptual boundary map supported by the public.

In conducting the study, the National Park Service

would assist the communities in the valley in determining

their own sense of how best to work together to protect

those resources. A description of the area’s resources would

be developed and the theme or themes for the area would

be identified. We would also work with State and local

agencies to address the interests of local governments in

preserving their heritage, maintaining their local economy

and determining the means for that preservation, whether

through a national heritage area, a state heritage area, or

regional effort. Funding for this study would be subject to

the availability of appropriations and National Park Service priorities among the many requirements for studies.

The Housatonic River has played an important role in

the growth and development of the valley. The earliest

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residents were Native Americans who settled along the

river’s banks to farm and fish. The first English colonists

arrived in 1639 at the mouth of the river and later began

farming in the upper reaches. Agriculture was a major activity throughout the valley and is evident today.

During the 18th and 19th century, waterpower played a

prominent role in the region’s industrial development, with

the remnants of dams, millraces, and furnaces still seen

today. The iron industry evolved based on the high-grade

ore found in the hills of northwestern Connecticut. Forged

products included utensils and armaments used in the

American Revolution. Throughout the valley more than

forty blast furnaces were active over time. The last furnace

closed in 1923.

In the 1800s, the area was known for manufacturing

and mining. The region was the first in the country to

make paper, and by the end of the Civil War there were

at least twenty-eight paper mills in Berkshire County,

Massachusetts, alone. However, the onset of the 20th century brought a decline of industrialization due to inadequate railroad and roadways, as well as competition from

larger industries outside the region.

The resources that illustrate the area’s history in agriculture, iron making and industry and the growing public

commitment to heritage conservation, make the Upper

Housatonic Valley worthy of the proposed study.

This concludes my prepared testimony. I would be happy

to answer any questions you may have.

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing

Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no changes in existing law are made by the bill S. 2421, as ordered reported.

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