I

104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1280

To establish guidelines for the designation of National Heritage Areas, and

for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MARCH 21, 1995

Mr. HEFLEY (for himself and Mr. TORKILDSEN) introduced the following bill;

which was referred to the Committee on Resources

A BILL

To establish guidelines for the designation of National

Heritage Areas, 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 ‘‘Technical Assistance

5 Act of 1995’’.

6 SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS.

7 The Congress finds that—

8 (1) certain areas of the United States represent

9 the diversity of the national character through the

10 interaction of natural processes, distinctive land-
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1 scapes, cultural traditions, and economic and social

2 forces that have combined to create a particular pat3 tern of human settlement and activity;

4 (2) in these areas, natural, historic, or cultural

5 resources, or some combination thereof, combine to

6 form a cohesive, nationally distinctive landscape aris7 ing from patterns of human activity shaped by geog8 raphy;

9 (3) these areas represent the national experi10 ence through the physical features that remain and

11 the traditions that have evolved in the areas;

12 (4) continued use and adaptive reuses of the

13 natural and cultural fabric within these areas by

14 people whose traditions helped to shape the land15 scapes enhance the significance of the areas; and

16 (5) the complexity and character of these areas

17 distinguish them and call for a distinctive system of

18 recognition and management.

19 SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE.

20 The purposes of this Act are—

21 (1) to recognize that the natural, historic, sce22 nic, and cultural resources and recreational opportu23 nities of the United States represent and are impor24 tant to the great and diverse character of the Na25 tion, and that these resources and opportunities
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1 must be wisely managed so they may be passed on

2 to future generations;

3 (2) to recognize that combinations of such re4 sources and opportunities, as they are geographically

5 assembled and thematically related, form areas that

6 provide unique frameworks for understanding the

7 historical, cultural, and natural development of com8 munities and their surroundings;

9 (3) to encourage appropriate partnerships

10 among Federal agencies, State and local govern11 ments, nonprofit organizations, and the private sec12 tor, or combinations thereof, to conserve and man13 age those resources and opportunities;

14 (4) to encourage within these areas a broad

15 range of economic opportunities which enhance the

16 quality of life for present and future generations;

17 (5) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to

18 provide technical assistance to State and local gov19 ernments and private nonprofit organizations, or

20 combinations thereof, to study and promote the po21 tential for conserving and interpreting these areas;

22 and

23 (6) to prescribe the process by which areas may

24 be designated as National Heritage Areas and the
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1 standards according to which areas may be assessed

2 for eligibility for such designation.

3 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

4 For purposes of this Act:

5 (1) COMPACT.—The term ‘‘compact’’ means a

6 compact described in section 6(a)(2).

7 (2) FEASIBILITY STUDY.—The term ‘‘feasibility

8 study’’ means a study described in section 6(a)(1).

9 (3) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’

10 means any Indian tribe, band, nation, pueblo, or

11 other organized group or community, including any

12 Alaska Native village or regional corporation as de13 fined in or established pursuant to the Alaska Na14 tive Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.),

15 which is recognized as eligible for the special pro16 grams and services provided by the United States to

17 Indians because of their status as Indians.

18 (4) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The term ‘‘manage19 ment plan’’ means a plan described in section

20 6(a)(3).

21 (5) NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA.—The term

22 ‘‘National Heritage Area’’ means a place designated

23 by the Congress where natural, cultural, and historic

24 resources combine to form a cohesive, nationally dis25 tinctive landscape arising from patterns of human
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1 activity shaped by geography. These patterns make

2 National Heritage Areas representative of the na3 tional experience through the physical features that

4 remain and the traditions that have evolved in the

5 areas. Continued use of National Heritage areas by

6 people whose traditions helped to shape the land7 scapes enhances their significance.

8 (6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means

9 the Secretary of the Interior.

10 (7) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The term ‘‘tech11 nical assistance’’ includes preparation of plans, com12 pacts, resource inventories, and feasibility studies

13 and professional guidance provided by the Secretary.

14 (8) UNIT OF GOVERNMENT.—The term ‘‘unit of

15 government’’ means the government of a State or

16 Commonwealth, a political subdivision of a State or

17 Commonwealth, or an Indian tribe.

18 SEC. 5. NATIONAL HERITAGE AREAS PARTNERSHIP PRO19 GRAM.

20 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—In order to conserve nation21 ally distinctive natural, historic, scenic, and cultural re22 sources, and to provide opportunities for conservation,

23 education, and recreation through recognition of and as24 sistance to areas containing such resources, there is here25 by established within the Department of the Interior a Na-
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1 tional Heritage Areas Partnership Program, which shall

2 assist the Secretary in carrying out this Act.

3 (b) GENERAL AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY.—In ac4 cordance with the purposes of this Act, the Secretary is

5 authorized—

6 (1) to evaluate, in accordance with the criteria

7 established in subsection (c), areas nominated under

8 this Act for designation as National Heritage Areas;

9 and

10 (2) to advise State and local governments, non11 profit organizations, and other appropriate entities

12 regarding suitable methods of recognizing and con13 serving thematically and geographically linked natu14 ral, historic, and cultural resources and recreational

15 opportunities.

16 (c) CRITERIA.—To be eligible for designation as a

17 National Heritage Area, an area shall meet each of the

18 following criteria:

19 (1) ASSEMBLAGE OF RESOURCES.—The area

20 shall be an assemblage of natural, historic, or cul21 tural resources that—

22 (A) together represent distinctive aspects

23 of American heritage worthy of recognition,

24 conservation, interpretation, and continuing

25 use; and
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1 (B) are best managed as such an assem2 blage, through partnerships among public and

3 private entities.

4 (2) TRADITIONS, CUSTOMS, BELIEFS, OR

5 FOLKLIFE.—The area shall reflect traditions, cus6 toms, beliefs, or folklife, or some combination there7 of, that are a valuable part of the story of the Na8 tion.

9 (3) CONSERVATION OF NATURAL, CULTURAL,

10 OR HISTORIC FEATURES.—The area shall provide

11 outstanding opportunities to conserve natural, cul12 tural, or historic features, or some combination

13 thereof.

14 (4) RECREATIONAL AND EDUCATIONAL OPPOR15 TUNITIES.—The area shall provide outstanding rec16 reational and educational opportunities.

17 (5) THEMES AND INTEGRITY OF RESOURCES.—

18 The area shall have an identifiable theme or themes,

19 and resources important to the theme or themes

20 shall retain integrity capable of supporting interpre21 tation.

22 (6) SUPPORT.—Residents, nonprofit organiza23 tions, other private entities, and governments within

24 the proposed area shall demonstrate support for des-
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1 ignation of the area and for management of the area

2 as appropriate for such designation.

3 (7) AGREEMENTS.—The principal organization

4 and units of government supporting the designation

5 shall be willing to commit to agreements to work in

6 partnership to implement the compact for the area.

7 (8) CONSISTENCY WITH ECONOMIC VIABIL8 ITY.—The compact shall be consistent with contin9 ued economic viability in the affected communities.

10 (9) CONSENT OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTS.—No

11 privately owned property shall be included within the

12 boundaries of the area unless the government of the

13 county, city, or town in which the property is located

14 agrees to be so included and submits notification of

15 such agreement to the Secretary.

16 (d) CONDITIONS FOR DESIGNATION.—An area may

17 be designated as a National Heritage Area only by an Act

18 of Congress. The Congress may designate an area as a

19 National Heritage Area only after each of the following

20 conditions is met:

21 (1) SUBMISSION OF STUDY, COMPACT, AND

22 STATEMENT OF APPROVAL TO SECRETARY.—An en23 tity requesting National Heritage Area designation

24 for the area submits to the Secretary—

25 (A) a feasibility study and compact; and
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1 (B) a statement, from the Governor of

2 each State in which the proposed National Her3 itage Area lies, that such Governor approves of

4 the requested National Heritage Area designa5 tion.

6 (2) APPROVAL AND SUBMISSION BY SEC7 RETARY.—The Secretary approves, pursuant to sec8 tion 6(b), the compact referred to in paragraph (1)

9 and submits the feasibility study for the area and

10 the compact to the Congress together with any com11 ments that the Secretary deems appropriate regard12 ing a preferred action.

13 SEC. 6. FEASIBILITY STUDIES, COMPACTS, AND MANAGE14 MENT PLANS.

15 (a) CONTENTS AND REQUIREMENTS.—

16 (1) FEASIBILITY STUDIES.—Each feasibility

17 study submitted under this Act shall include suffi18 cient information to determine whether an area has

19 the potential to meet the criteria referred to in sec20 tion 5(c). Each such feasibility study shall be pre21 pared with public participation. Each such feasibility

22 study shall include, but need not be limited to, each

23 of the following:

24 (A) A description of the natural, historic,

25 and cultural resources and recreational opportu-
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1 nities presented by the area, including an as2 sessment of the quality and degree of integrity

3 of, the availability of public access to, and the

4 themes represented by such resources and op5 portunities.

6 (B) An assessment of the interest of and

7 impact upon potential partners, units of govern8 ment, nonprofit organizations, and other private

9 entities, including property owners.

10 (C) A description of tentative boundaries

11 for a National Heritage Area proposed to be es12 tablished in the area.

13 (D) Identification of a possible manage14 ment entity for a National Heritage Area pro15 posed to be established in the area.

16 (2) COMPACTS.—

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—A compact submitted

18 under this Act shall include information relat19 ing to the objectives and management of an

20 area proposed for designation as a National

21 Heritage Area. Such information shall include,

22 but not be limited to, each of the following:

23 (i) A delineation of the boundaries of

24 the proposed National Heritage Area.
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1 (ii) A discussion of the goals and ob2 jectives of the proposed National Heritage

3 Area, including an explanation of the ap4 proach, proposed by the partners referred

5 to in clause (iv), to conservation and inter6 pretation of resources.

7 (iii) An identification and description

8 of the management entity that will admin9 ister the proposed National Heritage Area.

10 (iv) A list of the initial partners to be

11 involved in developing and implementing

12 the management plan for the proposed Na13 tional Heritage Area, and a statement of

14 the financial commitment of the partners.

15 (v) A description of the role of the

16 State or States in which the proposed Na17 tional Heritage Area is located.

18 (B) PREPARATION OF AND ACTIONS

19 CALLED FOR IN COMPACT.—

20 (i) PREPARATION.—The compact shall

21 be prepared with public participation.

22 (ii) ACTIONS.—Actions called for in

23 the compact shall be likely to be initiated

24 within a reasonable time after designation

25 of the proposed National Heritage Area
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1 and shall ensure effective implementation

2 of the State and local aspects of the com3 pact.

4 (3) MANAGEMENT PLANS.—A management

5 plan submitted under this Act for a National Herit6 age Area shall present comprehensive recommenda7 tions for the conservation, funding, management,

8 and development of the area. The plan shall be pre9 pared with public participation. The plan shall take

10 into consideration existing Federal, State, county,

11 and local plans and involve residents, public agen12 cies, and private organizations in the area. The plan

13 shall include a description of actions that units of

14 government and private organizations are rec15 ommended to take to protect the resources of the

16 area. The plan shall specify existing and potential

17 sources of funding for the conservation, manage18 ment, and development of the area. The plan also

19 shall include the following, as appropriate:

20 (A) An inventory of the resources con21 tained in the National Heritage Area, including

22 a list of property in the area that should be

23 conserved, restored, managed, developed, or

24 maintained because of the natural, cultural, or
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1 historic significance of the property as it relates

2 to the themes of the area.

3 (B) A recommendation of policies for re4 source management that consider and detail the

5 application of appropriate land and water man6 agement techniques, including (but not limited

7 to) the development of intergovernmental coop8 erative agreements to manage the historical,

9 cultural, and natural resources and the rec10 reational opportunities of the area in a manner

11 consistent with the support of appropriate and

12 compatible economic viability.

13 (C) A program, including plans for res14 toration and construction, for implementation

15 of the management plan by the management

16 entity specified in the compact for the area and

17 specific commitments, for the first 5 years of

18 operation of the plan, by the partners identified

19 in the compact.

20 (D) An analysis of means by which Fed21 eral, State, and local programs may best be co22 ordinated to promote the purposes of this Act.

23 (E) An interpretive plan for the National

24 Heritage Area.

25 (b) APPROVAL AND DISAPPROVAL OF COMPACTS.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consulta2 tion with the Governors of each State in which the

3 relevant National Heritage Area, or proposed area,

4 is located, shall approve or disapprove every compact

5 submitted under this Act not later than 90 days

6 after receiving such compact.

7 (2) DISAPPROVAL AND REVISIONS.—If the Sec8 retary disapproves a compact submitted under this

9 Act, the Secretary shall advise the submitter, in

10 writing, of the reasons for the disapproval and shall

11 make recommendations for revisions of the compact.

12 The Secretary shall approve or disapprove a pro13 posed revision to such a compact within 90 days

14 after the date on which the revision is submitted to

15 the Secretary.

16 SEC. 7. MANAGEMENT ENTITIES.

17 (a) DUTIES OF MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—The man18 agement entity for a National Heritage Area shall do each

19 of the following:

20 (1) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The management

21 entity shall develop and submit to the Secretary a

22 management plan not later than 3 years after the

23 date of the designation of the area as a National

24 Heritage Area.
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1 (2) PRIORITIES.—The management entity shall

2 give priority to the implementation of actions, goals,

3 and policies set forth in the compact and manage4 ment plan for the area, including—

5 (A) assisting units of government, regional

6 planning organizations, and nonprofit organiza7 tions—

8 (i) in conserving the National Herit9 age Area;

10 (ii) in establishing and maintaining

11 interpretive exhibits in the area;

12 (iii) in developing recreational oppor13 tunities in the area;

14 (iv) in increasing public awareness of

15 and appreciation for the natural, historical,

16 and cultural resources of the area;

17 (v) in the restoration of historic build18 ings that are located within the boundaries

19 of the area and relate to the themes of the

20 area; and

21 (vi) in ensuring that clear, consistent,

22 and environmentally appropriate signs

23 identifying access points and sites of inter24 est are put in place throughout the area;

25 and
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1 (B) consistent with the goals of the man2 agement plan, encouraging economic viability in

3 the affected communities by appropriate means.

4 (3) CONSIDERATION OF INTERESTS OF LOCAL

5 GROUPS.—The management entity shall, in develop6 ing and implementing the management plan for the

7 area, consider the interests of diverse units of gov8 ernment, businesses, private property owners, and

9 nonprofit groups within the geographic area.

10 (4) PUBLIC MEETINGS.—The management en11 tity shall conduct public meetings at least quarterly

12 regarding the implementation of the management

13 plan for the area.

14 (b) DISQUALIFICATION FOR FEDERAL FUNDING.—If

15 a management plan regarding a National Heritage Area

16 is not submitted to the Secretary as required under sub17 section (a)(1) within the time specified in such subsection,

18 the National Heritage Area shall cease to be eligible for

19 technical assistance under this Act until such a plan re20 garding the National Heritage Area is submitted to the

21 Secretary.

22 (c) PROHIBITION OF ACQUISITION OF REAL PROP23 ERTY.—A management entity for a National Heritage

24 Area may not use Federal funds received under this Act

25 to acquire real property or any interest in real property.
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1 (d) DURATION OF ELIGIBILITY FOR TECHNICAL AS2 SISTANCE.—A management entity for a National Heritage

3 Area shall be eligible to receive technical assistance from

4 funds appropriated pursuant to this Act for a 13-year pe5 riod beginning on the day on which the National Heritage

6 Area is designated.

7 SEC. 8. WITHDRAWAL OF DESIGNATION.

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—The National Heritage Area des9 ignation of an area shall continue unless—

10 (1) the Secretary determines that—

11 (A) the National Heritage Area no longer

12 meets the criteria referred to in section 5(c);

13 (B) the parties to the compact approved in

14 relation to the area under section 6(b) are not

15 in compliance with the terms of the compact;

16 (C) the management entity of the area has

17 not made reasonable and appropriate progress

18 in developing or implementing the management

19 plan for the area; or

20 (D) the use, condition, or development of

21 the area is incompatible with the criteria re22 ferred to in section 5(c) or with the compact

23 approved in relation to the area under section

24 6(b); and
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1 (2) after making a determination referred to in

2 paragraph (1), the Secretary submits to the Con3 gress notification that the National Heritage Area

4 designation of the area should be withdrawn.

5 (b) PUBLIC HEARING.—Before the Secretary makes

6 a determination referred to in subsection (a)(1) regarding

7 a National Heritage Area, the Secretary or a designee

8 shall hold a public hearing within the area.

9 (c) TIME OF WITHDRAWAL OF DESIGNATION.—

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—The withdrawal of the Na11 tional Heritage Area designation of an area shall be12 come final 90 legislative days after the Secretary

13 submits to the Congress the notification referred to

14 in subsection (a)(2) regarding the area.

15 (2) LEGISLATIVE DAY.—For purposes of this

16 subsection, the term ‘‘legislative day’’ means any

17 calendar day on which both Houses of the Congress

18 are in session.

19 SEC. 9. DUTIES AND AUTHORITIES OF FEDERAL AGENCIES.

20 (a) DUTIES AND AUTHORITIES OF SECRETARY.—

21 (1) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may

23 provide technical assistance to units of govern24 ment and private nonprofit organizations re25 garding feasibility studies and compacts and,
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1 upon request of the management entity for the

2 relevant National Heritage Area, regarding

3 management plans and their implementation.

4 (B) PROHIBITION OF CERTAIN REQUIRE5 MENTS.—The Secretary may not, as a condition

6 of the award of technical assistance under this

7 section, require any recipient of such technical

8 assistance to enact or modify land use restric9 tions.

10 (2) DETERMINATIONS REGARDING ASSIST11 ANCE.—The Secretary shall decide which National

12 Heritage Areas shall be awarded technical assistance

13 and the amount of the assistance. Such decisions

14 shall be based on the relative degree to which each

15 National Heritage Area effectively fulfills the objec16 tives contained in the management plan for the area

17 and achieves the purposes of this Act. Such deci18 sions shall give consideration to projects which pro19 vide a greater leverage of Federal funds.

20 (3) OVERSIGHT OF HERITAGE AREAS WITH EX21 PIRED ELIGIBILITY.—The Secretary shall inves22 tigate, study, and monitor the welfare of all National

23 Heritage Areas whose eligibility for technical assist24 ance under this title has expired and shall report to
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1 the Congress periodically regarding the condition of

2 such National Heritage Areas.

3 (4) PROVISION OF INFORMATION.—In coopera4 tion with other Federal agencies, the Secretary shall

5 provide the general public with information regard6 ing the location and character of National Heritage

7 Areas.

8 (b) DUTIES OF OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES.—Any

9 Federal entity conducting any activity directly affecting

10 any National Heritage area shall consider the potential ef11 fect of the activity on the management plan for the area

12 and shall consult with the Governor of the State or Com13 monwealth containing the area with respect to the activity

14 to minimize the adverse effects of the activity on the area.

15 SEC. 10. LACK OF EFFECT ON LAND USE REGULATION.

16 (a) LACK OF EFFECT ON AUTHORITY OF GOVERN17 MENTS.—Nothing in this Act shall be construed to modify,

18 enlarge, or diminish any authority of Federal, State, or

19 local governments to regulate any use of land as provided

20 for by law or regulation.

21 (b) LACK OF ZONING OR LAND USE POWERS OF EN22 TITY.—Nothing in this Act shall be construed to grant

23 powers of zoning or land use to any management entity

24 for a National Heritage Area.
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1 SEC. 11. FISHING AND HUNTING SAVINGS CLAUSE.

2 (a) NO DIMINISHMENT OF STATE AUTHORITY.—The

3 designation of a National Heritage Area shall not diminish

4 the authority of the affected State or Commonwealth to

5 manage fish and wildlife, including the regulation of fish6 ing and hunting within such Area.

7 (b) NO CONDITIONING OF APPROVAL AND ASSIST8 ANCE.— The Secretary may not make limitations on fish9 ing, hunting, or trapping a condition for the approval of

10 a compact or the determination of eligibility for technical

11 assistance under this Act, and neither the Secretary nor

12 any other Federal agency may make such limitations a

13 condition for the receipt, in connection with the National

14 Heritage Area status of an area, of any other form of as15 sistance from the Secretary or such agencies.

16 SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is hereby authorized to be

18 appropriated for technical assistance pursuant to section

19 9(a), and the administration of such assistance, annually

20 not more than $8,000,000, to remain available until ex21 pended.

22 (b) PERCENT OF COST.—Technical assistance under

23 this Act for a feasibility study, compact, or management

24 plan may not exceed 75 percent of the cost for such study,

25 compact, or plan.
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1 (c) LIMITATION ON TOTAL FUNDING FOR EACH

2 AREA.—Not more than a total of $1,000,000 may be

3 made available under this section to each National Herit4 age Area.

5 (d) LIMITATION ON ANNUAL FUNDING.—The

6 amount of Federal funding made available under this sec7 tion for a National Heritage Area for a fiscal year may

8 not exceed $150,000.

9 SEC. 13. EXPIRATION OF AUTHORITIES.

10 The authorities contained in this Act shall expire on

11 September 30 of the 15th fiscal year beginning after the

12 date of the enactment of this Act.

13 SEC. 14. REPORT.

14 The Secretary shall submit to the Congress, every 5

15 years while the authorities contained in this Act remain

16 in force, a report on the status and accomplishments of

17 the National Heritage Areas Partnership Program as a

18 whole.

19 SEC. 15. SAVINGS PROVISION.

20 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to expand or

21 diminish any authorities contained in any law that des22 ignates an individual National Heritage Area or Corridor

23 before the date of the enactment of this Act.

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