104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1296

AN ACT

To provide for the administration of certain Pretaxpayer. sidio properties at minimal cost to the Federal
104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1296

AN ACT

To provide for the administration of certain Presidio

properties at minimal cost to the Federal taxpayer.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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1 SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

2 The Congress finds that—

3 (1) the Presidio, located amidst the incom4 parable scenic splendor of the Golden Gate, is one

5 of America’s great natural and historic sites;

6 (2) the Presidio is the oldest continuously oper7 ated military post in the Nation dating from 1776,

8 and was designated a National Historic Landmark

9 in 1962;

10 (3) preservation of the cultural and historic in11 tegrity of the Presidio for public use recognizes its

12 significant role in the history of the United States;

13 (4) the Presidio, in its entirety, is located with14 in the boundary of the Golden Gate National Recre15 ation Area, in accordance with Public Law 92–589;

16 (5) the Presidio’s significant natural, historic,

17 scenic, cultural, and recreational resources must be

18 managed in a manner which is consistent with sound

19 principles of land use planning and management,

20 and which protects the Presidio from development

21 and uses which would destroy the scenic beauty and

22 historic and natural character of the area; and

23 (6) the Presidio can best be managed through

24 an innovative public/private partnership that mini25 mizes cost to the United States Treasury and makes
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1 efficient use of private sector resources that could be

2 utilized in the public interest.

3 SEC. 2. AUTHORITY AND RESPONSIBILITY OF THE SEC4 RETARY OF THE INTERIOR.

5 (a) INTERIM AUTHORITY.—The Secretary of the In6 terior (hereinafter in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Sec7 retary’’) is authorized to manage leases in existence on

8 the date of this Act for properties under the Administra9 tive jurisdiction of the Secretary and located at the Pre10 sidio. Upon the expiration of any such lease, the Secretary

11 may extend the lease for a period terminating 6 months

12 after the first meeting of the Presidio Trust at which a

13 quorum is present. After the date of the enactment of this

14 Act, the Secretary may not enter into any new leases for

15 property at the Presidio to be transferred to the Presidio

16 Trust under this Act. Notwithstanding section 1341 of

17 title 31 of the United States Code, the proceeds from any

18 such lease shall be retained by the Secretary and such pro19 ceeds shall be available, without further appropriation, for

20 the preservation, restoration, operation and maintenance,

21 improvement, repair and related expenses incurred with

22 respect to Presidio properties. For purposes of any such

23 lease, the Secretary may adjust the rental by taking into

24 account any amounts to be expended by the lessee for

25 preservation, maintenance, restoration, improvement, re-
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1 pair and related expenses with respect to properties within

2 the Presidio.

3 (b) PUBLIC INFORMATION AND INTERPRETATION.—

4 The Secretary shall be responsible, in cooperation with the

5 Presidio Trust, for providing public interpretative services,

6 visitor orientation and educational programs on all lands

7 within the Presidio.

8 (c) OTHER.—Those lands and facilities within the

9 Presidio that are not transferred to the administrative ju10 risdiction of the Presidio Trust shall continue to be man11 aged by the Secretary. The Secretary and the Presidio

12 Trust shall cooperate to ensure adequate public access to

13 all portions of the Presidio.

14 (d) PARK SERVICE EMPLOYEES.—Notwithstanding

15 any other provision of law, the Trust shall have sole dis16 cretion over whether to employ persons previously em17 ployed by the National Park Service in the Department

18 of the Interior. Career employees of the National Park

19 Service, employed at the Presidio as of the time of the

20 transfer of lands and facilities to the Presidio Trust, shall

21 not be separated from the Service by reason of such trans22 fer.

23 SEC. 3. THE PRESIDIO TRUST.

24 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a wholly

25 owned government corporation to be known as the Pre-
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1 sidio Trust (hereinafter in this Act referred to as the

2 ‘‘Trust’’).

3 (b) TRANSFER.—(1) Within 60 days after receipt of

4 a request from the Trust for the transfer of any parcel

5 within the area depicted as area B on the map entitled

6 ‘‘Presidio Trust Number 1,’’ dated June 1995, the Sec7 retary shall transfer such parcel to the administrative ju8 risdiction of the Trust. Within one year after the first

9 meeting of the Board of Directors of the Trust at which

10 a quorum is present, the Board shall request the Secretary

11 to transfer any remaining parcels within such area B.

12 Such map shall be on file and available for public inspec13 tion in the offices of the Trust and in the offices of the

14 National Park Service, Department of the Interior. The

15 Trust and the Secretary may jointly make technical and

16 clerical revisions in the boundary depicted on such map.

17 Such areas shall remain within the boundary of the Golden

18 Gate National Recreation Area. The Secretary shall retain

19 those portions of the building identified as number 103

20 as the Secretary deems essential for use as a visitor center.

21 The building shall be named the ‘‘William Penn Mott Visi22 tor Center’’. With the consent of the Secretary, the Trust

23 may at any time transfer to the administrative jurisdiction

24 of the Secretary any other properties within the Presidio

25 which are surplus to the needs of the Trust and which
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1 serve essential purposes of the Golden Gate National

2 Recreation Area. The Trust is encouraged to transfer to

3 the administrative jurisdiction of the Secretary open space

4 areas which have a high public use potential and are con5 tiguous to other lands administered by the Secretary.

6 (2) The Secretary shall transfer, with the transfer of

7 administrative jurisdiction over any property, all leases,

8 concessions, licenses, permits, and other agreements relat9 ing to such property. Upon the transfer of such property

10 the Secretary shall transfer the unobligated balance of all

11 funds appropriated to the Secretary for the operation of

12 the Presidio, together with any revenues and unobligated

13 funds associated with leases, concessions, licenses, per14 mits, and agreements relating to properties transferred to

15 the Trust.

16 (c) BOARD OF DIRECTORS.—

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—The powers and manage18 ment of the Trust shall be vested in a Board of Di19 rectors (hereinafter referred to as the ‘‘Board’’) con20 sisting of the following 7 members:

21 (A) The Secretary of the Interior or the

22 Secretary’s designee.

23 (B) Six individuals, who are not employees

24 of the Federal Government, appointed by the

25 President, who shall possess extensive knowl-
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1 edge and experience in one or more of the fields

2 of city planning, finance, real estate, and re3 source conservation. At least 3 of these individ4 uals shall reside in the city and county of San

5 Francisco. The President shall make the ap6 pointments referred to in this subparagraph

7 within 90 days after the enactment of this Act.

8 (2) TERMS.—Members of the Board appointed

9 under paragraph (1)(B) shall each serve for a term

10 of 4 years, except that of the members first ap11 pointed, 3 shall serve for a term of 2 years. Any va12 cancy in the Board shall be filled in the same man13 ner in which the original appointment was made,

14 and any member appointed to fill a vacancy shall

15 serve for the remainder of the term for which his or

16 her predecessor was appointed. No appointed direc17 tor may serve more than 8 years in consecutive

18 terms. No member of the Board of Directors may

19 have a development or financial interest in any ten20 ant or property of the Presidio.

21 (3) QUORUM.—Four members of the Board

22 shall constitute a quorum for the conduct of busi23 ness by the Board.

24 (4) ORGANIZATION AND COMPENSATION.—The

25 Board shall organize itself in such a manner as it
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1 deems most appropriate to effectively carry out the

2 authorized activities of the Trust. Board members

3 shall serve without pay, but may be reimbursed for

4 the actual and necessary travel and subsistence ex5 penses incurred by them in the performance of the

6 duties of the Trust.

7 (5) LIABILITY OF DIRECTORS.—Members of the

8 Board of Directors shall not be considered Federal

9 employees by virtue of their membership on the

10 Board, except for purposes of the Federal Tort

11 Claims Act and the Ethics in Government Act.

12 (6) PUBLIC LIAISON.—The Board shall meet at

13 least 3 times per year in San Francisco and at least

14 one meeting shall be open to the public. The Board

15 shall establish procedures for providing public infor16 mation and opportunities for public comment re17 garding policy, planning, and design issues through

18 the Golden Gate National Recreation Area Advisory

19 Commission.

20 (d) DUTIES AND AUTHORITIES.—In accordance with

21 the purposes set forth in this Act and in section 1 of the

22 Act entitled ‘‘An Act to establish the Golden Gate Na23 tional Recreation Area in the State of California, and for

24 other purposes’’, approved October 27, 1972 (Public Law

25 92–589; 86 Stat. 1299; 16 U.S.C. 460bb), and in accord-
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1 ance with the general objectives of the general manage2 ment plan approved for the Presidio, the Trust shall man3 age the leasing, maintenance, rehabilitation, repair and

4 improvement of property within the Presidio which is

5 under its administrative jurisdiction. The Trust may par6 ticipate in the development of programs and activities at

7 the properties that have been transferred to the Trust. In

8 exercising its powers and duties, the Trust shall have the

9 following authorities:

10 (1) The Trust is authorized to manage, lease,

11 maintain, rehabilitate and improve, either directly or

12 by agreement, those properties within the Presidio

13 which are transferred to the Trust by the Secretary.

14 (2)(A) The Trust is authorized to negotiate and

15 enter into such agreements, leases, contracts and

16 other arrangements with any person, firm, associa17 tion, organization, corporation or governmental en18 tity, including without limitation entities of Federal,

19 State and local governments (except any agreement

20 to convey fee title to any property located at the

21 Presidio) as are necessary and appropriate to fi22 nance and carry out its authorized activities. Agree23 ments under this paragraph may be entered into

24 without regard to section 321 of the Act of June 30,

25 1932 (40 U.S.C. 303b).
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1 (B) Except as provided in subparagraphs (C),

2 (D), and (E), Federal laws and regulations govern3 ing procurement by Federal agencies shall apply to

4 the Trust.

5 (C) In exercising authority under section

6 303(g) of the Federal Property and Administrative

7 Services Act of 1949 (41 U.S.C. 253(g)) relating to

8 simplified purchase procedures, the Trust is author9 ized, to use as the dollar limit of each purchase or

10 contract under this subsection an amount which

11 does not exceed $500,000.

12 (D) In carrying out the requirement of section

13 18 of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act

14 (41 U.S.C 416), the Trust is authorized to furnish

15 the Secretary of Commerce for publication notices of

16 proposed procurement actions, to use as the applica17 ble dollar threshold for each expected procurement

18 an amount which does not exceed $1,000,000.

19 (E) The Trust shall establish procedures for

20 lease agreements and other agreements for use and

21 occupancy of Presidio facilities, including a require22 ment that in entering into such agreements the

23 Trust shall obtain reasonable competition.

24 (F) The Trust shall develop a comprehensive

25 program for management of those lands and facili-
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1 ties within the Presidio which are transferred to the

2 Trust. Such program shall be designed to reduce

3 costs to the maximum extent possible. In carrying

4 out this program, the Trust shall be treated as a

5 successor in interest to the National Park Service

6 with respect to compliance with the National Envi7 ronmental Policy Act and other environmental com8 pliance statutes. Such program shall consist of—

9 (i) demolition of all structures which can10 not be cost-effectively rehabilitated and are not

11 of the highest degree of historical significance,

12 (ii) new construction which would be lim13 ited to replacement of existing structures of

14 similar size in existing areas of development,

15 and

16 (iii) examination of a full range of reason17 able options for carrying out routine adminis18 trative and facility management programs.

19 The Trust shall consult with the Secretary in the

20 preparation of this program.

21 (3) The Trust is authorized to appoint and fix

22 the compensation and duties of an executive director

23 and such other officers and employees as it deems

24 necessary without regard to the provisions of title 5,

25 United States Code, governing appointments in the
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1 competitive service, and may pay them without re2 gard to the provisions of chapter 51, and subchapter

3 III of chapter 53, title 5, United States Code (relat4 ing to classification and General Schedule pay

5 rates).

6 (4) To augment or encourage the use of non7 Federal funds to finance capital improvements on

8 Presidio properties transferred to its jurisdiction, the

9 Trust, in addition to its other authorities, shall have

10 the following authorities:

11 (A) The authority to guarantee any lender

12 against loss of principal or interest on any loan,

13 provided that (i) the terms of the guarantee are

14 approved by the Secretary of the Treasury, (ii)

15 adequate guarantee authority is provided in ap16 propriations Acts, and (iii) such guarantees are

17 structured so as to minimize potential cost to

18 the Federal Government. No loan guarantee

19 under this Act shall cover more than 75 percent

20 of the unpaid balance of the loan. The Sec21 retary of the Treasury shall collect a commer22 cially reasonable guarantee fee in connection

23 with each loan guaranteed under this Act. The

24 authority to enter into any such loan guarantee
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1 agreement shall expire at the end of 12 years

2 after the date of enactment of this Act.

3 (B) The authority, subject to available ap4 propriations, to make loans to the occupants of

5 property managed by the Trust for the preser6 vation, restoration, maintenance, or repair of

7 such property.

8 (C) The authority to issue obligations to

9 the Secretary of the Treasury, but only if the

10 Secretary of the Treasury agrees to purchase

11 such obligations after determining that the

12 projects to be funded from the proceeds thereof

13 are credit worthy and that a repayment sched14 ule is established. The Secretary of the Treas15 ury is authorized to use as a public debt trans16 action the proceeds from the sale of any securi17 ties issued under chapter 31 of title 31, United

18 States Code, and the purposes for which securi19 ties may be issued under such chapter are ex20 tended to include any purchase of such notes or

21 obligations acquired by the Secretary of the

22 Treasury under this subsection. The aggregate

23 amount of obligations issued under this sub24 paragraph which are outstanding at any one

25 time may not exceed $50,000,000. Obligations
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1 issued under this subparagraph shall be in such

2 forms and denominations, bearing such matu3 rities, and subject to such terms and conditions,

4 as may be prescribed by the Secretary of the

5 Treasury, and shall bear interest at a rate de6 termined by the Secretary of the Treasury, tak7 ing into consideration current market yields on

8 outstanding marketable obligations of the Unit9 ed States of comparable maturities. No funds

10 appropriated to the Trust may be used for re11 payment of principal or interest on, or redemp12 tion of, obligations issued under this paragraph.

13 All obligations purchased under authority of

14 this subparagraph must be authorized in ad15 vance in appropriations Acts.

16 (D) The Trust shall be deemed to be a

17 public agency for the purpose of entering into

18 joint exercise of powers agreements pursuant to

19 California government code section 6500 and

20 following.

21 (5) The Trust may solicit and accept donations

22 of funds, property, supplies, or services from individ23 uals, foundations, corporations, and other private or

24 public entities for the purpose of carrying out its du25 ties. The Trust shall maintain philanthropic liaison
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1 with the Golden Gate National Park Association, the

2 fund raising association for the Golden Gate Na3 tional Recreation Area.

4 (6) Notwithstanding section 1341 of title 31 of

5 the United States Code, all proceeds received by the

6 Trust shall be retained by the Trust, and such pro7 ceeds shall be available, without further appropria8 tion, for the preservation, restoration, operation and

9 maintenance, improvement, repair and related ex10 penses incurred with respect to Presidio properties

11 under its jurisdiction. Upon the request of the

12 Trust, the Secretary of the Treasury shall invest ex13 cess moneys of the Trust in public debt securities

14 with maturities suitable to the needs of the Trust.

15 (7) The Trust may sue and be sued in its own

16 name to the same extent as the Federal Govern17 ment. Litigation arising out of the activities of the

18 Trust shall be conducted by the Attorney General,

19 as needed; except that the Trust may retain private

20 attorneys to provide advice and counsel, and to rep21 resent the Trust in proceedings to enforce and de22 fend the contractual obligations of the Trust.

23 (8) The Trust shall have all necessary and

24 proper powers for the exercise of the authorities in25 vested in it.
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1 (9) For the purpose of compliance with applica2 ble laws and regulations concerning properties trans3 ferred to the Trust by the Secretary, the Trust shall

4 negotiate directly with regulatory authorities.

5 (e) INSURANCE.—The Trust shall procure insurance

6 against any loss in connection with the properties man7 aged by it or its authorized activities as is reasonable and

8 customary.

9 (f) BUILDING CODE COMPLIANCE.—The Trust shall

10 bring all properties under its jurisdiction into compliance

11 with Federal building codes and regulations appropriate

12 to use and occupancy within 10 years after the enactment

13 of this Act.

14 (g) TAXES.—The Trust shall be exempt from all

15 taxes and special assessments of every kind in the State

16 of California, and its political subdivisions, including the

17 city and county of San Francisco.

18 (h) FINANCIAL INFORMATION AND REPORT.—(1)

19 The Trust shall be treated as a wholly owned Government

20 corporation subject to chapter 91 of title 31, United States

21 Code (commonly referred to as the Government Corpora22 tion Control Act). Financial statements of the Trust shall

23 be audited annually in accordance with section 9105 of

24 title 31 of the United States Code.
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1 (2) At the end of each calendar year, the Trust shall

2 submit to the Congress a comprehensive and detailed re3 port of its operations, activities, and accomplishments for

4 the prior fiscal year. The report also shall include a section

5 that describes in general terms the Trust’s goals for the

6 current fiscal year.

7 (i) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—Nothing in this section shall

8 preclude the Secretary from exercising any of the Sec9 retary’s lawful powers within the Presidio.

10 (j) LEASING.—In managing and leasing the prop11 erties transferred to it, the Trust should consider the ex12 tent to which prospective tenants maximize the contribu13 tion to the implementation of the General Management

14 Plan for the Presidio and to the generation of revenues

15 to offset costs of the Presidio. The Trust shall give priority

16 to the following categories of tenants: tenants that en17 hance the financial viability of the Presidio thereby con18 tributing to the preservation of the scenic beauty and nat19 ural character of the area; tenants that facilitate the cost20 effective preservation of historic buildings through their

21 reuse of such buildings, or tenants that promote through

22 their activities the general programmatic content of the

23 plan.

24 (k) REVERSION.—If the Trust reasonably determines

25 by a two-thirds vote of its Board of Directors that it has
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1 materially failed to, or cannot, carry out the provisions

2 of this Act, all lands and facilities administered by the

3 Trust shall revert to the Secretary of Defense to be dis4 posed of in accordance with section 2905(b) of the Defense

5 Authorization Act of 1990 (104 Stat. 1809), except that—

6 (1) the terms and conditions of all agreements

7 and loans regarding such lands and facilities entered

8 into by the Trust shall be binding on any successor

9 in interest; and

10 (2) the city of San Francisco shall have the

11 first right of refusal to accept all lands and facilities

12 formerly administered by the Trust.

13 (l) LIMITATIONS ON FUNDING.—(1) From amounts

14 made available to the Secretary for the operation of areas

15 within the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, not

16 more than $25,000,000 shall be available to carry out this

17 Act in each fiscal year after the enactment of this Act

18 until the plan is submitted under paragraph (2). Such

19 sums shall remain available until expended.

20 (2) Within one year after establishment of the Trust,

21 the Trust shall submit to Congress a plan which includes

22 a schedule of annual decreasing Federally appropriated

23 funding such as will achieve total self-sufficiency for the

24 Trust within 12 complete fiscal years after establishment

25 of the Trust. That plan shall provide for annual reductions
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1 in Federally appropriated funding such that the Trust will

2 be 80 percent self-sufficient at the end of 7 complete fiscal

3 years after establishment. The plan shall provide for elimi4 nation of all Federally appropriated funding for public

5 safety and fire protection purposes on lands or facilities

6 administered by the Trust at the end of 5 complete fiscal

7 years after establishment of the Trust. For each of the

8 11 fiscal years after fiscal year 1997, there are authorized

9 to be appropriated to the Trust not more than the

10 amounts specified in such plan. Such sums shall remain

11 available until expended.

12 (m) GAO AUDIT.—Ten years after the date of estab13 lishment of the Trust, the General Accounting Office shall

14 conduct a complete audit of the activities of the Trust and

15 shall report the results of that audit to the appropriate

16 congressional committees. The General Accounting Office

17 shall include in that audit an analysis of the ability of the

18 Trust to initiate payments to the Treasury.

19 (n) SEPARABILITY OF PROVISIONS.—If any provi20 sions of this Act or the application thereof to any body,

21 agency, situation, or circumstance is held invalid, the re22 mainder of the Act and the application of such provision
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1 to other bodies, agencies, situations, or circumstances

2 shall not be affected thereby.

Passed the House of Representatives September 19,

1995.

Attest:

Clerk.