I

104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1296

To provide for the administration of certain Presidio properties at minimal

cost to the Federal taxpayer.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MARCH 22, 1995

Ms. PELOSI (for herself, Mr. HORN, Mr. GILMAN, and Mr. LANTOS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on

Resources

A BILL

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,

3 SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

4 The Congress finds that—

5 (1) the Presidio, located amidst the incom6 parable scenic splendor of the Golden Gate, is one

7 of America’s great natural and historic sites;

8 (2) the Presidio is the oldest continuously oper9 ated military post in the Nation dating from 1776,
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1 and was designated as National Historic Landmark

2 in 1962;

3 (3) preservation of the cultural and historic in4 tegrity of the Presidio for public use recognizes its

5 significant role in the history of the United States;

6 (4) the Presidio, in its entirety, is a part of the

7 Golden Gate National Recreation Area, in accord8 ance with Public Law 92–589;

9 (5) as part of the Golden Gate National Recre10 ation Area, the Presidio’s outstanding natural, his11 toric, scenic, cultural, and recreational resources

12 must be managed in a manner which is consistent

13 with sound principles of land use planning and man14 agement, and which protects the Presidio from de15 velopment and uses which would destroy the scenic

16 beauty and historic and natural character of the

17 area; and

18 (6) the Presidio will be managed through an in19 novative public/private partnership that minimizes

20 cost to the United States Treasury and makes effi21 cient use of private sector resources that could be

22 utilized in the public interest.

23 SEC. 2. INTERIM LEASING AUTHORITY.

24 The Secretary of the Interior (hereinafter in this Act

25 referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) is authorized to negotiate
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1 and enter into leases, at fair market rental and without

2 regard to section 321 of chapter 314 of the Act of June

3 30, 1932 (40 U.S.C. 303b), for all or part of the Presidio

4 of San Francisco that is under the administrative jurisdic5 tion of the Secretary until such time as the property con6 cerned is transferred to the administrative jurisdiction of

7 the Presidio Trust. Notwithstanding sections 1341 and

8 3302 of title 31 of the United States Code, the proceeds

9 from any such lease shall be retained by the Secretary and

10 used for the preservation, restoration, operation and main11 tenance, improvement, repair and related expenses in12 curred with respect to Presidio properties. For purposes

13 of any such lease, the Secretary may adjust the rental by

14 taking into account any amounts to be expended by the

15 lessee for preservation, maintenance, restoration, improve16 ment, repair and related expenses with respect to prop17 erties within the Presidio.

18 SEC. 3. THE PRESIDIO TRUST.

19 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a body

20 corporate within the Department of the Interior to be

21 known as the Presidio Trust (hereinafter in this Act re22 ferred to as the ‘‘Trust’’).

23 (b) TRANSFER.—(1) The Secretary shall transfer to

24 the administrative jurisdiction of the Trust those areas

25 commonly known as the Letterman/LAIR complex, Fort
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1 Scott, Main Post, Cavalry Stables, Presidio Hill, Wherry

2 Housing, East Housing, the structures at Crissy Field,

3 roads, utilities or other infrastructure servicing the prop4 erties and such other properties that the Secretary deems

5 appropriate, as depicted on the map referred to in this

6 subsection. The Trust and the Secretary shall agree on

7 the use and occupancy of buildings and facilities necessary

8 to house and support activities of the National Park Serv9 ice at the Presidio.

10 (2) Within 60 days after enactment of this section,

11 the Secretary shall prepare a map identifying properties

12 to be conveyed to the Trust.

13 (3) The transfer for administrative jurisdiction shall

14 occur within 60 days after appointments are made to the

15 board of Directors.

16 (4) The Secretary shall transfer, with the transfer of

17 administrative jurisdiction over any property, all leases,

18 concessions, licenses, permits, programmatic agreements

19 and other agreements affecting such property and any rev20 enues and unobligated funds associated with such leases,

21 concessions, licenses, permits, and agreements.

22 (c) BOARD OF DIRECTORS.—

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—The powers and manage24 ment of the Trust shall be vested in a Board of Di25 rectors consisting of the following 5 members:
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1 (A) The Secretary of the Interior or the

2 Secretary’s designee.

3 (B) 4 individuals, who are not employees

4 of the Federal Government, appointed by the

5 President, who shall possess extensive knowl6 edge and experience in one or more of the fields

7 of city planning, finance, and real estate. At

8 least 3 of these individuals shall reside in the

9 region in which the Presidio is located.

10 (2) TERMS.—The President shall make the ap11 pointments referred to in subparagraph (B) of para12 graph (1) within 90 days and in such a manner as

13 to ensure staggered 4-year terms. Any vacancy

14 under subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) shall be

15 filled in the same manner in which the original ap16 pointment was made, and any member appointed to

17 fill a vacancy shall serve for the remainder of the

18 term for which his or her predecessor was appointed.

19 No appointed director may serve more than 8 years

20 in consecutive terms. No member of the Board of

21 Directors may have a financial interest in any ten22 ant of the Presidio.

23 (3) ORGANIZATION AND COMPENSATION.—The

24 Board shall organize itself in such a manner as it

25 deems most appropriate to effectively carry out the
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1 authorized activities of the Trust. Board members

2 shall serve without pay, but may be reimbursed for

3 the actual and necessary travel and subsistence ex4 penses incurred by them in the performance of the

5 duties of the Trust.

6 (4) LIABILITY OF DIRECTORS.—Members of the

7 Board of Directors shall not be considered Federal

8 employees by virtue of their membership on the

9 Board, except for purposes of the Federal Tort

10 Claims Act.

11 (5) PUBLIC LIAISON.—The Board shall estab12 lish procedures whereby liaison with the public,

13 through the Golden Gate National Recreation Area

14 Advisory Commission, and the National Park Serv15 ice, shall be maintained.

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

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

18 Act entitled ‘‘An Act to establish the Golden Gate Na19 tional Recreation Area in the State of California, and for

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

21 92–589; 86 Stat. 1299; 16 U.S.C. 460bb), the Trust shall

22 manage the leasing, maintenance, rehabilitation, repair

23 and improvement of property within the Presidio which

24 is under its administrative jurisdiction. The Trust may

25 participate in the development of programs and activities
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1 at the properties that have been transferred to the Trust.

2 In exercising its powers and duties, the Trust shall act

3 in accordance with the approved General Management

4 Plan, as amended, for the Presidio (hereinafter in this Act

5 referred to as the ‘‘Plan’’) and shall have the following

6 authorities:

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

8 maintain, rehabilitate and improve, either directly or

9 by agreement, those properties within the Presidio

10 which are transferred to the Trust by the Secretary.

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

12 enter into such agreements, leases, contracts and

13 other arrangements with any person, firm, associa14 tion, organization, corporation or governmental en15 tity, including without limitation entities of Federal,

16 State and local governments (except any agreement

17 to convey fee title to any property located at the

18 Presidio) as are necessary and appropriate to fi19 nance and carry out its authorized activities. Agree20 ments under this paragraph may be entered into

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

22 1992 (40 U.S.C. 303b).

23 (B) Except as provided in subparagraphs (C),

24 (D), and (E), Federal laws and regulations govern-
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1 ing procurement by Federal agencies shall apply to

2 the Trust.

3 (C) The Secretary may authorize the Trust, in

4 exercising authority under section 303(g) of the

5 Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of

6 1949 (40 U.S.C. 253(g)) relating to simplified pur7 chase procedures, to use as the dollar limit of each

8 purchase or contract under this subsection an

9 amount which does not exceed $500,000.

10 (D) The Secretary may authorized the Trust, in

11 carrying out the requirement of section 18 of the Of12 fice of Federal Procurement Policy Act (41 U.S.C

13 416) to furnish the Secretary of Commerce for pub14 lication notices of proposed procurement actions, to

15 use as the applicable dollar threshold for each ex16 pected procurement an amount which does not ex17 ceed $1,000,000.

18 (E) The Trust shall establish procedures for

19 lease agreements and other agreements for use and

20 occupancy of Presidio facilities, including a require21 ment that in entering into such agreements the

22 Trust shall obtain such competition as is practicable

23 in the circumstances.

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

25 the compensation and duties of an executive director
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1 and such other officers and employees as it deems

2 necessary without regard to the provisions of title

3 5, United States Code, governing appointments in

4 the competitive service, and may pay them without

5 regard to the provisions of chapter 51, and sub6 chapter III of chapter 53, title 5, United States

7 Code (relating to classification and General Schedule

8 pay rates).

9 (4) To augment or encourage the use of non10 Federal funds to finance capital improvements on

11 Presidio properties transferred to its jurisdiction, the

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

13 the following authorities:

14 (A) The authority to guarantee any lender

15 against loss of principal or interest on any con16 struction loan, provided that (i) the terms of

17 the guarantee are approved by the Secretary of

18 the Treasury, (ii) adequate guarantee authority

19 is provided in appropriations Acts, and (iii)

20 such guarantees are structured so as to mini21 mize potential cost to the Federal Government.

22 (B) The authority, subject to available ap23 propriations, to make loans to the occupants of

24 property managed by the Trust for the preser-
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1 vation, restoration, maintenance, or repair of

2 such property.

3 (C) The authority to issue obligations to

4 the Secretary of the Treasury, but only if the

5 Secretary of the Treasury agrees to purchase

6 such obligations after determining that the

7 projects to be funded from the proceeds thereof

8 are credit worthy and that a repayment sched9 ule is established. The Secretary of the Treas10 ury is authorized to use as a public debt trans11 action the proceeds from the sale of any securi12 ties issued under chapter 31 of title 31, United

13 States Code, and the purposes for which securi14 ties may be issued under such chapter are ex15 tended to include any purchase of such notes or

16 obligations acquired by the Secretary of the

17 Treasury under this subsection. The aggregate

18 amount of obligations issued under this sub19 paragraph which are outstanding at any one

20 time may not exceed $150,000,000. Obligations

21 issued under this subparagraph shall be in such

22 forms and denominations, bearing such matu23 rities, and subject to such terms and conditions,

24 as may be prescribed by the Secretary of the

25 Treasury, and shall bear interest at a rate de-
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1 termined by the Secretary of the Treasury, tak2 ing into consideration current market yields on

3 outstanding marketable obligations of the

4 United States of comparable maturities. No

5 funds appropriated to the Trust may be used

6 for repayment of principal or interest on, or re7 demption of, obligations issued under this para8 graph. All obligations purchased under author9 ity of this subparagraph must be authorized in

10 advance in appropriations Acts.

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

12 public agency for the purpose of entering into

13 joint exercise of powers agreements pursuant to

14 California government code section 6500 and

15 following.

16 (5) The Trust may solicit and accept donations

17 of funds, property, supplies, or services from individ18 uals, foundations, corporations, and other private or

19 public entities for the purpose of carrying out its du20 ties. The Trust shall maintain philanthropic liaison

21 with the Golden Gate National Park Association, the

22 fund raising association for the Golden Gate Na23 tional Recreation Area.

24 (6) All proceeds received by the Trust shall be

25 retained by the Trust without further appropriation
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1 and used to offset the costs of administration, pres2 ervation, restoration, operation, maintenance, repair,

3 and related expenses incurred by the Trust with re4 spect to such properties under its jurisdiction. Upon

5 the request of the Trust, the Secretary of the Treas6 ury shall invest excess moneys of the Trust in public

7 debt securities with maturities suitable to the needs

8 of the Trust.

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

10 name to the same extent as the Federal Govern11 ment. Litigation arising out of the activities of the

12 Trust shall be conducted by the Attorney General,

13 as needed; the Trust may retain private attorneys to

14 provide advice and counsel.

15 (8) The Trust shall have all necessary and

16 proper powers for the exercise of the authorities in17 vested in it.

18 (9) For the purpose of compliance with applica19 ble laws and regulations concerning properties trans20 ferred to the Trust by the Secretary, the Trust shall

21 negotiate directly with regulatory authorities.

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

23 against any loss in connection with the properties man24 aged by it or its authorized activities as is reasonable and

25 customary.
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1 (f) BUILDING CODE COMPLIANCE.—The Trust shall

2 ensure that all properties under its jurisdiction are

3 brought into compliance with all applicable Federal build4 ing codes and regulations within 10 years after the enact5 ment of this Act.

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

7 taxes and special assessments of every kind in the State

8 of California, and its political subdivisions, including the

9 city and county of San Francisco to the same extent as

10 the Secretary.

11 (h) FINANCIAL INFORMATION AND REPORT.—(1) Fi12 nancial statements of the Trust shall be audited annually

13 in accordance with section 9105 of title 31 of the United

14 States Code.

15 (2) At the end of each calendar year, the Trust shall

16 submit to the Secretary and the Congress a comprehensive

17 and detailed report of its operations, activities, and accom18 plishments for the prior fiscal year. The report also shall

19 include a section that describes in general terms the

20 Trust’s goals for the current fiscal year.

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

22 preclude the Secretary from exercising any of the Sec23 retary’s lawful powers within the Presidio.

24 (j) LEASING.—In managing and leasing the prop25 erties transferred to it, the Trust should consider the ex-
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1 tent to which prospective tenants maximize the contribu2 tion to the implementation of the General Management

3 Plan and to the generation of revenues to offset costs of

4 the Presidio. The Trust shall give priority to the following

5 categories of tenants: tenants that enhance the financial

6 viability of the Presidio thereby contributing to the preser7 vation of the scenic beauty and natural character of the

8 area; tenants that facilitate the cost-effective preservation

9 of historic buildings through their reuse of such buildings,

10 or tenants that promote through their activities the gen11 eral programmatic content of the plan.

12 (k) REVERSION.—In the event of failure or default,

13 all interests and assets of the Trust shall revert to the

14 United States to be administered by the Secretary.

15 (l) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is

16 authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec17 essary to carry out the activities of the Trust.

18 (m) SEPARABILITY OF PROVISIONS.—If any provi19 sions of this Act or the application thereof to any body,

20 agency, situation, or circumstance is held invalid, the re21 mainder of the Act and the application of such provision

22 to other bodies, agencies, situations, or circumstances

23 shall not be affected thereby.

Æ