19–006 

112TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 2d Session 112–580 

TO CORRECT THE BOUNDARIES OF THE JOHN H. 

CHAFEE COASTAL BARRIER RESOURCES SYSTEM 

GASPARILLA ISLAND UNIT FL–70P 

JULY 9, 2012.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of 

the Union and ordered to be printed 

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington, from the Committee on Natural 

Resources, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

together with 

ADDITIONAL VIEWS 

[To accompany H.R. 2154] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred the 

bill (H.R. 2154) to correct the boundaries of the John H. Chafee 

Coastal Barrier Resources System Gasparilla Island Unit FL–70P, 

having considered the same, report favorably thereon with an 

amendment and recommend that the bill as amended do pass. 

The amendment is as follows: 

Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the following: 

SECTION 1. REPLACEMENT OF JOHN H. CHAFEE COASTAL BARRIER RESOURCES SYSTEM 

MAP. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—The map subtitled ‘‘Gasparilla Island Unit FL-70P’’ included in 

the set of maps entitled ‘‘Coastal Barrier Resources System’’ referred to in section 

4(a) of the Coastal Barrier Resources Act (16 U.S.C. 3503(a)) and relating to the 

Gasparilla Island Unit in Florida is hereby replaced by another map relating to the 

same unit entitled ‘‘John H. Chafee Coastal Barrier Resources System Corrected 

Gasparilla Unit FL–70P’’ and dated July 8, 2011. 

(b) AVAILABILITY.—The Secretary of the Interior shall keep the replacement map 

referred to in subsection (a) on file and available for inspection in accordance with 

the section 4(b) of the Coastal Barrier Resources Act (16 U.S.C. 3503(b)). 


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PURPOSE OF THE BILL

The purpose of H.R. 2154, as ordered reported, is to correct the 

boundaries of the John H. Chafee Coastal Barrier Resources System Gasparilla Island Unit FL–70P. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

Coastal barriers are natural landscape features that protect the 

mainland, lagoons, wetlands and salt marshes from the full force 

of wind, wave and tidal energy. Major types of coastal barriers include fringing mangroves, tombolos, barrier islands, barrier spits 

and bay barriers. Composed of sand and other loose sediments, 

these elongated, narrow land forms are dynamic ecosystems and 

prone to frequent disruption by storms. They are the first line of 

defense against the strong winds, huge waves and powerful storm 

surges that accompany hurricanes. Depite their vulnerability, these 

areas are attractive places to build private homes and resorts. 

The John H. Chafee Coastal Barrier Resources System (CBRS) is 

made up of coastal barrier units delineated on maps adopted by 

Congress. Except for very minor technical changes to account for 

natural accretion and erosion, boundaries cannot be adjusted unless Congress passes a law adopting revised maps. The coastal barrier units consist of undeveloped sections of coastal barrier islands 

and the associated aquatic habitat which lies behind these barriers. 

The CBRS was created by the Coastal Barrier Resources Act (Public Law 97–348) and expanded by the Coastal Barrier Improvement 

Act of 1990 (Public Law 101–591). The law is administred by the 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service of the U.S. Department of the Interior. 

Inclusion of property in CBRS does not prevent private development of land, nor does it prevent actions necessary to process and 

issue federal permits necessary for development. However, it does 

place significant restrictions on the availability of any new federal 

financial assistance to develop the property. For example, after October 1, 1983, no new federal flood insurance can be issued for 

properties in CBRS. For those homeowners who were issued flood 

insurance policies before the deadline, the policies remain in force. 

However, if the property is damaged more than 50 percent of its 

value and a claim is placed, the claim will be paid but the insurance policy cannot be renewed. In addition, if an insured structure 

is substantially expanded or replaced with more intensive development, insurance coverage is lost. 

In addition to the federal flood insurance limitation, CBRA prohibits most new federal financial assistance, if those expenditures 

encourage development. This would include funds for certain types 

of disaster relief, community block grants, Federal Home Administration housing loans, water systems and wastewater treatment 

grants, flood control and beach erosion projects, and highway construction projects. 

There are also 271 ‘‘Otherwise Protected Areas’’ (OPAs) included 

in the CBRS, comprising approximately 1.7 million acres. These 

areas include national wildlife refuge lands, national parks and 

seashores, state parks, military bases and conservation lands 

owned by private organizations. These units were incorporated 

within the CBRS with the enactment of the Coastal Barrier ImVerDate Mar 15 2010 04:40 Jul 10, 2012 Jkt 019006 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR580.XXX HR580

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provement Act of 1990. While federal flood insurance is not available within these areas, OPAs are eligible for other federal financial assistance. When OPAs were included in the System, they 

were delineated with rudimentary mapping tools based upon preexisting boundary data. As a result of technological advancements 

in geographic information systems, databases and digital mapping 

techniques, OPA boundaries have been shown to have embedded 

inaccuracies. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) continues 

to uncover cases where OPA boundaries do not coincide with the 

actual legal land boundaries. 

The entire CBRS, including OPAs, has 856 units and more than 

3 million acres of fastland and associated aquatic habitat along the 

Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Great Lakes. Since its 

enactment almost thirty years ago, CBRS has saved taxpayers at 

least $1.3 billion. 

H.R. 2154 would affect a single 132-acre CBRS unit in Florida 

(FL–70P) which was established as an OPA and is located near 

Fort Myers. The unit was designed to coincide with the boundaries 

of Gasparilla State Park but the map included in the CBRS does 

not. H.R. 2154 is written to accurately reflect the boundaries of the 

State Park, thereby removing 5.2 acres of privately owned land 

containing 23 residential homes along Boca Bay from the CBRS. 

This mapping mistake has been confirmed by aerial photography, 

maps and public records reviewed by the Florida Department of 

Environmental Protection, Gasparilla Island Conservation and Improvement Association and Lee County, Florida, officials who all indicate that this property proposed for removal was never within 

the boundaries of Gasparilla State Park. 

According to the Lee County Property Appraiser, the 23 homes 

were built between 1993 and 1999. While initially the property 

owners were able to obtain federal flood insurance, a number of 

those policies have been cancelled. As a result, these homeowners 

have had to either obtain private insurance, which is prohibitively 

expensive, or forgo insurance, which makes it nearly impossible to 

sell their property. This legislation will correct an honest mapping 

mistake and allow affected homeowners to maintain federal flood 

insurance in the future. 

COMMITTEE ACTION

H.R. 2154 was introduced on June 13, 2011, by Congressman 

Connie Mack (R–FL). The bill was referred to the Committee on 

Natural Resources, and within the Committee to the Subcommittee 

on Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans, and Insular Affairs. On October 25, 

2011, the Subcommittee held a hearing on the bill. On November 

17, 2011, the Full Natural Resources Committee met to consider 

the bill. The Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans, and Insular Affairs was discharged by unanimous consent. Congressman 

John Fleming (R–LA) offered amendment designated .019 to the 

bill; the amendment was adopted by unanimous consent. The bill, 

as amended, was then adopted and ordered favorably reported to 

the House of Representatives by unanimous consent. 

COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII 

of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee on 


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Natural Resources’ oversight findings and recommendations are reflected in the body of this report. 

COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII

1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of 

the House of Representatives requires an estimate and a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(2)(B) of that Rule provides 

that this requirement does not apply when the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974. Under clause 

3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and 

section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate for this bill from the 

Director of the Congressional Budget Office: 

H.R. 2154—A bill to correct the boundaries of the John H. Chafee 

Coastal Barrier Resources System Gasparilla Island Unit FL– 

70P 

H.R. 2154 would update a map of the Coastal Barrier Resources 

System (CBRS) near Boca Raton, Florida. Based on information 

from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, CBO estimates that implementing the legislation would have no significant impact on the 

federal budget. H.R. 2154 could affect direct spending; therefore, 

pay-as-you-go procedures apply. However, we estimate that any net 

change in direct spending would be negligible over the 2012–2021 

period. Enacting the bill would not affect revenues. 

H.R. 2154 would revise CBRS maps for the Gasparilla Island 

Unit to exclude lands containing about 20 homes. Enacting the bill 

would enable those homeowners to purchase federal flood insurance. CBO estimates that, relative to current law, implementing 

H.R. 2154 could increase premium collections of the National Flood 

Insurance Fund by less than $100,000 annually. Such collections 

would be offset by new mandatory spending for underwriting and 

administrative expenses and new flood insurance claims over the 

2012–2021 period. 

H.R. 2154 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would 

impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jeff LaFave. The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant Director 

for Budget Analysis. 

2. Section 308(a) of Congressional Budget Act. As required by 

clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, 

this bill does not contain any new budget authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in revenues or tax expenditures. 

H.R. 2154 could affect direct spending; therefore, pay-as-you-go 

procedures apply. However, CBO estimates that any net change in 

direct spending would be negligible over the 2012–2021 period. 

CBO estimates that, relative to current law, implementing H.R. 

2154 could increase premium collections of the National Flood Insurance Fund by less than $100,000 annually. Such collections 

would be offset by new mandatory spending for underwriting and 


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administrative expenses and new flood insurance claims over the 

2012–2021 period. 

3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by 

clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goal or objective 

of this bill, as ordered reported, is to correct the boundaries of the 

John H. Chafee Coastal Barrier Resources System Gasparilla Island Unit FL–70P. 

EARMARK STATEMENT

This bill does not contain any Congressional earmarks, limited 

tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined under clause 9(e), 

9(f), and 9(g) of rule XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives. 

COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104–4

This bill contains no unfunded mandates. 

PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL OR TRIBAL LAW

This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or tribal law. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

If enacted, this bill would make no changes in existing law. 


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jbell on DSK7SPTVN1PROD with REPORTSInsert offset folio 7 here HR580.001
(7) 

APPENDIX II: ADDITIONAL VIEWS 

H.R. 2154, as amended, proposes revisions to the boundaries of 

one unit of the Coastal Barrier Resources System (CBRS), the 

Gasparilla Island Unit FL–70P in Lee County, Florida using a 

third-party map dated July 8, 2011. The proposed boundary revisions would remove 23 homes in the Boca Bay development from 

the unit, which would allow these homeowners to be eligible for 

federal flood insurance. The Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) expressed concern in amending CBRS boundaries using a third-party 

map as it circumvents a comprehensive review of the unit, in accordance with the Coastal Barrier Resources Act (16 U.S.C. 3501 

et seq.). The FWS currently has a large backlog of requests to conduct technical correction reviews of CBRS units, as these reviews 

are time and resource intensive. On November 17, 2011, at the 

mark-up on H.R. 2154, the Chairman of the Committee on Natural 

Resources and the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans and Insular Affairs entered into a colloquy 

confirming that the FWS had agreed to produce a new draft map, 

subject to public review, that accurately reflects the boundaries of 

the Gasparilla Island Unit FL–70P, which will be incorporated into 

the bill prior to any floor action. 

EDWARD J. MARKEY. 

RUSH HOLT. 

MADELEINE Z. BORDALLO. 

GRACE F. NAPOLITANO. 

NIKI TSONGAS. 

JOHN GARAMENDI. 

DALE E. KILDEE. 

FRANK PALLONE, Jr. 

RAU ́ L M. GRIJALVA. 

GREGORIO KILILI CAMACHO

SABLAN. 

BEN RAY LUJA ́ N. 

Æ 


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