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[House Report 115-998]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

115th Congress    }                                   {        Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session       }                                   {        115-998

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TO DIRECT THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR TO ANNUALLY DESIGNATE AT LEAST 
 ONE CITY IN THE UNITED STATES AS AN ``AMERICAN WORLD WAR II HERITAGE 
                     CITY'', AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

                                _______
                                

October 30, 2018.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

Mr. Bishop of Utah, from the Committee on Natural Resources, submitted 
                             the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 6118]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred 
the bill (H.R. 6118) to direct the Secretary of the Interior to 
annually designate at least one city in the United States as an 
``American World War II Heritage City'', and for other 
purposes, having considered the same, report favorably thereon 
without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass.

                          PURPOSE OF THE BILL

    The purpose of H.R. 6118 is to direct the Secretary of the 
Interior to annually designate at least one city in the United 
States as an ``American World War II Heritage City''.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    On December 7, 1941, military forces of the Empire of Japan 
attacked the U.S. Naval Fleet and ground bases at Pearl Harbor 
in Hawaii.\1\ On December 8, 1941, one day after what President 
Roosevelt referred to as, ``a date which will live in infamy,'' 
the United States declared war against the Empire of Japan.\2\ 
Three days later, on December 11, 1941, Japan's ally, Germany, 
declared war on the United States.\3\ Sixteen million 
Americans, mostly young working-age men, served in the military 
during World War II, out of an overall United States population 
of 113 million.\4\
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    \1\``The WWII Home Front.'' National Parks Service. Accessed August 
30, 2018. https://www.nps.gov/articles/the-wwii-home-front.htm.
    \2\Id.
    \3\Id.
    \4\Id.
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    While an unprecedented number of Americans served in World 
War II, the country drastically increased its war production on 
the home front, serving not only the needs of the armed forces 
of the United States but her allies as well--in what President 
Franklin Roosevelt called ``The Arsenal of Democracy.''\5\ The 
combination of millions serving in the military, during a 
period of necessary and drastic increases in production, led to 
significant social changes on the American home front.\6\
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    \5\Id.
    \6\Id.
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    The World War II period resulted in the largest number of 
people migrating within the United States in the history of the 
country. Individuals and families relocated to industrial 
centers for good paying jobs out of a sense of patriotic duty. 
Many industrial centers became ``boomtowns,'' growing at 
phenomenal rates. One example, the City of Richmond, 
California, grew from a population of under 24,000 to over 
100,000 during the war.\7\
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    \7\Id.
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    Another boomtown was the City of Wilmington, North 
Carolina. During World War II, Wilmington was called ``The 
Defense Capital of the State.''\8\ Wilmington's largest 
employer, the North Carolina Shipbuilding Company, constructed 
243 cargo vessels.\9\ Wilmington was also home to many 
strategic defense industries, including fertilizer plants, 
pulpwood and creosote factories, dairies, and concrete floating 
drydock manufacturing. Wilmington was also the site of the 
Atlantic Coast Line Railroad headquarters and a P-47 fighter 
plane training area.\10\ The City and its surrounding area 
hosted training for all five military branches, and the City's 
population more than doubled with the influx of military 
personnel, forcing everyone to cope with a strain on housing, 
schools, transportation, the food supply, medical and social 
services.\11\
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    \8\``Meet America's World War II City.'' City of Wilmington, NC. 
Accessed August 30, 2018. https://www.wilmingtonnc.gov/departments/
community-services/world-war-ii-city.
    \9\Id.
    \10\Id.
    \11\Id.
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    Workers faced many challenges, as working conditions were 
difficult and dangerous. Between the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 
December 1941 and the D-Day Invasion of Europe in June 1944, 
there were more home-front industrial casualties than military 
casualties. The high number of industrial casualties led to 
improved work place safety and regulations.\12\
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    \12\``The WWII Home Front.'' National Parks Service. Accessed 
August 30, 2018. https://www.nps.gov/articles/the-wwii-home-front.htm.
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    In addition to home-front workers, everyone was expected to 
be an active participant in the war effort. Rationing was a way 
of life as twenty commodities were rationed, and people were 
asked to, ``Use it up--Wear it out--Make it do--or Do 
without.''\13\ Materials vital to the war effort were 
collected, often by youth groups, and recycled. Many Americans 
supported the war effort by purchasing war bonds. Women 
replaced men in sports leagues, orchestras, and community 
institutions. Americans grew 60% of the produce they consumed 
in Victory Gardens.\14\ The war effort on the United States 
home front was a total effort.\15\
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    \13\Id.
    \14\Id.
    \15\Id.
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    In recognition of the industrial, governmental, and citizen 
efforts that eventually led the United States to victory in 
World War II, Congress designated the Rosie the Riveter World 
War II Home Front National Historical Park in October 2000.\16\ 
The Park includes sites, structures, and areas of Richmond, 
California, that are associated with the home-front efforts. 
Richmond, California, was chosen as the site for this National 
Historical Park because of the City's many surviving sites and 
structures that help tell the diverse stories of the home 
front.\17\
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    \16\Public Law 106-352
    \17\Rosie the Riveter WWII Home Front National Historical Park. 
Accessed September 30, 2018. https://www.nps.gov/rori/learn/
historyculture/places.htm.
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    H.R. 6118 would provide further commemoration of the World 
War II home-front efforts by requiring the Secretary of the 
Interior to designate at least one city in the United States 
each year as an ``American World War II Heritage City.'' The 
bill requires that Wilmington, North Carolina, be the first 
city to receive such a designation.

                            COMMITTEE ACTION

    H.R. 6118 was introduced on June 14, 2018, by Congressman 
David Rouzer (R-NC). The bill was referred to the Committee on 
Natural Resources and within the Committee, to the Subcommittee 
on Federal Lands. The Subcommittee held a hearing on the bill 
on September 6, 2018. On September 26, 2018, the Natural 
Resources Committee met to consider the bill. The Subcommittee 
was discharged by unanimous consent. No amendments were 
offered, and the bill was 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 Natural Resources' oversight findings and 
recommendations are reflected in the body of this report.

      COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII AND CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET ACT

    1. Cost of Legislation and the Congressional Budget Act. 
With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(2) and (3) of 
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and 
sections 308(a) and 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 
1974, the Committee has received the following estimate for the 
bill from the Director of the Congressional Budget Office:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                  Washington, DC, October 24, 2018.
Hon. Rob Bishop,
Chairman, Committee on Natural Resources,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 6118, a bill to 
direct the Secretary of the Interior to annually designate at 
least one city in the United States as an ``American World War 
II Heritage City,'' and for other purposes.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Jacob Fabian.
            Sincerely,
                                             Mark P. Hadley
                                        (For Keith Hall, Director).
    Enclosure.

H.R. 6118--A bill to direct the Secretary of the Interior to annually 
        designate at least one city in the United States as an 
        ``American World War II Heritage City,'' and for other purposes

    H.R. 6118 would direct the Secretary of the Interior to 
designate at least one city in the United States annually as an 
American World War II Heritage City. That designation would be 
based on the city's contributions to the war and its effort to 
preserve the history of its contributions during the war. The 
bill would designate Wilmington, North Carolina, as the first 
American World War II Heritage City.
    Using information from the National Park Service, CBO 
estimates that implementing H.R. 6118 would have an 
insignificant cost in each year and cost about $1 million over 
the 2019-2023 period; such spending would be subject to the 
availability of appropriated funds. Those costs include 
developing an application and selection process, maintaining a 
website, and consulting with the Smithsonian Institution or the 
National Trust for Historic Preservation to help determine the 
designation criteria and make the annual city selection.
    Enacting H.R. 6118 would not affect direct spending or 
revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply.
    CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 6118 would not increase 
net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four 
consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2029.
    H.R. 6118 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jacob Fabian. 
The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
    2. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by 
clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goal or 
objective of this bill is to direct the Secretary of the 
Interior to annually designate at least one city in the United 
States as an ``American World War II Heritage City''.

                           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.

                       COMPLIANCE WITH H. RES. 5

    Directed Rule Making. This bill does not contain any 
directed rule makings.
    Duplication of Existing Programs. This bill does not 
establish or reauthorize a program of the federal government 
known to be duplicative of another program. Such program was 
not included in any report from the Government Accountability 
Office to Congress pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111-139 
or identified in the most recent Catalog of Federal Domestic 
Assistance published pursuant to the Federal Program 
Information Act (Public Law 95-220, as amended by Public Law 
98-169) as relating to other programs.

                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 to existing 
law.

                                  [all]
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