II 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 127 

To establish the Buffalo Bayou National Heritage Area in the State of 

Texas, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 25 (legislative day, JANUARY 5), 2011 

Mrs. HUTCHISON introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To establish the Buffalo Bayou National Heritage Area in 

the State of Texas, 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 ‘‘Buffalo Bayou Na5 tional Heritage Area Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) HERITAGE AREA.—The term ‘‘Heritage 

9 Area’’ means the Buffalo Bayou National Heritage 

10 Area, established in this Act. 


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1 (2) MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—The term ‘‘man2 agement entity’’ means the management entity for 

3 the Heritage Area designated by this Act. 

4 (3) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The term ‘‘manage5 ment plan’’ means the management plan for the 

6 Heritage Area required under this Act. 

7 (4) MAP.—The term ‘‘map’’ means the map en8 titled ‘‘Buffalo Bayou National Heritage Area Pro9 posed Boundary’’, numbered T11/101,592, and 

10 dated March 2010. 

11 (5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

12 the Secretary of the Interior. 

13 (6) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State 

14 of Texas. 

15 SEC. 3. BUFFALO BAYOU NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA. 

16 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

17 State the Buffalo Bayou National Heritage Area. 

18 (b) BOUNDARIES.—The Heritage Area shall consist 

19 of areas included in the map in Harris County, Texas. 

20 (c) MAP.—A map of the Heritage Area shall be— 

21 (1) included in the management plan; and 

22 (2) on file and available for public inspection in 

23 the appropriate offices of the National Park Service. 


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1 (d) MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—The management entity 

2 for the Heritage Area shall be the Buffalo Bayou National 

3 Heritage Area Corporation. 

4 SEC. 4. ADMINISTRATION. 

5 (a) AUTHORITIES.—For purposes of carrying out the 

6 management plan, the Secretary, acting through the man7 agement entity, may use amounts made available under 

8 this Act to— 

9 (1) make grants to the State or a political sub10 division of the State, nonprofit organizations, and 

11 other persons; 

12 (2) enter into cooperative agreements with, or 

13 provide technical assistance to, the State or a polit14 ical subdivision of the State, nonprofit organizations, 

15 and other interested parties; 

16 (3) hire and compensate staff, which shall in17 clude individuals with expertise in natural, cultural, 

18 and historical resources protection, and heritage pro19 gramming; 

20 (4) obtain money or services from any source 

21 including any that are provided under any other 

22 Federal law or program; 

23 (5) contract for goods or services; and 


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1 (6) undertake to be a catalyst for any other ac2 tivity that furthers the Heritage Area and is con3 sistent with the approved management plan. 

4 (b) DUTIES.—The management entity shall— 

5 (1) in accordance with section 5, prepare and 

6 submit a management plan for the Heritage Area to 

7 the Secretary; 

8 (2) assist units of local government, regional 

9 planning organizations, and nonprofit organizations 

10 in carrying out the approved management plan by— 

11 (A) carrying out programs and projects 

12 that recognize, protect, and enhance important 

13 resource values in the Heritage Area; 

14 (B) establishing and maintaining interpre15 tive exhibits and programs in the Heritage 

16 Area; 

17 (C) developing recreational and educational 

18 opportunities in the Heritage Area; 

19 (D) increasing public awareness of, and 

20 appreciation for, natural, historical, scenic, and 

21 cultural resources of the Heritage Area; 

22 (E) protecting and restoring historic sites 

23 and buildings in the Heritage Area that are 

24 consistent with Heritage Area themes; 


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1 (F) ensuring that clear, consistent, and ap2 propriate signs identifying points of public ac3 cess, and sites of interest are posted throughout 

4 the Heritage Area; and 

5 (G) promoting a wide range of partner6 ships among governments, organizations, and 

7 individuals to further the Heritage Area; 

8 (3) consider the interests of diverse units of 

9 government, businesses, organizations, and individ10 uals in the Heritage Area in the preparation and im11 plementation of the management plan; 

12 (4) conduct meetings open to the public at least 

13 semiannually regarding the development and imple14 mentation of the management plan; 

15 (5) for any year that Federal funds have been 

16 received under this Act— 

17 (A) submit an annual report to the Sec18 retary that describes the activities, expenses, 

19 and income of the management entity (includ20 ing grants to any other entities during the year 

21 that the report is made); 

22 (B) make available to the Secretary for 

23 audit all records relating to the expenditure of 

24 the funds and any matching funds; and 


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1 (C) require, with respect to all agreements 

2 authorizing expenditure of Federal funds by 

3 other organizations, that the organizations re4 ceiving the funds make available to the Sec5 retary for audit all records concerning the ex6 penditure of the funds; and 

7 (6) encourage by appropriate means economic 

8 viability that is consistent with the Heritage Area. 

9 (c) PROHIBITION ON THE ACQUISITION OF REAL

10 PROPERTY.—The management entity shall not use Fed11 eral funds made available under this Act to acquire real 

12 property or any interest in real property. 

13 (d) COST-SHARING REQUIREMENT.—The Federal 

14 share of the cost of any activity carried out using any as15 sistance made available under this Act shall be 50 percent. 

16 SEC. 5. MANAGEMENT PLAN. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years after the 

18 date of enactment of this Act, the management entity shall 

19 submit to the Secretary for approval a proposed manage20 ment plan for the Heritage Area. 

21 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—The management plan shall— 

22 (1) incorporate an integrated and cooperative 

23 approach for the protection, enhancement, and inter24 pretation of the natural, cultural, historic, scenic, 

25 and recreational resources of the Heritage Area; 


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1 (2) take into consideration State and local 

2 plans; 

3 (3) include— 

4 (A) an inventory of— 

5 (i) the resources located in the core 

6 area described in section 4(b); and 

7 (ii) any other property in the core 

8 area that— 

9 (I) is related to the themes of the 

10 Heritage Area; and 

11 (II) should be preserved, re12 stored, managed, or maintained be13 cause of the significance of the prop14 erty; 

15 (B) comprehensive policies, strategies, and 

16 recommendations for conservation, funding, 

17 management, and development of the Heritage 

18 Area; 

19 (C) a description of actions that govern20 ments, private organizations, and individuals 

21 have agreed to take to protect the natural, his22 torical, and cultural resources of the Heritage 

23 Area; 

24 (D) a program of implementation for the 

25 management plan by the management entity 


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1 that includes a description of actions to facili2 tate ongoing collaboration among partners to— 

3 (i) promote plans for resource protec4 tion, restoration, and construction; and 

5 (ii) specific commitments for imple6 mentation that have been made by the 

7 management entity or any government, or8 ganization, or individual for the first 5 

9 years of operation; 

10 (E) the identification of sources of funding 

11 for carrying out the management plan; 

12 (F) analysis and recommendations for 

13 means by which local, State, and Federal pro14 grams, including the role of the National Park 

15 Service in the Heritage Area, may best be co16 ordinated to carry out this Act; and 

17 (G) an interpretive plan for the Heritage 

18 Area; and 

19 (4) recommend policies and strategies for re20 source management that consider and detail the ap21 plication of appropriate land and water management 

22 techniques, including the development of intergov23 ernmental and interagency cooperative agreements 

24 to protect the natural, historical, cultural, eduVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:05 Jan 29, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S127.IS S127

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1 cational, scenic, and recreational resources of the 

2 Heritage Area. 

3 (c) DEADLINE.—If a proposed management plan is 

4 not submitted to the Secretary by the date that is 3 years 

5 after the date of enactment of this Act, the management 

6 entity shall be ineligible to receive additional funding 

7 under this Act until the date that the Secretary receives 

8 and approves the management plan. 

9 (d) APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL OF MANAGEMENT

10 PLAN.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

12 after the date of receipt of the management plan 

13 under subsection (a), the Secretary, in consultation 

14 with the State, shall approve or disapprove the man15 agement plan. 

16 (2) CRITERIA FOR APPROVAL.—In determining 

17 whether to approve the management plan, the Sec18 retary shall consider whether— 

19 (A) the management entity is representa20 tive of the diverse interests of the Heritage 

21 Area, including governments, natural and his22 toric resource protection organizations, edu23 cational institutions, businesses, and rec24 reational organizations; 


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1 (B) the management entity has afforded 

2 adequate opportunity, including public hearings, 

3 for public and governmental involvement in the 

4 preparation of the management plan; and 

5 (C) the resource protection and interpreta6 tion strategies contained in the management 

7 plan, if implemented, would adequately protect 

8 the natural, historical, and cultural resources of 

9 the Heritage Area. 

10 (3) ACTION FOLLOWING DISAPPROVAL.—If the 

11 Secretary disapproves the management plan under 

12 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall— 

13 (A) advise the management entity in writ14 ing of the reasons for the disapproval; 

15 (B) make recommendations for revisions to 

16 the management plan; and 

17 (C) not later than 180 days after the re18 ceipt of any proposed revision of the manage19 ment plan from the management entity, ap20 prove or disapprove the proposed revision. 

21 (4) AMENDMENTS.— 

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ap23 prove or disapprove each amendment to the 

24 management plan that the Secretary determines 


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1 makes a substantial change to the management 

2 plan. 

3 (B) USE OF FUNDS.—The management 

4 entity shall not use Federal funds authorized by 

5 this Act to carry out any amendments to the 

6 management plan until the Secretary has ap7 proved the amendments. 

8 SEC. 6. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this Act affects the au10 thority of a Federal agency to provide technical or finan11 cial assistance under any other law. 

12 (b) CONSULTATION AND COORDINATION.—The head 

13 of any Federal agency planning to conduct activities that 

14 may have an impact on the Heritage Area is encouraged 

15 to consult and coordinate the activities with the Secretary 

16 and the management entity to the maximum extent prac17 ticable. 

18 (c) OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES.—Nothing in this 

19 Act— 

20 (1) modifies, alters, or amends any law or regu21 lation authorizing a Federal agency to manage Fed22 eral land under the jurisdiction of the Federal agen23 cy; 


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1 (2) limits the discretion of a Federal land man2 ager to implement an approved land use plan within 

3 the boundaries of the Heritage Area; or 

4 (3) modifies, alters, or amends any authorized 

5 use of Federal land under the jurisdiction of a Fed6 eral agency. 

7 SEC. 7. PRIVATE PROPERTY PROTECTION. 

8 Nothing in this Act— 

9 (1) abridges the rights of any property owner 

10 (whether public or private), including the right to re11 frain from participating in any plan, project, pro12 gram, or activity conducted within the Heritage 

13 Area; 

14 (2) requires any property owner to permit pub15 lic access (including access by Federal, State, or 

16 local agencies) to the property of the property 

17 owner, or to modify public access or use of property 

18 of the property owner under any other Federal, 

19 State, or local law; 

20 (3) alters any duly adopted land use regulation, 

21 approved land use plan, or other regulatory author22 ity of any Federal, State or local agency, or conveys 

23 any land use or other regulatory authority to the 

24 management entity; 


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1 (4) authorizes or implies the reservation or ap2 propriation of water or water rights; 

3 (5) diminishes the authority of the State to 

4 manage fish and wildlife, including the regulation of 

5 fishing and hunting within the Heritage Area; or 

6 (6) creates any liability, or affects any liability 

7 under any other law, of any private property owner 

8 with respect to any person injured on the private 

9 property. 

10 SEC. 8. WATER RIGHTS. 

11 (a) STATEMENT OF POLICY.—Nothing in this Act is 

12 meant to modify the Rio Grande Natural Area Act. 

13 (b) APPLICABILITY.—Nothing in this Act— 

14 (1) amends, modifies, or is in conflict with the 

15 Act of May 31, 1939 (53 Stat. 785, chapter 155); 

16 (2) authorizes the regulation of private land in 

17 the Heritage Area; 

18 (3) authorizes the imposition of any mandatory 

19 streamflow requirements; 

20 (4) creates an express or implied Federal re21 served water right; 

22 (5) imposes any Federal water quality standard 

23 within or upstream of the Heritage Area that is 

24 more restrictive than would be applicable had the 

25 Heritage Area not been established; or 


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1 (6) prevents the State of Texas from acquiring 

2 an instream flow through the Heritage Area under 

3 the terms, conditions, and limitations of State law to 

4 assist in protecting the natural environment to the 

5 extent and for the purposes authorized by State law. 

6 SEC. 9. EVALUATION REPORT. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years before the 

8 date on which authority for Federal funding terminates 

9 for the Heritage Area, the Secretary shall— 

10 (1) conduct an evaluation of the accomplish11 ments of the Heritage Area; and 

12 (2) prepare a report in accordance with sub13 section (c). 

14 (b) EVALUATION.—An evaluation conducted under 

15 subsection (a)(1) shall— 

16 (1) assess the progress of the management enti17 ty with respect to— 

18 (A) accomplishing the purposes of this Act 

19 for the Heritage Area; and 

20 (B) achieving the goals and objectives of 

21 the approved management plan for the Heritage 

22 Area; 

23 (2) analyze the Federal, State, local, and pri24 vate investments in the Heritage Area to determine 

25 the leverage and impact of the investments; and 


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1 (3) review the management structure, partner2 ship relationships, and funding of the Heritage Area 

3 for purposes of identifying the critical components 

4 for sustainability of the Heritage Area. 

5 (c) REPORT.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Based on the evaluation con7 ducted under subsection (a)(1), the Secretary shall 

8 prepare a report that includes recommendations for 

9 the future role of the National Park Service, if any, 

10 with respect to the Heritage Area. 

11 (2) REQUIRED ANALYSIS.—If the report pre12 pared under paragraph (1) recommends that Fed13 eral funding for the Heritage Area be reauthorized, 

14 the report shall include an analysis of— 

15 (A) ways in which Federal funding for the 

16 Heritage Area may be reduced or eliminated; 

17 and 

18 (B) the appropriate time period necessary 

19 to achieve the recommended reduction or elimi20 nation. 

21 (3) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—On completion 

22 of the report, the Secretary shall submit the report 

23 to— 

24 (A) the Committee on Energy and Natural 

25 Resources of the Senate; and 


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1 (B) the Committee on Natural Resources 

2 of the House of Representatives. 

3 SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

4 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

5 this Act $10,000,000, of which not more than $1,000,000 

6 may be made available for any fiscal year. 

7 SEC. 11. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY. 

8 The authority of the Secretary to provide assistance 

9 under this Act terminates on the date that is 15 years 

10 after the date that funds are first made available to carry 

11 out this Act. 

Æ 


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