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[DOCID: f:hr359p1.111]
From the House Reports Online via GPO Access
[wais.access.gpo.gov]

111th Congress                                            Rept. 111-359
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 1st Session                                                     Part 1

======================================================================



 
       PETERSBURG NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD BOUNDARY MODIFICATION ACT

                                _______
                                

December 7, 2009.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

  Mr. Rahall, from the Committee on Natural Resources, submitted the 
                               following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 3388]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

  The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred the 
bill (H.R. 3388) to modify the boundary of Petersburg National 
Battlefield in the Commonwealth of Virginia, and for other 
purposes, 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. SHORT TITLE.

  This Act may be cited as the ``Petersburg National Battlefield 
Boundary Modification Act''.

SEC. 2. BOUNDARY MODIFICATION.

  (a) In General.--The boundary of Petersburg National Battlefield is 
modified to include the properties as generally depicted on the map 
titled ``Petersburg National Battlefield Boundary Expansion'', numbered 
325/80,080, and dated June 2007. The map shall be on file and available 
for inspection in the appropriate offices of the National Park Service.
  (b) Acquisition of Properties.--The Secretary of the Interior 
(referred to in this Act as the ``Secretary'') is authorized to acquire 
the lands or interests in land, described in subsection (a), from 
willing sellers only by donation, purchase with donated or appropriated 
funds, exchange, or transfer.
  (c) Administration.--The Secretary shall administer any land or 
interests in land acquired under this section as part of the Petersburg 
National Battlefield in accordance with applicable laws and 
regulations.

SEC. 3. ADMINISTRATIVE JURISDICTION TRANSFER.

  (a) In General.--The Secretary and the Secretary of the Army are 
authorized to transfer administrative jurisdiction for approximately 
1.171 acres of land under the jurisdiction of the Department of the 
Interior within the boundary of the Petersburg National Battlefield, 
for approximately 1.170 acres of land under the jurisdiction of the 
Department of the Army within the boundary of the Fort Lee Military 
Reservation adjacent to the boundary of the Petersburg National 
Battlefield.
  (b) Map.--The land to be exchanged is depicted on the map titled 
``Petersburg National Battlefield Proposed Transfer of Administrative 
Jurisdiction'', numbered 325/80,081, and dated October 2009. The map 
shall be available for public inspection in the appropriate offices of 
the National Park Service.
  (c) Conditions of Transfer.--The transfer of administrative 
jurisdiction authorized in subsection (a) shall be subject to the 
following conditions:
          (1) No reimbursement or consideration.--The transfer shall 
        occur without reimbursement or consideration.
          (2) Deadline.--The Secretary and the Secretary of the Army 
        shall complete the transfers authorized by this section not 
        later than 120 days after the funds are made available for that 
        purpose.
          (3) Management.--The land conveyed to the Secretary under 
        subsection (a) shall be included within the boundary of the 
        Petersburg National Battlefield and shall be administered as 
        part of the park in accordance with applicable laws and 
        regulations.

                          PURPOSE OF THE BILL

    The purpose of H.R. 3388 is to modify the boundary of 
Petersburg National Battlefield in the Commonwealth of 
Virginia, and for other purposes.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    Containing about 2,659 acres, Petersburg National 
Battlefield was established in 1926 and currently preserves six 
sites in Prince George's and Dinwiddie Counties and the City of 
Petersburg, Virginia associated with the Petersburg Campaign of 
1864-1865. The campaign, the longest in the Civil War, 
consisted of 108 military actions and 26 major battles, over a 
core area of about 100,000 acres.
    In 2003, the non-profit Civil War Preservation Trust (CWPT) 
identified Petersburg as one of the 10 most endangered Civil 
War battlefields. In 2004, during the most recent revision of 
the park's General Management Plan (GMP), the National Park 
Service (NPS) evaluated and prioritized for possible inclusion 
within the battlefield 23,000 acres which are outside the 
existing park but retain their historic integrity. Criteria 
included national significance, usefulness in interpreting the 
story of the battles, feasibility for protection, contribution 
to public enjoyment, and protection of resources critical to 
the park's mission.
    The revised GMP recommends expanding the park to include 
7,238 acres of land associated with the Petersburg campaign. 
The NPS acknowledged the high costs of land acquisition, and 
supports agricultural and conservation easements and donations 
to lower costs while providing for resource protection and 
enjoyment. There is strong local support for the proposed 
battlefield expansion.
    Three non-profit organizations (the CWPT, the Conservation 
Fund, and the Izaak Walton League) already own or hold 
easements on approximately 1,040 acres of the recommended 
additions.

                            COMMITTEE ACTION

    H.R. 3388 was introduced on July 29, 2009 by Rep. J. Randy 
Forbes (R-VA). The bill was referred to the Committee on 
Natural Resources, and within the Committee to the Subcommittee 
on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands. On November 5, 
2009, the Subcommittee held a hearing on the bill. The 
Administration testified favorably on the bill with the 
recommendation that it be amended to insert a correct map 
reference.
    On November 18, 2009, the Subcommittee was discharged from 
further consideration of H.R. 3388 and the full Natural 
Resources Committee met to consider the bill. Subcommittee 
Chairman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) offered an amendment to insert 
the correct map reference as recommended by the Administration; 
it was adopted by unanimous consent. The bill, as amended, was 
then ordered favorably reported to the House of Representatives 
by unanimous consent.

                      SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1. Short title

    Section 1 provides that this Act may be cited as the 
``Petersburg National Battlefield Boundary Modification Act.''

Section 2. Boundary modification

    Section 2 expands the boundary of Petersburg National 
Battlefield by approximately 7,238 acres to include areas in 
and around the city of Petersburg that retain historic 
character and significance related to the 1864-1865 Civil War 
campaign in the area.
    Section 2(b) limits acquisition of new land or interests in 
lands to only those from willing sellers through donation, 
purchase with donated or appropriated funds, exchange, or 
transfer. Condemnation is not authorized.
    Section 2(c) specifies that newly acquired lands or 
interests in lands shall be administered as part of Petersburg 
National Battlefield in accordance with applicable laws and 
regulations.

Section 3. Administrative jurisdiction transfer

    Section 3 authorizes the Secretaries of the Army and 
Interior to exchange, within 120 days of the appropriation of 
necessary funds, approximately 1.17 acres of land along the 
shared boundary between Petersburg National Battlefield and 
Fort Lee, a U.S. Army post, without reimbursement or 
consideration to either agency. This transfer resolves an 
administrative problem by allowing for better management of a 
new security fence for Fort Lee that encroached on the boundary 
between the base and the battlefield.

            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.

                  FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE STATEMENT

    The functions of the proposed advisory committee authorized 
in the bill are not currently being nor could they be performed 
by one or more agencies, an advisory committee already in 
existence or by enlarging the mandate of an existing advisory 
committee.

                   CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY STATEMENT

    Article I, section 8 of the Constitution of the United 
States grants Congress the authority to enact this bill.

                    COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII

    1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(2) 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)(3)(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.
    2. 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, spending 
authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in 
revenues or tax expenditures.
    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 is to modify the boundary of Petersburg 
National Battlefield in the Commonwealth of Virginia and for 
other purposes.
    4. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate. 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. 3388--Petersburg National Battlefield Boundary Modification Act

    H.R. 3388 would expand the area of the Petersburg National 
Battlefield in Virginia by over 7,000 acres. The bill would 
allow the National Park Service (NPS) to acquire the land by 
purchase, easement, exchange, and donation from private and 
non-profit landowners, and through a land transfer from the 
Department of the Army.
    Based on information provided by NPS, and assuming 
appropriation of the necessary amounts, CBO estimates that 
implementing H.R. 3388 would cost about $5 million over the 
2010-2014 period to acquire a portion of that acreage. 
Currently NPS estimates the entire parcel has a value of about 
$30 million and would take 15 to 20 years to acquire. Based on 
that information, CBO expects that over half of the property 
would be acquired through purchase (about $20 million over the 
next 15 to 20 years.), while the rest would be accomplished 
through easements and donations. In addition, CBO estimates 
that NPS would spend less than $500,000 annually for new 
trails, exhibits, surveys, and studies as the new acreage is 
acquired. Finally, we estimate that the NPS would need about 
$500,000 annually for operations and management costs. Enacting 
H.R. 3388 would have no effect on direct spending or revenues.
    The legislation 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 Matthew 
Pickford. The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

                    COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104-4

    This bill contains no unfunded mandates.

                           EARMARK STATEMENT

    H.R. 3388 does not contain any congressional earmarks, 
limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined in 
clause 9 of rule XXI.

                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.

                                  <all>
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