79–006 

115TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 2d Session 115–856 

QUINDARO TOWNSITE NATIONAL COMMEMORATIVE SITE 

ACT 

JULY 23, 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. 5613] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred the 

bill (H.R. 5613) to designate the Quindaro Townsite in Kansas 

City, Kansas, as a National Historic Landmark, and for other purposes, having considered the same, report favorably thereon with 

amendments and recommend that the bill as amended do pass. 

The amendments are as follows: 

Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the following: 

SECTION 1. QUINDARO TOWNSITE NATIONAL COMMEMORATIVE SITE ACT. 

(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Quindaro Townsite National 

Commemorative Site Act’’. 

(b) DEFINITION.—In this Act, the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of the Interior. 

(c) DESIGNATION.—The Quindaro Townsite in Kansas City, Kansas, as listed on 

the National Register of Historic Places, is hereby designated as the Quindaro 

Townsite National Commemorative Site. The Site shall not be considered a unit of 

the National Park System. 

(d) ADMINISTRATION.—Nothing in this section shall affect the administration of 

the Quindaro Townsite by Kansas City or the State of Kansas. 

(e) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary, in consultation with the State of 

Kansas, Kansas City, Kansas, and affected subdivisions, may enter into cooperative 

agreements with appropriate public or private entities, for the purposes of protecting historic resources at Quindaro Townsite and providing educational and interpretive programs for the public. 

(f) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary may provide technical assistance to 

any entity with which the Secretary has entered into a cooperative agreement under 

subsection (e). 

(g) EFFECT ON PRIVATE PROPERTY, LOCAL LAND USE, AND LAND ACQUISITION AU- THORITY.—Nothing in this Act authorizes the Secretary to— 

(1) interfere with private property rights, or any local zoning ordinance or 

land use plan of the State or any political subdivision of the State; or 

2 

1 National Register of Historic Place Registration Form for Quindaro Townsite. April 5, 2002. 

https://www.kshs.org/resource/national_register/nominationsNRDB/WyandotteCounty_Quindaro 

TownsiteNR.pdf. 2 Id. 

(2) acquire land or interests in land through condemnation or otherwise. 

Amend the title so as to read: 

A bill to designate the Quindaro Townsite in Kansas City, Kansas, as a National Commemorative Site. 

PURPOSE OF THE BILL

The purpose of H.R. 5613, as ordered reported, is to designate 

the Quindaro Townsite in Kansas City, Kansas, as a National Commemorative Site. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

H.R. 5613 would designate the Quindaro Townsite in Kansas 

City, Kansas, as a National Commemorative Site. The Quindaro 

Townsite is on the National Register of Historic Places (listed in 

2002) and is part of the National Underground Railroad Network 

to Freedom. The site preserves the ruins of a frontier town on the 

Missouri River, which was founded in 1857 to be a free-state port 

of entry during the Kansas Territory’s fight over the question of 

slavery. Other prominent river towns in the Territory at that time 

were pro-slavery. The town’s residents included Euro-Americans, 

freed African Americans, and members of the Wyandot Tribe.1

The Quindaro area was the location of an African American refugee settlement that began during the Civil War. It was also the 

site of the Freedman’s University and its successor institution, 

Western University, the first black university in Kansas.2

Local stakeholders have long sought to elevate the status of the 

Quindaro Townsite, including an effort to have the site listed as a 

National Historic Landmark. In 2017 in response to an inquiry letter from a local stakeholder regarding potential National Historic 

Landmark status, the National Park Service recommended that 

Quindaro supporters expand research of the site to identify possible 

national significance and then submit a comprehensive National 

Historic Landmark nomination package. 

The bill as introduced proposed designating Quindaro Townsite 

as a National Historic Landmark. During consideration of the bill, 

the Committee recognized the national significance of the Townsite 

by amending the bill to establish the Quindaro Townsite National 

Commemorative Site. Designation as a National Commemorative 

Site will enable the owners of the Townsite to use National Park 

Service branding and receive National Park Service technical assistance. Similar designation status has been applied to the 

Charleston National Commemorative Site in Arkansas (Public Law 

105–277) and the Kennedy-King National Commemorative Site in 

Indiana (Public Law 115–163). 

A companion bill, S. 2895, has been introduced in the Senate by 

Senator Pat Roberts (R–KS). 

COMMITTEE ACTION

H.R. 5613 was introduced on April 25, 2018, by Congressman 

Kevin Yoder (R–KS). The bill was referred to the Committee on 

3 

Natural Resources, and within the Committee to the Subcommittee 

on Federal Lands. On June 21, 2018, the Subcommittee held a 

hearing on the legislation. On July 11, 2018, the Natural Resources 

Committee met to consider the bill. The Subcommittee was discharged by unanimous consent. Congressman Rob Bishop (R–UT) 

offered an amendment designated #1; it was adopted by unanimous 

consent. No further amendments were offered, and the bill, as 

amended, 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, July 19, 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. 5613, the Quindaro 

Townsite National Commemorative Site Act. 

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Janani Shankaran. 

Sincerely, 

MARK P. HADLEY

(For Keith Hall, Director). 

Enclosure. 

H.R. 5613—Quindaro Townsite National Commemorative Site Act 

H.R. 5613 would designate the Quindaro Townsite in Kansas 

City, Kansas, as the Quindaro Townsite National Commemorative 

Site. 

Under H.R. 5613, the National Park Service could provide technical assistance and enter into cooperative agreements with public 

and private entities for interpretive and educational purposes related to the site, which would not be owned or operated by the federal government. Based on the costs of similar activities, CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 5613 would cost less than $500,000; 

such spending would be subject to the availability of appropriated 

funds. 

4 

Enacting H.R. 5613 would not affect direct spending or revenues; 

therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. 

CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 5613 would not increase net 

direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive 

10-year periods beginning in 2029. 

H.R. 5613 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Janani Shankaran. 

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 as ordered reported, is to designate Quindaro Townsite 

in Kansas City, Kansas, as a National Commemorative Site. 

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. 

Æ