II 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1414 

To provide for the conduct of a study of the suitability and feasibility 

of establishing the Trail of the Ancients National Heritage Area in 

the Four Corners region of the States of Utah, Colorado, Arizona, 

and New Mexico. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 15, 2005 

Mr. HATCH introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

A BILL

To provide for the conduct of a study of the suitability 

and feasibility of establishing the Trail of the Ancients 

National Heritage Area in the Four Corners region of 

the States of Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico.

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 ‘‘Trail of the Ancients 

5 National Heritage Area Study Act of 2005’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that— 
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1 (1) the Four Corners region, 1 of the areas of 

2 greatest archaeological interest in the United States, 

3 provides access to numerous examples of the Ances4 tral Puebloan culture; 

5 (2) the Four Corners region highlights areas 

6 and sites at which— 

7 (A) the earliest inhabitants were Paleo8 Americans, nomadic people who traveled 

9 through and lived in the area as early as 

10 10,000 B.C.; and 

11 (B) the Ancestral Puebloan Indians lived 

12 from approximately 1 to 1300 A.D.; 

13 (3) the region features sites that chronicle the 

14 Ute and Navajo Indian cultures; 

15 (4) the archaeological sites of the region have 

16 been well-preserved by the semi-arid climate of the 

17 region; 

18 (5) national and international recognition of 

19 sites in the region has contributed to the wealth of 

20 information about the people who have inhabited the 

21 area; 

22 (6) the region features the Trail of the Ancients 

23 Scenic Byway in the States of Arizona, Colorado, 

24 New Mexico, and Utah, and other designated byways 

25 and highways, including San Juan Skyway in the 
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1 State of Colorado and the Utah Bicentennial High2 way; and 

3 (7) designating the Trail of the Ancients Na4 tional Heritage Area as a unit of the National Park 

5 System— 

6 (A) would link many of the cultural and 

7 recreation sites in the region for the benefit of 

8 the traveling public and communities in the re9 gion; and 

10 (B) would not— 

11 (i) impose restrictions on private 

12 property; or 

13 (ii) require acquisition of additional 

14 land. 

15 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

16 In this Act: 

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

18 Area’’ means the Trail of the Ancients National 

19 Heritage Area. 

20 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

21 the Secretary of the Interior. 

22 (3) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 

23 the States of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and 

24 Utah. 
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1 (4) STUDY AREA.—The term ‘‘study area’’ 

2 means the Four Corner region, consisting of— 

3 (A) portions of— 

4 (i) San Juan County, Utah; 

5 (ii) Montezuma and Dolores Counties, 

6 Colorado; 

7 (iii) Apache and Navajo Counties, Ari8 zona; and 

9 (iv) San Juan and McKinley Counties, 

10 New Mexico; and 

11 (B) portions of the reservations of the Ute 

12 Mountain Ute, Navajo, and Hopi Tribes, in the 

13 States. 

14 SEC. 4. TRAIL OF THE ANCIENTS NATIONAL HERITAGE 

15 AREA STUDY. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in cooperation 

17 with the Four Corners Heritage Council, shall conduct a 

18 study to assess the feasibility and suitability of desig19 nating the study area as the Trail of the Ancients National 

20 Heritage Area. 

21 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—The study shall include anal22 ysis, documentation, and determinations on whether— 

23 (1) the study area— 
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1 (A) has an assemblage of natural, historic, 

2 cultural, educational, scenic, or recreational re3 sources that— 

4 (i) represent distinctive aspects of the 

5 heritage of the United States worthy of 

6 recognition, conservation, interpretation, 

7 and continuing use; and 

8 (ii) are best managed— 

9 (I) through partnerships among 

10 public and private entities; and 

11 (II) by combining diverse and 

12 sometimes noncontiguous resources 

13 and active communities; 

14 (B) reflects traditions, customs, beliefs, 

15 and folklife that are a valuable part of the her16 itage of the United States; 

17 (C) provides outstanding opportunities to 

18 conserve natural, historical, cultural, or scenic 

19 features; 

20 (D) provides outstanding recreational and 

21 educational opportunities; and 

22 (E) has resources important to any identi23 fied theme of the study area that retain a de24 gree of integrity capable of supporting interpre25 tation; 
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1 (2) residents, business interests, nonprofit orga2 nizations, the Federal Government, and State, local, 

3 and tribal governments within the study area— 

4 (A) are involved in the planning of the 

5 Heritage Area; 

6 (B) have demonstrated support for the 

7 Heritage Area; and 

8 (C) have developed a conceptual financial 

9 plan that outlines the roles of all participants 

10 (including the Federal Government) in the 

11 management of the Heritage Area; 

12 (3) there is a potential management entity to 

13 work in partnership with residents, business inter14 ests, nonprofit organizations, and Federal, State, 

15 local, and tribal governments within the study area 

16 to develop the Heritage Area consistent with contin17 ued, State, local, and tribal economic activity; and 

18 (4) a conceptual boundary map has been devel19 oped that is supported by the public. 

20 (c) CONSULTATION.—In conducting the study, the 

21 Secretary and the Four Corners Heritage Council shall 

22 consult with appropriate Federal, State, local, and tribal 

23 governments, interested organizations, and affected com24 munities within the study area. 
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1 SEC. 5. REPORT. 

2 Not later than 3 fiscal years after the date on which 

3 funds are made available to carry out the study, the Sec4 retary shall submit to the Committee on Energy and Nat5 ural Resources of the Senate and the Committee on Re6 sources of the House of Representatives a report that de7 scribes the findings, conclusions, and recommendations of 

8 the study. 

9 SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

10 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums 

11 as are necessary to carry out this Act.

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