II 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 185 

To establish the Sangre de Cristo National Heritage Area in the State 

of Colorado, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 8, 2009 

Mr. SALAZAR (for himself and Mr. UDALL of Colorado) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To establish the Sangre de Cristo National Heritage Area 

in the State of Colorado, 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 ‘‘Sangre de Cristo Na5 tional Heritage Area Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

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

9 Area’’ means the Sangre de Cristo National Herit10 age Area established by section 3(a). 


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

3 the Heritage Area designated by section 3(d). 

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

6 Heritage Area required under section 5. 

7 (4) MAP.—The term ‘‘map’’ means the map en8 titled ‘‘Proposed Sangre De Cristo National Herit9 age Area’’ and dated November 2005. 

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

11 the Secretary of the Interior. 

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

13 of Colorado. 

14 SEC. 3. SANGRE DE CRISTO NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA. 

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

16 State the Sangre de Cristo National Heritage Area. 

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

18 of— 

19 (1) the counties of Alamosa, Conejos, and 

20 Costilla; and 

21 (2) the Monte Vista National Wildlife Refuge, 

22 the Baca National Wildlife Refuge, the Great Sand 

23 Dunes National Park and Preserve, and other areas 

24 included in the map. 

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


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1 (1) included in the management plan; and 

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

3 the appropriate offices of the National Park Service. 

4 (d) MANAGEMENT ENTITY.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The management entity for 

6 the Heritage Area shall be the Sangre de Cristo Na7 tional Heritage Area Board of Directors. 

8 (2) MEMBERSHIP REQUIREMENTS.—Members 

9 of the Board shall include representatives from a 

10 broad cross-section of the individuals, agencies, orga11 nizations, and governments that were involved in the 

12 planning and development of the Heritage Area be13 fore the date of enactment of this Act. 

14 SEC. 4. ADMINISTRATION. 

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

16 management plan, the Secretary, acting through the man17 agement entity, may use amounts made available under 

18 this Act to— 

19 (1) make grants to the State or a political sub20 division of the State, nonprofit organizations, and 

21 other persons; 

22 (2) enter into cooperative agreements with, or 

23 provide technical assistance to, the State or a polit24 ical subdivision of the State, nonprofit organizations, 

25 and other interested parties; 


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1 (3) hire and compensate staff, which shall in2 clude individuals with expertise in natural, cultural, 

3 and historical resources protection, and heritage pro4 gramming; 

5 (4) obtain money or services from any source 

6 including any that are provided under any other 

7 Federal law or program; 

8 (5) contract for goods or services; and 

9 (6) undertake to be a catalyst for any other ac10 tivity that furthers the Heritage Area and is con11 sistent with the approved management plan. 

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

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

14 submit a management plan for the Heritage Area to 

15 the Secretary; 

16 (2) assist units of local government, regional 

17 planning organizations, and nonprofit organizations 

18 in carrying out the approved management plan by— 

19 (A) carrying out programs and projects 

20 that recognize, protect, and enhance important 

21 resource values in the Heritage Area; 

22 (B) establishing and maintaining interpre23 tive exhibits and programs in the Heritage 

24 Area; 


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1 (C) developing recreational and educational 

2 opportunities in the Heritage Area; 

3 (D) increasing public awareness of, and 

4 appreciation for, natural, historical, scenic, and 

5 cultural resources of the Heritage Area; 

6 (E) protecting and restoring historic sites 

7 and buildings in the Heritage Area that are 

8 consistent with Heritage Area themes; 

9 (F) ensuring that clear, consistent, and ap10 propriate signs identifying points of public ac11 cess, and sites of interest are posted throughout 

12 the Heritage Area; and 

13 (G) promoting a wide range of partner14 ships among governments, organizations, and 

15 individuals to further the Heritage Area; 

16 (3) consider the interests of diverse units of 

17 government, businesses, organizations, and individ18 uals in the Heritage Area in the preparation and im19 plementation of the management plan; 

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

21 semiannually regarding the development and imple22 mentation of the management plan; 

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

24 received under this Act— 


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1 (A) submit an annual report to the Sec2 retary that describes the activities, expenses, 

3 and income of the management entity (includ4 ing grants to any other entities during the year 

5 that the report is made); 

6 (B) make available to the Secretary for 

7 audit all records relating to the expenditure of 

8 the funds and any matching funds; 

9 (C) require, with respect to all agreements 

10 authorizing expenditure of Federal funds by 

11 other organizations, that the organizations re12 ceiving the funds make available to the Sec13 retary for audit all records concerning the ex14 penditure of the funds; and 

15 (6) encourage by appropriate means economic 

16 viability that is consistent with the Heritage Area. 

17 (c) PROHIBITION ON THE ACQUISITION OF REAL

18 PROPERTY.—The management entity shall not use Fed19 eral funds made available under this Act to acquire real 

20 property or any interest in real property. 

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

22 share of the cost of any activity carried out using any as23 sistance made available under this Act shall be 50 percent. 


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1 SEC. 5. MANAGEMENT PLAN. 

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

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

4 submit to the Secretary for approval a proposed manage5 ment plan for the Heritage Area. 

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

7 (1) incorporate an integrated and cooperative 

8 approach for the protection, enhancement, and inter9 pretation of the natural, cultural, historic, scenic, 

10 and recreational resources of the Heritage Area; 

11 (2) take into consideration State and local 

12 plans; 

13 (3) include— 

14 (A) an inventory of— 

15 (i) the resources located in the core 

16 area described in section 3(b); and 

17 (ii) any other property in the core 

18 area that— 

19 (I) is related to the themes of the 

20 Heritage Area; and 

21 (II) should be preserved, re22 stored, managed, or maintained be23 cause of the significance of the prop24 erty; 

25 (B) comprehensive policies, strategies and 

26 recommendations for conservation, funding, 


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1 management, and development of the Heritage 

2 Area; 

3 (C) a description of actions that govern4 ments, private organizations, and individuals 

5 have agreed to take to protect the natural, his6 torical and cultural resources of the Heritage 

7 Area; 

8 (D) a program of implementation for the 

9 management plan by the management entity 

10 that includes a description of— 

11 (i) actions to facilitate ongoing col12 laboration among partners to promote 

13 plans for resource protection, restoration, 

14 and construction; and 

15 (ii) specific commitments for imple16 mentation that have been made by the 

17 management entity or any government, or18 ganization, or individual for the first 5 

19 years of operation; 

20 (E) the identification of sources of funding 

21 for carrying out the management plan; 

22 (F) analysis and recommendations for 

23 means by which local, State, and Federal pro24 grams, including the role of the National Park 


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1 Service in the Heritage Area, may best be co2 ordinated to carry out this Act; and 

3 (G) an interpretive plan for the Heritage 

4 Area; and 

5 (4) recommend policies and strategies for re6 source management that consider and detail the ap7 plication of appropriate land and water management 

8 techniques, including the development of intergov9 ernmental and interagency cooperative agreements 

10 to protect the natural, historical, cultural, edu11 cational, scenic, and recreational resources of the 

12 Heritage Area. 

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

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

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

16 entity shall be ineligible to receive additional funding 

17 under this Act until the date that the Secretary receives 

18 and approves the management plan. 

19 (d) APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL OF MANAGEMENT

20 PLAN.— 

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

22 after the date of receipt of the management plan 

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

24 with the State, shall approve or disapprove the man25 agement plan. 


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1 (2) CRITERIA FOR APPROVAL.—In determining 

2 whether to approve the management plan, the Sec3 retary shall consider whether— 

4 (A) the management entity is representa5 tive of the diverse interests of the Heritage 

6 Area, including governments, natural and his7 toric resource protection organizations, edu8 cational institutions, businesses, and rec9 reational organizations; 

10 (B) the management entity has afforded 

11 adequate opportunity, including public hearings, 

12 for public and governmental involvement in the 

13 preparation of the management plan; and 

14 (C) the resource protection and interpreta15 tion strategies contained in the management 

16 plan, if implemented, would adequately protect 

17 the natural, historical, and cultural resources of 

18 the Heritage Area. 

19 (3) ACTION FOLLOWING DISAPPROVAL.—If the 

20 Secretary disapproves the management plan under 

21 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall— 

22 (A) advise the management entity in writ23 ing of the reasons for the disapproval; 

24 (B) make recommendations for revisions to 

25 the management plan; and 


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1 (C) not later than 180 days after the re2 ceipt of any proposed revision of the manage3 ment plan from the management entity, ap4 prove or disapprove the proposed revision. 

5 (4) AMENDMENTS.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ap7 prove or disapprove each amendment to the 

8 management plan that the Secretary determines 

9 make a substantial change to the management 

10 plan. 

11 (B) USE OF FUNDS.—The management 

12 entity shall not use Federal funds authorized by 

13 this Act to carry out any amendments to the 

14 management plan until the Secretary has ap15 proved the amendments. 

16 SEC. 6. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this Act affects the au18 thority of a Federal agency to provide technical or finan19 cial assistance under any other law. 

20 (b) CONSULTATION AND COORDINATION.—The head 

21 of any Federal agency planning to conduct activities that 

22 may have an impact on the Heritage Area is encouraged 

23 to consult and coordinate the activities with the Secretary 

24 and the management entity to the maximum extent prac25 ticable. 


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

2 Act— 

3 (1) modifies, alters, or amends any law or regu4 lation authorizing a Federal agency to manage Fed5 eral land under the jurisdiction of the Federal agen6 cy; 

7 (2) limits the discretion of a Federal land man8 ager to implement an approved land use plan within 

9 the boundaries of the Heritage Area; or 

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

11 use of Federal land under the jurisdiction of a Fed12 eral agency. 

13 SEC. 7. PRIVATE PROPERTY AND REGULATORY PROTEC14 TIONS. 

15 Nothing in this Act— 

16 (1) abridges the rights of any property owner 

17 (whether public or private), including the right to re18 frain from participating in any plan, project, pro19 gram, or activity conducted within the Heritage 

20 Area; 

21 (2) requires any property owner to permit pub22 lic access (including access by Federal, State, or 

23 local agencies) to the property of the property 

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


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1 of the property owner under any other Federal, 

2 State, or local law; 

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

4 approved land use plan, or other regulatory author5 ity of any Federal, State or local agency, or conveys 

6 any land use or other regulatory authority to the 

7 management entity; 

8 (4) authorizes or implies the reservation or ap9 propriation of water or water rights; 

10 (5) diminishes the authority of the State to 

11 manage fish and wildlife, including the regulation of 

12 fishing and hunting within the Heritage Area; or 

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

14 under any other law, of any private property owner 

15 with respect to any person injured on the private 

16 property. 

17 SEC. 8. EVALUATION; REPORT. 

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

19 date on which authority for Federal funding terminates 

20 for the Heritage Area, the Secretary shall— 

21 (1) conduct an evaluation of the accomplish22 ments of the Heritage Area; and 

23 (2) prepare a report in accordance with sub24 section (c). 


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1 (b) EVALUATION.—An evaluation conducted under 

2 subsection (a)(1) shall— 

3 (1) assess the progress of the management enti4 ty with respect to— 

5 (A) accomplishing the purposes of this Act 

6 for the Heritage Area; and 

7 (B) achieving the goals and objectives of 

8 the approved management plan for the Heritage 

9 Area; 

10 (2) analyze the Federal, State, local, and pri11 vate investments in the Heritage Area to determine 

12 the leverage and impact of the investments; and 

13 (3) review the management structure, partner14 ship relationships, and funding of the Heritage Area 

15 for purposes of identifying the critical components 

16 for sustainability of the Heritage Area. 

17 (c) REPORT.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Based on the evaluation con19 ducted under subsection (a)(1), the Secretary shall 

20 prepare a report that includes recommendations for 

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

22 with respect to the Heritage Area. 

23 (2) REQUIRED ANALYSIS.—If the report pre24 pared under paragraph (1) recommends that FedVerDate Nov 24 2008 21:53 Jan 11, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S185.IS S185

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1 eral funding for the Heritage Area be reauthorized, 

2 the report shall include an analysis of— 

3 (A) ways in which Federal funding for the 

4 Heritage Area may be reduced or eliminated; 

5 and 

6 (B) the appropriate time period necessary 

7 to achieve the recommended reduction or elimi8 nation. 

9 (3) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—On completion 

10 of the report, the Secretary shall submit the report 

11 to— 

12 (A) the Committee on Energy and Natural 

13 Resources of the Senate; and 

14 (B) the Committee on Natural Resources 

15 of the House of Representatives. 

16 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

17 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

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

19 may be made available for any fiscal year. 

20 SEC. 10. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY. 

21 The authority of the Secretary to provide assistance 

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

23 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

Æ 


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