Union Calendar No. 127

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1348

[Report No. 103–233]

A BILL

To establish the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers

Connecticut, and for other purposes.Valley National Heritage Corridor in the State of

SEPTEMBER 9, 1993

Reported with amendments, committed to the Committee

dered to be printedof the Whole House on the State of the Union, and or-
IB

Union Calendar No. 127

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1348

[Report No. 103–233]

To establish the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage

Corridor in the State of Connecticut, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MARCH 16, 1993

Mr. GEJDENSON (for himself, Mrs. KENNELLY, Ms. DELAURO, and Mrs.

JOHNSON of Connecticut) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources

SEPTEMBER 9, 1993

Reported with amendments, committed to the Committee of the Whole House

on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed

[Omit the part struck through and insert the part printed in italic]

A BILL

To establish the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley

National Heritage Corridor in the State of Connecticut,

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,
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Quinebaug and

3 Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage Corridor Act

4 of 1993’’.

5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

6 Congress finds that:

7 (1) The Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley

8 in the State of Connecticut is one of the last un9 spoiled and undeveloped areas in the Northeastern

10 United States and has remained largely intact, in11 cluding important aboriginal archaeological sites, ex12 cellent water quality, beautiful rural landscapes,

13 architecturally significant mill structures and mill

14 villages, and large acreage of parks and other per15 manent open space.

16 (2) The State of Connecticut ranks last among

17 the 50 States in the amount of federally protected

18 park and open space lands within its borders and

19 lags far behind the other northeastern States in the

20 amount of land set-aside for public recreation.

21 (3) The beautiful rural landscapes, scenic vistas

22 and excellent water quality of the Quinebaug and

23 Shetucket Rivers contain significant undeveloped

24 recreational opportunities for people throughout the

25 United States.
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1 (4) The Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley

2 is within a 2-hour drive of the major metropolitan

3 areas of New York City, Hartford, Providence,

4 Worcester, Springfield, and Boston. With the Presi5 dent’s Commission on Americans Outdoors reporting

6 that Americans are taking shorter ‘‘closer-to-home’’

7 vacations, the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Val8 ley represents important close-by recreational oppor9 tunities for significant population.

10 (5) The existing mill sites and other structures

11 throughout the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers

12 Valley were instrumental in the development of the

13 industrial revolution.

14 (6) The Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley

15 contains a vast number of discovered and unre16 covered Native American and colonial archaeological

17 sites significant to the history of North America and

18 the United States.

19 (7) The Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley

20 represents one of the last traditional upland farming

21 and mill village communities in the northeastern

22 United States.

23 (8) The Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley

24 played a nationally significant role in the cultural

25 evolution of the prewar colonial period. Leading the
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1 transformation from Puritan to Yankee, the ‘‘Great

2 Awakening’’ religious revival and early political de3 velopment leading up to and during the War of

4 Indpendence.

5 (9) Many local, regional and State agencies,

6 businesses, and private citizens and the New Eng7 land Governors’ Conference have expressed an over8 whelming desire to combine forces: to work coopera9 tively to preserve and enhance resources region-wide

10 and better plan for the future.

11 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF QUINEBAUG AND SHETUCKET

12 RIVERS VALLEY NATIONAL HERITAGE COR13 RIDOR; PURPOSE.

14 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is hereby established in

15 the State of Connecticut the Quinebaug and Shetucket

16 Rivers Valley National Heritage Corridor.

17 (b) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this Act to pro18 vide a management framework to assist the State of Con19 necticut, its units of local and regional government and

20 citizens in the development and implementation of inte21 grated cultural, historical, and recreational land resource

22 management programs in order to retain, enhance, and

23 interpret the significant features of the lands, water, and

24 structures of the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley

25 in the State of Connecticut.
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1 SEC. 4. BOUNDARIES AND ADMINISTRATION.

2 (a) BOUNDARIES.—The Boundaries of the Corridor

3 shall include the towns of Ashford, Brooklyn, Canterbury,

4 Chaplin, Coventry, Eastford, Franklin, Griswold, Hamp5 ton, Killingly, Lebanon, Lisbon, Mansfield, Norwich,

6 Plainfield, Pomfret, Preston, Putnam, Scotland, Sprague,

7 Sterling, Thompson, Voluntown, Windham, and Wood8 stock. As soon as practical after the date of enactment

9 of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall publish in

10 the Federal Register a detailed description and map of

11 boundaries established under this subsection.

12 (b) ADMINISTRATION.—The Corridor shall be admin13 istered in accordance with the provisions of this Act.

14 SEC. 5. QUINEBAUG AND SHETUCKET RIVERS VALLEY NA15 TIONAL HERITAGE CORRIDOR COMMISSION.

16 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is hereby established

17 within the Department of the Interior the Quinebaug and

18 Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage Corridor Com19 mission (referred to in this Act as the ‘‘Commission’’).

20 The Commission shall assist appropriate Federal, State,

21 regional planning organizations, and local authorities in

22 the development and implementation of an integrated re23 source management plan for the lands and water as speci24 fied in section 3.
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1 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Commission shall be com2 prised of 19 members appointed not later than 6 months

3 after the date of enactment of this Act as follows:

4 (1) The Director of the National Park Service

5 ex officio (or his delegate).

6 (2) 3 individuals nominated by the Governor

7 and appointed by the Secretary, who shall be—

8 (A) the Commissioner of the Connecticut

9 Department of Environmental Protection, or a

10 person representing the interests of the Com11 missioner;

12 (B) the Chairman of the Connecticut His13 torical Commission or a person representing the

14 interests of the Chairman, and

15 (C) the Commissioner of the Connecticut

16 Department of Economic Development or a per17 son representing the interests of the Commis18 sioner;

19 (A) a person representing the interests of

20 the Connecticut Department of Environmental

21 Protection;

22 (B) a person representing the interests of

23 the Connecticut Historical Commission;
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1 (C) a person representing the interests of

2 the Connecticut Department of Economic Devel3 opment;

4 (3) 6 individuals representing the interests of

5 local government or regional planning organizations

6 from Connecticut appointed by the Secretary after

7 receiving recommendations from the Governor, of

8 whom, 3 shall be representatives of the 3 regional

9 planning organizations within the Corridor region

10 and 3 shall be local elected officials from the region;

11 and

12 (4) 9 individuals from the general public, who

13 are citizens of the State of Connecticut, appointed

14 by the Secretary, after receiving recommendations

15 from the Governor, representing conservation, busi16 ness, tourism, and recreational interests.

17 A vacancy in the Commission shall be filled in the manner

18 in which the original appointments were made.

19 (c) TERMS.—(1) Members of the Commission shall

20 be appointed for terms of 3 years and may be reappointed.

21 (2) Any member appointed to fill a vacancy occurring

22 before the expiration of the term for which his predecessor

23 was appointed shall be appointed only for the remainder

24 of such term. Any member of the Commission appointed
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1 for a definite term may serve after the expiration of his

2 term until his successor has taken office.

3 (d) COMPENSATION.—Members of the Commission

4 shall receive no pay on account of their service on the

5 Commission but while away from their homes or regular

6 places of business in the performance of services for the

7 Commission, members of the Commission shall be allowed

8 travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence,

9 in the same manner as persons employed intermittently

10 in the Government service are allowed expenses under sec11 tion 5703 of title 5, United State Code.

12 (e) CHAIRPERSON.—The Chairperson of the Commis13 sion shall be elected by the members of the Commission.

14 (f) QUORUM.—(1) 8 members of the Commission

15 shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number may hold

16 hearings.

17 (2) The affirmative vote of not less than 10 members

18 of the Commission shall be required to approve the budget

19 of the Commission.

20 (g) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall hold its first

21 meeting not later than 90 days after the date on which

22 its members are appointed, and shall meet at least quar23 terly at the call of the chairperson or 10 of its members.

24 Meetings of the Commission shall be subject to section
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1 552(b) of title 5, United States Code (relating to open

2 meetings).

3 (h) PROXY.—Any member of the Commission may

4 vote by means of a signed proxy exercised by another

5 member of the Commission, but any member so voting

6 shall not be considered present for purposes of establish7 ing a quorum.

8 SEC. 6. STAFF OF THE COMMISSION.

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—(1) The Commission shall have

10 the power to appoint and fix compensation of such staff

11 as may be necessary to carry out its duties.

12 (2) Staff appointed by the Commission—

13 (A) shall be appointed subject to the provisions

14 of title 5, United States Code, governing appoint15 ments in the competitive service; and

16 (B) shall be paid in accordance with provisions

17 of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of

18 such title relating to classification and General

19 Schedule pay rates.

20 (b) EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.—Subject to such

21 rules as may be adopted by the Commission, the Commis22 sion may procure temporary and intermittent services to

23 the same extent as is authorized by section 3109(b) of title

24 5, United States Code, but at rates determined by the

25 Commission to be reasonable.
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1 (c) STAFF OF OTHER AGENCIES.—(1) Upon request

2 of the Commission, the head of any Federal agency may

3 detail, on a reimbursable basis, any of the personnel of

4 such agency to the Commission to assist the Commission

5 in carrying out the Commission’s duties.

6 (2) The Commission may accept the service of per7 sonnel detailed from the State, any political subdivision

8 and regional planning organizations, and may reimburse

9 the State, political subdivision, and regional planning or10 ganizations for those services.

11 SEC. 7. POWERS OF COMMISSION.

12 (a) HEARINGS.—(1) The Commission may, for the

13 purposes of carrying out this Act, hold hearings, sit and

14 act at such times and places, take such testimony, and

15 receive such evidence, as the Commission considers appro16 priate.

17 (2) The Commission may not issue subpoenas or ex18 ercise any subpoena authority.

19 (b) POWERS OF MEMBERS AND AGENTS.—Any mem20 ber or agent of the Commission, if so authorized by the

21 Commission, may take any action which the Commission

22 is authorized to take by this Act.

23 (c) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT SERVICES.—The Ad24 ministrator of the General Services Administration shall

25 provide to the Commission on a reimbursable basis, such
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1 administrative support services as the Commission may

2 request.

3 (d) MAILS.—The Commission may use the United

4 States mails in the same manner and under the same con5 ditions as other departments and other agencies of the

6 United States.

7 (e) USE OF FUNDS TO OBTAIN MONEY.—The Com8 mission may use its funds to obtain money from any

9 source under any program or law requiring the recipient

10 of such money to make a contribution in order to receive

11 such money.

12 (f) GIFTS.—(1) Except as provided in subsection

13 (g)(2)(B), the Commission may, for purposes of carrying

14 out its duties, seek, accept, and dispose of gifts, bequests,

15 or donations of money, personal property, or services, re16 ceived from any source: Provided, That such gifts are used

17 for public purposes.

18 (2) For purposes of section 170(c) of the Internal

19 Revenue Code of 1986, any gift to the Commission shall

20 be deemed as a gift to the United States.

21 (g) ACQUISITION OF REAL PROPERTY.—(1) Except

22 as provided in paragraph (2) and except with respect to

23 any leasing of facilities under subsection (c), the Commis24 sion may not acquire any real property or interest in real

25 property.
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1 (2) Subject to paragraph (3), the Commission may

2 acquire real property or interest in real property in the

3 Corridor—

4 (A) by gift or devise; or

5 (B) by purchase from a willing seller with

6 money that was given, appropriated, or bequeathed

7 to the Commission on the condition that such money

8 would be used to purchase real property, or interest

9 in real property, in the Corridor.

10 (3) Any real property or interest in real property ac11 quired by the Commission under paragraph (2) shall be

12 conveyed by the Commission to an appropriate public or

13 private land management agency, as determined by the

14 Commission. Any such conveyance shall be made—

15 (A) as soon as practicable after such acquisi16 tion;

17 (B) without consideration; and

18 (C) on the condition that the real property or

19 interest in real property so conveyed is used for pub20 lic purposes.

21 (h) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—For purposes of

22 carrying out the plan, the Commission may enter into co23 operative agreements with the State of Connecticut, with

24 any political subdivision, or with any person or organiza25 tion. Any such cooperative agreement shall, at a minimum,
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1 establish procedures for providing notice to the Commis2 sion of any action proposed by the State, such political

3 subdivision, or such person which may affect implementa4 tion of the plan referred to in section 8.

5 (i) ADVISORY GROUPS.—The Commission may estab6 lish such advisory groups as it deems necessary to ensure

7 open communication with, and assistance from, the State,

8 political subdivisions of the State, regional planning orga9 nizations and interested persons.

10 SEC. 8. DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION.

11 (a) PREPARATION OF PLAN.—Within 2 years after

12 the Commission conducts its first meeting, it shall submit

13 to the Secretary of the Interior and the Governor of Con14 necticut for review and approval of Cultural Heritage and

15 Corridor Management Plan. The Plan shall be based on

16 existing Federal, State, and local plans, but shall coordi17 nate those plans and present a unified historic preserva18 tion, interpretation, and recreational plan for the Cor19 ridor. The plan shall—

20 (1) provide an inventory which includes any

21 property in the Corridor which should be preserved,

22 restored, managed, developed, maintained, or ac23 quired because of its national historic or cultural or

24 recreational significance;
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1 (2) recommend advisory standards and criteria

2 applicable to the construction, preservation, restora3 tion, alteration, and use of all properties within the

4 Corridor;

5 (3) develop an historic interpretation plan to in6 terpret the history of the Corridor;

7 (4) develop an inventory which includes existing

8 and potential recreational sites which are developed

9 or which could be developed along the Quinebaug

10 and Shetucket Rivers and their surrounding areas;

11 (5) recommend policies for resource manage12 ment which consider and detail application of appro13 priate land and water management techniques, in14 cluding but not limited to, the development of inter15 governmental cooperative agreements to protect the

16 Corridor’s historical, cultural, recreational, scenic,

17 and natural resources in a manner consistent with

18 supporting appropriate and compatible economic re19 vitalization efforts;

20 (6) detail ways in which local, State, and Fed21 eral programs may best be coordinated to promote

22 the purposes of this Act; and

23 (7) contain a program for implementation of

24 the Plan by the State and its political subdivisions.
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1 (b) IMPLEMENTATION OF PLAN.—After review and

2 approval of the Plan by the Secretary and the Governor

3 as provided in subsection (a), the Commission shall imple4 ment the Plan by taking appropriate steps to preserve and

5 interpret the historic resources, develop the recreational

6 resources of the Corridor and its surrounding area, and

7 to support public and private efforts in economic revital8 ization, consistent with the goals of the Plan. These steps

9 may include, but need not be limited to—

10 (1) assisting the State and local governmental

11 entities or regional planning organizations, and non12 profit organizations in preserving the Corridor and

13 ensuring appropriate use of lands and structures

14 throughout the Corridor;

15 (2) assisting the State and local governmental

16 entities or regional planning organizations, and non17 profit organizations in establishing, and maintaining

18 visitor centers and other interpretive exhibits in the

19 Corridor;

20 (3) assisting the State and local governmental

21 entities or regional planning organizations, and non22 profit organizations in developing recreational pro23 grams and resources in the Corridor;

24 (4) assisting the State and local governmental

25 entities or regional planning organizations, and non-
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1 profit organizations in increasing public awareness

2 of and appreciation for the historical and architec3 tural resources and sites in the Corridor;

4 (5) assisting the State and local governmental

5 or regional planning organizations and nonprofit or6 ganizations in the restoration of any historic build7 ing in the Corridor;

8 (6) encouraging by appropriate means enhanced

9 economic and industrial development in the Corridor

10 consistent with the goals of the Plan;

11 (7) encouraging local governments to adopt

12 land use policies consistent with the management of

13 the Corridor and the goals of the Plan, and to en14 sure appropriate use of lands and structures

15 throughout the Corridor; and

16 (8) assisting the State and local governmental

17 entities or regional planning organizations to ensure

18 that clear, consistent signs identifying access points

19 and sites of interest are put in place throughout the

20 Corridor.

21 SEC. 9. TERMINATION OF COMMISSION.

22 (a) TERMINATION.—Except as provided in subsection

23 (b), the Commission shall terminate on the day occurring

24 5 years after the date of enactment of this Act.
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1 (b) EXTENSION.—The Commission may be extended

2 for a period of not more than 5 years beginning on the

3 day of termination referred to in subsection (a) if, not

4 later than 180 days before such day—

5 (1) the Commission determines such extension

6 is necessary in order to carry out the purposes of

7 this Act;

8 (2) the Commission submits such proposed ex9 tension to the Committee on Natural Resources of

10 the United States House of Representatives and the

11 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the

12 United States Senate; and

13 (3) the Secretary, in consultation with the Gov14 ernor of Connecticut, approves such extension.

15 SEC. 10. DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY.

16 (a) APPROVAL OF PLAN.—The Secretary of the Inte17 rior, in consultation with the Governor of Connecticut,

18 shall approve or disapprove a Plan submitted under this

19 Act by the Commission not later than 60 days after receiv20 ing such Plan. The Secretary, in consultation with the

21 Governor, shall approve a Plan submitted if—

22 (1) they find the Plan, if implemented, would

23 adequately protect significant historical and cultural

24 resources of the Corridor while providing adequate
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1 and appropriate outdoor recreational opportunities

2 and economic activities within the Corridor;

3 (2) they determine that the Commission held

4 public hearings and provided adequate opportunity

5 for public and governmental involvement in the prep6 aration of the Plan; and

7 (3) the Secretary receives adequate assurances

8 from appropriate State officials that the rec9 ommended implementation program identified in the

10 Plan will be initiated within a reasonable time after

11 date of approval of the Plan, and that such imple12 mentation program will ensure effective implementa13 tion of the State and local aspects of the Plan.

14 (b) DISAPPROVAL OF PLAN.—If the Secretary dis15 approves a Plan submitted to him by the Commission, he

16 shall advise the Commission in writing of the reasons

17 therefor and shall make recommendations for revisions in

18 the Plan. The Commission shall within 90 days of receipt

19 of such notice of disapproval revise and resubmit the plan

20 to the Secretary who shall approve or disapprove a pro21 posed revision within 60 days after the date it is submitted

22 to him.

23 (c) ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary of the Interior shall,

24 upon request of the Commission, assist the Commission

25 in the preparation and implementation of Plan.
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1 SEC. 11. DUTIES OF OTHER FEDERAL ENTITIES.

2 Any Federal entity conducting or supporting activi3 ties directly affecting the Corridor shall—

4 (1) consult with the Secretary and the Commis5 sion with respect to such activities;

6 (2) cooperate with the Secretary and the Com7 mission with respect to such activities and, to the

8 maximum extent practicable, coordinate such activi9 ties; and

10 (3) to the maximum extent practicable, conduct

11 or support such activities in a manner which the

12 Commission determines will not have an adverse ef13 fect on the Corridor.

14 SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

15 (a) COMMISSION.—There is authorized to be appro16 priated $200,000 for fiscal year 1994 and 250,000 annu17 ally to the Commission to carry out its duties under this

18 Act except that the Federal contributions to the Commis19 sion shall not exceed 50 percent of the annual costs to

20 the Commission in carrying out those duties.

21 (b) SECRETARY.—There are authorized to be appro22 priated annually to the Secretary such sums as may be

23 necessary to carry out his duties under this Act.

24 SEC. 13. DEFINITIONS.

25 For purposes of this Act—
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1 (1) The term ‘‘Commission’’ means the

2 Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley National

3 Heritage Corridor Commission established under

4 section 5.

5 (2) The term ‘‘State’’ means the State of Con6 necticut.

7 (3) The term ‘‘Corridor’’ means the Quinebaug

8 and Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage Cor9 ridor established under section 3.

10 (4) The term ‘‘Plan’’ means the Cultural Herit11 age and Corridor Management Plan to be prepared

12 by the Commission pursuant to section 8.

13 (5) The term ‘‘Governor’’ means the Governor

14 of the State of Connecticut.

15 (6) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary

16 of the Interior.

17 (7) The term ‘‘regional planning organization’’

18 means each of the 3 regional planning organizations

19 established by Connecticut State statute chapter 127

20 and chapter 50 (the Northeast Council of Govern21 ments, the Windham Regional Planning Agency or

22 its successor, and the Southeastern Connecticut Re23 gional Planning Agency or its successor).

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