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103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1348

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

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,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

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

5 Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage Corridor Act

6 of 1993’’.

7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

8 Congress finds that:
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1 (1) The Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley

2 in the State of Connecticut is one of the last un3 spoiled and undeveloped areas in the Northeastern

4 United States and has remained largely intact, in5 cluding important aboriginal archaeological sites, ex6 cellent water quality, beautiful rural landscapes,

7 architecturally significant mill structures and mill

8 villages, and large acreage of parks and other per9 manent open space.

10 (2) The State of Connecticut ranks last among

11 the 50 States in the amount of federally protected

12 park and open space lands within its borders and

13 lags far behind the other northeastern States in the

14 amount of land set-aside for public recreation.

15 (3) The beautiful rural landscapes, scenic vistas

16 and excellent water quality of the Quinebaug and

17 Shetucket Rivers contain significant undeveloped

18 recreational opportunities for people throughout the

19 United States.

20 (4) The Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley

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

22 areas of New York City, Hartford, Providence,

23 Worcester, Springfield, and Boston. With the Presi24 dent’s Commission on Americans Outdoors reporting

25 that Americans are taking shorter ‘‘closer-to-home’’
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1 vacations, the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Val2 ley represents important close-by recreational oppor3 tunities for significant population.

4 (5) The existing mill sites and other structures

5 throughout the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers

6 Valley were instrumental in the development of the

7 industrial revolution.

8 (6) The Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley

9 contains a vast number of discovered and unre10 covered Native American and colonial archaeological

11 sites significant to the history of North America and

12 the United States.

13 (7) The Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley

14 represents one of the last traditional upland farming

15 and mill village communities in the northeastern

16 United States.

17 (8) The Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley

18 played a nationally significant role in the cultural

19 evolution of the prewar colonial period. Leading the

20 transformation from Puritan to Yankee, the ‘‘Great

21 Awakening’’ religious revival and early political de22 velopment leading up to and during the War of

23 Indpendence.

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

25 businesses, and private citizens and the New Eng-
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1 land Governors’ Conference have expressed an over2 whelming desire to combine forces: to work coopera3 tively to preserve and enhance resources region-wide

4 and better plan for the future.

5 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF QUINEBAUG AND SHETUCKET

6 RIVERS VALLEY NATIONAL HERITAGE COR7 RIDOR; PURPOSE.

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

9 the State of Connecticut the Quinebaug and Shetucket

10 Rivers Valley National Heritage Corridor.

11 (b) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this Act to pro12 vide a management framework to assist the State of Con13 necticut, its units of local and regional government and

14 citizens in the development and implementation of inte15 grated cultural, historical, and recreational land resource

16 management programs in order to retain, enhance, and

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

18 structures of the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley

19 in the State of Connecticut.

20 SEC. 4. BOUNDARIES AND ADMINISTRATION.

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

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

23 Chaplin, Coventry, Eastford, Franklin, Griswold, Hamp24 ton, Killingly, Lebanon, Lisbon, Mansfield, Norwich,

25 Plainfield, Pomfret, Preston, Putnam, Scotland, Sprague,
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1 Sterling, Thompson, Voluntown, Windham, and Wood2 stock. As soon as practical after the date of enactment

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

4 the Federal Register a detailed description and map of

5 boundaries established under this subsection.

6 (b) ADMINISTRATION.—The Corridor shall be admin7 istered in accordance with the provisions of this Act.

8 SEC. 5. QUINEBAUG AND SHETUCKET RIVERS VALLEY NA9 TIONAL HERITAGE CORRIDOR COMMISSION.

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is hereby established

11 the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley National Her12 itage Corridor Commission (referred to in this Act as the

13 ‘‘Commission’’). The Commission shall assist appropriate

14 Federal, State, regional planning organizations, and local

15 authorities in the development and implementation of an

16 integrated resource management plan for the lands and

17 water as specified in section 3.

18 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Commission shall be com19 prised of 19 members appointed not later than 6 months

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

21 (1) The Director of the National Park Service

22 ex officio (or his delegate).

23 (2) 3 individuals nominated by the Governor

24 and appointed by the Secretary, who shall be—
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1 (A) the Commissioner of the Connecticut

2 Department of Environmental Protection, or a

3 person representing the interests of the Com4 missioner;

5 (B) the Chairman of the Connecticut His6 torical Commission or a person representing the

7 interests of the Chairman, and

8 (C) the Commissioner of the Connecticut

9 Department of Economic Development or a per10 son representing the interests of the Commis11 sioner;

12 (3) 6 individuals representing the interests of

13 local government or regional planning organizations

14 from Connecticut appointed by the Secretary after

15 receiving recommendations from the Governor, of

16 whom, 3 shall be representatives of the 3 regional

17 planning organizations within the Corridor region

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

19 and

20 (4) 9 individuals from the general public, who

21 are citizens of the State of Connecticut, appointed

22 by the Secretary, after receiving recommendations

23 from the Governor, representing conservation, busi24 ness, tourism, and recreational interests.
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1 A vacancy in the Commission shall be filled in the manner

2 in which the original appointments were made.

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

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

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

6 before the expiration of the term for which his predecessor

7 was appointed shall be appointed only for the remainder

8 of such term. Any member of the Commission appointed

9 for a definite term may serve after the expiration of his

10 term until his successor has taken office.

11 (d) COMPENSATION.—Members of the Commission

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

13 Commission but while away from their homes or regular

14 places of business in the performance of services for the

15 Commission, members of the Commission shall be allowed

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

17 in the same manner as persons employed intermittently

18 in the Government service are allowed expenses under sec19 tion 5703 of title 5, United State Code.

20 (e) CHAIRPERSON.—The Chairperson of the Commis21 sion shall be elected by the members of the Commission.

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

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

24 hearings.
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1 (2) The affirmative vote of not less than 10 members

2 of the Commission shall be required to approve the budget

3 of the Commission.

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

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

6 its members are appointed, and shall meet at least quar7 terly at the call of the chairperson or 10 of its members.

8 Meetings of the Commission shall be subject to section

9 552(b) of title 5, United States Code (relating to open

10 meetings).

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

12 vote by means of a signed proxy exercised by another

13 member of the Commission, but any member so voting

14 shall not be considered present for purposes of establish15 ing a quorum.

16 SEC. 6. STAFF OF THE COMMISSION.

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

18 the power to appoint and fix compensation of such staff

19 as may be necessary to carry out its duties.

20 (2) Staff appointed by the Commission—

21 (A) shall be appointed subject to the provisions

22 of title 5, United States Code, governing appoint23 ments in the competitive service; and

24 (B) shall be paid in accordance with provisions

25 of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of
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1 such title relating to classification and General

2 Schedule pay rates.

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

4 rules as may be adopted by the Commission, the Commis5 sion may procure temporary and intermittent services to

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

7 5, United States Code, but at rates determined by the

8 Commission to be reasonable.

9 (c) STAFF OF OTHER AGENCIES.—(1) Upon request

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

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

12 such agency to the Commission to assist the Commission

13 in carrying out the Commission’s duties.

14 (2) The Commission may accept the service of per15 sonnel detailed from the State, any political subdivision

16 and regional planning organizations, and may reimburse

17 the State, political subdivision, and regional planning or18 ganizations for those services.

19 SEC. 7. POWERS OF COMMISSION.

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

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

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

23 receive such evidence, as the Commission considers appro24 priate.
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1 (2) The Commission may not issue subpoenas or ex2 ercise any subpoena authority.

3 (b) POWERS OF MEMBERS AND AGENTS.—Any mem4 ber or agent of the Commission, if so authorized by the

5 Commission, may take any action which the Commission

6 is authorized to take by this Act.

7 (c) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT SERVICES.—The Ad8 ministrator of the General Services Administration shall

9 provide to the Commission on a reimbursable basis, such

10 administrative support services as the Commission may re11 quest.

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

13 States mails in the same manner and under the same con14 ditions as other departments and other agencies of the

15 United States.

16 (e) USE OF FUNDS TO OBTAIN MONEY.—The Com17 mission may use its funds to obtain money from any

18 source under any program or law requiring the recipient

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

20 such money.

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

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

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

24 or donations of money, personal property, or services, re25 ceived from any source.
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1 (2) For purposes of section 170(c) of the Internal

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

3 be deemed as a gift to the United States.

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

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

6 any leasing of facilities under subsection (c), the Commis7 sion may not acquire any real property or interest in real

8 property.

9 (2) Subject to paragraph (3), the Commission may

10 acquire real property or interest in real property in the

11 Corridor—

12 (A) by gift or devise; or

13 (B) by purchase from a willing seller with

14 money that was given, appropriated, or bequeathed

15 to the Commission on the condition that such money

16 would be used to purchase real property, or interest

17 in real property, in the Corridor.

18 (3) Any real property or interest in real property ac19 quired by the Commission under paragraph (2) shall be

20 conveyed by the Commission to an appropriate public or

21 private land management agency, as determined by the

22 Commission. Any such conveyance shall be made—

23 (A) as soon as practicable after such acquisi24 tion;

25 (B) without consideration; and
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1 (C) on the condition that the real property or

2 interest in real property so conveyed is used for pub3 lic purposes.

4 (h) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—For purposes of

5 carrying out the plan, the Commission may enter into co6 operative agreements with the State of Connecticut, with

7 any political subdivision, or with any person or organiza8 tion. Any such cooperative agreement shall, at a minimum,

9 establish procedures for providing notice to the Commis10 sion of any action proposed by the State, such political

11 subdivision, or such person which may affect implementa12 tion of the plan referred to in section 8.

13 (i) ADVISORY GROUPS.—The Commission may estab14 lish such advisory groups as it deems necessary to ensure

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

16 political subdivisions of the State, regional planning orga17 nizations and interested persons.

18 SEC. 8. DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION.

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

20 the Commission conducts its first meeting, it shall submit

21 to the Secretary of the Interior and the Governor of Con22 necticut for review and approval of Cultural Heritage and

23 Corridor Management Plan. The Plan shall be based on

24 existing Federal, State, and local plans, but shall coordi25 nate those plans and present a unified historic preserva-
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1 tion, interpretation, and recreational plan for the Cor2 ridor. The plan shall—

3 (1) provide an inventory which includes any

4 property in the Corridor which should be preserved,

5 restored, managed, developed, maintained, or ac6 quired because of its national historic or cultural or

7 recreational significance;

8 (2) recommend advisory standards and criteria

9 applicable to the construction, preservation, restora10 tion, alteration, and use of all properties within the

11 Corridor;

12 (3) develop an historic interpretation plan to in13 terpret the history of the Corridor;

14 (4) develop an inventory which includes existing

15 and potential recreational sites which are developed

16 or which could be developed along the Quinebaug

17 and Shetucket Rivers and their surrounding areas;

18 (5) recommend policies for resource manage19 ment which consider and detail application of appro20 priate land and water management techniques, in21 cluding but not limited to, the development of inter22 governmental cooperative agreements to protect the

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

24 and natural resources in a manner consistent with
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1 supporting appropriate and compatible economic re2 vitalization efforts;

3 (6) detail ways in which local, State, and Fed4 eral programs may best be coordinated to promote

5 the purposes of this Act; and

6 (7) contain a program for implementation of

7 the Plan by the State and its political subdivisions.

8 (b) IMPLEMENTATION OF PLAN.—After review and

9 approval of the Plan by the Secretary and the Governor

10 as provided in subsection (a), the Commission shall imple11 ment the Plan by taking appropriate steps to preserve and

12 interpret the historic resources, develop the recreational

13 resources of the Corridor and its surrounding area, and

14 to support public and private efforts in economic revital15 ization, consistent with the goals of the Plan. These steps

16 may include, but need not be limited to—

17 (1) assisting the State and local governmental

18 entities or regional planning organizations, and non19 profit organizations in preserving the Corridor and

20 ensuring appropriate use of lands and structures

21 throughout the Corridor;

22 (2) assisting the State and local governmental

23 entities or regional planning organizations, and non24 profit organizations in establishing, and maintaining
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1 visitor centers and other interpretive exhibits in the

2 Corridor;

3 (3) assisting the State and local governmental

4 entities or regional planning organizations, and non5 profit organizations in developing recreational pro6 grams and resources in the Corridor;

7 (4) assisting the State and local governmental

8 entities or regional planning organizations, and non9 profit organizations in increasing public awareness

10 of and appreciation for the historical and architec11 tural resources and sites in the Corridor;

12 (5) assisting the State and local governmental

13 or regional planning organizations and nonprofit or14 ganizations in the restoration of any historic build15 ing in the Corridor;

16 (6) encouraging by appropriate means enhanced

17 economic and industrial development in the Corridor

18 consistent with the goals of the Plan;

19 (7) encouraging local governments to adopt

20 land use policies consistent with the management of

21 the Corridor and the goals of the Plan, and to en22 sure appropriate use of lands and structures

23 throughout the Corridor; and

24 (8) assisting the State and local governmental

25 entities or regional planning organizations to ensure
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1 that clear, consistent signs identifying access points

2 and sites of interest are put in place throughout the

3 Corridor.

4 SEC. 9. TERMINATION OF COMMISSION.

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

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

7 5 years after the date of enactment of this Act.

8 (b) EXTENSION.—The Commission may be extended

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

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

11 later than 180 days before such day—

12 (1) the Commission determines such extension

13 is necessary in order to carry out the purposes of

14 this Act;

15 (2) the Commission submits such proposed ex16 tension to the Committee on Natural Resources of

17 the United States House of Representatives and the

18 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the

19 United States Senate; and

20 (3) the Secretary, in consultation with the Gov21 ernor of Connecticut, approves such extension.

22 SEC. 10. DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY.

23 (a) APPROVAL OF PLAN.—The Secretary of the Inte24 rior, in consultation with the Governor of Connecticut,

25 shall approve or disapprove a Plan submitted under this
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1 Act by the Commission not later than 60 days after receiv2 ing such Plan. The Secretary, in consultation with the

3 Governor, shall approve a Plan submitted if—

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

5 adequately protect significant historical and cultural

6 resources of the Corridor while providing adequate

7 and appropriate outdoor recreational opportunities

8 and economic activities within the Corridor;

9 (2) they determine that the Commission held

10 public hearings and provided adequate opportunity

11 for public and governmental involvement in the prep12 aration of the Plan; and

13 (3) the Secretary receives adequate assurances

14 from appropriate State officials that the rec15 ommended implementation program identified in the

16 Plan will be initiated within a reasonable time after

17 date of approval of the Plan, and that such imple18 mentation program will ensure effective implementa19 tion of the State and local aspects of the Plan.

20 (d) DISAPPROVAL OF PLAN.—If the Secretary dis21 approves a Plan submitted to him by the Commission, he

22 shall advise the Commission in writing of the reasons

23 therefor and shall make recommendations for revisions in

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

25 of such notice of disapproval revise and resubmit the plan
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1 to the Secretary who shall approve or disapprove a pro2 posed revision within 60 days after the date it is submitted

3 to him.

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

5 upon request of the Commission, assist the Commission

6 in the preparation and implementation of Plan.

7 SEC. 11. DUTIES OF OTHER FEDERAL ENTITIES.

8 Any Federal entity conducting or supporting activi9 ties directly affecting the Corridor shall—

10 (1) consult with the Secretary and the Commis11 sion with respect to such activities;

12 (2) cooperate with the Secretary and the Com13 mission with respect to such activities and, to the

14 maximum extent practicable, coordinate such activi15 ties; and

16 (3) to the maximum extent practicable, conduct

17 or support such activities in a manner which the

18 Commission determines will not have an adverse ef19 fect on the Corridor.

20 SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

21 (a) COMMISSION.—There is authorized to be appro22 priated $200,000 for fiscal year 1994 and 250,000 annu23 ally to the Commission to carry out its duties under this

24 Act except that the Federal contributions to the Commis-
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1 sion shall not exceed 50 percent of the annual costs to

2 the Commission in carrying out those duties.

3 (b) SECRETARY.—There are authorized to be appro4 priated annually to the Secretary such sums as may be

5 necessary to carry out his duties under this Act.

6 SEC. 13. DEFINITIONS.

7 For purposes of this Act—

8 (1) The term ‘‘Commission’’ means the

9 Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley National

10 Heritage Corridor Commission established under

11 section 5.

12 (2) The term ‘‘State’’ means the State of Con13 necticut.

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

15 and Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage Cor16 ridor established under section 3.

17 (4) The term ‘‘Plan’’ means the Cultural Herit18 age and Corridor Management Plan to be prepared

19 by the Commission pursuant to section 8.

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

21 of the State of Connecticut.

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

23 of the Interior.

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

25 means each of the 3 regional planning organizations
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1 established by Connecticut State statute chapter 127

2 and chapter 50 (the Northeast Council of Govern3 ments, the Windham Regional Planning Agency or

4 its successor, and the Southeastern Connecticut Re5 gional Planning Agency or its successor).

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