II 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2296 

To establish the Northern Neck National Heritage Area, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 24, 2021 

Mr. WARNER (for himself and Mr. KAINE) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources 

A BILL 

To establish the Northern Neck National Heritage Area, 

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 ‘‘Northern Neck Na5 tional Heritage Area Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

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

9 Area’’ means the Northern Neck National Heritage 

10 Area established by section 3(a). 


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1 (2) LOCAL COORDINATING ENTITY.—The term 

2 ‘‘Local Coordinating Entity’’ means the local coordi3 nating entity for the Heritage Area designated by 

4 section 3(c). 

5 (3) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The term ‘‘manage6 ment plan’’ means the management plan for the 

7 Heritage Area prepared under section 5(a). 

8 (4) MAP.—The term ‘‘map’’ means the map en9 titled ‘‘Northern Neck National Heritage Area Fea10 sibility Study’’, as included on page 87 of the feasi11 bility study prepared by the National Park Service 

12 entitled ‘‘Northern Neck National Heritage Area 

13 Feasibility Study’’ and dated June 2020. 

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

15 the Secretary of the Interior. 

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

17 of Virginia. 

18 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF NORTHERN NECK NATIONAL 

19 HERITAGE AREA. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is established in the State 

21 the Northern Neck National Heritage Area, as depicted 

22 on the map, to be administered in accordance with this 

23 Act. 

24 (b) BOUNDARIES.—The Heritage Area shall include 

25 land between the Potomac River and Rappahannock River 


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1 of the eastern coastal region of the State, including King 

2 George, Lancaster, Northumberland, Richmond, and 

3 Westmoreland Counties, the boundaries of which are de4 picted on the map. 

5 (c) LOCAL COORDINATING ENTITY.—The Northern 

6 Neck Tourism Commission, a working committee of the 

7 Northern Neck Planning District Commission, shall serve 

8 as the local coordinating entity for the Heritage Area. 

9 SEC. 4. ADMINISTRATION. 

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

11 management plan, the Secretary (acting through the Local 

12 Coordinating Entity) may use amounts made available 

13 under section 9— 

14 (1) to make grants to the State, political sub15 divisions of the State, Indian Tribes, nonprofit orga16 nizations, and other entities; 

17 (2) to enter into cooperative agreements with, 

18 or provide technical assistance to, the State, political 

19 subdivisions of the State, Indian Tribes, nonprofit 

20 organizations, and other interested persons; 

21 (3) to hire and compensate staff, which shall in22 clude individuals with expertise in natural, cultural, 

23 and historical resources protection and heritage pro24 gramming; 


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1 (4) to obtain money or services from any 

2 source, including any money or services that are pro3 vided under any other Federal law or program; 

4 (5) to contract for goods or services; and 

5 (6) to undertake any other activity that— 

6 (A) furthers the purposes of the Heritage 

7 Area; and 

8 (B) is consistent with the approved man9 agement plan. 

10 (b) DUTIES.—The Local Coordinating Entity shall— 

11 (1) assist Federal agencies, the State, political 

12 subdivisions of the State, Indian Tribes, regional 

13 planning organizations, nonprofit organizations, and 

14 other interested persons in carrying out the ap15 proved management plan by— 

16 (A) carrying out programs and projects 

17 that recognize, protect, and enhance important 

18 resource values in the Heritage Area; 

19 (B) establishing and maintaining interpre20 tive exhibits and programs in the Heritage 

21 Area; 

22 (C) developing recreational and educational 

23 opportunities in the Heritage Area; 


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1 (D) increasing public awareness of, and 

2 appreciation for, natural, historical, scenic, and 

3 cultural resources of the Heritage Area; 

4 (E) protecting and restoring historic sites 

5 and buildings in the Heritage Area that are 

6 consistent with the themes of the Heritage 

7 Area; 

8 (F) ensuring that clear, consistent, and ap9 propriate signs identifying points of public ac10 cess and sites of interest are posted throughout 

11 the Heritage Area; and 

12 (G) promoting a wide range of partner13 ships among the Federal Government, State, 

14 Tribal, and local governments, organizations, 

15 and individuals to further the purposes of the 

16 Heritage Area; 

17 (2) consider the interests of diverse units of 

18 government, businesses, organizations, and individ19 uals in the Heritage Area in the preparation and im20 plementation of the management plan; 

21 (3) conduct meetings open to the public not less 

22 frequently than semiannually regarding the develop23 ment and implementation of the management plan; 

24 (4) for any year that Federal funds have been 

25 received under this subsection— 


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1 (A) submit to the Secretary an annual re2 port that describes the activities, expenses, and 

3 income of the Local Coordinating Entity (in4 cluding grants to any other entities during the 

5 period covered by the report); 

6 (B) make available to the Secretary for 

7 audit all records relating to the expenditure of 

8 the funds and any matching funds; and 

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 (5) encourage, by appropriate means and con16 sistent with the purposes of the Heritage Area, the 

17 economic viability of the Heritage Area. 

18 (c) PROHIBITION ON THE ACQUISITION OF REAL

19 PROPERTY.—The Local Coordinating Entity shall not use 

20 Federal funds made available under section 9 to acquire 

21 real property or any interest in real property. 

22 SEC. 5. MANAGEMENT PLAN. 

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

24 date on which funds are first made available to carry out 

25 this Act, the Local Coordinating Entity shall submit to 


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1 the Secretary for approval a proposed management plan 

2 for the Heritage Area. 

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

4 (1) incorporate an integrated and cooperative 

5 approach for the protection, enhancement, and inter6 pretation of the natural, cultural, historic, scenic, 

7 and recreational resources of the Heritage Area; 

8 (2) take into consideration other applicable 

9 Federal, State, local, and Tribal plans and treaty 

10 rights; 

11 (3) include— 

12 (A) an inventory of— 

13 (i) the resources located in the Herit14 age Area; and 

15 (ii) any other property in the Heritage 

16 Area that— 

17 (I) is related to the themes of the 

18 Heritage Area; and 

19 (II) should be preserved, re20 stored, managed, or maintained be21 cause of the significance of the prop22 erty; 

23 (B) comprehensive policies, strategies, and 

24 recommendations for the conservation, funding, 


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1 management, and development of the Heritage 

2 Area; 

3 (C) a description of activities that the Fed4 eral Government, State, Tribal, and local gov5 ernments, private organizations, and individuals 

6 have agreed to carry out to protect the natural, 

7 historical, cultural, scenic, and recreational re8 sources of the Heritage Area; 

9 (D) a program of implementation for the 

10 management plan by the Local Coordinating 

11 Entity that includes a description of— 

12 (i) actions to facilitate ongoing col13 laboration among partners to promote 

14 plans for resource protection, restoration, 

15 and construction; and 

16 (ii) specific commitments for imple17 mentation that have been made by the 

18 Local Coordinating Entity or any unit of 

19 government, organization, or individual for 

20 the first 5 years of operation of the Herit21 age Area; 

22 (E) the identification of sources of funding 

23 to implement the management plan; 

24 (F) analysis and recommendations for 

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1 al programs (including the role of the National 

2 Park Service in the Heritage Area) may carry 

3 out the purposes of this Act; 

4 (G) an interpretive plan for the Heritage 

5 Area; and 

6 (H) recommended policies and strategies 

7 for resource management that consider and de8 tail the application of appropriate land and 

9 water management techniques, including the de10 velopment of intergovernmental and interagency 

11 cooperative agreements to protect the natural, 

12 historical, cultural, educational, scenic, and rec13 reational resources of the Heritage Area. 

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

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

16 after the date on which funds are first made available to 

17 carry out this Act, the Local Coordinating Entity shall be 

18 ineligible to receive additional funding under this Act until 

19 the date on which the Secretary approves the management 

20 plan. 

21 (d) APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL OF MANAGEMENT

22 PLAN.— 

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

24 after the date of receipt of the management plan 

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


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1 with State and Tribal governments, shall approve or 

2 disapprove the management plan. 

3 (2) CRITERIA FOR APPROVAL.—In determining 

4 whether to approve the management plan, the Sec5 retary shall consider whether— 

6 (A) the Local Coordinating Entity is rep7 resentative of the diverse interests of the Herit8 age Area, including the Federal Government, 

9 State, Tribal, and local governments, natural 

10 and historic resource protection organizations, 

11 educational institutions, businesses, and rec12 reational organizations; 

13 (B) the Local Coordinating Entity has af14 forded adequate opportunity, including public 

15 hearings, for public and governmental involve16 ment in the preparation of the management 

17 plan; and 

18 (C) the resource protection and interpreta19 tion strategies contained in the management 

20 plan, if implemented, would adequately protect 

21 the natural, historical, and cultural resources of 

22 the Heritage Area. 

23 (3) ACTION FOLLOWING DISAPPROVAL.—If the 

24 Secretary disapproves the management plan under 

25 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall— 


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1 (A) advise the Local Coordinating Entity 

2 in writing of the reasons for the disapproval; 

3 (B) make recommendations to the Local 

4 Coordinating Entity for revisions to the man5 agement plan; and 

6 (C) not later than 180 days after the re7 ceipt of any proposed revision of the manage8 ment plan from the Local Coordinating Entity, 

9 approve or disapprove the proposed revision. 

10 (4) AMENDMENTS.— 

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ap12 prove or disapprove each amendment of the 

13 management plan that the Secretary determines 

14 makes a substantial change to the management 

15 plan. 

16 (B) USE OF FUNDS.—The Local Coordi17 nating Entity shall not use Federal funds au18 thorized under section 9 to carry out any 

19 amendment to the management plan until the 

20 date on which the Secretary has approved the 

21 amendment. 

22 SEC. 6. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this Act affects the au24 thority of a Federal agency to provide technical or finan25 cial assistance under any other law. 


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1 (b) CONSULTATION AND COORDINATION.—The head 

2 of any Federal agency planning to conduct activities that 

3 may have an impact on the Heritage Area is encouraged 

4 to consult and coordinate the activities with the Secretary 

5 and the Local Coordinating Entity to the maximum extent 

6 practicable. 

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

8 Act— 

9 (1) modifies, alters, or amends any law (includ10 ing regulations) authorizing a Federal agency to 

11 manage Federal land under the jurisdiction of the 

12 Federal agency; 

13 (2) limits the discretion of a Federal land man14 ager to implement an approved land use plan within 

15 the boundaries of the Heritage Area; or 

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

17 use of Federal land under the jurisdiction of a Fed18 eral agency. 

19 SEC. 7. PRIVATE PROPERTY AND REGULATORY PROTEC20 TIONS. 

21 Nothing in this Act— 

22 (1) abridges the rights of any property owner 

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1 gram, or activity conducted within the Heritage 

2 Area; 

3 (2) requires any property owner— 

4 (A) to permit public access (including ac5 cess by Federal, State, or local agencies) to the 

6 property of the property owner; or 

7 (B) to modify public access or use of prop8 erty of the property owner under any other 

9 Federal, State, or local law; 

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

11 approved land use plan, or other regulatory author12 ity of any Federal, State, Tribal, or local agency; 

13 (4) conveys any land use or other regulatory 

14 authority to the Local Coordinating Entity; 

15 (5) authorizes or implies the reservation or ap16 propriation of water or water rights; 

17 (6) enlarges or diminishes the treaty rights of 

18 any Indian Tribe within the Heritage Area; 

19 (7) diminishes— 

20 (A) the authority of the State to manage 

21 fish and wildlife, including the regulation of 

22 fishing and hunting, within the Heritage Area; 

23 or 

24 (B) the authority of Indian Tribes to regu25 late members of Indian Tribes with respect to 


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1 fishing, hunting, and gathering in the exercise 

2 of treaty rights; or 

3 (8) creates any liability, or affects any liability 

4 under any other law, of any private property owner 

5 with respect to any person injured on the private 

6 property. 

7 SEC. 8. EVALUATION AND REPORT. 

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

9 date on which authority for Federal funding terminates 

10 for the Heritage Area, the Secretary shall— 

11 (1) conduct an evaluation of the accomplish12 ments of the Heritage Area; and 

13 (2) prepare a report in accordance with sub14 section (c). 

15 (b) EVALUATION.—An evaluation conducted under 

16 subsection (a)(1) shall— 

17 (1) assess the progress of the Local Coordi18 nating Entity with respect to— 

19 (A) accomplishing the purposes of the Her20 itage Area; and 

21 (B) achieving the goals and objectives of 

22 the approved management plan; 

23 (2) analyze the investments of the Federal Gov24 ernment, State, Tribal, and local governments, and 


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1 private entities in the Heritage Area to determine 

2 the impact of the investments; and 

3 (3) review the management structure, partner4 ship relationships, and funding of the Heritage Area 

5 for purposes of identifying the critical components 

6 for sustainability of the Heritage Area. 

7 (c) REPORT.—Based on the evaluation conducted 

8 under subsection (a)(1), the Secretary shall submit to the 

9 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Sen10 ate and the Committee on Natural Resources of the House 

11 of Representatives a report that includes recommendations 

12 for the future role of the National Park Service, if any, 

13 with respect to the Heritage Area. 

14 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro16 priated for the Heritage Area to carry out the purposes 

17 of this Act $10,000,000, of which not more than 

18 $1,000,000 may be made available in any fiscal year. 

19 (b) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts made available under 

20 subsection (a) shall remain available until expended. 

21 (c) COST-SHARING REQUIREMENT.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Federal share of the 

23 total cost of any activity under this Act shall be not 

24 more than 50 percent. 


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1 (2) FORM.—The non-Federal share of the total 

2 cost of any activity under this Act may be in the 

3 form of in-kind contributions of goods or services 

4 fairly valued. 

5 (d) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.—The authority of 

6 the Secretary to provide assistance under this Act termi7 nates on the date that is 15 years after the date of enact8 ment of this Act. 

Æ 


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