I 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2297

To establish the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 11, 2005

Ms. MCKINNEY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Resources 

A BILL

To establish the Arabia Mountain 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; FINDINGS; PURPOSES. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area Act’’. 

6 (b) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

7 (1) The Arabia Mountain area contains a vari8 ety of natural, cultural, historical, scenic, and rec9 reational resources that together represent distinc10 tive aspects of the heritage of the United States that 
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1 are worthy of recognition, conservation, interpreta2 tion, and continuing use. 

3 (2) The best methods for managing the re4 sources of the Arabia Mountain area would be 

5 through partnerships between public and private en6 tities that combine diverse resources and active com7 munities. 

8 (3) Davidson-Arabia Mountain Nature Pre9 serve, a 535-acre park in DeKalb County, Georgia—

10 (A) protects granite outcrop ecosystems, 

11 wetland, and pine and oak forests; and 

12 (B) includes federally-protected plant spe13 cies. 

14 (4) Panola Mountain, a national natural land15 mark, located in the 860-acre Panola Mountain 

16 State Conservation Park, is a rare example of a 

17 pristine granite outcrop. 

18 (5) The archaeological site at Miners Creek 

19 Preserve along the South River contains documented 

20 evidence of early human activity. 

21 (6) The city of Lithonia, Georgia, and related 

22 sites of Arabia Mountain and Stone Mountain pos23 sess sites that display the history of granite mining 

24 as an industry and culture in Georgia, and the im25 pact of that industry on the United States. 
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1 (7) The community of Klondike is eligible for 

2 designation as a National Historic District. 

3 (8) The city of Lithonia has 2 structures listed 

4 on the National Register of Historic Places. 

5 (c) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are as fol6 lows: 

7 (1) To recognize, preserve, promote, interpret, 

8 and make available for the benefit of the public the 

9 natural, cultural, historical, scenic, and recreational 

10 resources in the area that includes Arabia Mountain, 

11 Panola Mountain, Miners Creek, and other signifi12 cant sites and communities. 

13 (2) To assist the State of Georgia and the 

14 counties of DeKalb, Rockdale, and Henry in the 

15 State in developing and implementing an integrated 

16 cultural, historical, and land resource management 

17 program to protect, enhance, and interpret the sig18 nificant resources within the heritage area. 

19 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

20 For the purposes of this Act, the following definitions 

21 apply: 

22 (1) HERITAGE AREA.—The term ‘‘heritage 

23 area’’ means the Arabia Mountain National Heritage 

24 Area established by section 3. 
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1 (2) MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—The term ‘‘man2 agement entity’’ means the DeKalb County Parks 

3 and Recreation Department or a successor of the 

4 DeKalb County Parks and Recreation Department. 

5 (3) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The term ‘‘manage6 ment plan’’ means the management plan for the her7 itage area developed under section 5. 

8 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

9 the Secretary of the Interior. 

10 (5) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State 

11 of Georgia. 

12 SEC. 3. ARABIA MOUNTAIN NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA. 

13 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the Ara14 bia Mountain National Heritage Area in the State. 

15 (b) BOUNDARIES.—The heritage area shall consist of 

16 certain parcels of land in the counties of DeKalb, 

17 Rockdale, and Henry in the State, as generally depicted 

18 on the map entitled ‘‘Arabia Mountain National Heritage 

19 Area’’, numbered AMNHA/80,000, and dated October, 

20 2003. 

21 (c) AVAILABILITY OF MAP.—The map shall be on file 

22 and available for public inspection in the appropriate of23 fices of the National Park Service. 
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1 (d) MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—The Arabia Mountain 

2 Heritage Area Alliance shall be the management entity for 

3 the heritage area. 

4 SEC. 4. AUTHORITIES AND DUTIES OF THE MANAGEMENT 

5 ENTITY. 

6 (a) AUTHORITIES.—For purposes of developing and 

7 implementing the management plan, the management en8 tity may—

9 (1) make grants to, and enter into cooperative 

10 agreements with, the State, political subdivisions of 

11 the State, and private organizations; 

12 (2) hire and compensate staff; and 

13 (3) enter into contracts for goods and services. 

14 (b) DUTIES.—

15 (1) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—

16 (A) IN GENERAL.—The management entity 

17 shall develop and submit to the Secretary the 

18 management plan. 

19 (B) CONSIDERATIONS.—In developing and 

20 implementing the management plan, the man21 agement entity shall consider the interests of 

22 diverse governmental, business, and nonprofit 

23 groups within the heritage area. 
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1 (2) PRIORITIES.—The management entity shall 

2 give priority to implementing actions described in 

3 the management plan, including the following: 

4 (A) Assisting units of government and 

5 nonprofit organizations in preserving resources 

6 within the heritage area. 

7 (B) Encouraging local governments to 

8 adopt land use policies consistent with the man9 agement of the heritage area and the goals of 

10 the management plan. 

11 (3) PUBLIC MEETINGS.—The management enti12 ty shall conduct public meetings at least quarterly 

13 on the implementation of the management plan. 

14 (4) ANNUAL REPORT.—For any year in which 

15 Federal funds have been made available under this 

16 Act, the management entity shall submit to the Sec17 retary an annual report that describes the following: 

18 (A) The accomplishments of the manage19 ment entity. 

20 (B) The expenses and income of the man21 agement entity. 

22 (5) AUDIT.—The management entity shall—

23 (A) make available to the Secretary for 

24 audit all records relating to the expenditure of 

25 Federal funds and any matching funds; and 
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1 (B) require, with respect to all agreements 

2 authorizing expenditure of Federal funds by 

3 other organizations, that the receiving organiza4 tions make available to the Secretary for audit 

5 all records concerning the expenditure of those 

6 funds. 

7 (c) USE OF FEDERAL FUNDS.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The management entity 

9 shall not use Federal funds made available under 

10 this Act to acquire real property or an interest in 

11 real property. 

12 (2) OTHER SOURCES.—Nothing in this Act pre13 cludes the management entity from using Federal 

14 funds made available under other Federal laws for 

15 any purpose for which the funds are authorized to 

16 be used. 

17 SEC. 5. MANAGEMENT PLAN. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—The management entity shall de19 velop a management plan for the heritage area that incor20 porates an integrated and cooperative approach to protect, 

21 interpret, and enhance the natural, cultural, historical, 

22 scenic, and recreational resources of the heritage area. 

23 (b) BASIS.—The management plan shall be based on 

24 the preferred concept in the document entitled ‘‘Arabia 
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1 Mountain National Heritage Area Feasibility Study’’, 

2 dated February 28, 2001. 

3 (c) CONSIDERATION OF OTHER PLANS AND AC4 TIONS.—The management plan shall—

5 (1) take into consideration State and local 

6 plans; and 

7 (2) involve residents, public agencies, and pri8 vate organizations in the heritage area. 

9 (d) REQUIREMENTS.—The management plan shall 

10 include the following: 

11 (1) An inventory of the resources in the herit12 age area, including—

13 (A) a list of property in the heritage area 

14 that—

15 (i) relates to the purposes of the herit16 age area; and 

17 (ii) should be preserved, restored, 

18 managed, or maintained because of the sig19 nificance of the property; and 

20 (B) an assessment of cultural landscapes 

21 within the heritage area. 

22 (2) Provisions for the protection, interpretation, 

23 and enjoyment of the resources of the heritage area 

24 consistent with the purposes of this Act. 

25 (3) An interpretation plan for the heritage area. 
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1 (4) A program for implementation of the man2 agement plan that includes—

3 (A) actions to be carried out by units of 

4 government, private organizations, and public5 private partnerships to protect the resources of 

6 the heritage area; and 

7 (B) the identification of existing and po8 tential sources of funding for implementing the 

9 plan. 

10 (5) A description and evaluation of the manage11 ment entity, including the membership and organiza12 tional structure of the management entity. 

13 (e) SUBMISSION TO SECRETARY FOR APPROVAL.—

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years after 

15 the date of the enactment of this Act, the manage16 ment entity shall submit the management plan to 

17 the Secretary for approval. 

18 (2) EFFECT OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT.—If a 

19 management plan is not submitted to the Secretary 

20 by the date specified in paragraph (1), the Secretary 

21 shall not provide any additional funding under this 

22 Act until such date as a management plan for the 

23 heritage area is submitted to the Secretary. 

24 (f) APPROVAL AND DISAPPROVAL OF MANAGEMENT

25 PLAN.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

2 receiving the management plan submitted under 

3 subsection (e), the Secretary, in consultation with 

4 the State, shall approve or disapprove the manage5 ment plan. 

6 (2) ACTION FOLLOWING DISAPPROVAL.—

7 (A) REVISION.—If the Secretary dis8 approves a management plan submitted under 

9 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall—

10 (i) advise the management entity in 

11 writing of the reasons for the disapproval; 

12 (ii) make recommendations for revi13 sions to the management plan; and 

14 (iii) allow the management entity to 

15 submit to the Secretary revisions to the 

16 management plan. 

17 (B) DEADLINE FOR APPROVAL OF REVI18 SION.—Not later than 90 days after the date on 

19 which a revision is submitted under subpara20 graph (A)(iii), the Secretary shall approve or 

21 disapprove the revision. 

22 (g) REVISION OF MANAGEMENT PLAN.—

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—After approval by the Sec24 retary of a management plan, the management enti25 ty shall periodically—
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1 (A) review the management plan; and 

2 (B) submit to the Secretary, for review 

3 and approval by the Secretary, the rec4 ommendations of the management entity for 

5 any revisions to the management plan that the 

6 management entity considers to be appropriate. 

7 (2) EXPENDITURE OF FUNDS.—No funds made 

8 available under this Act shall be used to implement 

9 any revision proposed by the management entity 

10 under paragraph (1)(B) until the Secretary approves 

11 the revision. 

12 SEC. 6. TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—At the request of the management 

14 entity, the Secretary may provide technical and financial 

15 assistance to the heritage area to develop and implement 

16 the management plan. 

17 (b) PRIORITY.—In providing assistance under sub18 section (a), the Secretary shall give priority to actions that 

19 facilitate—

20 (1) the conservation of the significant natural, 

21 cultural, historical, scenic, and recreational resources 

22 that support the purposes of the heritage area; and 

23 (2) the provision of educational, interpretive, 

24 and recreational opportunities that are consistent 
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1 with the resources and associated values of the herit2 age area. 

3 SEC. 7. EFFECT ON CERTAIN AUTHORITY. 

4 (a) OCCUPATIONAL, SAFETY, CONSERVATION, AND

5 ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION.—Nothing in this Act—

6 (1) imposes an occupational, safety, conserva7 tion, or environmental regulation on the heritage 

8 area that is more stringent than the regulations that 

9 would be applicable to the land described in section 

10 3(b) but for the establishment of the heritage area 

11 by section 3; or 

12 (2) authorizes a Federal agency to promulgate 

13 an occupational, safety, conservation, or environ14 mental regulation for the heritage area that is more 

15 stringent than the regulations applicable to the land 

16 described in section 3(b) as of the date of enactment 

17 of this Act, solely as a result of the establishment 

18 of the heritage area by section 3. 

19 (b) LAND USE REGULATION.—Nothing in this Act—

20 (1) modifies, enlarges, or diminishes any au21 thority of the Federal Government or a State or 

22 local government to regulate any use of land as pro23 vided for by law (including regulations) in existence 

24 on the date of enactment of this Act; or 
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1 (2) grants powers of zoning or land use to the 

2 management entity. 

3 SEC. 8. REQUIREMENTS FOR INCLUSION OF PRIVATE 

4 PROPERTY. 

5 (a) NOTIFICATION AND CONSENT OF PROPERTY

6 OWNERS REQUIRED.—No privately owned property shall 

7 be preserved, conserved, or promoted by the management 

8 plan for the Heritage Area until the owner of that private 

9 property has been notified in writing by the management 

10 entity and has given written consent for such preservation, 

11 conservation, or promotion to the management entity. 

12 (b) LANDOWNER WITHDRAW.—Any owner of private 

13 property included within the boundary of the Heritage 

14 Area shall have their property immediately removed from 

15 the boundary by submitting a written request to the man16 agement entity. 

17 SEC. 9. PRIVATE PROPERTY PROTECTION. 

18 (a) ACCESS TO PRIVATE PROPERTY.—Nothing in 

19 this Act shall be construed to—

20 (1) require any private property owner to allow 

21 public access (including Federal, State, or local gov22 ernment access) to such private property; or 

23 (2) modify any provision of Federal, State, or 

24 local law with regard to public access to or use of 

25 private property. 
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1 (b) LIABILITY.—Designation of the Heritage Area 

2 shall not be considered to create any liability, or to have 

3 any effect on any liability under any other law, of any pri4 vate property owner with respect to any persons injured 

5 on such private property. 

6 (c) RECOGNITION OF AUTHORITY TO CONTROL LAND

7 USE.—Nothing in this Act shall be construed to modify 

8 the authority of Federal, State, or local governments to 

9 regulate land use. 

10 (d) PARTICIPATION OF PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNERS

11 IN HERITAGE AREA.—Nothing in this Act shall be con12 strued to require the owner of any private property located 

13 within the boundaries of the Heritage Area to participate 

14 in or be associated with the Heritage Area. 

15 (e) EFFECT OF ESTABLISHMENT.—The boundaries 

16 designated for the Heritage Area represent the area within 

17 which Federal funds appropriated for the purpose of this 

18 Act may be expended. The establishment of the Heritage 

19 Area and its boundaries shall not be construed to provide 

20 any nonexisting regulatory authority on land use within 

21 the Heritage Area or its viewshed by the Secretary, the 

22 National Park Service, or the management entity. 

23 SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro25 priated to carry out this Act $10,000,000, to remain avail-
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1 able until expended, of which not more than $1,000,000 

2 may be used in any fiscal year. 

3 (b) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of the cost 

4 of any project or activity carried out using funds made 

5 available under this Act shall not exceed 50 percent. 

6 SEC. 11. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY. 

7 The authority of the Secretary to make any grant or 

8 provide any assistance under this Act shall terminate on 

9 September 30, 2016.

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