Calendar No. 444

105TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 1403

[Report No. 105–230]

A BILL

To amend the National Historic Preservation Act

lighthouse preservation program.for purposes of establishing a national historic

JUNE 26, 1998

Reported with an amendment
II

Calendar No. 444

105TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 1403

[Report No. 105–230]

To amend the National Historic Preservation Act for purposes of establishing

a national historic lighthouse preservation program.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

NOVEMBER 7, 1997

Mr. MURKOWSKI introduced the following bill; which was read twice and

referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

JUNE 26, 1998

Reported by Mr. MURKOWSKI, with an amendment

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic]

A BILL

To amend the National Historic Preservation Act for purposes of establishing a national historic lighthouse preservation program.

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 ‘‘National Historic

5 Lighthouse Preservation Act of 1997’’.
2

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1 SEC. 2. PRESERVATION OF HISTORIC LIGHT STATIONS.

2 Title III of the National Historic Preservation Act

3 (16 U.S.C. 470w–470w–6) is amended by adding at the

4 end the following new section:

5 ‘‘§ 308. Historic lighthouse preservation

6 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In order to provide a national

7 historic light station program, the Secretary shall—

8 ‘‘(1) collect and disseminate information con9 cerning historic light stations, including historic

10 lighthouses and associated structures;

11 ‘‘(2) foster educational programs relating to the

12 history, practice, and contribution to society of his13 toric light stations;

14 ‘‘(3) sponsor or conduct research and study into

15 the history of light stations;

16 ‘‘(4) maintain a listing of historic light stations;

17 and

18 ‘‘(5) assess the effectiveness of the program es19 tablished by this section regarding the conveyance of

20 historic light stations.

21 ‘‘(b) CONVEYANCE OF HISTORIC LIGHT STATIONS.—

22 ‘‘(1) Within one year of enactment, the Sec23 retary and the Administrator of General Services

24 (hereinafter Administrator) shall establish a process

25 for identifying, and selecting, an eligible entity to

26 which a historic light station could be conveyed for
3

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1 education, park, recreation, cultural and historic

2 preservation purposes.

3 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall review all applicants

4 for the conveyance of a historic light station, when

5 the historic light station has been identified as ex6 cess to the needs of the agency with administrative

7 jurisdiction over the historic light station, and for8 ward to the Administrator a single approved applica9 tion for the conveyance of the historic light station.

10 When selecting an eligible entity, the Secretary may

11 consult with the State Historic Preservation Officer

12 of the state in which the historic light station is lo13 cated. A priority of consideration shall be afforded

14 public entities that submit applications in which the

15 public entity enters into a partnership with a non16 profit organization whose primary mission is historic

17 light station preservation.

18 ‘‘(3) The Administrator shall convey, by quit

19 claim deed, without consideration, all right, title,

20 and interest of the United States in and to the his21 toric light station, together with any related real

22 property, subject to the conditions set forth in sub23 section (c) upon the Secretary’s selection of an eligi24 ble entity. The conveyance of a historic light station
4

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1 under this section shall not be subject to the provi2 sions of 42 U.S.C. 11301 et seq.

3 ‘‘(c) TERMS OF CONVEYANCE.—

4 ‘‘(1) The conveyance of a historic light station

5 shall be made subject to any conditions as the Ad6 ministrator considers necessary to ensure that—

7 ‘‘(A) the lights, antennas, sound signal,

8 electronic navigation equipment, and associated

9 light station equipment located on the property

10 conveyed, which are active aids to navigation,

11 shall continue to be operated and maintained by

12 the United States for as long as needed for this

13 purpose;

14 ‘‘(B) the eligible entity to which the his15 toric light station is conveyed under this section

16 shall not interfere or allow interference in any

17 manner with aids to navigation without the ex18 press written permission of the head of the

19 agency responsible for maintaining the aids to

20 navigation;

21 ‘‘(C) there is reserved to the United States

22 the right to relocate, replace, or add any aid to

23 navigation or make any changes to property

24 conveyed under this section as may be nec25 essary for navigation purposes;
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1 ‘‘(D) the eligible entity to which the his2 toric light station is conveyed under this section

3 shall maintain the property in accordance with

4 the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966,

5 16 U.S.C. 470–470x, the Secretary’s Historic

6 Preservation Standards, and other applicable

7 laws; and

8 ‘‘(E) the United States shall have the

9 right, at any time, to enter property conveyed

10 under this section without notice for purposes

11 of maintaining and inspecting aids to naviga12 tion and ensuring compliance with paragraph

13 (C), to the extent that it is not possible to pro14 vide advance notice.

15 ‘‘(2) The Secretary, the Administrator, and any

16 eligible entity to which a historic light station is con17 veyed under this section, shall not be required to

18 maintain any active aids to navigation associated

19 with a historic light station.

20 ‘‘(3) In addition to any term or condition estab21 lished pursuant to this subsection, the conveyance of

22 a historic light station shall include a condition that

23 the property in its existing condition, at the option

24 of the Administrator, revert to the United States

25 if—
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1 ‘‘(A) the property or any part of the prop2 erty ceases to be available for education, park,

3 recreation, cultural, and historic preservation

4 purposes for the general public at reasonable

5 times and under reasonable conditions which

6 shall be set forth in the eligible entity’s applica7 tion;

8 ‘‘(B) the property or any part of the prop9 erty ceases to be maintained in a manner that

10 ensures its present or future use as an aid to

11 navigation or compliance with the National His12 toric Preservation Act, 16 U.S.C. 470–470x,

13 the Secretary’s Historic Preservation Stand14 ards, and other applicable laws; or

15 ‘‘(C) at least 30 days before the reversion,

16 the Administrator provides written notice to the

17 owner that the property is needed for national

18 security purposes.

19 ‘‘(d) DESCRIPTION OF PROPERTY.—The legal de20 scription of any historic light station, and any real prop21 erty and improvements associated therewith, conveyed

22 under this section shall be determined by the Adminis23 trator. The Administrator may retain all right, title, and

24 interest of the United States in and to any historical arti25 fact, including any lens or lantern, that is associated with
7

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1 the historial light station whether located at the light sta2 tion or elsewhere.

3 ‘‘(e) RESPONSIBILITIES OF CONVEYEES.—Each eligi4 ble entity to which a historic light station is conveyed

5 under this section shall use and maintain the light station

6 in accordance with this section, and have such terms and

7 conditions recorded with the deed to title to the light sta8 tion and any real property conveyed therewith.

9 ‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section:

10 ‘‘(1) HISTORIC LIGHT STATION.—The term

11 ‘historic light station’ includes the light tower, light12 house, keepers dwelling, garages, storage sheds, sup13 port structures, piers, walkways, and underlying

14 land; provided that the light tower or lighthouse

15 shall be—

16 ‘‘(A) at least 50 years old;

17 ‘‘(B) evaluated for inclusion in the Na18 tional Register of Historic Places; and

19 ‘‘(C) included on the Secretary’s listing of

20 historic light stations.

21 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible en22 tity’ shall mean any department or agency of the

23 Federal government, any department or agency of

24 the state in which the historic light station is lo25 cated, the local government of the community in
8

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1 which the historic light station is located, nonprofit

2 corporation, educational agency, or community devel3 opment organization that—

4 ‘‘(A) has agreed to comply with the condi5 tions set forth in subsections (c) and to have

6 those conditions recorded in the conveyance

7 documents to the light station and any real

8 property and improvements that may be con9 veyed therewith;

10 ‘‘(B) is financially able to maintain the

11 light station (and any real property and im12 provements conveyed therewith) in accordance

13 with the conditions set forth in subsection (c);

14 and

15 ‘‘(C) can indemnify the Federal govern16 ment to cover any loss in connection with the

17 light station and any real property and im18 provements that may be conveyed therewith, or

19 any expenses incurred due to reversion.’’.

20 SEC. 3. SALE OR SURPLUS LIGHT STATIONS.

21 Title III of the National Historic Preservation Act

22 (16 U.S.C. 470w–470w–6) is amended by adding at the

23 end the following new section:
9

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1 ‘‘§ 309. Historic light station sales

2 ‘‘In the event no applicants are approved for the con3 veyance of a historic light station pursuant to section 308,

4 the historic light station shall be offered for sale. Terms

5 of such sales shall be developed by the Administrator of

6 General Services. Conveyance documents shall include all

7 necessary covenants to protect the historical integrity of

8 the site. Net sale proceeds shall be transferred to the Na9 tional Maritime Heritage Grant Program, established by

10 the National Maritime Heritage Act of 1994, Public Law

11 103–451, within the Department of the Interior.

12 SEC. 4. TRANSFER OF HISTORIC LIGHT STATIONS TO FED13 ERAL AGENCIES.

14 Title III of the National Historic Preservation Act

15 of 1966, 16 U.S.C 470–470x, is amended by adding at

16 the end the following new section:

17 ‘‘§ 310. Transfer of historic light stations to Federal

18 agencies

19 ‘‘After the date of enactment, any department or

20 agency of the Federal government, to which a historic

21 light station is conveyed, shall maintain the historic light

22 station in accordance with the National Historic Preserva23 tion Act of 1966, 16 U.S.C. 470–470x, the Secretary’s

24 Historic Preservation Standards, and other applicable

25 laws.
10

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1 SEC. 5. FUNDING.

2 There are hereby authorized to be appropriated to the

3 Secretary of the Interior such sums as may be necessary

4 to carry out this Act.

5 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

6 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Historic Light7 house Preservation Act of 1998’’.

8 SEC. 2. PRESERVATION OF HISTORIC LIGHT STATIONS.

9 Title III of the National Historic Preservation Act (16

10 U.S.C. 470w–470w–6) is amended by adding at the end the

11 following new section:

12 ‘‘§ 308. Historic lighthouse preservation

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In order to provide a national his14 toric light station program, the Secretary shall—

15 ‘‘(1) collect and disseminate information con16 cerning historic light stations, including historic

17 lighthouses and associated structures;

18 ‘‘(2) foster educational programs relating to the

19 history, practice, and contribution to society of his20 toric light stations;

21 ‘‘(3) sponsor or conduct research and study into

22 the history of light stations;

23 ‘‘(4) maintain a listing of historic light stations;

24 and
11

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1 ‘‘(5) assess the effectiveness of the program estab2 lished by this section regarding the conveyance of his3 toric light stations.

4 ‘‘(b) CONVEYANCE OF HISTORIC LIGHT STATIONS.—

5 ‘‘(1) Within one year of the date of enactment of

6 this section, the Secretary and the Administrator of

7 General Services (hereinafter Administrator) shall es8 tablish a process for identifying, and selecting, an eli9 gible entity to which a historic light station could be

10 conveyed for education, park, recreation, cultural, or

11 historic preservation purposes.

12 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall review all applicants

13 for the conveyance of a historic light station, when the

14 historic light station has been identified as excess to

15 the needs of the agency with administrative jurisdic16 tion over the historic light station, and forward to the

17 Administrator a single approved application for the

18 conveyance of the historic light station. When select19 ing an eligible entity, the Secretary may consult with

20 the State Historic Preservation Officer of the state in

21 which the historic light station is located. A priority

22 of consideration shall be afforded public entities that

23 submit applications in which the public entity enters

24 into a partnership with a nonprofit organization
12

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1 whose primary mission is historic light station pres2 ervation.

3 ‘‘(3)(A) Except as provided in paragraph (B),

4 the Administrator shall convey, by quit claim deed,

5 without consideration, all right, title, and interest of

6 the United States in and to the historic light station,

7 subject to the conditions set forth in subsection (c).

8 The conveyance of a historic light station under this

9 section shall not be subject to the provisions of 42

10 U.S.C. 11301 et seq.

11 ‘‘(B)(i) Historic light stations located within the

12 exterior boundaries of a unit of the National Park

13 System or a refuge within the National Wildlife Ref14 uge System shall be conveyed or sold only with the

15 approval of the Secretary.

16 ‘‘(ii) If the Secretary approves the conveyance or

17 sale of a historic light station referenced in this para18 graph, such conveyance or sale shall be subject to the

19 conditions set forth in subsection (c) and any other

20 terms or conditions the Secretary considers necessary

21 to protect the resources of the park unit or wildlife

22 refuge.

23 ‘‘(iii) For those historic light stations referenced

24 in this paragraph, the Secretary is encouraged to

25 enter cooperative agreements with appropriate eligible
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1 entities, as provided in this Act, to the extent such co2 operative agreements are consistent with the Sec3 retary’s responsibilities to manage and administer the

4 park unit or wildlife refuge, as appropriate.

5 ‘‘(c) TERMS OF CONVEYANCE.—

6 ‘‘(1) The conveyance of a historic light station

7 shall be made subject to any conditions the Adminis8 trator considers necessary to ensure that—

9 ‘‘(A) the lights, antennas, sound signal, elec10 tronic navigation equipment, and associated

11 light station equipment located at the historic

12 light station, which are active aids to naviga13 tion, shall continue to be operated and main14 tained by the United States for as long as needed

15 for this purpose;

16 ‘‘(B) the eligible entity to which the historic

17 light station is conveyed under this section shall

18 not interfere or allow interference in any man19 ner with aids to navigation without the express

20 written permission of the head of the agency re21 sponsible for maintaining the aids to navigation;

22 ‘‘(C) there is reserved to the United States

23 the right to relocate, replace, or add any aid to

24 navigation located at the historic light station as

25 may be necessary for navigation purposes;
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1 ‘‘(D) the eligible entity to which the historic

2 light station is conveyed under this section shall

3 maintain the historic light station in accordance

4 with the National Historic Preservation Act of

5 1966, 16 U.S.C. 470–470x, the Secretary of the

6 Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of His7 toric Properties, and other applicable laws;

8 ‘‘(E) the eligible entity to which the historic

9 light station is conveyed under this section shall

10 make the historic light station available for edu11 cation, park, recreation, cultural or historic

12 preservation purposes for the general public at

13 reasonable times and under reasonable condi14 tions; and

15 ‘‘(F) the United States shall have the right,

16 at any time, to enter the historic light station

17 without notice for purposes of maintaining and

18 inspecting aids to navigation and ensuring com19 pliance with paragraph (C), to the extent that it

20 is not possible to provide advance notice.

21 ‘‘(2) The Secretary, the Administrator, and any

22 eligible entity to which a historic light station is con23 veyed under this section, shall not be required to

24 maintain any active aids to navigation associated

25 with a historic light station.
15

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1 ‘‘(3) In addition to any term or condition estab2 lished pursuant to this subsection, the conveyance of

3 a historic light station shall include a condition that

4 the historic light station in its existing condition, at

5 the option of the Administrator, revert to the United

6 States if—

7 ‘‘(A) the historic light station or any part

8 of the historic light station ceases to be available

9 for education, park, recreation, cultural, or his10 toric preservation purposes for the general public

11 at reasonable times and under reasonable condi12 tions which shall be set forth in the eligible enti13 ty’s application;

14 ‘‘(B) the historic light station or any part

15 of the historic light station ceases to be main16 tained in a manner that ensures its present or

17 future use as an aid to navigation or compliance

18 with the National Historic Preservation Act, 16

19 U.S.C. 470–470x, the Secretary of the Interior’s

20 Standards for the Treatment of Historic Prop21 erties, and other applicable laws; or

22 ‘‘(C) at least 30 days before the reversion,

23 the Administrator provides written notice to the

24 owner that the historic light station is needed for

25 national security purposes.
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1 ‘‘(d) DESCRIPTION OF PROPERTY.—The Administrator

2 shall prepare the legal description of any historic light sta3 tion conveyed under this section. The Administrator may

4 retain all right, title, and interest of the United States in

5 and to any historical artifact, including any lens or lan6 tern, that is associated with the historic light station and

7 located at the light station at the time of conveyance. All

8 conditions placed with the deed of title to the historic light

9 station shall be construed as covenants running with the

10 land. No submerged lands shall be conveyed to nonfederal

11 entities.

12 ‘‘(e) RESPONSIBILITIES OF CONVEYEES.—Each eligi13 ble entity to which a historic light station is conveyed under

14 this section shall use and maintain the historic light station

15 in accordance with this section, and have such conditions

16 recorded with the deed of title to the historic light station.

17 ‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section:

18 ‘‘(1) HISTORIC LIGHT STATION.—The term ‘his19 toric light station’ includes the light tower, lighthouse,

20 keepers dwelling, garages, storage sheds, oil house, fog

21 signal building, boat house, barn, pumphouse,

22 tramhouse support structures, piers, walkways, and

23 related real property and improvements associated

24 therewith; provided that the light tower or lighthouse
17

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1 shall be included in or eligible for inclusion in the

2 National Register of Historic Places.

3 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible en4 tity’ shall mean—

5 ‘‘(A) any department or agency of the Fed6 eral government; or

7 ‘‘(B) any department or agency of the state

8 in which the historic light station is located, the

9 local government of the community in which the

10 historic light station is located, nonprofit cor11 poration, educational agency, or community de12 velopment organization that—

13 ‘‘(i) has agreed to comply with the con14 ditions set forth in subsection (c) and to

15 have such conditions recorded with the deed

16 of title to the historic light station;

17 ‘‘(ii) is financially able to maintain

18 the historic light station in accordance with

19 the conditions set forth in subsection (c);

20 and

21 ‘‘(iii) can indemnify the Federal gov22 ernment to cover any loss in connection

23 with the historic light station, or any ex24 penses incurred due to reversion.’’.
18

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1 SEC. 3. SALE OF SURPLUS LIGHT STATIONS.

2 Title III of the National Historic Preservation Act (16

3 U.S.C. 470w–470w–6) is amended by adding at the end the

4 following new section:

5 ‘‘§ 309. Historic light station sales

6 ‘‘In the event no applicants are approved for the con7 veyance of a historic light station pursuant to section 308,

8 the historic light station shall be offered for sale. Terms of

9 such sales shall be developed by the Administrator of Gen10 eral Services. Conveyance documents shall include all nec11 essary covenants to protect the historical integrity of the

12 historic light station and ensure that any active aids to

13 navigation located at the historic light station are operated

14 and maintained by the United States for as long as needed

15 for that purpose. Net sale proceeds shall be transferred to

16 the National Maritime Heritage Grant Program, estab17 lished by the National Maritime Heritage Act of 1994, Pub.

18 L. 103–451, within the Department of the Interior.’’.

19 SEC. 4. TRANSFER OF HISTORIC LIGHT STATIONS TO FED20 ERAL AGENCIES.

21 Title III of the National Historic Preservation Act of

22 1966, 16 U.S.C. 470–470x, is amended by adding at the

23 end the following new section:
19

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1 ‘‘§ 310. Transfer of historic light stations to Federal

2 agencies

3 ‘‘After the date of enactment of this section, any de4 partment or agency of the Federal government, to which

5 a historic light station is conveyed, shall maintain the his6 toric light station in accordance with the National Historic

7 Preservation Act of 1966, 16 U.S.C. 470–470x, the Sec8 retary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of His9 toric Properties, and other applicable laws.’’.

10 SEC. 5. FUNDING.

11 There are hereby authorized to be appropriated to the

12 Secretary of the Interior such sums as may be necessary

13 to carry out this Act.