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106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1998

To establish the Yuma Crossing National Heritage Area.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

NOVEMBER 19, 1999

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

to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

A BILL

To establish the Yuma Crossing National Heritage Area.

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 ‘‘Yuma Crossing Na5 tional Heritage Area Act of 1999’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—

8 (1) certain events that led to the establishment

9 of the Yuma Crossing as a natural crossing place on

10 the Colorado River, and to the development of the

11 Yuma Crossing as an important landmark in the

12 westward expansion of the United States during the
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1 mid-19th century, are of national historic and cul2 tural significance, based on the contribution of those

3 events to the development of the United States;

4 (2) it is in the interest of the United States to

5 promote, preserve, and protect, for the education

6 and benefit of present and future generations, phys7 ical remnants of a community that—

8 (A) possesses almost 500 years of recorded

9 history; and

10 (B) has significant cultural, historic, and

11 architectural value;

12 (3) the designation of the Yuma Crossing as a

13 national heritage area would—

14 (A) preserve the history of the Yuma

15 Crossing area;

16 (B) provide related educational opportuni17 ties and recreational opportunities;

18 (C) preserve natural resources;

19 (D) optimize the use of riverfront property;

20 and

21 (E) improve the ability of the Yuma region

22 to serve visitors and enhance the local economy

23 through the completion of major projects identi24 fied within the Yuma Crossing National Herit25 age Area;
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1 (4) the Department of the Interior is respon2 sible for protecting the cultural and historic re3 sources of the United States;

4 (5) the quantity and quality of resources within

5 the Yuma region merit the involvement of the Fed6 eral Government in developing programs and

7 projects, in cooperation with the Yuma Crossing Na8 tional Heritage Area and other local and govern9 mental bodies—

10 (A) to adequately conserve, protect, and in11 terpret the heritage of the Yuma region for fur12 ther generations; and

13 (B) to provide opportunities for education,

14 revitalization, and economic development;

15 (6) the city of Yuma, the Arizona State Parks

16 Board, agencies of the Federal Government, cor17 porate entities, and citizens will complete a study

18 and master plan for the Yuma Crossing that meets

19 established criteria by the National Park Service—

20 (A) to determine the extent of the historic

21 resources present in the Yuma region;

22 (B) to preserve and interpret those historic

23 resources; and
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1 (C) to assess the opportunities available to

2 enhance the cultural experience for visitors to

3 and residents of the Yuma region; and

4 (7) the Yuma Crossing National Heritage Area

5 Board of Directors would be an appropriate manage6 ment entity for a heritage area established in the

7 Yuma region.

8 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are—

9 (1) to recognize the role of the Yuma Crossing

10 in the development of the United States, with par11 ticular emphasis on the position of the crossing as

12 an important landmark in the westward expansion of

13 the United States during the mid-19th century;

14 (2) to promote, interpret, and develop the phys15 ical and recreational resources of the communities

16 surrounding the Yuma Crossing to preserve almost

17 500 years of recorded history and the outstanding

18 cultural, historic, and architectural assets of the re19 gion for the education and benefit of present and fu20 ture generations;

21 (3) to foster a close working relationship with

22 all levels of government, the private sector, and the

23 local communities in the Yuma region;

24 (4) to empower the community to simulta25 neously conserve the heritage and natural resources
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1 of the Yuma region while continuing to pursue eco2 nomic opportunities;

3 (5) to provide recreational opportunities for

4 visitors to the Yuma Crossing;

5 (6) to optimize the use of riverfront property;

6 and

7 (7) to improve the ability of the Yuma region

8 to serve visitors and enhance the local economy

9 through the completion of major projects in the Her10 itage Area.

11 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

12 In this Act:

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

14 Area’’ means the Yuma Crossing National Heritage

15 Area established by section 4(a).

16 (2) MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—The term ‘‘man17 agement entity’’ means the Yuma Crossing National

18 Heritage Area Board of Directors.

19 (3) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The term ‘‘manage20 ment plan’’ means the management plan for the

21 Heritage Area.

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

23 the Secretary of the Interior.

24 (5) YUMA REGION.—The term ‘‘Yuma region’’

25 means the county and city of Yuma, Arizona.
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1 SEC. 4. YUMA CROSSING NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA.

2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the

3 Yuma Crossing National Heritage Area.

4 (b) BOUNDARIES.—

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Heritage Area shall be

6 comprised of those portions of the Yuma region to7 taling approximately 21 square miles, bounded—

8 (A) on the west, by the Colorado River (in9 cluding the crossing point of the Army of the

10 West);

11 (B) on the east, by Avenue 7E;

12 (C) on the north, by the Colorado River;

13 and

14 (D) on the south, by the 12th Street align15 ment.

16 (2) LAND AND RESOURCES.—The boundaries of

17 the Heritage Area described in paragraph (1)

18 encompass—

19 (A) all land, the ownership of which is not

20 in dispute, that is within the boundaries and lo21 cated in the State of Arizona; and

22 (B) over 150 identified historic, geologic,

23 and cultural resources.

24 (c) MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—The management entity

25 for the Heritage Area shall be the Yuma Crossing Na26 tional Heritage Area Board of Directors.
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1 SEC. 5. COMPACT.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—To carry out this Act, the Sec3 retary shall enter into a compact with the management

4 entity.

5 (b) COMPONENTS OF COMPACT.—The compact shall

6 include information relating to the objectives and manage7 ment of the Heritage Area, including—

8 (1) a discussion of the goals and objectives of

9 the Heritage Area;

10 (2) an explanation of the proposed approach to

11 conservation and interpretation of the Heritage

12 Area; and

13 (3) a general outline of the protection measures

14 to which the management entity commits.

15 (c) SUBMISSION AND APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL OF

16 COMPACT.—

17 (1) SUBMISSION.—The management entity shall

18 submit to the Secretary a proposed compact not

19 later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this

20 Act.

21 (2) APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL.—Not later

22 than 90 days after receiving the compact under

23 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall approve or dis24 approve the proposed compact.

25 (3) PROCEDURES ON DISAPPROVAL.—
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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary dis2 approves a proposed compact, the Secretary

3 shall—

4 (i) advise the management entity, in

5 writing, of the reasons for the disapproval;

6 and

7 (ii) make recommendations for revi8 sions of the proposed compact.

9 (B) APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL OF REVI10 SIONS.—Not later than 90 days after receiving

11 any proposed revision to a proposed compact

12 from the management entity, the Secretary

13 shall approve or disapprove the proposed revi14 sion.

15 SEC. 6. AUTHORITIES AND DUTIES OF MANAGEMENT

16 ENTITY.

17 (a) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The management entity

19 shall develop a management plan for the Heritage

20 Area, taking into consideration existing State, coun21 ty, and local plans.

22 (2) CONTENTS.—The management plan shall

23 include—
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1 (A) comprehensive recommendations for

2 conservation, funding, management, and devel3 opment of the Heritage Area;

4 (B) a description of actions to be carried

5 out by units of government and private organi6 zations to protect the resources of the Heritage

7 Area;

8 (C) a list of specific existing and potential

9 sources of funding to protect, manage, and de10 velop the Heritage Area;

11 (D) an inventory of the resources con12 tained in the Heritage Area, including a list of

13 any property in the Heritage Area that—

14 (i) is related to the themes of the

15 Heritage Area; and

16 (ii) should be preserved, restored,

17 managed, developed, or maintained because

18 of the natural, cultural, historical, rec19 reational, or scenic significance of the

20 property;

21 (E) a recommendation of policies for re22 source management that take into consideration

23 and describe any benefits of the application of

24 appropriate land and water management tech25 niques, including the development of intergov-
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1 ernmental cooperative agreements to protect the

2 natural, cultural, historical, recreational, and

3 scenic resources of the Heritage Area in a man4 ner consistent with supporting appropriate and

5 compatible economic viability;

6 (F) a program for implementation of the

7 management plan by the management entity,

8 including—

9 (i) plans for restoration and construc10 tion; and

11 (ii) specific commitments of the iden12 tified partners for the first 5 years of oper13 ation;

14 (G) an analysis of methods by which Fed15 eral, State, and local programs may best be co16 ordinated to promote the purposes of this Act;

17 and

18 (H) an interpretation plan for the Heritage

19 Area.

20 (3) SUBMISSION TO SECRETARY.—The manage21 ment entity shall submit the management plan to

22 the Secretary for approval not later than 3 years

23 after the date of enactment of this Act.

24 (4) APPROVAL AND DISAPPROVAL OF MANAGE25 MENT PLANS.—
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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days

2 after receiving a management plan under para3 graph (3), the Secretary, in consultation with

4 the management entity, shall approve or dis5 approve the management plan.

6 (B) PROCEDURES ON DISAPPROVAL.—

7 (i) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary

8 disapproves the management plan, the Sec9 retary shall—

10 (I) advise the management enti11 ty, in writing, of the reasons for the

12 disapproval; and

13 (II) make recommendations for

14 revisions of the management plan.

15 (ii) APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL OF

16 REVISIONS.—Not later than 90 days after

17 receiving any proposed revision to the

18 management plan from the management

19 entity, the Secretary shall approve or dis20 approve the proposed revision.

21 (5) AMENDMENTS TO MANAGEMENT PLAN.—

22 Any substantial amendment to the management

23 plan—

24 (A) shall be reviewed by the Secretary; and
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1 (B) shall not be implemented by the ex2 penditure of funds made available under this

3 Act until such time as the Secretary approves

4 the amendment.

5 (b) DUTIES OF MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—In addition

6 to the responsibilities described in subsection (a), the man7 agement entity shall—

8 (1) give priority to implementing actions set

9 forth in the compact under section 5 and the man10 agement plan, including actions to assist units of

11 government, regional planning organizations, and

12 nonprofit organizations in preserving the Heritage

13 Area;

14 (2) assist units of government, regional plan15 ning organizations, and nonprofit organizations in—

16 (A) establishing and maintaining interpre17 tive exhibits in the Heritage Area;

18 (B) developing recreational resources in

19 the Heritage Area;

20 (C) increasing public awareness of and ap21 preciation for the natural, cultural, historical,

22 recreational, and scenic resources and sites in

23 the Heritage Area;

24 (D) restoring any historic building relating

25 to the themes of the Heritage Area and
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1 (E) ensuring that clear, consistent, and en2 vironmentally appropriate signs identifying ac3 cess points and sites of interest are installed

4 throughout the Heritage Area;

5 (3) encourage, by appropriate means, economic

6 viability in the Heritage Area consistent with the

7 goals of the management plan;

8 (4) encourage local governments to adopt poli9 cies consistent with the management of the Heritage

10 Area and the goals of the management plan;

11 (5) consider the interests of diverse govern12 mental, business, and nonprofit groups within the

13 Heritage Area;

14 (6) conduct public meetings at least quarterly

15 regarding the implementation of the management

16 plan; and

17 (7) for any year in which Federal funds are re18 ceived under this Act—

19 (A) to make available for audit all records

20 pertaining to the expenditure of the funds and

21 any matching funds; and

22 (B) require, for all agreements authorizing

23 the expenditure of Federal funds by other orga24 nizations, that the receiving organizations make
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1 available for audit all records pertaining to the

2 expenditure of the funds.

3 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—The management entity may,

4 for the purposes of preparing and implementing the man5 agement plan, use funds made available under this Act—

6 (1) to make grants to, and enter into coopera7 tive agreements with, States (including political sub8 divisions), private organizations, or any person;

9 (2) to hire and compensate staff; and

10 (3) to enter into contracts for goods and serv11 ices.

12 (d) PROHIBITION ON THE ACQUISITION OF REAL

13 PROPERTY.—The management entity shall not use Fed14 eral funds received under this Act to acquire real property

15 or any interest in real property.

16 (e) FEDERAL FUNDS FROM OTHER SOURCES.—

17 Nothing in this Act prohibits the management entity from

18 using Federal funds from other sources for permitted pur19 poses.

20 (f) SPENDING FOR NON-FEDERALLY OWNED PROP21 ERTY.—The management entity may use Federal funds

22 received under this Act to carry out activities on property

23 that is not owned by the Federal Government to further

24 the purposes of this Act, especially to assist units of gov25 ernment in the appropriate treatment of districts, sites,
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1 buildings, structures, and objects that are listed or eligible

2 for listing on the National Register of Historic Places.

3 SEC. 7. DUTIES AND AUTHORITIES OF FEDERAL AGENCIES.

4 (a) TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—The

5 Secretary may, on request of the management entity, pro6 vide technical and financial assistance to the management

7 entity to develop and implement the management plan, in8 cluding assistance in actions to—

9 (1) conserve the significant natural, cultural,

10 historical, recreational, and scenic resources that

11 support the themes of the Heritage Area; and

12 (2) provide educational, interpretive, and rec13 reational opportunities consistent with the resources

14 and associated values of the Heritage Area.

15 (b) DOCUMENTATION.—The Historic American

16 Building Survey/Historic American Engineering Record

17 shall conduct any study necessary to document the nat18 ural, cultural, historical, recreational, and scenic resources

19 of the Heritage Area.

20 SEC. 8. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.

21 The authority of the Secretary to make a grant or

22 provide assistance under this Act terminates on September

23 30, 2015.
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1 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro3 priated to carry out this Act not more than $1,000,000

4 for any fiscal year, of which not more than a total of

5 $10,000,000 may be used for the Heritage Area.

6 (b) FEDERAL SHARE.—Federal funds provided under

7 this Act after the date of enactment of this Act shall not

8 exceed 50 percent of the total cost of any assistance or

9 grant provided or authorized under this Act.

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