I 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4683 

To enhance the preservation and interpretation of the Gullah/Geechee cultural 

heritage, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 24, 2004 

Mr. CLYBURN (for himself, Mr. BROWN of South Carolina, and Mrs. 

CHRISTENSEN) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Resources 

A BILL 

To enhance the preservation and interpretation of the Gullah/ 

Geechee cultural heritage, 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 ‘‘Gullah/Geechee Cul5 tural Heritage Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. PURPOSES. 

7 The purposes of this Act are to— 

8 (1) recognize the important contributions made 

9 to American culture and history by African-Ameri-
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1 cans known as the Gullah/Geechee who settled in the 

2 coastal counties of South Carolina and Georgia; 

3 (2) assist State and local governments and pub4 lic and private entities in South Carolina and Geor5 gia in interpreting the story of the Gullah/Geechee 

6 and preserving Gullah/Geechee folklore, arts, crafts, 

7 and music; and 

8 (3) assist in identifying and preserving sites, 

9 historical data, artifacts, and objects associated with 

10 the Gullah/Geechee for the benefit and education of 

11 the public. 

12 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

13 For the purposes of this Act, the following definitions 

14 apply: 

15 (1) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

16 means the Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Cor17 ridor Commission established under this Act. 

18 (2) HERITAGE CORRIDOR.—The term ‘‘Herit19 age Corridor’’ means the Gullah/Geechee Cultural 

20 Heritage Corridor established by this Act. 

21 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

22 the Secretary of the Interior. 
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1 SEC. 4. GULLAH/GEECHEE CULTURAL HERITAGE COR2 RIDOR. 

3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the 

4 Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor. 

5 (b) BOUNDARIES.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Heritage Corridor shall 

7 be comprised of those lands and waters generally de8 picted on a map entitled ‘‘Gullah/Geechee Cultural 

9 Heritage Corridor’’ numbered lll and dated 

10 llll. The map shall be on file and available for 

11 public inspection in the appropriate offices of the 

12 National Park Service and in an appropriate State 

13 office in each of the States included in the Heritage 

14 Corridor. The Secretary shall publish in the Federal 

15 Register, as soon as practicable after the date of en16 actment of this Act, a detailed description and map 

17 of the boundaries established under this subsection. 

18 (2) REVISIONS.—The boundaries of the herit19 age corridor may be revised if the revision is— 

20 (A) proposed in the management plan de21 veloped for the Heritage Area; 

22 (B) approved by the Secretary in accord23 ance with this Act; and 

24 (C) placed on file in accordance with para25 graph (1). 
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1 (c) ADMINISTRATION.—The Heritage Corridor shall 

2 be administered in accordance with the provisions of this 

3 Act. 

4 SEC. 5. GULLAH/GEECHEE CULTURAL HERITAGE COR5 RIDOR COMMISSION. 

6 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is hereby established a 

7 commission to be known as ‘‘Gullah/Geechee Cultural 

8 Heritage Corridor Commission’’ whose purpose shall be to 

9 assist Federal, State, and local authorities in the develop10 ment and implementation of a management plan for those 

11 land and waters specified in section 4. 

12 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Commission shall be com13 posed of 9 members appointed by the Secretary as follows: 

14 (1) 4 individuals nominated by the State His15 toric Preservation Officer of South Carolina and 2 

16 individuals nominated by the State Historic Preser17 vation Officer of Georgia and appointed by the Sec18 retary. 

19 (2) 2 individuals from South Carolina and 1 in20 dividual from Georgia who are recognized experts in 

21 historic preservation, anthropology, and folklore, ap22 pointed by the Secretary. 

23 (c) TERMS.—Members of the Commission shall be 

24 appointed to terms not to exceed 3 years. The Secretary 

25 may stagger the terms of the initial appointments to the 
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1 Commission in order to assure continuity of operation. 

2 Any member of the Commission may serve after the expi3 ration of their term until a successor is appointed. A va4 cancy shall be filled in the same manner in which the origi5 nal appointment was made. 

6 (d) TERMINATION.—The Commission shall terminate 

7 10 years after the date of enactment of this Act. 

8 SEC. 6. OPERATION OF THE COMMISSION. 

9 (a) DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION.—To further the 

10 purposes of the Heritage Corridor, the Commission 

11 shall— 

12 (1) prepare and submit a management plan to 

13 the Secretary in accordance with section 7; 

14 (2) assist units of local government and other 

15 persons in implementing the approved management 

16 plan by— 

17 (A) carry out programs and projects that 

18 recognize, protect, and enhance important re19 source values within the Heritage Corridor; 

20 (B) establishing and maintaining interpre21 tive exhibits and programs within the Heritage 

22 Corridor; 

23 (C) developing recreational and educational 

24 opportunities in the Heritage Corridor; 
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1 (D) increasing public awareness of and ap2 preciation for the historical, cultural, natural, 

3 and scenic resources of the Heritage Corridor; 

4 (E) protecting and restoring historic sites 

5 and buildings in the Heritage Corridor that are 

6 consistent with heritage corridor themes; 

7 (F) ensuring that clear, consistent, and ap8 propriate signs identifying points of public ac9 cess and sites of interest are posted throughout 

10 the Heritage Corridor; and 

11 (G) promoting a wide range of partner12 ships among governments, organizations, and 

13 individuals to further the purposes of the Herit14 age Corridor; 

15 (3) consider the interests of diverse units of 

16 government, business, organizations, and individuals 

17 in the Heritage Corridor in the preparation and im18 plementation of the management plan; 

19 (4) conduct meetings open to the public at least 

20 quarterly regarding the development and implemen21 tation of the management plan; 

22 (5) submit an annual report to the Secretary 

23 for any fiscal year in which the Commission receives 

24 Federal funds under this Act, setting forth its ac25 complishments, expenses, and income, including 
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1 grants made to any other entities during the year 

2 for which the report is made; 

3 (6) make available for audit for any fiscal year 

4 in which it receives Federal funds under this Act, all 

5 information pertaining to the expenditure of such 

6 funds and any matching funds, and require all 

7 agreements authorizing expenditures of Federal 

8 funds by other organizations, that the receiving or9 ganization make available for audit all records and 

10 other information pertaining to the expenditure of 

11 such funds; and 

12 (7) encourage by appropriate means economic 

13 viability that is consistent with the purposes of the 

14 Heritage Corridor. 

15 (b) AUTHORITIES.—The Commission may, for the 

16 purposes of preparing and implementing the management 

17 plan, use funds made available under this Act to— 

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

19 agreements with the States of South Carolina and 

20 Georgia, political subdivisions of those States, a non21 profit organization, or any person; 

22 (2) hire and compensate staff; 

23 (3) obtain funds from any source including any 

24 that are provided under any other Federal law or 

25 program; and 
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1 (4) contract for goods and services. 

2 SEC. 7. MANAGEMENT PLAN. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The management plan for the 

4 Heritage Corridor shall— 

5 (1) include comprehensive policies, strategies, 

6 and recommendations for conservation, funding, 

7 management, and development of the Heritage Cor8 ridor; 

9 (2) take into consideration existing State, coun10 ty, and local plans in the development of the man11 agement plan and its implementation; 

12 (3) include a description of actions that govern13 ments, private organizations, and individuals have 

14 agreed to take to protect the historical, cultural, and 

15 natural resources of the Heritage Corridor; 

16 (4) specify the existing and potential sources of 

17 funding to protect, manage, and develop the Herit18 age Corridor in the first 5 years of implementation; 

19 (5) include an inventory of the historical, cul20 tural and natural resources of the Heritage Corridor 

21 related to the themes of the Heritage Corridor that 

22 should be preserved, restored, managed, developed, 

23 or maintained; 

24 (6) recommend policies and strategies for re25 source management that consider and detail the ap-
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1 plication of appropriate land and water management 

2 techniques, including the development of intergov3 ernmental and interagency cooperative agreements 

4 to protect the Heritage Corridor’s historical, cul5 tural, and natural resources; 

6 (7) describe a program for implementation of 

7 the management plan including plans for resources 

8 protection, restoration, construction, and specific 

9 commitments for implementation that have been 

10 made by the Commission or any government, organi11 zation, or individual for the first 5 years of imple12 mentation; 

13 (8) include an analysis and recommendations 

14 for the ways in which Federal, State, or local pro15 grams may best be coordinated to further the pur16 poses of this Act; and 

17 (9) include an interpretive plan for the Heritage 

18 Corridor. 

19 (b) SUBMITTAL OF MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The Com20 mission shall submit the management plan to the Sec21 retary for approval not later than 3 years after funds are 

22 made available for this Act. 

23 (c) FAILURE TO SUBMIT.—If the Commission fails 

24 to submit the management plan to the Secretary in ac25 cordance with subsection (b), the Heritage Corridor shall 
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1 not qualify for Federal funding until the management plan 

2 is submitted. 

3 (d) APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL OF MANAGEMENT

4 PLAN.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall approve 

6 or disapprove the management plan not later than 

7 90 days after receiving the management plan. 

8 (2) CRITERIA.—In determining whether to ap9 prove the management plan, the Secretary shall con10 sider whether— 

11 (A) the Commission has afforded adequate 

12 opportunity, including public hearings, for pub13 lic and governmental involvement in the prepa14 ration of the management plan; 

15 (B) the resource preservation and interpre16 tation strategies contained in the management 

17 plan would adequately protect the cultural and 

18 historic resources of the Heritage Corridor; and 

19 (C) the Secretary has received adequate 

20 assurances from appropriate State and local of21 ficials whose support is needed to ensure the ef22 fective implementation of the State and local 

23 aspects of the plan. 

24 (3) ACTION FOLLOWING DISAPPROVAL.—If the 

25 Secretary disapproves the management plan, the 
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1 Secretary shall advise the Commission in writing of 

2 the reasons therefore and shall make recommenda3 tions for revisions to the management plan. The Sec4 retary shall approve or disapprove a proposed revi5 sion not later than 60 days after the date it is sub6 mitted. 

7 (4) APPROVAL OF AMENDMENTS.—Substantial 

8 amendments to the management plan shall be re9 viewed and approved by the Secretary in the same 

10 manner as provided in the original management 

11 plan. The Commission shall not use Federal funds 

12 authorized by this Act to implement any amend13 ments until the Secretary has approved the amend14 ments. 

15 SEC. 8. AUTHORITIES OF THE SECRETARY. 

16 (a) TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Upon a request of the Com18 mission, the Secretary may provide technical and fi19 nancial assistance for the development and imple20 mentation of the management plan. 

21 (2) PRIORITY FOR ASSISTANCE.—In providing 

22 assistance under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall 

23 give priority to actions that assist in— 
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1 (A) conserving the significant cultural, his2 torical, and natural resources of the Heritage 

3 Corridor; and 

4 (B) providing educational and interpretive 

5 opportunities consistent with the purposes of 

6 the Heritage Corridor. 

7 (3) SPENDING FOR NON-FEDERAL PROPERTY.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Commission may 

9 expend Federal funds made available under this 

10 Act on nonfederally owned property that is— 

11 (i) identified in the management plan; 

12 or 

13 (ii) listed or eligible for listing on the 

14 National Register for Historic Places. 

15 (B) AGREEMENTS.—Any payment of Fed16 eral funds made pursuant to this Act shall be 

17 subject to an agreement that conversion, use, or 

18 disposal of a project so assisted for purposes 

19 contrary to the purposes of this Act, as deter20 mined by the Secretary, shall result in a right 

21 of the United States to compensation of all 

22 funds made available to that project or the pro23 portion of the increased value of the project at24 tributable to such funds as determined at the 
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1 time of such conversion, use, or disposal, which2 ever is greater. 

3 SEC. 9. DUTIES OF OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES. 

4 Any Federal agency conducting or supporting activi5 ties directly affecting the Heritage Corridor shall— 

6 (1) consult with the Secretary and the Commis7 sion with respect to such activities; 

8 (2) cooperate with the Secretary and the Com9 mission in carrying out their duties under this Act 

10 and, to the maximum extent practicable, coordinate 

11 such activities with the carrying out of such duties; 

12 and 

13 (3) to the maximum extent practicable, conduct 

14 or support such activities in a manner in which the 

15 Commission determines will not have an adverse ef16 fect on the Heritage Corridor. 

17 SEC. 10. COASTAL HERITAGE CENTERS. 

18 In furtherance of the purposes of this Act and using 

19 the authorities made available under this Act, the Com20 mission shall establish one or more Coastal Heritage Cen21 ters at appropriate locations within the Heritage Corridor. 

22 SEC. 11. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro24 priated for the purposes of this Act not more than 

25 $1,000,000 for any fiscal year. Not more than a total of 
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1 $10,000,000 may be appropriated for the Heritage Cor2 ridor under this Act. 

3 (b) COST SHARE.—Federal funding provided under 

4 this Act may not exceed 50 percent of the total cost of 

5 any activity for which assistance is provided under this 

6 Act. 

7 (c) IN-KIND CONTRIBUTIONS.—The Secretary may 

8 accept in-kind contributions as part of the non-Federal 

9 cost share of any activity for which assistance is provided 

10 under this Act. 

11 SEC. 12. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY. 

12 The authority of the Secretary to provide assistance 

13 under this Act shall terminate on the day occurring 15 

14 years after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

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