II 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3942 

To establish the Paterson Great Falls National Park in the State of New 

Jersey, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 26, 2006 

Mr. LAUTENBERG (for himself and Mr. MENENDEZ) introduced the following 

bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and 

Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To establish the Paterson Great Falls National Park in the 

State of New Jersey, 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 ‘‘Paterson Great Falls 

5 National Park Act of 2006’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) The Great Falls Historic District in 

9 Paterson, New Jersey is the site Alexander Ham10 ilton selected to implement his vision of American 


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1 economic independence and transform a rural agrar2 ian society based on slavery into a global economy 

3 based on freedom. 

4 (2) President Ford announced the designation 

5 of the Historic District as a National Historic Land6 mark in 1976 and declared it ‘‘a symbol of the in7 dustrial might which helps to make America the 

8 most powerful nation in the world’’. 

9 (3) The Historic District was established as a 

10 National Historic District in 1996. 

11 (4) Exceptional natural and cultural resources 

12 make the Historic District America’s only National 

13 Historic District that contains both a National His14 toric Landmark and a National Natural Resource. 

15 (5) The Historic District embodies Hamilton’s 

16 vision of an American economy based on— 

17 (A) diverse industries to avoid excessive re18 liance on any single manufactured product; 

19 (B) innovative engineering and technology, 

20 including the successful use of water, a renew21 able energy source, to power industry and man22 ufacturing; 

23 (C) industrial production of goods not only 

24 for domestic consumption but also for inter25 national trade; and 


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1 (D) meritocracy and opportunities for all. 

2 (6) Pierre L’Enfant’s water power system at 

3 Great Falls and the buildings erected around it over 

4 two centuries constitute the finest and most exten5 sive remaining example of engineering, planning, 

6 and architectural works that span the entire period 

7 of America’s growth into an industrial power. 

8 (7) A National Park Service unit in Paterson is 

9 necessary to give the American people an oppor10 tunity to appreciate the physical beauty and histor11 ical importance of the Historic District. 

12 (8) Congress and the National Park Service 

13 recognized the national significance of the Historic 

14 District through listing on the National Register of 

15 Historic Places and designation as a National His16 toric Landmark and a National Historic District. 

17 (9) The Historic District is suitable for addition 

18 to the National Park System because— 

19 (A) the national park will promote themes 

20 not adequately represented in National Park 

21 System, including aspects of African-American 

22 history and the inspiration Great Falls has been 

23 for renowned American writers and artists; 

24 (B) the national park will promote civic en25 gagement by attracting and engaging people 


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1 who currently feel little or no connection to Na2 tional Parks or the founding fathers; 

3 (C) the national park will interpret Amer4 ica’s developing history in the historical and 

5 global context; and 

6 (D) the national park will foster partner7 ships among federal, state and local govern8 ments and private donors and non-profit orga9 nizations. 

10 (10) The Historic District is a physically and 

11 fiscally feasible site for a national park because— 

12 (A) all of the required natural and cultural 

13 resources are on property largely owned by local 

14 government entities; 

15 (B) it is of a manageable size; and 

16 (C) much of the funding will come from 

17 private donors and the State of New Jersey, 

18 which has committed substantial sums of money 

19 to fund a state park that will assist in the fund20 ing of the national park. 

21 (11) The national park provides enormous po22 tential for public use because its location and urban 

23 setting make it easily accessible for millions of 

24 Americans. 


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1 (12) The historic Hinchliffe stadium, adjacent 

2 to the Historic District, was home to the New York 

3 Black Yankees for many years, including 1933 when 

4 it hosted the Colored Championship of the Nation, 

5 and it was added to the National Register of His6 toric Places by the National Park Service in 2004. 

7 (13) Larry Doby played in Hinchliffe Stadium 

8 both as a star high school athlete and again as 

9 Negro League player, shortly before becoming the 

10 first African-American to play in the American 

11 League. 

12 (14) A National Park Service unit, in partner13 ship with private donors and state and local govern14 ments, represents the most effective and efficient 

15 method of preserving the Historic District for the 

16 public. 

17 (15) A National Park Service unit in Paterson 

18 is necessary to give the Historic District the con19 tinuity and professionalism required to attract pri20 vate donors from across the country. 

21 (16) Though the State of New Jersey will be a 

22 strong partner with a significant financial commit23 ment, the State alone cannot preserve the Historic 

24 District and present it to the public without a Na25 tional Park System unit in Paterson. 


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

2 (1) to establish a unit of the National Park 

3 System in Paterson, New Jersey, consisting of the 

4 Historic District and historic Hinchliffe Stadium; 

5 and 

6 (2) to create partnerships among Federal, 

7 State, and local governments, non-profit organiza8 tions, and private donors to preserve, enhance, inter9 pret, and promote the cultural sites, historic struc10 tures, and natural beauty of the Historic District 

11 and the historic Hinchliffe Stadium for the benefit 

12 of present and future generations. 

13 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

14 In this Act: 

15 (1) HISTORIC DISTRICT.—The term ‘‘Historic 

16 District’’ means the Great Falls National Historic 

17 District in Paterson, New Jersey, consisting of ap18 proximately 118 acres, as specified in the National 

19 Register of Historic Places. 

20 (2) NATIONAL PARK.—The term ‘‘national 

21 park’’ means the Paterson Great Falls National 

22 Park established by section 4. 

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

24 the Secretary of the Interior. 


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1 (4) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The term ‘‘manage2 ment plan’’ means the integrated resource manage3 ment plan prepared pursuant to section 6. 

4 (5) PARTNERSHIP.—The term ‘‘Partnership’’ 

5 means the Paterson Great Falls National Park Part6 nership established in section 7. 

7 (6) ADVISORY COUNCIL.—The term ‘‘Advisory 

8 Council’’ means the Paterson Great Falls National 

9 Park Advisory Council established pursuant to sec10 tion 8. 

11 SEC. 4. PATERSON GREAT FALLS NATIONAL PARK. 

12 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in 

13 Paterson, New Jersey, the Paterson Great Falls National 

14 Park as a unit of the National Park System. 

15 (b) BOUNDARIES.—The boundaries of the national 

16 park shall be— 

17 (1) the Historic District as listed on the Na18 tional Register of Historic Places; and 

19 (2) the historic Hinchliffe Stadium as listed on 

20 the National Register of Historic Places. 

21 SEC. 5. ADMINISTRATION. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—The national park shall be admin23 istered in partnership by the Secretary, the State of New 

24 Jersey, City of Paterson and its applicable subdivisions, 

25 and others in accordance with the provisions of law genVerDate Aug 31 2005 23:02 Sep 27, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3942.IS S3942

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1 erally applicable to units of the National Park System (in2 cluding the Act of August 25, 1916 (16 U.S.C. 1 et seq.) 

3 and the Act of August 21, 1935 (16 U.S.C. 461 et seq.)), 

4 and in accordance with the management plan. 

5 (b) STATE AND LOCAL JURISDICTION.—Nothing in 

6 this section shall be construed to diminish, enlarge, or 

7 modify any right of the State of New Jersey or any polit8 ical subdivision thereof to exercise civil and criminal juris9 diction or to carry out State laws, rules, and regulations 

10 within the national park. 

11 (c) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.— 

12 (1) The Secretary may consult and enter into 

13 cooperative agreements with the State of New Jersey 

14 or its political subdivisions to acquire from and pro15 vide to the State or its political subdivisions goods 

16 and services to be used in the cooperative manage17 ment of lands within the national park, if the Sec18 retary determines that appropriations for that pur19 pose are available and the agreement is in the best 

20 interest of the United States. 

21 (2) The Secretary, after consultation with the 

22 Partnership, may enter into cooperative agreements 

23 with owners of property of nationally significant his24 toric or other cultural resources within the national 

25 park in order to provide for interpretive exhibits or 


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1 programs. Such agreements shall provide, whenever 

2 appropriate, that— 

3 (A) the public may have access to such 

4 property at specified, reasonable times for pur5 poses of viewing property or exhibits or attend6 ing programs established by the Secretary 

7 under this subsection; and 

8 (B) no changes or alterations shall be 

9 made in the properties, except by mutual agree10 ments between the Secretary and the other par11 ties to the agreements. 

12 (d) CONSTRUCTION OF FACILITIES ON NON-FED13 ERAL LANDS.—In order to facilitate the administration of 

14 the national park, the Secretary is authorized, subject to 

15 the availability of appropriated funds, to construct essen16 tial administrative or visitor use facilities on non-Federal 

17 public lands within the national park. Such facilities and 

18 the use thereof shall be in conformance with applicable 

19 plans 

20 (e) OTHER PROPERTY, FUNDS, AND SERVICES.—The 

21 Secretary may accept and use donated funds, property, 

22 and services to carry out this section. 

23 (f) MANAGEMENT IN ACCORDANCE WITH INTE24 GRATED MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The Secretary shall pre25 serve, interpret, manage, and provide educational and recVerDate Aug 31 2005 23:02 Sep 27, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3942.IS S3942

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1 reational uses for the national park, in consultation with 

2 the owners and managers of lands in the national park, 

3 in accordance with the management plan. 

4 SEC. 6. INTEGRATED RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLAN. 

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

6 date of the enactment of this Act, the Partnership shall 

7 submit to the Secretary a management plan for the na8 tional park to be developed and implemented by the Part9 nership. 

10 (b) CONTENTS.—The management plan shall include, 

11 at a minimum, each of the following: 

12 (1) A program providing for coordinated admin13 istration of the national park with proposed assign14 ment of responsibilities to the appropriate govern15 mental unit at the Federal, State, and local levels, 

16 and nonprofit organizations, including each of the 

17 following: 

18 (A) A plan to finance and support the pub19 lic improvements and services recommended in 

20 the management plan, including allocation of 

21 non-Federal matching requirements and a de22 lineation of profit sector roles and responsibil23 ities. 

24 (B) A program for the coordination and 

25 consolidation, to the extent feasible, of activities 


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1 that may be carried out by Federal, State, and 

2 local agencies having jurisdiction over land 

3 within the national park, including planning 

4 and regulatory responsibilities. 

5 (2) Policies and programs for the following pur6 poses: 

7 (A) Enhancing public recreational and cul8 tural opportunities in the national park. 

9 (B) Conserving, protecting, and maintain10 ing the scenic, historical, cultural, and natural 

11 values of the national park. 

12 (C) Developing educational opportunities 

13 in the national park. 

14 (D) Enhancing public access to the na15 tional park, including development of transpor16 tation networks. 

17 (E) Identifying potential sources of rev18 enue from programs or activities carried out 

19 within the national park. 

20 (F) Protecting and preserving sites with 

21 historical, cultural, natural, Native American 

22 and African American significance. 

23 (3) A policy statement that recognizes existing 

24 economic activities within the national park. 


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1 (c) CONSULTATION AND PUBLIC HEARINGS.—In de2 veloping the management plan, the Partnership shall: 

3 (1) Consult on a regular basis with appropriate 

4 officials of any local government or Federal or State 

5 agency which has jurisdiction over lands within the 

6 national park. 

7 (2) Consult with interested conservation, busi8 ness, professional, and citizen organizations. 

9 (3) Conduct public hearings or meetings for the 

10 purposes of providing interested persons with the op11 portunity to testify with respect to matters to be ad12 dressed by the management plan. 

13 (d) APPROVAL OF THE MANAGEMENT PLAN.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Partnership shall sub15 mit the management plan to the Governor of New 

16 Jersey for review. The Governor shall have 90 days 

17 to review and make any recommendations regarding 

18 the management plan. After considering the Gov19 ernor’s recommendations, if any, the Partnership 

20 shall submit the plan to the Secretary, who shall ap21 prove or disapprove the plan not later than 90 days 

22 after receiving the management plan from the Part23 nership. In reviewing the management plan, the Sec24 retary shall consider each of the following: 

25 (A) The adequacy of public participation. 


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1 (B) Assurances from State and local offi2 cials regarding implementation of the manage3 ment plan. 

4 (C) The adequacy of regulatory and finan5 cial tools that are in place to implement the 

6 management plan. 

7 (2) DISAPPROVAL.—If the Secretary dis8 approves the management plan, the Secretary shall, 

9 not later than 60 days after the date of such dis10 approval, submit to the Partnership in writing the 

11 reasons for the disapproval and recommendations for 

12 revision. Not later than 90 days after receipt of such 

13 notice of disapproval and recommendations, the 

14 Partnership shall revise and resubmit the manage15 ment plan to the Secretary who shall approve or dis16 approve the revision not later than 60 days after re17 ceiving the revised management plan. 

18 (3) RESULT OF FAILURE TO APPROVE OR DIS19 APPROVE.—If the Secretary does not take action 

20 within the deadlines set forth in paragraphs (1) or 

21 (2), the plan shall be deemed to have been approved. 

22 (e) Prior to adoption of the Partnership’s plan, the 

23 Secretary and the Partnership shall assist the owners and 

24 managers of lands within the national park to ensure that 


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1 existing programs, services, and activities that promote 

2 the purposes of this section are supported. 

3 SEC. 7. PATERSON GREAT FALLS NATIONAL PARK PART4 NERSHIP. 

5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is hereby established 

6 the Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park Part7 nership whose purpose shall be to coordinate the activities 

8 of Federal, State, and local authorities and the private 

9 sector in the development and implementation of the man10 agement plan. 

11 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall be 

13 composed of 13 members appointed by the Sec14 retary, of whom— 

15 (A) 4 members shall be appointed by the 

16 Secretary from nominees submitted by the Gov17 ernor of the State of New Jersey; 

18 (B) 2 members shall be appointed by the 

19 Secretary from nominees submitted by the City 

20 Council of Paterson; 

21 (C) 2 members shall be appointed by the 

22 Secretary from the Paterson Great Falls Na23 tional Park Advisory Board; and 

24 (D) 1 member shall be appointed by the 

25 Secretary from nominees submitted by the 


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1 Board of Chosen Freeholders of Passaic Coun2 ty, New Jersey. 

3 (2) CHAIRPERSON; VICE CHAIRPERSON.—The 

4 Partnership shall elect one of its members as Chair5 person and one as Vice Chairperson. The term of of6 fice of the Chairperson and Vice Chairperson shall 

7 be one year. The Vice Chairperson shall serve as 

8 chairperson in the absence of the Chairperson. 

9 (3) VACANCIES.—A vacancy in the Partnership 

10 shall be filled in the same manner in which the origi11 nal appointment was made. 

12 (4) TERMS.—Terms of service— 

13 (A) members of the Partnership shall serve 

14 for terms of 3 years and may be reappointed 

15 not more than once; and 

16 (B) a member may serve after the expira17 tion of his or her term until a successor has 

18 been appointed. 

19 (5) DEADLINE.—The Secretary shall appoint 

20 the first members of the Partnership within 30 days 

21 after the date on which the Secretary has received 

22 all of the recommendations for appointment pursu23 ant to subsection (b)(1). 

24 (c) COMPENSATION.—Members of the Partnership 

25 shall serve without pay, but while away from their homes 


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1 or regular places of business in the performance of services 

2 for the Partnership, members shall be allowed travel ex3 penses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, in the 

4 same manner as persons employed intermittently in Fed5 eral Government service are allowed expenses under sec6 tion 5703 of title 5, United States Code. 

7 (d) MEETINGS.—The Partnership shall meet at the 

8 call of the Chairperson or a majority of its members. 

9 (e) QUORUM.—A majority of the Partnership shall 

10 constitute a quorum. 

11 (f) STAFF.—The Secretary shall provide the Partner12 ship with such staff and technical assistance as the Sec13 retary, after consultation with the Partnership, considers 

14 appropriate to enable the Partnership to carry out its du15 ties. The Secretary may accept the services of personnel 

16 detailed from the State of New Jersey, any political sub17 division of the State, or any entity represented on the 

18 Partnership. 

19 (g) HEARINGS.—The Partnership may hold such 

20 hearings, sit and act at such times and places, take such 

21 testimony, and receive such evidence as the Partnership 

22 may deem appropriate. 

23 (h) DONATIONS.—Notwithstanding any other provi24 sion of law, the Partnership may seek and accept dona25 tions of funds, property, or services from individuals, founVerDate Aug 31 2005 23:02 Sep 27, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3942.IS S3942

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1 dations, corporations, and other private and public entities 

2 for the purpose of carrying out this section. 

3 (i) USE OF FUNDS TO OBTAIN MONEY.—The Part4 nership may use its funds to obtain money from any 

5 source under any program or law requiring the recipient 

6 of such money to make a contribution in order to receive 

7 such money. 

8 (j) MAILS.—The Partnership may use the United 

9 States mails in the same manner and upon the same con10 ditions as other departments and agencies of the United 

11 States. 

12 (k) OBTAINING PROPERTY.—The Partnership may 

13 obtain by purchase, rental, donation, or otherwise, such 

14 property, facilities, and services as may be needed to carry 

15 out its duties, except that the Partnership may not acquire 

16 any real property or interest in real property. 

17 (l) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—For purposes of 

18 carrying out the management plan, the Partnership may 

19 enter into cooperative agreements with the State of New 

20 Jersey, any political subdivision thereof, or with any orga21 nization or person. 

22 SEC. 8. PATERSON GREAT FALLS NATIONAL PARK ADVI23 SORY COUNCIL. 

24 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary, acting 

25 through the Director of the National Park Service, shall 


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1 establish an advisory committee to be known as the 

2 Paterson Great Falls National Park Advisory Council. 

3 The purpose of the Advisory Council shall be to represent 

4 various groups with interests in the National Park and 

5 make recommendations to the Partnership on issues re6 lated to the development and implementation of the man7 agement plan. The Advisory Council is encouraged to es8 tablish committees relating to specific National Park man9 agement issues, such as education, tourism, transpor10 tation, natural resources, cultural and historic resources, 

11 and revenue raising activities. Participation on any such 

12 committee shall not be limited to members of the Advisory 

13 Council. 

14 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Advisory Council shall con15 sist of not fewer than 15 individuals, to be appointed by 

16 the Secretary, acting through the Director of the National 

17 Park Service. The Secretary shall appoint no fewer than 

18 3 individuals to represent each of the following categories 

19 of entities: 

20 (1) Municipalities. 

21 (2) Educational and cultural institutions. 

22 (3) Environmental organizations. 

23 (4) Business and commercial entities, including 

24 those related to transportation and tourism. 


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1 (5) Organizations representing African Amer2 ican and Native American interests in the Historic 

3 District. 

4 (c) PROCEDURES.—Each meeting of the Advisory 

5 Council and its committees shall be open to the public. 

6 (d) FACA.—The provisions of section 14 of the Fed7 eral Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) are hereby 

8 waived with respect to the Advisory Council. 

9 SEC. 9. FINANCIAL AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE. 

10 The Secretary may provide to any owner of property 

11 within the National Park containing nationally significant 

12 historic or cultural resources, in accordance with coopera13 tive agreements or grant agreements, as appropriate, such 

14 financial and technical assistance to mark, interpret, and 

15 restore non-Federal properties within the National Park 

16 as the Secretary determines appropriate to carry out the 

17 purposes of this Act, provided that— 

18 (1) the Secretary, acting through the National 

19 Park Service, shall have right of access at reason20 able times to public portions of the property covered 

21 by such agreements for the purpose of conducting 

22 visitors through such properties and interpreting 

23 them to the public; and 

24 (2) no changes or alterations shall be made in 

25 such properties except by mutual agreement between 


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1 the Secretary and the other parties to the agree2 ments. 

3 SEC. 10. ACQUISITION OF LAND. 

4 (a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—The Secretary may ac5 quire land or interests in land within the boundaries of 

6 the National Park by donation, purchase with donated or 

7 appropriated funds, or exchange. 

8 (b) STATE PROPERTY.—Property owned by the State 

9 of New Jersey or any political subdivision of the State may 

10 be acquired only by donation. 

11 (c) CONSENT.—No lands or interests therein within 

12 the boundaries of the park may be acquired without the 

13 consent of the owner, unless the Secretary determines that 

14 the land is being developed, or is proposed to be developed, 

15 in a manner which is detrimental to the natural, scenic, 

16 historic, and other values for which the park is established. 

17 SEC. 11. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro19 priated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this 

20 section, provided that no funds may be appropriated for 

21 land acquisition. 

22 (b) MATCHING REQUIREMENT.—Amounts appro23 priated in any fiscal year to carry out this section may 

24 only be expended on a matching basis in a ration of at 

25 least 3 non-Federal dollars to every Federal dollar. The 


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1 non-Federal share of the match may be in the form of 

2 cash, services, or in-kind contributions, fairly valued. 

Æ 


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