IB 

Union Calendar No. 318 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 3222 

[Report No. 117–411] 

To establish the Alabama Black Belt National Heritage Area, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 13, 2021 

Ms. SEWELL (for herself, Mr. CARL, Mr. ROGERS of Alabama, Mr. KILDEE, 

Mr. BROOKS, Mr. TONKO, Mr. MOORE of Alabama, and Mr. ADERHOLT) 

introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 

Natural Resources 

JULY 14, 2022 

Additional sponsors: Mr. COHEN, Ms. NORTON, Mr. CLEAVER, Ms. KUSTER, 

Ms. MATSUI, and Mr. COSTA

JULY 14, 2022 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 

House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 

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

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on May 13, 2021] 


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A BILL 

To establish the Alabama Black Belt National Heritage Area, 

and for other purposes. 


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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 ‘‘Alabama Black Belt Na5 tional Heritage Area Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA.—The term ‘‘Na9 tional Heritage Area’’ means the Alabama Black Belt 

10 National Heritage Area established by section 3(a). 

11 (2) LOCAL COORDINATING ENTITY.—The term 

12 ‘‘local coordinating entity’’ means the local coordi13 nating entity for the National Heritage Area. 

14 (3) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The term ‘‘manage15 ment plan’’ means the management plan for the Na16 tional Heritage Area prepared under section 5(a). 

17 (4) MAP.—The term ‘‘map’’ means the map enti18 tled ‘‘Alabama Black Belt Proposed National Herit19 age Area’’, numbered 258/177,272, and dated Sep20 tember 2021. 

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

22 the Secretary of the Interior. 

23 (6) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State 

24 of Alabama. 


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1 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF ALABAMA BLACK BELT NA2 TIONAL HERITAGE AREA. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is established the Alabama 

4 Black Belt National Heritage Area in the State of Alabama, 

5 to consist of land in Bibb, Bullock, Butler, Choctaw, Clarke, 

6 Conecuh, Dallas, Greene, Hale, Lowndes, Macon, Marengo, 

7 Monroe, Montgomery, Perry, Pickens, Sumter, Washington, 

8 and Wilcox counties in the State, as generally depicted on 

9 the map. 

10 (b) LOCAL COORDINATING ENTITY.—The Center for 

11 the Study of the Black Belt at the University of West Ala12 bama shall serve as the local coordinating entity for the 

13 National Heritage Area. 

14 SEC. 4. ADMINISTRATION. 

15 (a) AUTHORITIES.—For purposes of carrying out the 

16 management plan for the National Heritage Area, the Sec17 retary acting through the local coordinating entity may use 

18 amounts made available under this Act— 

19 (1) to make grants to the State or a political 

20 subdivision of the State, Indian Tribes, nonprofit or21 ganizations, and other persons; 

22 (2) to enter into cooperative agreements with, or 

23 provide technical assistance to, the State or a polit24 ical subdivision of the State, Indian Tribes, nonprofit 

25 organizations, and other interested parties; 


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1 (3) to hire and compensate staff, which shall in2 clude individuals with expertise in natural, cultural, 

3 and historical resources protection and heritage pro4 gramming; 

5 (4) to obtain money or services from any source, 

6 including any money or services that are provided 

7 under any other Federal law or program, provided 

8 that any money specifically authorized for National 

9 Heritage areas shall be subject to a 50 percent cost10 share requirement; 

11 (5) to contract for goods or services; and 

12 (6) to undertake or be a catalyst for any other 

13 activity that furthers the purposes of the National 

14 Heritage Area and is consistent with the approved 

15 management plan. 

16 (b) DUTIES.—The local coordinating entity for the Na17 tional Heritage Area shall— 

18 (1) in accordance with section 5, prepare and 

19 submit a management plan for the National Heritage 

20 Area to the Secretary; 

21 (2) assist Federal agencies, the State or a polit22 ical subdivision of the State, Indian Tribes, regional 

23 planning organizations, nonprofit organizations, and 

24 other interested parties in carrying out the approved 

25 management plan by— 


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1 (A) carrying out programs and projects 

2 that recognize, protect, and enhance important 

3 resource values in the National Heritage Area; 

4 (B) establishing and maintaining interpre5 tive exhibits and programs in the National Her6 itage Area; 

7 (C) developing recreational, interpretive, 

8 and educational opportunities in the National 

9 Heritage Area; 

10 (D) increasing public awareness of, and ap11 preciation for, natural, historical, scenic, and 

12 cultural resources of the National Heritage Area; 

13 (E) protecting and restoring historic sites 

14 and buildings in the National Heritage Area 

15 that are consistent with the themes of the Na16 tional Heritage Area; 

17 (F) ensuring that clear, consistent, and ap18 propriate signs identifying points of public ac19 cess and sites of interest are posted throughout 

20 the National Heritage Area; and 

21 (G) promoting a wide range of partnerships 

22 among the Federal Government, State, Tribal, 

23 and local governments, organizations, and indi24 viduals to further the purposes of the National 

25 Heritage Area; 


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1 (3) consider the interests of diverse units of gov2 ernment, businesses, organizations, and individuals 

3 in the National Heritage Area in the preparation and 

4 implementation of the management plan; 

5 (4) conduct meetings open to the public not less 

6 frequently than semiannually regarding the develop7 ment and implementation of the management plan; 

8 (5) for any year that Federal funds have been re9 ceived under this Act— 

10 (A) submit to the Secretary an annual re11 port that describes the activities, expenses, and 

12 income of the local coordinating entity (includ13 ing grants to any other entities during the year 

14 that the report is made); 

15 (B) make available to the Secretary for 

16 audit all records relating to the expenditure of 

17 the funds and any matching funds; and 

18 (C) encourage by appropriate means eco19 nomic viability that is consistent with the Na20 tional Heritage Area. 

21 (c) PROHIBITION ON THE ACQUISITION OF REAL

22 PROPERTY.—The local coordinating entity shall not use 

23 Federal funds to acquire real property or any interest in 

24 real property. 


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1 SEC. 5. MANAGEMENT PLAN. 

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

3 date of enactment of this Act, the local coordinating entity 

4 of the National Heritage Area shall submit to the Secretary 

5 for approval a proposed management plan for the National 

6 Heritage Area. 

7 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—The management plan shall— 

8 (1) incorporate an integrated and cooperative 

9 approach for the protection, enhancement, and inter10 pretation of the natural, cultural, historic, scenic, and 

11 recreational resources of the National Heritage Area; 

12 (2) take into consideration Federal, State, local, 

13 and Tribal plans and treaty rights; 

14 (3) include— 

15 (A) an inventory of— 

16 (i) the resources located in the Na17 tional Heritage Area; and 

18 (ii) any other property in the National 

19 Heritage Area that— 

20 (I) is related to the themes of the 

21 National Heritage Area; and 

22 (II) should be preserved, restored, 

23 managed, or maintained because of the 

24 significance of the property; 

25 (B) comprehensive policies, strategies, and 

26 recommendations for the conservation, funding, 


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1 management, and development of the National 

2 Heritage Area; 

3 (C) a description of activities that the Fed4 eral Government, State, Tribal, and local govern5 ments, private organizations, and individuals 

6 have agreed to carry out to protect the natural, 

7 historical, cultural, scenic, and recreational re8 sources of the National Heritage Area; 

9 (D) a program of implementation for the 

10 management plan by the local coordinating enti11 ty that includes a description of— 

12 (i) actions to facilitate ongoing collabo13 ration among partners to promote plans for 

14 resource protection, restoration, and con15 struction; and 

16 (ii) specific commitments for imple17 mentation that have been made by the local 

18 coordinating entity or any unit of govern19 ment, organization, or individual for the 

20 first 5 years of operation; 

21 (E) the identification of sources of funding 

22 for carrying out the management plan; 

23 (F) analysis and recommendations for 

24 means by which Federal, State, local, and Tribal 

25 programs, including the role of the National 


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1 Park Service in the National Heritage Area, 

2 may best be coordinated to carry out this Act; 

3 and 

4 (G) an interpretive plan for the National 

5 Heritage Area; and 

6 (4) recommend policies and strategies for re7 source management that consider and detail the ap8 plication of appropriate land and water management 

9 techniques, including the development of intergovern10 mental and interagency cooperative agreements to 

11 protect the natural, historical, cultural, educational, 

12 scenic, and recreational resources of the National 

13 Heritage Area. 

14 (c) DEADLINE.—If a proposed management plan is 

15 not submitted to the Secretary by the date that is 3 years 

16 after the date of enactment of this Act, the local coordi17 nating entity shall be ineligible to receive additional fund18 ing under this Act until the date on which the Secretary 

19 approves the management plan. 

20 (d) APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL OF MANAGEMENT

21 PLAN.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after 

23 the date of receipt of the management plan under this 

24 section, the Secretary, in consultation with State and 


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1 Tribal governments, shall approve or disapprove the 

2 management plan. 

3 (2) CRITERIA FOR APPROVAL.—In determining 

4 whether to approve the management plan, the Sec5 retary shall consider whether— 

6 (A) the local coordinating entity is rep7 resentative of the diverse interests of the National 

8 Heritage Area, including the Federal, State, 

9 Tribal, and local governments, natural and his10 toric resource protection organizations, edu11 cational institutions, businesses, and recreational 

12 organizations; 

13 (B) the local coordinating entity has af14 forded adequate opportunity, including public 

15 hearings, for public and governmental involve16 ment in the preparation of the management 

17 plan; and 

18 (C) the resource protection and interpreta19 tion strategies contained in the management 

20 plan, if implemented, would adequately protect 

21 the natural, historical, and cultural resources of 

22 the National Heritage Area. 

23 (3) ACTION FOLLOWING DISAPPROVAL.—If the 

24 Secretary disapproves the management plan under 

25 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall— 


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1 (A) advise the local coordinating entity in 

2 writing the reasons for the disapproval; 

3 (B) make recommendations for revisions to 

4 the management plan; and 

5 (C) not later than 180 days after the receipt 

6 of any proposed revision of the management 

7 plan from the local coordinating entity, approve 

8 or disapprove the proposed revision. 

9 (4) AMENDMENTS.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ap11 prove or disapprove each amendment to the 

12 management plan that the Secretary determines 

13 make a substantial change to the management 

14 plan. 

15 (B) USE OF FUNDS.—The local coordi16 nating entity shall not use Federal funds to 

17 carry out any amendment to the management 

18 plan until the date on which the Secretary has 

19 approved the amendment. 

20 SEC. 6. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this Act affects the au22 thority of a Federal agency to provide technical or financial 

23 assistance under any other law. 

24 (b) CONSULTATION AND COORDINATION.—The head of 

25 any Federal agency planning to conduct activities that may 


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1 have an impact on the National Heritage Area is encour2 aged to consult and coordinate the activities with the Sec3 retary and the local coordinating entity to the maximum 

4 extent practicable. 

5 (c) OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES.—Nothing in this 

6 Act— 

7 (1) modifies, alters, or amends any law or regu8 lations authorizing a Federal agency to manage Fed9 eral land under the jurisdiction of the Federal agency; 

10 (2) limits the discretion of a Federal land man11 ager to implement an approved land use plan within 

12 the boundaries of the National Heritage Area; or 

13 (3) modifies, alters, or amends any authorized 

14 use of Federal land under the jurisdiction of a Fed15 eral agency. 

16 SEC. 7. PRIVATE PROPERTY AND REGULATORY PROTEC17 TIONS. 

18 Nothing in this Act— 

19 (1) abridges the rights of any property owner 

20 (whether public or private), including the right to re21 frain from participating in any plan, project, pro22 gram, or activity conducted within the National Her23 itage Area; 

24 (2) requires any property owner— 


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1 (A) to permit public access (including ac2 cess by Federal, State, or local agencies) to the 

3 property of the property owner; or 

4 (B) to modify public access or use of prop5 erty of the property owner under any other Fed6 eral, State, or local law; 

7 (3) alters any duly adopted land use regulation, 

8 approved land use plan, or other regulatory authority 

9 of any Federal, State, Tribal, or local agency; 

10 (4) conveys any land use or other regulatory au11 thority to the local coordinating entity; 

12 (5) authorizes or implies the reservation or ap13 propriation of water or water rights; 

14 (6) enlarges or diminishes the treaty rights of 

15 any Indian Tribe within the National Heritage Area; 

16 (7) diminishes— 

17 (A) the authority of the State to manage 

18 fish and wildlife, including the regulation of 

19 fishing and hunting, within the National Herit20 age Area; or 

21 (B) the authority of Indian Tribes to regu22 late members of Indian Tribes with respect to 

23 fishing, hunting, and gathering in the exercise of 

24 treaty rights; or 


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1 (8) creates any liability, or affects any liability 

2 under any other law, of any private property owner 

3 with respect to any person injured on the private 

4 property. 

5 SEC. 8. EVALUATION AND REPORT. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—For the National Heritage Area, 

7 not later than 3 years before the date specified under section 

8 9, the Secretary shall— 

9 (1) conduct an evaluation of the accomplish10 ments of the National Heritage Area; and 

11 (2) prepare a report in accordance with sub12 section (c). 

13 (b) EVALUATION.—An evaluation conducted under 

14 subsection (a)(1) shall— 

15 (1) assess the progress of the local coordinating 

16 entity with respect to— 

17 (A) accomplishing the purposes of the Na18 tional Heritage Area; and 

19 (B) achieving the goals and objectives of the 

20 approved management plan for the National 

21 Heritage Area; 

22 (2) analyze the investments of the Federal Gov23 ernment, State, Tribal, and local governments, and 

24 private entities in the National Heritage Area to de25 termine the impact of the investments; and 


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1 (3) review the management structure, partner2 ship relationships, and funding of the National Herit3 age Area for purposes of identifying the critical com4 ponents for sustainability of the National Heritage 

5 Area. 

6 (c) REPORT.—Based on the evaluation conducted 

7 under subsection (a)(1), the Secretary shall submit to the 

8 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate 

9 and the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of 

10 Representatives a report that includes recommendations for 

11 the future role of the National Park Service, if any, with 

12 respect to the National Heritage Area. 

13 SEC. 9. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY. 

14 The authority of the Secretary to provide assistance 

15 under this Act terminates on the date that is 15 years after 

16 the date of enactment of this Act. 


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Union Calendar No. 318 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 3222 

[Report No. 117–411] 

A BILL 

To establish the Alabama Black Belt National 

Heritage Area, and for other purposes. 

JULY 14, 2022 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Comand ordered to be printed mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS