117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 3222 

AN ACT 

To establish the Alabama Black Belt National Heritage Area, 

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, 
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Alabama Black Belt 

3 National Heritage Area Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

5 In this Act: 

6 (1) NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA.—The term 

7 ‘‘National Heritage Area’’ means the Alabama Black 

8 Belt National Heritage Area established by section 

9 3(a). 

10 (2) LOCAL COORDINATING ENTITY.—The term 

11 ‘‘local coordinating entity’’ means the local coordi12 nating entity for the National Heritage Area. 

13 (3) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The term ‘‘manage14 ment plan’’ means the management plan for the Na15 tional Heritage Area prepared under section 5(a). 

16 (4) MAP.—The term ‘‘map’’ means the map en17 titled ‘‘Alabama Black Belt Proposed National Her18 itage Area’’, numbered 258/177,272, and dated Sep19 tember 2021. 

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

21 the Secretary of the Interior. 

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

23 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 Ala5 bama, to consist of land in Bibb, Bullock, Butler, Choc6 taw, Clarke, Conecuh, Dallas, Greene, Hale, Lowndes, 

7 Macon, Marengo, Monroe, Montgomery, Perry, Pickens, 

8 Sumter, Washington, and Wilcox counties in the State, as 

9 generally depicted on 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 

18 use 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, 

23 or provide technical assistance to, the State or a po24 litical subdivision of the State, Indian Tribes, non25 profit 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 

6 source, including any money or services that are pro7 vided under any other Federal law or program, pro8 vided that any money specifically authorized for Na9 tional Heritage areas shall be subject to a 50 per10 cent cost-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 

17 National Heritage Area shall— 

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

19 submit a management plan for the National Herit20 age 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 

11 appreciation for, natural, historical, scenic, and 

12 cultural resources of the National Heritage 

13 Area; 

14 (E) protecting and restoring historic sites 

15 and buildings in the National Heritage Area 

16 that are consistent with the themes of the Na17 tional Heritage Area; 

18 (F) ensuring that clear, consistent, and ap19 propriate signs identifying points of public ac20 cess and sites of interest are posted throughout 

21 the National Heritage Area; and 

22 (G) promoting a wide range of partner23 ships among the Federal Government, State, 

24 Tribal, and local governments, organizations, 
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1 and individuals to further the purposes of the 

2 National Heritage Area; 

3 (3) consider the interests of diverse units of 

4 government, businesses, organizations, and individ5 uals in the National Heritage Area in the prepara6 tion and implementation of the management plan; 

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

8 frequently than semiannually regarding the develop9 ment and implementation of the management plan; 

10 (5) for any year that Federal funds have been 

11 received under this Act— 

12 (A) submit to the Secretary an annual re13 port that describes the activities, expenses, and 

14 income of the local coordinating entity (includ15 ing grants to any other entities during the year 

16 that the report is made); 

17 (B) make available to the Secretary for 

18 audit all records relating to the expenditure of 

19 the funds and any matching funds; and 

20 (C) encourage by appropriate means eco21 nomic viability that is consistent with the Na22 tional Heritage Area. 

23 (c) PROHIBITION ON THE ACQUISITION OF REAL

24 PROPERTY.—The local coordinating entity shall not use 
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1 Federal funds to acquire real property or any interest in 

2 real property. 

3 SEC. 5. MANAGEMENT PLAN. 

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

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

6 of the National Heritage Area shall submit to the Sec7 retary for approval a proposed management plan for the 

8 National Heritage Area. 

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

10 (1) incorporate an integrated and cooperative 

11 approach for the protection, enhancement, and inter12 pretation of the natural, cultural, historic, scenic, 

13 and recreational resources of the National Heritage 

14 Area; 

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

16 and Tribal plans and treaty rights; 

17 (3) include— 

18 (A) an inventory of— 

19 (i) the resources located in the Na20 tional Heritage Area; and 

21 (ii) any other property in the National 

22 Heritage Area that— 

23 (I) is related to the themes of the 

24 National Heritage Area; and 
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1 (II) should be preserved, re2 stored, managed, or maintained be3 cause of the significance of the prop4 erty; 

5 (B) comprehensive policies, strategies, and 

6 recommendations for the conservation, funding, 

7 management, and development of the National 

8 Heritage Area; 

9 (C) a description of activities that the Fed10 eral Government, State, Tribal, and local gov11 ernments, private organizations, and individuals 

12 have agreed to carry out to protect the natural, 

13 historical, cultural, scenic, and recreational re14 sources of the National Heritage Area; 

15 (D) a program of implementation for the 

16 management plan by the local coordinating en17 tity that includes a description of— 

18 (i) actions to facilitate ongoing col19 laboration among partners to promote 

20 plans for resource protection, restoration, 

21 and construction; and 

22 (ii) specific commitments for imple23 mentation that have been made by the 

24 local coordinating entity or any unit of 
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1 government, organization, or individual for 

2 the first 5 years of operation; 

3 (E) the identification of sources of funding 

4 for carrying out the management plan; 

5 (F) analysis and recommendations for 

6 means by which Federal, State, local, and Trib7 al programs, including the role of the National 

8 Park Service in the National Heritage Area, 

9 may best be coordinated to carry out this Act; 

10 and 

11 (G) an interpretive plan for the National 

12 Heritage Area; and 

13 (4) recommend policies and strategies for re14 source management that consider and detail the ap15 plication of appropriate land and water management 

16 techniques, including the development of intergov17 ernmental and interagency cooperative agreements 

18 to protect the natural, historical, cultural, edu19 cational, scenic, and recreational resources of the 

20 National Heritage Area. 

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

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

23 after the date of enactment of this Act, the local coordi24 nating entity shall be ineligible to receive additional fund-
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1 ing under this Act until the date on which the Secretary 

2 approves the management plan. 

3 (d) APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL OF MANAGEMENT

4 PLAN.— 

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

6 after the date of receipt of the management plan 

7 under this section, the Secretary, in consultation 

8 with State and Tribal governments, shall approve or 

9 disapprove the management plan. 

10 (2) CRITERIA FOR APPROVAL.—In determining 

11 whether to approve the management plan, the Sec12 retary shall consider whether— 

13 (A) the local coordinating entity is rep14 resentative of the diverse interests of the Na15 tional Heritage Area, including the Federal, 

16 State, Tribal, and local governments, natural 

17 and historic resource protection organizations, 

18 educational institutions, businesses, and rec19 reational organizations; 

20 (B) the local coordinating entity has af21 forded adequate opportunity, including public 

22 hearings, for public and governmental involve23 ment in the preparation of the management 

24 plan; and 
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1 (C) the resource protection and interpreta2 tion strategies contained in the management 

3 plan, if implemented, would adequately protect 

4 the natural, historical, and cultural resources of 

5 the National Heritage Area. 

6 (3) ACTION FOLLOWING DISAPPROVAL.—If the 

7 Secretary disapproves the management plan under 

8 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall— 

9 (A) advise the local coordinating entity in 

10 writing the reasons for the disapproval; 

11 (B) make recommendations for revisions to 

12 the management plan; and 

13 (C) not later than 180 days after the re14 ceipt of any proposed revision of the manage15 ment plan from the local coordinating entity, 

16 approve or disapprove the proposed revision. 

17 (4) AMENDMENTS.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ap19 prove or disapprove each amendment to the 

20 management plan that the Secretary determines 

21 make a substantial change to the management 

22 plan. 

23 (B) USE OF FUNDS.—The local coordi24 nating entity shall not use Federal funds to 

25 carry out any amendment to the management 
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1 plan until the date on which the Secretary has 

2 approved the amendment. 

3 SEC. 6. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this Act affects the au5 thority of a Federal agency to provide technical or finan6 cial assistance under any other law. 

7 (b) CONSULTATION AND COORDINATION.—The head 

8 of any Federal agency planning to conduct activities that 

9 may have an impact on the National Heritage Area is en10 couraged to consult and coordinate the activities with the 

11 Secretary and the local coordinating entity to the max12 imum extent practicable. 

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

14 Act— 

15 (1) modifies, alters, or amends any law or regu16 lations authorizing a Federal agency to manage Fed17 eral land under the jurisdiction of the Federal agen18 cy; 

19 (2) limits the discretion of a Federal land man20 ager to implement an approved land use plan within 

21 the boundaries of the National Heritage Area; or 

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

23 use of Federal land under the jurisdiction of a Fed24 eral agency. 
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1 SEC. 7. PRIVATE PROPERTY AND REGULATORY PROTEC2 TIONS. 

3 Nothing in this Act— 

4 (1) abridges the rights of any property owner 

5 (whether public or private), including the right to re6 frain from participating in any plan, project, pro7 gram, or activity conducted within the National Her8 itage Area; 

9 (2) requires any property owner— 

10 (A) to permit public access (including ac11 cess by Federal, State, or local agencies) to the 

12 property of the property owner; or 

13 (B) to modify public access or use of prop14 erty of the property owner under any other 

15 Federal, State, or local law; 

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

17 approved land use plan, or other regulatory author18 ity of any Federal, State, Tribal, or local agency; 

19 (4) conveys any land use or other regulatory 

20 authority to the local coordinating entity; 

21 (5) authorizes or implies the reservation or ap22 propriation of water or water rights; 

23 (6) enlarges or diminishes the treaty rights of 

24 any Indian Tribe within the National Heritage Area; 

25 (7) diminishes— 
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1 (A) the authority of the State to manage 

2 fish and wildlife, including the regulation of 

3 fishing and hunting, within the National Herit4 age Area; or 

5 (B) the authority of Indian Tribes to regu6 late members of Indian Tribes with respect to 

7 fishing, hunting, and gathering in the exercise 

8 of treaty rights; or 

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

10 under any other law, of any private property owner 

11 with respect to any person injured on the private 

12 property. 

13 SEC. 8. EVALUATION AND REPORT. 

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

15 not later than 3 years before the date specified under sec16 tion 9, the Secretary shall— 

17 (1) conduct an evaluation of the accomplish18 ments of the National Heritage Area; and 

19 (2) prepare a report in accordance with sub20 section (c). 

21 (b) EVALUATION.—An evaluation conducted under 

22 subsection (a)(1) shall— 

23 (1) assess the progress of the local coordinating 

24 entity with respect to— 
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1 (A) accomplishing the purposes of the Na2 tional Heritage Area; and 

3 (B) achieving the goals and objectives of 

4 the approved management plan for the National 

5 Heritage Area; 

6 (2) analyze the investments of the Federal Gov7 ernment, State, Tribal, and local governments, and 

8 private entities in the National Heritage Area to de9 termine the impact of the investments; and 

10 (3) review the management structure, partner11 ship relationships, and funding of the National Her12 itage Area for purposes of identifying the critical 

13 components for sustainability of the National Herit14 age Area. 

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

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

17 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Sen18 ate and the Committee on Natural Resources of the House 

19 of Representatives a report that includes recommendations 

20 for the future role of the National Park Service, if any, 

21 with respect to the National Heritage Area. 
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1 SEC. 9. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY. 

2 The authority of the Secretary to provide assistance 

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

4 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

Passed the House of Representatives July 19, 2022. 

Attest: 

Clerk. 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 3222 

AN ACT 

To establish the Alabama Black Belt National 

Heritage Area, and for other purposes.