I

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 2416

To provide for the preservation, interpretation, development and beneficial

use of natural, cultural, historic and scenic resources that are a source

of values important to the people of the United States through a national

partnership system of heritage areas.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JUNE 15, 1993

Mr. HINCHEY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the

Committee on Natural Resources

A BILL

To provide for the preservation, interpretation, development

and beneficial use of natural, cultural, historic and scenic

resources that are a source of values important to the

people of the United States through a national partnership system of heritage areas.

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 ‘‘National Partnership

5 System of Heritage Areas Act’’.
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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

2 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that certain

3 areas of the United States—

4 (1) embody essential aspects of our national

5 heritage and identity;

6 (2) are a composite of outstanding natural, cul7 tural, historic, and scenic resources that retain a

8 high degree of integrity;

9 (3) represent the diversity of the national char10 acter through the interaction of natural processes,

11 distinctive landscapes, cultural transitions, and eco12 nomic and social forces that have combined to create

13 a unique pattern of human settlement and activity;

14 (4) exhibit valued qualities of the American ex15 perience and provide important conservation, rec16 reational, educational, interpretive, and economic

17 opportunities;

18 (5) may be urban, suburban, or rural; corridors,

19 landscapes, parks or cityscapes; or combinations

20 thereof, and reflect a broadened idea of a park;

21 (6) are lived-in, dynamic environments in which

22 change continues to take place;

23 (7) may already be identified, designated, and

24 managed as part of State urban cultural park or

25 heritage area systems; National Heritage Corridors

26 or regional greenways;
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1 (8) are distinguished by their size, complexity,

2 character, and dynamic nature from existing units of

3 the National Park System and although their nature

4 could make public acquisition and management inap5 propriate, they require partnerships of Federal,

6 State, local, and private entities to identify, plan,

7 and manage these areas in a manner consistent with

8 their resources and values and compatible with, and

9 support of, their continued economic viability; and

10 (9) despite existing efforts by States and local11 ities and existing Federal programs, the cultural and

12 natural resources in both urban, suburban and rural

13 areas are often lost because the demands for preser14 vation, interpretation, management, or urban and

15 rural revitalization cannot be adequately met by any

16 one level of government or concerned agency.

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

18 (1) to establish a national partnership system

19 providing Federal financial and technical assistance

20 to State and local governments, private organiza21 tions, or any combination thereof, for heritage areas

22 that provide outstanding, educational, recreational,

23 inspirational and economic opportunities for this and

24 future generations;

25 (2) to establish an advisory commission; and
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1 (3) to prescribe the methods by which, and the

2 standards according to which, areas or State sys3 tems or programs become designated and part of the

4 national system.

5 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

6 For the purpose of this Act:

7 (1) The term ‘‘National Heritage Area or

8 Park’’ means a definable urban or geographic area

9 of public and private uses ranging in size from a

10 portion of a municipality to a regional area with a

11 special coherence, such area being distinguished by

12 physical and cultural resources and features (natural

13 or man-made, including waterways, buildings, struc14 tures and historic districts, scenic views, or artifacts

15 reflecting a period of style, cultural or natural herit16 age) of greater than local significance and meaning

17 which play a vital role in the life of the community

18 and contribute through interpretive, educational, and

19 recreational use and economic vitality to the public

20 at large.

21 (2) The term ‘‘Commission’’ means the Na22 tional Partnership Heritage Area Advisory Commis23 sion established by section 4 of this Act.

24 (3) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary

25 of the Interior.
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1 SEC. 4. NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA ADVISORY COMMIS2 SION.

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

4 commission to be known as the National Partnership Her5 itage Area Advisory Commission (hereafter in this Act re6 ferred to as the ‘‘Commission’’).

7 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Commission shall be com8 posed of 25 members, to be appointed as follows:

9 (1) Four members of the Senate, appointed by

10 the majority leader of the Senate.

11 (2) Four members of the House of Representa12 tives, appointed by the Speaker of the House of Rep13 resentatives.

14 (3) Six members, one appointed by each of the

15 following: the Secretary of the Interior, the Sec16 retary of Housing and Urban Development, the Sec17 retary of Transportation, the Secretary of Com18 merce, the Secretary of Agriculture, and the Admin19 istrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.

20 (4)(A) Eleven members, appointed by the Presi21 dent, who are not officers or employees of the Unit22 ed States.

23 (B) Seven of the members appointed under this

24 paragraph shall be officers of a State or a political

25 subdivision of a State, and four of the members ap-
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1 pointed under this paragraph shall not be officers or

2 employees of any government.

3 (C) The members appointed under this para4 graph shall have knowledge of and experience in

5 urban, suburban, or rural affairs and shall represent

6 a geographical cross section of the United States.

7 (c) CHAIRPERSON.—The Commission shall elect a

8 Chairperson from among its members other than the

9 member designated by the Secretary of the Interior.

10 (d) TERMS.—Members of the Commission shall be

11 appointed for terms of four years, except that seven of

12 the members first appointed by the President shall serve

13 terms of three years, and members appointed under sub14 section (b)(3) shall serve at the pleasure of the Secretary

15 or Administrator making the appointment.

16 (e) VACANCY.—A vacancy on the Commission shall

17 be filled in the manner in which the original appointment

18 was made.

19 (f) PAY; EXPENSES.—Members of the Commission

20 shall serve without compensation as such. All members of

21 the Commission shall receive reimbursement for necessary

22 travel and sustenance expenses incurred by them in the

23 performance of the duties of the Commission in the same

24 manner as persons employed intermittently in Government
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1 service are allowed under section 5703 of title 5, United

2 States Code.

3 SEC. 5. DUTIES.

4 The Commission shall advise the Secretary in the cre5 ation and administration of the National Partnership Sys6 tem of Heritage Areas, including (but not limited to) mat7 ters relating to partnership studies, recommendations for

8 national designation by Congress, and mechanisms for co9 ordinating Federal activities which affect National Herit10 age Areas or Parks and for coordinating Federal, State,

11 local and private interests in each such area or park.

12 SEC. 6. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS.

13 (a) EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.—The Commission

14 may procure, in accordance with the provisions of section

15 3109 of title 5, United States Code, the temporary or

16 intermittent services of experts or consultants who, while

17 away from his or her home or regular place of business

18 in the performance of services for the Commission, may

19 be allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of

20 subsistence, as authorized by section 5703(b) of title 5,

21 United States Code, for persons in the Government service

22 employed intermittently.

23 (b) INFORMATION.—Each department, agency, and

24 instrumentality of the United States shall furnish to the

25 Commission, upon request made by the Chairman, on a
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1 reimbursable basis or otherwise, such statistical data, re2 ports, and other information as the Commission deems

3 necessary to carry out its functions under this Act. The

4 Chairman may call upon the departments, agencies, and

5 other offices of several States to furnish, on a reimburs6 able basis or otherwise, such statistical data, reports, and

7 other information as the Commission deems necessary to

8 carry out its functions under this Act.

9 (c) HEARINGS.—The Commission or, on the author10 ization of the Commission, any subcommittee or member

11 thereof, may, for the purpose of carrying out the provi12 sions of this Act, hold hearings, take testimony, and ad13 minister oaths or affirmations to witnesses appearing be14 fore the Commission or any subcommittee or member

15 thereof.

16 SEC. 7. HERITAGE PARTNERSHIP STUDIES.

17 (a) GRANTS.—The Secretary may make grants to as18 sist in studies that identify and plan for heritage areas

19 or State systems or programs for heritage areas. These

20 studies shall also provide a means for evaluating candidate

21 areas and systems for further Federal involvement upon

22 authorization by Congress. No such grant may exceed 50

23 percent of the cost of conducting the study.

24 (b) PROCEDURES.—
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1 (1) ELIGIBILITY.—Applicants for grants under

2 this section may be States, or any political subdivi3 sions thereof, or private nonprofit entities, or any

4 combination of the foregoing.

5 (2) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall submit

6 grant applications on an annual basis to the Com7 mission, and after consideration of the recommenda8 tions of the Commission, if any, the Secretary shall

9 place such grant applications as have been received

10 during the prior year in order of priority for finan11 cial assistance.

12 (c) CRITERIA.—In reviewing applications for assist13 ance for individual areas the Secretary shall consider

14 whether—

15 (1) the planning area represents in physical

16 form, an important theme, or themes, in United

17 States history;

18 (2) the planning area reflects values such as

19 traditions, customs, beliefs, and folk life in the phys20 ical features of the urban setting or landscape;

21 (3) the planning area provides outstanding op22 portunities to conserve natural and cultural features,

23 link them to provide educational, recreational and

24 economic benefits, enhance biodiversity, improve air
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1 and water quality, and emphasize other attributes

2 important to human health and welfare;

3 (4) the planning area is an archetypical exam4 ple of a natural region or urban setting;

5 (5) the planning area has strong local support

6 for the study from a diversity of landowners, busi7 ness interests, nonprofit organizations, and govern8 ments within the proposed study area;

9 (6) the planning area has a high potential for

10 effective partnership mechanisms;

11 (7) the proposal is consistent with or com12 plements continued economic activity in the area;

13 (8) resources important to the principal themes

14 of the area retain their integrity;

15 (9) there is a clear potential of matching funds

16 from State and local public and private sources; and

17 (10) with respect to assistance for State sys18 tems or programs, the State system or program in19 cludes individual areas which meet the criteria pro20 vided in this section for individual areas with a sig21 nificant partnership role performed by State govern22 ment in the form of designations, maintenance of

23 standards, and technical and financial assistance.
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1 (d) STUDY CONTENT.—The grantee shall prepare a

2 report of the study. Each study report shall include the

3 following:

4 (1) A description and analysis of the natural,

5 cultural, historic, and scenic resources and associ6 ated values and the educational, interpretive, and

7 recreational opportunities that make it important to

8 the heritage of the United States.

9 (2) A map of the study area, or of the areas in

10 a State system or program in the case of a State

11 system.

12 (3) A statement of goals and policies to guide

13 the future of the area or areas in a State system or

14 program under study.

15 (4) An analysis of measures that have been, are

16 in the process of, or may be taken by Federal, State,

17 and local governments, and by all other private and

18 public entities, to conserve these resources and asso19 ciated values, including scenic values, while en20 hancing educational, interpretive, and recreational

21 opportunities.

22 (5) A description of the appropriate manage23 ment entity or entities.
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1 (6) An analysis of current and future potential

2 uses of the area, or of the areas in a State system

3 or program.

4 (7) A public involvement plan.

5 (8) A strategy for identifying sources of revenue

6 and assistance to aid in the future management or

7 protection of the area, or of the areas in a State sys8 tem or program.

9 (9) In the case of State systems or programs,

10 a management framework, and the management

11 framework and process for each individual area and

12 for the overall system.

13 (e) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—If the grantee re14 quests, the Secretary may provide technical assistance in

15 the conduct of the study through the National Park Serv16 ice to the extent that the National Park Service has re17 sources available to provide such assistance. Nothing in

18 the Act shall be construed to prohibit the Secretary from

19 providing technical or financial assistance under any other

20 provision of law.

21 (f) RECOMMENDATIONS FOR NATIONAL DESIGNA22 TION.—

23 (1) REPORT.—Upon completion of the study,

24 the grantee shall submit the report of such study to
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1 the Secretary and advise if the grantee requests na2 tional designation.

3 (2) REVIEW BY COMMISSION.—The Secretary

4 shall provide those study reports requesting national

5 designation and areas which have been studied by

6 the National Park Service to the Commission for its

7 advice and recommendations. The Commission shall

8 advise the Secretary of those areas and systems or

9 programs, in priority order, it recommends be pro10 posed for national designation by the Congress based

11 on complete studies.

12 (3) RECOMMENDATIONS BY SECRETARY.—The

13 Secretary shall submit to the Congress study reports

14 of those areas and systems or programs the Sec15 retary recommends for national designation together

16 with any comments which the Secretary deems

17 appropriate.

18 SEC. 8. ESTABLISHMENT OF A NATIONAL PARTNERSHIP

19 SYSTEM OF HERITAGE AREAS.

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is hereby established a Na21 tional Partnership System of Heritage Areas, which shall

22 consist of National Heritage Areas or Parks and nation23 ally designated State systems or programs of heritage

24 areas designated pursuant to subsection (b) of this

25 section.
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1 (b) DESIGNATION OF NATIONAL HERITAGE

2 AREAS.—The following areas are hereby designated as

3 components of the National Partnership System of Herit4 age Areas:

5 (1) National Heritage Corridors established by

6 law.

7 (2) New York State Urban Cultural Park

8 System.

9 SEC. 9. MANAGEMENT PLANS.

10 (a) SUBMISSION BY GOVERNOR.—Within two years

11 after designation pursuant to section 8(b) of the Act, the

12 Secretary shall request the Governor of the State in which

13 the designated area or system is located to submit a man14 agement plan to the Secretary for review and approval.

15 The Secretary may, upon request of a Governor, provide

16 technical assistance to the Governor in the preparation

17 and implementation of the management plan. The man18 agement plan shall take into consideration existing State,

19 county, and local plans, and present a unified heritage

20 preservation and interpretation plan for the area or each

21 area in the State system or program.

22 (b) ROLE AND CONTENTS.—Management plans shall

23 be the fundamental document defining the goals and

24 boundaries for each area or system or program and the

25 means for the implementation and management of the Na-
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1 tional Heritage Area or Park. A management plan shall

2 include (but need not be limited to) the following:

3 (1) The boundaries of the area set forth in text

4 and depicted on a map. Zones within the area shall

5 be identified for particular nature and intensity of

6 use, including those zones most appropriately de7 voted to public use and development by State or

8 local government; and private use. Boundaries shall

9 be located as deemed necessary or desirable for the

10 purposes of resource protection, scenic integrity, and

11 management and administration in furtherance of

12 the purposes of this Act, and the estimated cost

13 thereof.

14 (2) An inventory and designation of the natural

15 and cultural resources.

16 (3) Statement of the goals and objectives.

17 (4) Identification of the types of uses, both pub18 lic and private, to be accommodated and, in case of

19 a system or program, their linkages to the overall

20 statewide system.

21 (5) Identification of properties, if any, to be

22 acquired.

23 (6) Description of the interpretive and edu24 cational exhibits and programs to be undertaken.
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1 (7) Description of the program for encouraging

2 and accommodating visitation.

3 (8) An economic assessment of the long- and

4 short-term costs and benefits related to the estab5 lishment, operation and maintenance, including com6 prehensive estimate of the costs of implementing the

7 management plan identified by source of funding

8 and specifically delineating expected State, local,

9 Federal and private contributions.

10 (9) Description of the techniques or means for

11 the preservation and protection of the natural and

12 cultural resources within the National Heritage Area

13 or Park, including means such as proposals and rec14 ommendations for appropriate local governmental

15 policies for designation and protection of historic

16 properties or natural areas to assure that future

17 local actions will be consistent with established and

18 agreed upon preservation standards or criteria.

19 (10) Description of the organizational structure

20 to be utilized for planning, development and man21 agement, including the responsibilities and inter22 relationships of local, regional and State agencies in

23 the management process, and a program to provide

24 maximum feasible primary participation in the im25 plementation of the management plan. Such organi-
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1 zational structures may include (but not be limited

2 to) utilization of existing State and local agencies for

3 administrative and finance purposes through con4 tracts and letters of agreement between State and

5 local agencies or, where necessary, proposed legisla6 tion for new entities to administer and finance im7 plementation of a management plan.

8 (11) A schedule for the planning, development

9 and management. Each management plan must

10 demonstrate that the capability exists at the State

11 and local level to implement and manage the herit12 age area or system or program including, but not

13 limited to, the ability to—

14 (A) accept and disburse funds;

15 (B) acquire, improve and dispose of prop16 erty;

17 (C) manage, operate, and maintain appro18 priate facilities identified as being of local re19 sponsibility without State financial assistance;

20 and

21 (D) promulgate and enforce land use and

22 preservation criteria and standards as required

23 to protect the resources within each area or sys24 tem or program.

25 (c) APPROVAL OF THE MANAGEMENT PLAN.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall approve

2 or disapprove a plan within 120 days of his receipt

3 of the plan from a Governor. No plan submitted to

4 the Secretary under this section shall be approved

5 unless the Secretary finds that the plan, if imple6 mented, would adequately protect the significant

7 natural, cultural, historic and scenic resources of the

8 area or areas within a State system or program and

9 provide high quality educational, interpretive, and

10 recreational opportunities consistent with the values

11 of the area.

12 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In determining whether

13 or not to approve the management plan, the Sec14 retary shall consider whether—

15 (A) the Governor has afforded adequate

16 opportunity, including public hearings, for pub17 lic and governmental involvement in the prepa18 ration of the plan; and

19 (B) the Secretary has received adequate

20 assurances from appropriate State and local

21 governmental officials that the recommended

22 implementation program identified in the plan

23 will be initiated within a reasonable time after

24 the date of approval of the plan and such pro-
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1 gram will ensure effective implementation of the

2 State and local aspects of the plan.

3 (3) PROCEDURE AFTER DISAPPROVAL.—If the

4 Secretary disapproves the management plan, the

5 Secretary shall advise the Governor in writing of the

6 reasons therefor and shall indicate any recommenda7 tions for revisions. Within six months, the Governor

8 may resubmit the plan to the Secretary, who shall

9 approve or disapprove the plan as revised within 120

10 days after the date that the revised plan is submit11 ted. The Secretary shall approve or disapprove sub12 sequent revisions of the plan in the same manner as

13 if each such revised plan were first submitted pursu14 ant to subsection (a).

15 (d) IMPLEMENTATION OF THE MANAGEMENT

16 PLAN.—

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—After review and approval of

18 the plan by the Secretary, priority in the implemen19 tation of the management plan shall be given to ac20 tions that assist in—

21 (A) preserving the significant natural, cul22 tural, historic and scenic resources of the area

23 or areas in an approved system or program;

24 (B) promoting and providing educational,

25 interpretive, and recreational opportunities con-
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1 sistent with the resources and associated values

2 of the area or areas in an approved system or

3 program; and

4 (C) supporting public and private efforts in

5 economic revitalization that contribute to the

6 goals of the plan.

7 (2) PRIORITY ACTIONS.—Priority actions to be

8 carried out under paragraph (1) shall include—

9 (A) assisting the State and political sub10 divisions thereof in appropriate treatment of the

11 districts, sites, buildings, structures, and ob12 jects listed or eligible for listing on the National

13 Register of Historic Places;

14 (B) encouraging high quality and appro15 priate visitor use facilities, interpretive exhibits,

16 tour routes and clear and consistent signage

17 throughout the area;

18 (C) assisting in the enhancement of public

19 awareness of and appreciation for the resources

20 and associated values of the area;

21 (D) encouraging the conservation of natu22 ral resources, historic and scenic landscapes;

23 (E) encouraging enhanced economic devel24 opment in the area in furtherance of the goals

25 of the plan;
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1 (F) encouraging local governments to

2 adopt policies consistent with the goals of the

3 plan and to take actions to implement those

4 policies; and

5 (G) encouraging States to develop system

6 policies and programs for areas therein.

7 (e) ANNUAL REPORTS.—

8 (1) MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—The management

9 entity for each designated area or for a designated

10 system or program shall submit an annual report to

11 the Secretary setting forth its expenses and income

12 and the entities to which any loans and grants pur13 suant to this Act were made during the year for

14 which the report is made.

15 (2) SECRETARY.—The Secretary shall submit

16 an annual report to the Congress describing the

17 loans, grants, and technical assistance provided

18 under this Act. Such report shall specify the

19 amount, recipient, and purpose of any loan, grant,

20 or technical assistance so provided and shall include

21 an analysis of the adequacy of actions taken during

22 the previous year to preserve, protect, and interpret

23 the significant sites, buildings, structures and ob24 jects within the area; as well as the anticipated

25 funds and personnel to be made available by the
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1 Secretary during the next fiscal year to implement

2 the provisions of this Act.

3 SEC. 10. DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY.

4 Following approval of a management plan under sec5 tion 9, the Secretary shall provide technical and financial

6 assistance to each management entity of an area, or to

7 each system or program which shall regrant funds to indi8 vidual areas within the system or program, to implement

9 an approved management plan.

10 SEC. 11. DUTIES OF OTHER FEDERAL ENTITIES.

11 Any Federal entity conducting or supporting activi12 ties directly affecting a designated area or area within a

13 designated system or program, and any entity of a State

14 or political subdivision thereof acting pursuant to a grant

15 of Federal funds or a Federal permit or agreement con16 ducting or supporting such activities, shall—

17 (1) consult with the Secretary and the manage18 ment entity for the area with respect to such

19 activities;

20 (2) cooperate with the Secretary and the man21 agement entity carrying out their duties under this

22 Act and, to the maximum extent practicable, coordi23 nate such activities with the carrying out of such

24 duties;
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1 (3) conduct or support such activities in a man2 ner which the management entity in carrying out

3 their duties under this Act and, to the maximum ex4 tent practicable, coordinate such activities with the

5 carrying out of such duties; and

6 (4) conduct or support such activities in a man7 ner which the management entity determines will

8 not have an adverse effect on the area.

9 SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

10 There is authorized to be appropriated such sums as

11 may be necessary to carry out this Act, but not to exceed

12 the following amounts for the purposes specified:

13 (1) STUDY GRANTS.—For grants and assistance

14 in carrying out partnership studies pursuant to sec15 tion 7, $4,500,000 annually, of which not more than

16 $500,000 shall be available to defray the cost of

17 technical assistance provided by the Secretary.

18 (2) PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION.—To as19 sist in the preparation of plans as specified in sec20 tion 9 and in the implementation of approved herit21 age area or system plans, $75,000,000 annually.

22 (3) COMMISSION OPERATIONS.—For the operat23 ing costs of the Commission, $350,000 annually.
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1 SEC. 13. EXPIRATION OF AUTHORITIES.

2 The authorities contained in this Act shall expire on

3 September 30 of the 25th year beginning after the date

4 of enactment of this Act.

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