I 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 763 
To amend the American Battlefield Protection Act of 1996 to establish 
a battlefield acquisition grant program for the acquisition and protection 
of nationally significant battlefields and associated sites of the Revolu-
tionary War and the War of 1812, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 10, 2005 
Mr. HOLT (for himself, Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. 
MCHUGH, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. SWEENEY, and Mr. SOUDER) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Resources 
A BILL 
To amend the American Battlefield Protection Act of 1996 
to establish a battlefield acquisition grant program for 
the acquisition and protection of nationally significant 
battlefields and associated sites of the Revolutionary War 
and the War of 1812, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Revolutionary War and 
War of 1812 Battlefield Protection Act of 2005’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following:
(1) The battlefields of the American Revolu-
tionary War and the War of 1812 provide a unique 
means for the people of the United States to relate 
to these epic struggles in the history of the United 
States and to understand their importance in the es-
tablishment and early development of the United 
States. 
(2) Urbanization, suburban sprawl, and un-
planned commercial and residential development are 
constantly encroaching on many of the nationally 
significant battlefields of the American Revolu-
tionary War and the War of 1812, as well as on as-
sociated sites, and this encroachment poses a severe 
and growing risk to the preservation of such battle-
fields and related sites. 
(3) According to the Revolutionary War and 
War of 1812 Historical Preservation Study, pre-
pared by the National Park Service, and dated Sep-
tember 2003, of the 825 principal nationally signifi-
cant battlefields and associated sites of the Amer-
ican Revolutionary War and the War of 1812— 
(A) thirteen percent are lost; 
(B) thirty percent are fragmented or in 
poor condition; or
(C) twenty-seven percent may be destroyed 
or impaired within the next ten years, and nine 
percent of this percentage figure are in immi-
nent danger of damage occurring within the 
next three years. 
SEC. 3. BATTLEFIELD ACQUISITION GRANT PROGRAM FOR 
BATTLEFIELDS 
OF 
THE 
REVOLUTIONARY 
WAR AND WAR OF 1812. 
(a) GRANT PROGRAM.—The American Battlefield 
Protection Act of 1996 (section 604 of division I of Public 
Law 104–333; 16 U.S.C. 469k) is amended— 
(1) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub-
section (f); and 
(2) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol-
lowing new subsection: 
‘‘(e) BATTLEFIELD ACQUISITION GRANT PROGRAM 
FOR BATTLEFIELDS OF THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR AND 
WAR OF 1812.— 
‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 
‘‘(A) BATTLEFIELD
REPORT.—The term 
‘battlefield report’ means the document entitled 
‘Revolutionary War and War of 1812 Historic 
Preservation Study’, prepared by the National 
Park Service, and dated September 2003.
‘‘(B) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligi-
ble entity’ means a State or local government. 
‘‘(C) ELIGIBLE SITE.—The term ‘eligible 
site’ means a site that— 
‘‘(i) is not within the exterior bound-
aries of a unit of the National Park Sys-
tem; and 
‘‘(ii) is identified in the battlefield re-
port. 
‘‘(D) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ 
means the Secretary of the Interior, acting 
through the American Battlefield Protection 
Program. 
‘‘(2) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es-
tablish a battlefield acquisition grant program for 
nationally significant battlefields and associated sites 
of the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 
under which the Secretary may make grants to eligi-
ble entities to pay the Federal share of the cost of 
acquiring fee-simple or lesser interests from willing 
sellers in eligible sites for the preservation and pro-
tection of those eligible sites. 
‘‘(3) NONPROFIT PARTNERS.—An eligible entity 
may acquire an interest in an eligible site using a
grant under this subsection in partnership with a 
nonprofit organization. 
‘‘(4) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The non-Federal 
share of the total cost of acquiring an interest in an 
eligible site under this subsection shall be not less 
than 50 percent. 
‘‘(5) LIMITATIONS ON LAND USE.—An interest 
in an eligible site acquired under this subsection 
shall be subject to section 6(f)(3) of the Land and 
Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 (16 U.S.C. 
4601–8(f)(3)). 
‘‘(6) REPORTS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 5 years 
after the date of the enactment of this sub-
section, the Secretary shall submit to Congress 
a report on the activities carried out under this 
subsection. 
‘‘(B) 
UPDATE
ON
BATTLEFIELD
RE-
PORT.—Not later than 3 years after the date of 
the enactment of this subsection, the Secretary 
shall submit to Congress a report that updates 
the battlefield report to reflect— 
‘‘(i) preservation activities carried out 
at the 871 battlefields and associated sites 
identified in the battlefield report during
the period between publication of the bat-
tlefield report and the update; 
‘‘(ii) changes in the condition of the 
battlefields and associated sites during 
that period; and 
‘‘(iii) any other relevant developments 
relating to the battlefields and associated 
sites during that period. 
‘‘(7) AUTHORIZATIONS OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized 
to be appropriated to the Secretary from the 
Land and Water Conservation Fund to provide 
grants under this subsection $10,000,000 for 
each of fiscal years 2006 through 2008. 
‘‘(B) 
UPDATE
OF
BATTLEFIELD
RE-
PORT.—There are authorized to be appro-
priated to the Secretary to carry out paragraph 
(6)(B), $500,000.’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 
(1) REFERENCES TO OTHER BATTLEFIELD AC-
QUISITION PROGRAM.—Subsection (d) of the Amer-
ican Battlefield Protection Act of 1996, as added by 
section 3 of Civil War Battlefield Preservation Act 
of 2002 (Public Law 107–359; 116 Stat. 3016), is 
amended—
(A) in the subsection heading, by striking 
‘‘BATTLEFIELD
ACQUISITION
GRANT
PRO-
GRAM’’ and inserting ‘‘BATTLEFIELD ACQUISI-
TION GRANT PROGRAM FOR BATTLEFIELDS OF 
THE CIVIL WAR’’; and 
(B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘grant 
program’’ and inserting ‘‘grant program for 
battlefields of the Civil War’’; and 
(2) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.—Subsection 
(f) of the American Battlefield Protection Act of 
1996, as redesignated by subsection (a)(1), is 
amended— 
(A) in the subsection heading, by striking 
‘‘REPEAL’’ and inserting ‘‘EXPIRATION’’; and 
(B) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘is re-
pealed’’ and inserting ‘‘expires’’. 
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