108TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4683
AN ACT
To enhance the preservation and interpretation of
the Gullah/Geechee cultural heritage, and for
other purposes.
108TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4683
AN ACT
To enhance the preservation and interpretation of the Gullah/
Geechee cultural heritage, 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 ‘‘Gullah/Geechee Cul-
tural Heritage Act’’.
SEC. 2. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are to—
(1) recognize the important contributions made
to American culture and history by African-Ameri-
cans known as the Gullah/Geechee who settled in the
coastal counties of South Carolina and Georgia;
(2) assist State and local governments and pub-
lic and private entities in the South Carolina and
Georgia in interpreting the story of the Gullah/
Geechee and preserving Gullah/Geechee folklore,
arts, crafts, and music; and
(3) assist in identifying and preserving sites,
historical data, artifacts, and objects associated with
the Gullah/Geechee for the benefit and education of
the public.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
For the purposes of this Act, the following definitions
apply:
(1) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’
means the Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Cor-
ridor Commission established under this Act.
(2) HERITAGE CORRIDOR.—The term ‘‘Herit-
age Corridor’’ means the Gullah/Geechee Cultural
Heritage Corridor established by this Act.
(3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
the Secretary of the Interior.
SEC. 4. GULLAH/GEECHEE CULTURAL HERITAGE COR-
RIDOR.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the
Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor.
(b) BOUNDARIES.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Heritage Corridor shall
be comprised of those lands and waters generally de-
picted on a map entitled ‘‘Gullah/Geechee Cultural
Heritage Corridor’’ numbered GGCHC/80,000, and
dated September 2004. The map shall be on file and
available for public inspection in the appropriate of-
fices of the National Park Service and in an appro-
priate State office in each of the States included in
the Heritage Corridor. The Secretary shall publish
in the Federal Register, as soon as practicable after
the date of enactment of this Act a detailed descrip-
tion and map of the boundaries established under
this subsection.
(2) REVISIONS.—The boundaries of the herit-
age corridor may be revised if the revision is—
(A) proposed in the management plan de-
veloped for the Heritage Corridor;
(B) approved by the Secretary in accord-
ance with this Act; and
(C) placed on file in accordance with para-
graph (1).
(c) ADMINISTRATION.—The Heritage Corridor shall
be administered in accordance with the provisions of this
Act.
SEC. 5. GULLAH/GEECHEE CULTURAL HERITAGE COR-
RIDOR COMMISSION.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is hereby established a
commission to be known as ‘‘Gullah/Geechee Cultural
Heritage Corridor Commission’’ whose purpose shall be to
assist Federal, State, and local authorities in the develop-
ment and implementation of a management plan for those
land and waters specified in section 4.
(b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Commission shall be com-
posed of nine members appointed by the Secretary as fol-
lows:
(1) Four individuals nominated by the State
Historic Preservation Officer of South Carolina and
two individuals nominated by the State Historic
Preservation Officer of Georgia and appointed by
the Secretary.
(2) Two individuals from South Carolina and
one individual from Georgia who are recognized ex-
perts in historic preservation, anthropology, and
folklore, appointed by the Secretary.
(c) TERMS.—Members of the Commission shall be
appointed to terms not to exceed 3 years. The Secretary
may stagger the terms of the initial appointments to the
Commission in order to assure continuity of operation.
Any member of the Commission may serve after the expi-
ration of their term until a successor is appointed. A va-
cancy shall be filled in the same manner in which the origi-
nal appointment was made.
(d) TERMINATION.—The Commission shall terminate
10 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 6. OPERATION OF THE COMMISSION.
(a) DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION.—To further the
purposes of the Heritage Corridor, the Commission
shall—
(1) prepare and submit a management plan to
the Secretary in accordance with section 7;
(2) assist units of local government and other
persons in implementing the Approved management
plan by—
(A) carry out programs and projects that
recognize, protect, and enhance important re-
source values within the Heritage Corridor;
(B) establishing and maintaining interpre-
tive exhibits and programs within the Heritage
Corridor;
(C) developing recreational and educational
opportunities in the Heritage Corridor;
(D) increasing public awareness of and ap-
preciation for the historical, cultural, natural,
and scenic resources of the Heritage Corridor;
(E) protecting and restoring historic sites
and buildings in the Heritage Corridor that are
consistent with heritage corridor themes;
(F) ensuring that clear, consistent, and ap-
propriate signs identifying points of public ac-
cess and sites of interest are posted throughout
the Heritage Corridor; and
(G) promoting a wide range of partner-
ships among governments, organizations, and
individuals to further the purposes of the Herit-
age Corridor;
(3) consider the interests of diverse units of
government, business, organizations, and individuals
in the Heritage Corridor in the preparation and im-
plementation of the management plan;
(4) conduct meetings open to the public at least
quarterly regarding the development and implemen-
tation of the management plan;
(5) submit an annual report to the Secretary
for any fiscal year in which the Commission receives
Federal funds under this Act, setting forth its ac-
complishments, expenses, and income, including
grants made to any other entities during the year
for which the report is made;
(6) make available for audit for any fiscal year
in which it receives Federal funds under this Act, all
information pertaining to the expenditure of such
funds and any matching funds, and require all
agreements authorizing expenditures of Federal
funds by other organizations, that the receiving or-
ganization make available for audit all records and
other information pertaining to the expenditure of
such funds; and
(7) encourage by appropriate means economic
viability that is consistent with the purposes of the
Heritage Corridor.
(b) AUTHORITIES.—The Commission may, for the
purposes of preparing and implementing the management
plan, use funds made available under this Act to—
(1) make grants to, and enter into cooperative
agreements with the States of South Carolina and
Georgia, political subdivisions of those States, a non-
profit organization, or any person;
(2) hire and compensate staff;
(3) obtain funds from any source including any
that are provided under any other Federal law or
program; and
(4) contract for goods and services.
SEC. 7. MANAGEMENT PLAN.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The management plan for the
Heritage Corridor shall—
(1) include comprehensive policies, strategies,
and recommendations for conservation, funding,
management, and development of the Heritage Cor-
ridor;
(2) take into consideration existing State, coun-
ty, and local plans in the development of the man-
agement plan and its implementation;
(3) include a description of actions that govern-
ments, private organizations, and individuals have
agreed to take to protect the historical, cultural, and
natural resources of the Heritage Corridor;
(4) specify the existing and potential sources of
funding to protect, manage, and develop the Herit-
age Corridor in the first 5 years of implementation;
(5) include an inventory of the historical, cul-
tural, natural, resources of the Heritage Corridor re-
lated to the themes of the Heritage Corridor that
should be preserved, restored, managed, developed,
or maintained;
(6) recommend policies and strategies for re-
source management that consider and detail the ap-
plication of appropriate land and water management
techniques, including the development of intergov-
ernmental and interagency cooperative agreements
to protect the Heritage Corridor’s historical, cul-
tural, and natural resources;
(7) describe a program for implementation of
the management plan including plans for resources
protection, restoration, construction, and specific
commitments for implementation that have been
made by the Commission or any government, organi-
zation, or individual for the first 5 years of imple-
mentation;
(8) include an analysis and recommendations
for the ways in which Federal, State, or local pro-
grams may best be coordinated to further the pur-
poses of this Act; and
(9) include an interpretive plan for the Heritage
Corridor.
(b) SUBMITTAL OF MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The Com-
mission shall submit the management plan to the Sec-
retary for approval not later than 3 years after funds are
made available for this Act.
(c) FAILURE TO SUBMIT.—If the Commission fails
to submit the management plan to the Secretary in ac-
cordance with subsection (b), the Heritage Corridor shall
not qualify for Federal funding until the management plan
is submitted.
(d) APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL OF MANAGEMENT
PLAN.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall approve
or disapprove the management plan not later than
90 days after receiving the management plan.
(2) CRITERIA.—In determining whether to ap-
prove the management plan, the Secretary shall con-
sider whether—
(A) the Commission has afforded adequate
opportunity, including public hearings, for pub-
lic and governmental involvement in the prepa-
ration of the management plan;
(B) the resource preservation and interpre-
tation strategies contained in the management
plan would adequately protect the cultural and
historic resources of the Heritage Corridor; and
(C) the Secretary has received adequate
assurances from appropriate State and local of-
ficials whose support is needed to ensure the ef-
fective implementation of the State and local
aspects of the plan.
(3) ACTION FOLLOWING DISAPPROVAL.—If the
Secretary disapproves the management plan, the
Secretary shall advise the Commission in writing of
the reasons therefore and shall make recommenda-
tions for revisions to the management plan. The Sec-
retary shall approve or disapprove a proposed revi-
sion not later than 60 days after the date it is sub-
mitted.
(4) APPROVAL OF AMENDMENTS.—Substantial
amendments to the management plan shall be re-
viewed and approved by the Secretary in the same
manner as provided in the original management
plan. The Commission shall not use Federal funds
authorized by this Act to implement any amend-
ments until the Secretary has approved the amend-
ments.
SEC. 8. TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Upon a request of the Commis-
sion, the Secretary may provide technical and financial as-
sistance for the development and implementation of the
management plan.
(b) PRIORITY FOR ASSISTANCE.—In providing assist-
ance under subsection (a), the Secretary shall give priority
to actions that assist in—
(1) conserving the significant cultural, histor-
ical, and natural resources of the Heritage Corridor;
and
(2) providing educational and interpretive op-
portunities consistent with the purposes of the Her-
itage Corridor.
(c) SPENDING FOR NON-FEDERAL PROPERTY.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Commission may ex-
pend Federal funds made available under this Act
on nonfederally owned property that is—
(A) identified in the management plan; or
(B) listed or eligible for listing on the Na-
tional Register for Historic Places.
(2) AGREEMENTS.—Any payment of Federal
funds made pursuant to this Act shall be subject to
SEC. 10. COASTAL HERITAGE CENTERS.
In furtherance of the purposes of this Act and using
the authorities made available under this Act, the Com-
mission shall establish one or more Coastal Heritage Cen-
ters at appropriate locations within the Heritage Corridor
in accordance with the preferred alternative identified in
the Record of Decision for the Low Country Gullah Cul-
ture Special Resource Study and Environmental Impact
Study, December 2003.
SEC. 11. PRIVATE PROPERTY PROTECTION.
(a) ACCESS
TO PRIVATE PROPERTY.—Nothing in
this Act shall be construed to require any private property
owner to permit public access (including Federal, State,
or local government access) to such private property.
Nothing in this Act shall be construed to modify any provi-
sion of Federal, State, or local law with regard to public
access to or use of private lands.
(b) LIABILITY.—Designation of the Heritage Cor-
ridor shall not be considered to create any liability, or to
have any effect on any liability under any other law, of
any private property owner with respect to any persons
injured on such private property.
(c) RECOGNITION OF AUTHORITY TO CONTROL LAND
USE.—Nothing in this Act shall be construed to modify
any authority of Federal, State, or local governments to
regulate land use.
moved from within the boundary by submitting a written
request to the management entity.
SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro-
priated for the purposes of this Act not more than
$1,000,000 for any fiscal year. Not more than a total of
$10,000,000 may be appropriated for the Heritage Cor-
ridor under this Act.
(b) COST SHARE.—Federal funding provided under
this Act may not exceed 50 percent of the total cost of
any activity for which assistance is provided under this
Act.
(c) IN-KIND CONTRIBUTIONS.—The Secretary may
accept in-kind contributions as part of the non-Federal
cost share of any activity for which assistance is provided
under this Act.
SEC. 13. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.
The authority of the Secretary to provide assistance
under this Act shall terminate on the day occurring 15
years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
Passed the House of Representatives September 28,
2004.
Attest:
Clerk.