I 
113TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 445 
To authorize a National Heritage Area Program, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 1, 2013 
Mr. DENT (for himself and Mr. TONKO) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 
A BILL 
To authorize a National Heritage Area Program, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘National Heritage Area Act of 2013’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Findings and purposes. 
Sec. 3. Definitions. 
Sec. 4. National Heritage Areas System. 
Sec. 5. Feasibility studies. 
Sec. 6. Management plan. 
Sec. 7. Designation. 
Sec. 8. Evaluation. 
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Sec. 9. Local coordinating entities. 
Sec. 10. Relationship to other Federal agencies. 
Sec. 11. Property owners and regulatory protections. 
Sec. 12. Funding. 
Sec. 13. Sunset. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following: 
(1) Certain areas of the United States tell na-
tionally significant stories; they illustrate significant 
aspects of our heritage; possess exceptional natural, 
cultural, scenic, and historic resources; and rep-
resent the diversity of our national character. 
(2) In these areas, the interaction of natural 
processes, geography, history, cultural traditions, 
and economic and social forces form distinctive land-
scapes that should be recognized, conserved, en-
hanced, and interpreted to improve the quality of life 
in the regions and to provide opportunities for public 
appreciation, education, enjoyment, and economic 
sustainability. 
(3) Local initiatives based on community and 
regional visions, involving public/private partner-
ships, are critical to conserving, enhancing, and in-
terpreting natural, historic, scenic, and cultural re-
sources related to our American heritage. These ini-
tiatives should be encouraged and supported by the 
Federal Government with the concurrence of the rel-
evant Federal land management agencies and tribal 
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governments by providing financial and technical as-
sistance. 
(4) Partnerships among Federal, State, tribal, 
and local governments, nonprofit organizations, the 
private sector, and citizens provide the most viable 
framework to recognize, conserve, enhance, and in-
terpret the resources of places that have made im-
portant contributions to the national story. 
(5) Communities and regions need assistance to 
set resource stewardship and interpretive goals, and 
to implement strategies for resource conservation 
and renewed economic viability in these areas. 
(6) A unified national process as well as certain 
standards for designation of National Heritage 
Areas need to be established to provide a consistent 
framework. The process should include a system for 
approval of heritage area management plans. 
(7) National Heritage Areas located near or en-
compassing units of the National Park System pro-
vide an additional basis for public enjoyment of 
parks and park-related resources, and it is appro-
priate for these parks to participate in, assist with, 
and benefit from local heritage initiatives that con-
serve and interpret resources over a larger area be-
yond the park’s boundaries. 
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