I
107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1027
To establish the Freedom’s Way National Heritage Area in the Common-
wealth of Massachusetts and in the State of New Hampshire, and for
other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 14, 2001
Mr. OLVER (for himself, Mr. MEEHAN, Mr. TIERNEY, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr.
BASS, and Mr. MARKEY) introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on Resources
A BILL
To establish the Freedom’s Way National Heritage Area
in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and in the State
of New Hampshire, 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 ‘‘Freedom’s Way Na-
tional Heritage Area Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—
(1) the cultural and natural legacies of the re-
gion encompassing 34 communities in Massachusetts
and 6 communities in New Hampshire have made
important and distinctive contributions to the na-
tional character of America;
(2) these legacies were the foundation of com-
munities in this region, and by according appro-
priate recognition and protection these legacies can
help sustain the quality of life in the future;
(3) particularly significant legacies are—
(A) the early settlement of the United
States and the early evolution of democratic
forms of government;
(B) the development of intellectual tradi-
tions of the philosophies of freedom, democracy,
and conservation;
(C) the evolution of social ideas and reli-
gious freedom;
(D) the role of immigrants and industry in
contributing to ethnic diversity;
(E) Native American and African Amer-
ican resources; and
(F) the role of innovation and invention in
the cottage industries;
(4) the communities in this region know the
value of their legacy, but need a cooperative frame-
work and technical assistance to achieve important
goals by working together;
(5) the National Park Service is responsible for
advocating the protection and interpretation of the
Nation’s cultural and historic resources;
(6) within this distinctive area of New Hamp-
shire and Massachusetts there is a Federal interest
to support the development of a regional framework
to assist the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and
the State of New Hampshire, other local organiza-
tions and governments, and private citizens to con-
serve, protect, and bring recognition to this heritage
for the educational and recreation benefit of this and
future generations of Americans;
(7) significant examples of such resources
include—
(A) Walden Pond State Reservation;
(B) Minute Man National Historical Park;
(C) Shaker Villages in Shirley and Har-
vard;
(D) Wachusett Mountain State Reserva-
tion, Fitchburg Art Museum, and Barrett
House in New Ipswich; and
(E) Beaver Brook Farms and Lost City of
Monson in Hollis;
(8) the Freedom’s Way Heritage Association,
Inc., would be an appropriate entity to oversee the
development of the Freedom’s Way National Herit-
age Area; and
(9) the study entitled ‘‘Freedom’s Way Herit-
age Area Feasibility Study’’, prepared by the Free-
dom’s Way Heritage Association, Inc., and the Mas-
sachusetts Department of Environmental Manage-
ment, demonstrates the sufficient assemblage of na-
tionally distinctive historical resources necessary to
establish the Freedom’s Way National Heritage
Area.
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are—
(1) to foster a close working relationship with
all levels of government, the private sector, and the
local communities in Massachusetts and New Hamp-
shire;
(2) to empower communities and organizations
in these 2 States to preserve the special historic
identity of the region and with it the identity of the
Nation; and
(3) to provide for the management, preserva-
tion, protection, and interpretation of the natural,
historical, and cultural resources of the region for
the educational and inspirational benefit of future
generations.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
For the purposes of this Act:
(1) ASSOCIATION.—The term ‘‘Association’’
means the Freedom’s Way Heritage Association,
Inc.
(2) HERITAGE
AREA.—The term ‘‘Heritage
Area’’ means the Freedom’s Way National Heritage
Area established by section 4.
(3) PLAN.—The term ‘‘Plan’’ means the Cul-
tural Heritage and Management Plan required by
section 6.
(4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
the Secretary of the Interior.
SEC. 4. FREEDOM’S WAY NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the
Commonwealth of Massachusetts and in the State of New
Hampshire the Freedom’s Way National Heritage Area.
(b) BOUNDARIES.—Except as otherwise provided in
section 6, the boundaries of the Heritage Area shall in-
clude all of those lands depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Free-
dom’s Way National Heritage Area’’, numbered ll and
dated ll. The map shall be on file in the appropriate
offices of the National Park Service. The Secretary shall
publish in the Federal Register, as soon as practical after
the date of the enactment of this Act, a detailed descrip-
tion and map of the boundaries established under this sub-
section. Boundaries may be revised if proposed in the
Plan, approved by the Secretary as provided in section
8(b), and placed on file in accordance with this subsection.
SEC. 5. ADMINISTRATION AND MANAGEMENT.
(a) ADMINISTRATION.—The Heritage Area shall be
administered in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
(b) MANAGEMENT ENTITY.—The management entity
of the Heritage Area shall be the Freedom’s Way Heritage
Association, Inc.
SEC. 6. MANAGEMENT PLAN.
(a) PLAN REQUIREMENTS.—The Association shall
prepare and submit for review and approval by the Sec-
retary, a Cultural Heritage and Management Plan for the
Heritage Area that presents comprehensive recommenda-
tions and strategies for the conservation, funding, man-
agement, and development of the Heritage Area. The Plan
shall—
(1) take into consideration current Federal,
State, county, and local plans and involve residents,
public agencies, and private organizations in the
Heritage Area, but shall coordinate those plans and
present a unified historic preservation and interpre-
tation plan;
(2) include a description of actions that units of
government and private organizations are rec-
ommended to take to protect the resources of the
Heritage Area; and
(3) identify existing and potential sources of
Federal and non-Federal funding for the conserva-
tion, management, and development of the Heritage
Area, and include—
(A) an inventory which includes any prop-
erty in the Heritage Area that should be con-
served, restored, managed, developed, or main-
tained because of the natural, cultural, rec-
reational or historic significance to the themes
of the Heritage Area;
(B) a recommendation of policies for re-
source management and protection that con-
sider and detail the application of appropriate
land and water management techniques, includ-
ing the development of intergovernmental coop-
erative agreements to manage and protect the
historical, cultural, and natural resources and
recreation opportunities of the Heritage Area in
a manner consistent with supporting compatible
economic revitalization efforts;
(C) a program of strategies and actions to
implement the Plan, including identification of
the roles of agencies and organizations which
are party to the implementation of the Plan,
identification of specific restoration and con-
struction plans or goals, and identification of a
program of public involvement, annual work
plans and reports, and the role of the Associa-
tion;
(D) an analysis of ways in which Federal,
State, and local programs may best be coordi-
nated to promote the purposes of this Act;
(E) an interpretive and educational plan
for the Heritage Area;
(F) any revisions proposed by the Associa-
tion to the boundaries of the Heritage Area and
requested by the affected local government; and
(G) a process to provide public access to
the Association for the purpose of attempting to
informally resolve any disputes arising from the
Plan.
(b) APPROVAL OF PLAN.—The Secretary shall ap-
prove or disapprove the Plan in accordance with section
8(b).
SEC. 7. AUTHORITIES, PROHIBITIONS, AND DUTIES OF THE
ASSOCIATION.
(a) AUTHORITIES.—The Association may, for pur-
poses of preparing and implementing the Plan, use Fed-
eral funds made available through this Act—
(1) to make grants to the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts, its political subdivisions, or both, the
State of New Hampshire, its political subdivisions,
or both, nonprofit organizations, and other persons;
(2) to enter into cooperative agreements with or
provide technical assistance to the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts, its political subdivisions, or both, the
State of New Hampshire, its political subdivisions,
or both, nonprofit organizations, and other organiza-
tions;
(3) to hire and compensate staff;
(4) to obtain money from any source and to
participate in any program or law requiring the re-
cipient of such money to make a contribution in
order to receive such money; and
(5) to contract for goods and services.
(b) PROHIBITION OF ACQUISITION OF REAL PROP-
ERTY.—The Association may not use Federal funds re-
ceived under this Act to acquire real property or any inter-
est in real property. Nothing in this Act shall preclude
the Association from acquiring real property or any inter-
est in real property using other funds intended for that
purpose.
(c) DUTIES OF THE ASSOCIATION.—The Association
shall carry out the following duties:
(1) Prepare and submit to the Secretary for ap-
proval a plan as described in section 6 not later than
3 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
If the Plan is not submitted to the Secretary as re-
quired under this paragraph within the specified
time, the Heritage Area shall no longer qualify for
Federal funding until the Plan is submitted and ap-
proved by the Secretary.
(2) Give priority to the implementation of ac-
tions, goals, and strategies set forth in the Plan, in-
cluding assisting units of government and others
in—
(A) carrying out the programs that recog-
nize and protect important resource values
within the Heritage Area;
(B) encouraging, by appropriate means,
economic viability in the Heritage Area con-
sistent with the goals of the Plan;
(C) establishing and maintaining interpre-
tive exhibits in the Heritage Area;
(D) developing recreational and edu-
cational opportunities in the Heritage Area;
(E) increasing public awareness of and ap-
preciation for the natural, historical, and cul-
tural resources of the Heritage Area;
(F) restoring historic buildings that are lo-
cated within the boundaries of the Heritage
Area relating to the themes of the Heritage
Area; and
(G) ensuring that clear, consistent, and ap-
propriate signs identifying public access points
and sites of interest are posted throughout the
Heritage Area.
(3) Prepare and implement the Plan while con-
sidering the interests of diverse units of government,
businesses, private property owners, and nonprofit
groups within the Heritage Area.
(4) Conduct Association meetings open to the
public at least quarterly regarding the development
and implementation of the Plan.
(5) Submit an annual report to the Secretary
for any fiscal year in which the Association receives
Federal funds under this Act, setting forth its ac-
complishments, its expenses and income, including
the entities to which it made grants 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, by
the Congress, the Secretary, and appropriate units
of government, all records and other information
pertaining to the expenditure of such funds and any
matching funds; and require, for all agreements au-
thorizing expenditure of Federal funds by other or-
ganizations, that the receiving organizations make
available for such audit all records and other infor-
mation pertaining to the expenditure of such funds.
SEC. 8. DUTIES AND AUTHORITIES OF THE SECRETARY.
(a) TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary may, upon
the request of the Association, provide technical and
financial assistance to the Heritage Area to develop
and implement the approved Plan. In assisting the
Heritage Area, the Secretary shall give priority to
actions that in general assist in—
(A) conserving the significant natural, his-
toric, and cultural resources of the Heritage
area; and
(B) providing educational, interpretive, and
recreational opportunities consistent with the
purposes of the Heritage Area.
(2) SPENDING
FOR
NONFEDERALLY
OWNED
PROPERTY.—Federal funds made available by the
Secretary to the Association may be spent directly
on nonfederally owned property identified in the
Plan, or listed or eligible for listing on the National
Register of Historic Places.
(3) OTHER ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary may
enter into cooperative agreements with public and
private organizations for the purposes of imple-
menting this subsection.
(b) APPROVAL AND DISAPPROVAL OF PLAN.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall approve
or disapprove the Plan not later than 90 days after
receiving the Plan.
(2) CRITERIA FOR APPROVAL.—In determining
whether to approve the Plan, the Secretary shall
consider whether—
(A) the Association has afforded adequate
opportunity, including public hearings, for pub-
lic and governmental involvement in the prepa-
ration of the Plan;
(B) the resource protection and interpreta-
tion strategies contained in the Plan, if imple-
mented, would adequately protect the historic
and cultural resources of the Heritage Area;
and
(C) the Secretary has received adequate
assurances from the appropriate state and local
officials whose support is needed to ensure the
effective implementation of the State and local
aspects of the Plan.
(3) ACTION FOLLOWING DISAPPROVAL.—If the
Secretary disapproves the Plan, the Secretary shall
advise the Association in writing of the reasons
therefor and shall make recommendations for revi-
sions to the Plan. The Secretary shall approve or
disapprove a proposed revision within 60 days after
the date it is submitted.
(c) 
APPROVAL
OF
AMENDMENTS.—Substantial
amendments to the Plan shall be reviewed by the Sec-
retary and approved in the same manner as provided for
the original Plan. The Association shall not use Federal
funds authorized by this Act to implement any amend-
ments until the amendments are approved by the Sec-
retary.
SEC. 9. DUTIES OF OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES.
Any Federal entity conducting or supporting activi-
ties directly affecting the Heritage Area shall consider the
potential effect of the activity on the purposes and the
Plan, and shall consult with the Association with respect
to the activity, and to the extent practicable conduct or
support such activities to avoid adverse effects on the pur-
poses of the Heritage Area.
SEC. 10. RELATIONSHIP TO LAND USE REGULATION AND
PRIVATE PROPERTY.
(a) LAND USE REGULATION.—The Association shall
provide assistance and encouragement to State and local
governments and to private organizations and individuals
to protect and promote the resources and values of the
Heritage Area. Nothing in this Act is intended to abrogate
in any way the authority of State or local governments.
Nothing in this Act may be construed to provide any au-
thority to the Association to regulate any use of land
under this or any other law, nor to grant any zoning or
land use authority to the Association.
(b) PRIVATE PROPERTY.—The Association shall be
an advocate for land management practices consistent
with the purposes of the Heritage Area. This Act provides
no authority to the Association to abridge the rights of
any person with regard to private property. Nothing in
this Act is intended to abrogate in any way any State or
local authority regarding private property. Nothing in this
Act shall impose any additional burden on any property
owner by the listing of his property pursuant to section
6(a)(3)(A).
SEC. 11. 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 Area
under this Act.
(b) MATCHING FUNDS.—Federal funding provided
under this Act may not exceed 50 percent of the total cost
of any assistance or grant provided or authorized under
this Act.
SEC. 12. SUNSET.
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.
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