I
105TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4430
To establish the New York Canal National Heritage Corridor as an affiliated
unit of the National Park System, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
AUGUST 6, 1998
Mr. LAFALCE (for himself, Mr. HINCHEY, and Mr. MCNULTY) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Resources
A BILL
To establish the New York Canal National Heritage Corridor
as an affiliated unit of the National Park System, 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 ‘‘New York Canal Na-
tional Heritage Corridor Act of 1998’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following:
(1) The 524 miles of working canal that com-
pose the New York canal system and the approxi-
mately 75 miles of the old Erie Canal alignment (in
this Act referred to as the ‘‘New York Canal Cor-
ridor’’) comprise a resource and an opportunity from
a tourism, economic development, recreational, and
historical standpoint that is not currently rep-
resented in the National Park System.
(2) The influence of the Erie Canal system and
related waterways, especially during the 1826
through 1860 period, extends into themes as diverse
as literature, music, social reform, religious and po-
litical movements, and ethnic diversity.
(3) In their dimensions, construction, and oper-
ation, most American canals were modeled on the
New York canal system.
(4) Both the 19th and 20th century iterations
of the New York canal system were the largest pub-
lic works projects ever undertaken by a State.
(5) The Erie Canal came to symbolize canals
and the westward movement, figuring prominently in
popular music, art, and literature.
(6) The Champlain portion of the New York
canal system became, in effect, the canal of western
New England, especially Vermont.
(7) The Hudson Canal corridor helped make
New York City preeminent in the Nation’s finance
and commerce, which in turn facilitated the rise of
the ‘‘Empire State’’.
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are the fol-
lowing:
(1) To establish and recognize the New York
Canal Corridor as an affiliated unit of the National
Park System.
(2) To provide encouragement to those villages,
towns, cities, and counties along the Canal Corridor
that seek to revitalize the Canal Corridor through
economic development, job creation, recreation, and
tourism.
SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL CANAL CORRIDOR.
There is established, as an affiliated unit of the Na-
tional Park System, the New York Canal National Herit-
age Corridor (in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Heritage Cor-
ridor’’).
SEC. 4. HERITAGE CORRIDOR BOUNDARIES.
The boundaries of the Heritage Corridor shall include
the counties that are located along the New York Canal
Corridor and connecting waterways.
SEC. 5. FEDERAL ASSISTANCE.
The Secretaries of the Departments of Interior,
Housing and Urban Development, Agriculture, and Trans-
portation, and the heads of other appropriate Federal
agencies may, upon the request of local governments with-
in the Heritage Corridor, use otherwise available amounts
to assist in the implementation of Heritage Corridor ac-
tivities through any program under which such local gov-
ernments may be assisted. Such assistance shall be an eli-
gible cost of such program.
SEC. 6. NO FEDERAL RESTRICTIONS ON LAND USE.
Nothing in this Act shall be construed as a restriction
on land use, development, or any other local or individual
action.
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