[House Report 108-713]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
108th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2d Session 108-713
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PETRIFIED FOREST NATIONAL PARK EXPANSION ACT OF 2004
_______
September 30, 2004.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on
the State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Pombo, from the Committee on Resources, submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 1630]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Resources, to whom was referred the bill
(H.R. 1630) to revise the boundary of the Petrified Forest
National Park in the State of Arizona, and for other purposes,
having considered the same, report favorably thereon with an
amendment and recommend that the bill as amended do pass.
The amendment is as follows:
Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Petrified Forest National Park
Expansion Act of 2004''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Map.--The term ``map'' means the map entitled ``Proposed
Boundary Adjustments, Petrified Forest National Park'',
numbered 110/80,044, and dated July 2004.
(2) Park.--The term ``Park'' means the Petrified Forest
National Park in the State.
(3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of
the Interior.
(4) State.--The term ``State'' means the State of Arizona.
SEC. 3. BOUNDARY REVISION.
(a) In General.--The Secretary is authorized to revise the boundary
of the Park to include approximately 125,000 acres as depicted on the
map.
(b) Availability of Map.--The map shall be on file and available for
public inspection in the appropriate offices of the National Park
Service.
SEC. 4. ACQUISITION OF ADDITIONAL LAND.
(a) Private Land.--The Secretary may acquire from a willing seller,
by donation, purchase with donated or appropriated funds, or exchange,
any private land or interests in private land within the revised
boundary of the Park.
(b) State Land.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary may acquire from the State any
State land or interests in State land within the revised
boundary of the Park, if the acquisition is made--
(A) with the consent of the State;
(B) in accordance with State law; and
(C) by donation, purchase with donated or
appropriated funds, or exchange.
(2) Plan.--Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment
of this Act, the Secretary shall, in coordination with the
State, develop a plan for acquisition of State land or
interests in State land under paragraph (1).
(3) Management agreement.--If the Secretary is unable to
acquire the State lands under paragraph (1) within such 3-year
period, the Secretary may enter into an agreement with the
State that would allow the National Park Service to manage
State lands within the revised boundary of the Park.
SEC. 5. ADMINISTRATION.
(a) In General.--Subject to applicable laws, all land and interests
in land acquired under this Act shall be administered by the Secretary
as part of the Park.
(b) Transfer of Jurisdiction.--The Secretary shall transfer to the
National Park Service administrative jurisdiction over any land under
the jurisdiction of the Secretary that--
(1) is depicted on the map as being within the boundaries of
the Park; and
(2) is not under the administrative jurisdiction of the
National Park Service on the date of enactment of this Act.
(c) Grazing.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall permit the continuation
of grazing on land transferred to the Secretary under this Act
to the same extent as was permitted on such lands as of July
2004, subject to applicable laws and regulations.
(2) Termination of leases or permits.--Nothing in this
subsection prohibits the Secretary from accepting the voluntary
termination of a grazing permit or grazing lease within the
Park.
(d) Amendment to General Management Plan.--Not later than 3 years
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall amend
the general management plan for the Park to address the use and
management of any additional land acquired under this Act.
PURPOSE OF THE BILL
The purpose of H.R. 1630 is to revise the boundary of the
Petrified Forest National Park in the State of Arizona.
BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION
Petrified Forest National Park, originally proclaimed a
national monument by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1906 and
later designated a national park in 1962, is located in
northeastern Arizona. The Park encompasses approximately 93,500
acres and was originally set aside to preserve the
concentrations of rainbow-hued petrified wood, scenic
landscapes of the Painted Desert, rare shortgrass prairie, and
more than 500 archaeological and historical sites that reflect
a 10,000-year continuum of human history.
In their 1992 General Management Plan (GMP), National Park
Service staff at Petrified National Forest cited the enormous
potential significance and value of lands adjacent to the Park,
and identified 97,800 acres as suitable for addition to the
Park, based on then-known resources on those lands. The lands
in question were known to possess globally significant
paleontological resources and potentially nationally
significant archaeological resources. The additional lands
identified include 16 miles of the 22-mile Chinle escarpment,
which contains the world's most significant record of late
Triassic Period fossils. Only six miles of the escarpment fall
within the existing Petrified Forest National Park boundaries,
but the east and west Chinle additions are believed to contain
scientific values that surpass those inside the Park. Other
important additions are Wallace Tank Ruins, Rainbow Forest
Badlands, and Canyon Butte Ruins around the southern end of the
Park; West Rim Painted Desert to the northwest; and Dead Wash
Petroglyphs to the east. The additional acreage specified in
the expansion proposal reflects the need to avoid leaving
private landowners with uneconomic remnants and the additional
knowledge gained about the relevant lands since the 1992 GMP
was finalized.
Expansion of the Park's boundaries would also help to
address long-standing concerns surrounding thefts of priceless
fossils and artifacts, which are being systematically pilfered
on these private, State and the Bureau of Land Management
lands. With the advent of high tech, low-cost mobile sensors
and other non-intrusive measures aimed at educating and
redirecting well-meaning Park visitors, the Park has
demonstrated its ability to protect this wealth of resources.
H.R. 1630 would add approximately 125,000 acres to the
Park, slightly more than half of which are currently in private
ownership. The expansion has broad local support, including the
City of Holbrook, the City of Winslow, the Holbrook Chamber of
Commerce, and Navajo County. In addition, the State of Arizona
expressed its support for the bill in a letter to the
Committee. Four major landowners, who together own
approximately half the total acreage of the expansion area are
aware of the legislation and are supportive. They have
indicated they would consider compensation for their lands
either in the form of a purchase or an exchange. Forty-five
percent of the lands within the proposed expansion areas are in
State or federal ownership. H.R. 1630 directs the Secretary of
the Interior to, in coordination with the State of Arizona,
develop a plan for acquisition of State land or interests in
State land identified for inclusion within the revised boundary
of the Park, no later than three years after the date of
enactment of Act.
COMMITTEE ACTION
H.R. 1630 was introduced on April 3, 2003, by Congressman
Rick Renzi (R-AZ). The bill was referred to the Committee on
Resources, and within the Committee to the Subcommittee on
National Parks, Recreation and Public Lands. On June 15, 2004,
the Subcommittee held a hearing on the bill. On July 8, 2004,
the Subcommittee met to mark up the bill. Congressman George
Radanovich (R-CA) offered an amendment in the nature of a
substitute that added the map name and number to the bill as
well as the acreage to be included in the new boundary. The
amendment also clarified the authorizing language to acquire
State lands. The amendment was adopted by unanimous consent.
The bill as amended was forwarded to the Full Resources
Committee by unanimous consent. On July 14, 2004, the Full
Resources Committee met to consider the bill. Congressman Renzi
offered an amendment to further amend the map boundary and
total acreage in the bill. The amendment was adopted by
unanimous consent. No further amendments were offered and the
bill as amended was ordered favorably reported to the House of
Representatives by unanimous consent.
COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the
Committee on Resources' oversight findings and recommendations
are reflected in the body of this report.
CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY STATEMENT
Article I, section 8 and Article IV, section 3 of the
Constitution of the United States grant Congress the authority
to enact this bill.
COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII
1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the
Rules of the House of Representatives requires an estimate and
a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be
incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(3)(B)
of that rule provides that this requirement does not apply when
the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted
cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the
Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
2. Congressional Budget Act. As required by clause 3(c)(2)
of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and
section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, this
bill does not contain any new budget authority, spending
authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in
revenues or tax expenditures.
3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. This bill does
not authorize funding and therefore, clause 3(c)(4) of rule
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives does not
apply.
4. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate. Under clause
3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives and section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act
of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate
for this bill from the Director of the Congressional Budget
Office:
H.R. 1630--Petrified Forest National Park Expansion Act of 2004
H.R. 1630 would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to
revise the boundary of the Petrified Forest National Park in
Arizona to include an additional 127,400 acres. CBO estimates
that implementing the bill would cost approximately $20 million
over the 2005-2009 period, assuming the appropriation of the
necessary funds. Enacting H.R. 1630 would not affect direct
spending or receipts.
The bill would authorize the National Park Service (NPS) to
acquire the added acreage--including both private and state-
owned lands--by purchase, donation, or exchange. Under the
bill, the state property (about 34,000 acres) could be managed
by the NPS under an agreement with the state if an acquisition
plan cannot be negotiated within three years. The legislation
also would direct the Secretary to transfer to the NPS about
15,500 acres of land currently administered by the Bureau of
Land Management. Finally, the bill would direct the NPS to
amend the park's general management plan within three years to
reflect those changes.
Assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts, CBO
estimates that implementing H.R. 1630 would cost about $18
million over the next three years. Of this amount, we estimate
that about $650,000 a year would be used for up-front
management, planning, and development of the expansion area.
The remaining $16 million would be used to purchase about
77,900 acres of private property within that area. Finally, we
estimate that recurring costs to maintain the additional lands
would be around $700,000 a year beginning in fiscal year 208.
This estimate is based on information provided by the NPS
and by local tax authorities. For the estimate, CBO assumes
that the NPS would enter into an agreement with Arizona that
would enable the federal government to manage the state-owned
lands within the new boundary as part of the national park. If
the NPS purchased this land, however, the cost to implement the
bill would increase by an estimated $7 million.
H.R. 1630 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act. The
transfer of private land into federal ownership authorized by
this bill would result in both direct costs and benefits for
affected state and local governments.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis.
This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104-4
This bill contains no unfunded mandates.
PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL OR TRIBAL LAW
This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or
tribal law.
CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW
If enacted, this bill would make no changes in existing
law.