[Senate Report 108-332]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 688
108th Congress Report
SENATE
2d Session 108-332
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MARTIN LUTHER KING, JUNIOR, NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE LAND EXCHANGE ACT
_______
August 25, 2004.--Ordered to be printed
Filed, under authority of the order of the Senate of July 22, 2004
_______
Mr. Domenici, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 1616]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the Act (H.R. 1616) to authorize the exchange of
certain lands within the Martin Luther King, Junior, National
Historic Site for lands owned by the City of Atlanta, Georgia,
and for other purposes, having considered the same, reports
favorably thereon without amendment and recommends that the Act
do pass.
Purpose of the Measure
The purpose of H.R. 1616 is to authorize the exchange of
certain lands within the Martin Luther King, Junior, National
Historic Site for lands owned by the city of Atlanta, Georgia.
Background and Need
The Martin Luther King, Junior, National Historic Site is
located in downtown Atlanta. The historic site's visitor center
is located on a very small lot that has no emergency access,
making it virtually impossible for firefighting and other
emergency equipment to reach the historic site. To address this
problem, the city of Atlanta has agreed to exchange a parcel of
land adjacent to the historic site for a vacant lot owned by
the National Park Service (NPS). The vacant lot has been deemed
by the NPS to have no historic significance and is of interest
to the city of Atlanta for development purposes. The
acquisition of the city-owned property would allow the NPS to
establish easy street access to the visitor center and museum
and greatly improve the ability for emergency vehicles to reach
the historic site.
To facilitate this exchange, H.R. 1616 will amend the
park's enabling legislation, Public Law 96-428, to allow the
Secretary of the Interior to acquire additional lands by
exchange.
Legislative History
H.R. 1616 was introduced by Representative Lewis on April
3, 2003. The bill was favorably reported by the House Committee
on Resources on July 9, 2003 (H. Rpt. 108-255). A similar
measure, S. 1789, was introduced by Senator Miller on October
28, 2003. The Senate Subcommittee on National Parks held a
hearing on H.R. 1616 and S. 1789 on May 20, 2004. The Committee
on Energy and Natural Resources ordered H.R. 1616 favorably
reported on July 14, 2004.
Committee Recommendation
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in an open
business session on July 14, 2004, by a unanimous voice vote of
a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 1616 as
described herein.
Section-by-Section Analysis
Section 1 entitles this bill the ``Martin Luther King,
Junior, National Historic Site Land Exchange Act''.
Section 2(a) contains Congressional findings.
Subsection (b) states that the purpose of the Act is to
authorize a land exchange between the National Park Service and
the city of Atlanta.
Section 3 amends the enabling Act for the historic site,
Public Law 96-428.
Cost and Budgetary Considerations
The following estimate of the cost of this measure has been
provided by the Congressional Budget Office.
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, July 16, 2004.
Hon. Pete V. Domenici,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1616, the Martin
Luther King, Junior, National Historic Site Land Exchange Act.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Deborah Reis.
Sincerely,
Douglas Holtz-Eakin,
Director.
Enclosure.
H.R. 1616--Martin Luther King, Junior, National Historic Site Land
Exchange Act
H.R. 1616 would authorize the National Park Service (NPS)
to acquire land within for the Martin Luther King, Junior,
National Historic Site by exchange. The new authority would
enable the NPS to exchange a small parcel of land owned by the
agency for a parcel owned by the city of Atlanta that is less
than 0.5 acres. The newly acquired tract would be used for
access to the historic site.
Based on information provided by the NPS and assuming the
availability of appropriations, CBO estimates that it would
cost the federal government about $200,000 over the next fiscal
year to complete the exchange and pave the new property. For
this estimate, CBO assumes that the properties to be exchanged
would be determined by NPS to be roughly equal in value.
H.R. 1616 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and
would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
On August 11, 2003, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for
H.R. 1616 as ordered reported by the House Committee on
Resources on July 9, 2003. The two versions of the legislation
are identical, as are the costs.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis.
This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
Regulatory Impact Evaluation
In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following
evaluation of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in
carrying out H.R. 1616.
The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of
imposing Government-established standards or significant
economic responsibilities on private individuals and
businesses.
No personal information would be collected in administering
the program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal
privacy.
Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the
enactment of H.R. 1616.
Executive Communications
On May 7, 2004, the Committee on Energy and Natural
Resources requested legislative reports from the Department of
the Interior and the Office of Management and Budget setting
forth Executive agency recommendations on H.R. 1616. These
reports had not been received when this report was filed. The
testimony provided by the Department of the Interior at the
Subcommittee hearing on H.R. 1616 follows:
Statement of Paul Hoffman, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Fish and
Wildlife and Parks, U.S. Department of the Interior
Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, thank you for
the opportunity to present the Department's views on S. 1789
and H.R. 1616. These bills would authorize the exchange of
lands within the Martin Luther King, Junior, National Historic
Site for lands owned by the City of Atlanta, Georgia.
The Department supports both of these bills, which are
identical. At a hearing on June 17, 2003, the Department
testified in support of H.R. 1616, which passed the House
without amendment on October 28, 2003.
Both bills would allow the National Park Service (NPS) to
exchange land currently owned on Edgewood Avenue for land of
equal or greater value from the City of Atlanta (City). The
exchange would provide the Martin Luther King, Junior, National
Historic Site (park) with emergency access to the park visitor
center, and would help in the continuing revitalization of
Edgewood Avenue. Although appraisals have not been completed,
there would be no acquisition costs associated with this equal
value exchange. Development of the newly acquired land, in
order to provide paved access for emergency vehicles, is
estimated to cost $160,000. There would be no increase in
operational costs or the need to fund additional facilities.
Both bills would amend Section 2(b) of P.L. 96-428, the act
that established Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic
Site, to allow the Secretary of the Interior to acquire land
within the boundary of the park that is owned by the State of
Georgia, or any political subdivision of the State, by
exchange. Currently, P.L. 96-428 only allows the Secretary to
acquire such lands by donation.
The park and nearby Preservation District, which includes
Sweet Auburn, the economic and cultural center of Atlanta's
African American community during most of the 20th century,
were established in 1980 to preserve, protect and interpret the
places where Dr. King was born, worked, worshipped, and is
buried. Located near downtown Atlanta, the park consists of
34.47 acres, of which 13.04 acres is currently in federal
ownership.
Most of the park is self-guided, including the visitor
center, Historic Ebenezer Baptist Church, Dr. King's gravesite,
Freedom Hall and Historic Fire Station No. 6. Guided tours are
provided for Dr. King's Birth Home. In addition, the park
preserves and maintains 22 historic properties. Most these
properties are located on the same block as the Birth Home and
are restored to the 1930s period when Dr. King lived on Auburn
Avenue. These historic properties are leased, as residential
units, to the general public.
In 1992 when the NPS began planning for a visitor center,
the preferred location was determined to be the site of the
City-owned Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Center. In
accordance with P.L. 96-428, land could only be acquired from
the City of Atlanta by donation. The City, realizing the
importance of having an NPS visitor center within the park,
agreed to donate the community center to the NPS.
Due in large part to the City's generosity, the visitor
center has been completed. However, emergency vehicles are
unable to access the visitor center from nearby streets and
additional land is needed to provide this emergency vehicle
access. The City owns 1.71 acres that are adjacent to the
visitor center, have easy access from Jackson Street, and could
be developed to provide the needed emergency access for the
visitor center. The City is interested in conveying all, or a
portion, of this property to the NPS through an exchange.
When the park was established, the boundary was created to
ensure the preservation of Dr. King's neighborhood. Included
within the boundary is Edgewood Avenue. In order to assure
preservation of the area NPS has gradually acquired several
properties along Edgewood Avenue, which was a deteriorating
commercial area.
At the time the park was established, there were no local
efforts to preserve properties along Edgewood Avenue. However,
during the past 10 years several individuals and organizations,
with the support of the City, have initiated restoration of the
preservation district, including Edgewood Avenue. NPS ownership
on Edgewood Avenue is no longer needed solely to ensure
preservation and NPS has identified land along Edgewood Avenue
that would be suitable for an exchange with the City, in order
to acquire the parcel adjacent to the visitor center.
That completes my testimony. I would be happy to answer any
questions that you or any members of the subcommittee may have.
Changes in Existing Law
In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by
H.R. 1616, as ordered reported, are shown as follows (existing
law proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new
matter is printed in italic, existing law in which no change is
proposed is shown in roman):
Public Law 96-428
AN ACT To establish the Martin Luther King, Junior, National Historic
Site in the State of Georgia, and for other purposes
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled. That (a) in
order to protect and interpret for the benefit, inspiration,
and education of present and future generations the places
where Martin Luther King, Junior, was born, where he lived,
worked, and worshipped, and where he is buried, there is hereby
established the Martin Luther King, Junior, National Historic
Site in the State of Georgia. The national historic site shall
consist of that real property in the city of Atlanta, Georgia,
within the boundary generally depicted on the map entitled
``Martin Luther King, Junior, National Historic Site Boundary
Map'', numbered NASM/SERO/20, 109-C, and dated May 1980,
together with the property known as 234 Sunset Avenue,
Northwest. The map referred to in this subsection shall be on
file and available for public inspection in the local and
Washington, District of Columbia office of the National Park
Service, Department of the Interior.
(b) In furtherance of the purposes of this Act, there is
hereby established the Martin Luther King, Junior, Preservation
District, which shall consist of the area identified as
``Preservation District'' in the map referred to in subsection
(a) of this section.
Sec. 2. (a) The Secretary of the Interior (hereinafter
referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall administer the Martin
Luther King, Junior, National Historic Site and Preservation
District in accordance with the provisions of this Act, and the
provisions of law generally applicable to national historic
sites, including the Act of August 25, 1916 (39 Stat. 535; 16
U.S.C. 1, 2-4) and the Act of August 21, 1935 (49 Stat. 666; 16
U.S.C. 461-7).
(b)(1) Within the national historic site the Secretary is
authorized to acquire by donation, purchase with donated or
appropriated funds transfer, or exchange, lands and interests
therein, except that property owned by the State of Georgia or
any political subdivision thereof may be acquired only by
donation[.] or exchange.
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