[House Report 110-248]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
110th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1st Session 110-248
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NATIONAL UNDERGROUND RAILROAD NETWORK TO FREEDOM AMENDMENTS ACT OF 2007
_______
July 23, 2007.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Rahall, from the Committee on Natural Resources, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 1239]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred
the bill (H.R. 1239) to amend the National Underground Railroad
Network to Freedom Act of 1998 to provide additional staff and
oversight of funds to carry out the Act, and for other
purposes, having considered the same, report favorably thereon
with amendments and recommend that the bill as amended do pass.
The amendments are as follows:
Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``National Underground Railroad Network
to Freedom Amendments Act of 2007''.
SEC. 2. AUTHORIZING APPROPRIATIONS FOR SPECIFIC PURPOSES.
The National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Act of 1998 (16
U.S.C. 469l et seq.) is amended--
(1) by striking section 3(d);
(2) by striking section 4(d); and
(3) by adding at the end the following new section:
``SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
``(a) Amounts.--There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out
this Act $2,500,000 for each fiscal year, to be allocated as follows:
``(1) $2,000,000 is to be used for the purposes of section 3.
``(2) $500,000 is to be used for the purposes of section 4.
``(b) Restrictions.--No amounts may be appropriated for the purposes
of this Act except to the Secretary for carrying out the
responsibilities of the Secretary as set forth in this Act.''.
SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.
The amendments made by section 2 shall take effect at the beginning
of the fiscal year immediately following the date of the enactment of
this Act.
Amend the title so as to read:
A bill to amend the National Underground Railroad Network
to Freedom Act of 1998 to authorize additional funding to carry
out the Act, and for other purposes.
Purpose of the Bill
The purpose of H.R. 1239, as ordered reported, is to amend
the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Act of
1998 to authorize additional funding to carry out the Act, and
for other purposes.
Background and Need for Legislation
The Underground Railroad was a historic protest movement
against slavery in the United States that helped escaped slaves
find freedom in northern states and Canada. Until the passage
of the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Act of
1998 (Public Law 105-203), the Underground Railroad had not
been officially recognized. In 1990, Congress passed
legislation directing the National Park Service to conduct a
study of options for commemorating the Underground Railroad.
The study was completed in 1996, and focused on sites, routes,
and other resources that remain throughout the United States.
That study found the Underground Railroad to be nationally
significant and suitable for inclusion in the National Park
System.
The National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Act of
1998 required that the Secretary of the Interior establish in
the National Park Service the National Underground Railroad
Network to Freedom program. Under the Act, the National Park
Service is required to develop and distribute materials and
enter into cooperative agreements with appropriate entities to
provide technical assistance in the preservation and
interpretation of the Underground Railroad. The authorization
of appropriations to carry out the 1998 Act was limited to not
more than $500,000 annually.
The Department of the Interior and Related Agencies
Appropriations Act of 2001 included a section with language
from the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center Act,
introduced as H.R. 2919 in the 106th Congress. This language
amended the 1998 Act to authorize the Secretary of the Interior
to make grants for the preservation of historic sites or
structures and authorized $2,500,000 for fiscal year 2001 and
subsequent fiscal years. However, not more than $500,000
annually has been appropriated for this program.
Today, the Underground Railroad Network to Freedom
encompasses over 250 programs, sites, and partners in 27 states
and the District of Columbia. H.R. 1239, as amended by the
Committee, raises the general authorization for the National
Underground Railroad Network Program from $500,000 to
$2,000,000 and lowers the authorization for the preservation of
historic sites and structures from $2,500,000 to $500,000.
Committee Action
H.R. 1239 was introduced on February 28, 2007, by
Representative Alcee Hastings (D-FL). The bill was referred to
the Committee on Natural Resources, and within the Committee to
the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands.
On May 15, 2007, the Subcommittee held a hearing on the bill.
On June 28, 2007, the Natural Resources Committee met to
consider the measure and the Subcommittee was discharged from
further consideration of the bill.
National Parks, Forests and Public Lands Subcommittee
Chairman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) offered an amendment in the
nature of a substitute to make changes to the bill as
introduced based on concerns raised by the Administration.
The Grijalva substitute was adopted by a voice vote. The
bill, as amended, was then ordered favorably reported to the
House of Representatives by voice vote.
Section-by-Section Analysis
Section 1. Short title
Section 1 entitles the bill the ``National Underground
Railroad Network to Freedom Amendments Act of 2007''.
Section 2. Authorizing appropriations for specific purposes
Section 2 amends the National Underground Railroad Network
to Freedom Act of 1998 by striking sections 3(d) and 4(d) of
the 1998 Act and adding a new section 5 to authorize $2,500,000
for each year to carry out the Act, including $2,000,000 for
the purposes of section 3, and $500,000 for the purposes of
section 4 of the Act.
Section 3. Effective date
Section 3 states that the amendments made in section 2
shall take effect at the beginning of the fiscal year
immediately following the date of the enactment of this Act.
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 Natural Resources' oversight findings and
recommendations are reflected in the body of this report.
Constitutional Authority Statement
Article I, section 8 of the Constitution of the United
States grants 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. As required by
clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goal or
objective of this bill is to amend the National Underground
Railroad Network to Freedom Act of 1998 to authorize additional
funding to carry out the Act, and for other purposes.
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. 1239--National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Amendments
Act of 2007
Summary: H.R. 1239 would authorize the appropriation of
$2.5 million a year to carry out activities of the National
Underground Railroad Network to Freedom, a program administered
by the National Park Service (NPS) that is dedicated to the
preservation, interpretation, and dissemination of Underground
Railroad history. Under the legislation, $2 million of the
amounts authorized for each year would be spent on NPS projects
and $0.5 million would be provided to nonfederal entities for
historic preservation of eligible sites.
Assuming appropriation of the authorized amount, CBO
estimates that implementing H.R. 1239 would cost $2 million in
2008 and $12.5 million over the 2008-2012 period. Enacting the
legislation would have no effect on direct spending or
revenues.
H.R. 1239 contains no private-sector or intergovernmental
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA)
and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal
governments.
Estimated cost to the Federal Government: The estimated
budgetary impact of H.R. 1239 is shown in the following table.
The costs of this legislation fall within budget function 300
(natural resources and environment).
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By fiscal year, in millions of dollars--
--------------------------------------------
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
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CHANGES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION
Authorization Level................................................ 3 3 3 3 3
Estimated Outlays.................................................. 2 3 3 3 3
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Basis of estimate: For this estimate, CBO assumes that the
legislation will be enacted before the start of fiscal year
2008 and that the authorized amount will be appropriated for
each year.
H.R. 1239 would amend the National Underground Railroad
Network to Freedom Act to authorize the appropriation of $2.5
million per year to carry out activities under the program. The
Network to Freedom encompasses over 250 programs, sites, and
partners in 27 States and the District of Columbia. For fiscal
year 2007, NPS received an appropriation of $500,000 for that
purpose.
Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: H.R. 1239
contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as
defined in UMRA and would impose no costs on state, local, or
tribal governments.
Estimate prepared by: Federal Costs: Deborah Reis and David
Reynolds; Impact on State, Local, and Tribal Governments: Leo
Lex; Impact on the Private Sector: Amy Petz.
Estimate approved by: Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant
Director for Budget Analysis.
Compliance With Public Law 104-4
This bill contains no unfunded mandates.
Earmark Statement
H.R. 1239 does not contain any congressional earmarks,
limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined in
clause 9(d), 9(e) or 9(f) of rule XXI.
Preemption of State, Local or Tribal Law
This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or
tribal law.
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported
In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by
the bill, as 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):
NATIONAL UNDERGROUND RAILROAD NETWORK TO FREEDOM ACT OF 1998
* * * * * * *
SEC. 3. NATIONAL UNDERGROUND RAILROAD NETWORK TO FREEDOM PROGRAM.
(a) * * *
* * * * * * *
[(d) Appropriations.--There are authorized to be appropriated
to carry out this Act not more than $500,000 for each fiscal
year. No amounts may be appropriated for the purposes of this
Act except to the Secretary for carrying out the
responsibilities of the Secretary as set forth in section
3(a).]
SEC. 4. PRESERVATION OF HISTORIC SITES OR STRUCTURES.
(a) * * *
* * * * * * *
[(d) Funding.--There are authorized to be appropriated to the
Secretary for purposes of this section $2,500,000 for fiscal
year 2001 and each subsequent fiscal year. Amounts authorized
but not appropriated in a fiscal year shall be available for
appropriation in subsequent fiscal years.]
SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) Amounts.--There are authorized to be appropriated to
carry out this Act $2,500,000 for each fiscal year, to be
allocated as follows:
(1) $2,000,000 is to be used for the purposes of
section 3.
(2) $500,000 is to be used for the purposes of
section 4.
(b) Restrictions.--No amounts may be appropriated for the
purposes of this Act except to the Secretary for carrying out
the responsibilities of the Secretary as set forth in this Act.