[House Report 110-536]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
110th Congress Rept. 110-536
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2d Session Part 1
======================================================================
JUPITER INLET LIGHTHOUSE OUTSTANDING NATURAL AREA ACT OF 2008
_______
March 3, 2008.--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. 1922]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred
the bill (H.R. 1922) to designate the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse
and the surrounding Federal land in the State of Florida as an
Outstanding Natural Area and as a unit of the National
Landscape System, and for other purposes, having considered the
same, reports favorably thereon with amendments and recommends
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 ``Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse Outstanding
Natural Area Act of 2008''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Commandant.--The term ``Commandant'' means the Commandant
of the Coast Guard.
(2) Lighthouse.--The term ``Lighthouse'' means the Jupiter
Inlet Lighthouse located in Palm Beach County, Florida.
(3) Local partners.--The term ``Local Partners'' includes--
(A) Palm Beach County, Florida;
(B) the Town of Jupiter, Florida;
(C) the Village of Tequesta, Florida; and
(D) the Loxahatchee River Historical Society.
(4) Management plan.--The term ``management plan'' means the
management plan developed under section 4(a).
(5) Map.--The term ``map'' means the map entitled ``Jupiter
Inlet Lighthouse: Outstanding Natural Area'' and dated October
29, 2007.
(6) Outstanding natural area.--The term ``Outstanding Natural
Area'' means the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse Outstanding Natural
Area established by section 3(a).
(7) Public land.--The term ``public land'' has the meaning
given the term ``public lands'' in section 103(e) of the
Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C.
1702(e)).
(8) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of
the Interior.
(9) State.--The term ``State'' means the State of Florida.
SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE JUPITER INLET LIGHTHOUSE OUTSTANDING
NATURAL AREA.
(a) Establishment.--Subject to valid existing rights, there is
established for the purposes described in subsection (b) the Jupiter
Inlet Lighthouse Outstanding Natural Area, the boundaries of which are
depicted on the map.
(b) Purposes.--The purposes of the Outstanding Natural Area are to
protect, conserve, and enhance the unique and nationally important
historic, natural, cultural, scientific, educational, scenic, and
recreational values of the Federal land surrounding the Lighthouse for
the benefit of present generations and future generations of people in
the United States, while--
(1) allowing certain recreational and research activities to
continue in the Outstanding Natural Area; and
(2) ensuring that Coast Guard operations and activities are
unimpeded within the boundaries of the Outstanding Natural
Area.
(c) Availability of Map.--The map shall be on file and available for
public inspection in--
(1) the Office of the Director of the Bureau of Land
Management; and
(2) the Eastern States Office of the Bureau of Land
Management in the State of Virginia.
(d) Withdrawal.--
(1) In general.--Subject to valid existing rights, section 6,
and any existing withdrawals under the Executive orders and
public land order described in paragraph (2), the Federal land
and any interests in the Federal land included in the
Outstanding Natural Area are withdrawn from--
(A) all forms of entry, appropriation, or disposal
under the public land laws;
(B) location, entry, and patent under the public land
mining laws; and
(C) operation of the mineral leasing and geothermal
leasing laws and the mineral materials laws.
(2) Description of executive orders.--The Executive orders
and public land order described in paragraph (1) are--
(A) the Executive Order dated October 22, 1854;
(B) Executive Order No. 4254 (June 12, 1925); and
(C) Public Land Order No. 7202 (61 Fed. Reg. 29758).
SEC. 4. MANAGEMENT PLAN.
(a) In General.--Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment
of this Act, the Secretary, in consultation with the Commandant, shall
develop a comprehensive management plan in accordance with section 202
of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1712)
to--
(1) provide long-term management guidance for the public land
in the Outstanding Natural Area; and
(2) ensure that the Outstanding Natural Area fulfills the
purposes for which the Outstanding Natural Area is established.
(b) Consultation; Public Participation.--The management plan shall be
developed--
(1) in consultation with appropriate Federal, State, county,
and local government agencies, the Commandant, the Local
Partners, the Loxahatchee River Historical Society, and other
partners; and
(2) in a manner that ensures full public participation.
(c) Existing Plans.--The management plan shall, to the maximum extent
practicable, be consistent with existing resource plans, policies, and
programs.
(d) Inclusions.--The management plan shall include--
(1) objectives and provisions to ensure--
(A) the protection and conservation of the resource
values of the Outstanding Natural Area; and
(B) the restoration of native plant communities and
estuaries in the Outstanding Natural Area, with an
emphasis on the conservation and enhancement of
healthy, functioning ecological systems in perpetuity;
(2) objectives and provisions to maintain or recreate
historic structures;
(3) an implementation plan for a program of interpretation
and public education about the natural and cultural resources
of the Lighthouse, the public land surrounding the Lighthouse,
and associated structures;
(4) a proposal for administrative and public facilities to be
developed or improved that--
(A) are compatible with achieving the resource
objectives for the Outstanding Natural Area described
in section 5(a)(1)(B); and
(B) would accommodate visitors to the Outstanding
Natural Area;
(5) natural and cultural resource management strategies for
the Outstanding Natural Area, to be developed in consultation
with appropriate departments of the State, the Local Partners,
and the Commandant, with an emphasis on resource conservation
in the Outstanding Natural Area and the interpretive,
educational, and long-term scientific uses of the resources;
and
(6) recreational use strategies for the Outstanding Natural
Area, to be prepared in consultation with the Local Partners,
appropriate departments of the State, and the Coast Guard, with
an emphasis on passive recreation.
(e) Interim Plan.--Until a management plan is adopted for the
Outstanding Natural Area, the Jupiter Inlet Coordinated Resource
Management Plan (including any updates or amendments to the Jupiter
Inlet Coordinated Resource Management Plan) shall be in effect.
SEC. 5. MANAGEMENT OF THE JUPITER INLET LIGHTHOUSE OUTSTANDING NATURAL
AREA.
(a) Management.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary, in consultation with the
Local Partners and the Commandant, shall manage the Outstanding
Natural Area--
(A) as part of the National Landscape Conservation
System; and
(B) in a manner that conserves, protects, and
enhances the unique and nationally important
historical, natural, cultural, scientific, educational,
scenic, and recreational values of the Outstanding
Natural Area, including an emphasis on the restoration
of native ecological systems.
(2) Limitation.--In managing the Outstanding Natural Area,
the Secretary shall not take any action that precludes,
prohibits, or otherwise affects the conduct of ongoing or
future Coast Guard operations or activities on lots 16 and 18,
as depicted on the map.
(b) Uses.--Subject to valid existing rights and section 6, the
Secretary shall only allow uses of the Outstanding Natural Area that
the Secretary, in consultation with the Commandant and Local Partners,
determines would likely further--
(1) the purposes for which the Outstanding Natural Area is
established;
(2) the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43
U.S.C. 1701 et seq.); and
(3) other applicable laws.
(c) Cooperative Agreements.--To facilitate implementation of the
management plan and to continue the successful partnerships with local
communities and other partners, the Secretary shall, in accordance with
section 307(b) of the Federal Land Management Policy and Management Act
of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1737(b)), enter into cooperative agreements with the
appropriate Federal, State, county, other local government agencies,
and other partners (including the Loxahatchee River Historical Society)
for the long-term management of the Outstanding Natural Area
(d) Research Activities.--To continue successful research
partnerships, pursue future research partnerships, and assist in the
development and implementation of the management plan, the Secretary
may, in accordance with section 307(a) of the Federal Land Policy and
Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1737(a)), authorize the conduct of
appropriate research activities in the Outstanding Natural Area for the
purposes described in section 3(b).
(e) Acquisition of Land.--
(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the Secretary may
acquire for inclusion in the Outstanding Natural Area any State
or private land or any interest in State or private land that
is--
(A) adjacent to the Outstanding Natural Area; and
(B) identified in the management plan as appropriate
for acquisition.
(2) Means of acquisition.--Land or an interest in land may be
acquired under paragraph (1) only by--
(A) donation;
(B) exchange with a willing party; or
(C) purchase from a willing seller.
(3) Additions to the outstanding natural area.--Any land or
interest in land adjacent to the Outstanding Natural Area
acquired by the United States after the date of enactment of
this Act under paragraph (1) shall be added to, and
administered as part of, the Outstanding Natural Area.
(f) Law Enforcement Activities.--Nothing in this Act, the management
plan, or the Jupiter Inlet Coordinated Resource Management Plan
(including any updates or amendments to the Jupiter Inlet Coordinated
Resource Management Plan) precludes, prohibits, or otherwise affects--
(1) any maritime security, maritime safety, or environmental
protection mission or activity of the Coast Guard;
(2) any border security operation or law enforcement activity
by the Department of Homeland Security or the Department of
Justice; or
(3) any law enforcement activity of any Federal, State, or
local law enforcement agency in the Outstanding Natural Area.
(g) Future Disposition of Coast Guard Facilities.--If the Commandant
determines, after the date of enactment of this Act, that Coast Guard
facilities within the Outstanding Natural Area exceed the needs of the
Coast Guard, the Commandant may relinquish the facilities to the
Secretary without removal, subject only to any environmental
remediation that may be required by law.
SEC. 6. EFFECT ON ONGOING AND FUTURE COAST GUARD OPERATIONS.
Nothing in this Act, the management plan, or the Jupiter Inlet
Coordinated Resource Management Plan (including updates or amendments
to the Jupiter Inlet Coordinated Resource Management Plan) precludes,
prohibits, or otherwise affects ongoing or future Coast Guard
operations or activities in the Outstanding Natural Area, including--
(1) the continued and future operation of, access to,
maintenance of, and, as may be necessitated for Coast Guard
missions, the expansion, enhancement, or replacement of, the
Coast Guard High Frequency antenna site on lot 16;
(2) the continued and future operation of, access to,
maintenance of, and, as may be necessitated for Coast Guard
missions, the expansion, enhancement, or replacement of, the
military family housing area on lot 18;
(3) the continued and future use of, access to, maintenance
of, and, as may be necessitated for Coast Guard missions, the
expansion, enhancement, or replacement of, the pier on lot 18;
(4) the existing lease of the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse on lot
18 from the Coast Guard to the Loxahatchee River Historical
Society; or
(5) any easements or other less-than-fee interests in
property appurtenant to existing Coast Guard facilities on lots
16 and 18.
SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary to
carry out this Act.
Amend the title so as to read:
A bill to designate the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse and the
surrounding Federal land in the State of Florida as an Outstanding
Natural Area and as a unit of the National Landscape Conservation
System, and for other purposes.
PURPOSE OF THE BILL
The purpose of H.R. 1922 is to designate the Jupiter Inlet
Lighthouse and the surrounding federal land in the State of
Florida as an Outstanding Natural Area and as a unit of the
National Landscape Conservation System.
BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION
Florida's Jupiter Inlet, at the confluence of the Indian
and Loxahatchee Rivers, frames a point of land that has played
a significant role in Florida coastal history for centuries.
The area was a meeting place of ancient Indian tribes for more
than 3,500 years before Europeans reached the area in the 17th
century.
Federal interest in the area stretches back to the middle
of the 19th century, when the U.S. Army surveyors recommended
the area as a suitable place for military defenses. In 1854,
President Franklin Pierce signed an order withdrawing 61 acres
for the Navy and establishing the Fort Jupiter Reservation. The
design for a lighthouse on the site was begun by Lt. George
Gordon Meade, better known as the general who defeated Robert
E. Lee at Gettysburg.
The lighthouse, built atop a prehistoric Indian mound, was
first lit on July 10, 1860. The 156-foot structure is the
oldest existing building in Palm Beach County; the red brick
tower is topped with an iron latticework frame for the lantern
windows.
At various times, the reservation has also hosted a weather
bureau and signal station, a Naval wireless telegraph station,
a radio compass station, a Naval Intelligence Listening Post,
and a radio detection station designed to intercept messages
from German U-boats during World War II.
The lighthouse was transferred from the Navy to the U.S.
Coast Guard in 1939, by which time a total of nearly 127 acres
had been set aside for the reservation.
The lighthouse was added to the National Register of
Historic Places on November 15, 1973. In 1986, much of the
reservation around the lighthouse was returned to public land
status under the Bureau of Land Management, which coordinates
management activities by six separate entities under the
Jupiter Inlet Coordinated Resource Management Plan. The BLM
working group that implements that plan also includes the Coast
Guard, the county of Palm Beach, the town of Jupiter, the
village of Tequesta, and the Loxahatchee River Historical
Society.
All six entities are actively involved in management of the
area. Since 1994, the Loxahatchee River Historical Society has
held a lease to operate the lighthouse and conduct public
tours. The town of Jupiter manages 18 acres of the reservation
as a public recreation park. Palm Beach County works with BLM
on habitat improvements.
In addition to its many historic resources, the area
provides habitat for 18 special status species, including
gopher tortoises (a state species of concern), the threatened
Florida scrub jay and federally protected plant species. The
area also includes examples of imperiled South Florida
ecosystems.
COMMITTEE ACTION
H.R. 1922 was introduced April 18, 2007, by Representative
Tim Mahoney (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.
At a hearing on October 23, 2007, a representative of the
BLM told the Subcommittee that the Interior Department supports
the bill.
On February 13, the full Natural Resources Committee met to
consider the bill. Subcommittee Chairman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ)
offered an amendment in the nature of a substitute making
technical changes to the bill, including updating the map
reference. The amendment was adopted by unanimous consent and
the bill, as amended, was ordered favorably reported to the
House of Representatives by unanimous consent.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1. Short Title
Section 1 provides that the Act may be cited as the
``Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse Outstanding Natural Area Act of
2008.''
Section 2. Definitions
Section 2 defines several terms used throughout the bill,
including defining ``map'' as the map entitled ``Jupiter Inlet
Lighthouse: Outstanding Natural Area'' and dated October 29,
2007.
Section 3. Establishment of the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse Outstanding
Natural Area
Section 3 provides for the establishment of the Jupiter
Inlet Lighthouse Outstanding Natural Area to protect, conserve,
and enhance the unique and nationally important historic,
natural, cultural, scientific, educational, scenic, and
recreational values of the federal land surrounding the
lighthouse while allowing certain recreational and research
activities to continue, and ensuring that U.S. Coast Guard
operations and activities are unimpeded within the Outstanding
Natural Area.
Section 3 also requires that the map be available for
public inspection; withdraws all federal land within the
Outstanding Natural Area from mining, geothermal and mineral
leasing and patenting; and identifies the original Executive
Orders relating to the lighthouse reservation.
Section 4. Management Plan
Section 4 directs the Secretary of the Interior, in
consultation with the Commandant of the Coast Guard, to develop
a comprehensive management plan for the Outstanding Natural
Area. The Secretary is directed to consult with the appropriate
federal, state, county, and local government agencies, as well
as local partners including the Loxahatchee River Historical
Society, in a manner that ensures full public participation.
Section 4 further directs that the plan include measures to
protect and conserve resource values, restore native plant
communities and estuaries, maintain or recreate historic
structures and implement a program of interpretation and public
education.
Section 4 also directs that, until the management plan is
adopted, the Jupiter Inlet Coordinated Resources Management
Plan shall be in effect.
Section 5. Management of the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse Outstanding
Natural Area
Section 5 directs that the Secretary, in consultation with
local partners and the Commandant, shall manage the Outstanding
Natural Area as a part of the National Landscape Conservation
System.
Section 5 also allows the Secretary to enter into
cooperative agreements with the appropriate federal, state,
county, or local government agencies as well as other partners,
and permits the Secretary to authorize appropriate research.
Section 5 further authorizes the Secretary to acquire land
for inclusion in the Outstanding Natural Area that is adjacent
to the Area and identified in the management plan as
appropriate for acquisition. Such land may be acquired by
donation, exchange with a willing party, or purchase from a
willing seller and upon acquisition shall be added to, and
administered as part of, the Outstanding Natural Area.
Section 5 provides that nothing in the legislation
precludes law enforcement activities by the Coast Guard, the
Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, or
any other federal, state, or local law enforcement agency in
the Outstanding Natural Area.
If the Commandant decides that any Coast Guard facilities
within the Outstanding Natural Area exceed the need of the
Coast Guard, Section 5 permits the Commandant to relinquish
those facilities to the Secretary, subject only to any
environmental remediation that may be required by law.
Section 6. Effect on Ongoing and Future Coast Guard Activities
Section 6 provides that nothing in the Act, the management
plan, or the current Resources Management Plan precludes,
prohibits or otherwise affects ongoing or future Coast Guard
Activities in the Outstanding Natural Area.
Section 7. Authorization of Appropriations
Section 7 authorizes the appropriation of such sums as may
be necessary to carry out the 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, as ordered reported, is to designate
the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse and the surrounding Federal land
in the State of Florida as an Outstanding Natural Area and as a
unit of the National Landscape Conservation System, 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. 1922--Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse Outstanding Natural Area Act of
2008
H.R. 1922 would designate 126 acres in Florida as an
Outstanding Natural Area and would require the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) to develop a plan to manage the area. CBO
estimates that implementing H.R. 1922 would have no significant
impact on the federal budget and would not affect direct
spending or revenues.
The bill 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.
H.R. 1922 would designate the lighthouse at the inlet in
Jupiter, Florida, and the 126 acres of land surrounding that
lighthouse as an Outstanding Natural Area, reserving the area
for conservation, public education, and habitat restoration.
The land is already under federal management and the bill would
require BLM, in conjunction with the Coast Guard, to update a
management plan within three years. According to BLM, the bill
would not require the agency to acquire any land or to hire any
additional staff; thus, CBO estimates that implementing H.R.
1922 would have no significant impact on the federal budget.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Sarah Puro. This
estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant
Director for Budget Analysis.
COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104-4
This bill contains no unfunded mandates.
EARMARK STATEMENT
H.R. 1922 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
If enacted, this bill would make no changes in existing
law.