[Senate Report 110-296]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 648
110th Congress Report
SENATE
2d Session 110-296
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TULE LAKE SEGREGATION CENTER SPECIAL RESOURCE STUDY ACT
_______
April 10, 2008.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Bingaman, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 1476]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the bill (S. 1476) to authorize the Secretary of the
Interior to conduct a special resources study of the Tule Lake
Segregation Center in Modoc County, California, to determine
the suitability and feasibility of establishing a unit of the
National Park System, having considered the same, reports
favorably thereon with an amendment and recommends that the
bill, as amended, do pass.
The amendment is as follows:
1. Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert in
lieu thereof the following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Tule Lake Segregation Center Special
Resource Study Act''.
SEC. 2. STUDY.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of the Interior (referred to in this
Act as the ``Secretary'') shall conduct a special resource study of the
Tule Lake Segregation Center to determine the national significance of
the site and the suitability and feasibility of including the site in
the National Park System.
(b) Study Guidelines.--The study shall be conducted in accordance
with the criteria for the study of areas for potential inclusion in the
National Park System under section 8 of Public Law 91-383 (16 U.S.C.
1a-5).
(c) Consultation.--In conducting the study, the Secretary shall
consult with--
(1) Modoc County;
(2) the State of California;
(3) appropriate Federal agencies;
(4) tribal and local government entities;
(5) private and nonprofit organizations; and
(6) private landowners.
(d) Scope of Study.--The study shall include an evaluation of--
(1) the significance of the site as a part of the history of
World War II;
(2) the significance of the site as the site relates to other
war relocation centers;.
(3) the historical resources of the site, including the
stockade, that are intact and in place;
(4) the contributions made by the local agricultural
community to the World War II effort; and
(5) the potential impact of designation of the site as a unit
of the National Park System on private landowners.
SEC. 3. REPORT.
Not later than 3 years after the date on which funds are made
available to conduct the study required under this Act, the Secretary
shall submit to the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of
the Senate a report describing the findings, conclusions, and
recommendations of the study.
2. Amend the title so as to read: ``A bill to authorize the
Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study
of the Tule Lake Segregation Center in Modoc County,
California.''.
PURPOSE
The purpose of S. 1476 is to authorize the Secretary of the
Interior to conduct a special resource study of the Tule Lake
Segregation Center in Modoc County, California, to determine
the suitability and feasibility of designating the site as a
unit of the National Park System.
BACKGROUND AND NEED
Tule Lake, located in Modoc County, California, was the
largest and longest-lived of the ten internment camps built by
the War Relocation Authority (WRA) to house the nearly 120,000
Japanese Americans relocated from the West Coast during World
War II, pursuant to Executive Order 9066.
On February 19, 1942, President Franklin Roosevelt signed
Executive Order 9066, which authorized the War Department to
establish areas in the United States ``from which any or all
persons may be excluded, and with respect to which, the right
of any person to enter, remain in, or leave shall be subject to
whatever restrictions the Secretary of War or the appropriate
Military Commander may impose in his discretion.'' The War
Department established Military Areas No. 1 and 2, which
encompassed the western coastal States and the southern half of
Arizona, from which Japanese Americans were forced to leave
their homes. Initially voluntary resettlement to areas outside
the exclusion zones was encouraged, but mandatory incarceration
soon followed.
Tule Lake opened May 26, 1942, detaining persons of
Japanese descent removed from western Washington, Oregon, and
Northern California. With a peak population of 18,700, Tule
Lake was the largest of the camps, and the only one turned into
a high-security segregation center. In 1943, the Tule Lake
facility was converted to a maximum security segregation center
for evacuees deemed by the WRA to be ``disloyal.'' Tule Lake
was the last internment site to close, on March 28, 1946. The
site was designated as a National Historic Landmark by the
Secretary of the Interior in 2006.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
S. 1476 was introduced by Senators Feinstein, Boxer, and
Inouye on May 24, 2007. The Subcommittee on National Parks held
a hearing on S. 1476 on September 27, 2007. (S. Hrg. 110-266.)
At its business meeting on January 30, 2008, the Committee
on Energy and Natural Resources ordered S. 1476 favorably
reported as amended.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open
business session on January 30, 2008, by a voice vote of a
quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 1476, if
amended as described herein.
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
During the consideration of S. 1476 the Committee adopted
an amendment in the nature of a substitute to make the study
consistent with other National Park Service studies. The
amendment is explained in detail in the section-by-section
analysis, below.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1 contains the short title, the ``Tule Lake
Segregation Center Special Resource Study Act''.
Section 2(a) authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to
conduct a special resource study of the Tule Lake Segregation
Center to determine the national significance of the site and
the suitability and feasibility of including the site in the
National Park System.
Subsection 2(b) requires the study to be conducted in
accordance with the criteria for National Park studies
established under section 8 of Public Law 91-383 (16 U.S.C. 1a-
5).
Subsection 2(c) requires the Secretary to consult with
Modoc County, the State of California, appropriate Federal
agencies, tribal and local government entities, private and
nonprofit organizations, and private landowners.
Subsection 2(d) defines the scope of the study and provides
that the study shall focus on the significance of the site as a
part of the history of World War II, as the site relates to
other war relocation centers, the stockade in it's current
condition, the contributions made by the local agricultural
community to the World War II effort, and the potential impact
of designation of the site as a unit of the National Park
System on private landowners.
Section 3 states the Secretary shall submit to the
Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives
and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate
a report describing the findings, conclusions, and
recommendations of the study not later than 3 years after the
date on which funds are made available to conduct such study.
COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
The following estimate of costs of this measure has been
provided by the Congressional Budget Office:
S. 1476--Tule Lake Segregation Center Special Resource Study Act
S. 1476 would direct the Department of the Interior to
conduct a special resource study to determine the national
significance of the Tule Lake Segregation Center, California,
and the feasibility and suitability of including the site in
the National Park System. The bill would require the department
to report its findings and recommendations to the appropriate
Congressional committees within three years of receiving
funding for the study.
Assuming the availability of appropriated funds, CBO
estimates that it would cost $200,000 over the next three years
to complete the required study and report. Enacting this
legislation would not affect direct spending or revenues.
S. 1476 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.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Tyler Kruzic.
The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, 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 S. 1476. 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 S. 1476, as ordered reported.
CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING
S. 1476, as reported, does not contain any congressionally
directed spending items, limited tax benefits, or limited
tariff benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the Standing Rules
of the Senate.
EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS
The testimony provided by the National Park Service at the
September 27, 2007, Subcommittee hearing on S. 1476 as follows:
Statement of Daniel N. Wenk, Deputy Director, National Park Service,
Department of the Interior
Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to appear
before your committee to present the views of the Department of
the Interior on S. 1476, a bill to conduct a special resources
study of the Tule Lake Segregation Center in Modoc County,
California, to determine the suitability and feasibility of
establishing a unit of the National Park System.
The Department supports this legislation with amendments
described later in this statement. The study authorized by S.
1476 would provide the opportunity to evaluate options for
preserving and interpreting the largest and most heavily
guarded of the ten internment camps where Japanese American
citizens from west coast states were forced to live during
World War II under Executive Order 9066. However, the
Department feels that priority should be given to the 37
previously authorized studies for potential units of the
National Park System, potential new National Heritage Areas,
and potential additions to the National Trails System and
National Wild and Scenic River System that have not yet been
transmitted to the Congress.
Tule Lake, which housed more than 18,000 internees at its
peak, was the only internment camp that was converted to a
maximum-security segregation center for evacuees from all the
relocation centers who resisted internment. It was the only
camp that had its own jail. It had the most guard towers and
the largest number of military police of any of the camps.
During its operation, the center was the site of several acts
of resistance and declarations of martial law and military
control.
The Tule Lake site features more surviving historic
features and resources in original locations than all of the
other former internment camps combined. The original jail
structure is, for the former internees, the most significant
symbol of internment anywhere in the United States. In 2006,
the Secretary of the Interior designated 42 acres of the Tule
Lake Segregation Center as a National Historic Landmark. The
designation confirmed the national significance of the site,
one of the key criteria a resource must meet to be considered
an appropriate candidate for establishment as a unit of the
National Park System. The work done on the nomination for
National Historic Landmark designation would provide a
foundation for the study that would be authorized by S. 1476.
The National Park Service administers two sites that were
used as internment camps for Japanese Americans during World
War II: Manzanar National Historic Site, in central California,
which was authorized by Congress in 1992, and Minidoka
Internment National Monument, in southern Idaho, which was
established by presidential proclamation in 2001. However,
neither site has the unique historic resources or story that
Tule Lake has as the only designated segregation center among
the ten internment camps.
The study would evaluate the site according to criteria
provided by law to determine whether it is appropriate for
addition to the National Park System, or whether it is better
suited to protection by another entity. In carrying out the
study, the National Park Service would work closely with the
Bureau of Reclamation, the Bureau of Land Management, and the
California Department of Transportation, which are the primary
land managers, as well as private land owners in the area,
local agencies, and groups interested in the preservation of
Japanese American internment sites, including the Tule Lake
Committee. The study would cost an estimated $150,000 to
$200,000.
S. 1476 provides for the study to be completed within one
year after funds are made available for it. We recommend that
the bill be amended to provide for the study to be completed
within three years after funds are made available, which is the
standard time frame for conducting special resource studies. We
would also like to work with the committee to simplify the
language of S. 1476 in several places.
Mr. Chairman, that concludes my testimony. I would be
pleased to answer any questions that you or other members of
the committee might have.
CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW
In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no
changes in existing law are made by the bill S. 1476, as
ordered reported.