[Senate Report 113-27]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 58
113th Congress Report
SENATE
1st Session 113-27
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FIRST STATE NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK
_______
April 22, 2013.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Wyden, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 347]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the bill (S. 347 to establish the First State National
Historical Park in the State of Delaware, and for other
purposes, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon
with an amendment and recommends that the bill, as amended, do
pass.
The amendment is as follows:
At the end, add the following:
SEC. 7. OFFSET.
Section 7302(f) of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009
(16 U.S.C. 469n(f)) is amended by inserting before the period at the
end the following: ``, except that the amount authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section not appropriated as of the date
of enactment of the First State National Historical Park Act shall be
reduced by $6,500,000''.
Purpose
The purpose of S. 347 is to establish the First State
National Historical Park in the State of Delaware.
Background and Need
The Delaware National Coastal Special Resources Study Act
(Public Law 109-338) directed the Secretary of the Interior to
conduct a special resources study of the national significance,
suitability, and feasibility of including sites in the coastal
region of the State of Delaware in the National Park System.
The study area predominately comprised the coastal regions of
the state, but also included some other areas of significance,
including the historic Odessa district, and areas such as
Cooch's Bridge, the site of the only Revolutionary engagement
fought in Delaware. The coastal study area ran from Wilmington,
Delaware, to the Maryland border.
After completion of the study in 2008, the National Park
Service found that selected resources met the criteria for
potential designation as a unit of the National Park System.
There are several historical and cultural resources located
within the project area including Holy Trinity (``Old Swedes'')
Church, numerous sites in the New Castle Historic Landmark
District, Lombardy Hall, and the Stonum House. All of these
sites are also National Historic Landmarks and open, to varying
degrees, to the public. Publically-owned National Historic
Landmarks include Fort Christina State Park, the New Castle
Court House in the New Castle NHL District, and the John
Dickinson house.
The park would also include the 1,100 acre wood-lawn
property, which includes historic foundation and forests and
parcels important open space protection.
S. 347 would establish First State National Historical Park
by incorporating many of the above sites, creating Delaware's
first unit of the National Park System.
Subsequent to the Committee ordering S. 347 favorably
reported at its March 14, 2013, business meeting, the President
designated most of the sites included in S. 347 as the First
State National Monument, under the authority of the Antiquities
Act.
Legislative History
Senators Carper and Coons introduced S. 347 on February 14,
2013. At its business meeting on March 14, 2013, the Committee
ordered S. 347 favorably reported with an amendment.
In the 112th Congress, Senators Carper and Coons introduced
similar legislation, S. 323. The Subcommittee on National Parks
held a hearing on S. 323 on May 11, 2011 (S. Hrg. 112-124). The
Committee ordered S. 323 favorably reported without amendment
at its business meeting on November 10, 2011 (S. Rpt. 112-109).
During the 111th Congress, the Committee considered similar
legislation, S. 1801, also sponsored by Senator Carper. The
Subcommittee on National Parks held a hearing on S. 1801 on May
19, 2010 (S. Hrg. 111-645).
Committee Recommendation
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open
business session on March 14, 2013, by a voice vote of a quorum
present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 347 if amended as
described herein.
Committee Amendment
During its consideration of S. 347, the Committee adopted
an amendment to offset the estimated authorization of $6.5
million.
Section-by-Section Analysis
Section 1 contains the short title, the ``First State
National Historical Park Act''.
Section 2 defines key terms.
Section 3(a) establishes the First State National
Historical Park as a unit of the National Park System in
Delaware at such time as the Secretary of the Interior
determines that sufficient land or interests in land have been
acquired from among sires described in subsection (b) to
constitute a manageable park unit.
Subsection (b) authorizes the Secretary to include the
named historic sites within the boundary of the historical
park.
Section 4 sets forth the Secretary's requirements for
administering the park.
Subsection (a) this Act requires that the Secretary
administer the park in accordance with the National Park System
Organic Act, and the Historic Sites Act.
Subsection (b) authorizes the Secretary to modify the
boundary of the park to include acquired lands.
Subsection (c) states that the Secretary may provide
interpretative tours to historic sites and resources in
Delaware, which are outside the park boundary.
Subsection (d) provides that the Secretary may enter into
cooperation agreements with public and private entities to
mark, interpret, and restore naturally significant resources
within the park boundary, subject to the requirement that non-
federal parties pay at least half the costs.
Subsection (e) directs the Secretary to complete a
management plan for the park within 3 years after the date
funds are made available.
Section 5 directs the Secretary to complete a study
assessing the historical significance of additional properties
in the State that are associated with the purposes of the park,
including those that could be considered National Historic
Landmarks.
Section 6 authorizes the appropriations of such sums as are
necessary to carry out the Act.
Section 7 amends section 7302 (f) of the Omnibus Public
Land Management Act of 2009 (16 U.S.C. 469 n (f)) to reduce the
authorization for the Preserve America program by $6.5 million.
Cost and Budgetary Considerations
The following estimate of costs of this measure has been
provided by the Congressional Budget Office:
S. 347--First State National Historical Park Act
S. 347 would establish the First State National Historical
Park in Delaware when the Secetary of the Interior determines
that enough property has been obtained (through donation) at
the proposed site to constitute a manageable park unit.
Assuming that the conditions for establishment can be met and
that the necessary amounts are appropriated, CBO estimates that
implementing S. 347 would cost about $1 million over the 2014-
2018 period. Enacting S. 347 would not affect direct spending
or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply.
Based on information provided by the National Park Service,
CBO estimates that the agency would spend about $1 million over
the next three years to prepare a general management plan for
the proposed park and a study to determine the suitability of
designating additional properties as National Historic
Landmarks. On March 25, 2013, the President established the
First State National Monument in Delaware. CBO assumes that the
monument includes sufficient properties to be a manageable park
unit. CBO estimates that the operating costs of the proposed
park would not be significantly different from the operating
costs of the current national monument over the next five
years.
S. 347 also would amend the Preserve America Grant Program
to reduce the amounts authorized to be appropriated for the
program. Specifically, any of those amounts ($25 million
annually) that are not appropriated as of the date of enactment
of this bill would be reduced by $6.5 million. CBO is uncertain
whether this provision would reduce the amount authorized to be
appropriated for the program in 2014 because we cannot predict
whether the program will have an appropriation for that year
before this bill is enacted or how large that appropriation
would be; however, in subsequent years, we estimate that the
program's annual authorization of appropriation would be
reduced by $6.5 million.
S. 347 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 Martin von
Gnechten. 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. 347.
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. 347, as ordered reported.
Congressionally Directed Spending
S. 347, as ordered 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
Executive Communications were not requested by the
Committee in the 113th Congress. The following Administration
testimony references similar legislation introduced in the
112th Congress.
The testimony provided by the Department of the Interior at
the May 11, 2011, Subcommittee hearing on S. 323 follows.
Statement of Steven E. Whitesell, Associate Director for Park Planning,
Facilities, and Lands, National Park Service, Department of the
Interior
Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to present the
Department of the Interior's views on S. 323, a bill to
establish the First State National Historical Park in the State
of Delaware.
The Department strongly supports the establishment of a
unit of the national park system in Delaware as proposed by S.
323.
In 2008, pursuant to Public Law 109-338, the National Park
Service completed a Special Resource Study of the coastal area
of Delaware and identified a number of resources of national
significance that were determined suitable and feasible to
administer as a unit of the national park system. These
included historic resources that were instrumental in early
Swedish, Dutch, and English settlement in the United States,
and others associated with Delaware's role as the nation's
first state. Although the bill provides the Secretary of the
Interior the discretion to determine which sites in the State
would be included within the boundary of the historical park,
we anticipate that only resources that met the Special Resource
Study criteria for establishment as a national park unit would
be considered for inclusion.
In 1638, Peter Minuet led Swedish colonists to present day
Wilmington, Delaware, and established New Sweden at a point
known as ``the rocks'' on the Christina River. The settlers
constructed Fort Christina at this location and this site is
now a National Historic Landmark. In 1698, Swedish settlers
established Holy Trinity (``Old Swedes'') Church near the fort,
the oldest church building standing as originally built in the
United States and also a National Historic Landmark.
In 1651, Peter Stuyvesant led Dutch settlers from New
Amsterdam and constructed Fort Casimir at a place he named
``New Amstel,'' in present day New Castle, Delaware. Conflicts
between the Swedish and Dutch colonists resulted in changing
occupations of the fort with the Dutch regaining control in
1655. In 1665, the English arrived at New Amstel and seized
control of the settlement, renaming it ``New Castle.'' William
Penn landed in New Castle in 1682 and took possession of the
city. In 1704, Penn established Delaware's Assembly and New
Castle remained the colonial capital of Delaware until 1776.
The New Castle Historic District, which contains multiple
resources from the time of earliest settlement through the
Federal era, including the Old New Castle Courthouse, is a
National Historic Landmark.
Delaware's representatives to the Continental Congress and
the Constitutional Convention played important parts in the
adoption of the Declaration of Independence and crafting of the
United States Constitution. On June 15, 1776, the Delaware
Assembly, meeting in New Castle, voted to sever its ties with
the English Crown, three weeks prior to the signing of the
Declaration in Philadelphia on July 4th. National Historic
Landmarks associated with these early revolutionary leaders
include the homes of John Dickinson (the ``Penman of the
Revolution''), Gunning Bedford, Jr., and George Read. The Dover
Green witnessed Delaware's vote to become the first state to
ratify the nation's new Constitution.
S. 323 would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to
establish the First State National Historical Park consisting
of any resources listed in Section 3(b) of the bill that the
Secretary acquires. The staff of the new park would be
authorized to interpret related resources outside of the
boundary, within the state of Delaware. The Special Resource
Study estimated annual operating costs for the park at $450,000
to $550,000 and costs associated with a general management plan
at $600,000. All funding would be subject to NPS priorities and
the availability of appropriations. A study of additional
resources related to the purpose of the park is also authorized
to assess their potential eligibility for National Historic
Landmark designation and options for maintaining the historic
integrity of such resources.
S. 323 also proposes to allow including within the park
boundary the Ryves Holt House--a part of the historic district
in Lewes, Delaware. This district and the Ryves Holt House are
listed on the National Register of Historic Places at the local
level of significance and the National Register nomination for
the district indicates that today its significance is based
primarily on its fine examples of Victorian architecture.
Although the bill provides the Secretary with the discretion to
decide which properties may be included within the boundary of
the park, the Department questions allowing the Ryves Holt
House to be eligible for addition to the park boundary, since
it is not a National Historic Landmark, does not meet the
required national significance criterion for unit designation,
and is inconsistent with the park's purpose as outlined in
Section 3(a) of S. 323.
However, we note that Section 4(c) of S. 323 permits
interpretation of resources related to the purposes of the park
but located outside of its boundary. Any extant resources in
Lewes, either within or outside of the historic district, which
relate to early Dutch, Swedish, and English settlement or to
Delaware's role as the first state, would thus be eligible for
interpretation without including this district in the park
boundary. Such resources would also be candidates for further
analysis as to their National Historic Landmark potential under
the bill's study provisions in Section 5.
Mr. Chairman, that concludes my testimony. I would be happy
to respond to any questions that you or other members of the
committee 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
the bill S. 347 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):
OMNIBUS PUBLIC LAND MANAGEMENT ACT OF 2009
(Public Law 111-11)
AN ACT To designate certain land as components of the National
Wilderness Preservation System, to authorize certain programs and
activities in the Department of the Interior and the Department of
Agriculture, and for other purposes.
TITLE VII--NATIONAL PARK SERVICE AUTHORIZATIONS
* * * * * * *
Subtitle D--Program Authorizations
* * * * * * *
SEC. 7302. PRESERVE AMERICA PROGRAM
(a) Purpose.--The Purpose of this section is to authorize
the Preserve America Program,
* * * * * * *
(f) Authorization of Appropriations.-- There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this section $25,000,000 for
each fiscal year, to remain available until expended, except
that the amount authorized to be appropriated to carry out this
section not appropriated as of the date of enactment of the
First State National Historical Park Act shall be reduced by
$6,500,000.
* * * * * * *