Weekly Legislative Activities Report

The Office of Legislative and Congressional Affairs puts out weekly reports on hearings, new legislation and other activities on the Hill. The following is the January 16th summary.

In order to obtain the full text of any of the bills that appear below, click on the following link: http://thomas.loc.gov/ . That will take you to Thomas, the Library of Congress legislative tracking system. Enter the bill number in the “Search Bill Text” block, being sure to also click on the “Bill Number” option below the block.

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New Public Laws

No new laws.

Floor Action

On January 15th, the Senate passed S. 22 (Bingaman, D-NM), a bill to designate certain lands and 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.  The bill contained the following provisions pertaining to the National Park Service:

Title I—Additions to the National Wilderness Preservation System

Subtitle H— This subtitle designates 11,740 acres of land in Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Michigan, as wilderness.

Subtitle L— This subtitle designates approximately 36,000 acres of land within Joshua Tree National Park, California, as wilderness.

Subtitle M— This subtitle designates approximately 85,000 acres of land within Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, California, as wilderness.

Subtitle N— This subtitle designates approximately 249,000 acres of land within Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, as wilderness.

Subtitle O— This subtitle designates approximately 124,000 acres of land within Zion National Park, Utah, as wilderness and designates the Virgin River and some of its tributaries as a Wild and Scenic River.

Title V—Rivers and Trails

Subtitle A— This section would add Fossil Creek, Arizona, the Snake River Headwaters, Wyoming, and the Taunton River, Massachusetts, to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System.

Subtitle B— This subtitle would direct the Secretary to study the Missisquoi and Trout Rivers, Vermont, for suitability for inclusion as National Wild and Scenic Rivers.

Subtitle C— This subtitle would establish the Arizona National Scenic Trail, the New England National Scenic Trail, the Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail, the Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary Route National Historic Trail, the Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail and add additional routes and land components to the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail.

Subtitle D—National Trail System Amendments. 

• Section 5301—  This section would authorize the federal government to purchase land from willing sellers for nine of the 25 trails currently in the system. 
• Section 5302— This section would direct the Secretary to revise the feasibility and suitability studies of some existing trails for consideration of possible additions to those trails. 
• Section 5303— This section amends the National Trails System Act by directing the Secretary to conduct studies of the Chisholm Trail and the Great Western Trail for suitability and feasibility for inclusion in the National Trails System.

• Section 7001— This section establishes the Patterson Great Falls National Historical Park in Patterson, New Jersey, once certain conditions are met and authorizes the acquisition of property or interests in property within the historical park boundaries.
• Section 7002— This section directs the Secretary to designate the William Jefferson Clinton Birthplace Home National Historic Site, Arkansas, pending the donation of the Clinton birthplace home to the federal government by the Clinton Birthplace Foundation, Inc.
• Section 7003— This section directs the Secretary to accept donations of real property of historic value from willing sellers in Monroe and Wayne counties, Michigan.  After sufficient property is acquired the Secretary shall designate the acquired land as the River Raisin National Battlefield Park.

• Section 7101— This section decreases a matching funds requirement and authorizes additional appropriations for Keewenaw National Historical Park, Michigan.
• Section 7102— This section amends the Wier Farm National Historic Site Establishment Act of 1990 to permit the park to acquire up to 15 acres of land to develop visitor and administrative facilities.
• Section 7103— This section amends the Little River Canyon National Preserve Act of 1992 to add an additional 1,656 acres to the size of Little River Canyon National Preserve, Alabama.
• Section 7104— This section expands the boundary of Hopewell Culture National Historical Park, Ohio, and permits the acquisition of lands within the new boundary from willing sellers.
• Section 7105— This section amends the National Parks and Recreation Act of 1978 to adjust the boundary of the Barataria Preserve Unit of Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve, Louisiana, and authorizes the acquisition of land necessary for the boundary adjustments through transfer or exchange from another federal agency or by donation or purchase from a private landowner.
• Section 7106— This section modifies the boundary of Minute Man National Historical Park, Massachusetts, to include the home and surrounding farmland of Colonel James Barrett and the area around the Joshua Brooks House.
• Section 7107— This section modifies the boundary of Everglades National Park, Florida, to add Tarpon Basin to the park.  Additionally, this section authorizes a land exchange between the park and Florida Power and Light and between the park and the state of Florida.
• Section 7108— This section authorizes a non-profit organization to establish a memorial at Kalaupapa National Historical Park, Hawaii, to honor those individuals that were forcibly relocated to the Kalaupapa Peninsula from 1866 to 1969.
• Section 7109— This section authorizes the secretary to enter into cooperative agreements with any of the management partners of Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area, Massachusetts.
• Section 7110— This section renames Edison National Historic Site, New Jersey, as Thomas Edison National Historical Park.
• Section 7111— This section authorizes the establishment of the “Votes for Women History Trail Route” which would link sites that are historically and thematically associated with the struggle for women’s suffrage.  The bill would also authorize a National Women’s Rights History Project focusing on increasing the number of sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places associated with women’s suffrage and a National Women’s Rights History Project and Partnerships Network that would offer financial and technical assistance for interpretive and educational programming.
• Section 7112— This section expands the boundary of Martin Van Buren National Historic Site, New York, to include an additional 261 acres surrounding the Van Buren estate and authorizes land acquisition from willing sellers, by donation or by purchase with donated funds.
• Section 7113— This section changes the name of Palo Alto Battlefield National Historic Site to Palo Alto Battlefield National Historical Park and adds 34 acres of Resaca de la Palma battlefield site to the Park.
• Section 7114— This section changes the name of Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Site, Kentucky, to Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park.
• Section 7115— This section requires the Secretary to permit hunting and fishing on NPS land and water within New River Gorge National River, West Virginia, rather that permitting hunting and fishing on a discretionary basis.
• Section 7116— This section makes technical corrections to several national park bills to fix incorrect section references, map numbers and wording errors. 
• Section 7117— This section adds Hawthorne Hill and the Wright Company factory to Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park through donation.  It also permits the Secretary to provide grants to park partners for construction and development on non-federal property if such construction is consistent with the park General Management Plan and enhances public use and enjoyment of the park.
• Section 7118— This section authorizes the acquisition from willing sellers of 55 acres adjacent to Fort Davis National Historic Site, Texas, and adjusts the park boundary to include the newly acquired acreage.

• Section 7301— American Battlefield Protection Program.  This section reauthorizes the American Battlefield Protection Program, which provides grants to protect and interpret Civil War battlefield sites, through September 30, 2013.
• Section 7302— Preserve America Grant Program.  This section authorizes the Secretary, in partnership with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, to provide competitive grants to specified entities to support preservation efforts through heritage tourism, education, and historic preservation planning activities.
• Section 7303— Save America’s Treasures Grant Program.  This section authorizes the Secretary to provide grants to eligible entities for projects to preserve nationally significant collections and historic properties.
• Section 7304— This section extends the time period for the expenditure of authorized appropriations for the Route 66 preservation program to 2019.
• Section 7305— This section amends the National Cave and Karst Research Institute law to strike the portion of the law that allows the Secretary to spend only those federal funds that are matched by an equal amount of funds from non-federal sources.

• Section 8201— This section extends the authority of the Secretary to make grants or provide assistance to the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage Corridor to September 30, 2015, and increases the total among that may be appropriated to $15 million.
• Section 8202— This section names a new  local coordinating entity for the Delaware and Lehigh National Heritage Corridor, and reauthorizes federal funding for an additional five years.
• Section 8203— This section extends the authority for the Secretary to provide financial assistance from 10 to 15 years for the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor.
• Section 8204— This section authorizes ex-officio members of the John H. Chafee Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor commission to attend and vote in meetings.

• H.R. 480 (Mica, R-FL) - To establish the St. Augustine 450th Commemoration Commission, and for other purposes.
• H.R. 481 (Oberstar, D-MN) - To revise the authorized route of the North Country National Scenic Trail in northeastern Minnesota to include existing hiking trails along Lake Superior's north shore and in Superior National Forest and Chippewa National Forest, and for other purposes.
• H.R. 482 ( Poe, R-TX) - To authorize the rededication of the District of Columbia War Memorial as a National and District of Columbia World War I Memorial to honor the sacrifices made by American veterans of World War I.
• H.R. 488 (Stupak, D-MI) - To decrease the matching funds requirement and authorize additional appropriations for Keweenaw National Historical Park in the State of Michigan.
• S. 216 (Hatch, R-UT) - A bill to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study to determine the suitability and feasibility of designating Estate Grange and other sites related to Alexander Hamilton's life on the island of St. Croix in the United States Virgin Islands as a unit of the National Park System, and for other purposes.
• S. 217  (Hatch, R-UT) - A bill to amend the National Trails System Act to require the Secretary of the Interior to update the feasibility and suitability studies of four national historic trails, and for other purposes.
• S. 227 (Cardin, D-MD) - A bill to establish the Harriet Tubman National Historical Park in Auburn, New York, and the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park in Caroline, Dorchester, and Talbot Counties, Maryland, and for other purposes.
• H.R. 526 (Marshall, D-GA) - To establish the Ocmulgee National Heritage Corridor in the State of Georgia, and for other purposes.
• H.R. 552 (Giffords, D-AZ) - To amend the National Trails System Act to designate the Arizona National Scenic Trail.
• H.R. 369 (Bono Mack, R-CA) - To designate certain Federal lands in Riverside County, California, as wilderness, to designate certain river segments in Riverside County as a wild, scenic, or recreational river, to adjust the boundary of the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument, and for other purposes.
• H.R. 397 (Courtney, D-CT) - To extend the authorization of the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage Corridor Act of 1994, and for other purposes.
• H.R. 401 (Dingell, D-MI) - To provide for the designation of certain sites in Monroe County and Wayne County, Michigan, relating to the Battles of the River Raisin during the War of 1812 as a unit of the National Park System.
• H.R. 410 (Hirono, D-HI) - To provide for the establishment of a memorial within Kalaupapa National Historical Park located on the island of Molokai, in the State of Hawaii, to honor and perpetuate the memory of those individuals who were forcibly relocated to the Kalaupapa Peninsula from 1866 to 1969, and for other purposes.
• H.R. 419 (Markey, D-CO) - To designate as wilderness certain land within the Rocky Mountain National Park and to adjust the boundaries of the Indian Peaks Wilderness and the Arapaho National Recreation Area of the Arapaho National Forest in the State of Colorado.
• H.R. 453 (Wamp, R-TN) - To direct the Secretary of the Interior to study the suitability and feasibility of designating Green McAdoo School in Clinton, Tennessee as a unit of the National Park System, and for other purposes.
• H.R. 454 (Wamp, R-TN) - To amend the National Trails System Act to provide for the inclusion of new trail segments, land components, and campgrounds associated with the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail, and for other purposes.
• H.R. 455 (Welch, D-VT) - To amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate a segment of the Missisquoi and Trout Rivers in the State of Vermont for study for potential addition to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System.
• S. 196 (Dodd, D-CT) - A bill to amend the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage Corridor Act of 1994 to increase the authorization of appropriations and modify the date on which the authority of the Secretary of the Interior terminates under the Act.
• S. 199 (Specter, R-PA) - A bill to establish the Steel Industry National Historic Site in the State of Pennsylvania.