[House Report 111-595]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
111th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2d Session 111-595
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MT. ANDREA LAWRENCE DESIGNATION ACT OF 2010
_______
September 16, 2010.--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. 5194]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred
the bill (H.R. 5194) to designate Mt. Andrea Lawrence, and for
other purposes, having considered the same, report favorably
thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass.
PURPOSE OF THE BILL
The purpose of H.R. 5194 is to designate Mt. Andrea
Lawrence in California.
BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION
Andrea Mead Lawrence was born in 1932 in Rutland County,
Vermont, where she developed a life-long passion for winter
sports and an appreciation for the environment. She competed in
alpine skiing events in two World Championships and three
Winter Olympic Games. In the 1952 Olympics in Oslo, Norway, she
won two Gold Medals in the slalom and giant slalom, making her
the first American to win two Olympic golds in alpine skiing.
She was inducted into the U.S. National Ski Hall of Fame in
1958 at the age of 28, and was again honored when she was
chosen to light the Olympic torch at the 1960 Winter Olympics
in Squaw Valley, California.
In 1968, she moved her family to Mammoth Lakes, a small ski
town in California on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevadas,
an area known for its rugged beauty, remoteness and close
proximity to the spectacular Yosemite National Park. Inspired
by the natural splendor of this area, she dedicated the rest of
her life to protecting the cultural and natural treasures of
the Eastern Sierras.
As part of this effort, she founded ``Friends of the
Mammoth,'' an organization dedicated to protecting the wildness
and serenity of the Mammoth Lakes area. The small ski area had
been ``discovered'' by Southern California weekend skiers, and
development and visitation soared placing increased pressure on
the resources of the remote and tiny town. Ms. Lawrence fought
for better planning and conservation measures to protect both
the character of the town and the natural values of the area.
Ms. Lawrence was elected to, and served for 16 years, on
the Mono County Board of Supervisors. There she worked
tirelessly for environmental issues, including the protection
and restoration of Mono Lake, known for its unique and
productive salt-water ecosystem. She also served as a member of
the Great Basin Air Pollution Control District, which sought to
reduce pollution caused by the draining of Owens Lake by the
Metropolitan Water District in Southern California.
In the final years of her life, she founded the Andrea
Lawrence Institute for Mountains and Rivers in 2003, a non-
profit that in her words would ``serve as the institutional
basis for integrating economic vitality and ecological
integrity within the Eastern Sierra.'' As a longtime advocate
of wilderness, she testified in 2008 before the Mono Country
Board of Supervisors in support of the Eastern Sierra and
Northern San Gabriel Wild Heritage Act, legislation that was
enacted as part of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of
2009 (P.L. 111-11) the day before she died on March, 31 2009.
H.R. 5194 would designate Peak 12,240 as ``Mt. Andrea
Lawrence.'' The mountain is located 0.6 miles northeast of
Donohue Peak on the northern border of the Ansel Adams
Wilderness (Inyo National Forest) and Yosemite National Park.
COMMITTEE ACTION
H.R. 5194 was introduced by Representative Howard ``Buck''
McKeon (R-CA) on April 29, 2010. 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 June 10, 2010 before the Subcommittee,
representatives from the U.S. Forest Service and the Department
of the Interior testified in support of the legislation.
On July 22, 2010, the Subcommittee was discharged from
further consideration of H.R. 5194 and the full Natural
Resources Committee met to consider the bill. The bill was
ordered favorably reported to the House of Representatives by
unanimous consent.
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 IV, section 3 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 designate Mt. Andrea Lawrence in
California.
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. 5194--Mt. Andrea Lawrence Designation Act of 2010
H.R. 5194 would designate a currently unnamed peak on the
northern border of the Ansel Adams Wilderness and Yosemite
National Park in California as Mt. Andrea Lawrence. Any new
maps or regulations created by the federal government would be
required to include the new name.
Based on information from the National Park Service, CBO
estimates that enacting H.R. 5194 would have no significant
effect on the federal budget. Enacting H.R. 5194 would not
affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go
procedures do not apply.
H.R. 5194 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and
would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal
governments.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Sarah Puro. The
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. 5194 does not contain any congressional earmarks,
limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined in
clause 9 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.