[Senate Report 114-338]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 573
114th Congress } { Report
SENATE
2d Session } { 114-338
======================================================================
TO EXTEND THE AUTHORIZATION FOR THE GULLAH/GEECHEE CULTURAL HERITAGE
CORRIDOR COMMISSION
_______
September 6, 2016.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Ms. Murkowski, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 3004]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the bill (H.R. 3004) to amend the Gullah/Geechee
Cultural Heritage Act to extend the authorization for the
Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission, having
considered the same, reports favorably thereon without
amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.
Purpose
The purpose of H.R. 3004 is to amend the Gullah/Geechee
Cultural Heritage Act to extend the authorization for the
Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission.
Background and Need
The Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor (Corridor)
extends from Wilmington, North Carolina to Jacksonville,
Florida, and is recognized for the important contributions made
to American culture and history by African Americans known as
Gullah/Geechee who settled in the coastal counties in South
Carolina, Georgia, North Carolina, and Florida. Congress
designated the Corridor on October 12, 2006 (Public Law 109-
338).
The Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Act (subtitle I of
title II of Public Law 109-338) authorized the Gullah/Geechee
Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission to implement the
Corridor's management plan, ultimately adopted in 2012.
Although the Corridor is authorized through October 12, 2021,
the Commission's authorization is set to sunset on October 12,
2016. Absent Congressional action, the Corridor will have to be
managed by a different, yet-to-be constituted entity.
Legislative History
Representative Clyburn introduced H.R. 3004 on July 9,
2015. The Natural Resources Committee held a business meeting
and ordered H.R. 3004 reported on February 3, 2016. The bill
was passed by the House of Representatives by voice vote on
February 24, 2016.
Senator Graham introduced similar legislation, S. 2839, in
the Senate on April 21, 2016. The Senate Energy and Natural
Resources Committee's National Parks Subcommittee held a
hearing on S. 2839 and H.R. 3004 on June 15, 2016.
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources met in open
business session on July 13, 2016, and ordered H.R. 3004
favorably reported.
Committee Recommendation
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in
open business session on July 13, 2016, by a majority voice
vote of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass H.R.
3004.
Section-by-Section Analysis
Section 1. Extension of the authorization for the Gullah/Geechee
Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission
Section 1 amends Public Law 109-338 to extend the
authorization for the Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor
Commission from 10 years to 15 years, through October 12, 2021.
Cost and Budgetary Considerations
The following estimate of the costs of this measure has
been provided by the Congressional Budget Office:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, August 4, 2016.
Hon. Lisa Murkowski,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Madam Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 3004, a bill to
amend the Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Act to extend the
authorization for the Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor
Commission.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Jon Sperl.
Sincerely,
Mark P. Hadley,
(For Keith Hall, Director).
Enclosure.
H.R. 3004--A bill to amend the Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Act to
extend the authorization for the Gullah/Geechee Cultural
Heritage Corridor Commission
H.R. 3004 would extend the authorization for the Gullah/
Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission (commission)
through October 12, 2021. The Gullah/Geechee Corridor was
established as a heritage area in 2006 and is not part of the
National Park System (NPS). While the Secretary of the Interior
provides technical and financial assistance for the development
and implementation of the area's management plan, that plan is
implemented by the commission.
Under current law, only the commission can implement the
heritage area's management plan and spend funds appropriated
for that purpose. Although the heritage corridor is authorized
through October 12, 2021, the commission is authorized only
through October 12,2016.
Based on information from the NPS, CBO expects that if the
authority for the commission is not extended, any funds
appropriated for the corridor would be used for other purposes.
Therefore, CBO estimates that enacting the legislation would
not result in significant additional costs to the federal
government over the 2017-2021 period.
Because enacting H.R. 3004 would not affect direct spending
or revenues, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. CBO
estimates that enacting H.R. 3004 would not increase net direct
spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive
10-year periods beginning in 2027.
H.R. 3004 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.
On February 19, 2016, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for
H.R. 3004, as ordered reported by the House Committee on
Natural Resources on February 3, 2016. The two versions of the
legislation are the same as are CBO's estimates of their
budgetary effects.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jon Sperl. The
estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, 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 H.R. 3004. 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 H.R. 3004, as ordered reported.
Congressionally Directed Spending
H.R. 3004, 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
The testimony provided by the National Park Service at the
June 15, 2016, Subcommittee on National Parks hearing on H.R.
3004 follows:
Statement of Dr. Stephanie Toothman, Associate Director, Cultural
Resources, Partnerships, and Science, National Park Service, U.S.
Department of the Interior
Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, thank you for
the opportunity to present the views of the Department of the
Interior on S. 2839 and H.R. 3004, bills to amend the Gullah/
Geechee Cultural Heritage Act to extend the authorization for
the Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission.
The Department supports S. 2839 and H.R. 3004, which are
virtually identical.
Both bills would extend the authorization for the Gullah/
Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission (Commission) to
serve as the local coordinating entity for the Gullah/Geechee
Cultural Heritage Corridor (Corridor) an additional five years,
through October 12, 2021. This extension of authority would
match the authorization for the Corridor to receive Federal
funding. If reauthorized, the Commission, as the local
coordinating entity, would continue to implement the management
plan for the Corridor, developed in 2013, and would be eligible
to receive Federal grant money and technical assistance.
The Department recognizes the important work of the Gullah/
Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor and their efforts to
highlight, interpret, and preserve the important contributions
of the African Americans known as Gullah/Geechee in coastal
counties of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and
Florida to American history and culture.
The Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor comprises
approximately 12,800 square miles from the northern border of
Pender County, North Carolina, to the southern boundary of St.
Johns County, Florida. Extending 425 miles along the coast and
30 miles inland, it encompasses all or part of 27 counties in
four states and covers an area larger than Maryland and
Delaware combined. The entire Corridor has been identified as
an ethnographic resource for its rich cultural complexity,
which expresses itself in its folk life and traditions such as
foodways, music, language and oral traditions, craft
traditions, and religion and spirituality. The Corridor's
mission is three-fold, and centers around: preservation of
land, language, and culture; public education of Gullah/Geechee
culture; and, supporting Gullah/Geechee communities.
The Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Act charged the
Commission, as the local coordinating entity, with preparing
and submitting a management plan to the Secretary. The
Commission was further charged with conducting public meetings
on, and assisting units of local government with, the
management plan's implementation. The extension of the
Commission's authorization will allow the critical time needed
to implement the plan's recommendations.
To date, the Commission has already taken steps such as:
providing outreach education materials to State welcome
centers; providing highway Corridor marker signs along U.S.
Highway 17; providing education programs to schools and groups;
and, developing and supporting the Gullah/Geechee Cultural
Heritage Corridor website. The Commission has also served as a
consulting party on several items of concern to communities
within the Corridor including the planning of the U.S. Forest
Service/U.S. Army Corps of Engineers McClellanville
transmission line project and the Bureau of Ocean Energy
Management's Environmental Assessment for offshore commercial
wind leasing in South Carolina.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my testimony. I would be happy
to answer any questions you or other members of the
subcommittee 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 original bill, as 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):
NATIONAL HERITAGE AREAS ACT OF 2006
Public Law 109-338
* * * * * * *
TITLE II--ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL HERITAGE AREAS
* * * * * * *
Subtitle I--Gullah/Geechee Heritage Corridor
* * * * * * *
SEC. 295D. GULLAH/GEECHEE CULTURAL HERITAGE CORRIDOR COMMISSION.
* * * * * * *
(d) Termination.--The local coordinating entity shall
terminate [10 years] 15 years after the date of enactment of
this Act.
* * * * * * *
[all]