[Senate Report 115-50]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 63
115th Congress} { Report
SENATE
1st Session } { 115-50
======================================================================
OCMULGEE MOUNDS NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK BOUNDARY REVISION ACT OF 2017
_______
May 9, 2017.--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. 538]
[Including cost estimate from the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the bill (H.R. 638) to redesignate Ocmulgee National
Monument in the State of Georgia and revise its boundary, and
for other purposes, having considered the same, reports
favorably thereon with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute and recommends that the bill, as amended, do pass.
The amendment is as follows:
Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical
Park Boundary Revision Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Historical park.--The term ``Historical Park'' means the
Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park in the State of
Georgia, as redesignated by section 3(a)(1).
(2) Map.--The term ``map'' means the map entitled ``Ocmulgee
National Monument Proposed Boundary Adjustment'', numbered 363/
125996, and dated January 2016.
(3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of
the Interior.
(4) Study area.--The term ``study area'' means the Ocmulgee
River corridor between the cities of Macon, Georgia, and
Hawkinsville, Georgia.
SEC. 3. OCMULGEE MOUNDS NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK.
(a) Redesignation.--
(1) In general.--The Ocmulgee National Monument, established
pursuant to the Act of June 14, 1934 (48 Stat. 958, chapter
519), shall be known and designated as the ``Ocmulgee Mounds
National Historical Park''.
(2) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation,
document, paper, or other record of the United States to the
``Ocmulgee National Monument'' shall be deemed to be a
reference to the ``Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park''.
(b) Boundary Adjustment.--
(1) In general.--The boundary of the Historical Park is
revised to include approximately 2,100 acres of land, as
generally depicted on the map.
(2) Availability of map.--The map shall be on file and
available for public inspection in the appropriate offices of
the National Park Service.
(c) Land Acquisition.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary may acquire land and interests
in land within the boundaries of the Historical Park by
donation, purchase from a willing seller with donated or
appropriated funds, or exchange.
(2) Limitation.--The Secretary may not acquire by
condemnation any land or interest in land within the boundaries
of the Historical Park.
(d) Administration.--The Secretary shall administer any land
acquired under subsection (c) as part of the Historical Park in
accordance with applicable laws (including regulations).
SEC. 4. OCMULGEE RIVER CORRIDOR SPECIAL RESOURCE STUDY.
(a) In General.--The Secretary shall conduct a special resource
study of the study area.
(b) Contents.--In conducting the study under subsection (a), the
Secretary shall--
(1) evaluate the national significance of the study area;
(2) determine the suitability and feasibility of designating
the study area as a unit of the National Park System;
(3) consider other alternatives for preservation, protection,
and interpretation of the study area by the Federal Government,
State or local government entities, or private and nonprofit
organizations;
(4) consult with interested Federal agencies, State or local
governmental entities, private and nonprofit organizations, or
any other interested individuals; and
(5) identify cost estimates for any Federal acquisition,
development, interpretation, operation, and maintenance
associated with the alternatives.
(c) Applicable Law.--The study required under subsection (a) shall
be conducted in accordance with section 100507 of title 54, United
States Code.
(d) Report.--Not later than 3 years after the date on which funds
are first made available to carry out the study under subsection (a),
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 that describes--
(1) the results of the study; and
(2) any conclusions and recommendations of the Secretary.
PURPOSE
The purpose of H.R. 538 is to redesignate the Ocmulgee
National Monument in the State of Georgia as the Ocmulgee
Mounds National Historical Park and to revise its boundary.
BACKGROUND AND NEED
Ocmulgee National Monument in Macon, Georgia, was
authorized by Congress in 1934 and created by land donations in
1936 to protect Native American antiquities in an area known as
the Ocmulgee Old Fields at Macon. The park commemorates Native
Americans who first arrived in the area during the Paleo-Indian
period hunting Ice Age mammals. Different cultures occupied
this land for thousands of years. The Mississippian culture
arrived here around A.D. 900, farming the river's floodplain
terraces and constructing earthen mounds for their elite. The
mounds still remain today for all to see. The National Trust
for Historic Preservation has identified the Old Fields as
being among the nation's richest archaeological landscapes.
At the time Ocmulgee National Monument was authorized and
created in the mid-1930s, the nation was struggling and
suffering under the Great Depression. The deep economic
downturn was long-lasting and had an impact on every aspect of
human and economic life. The Great Depression also had an
effect on Ocmulgee National Monument, as preservation of much
of the cultural landscape was not completed, leaving
significant portions of the ancient archaeology unprotected.
H.R. 538 is needed to redesignate the Ocmulgee National
Monument as the Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park and to
expand the park boundaries by 2,100 acres to include additional
archeologically significant sites.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
Representatives Sanford Bishop and Austin introduced H.R.
538 on January 13, 2017. On January 30, 2017, H.R. 538 passed
the House of Representatives on a vote of 396-8.
On January 12, 2017, similar legislation, S. 135, was
introduced by Senators Isakson and Perdue in the Senate.
In the 114th Congress, similar legislation, S. 1696, was
introduced by Senators Isakson and Perdue on June 25, 2015. The
Subcommittee on National Parks held a hearing on the measure on
June 15, 2016. The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
met in open business session on July 13, 2016, and ordered S.
1696 favorably reported as amended (S. Rept. 114-318).
Representatives Sanford Bishop and Austin introduced
similar legislation, H.R. 482, in the House of Representatives,
on January 22, 2015. H.R. 482 was reported by the Committee on
Natural Resources on March 2, 2016 (H. Rept. 114-442), and
passed the House of Representatives by voice vote on March 22,
2016.
In the 113th Congress, Representative Bishop introduced
H.R. 4991 on June 26, 2014. Senators Isakson and Chambliss
introduced similar legislation, S. 2580, on July 10, 2014.
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources met in open
business session on March 30, 2017, and ordered H.R. 538
favorably reported as amended.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in
open business session on March 30, 2017, by a majority voice
vote of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass H.R.
538, if amended as described herein.
COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS
During its consideration of H.R. 538, the Committee on
Energy and Natural Resources adopted an amendment in the nature
of a substitute to eliminate buffer zone and land acquisition
language and modify special resource study language. The
amendment is further described in the section-by-section
analysis.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1. Short title
Section 1 contains the short title.
Section 2. Definitions
Section 2 contains key definitions.
Section 3. Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park
Section 3(a) redesignates the Ocmulgee National Monument as
the Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park and requires that
any reference in a regulation, law, map, document, paper, or
other record of the United States to Ocmulgee National Monument
be deemed to be a reference to Ocmulgee Mounds National
Historical Park.
Subsection (b)(1) revises the boundary to include
approximately 2,100 additional acres of land. Subsection (b)(2)
directs the map to be on file in appropriate National Park
Service (NPS) offices and available for public inspection.
Subsection (c)(1) authorizes the Secretary to acquire land
or interests in land within the boundary of the Historical Park
by donation, purchase from a willing seller with donated or
appropriate funds, or exchange.
Subsection (c)(2) prohibits acquisition of land and
interest in land by condemnation.
Subsection (d) designates the Secretary to administer any
acquired land in accordance with applicable laws and
regulations.
Section 4. Ocmulgee River Corridor Special Resource Study
Subsections (a) and (b) of section 4 direct the Secretary
to conduct a special resource study of the Ocmulgee River
corridor between the cities of Macon, Georgia, and
Hawkinsville, Georgia to determine the national significance of
the study area; the suitability and feasibility of designating
the land in the study area to the National Park System; and the
methods and means for interpretation and protection of the
study area by the NPS, other Federal, State, or local
government entities, or private or nonprofit organizations.
Subsection (c) requires the study to be conducted in
accordance with applicable law.
Subsection (d) directs the Secretary to submit a report on
the study, including any recommendations, to the House
Committee on Natural Resources and the Senate Committee on
Energy and Natural Resources within three years after the funds
are made available to carry out the study.
COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
The following estimate of costs of this measure has been
provided by the Congressional Budget Office:
H.R. 538 would redesignate the Ocmulgee National Monument
in Georgia as the Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park,
authorize the expansion of the newly designated park's
boundaries, and authorize a special resource study of the
Ocmulgee River corridor.
The legislation stipulates that the National Park Service
(NPS) may acquire approximately 2,100 acres of additional land
through a donation, with donated funds, with appropriated
amounts, or through a land exchange. Based on recent sale
prices of comparable tracts of land in the areas where land
would be purchased, and information from the NPS, CBO estimates
that the cost to acquire and administer the land would be about
$2 million over the 2018-2022 period, assuming the land was
acquired with appropriated funds over the next five years.
Total costs would depend on the average price per acre which,
according to local property sales records, could range from
$500 per acre to $1,500 per acre. Based on information from the
NPS, CBO estimates that developing the resource study would
have an insignificant cost.
Enacting H.R. 538 would not affect direct spending or
revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. CBO
estimates that enacting H.R. 538 would not increase net direct
spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive
10-year periods beginning in 2028.
H.R. 538 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 Jon Sperl. The
estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy 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. 538. 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. 538, as ordered reported.
CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING
H.R. 538, 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
Because H.R. 538 is similar to legislation considered by
the Committee in the 114th Congress, the Committee did not
request Executive Agency views. The testimony provided by the
National Park Service at the hearing before the Subcommittee on
National Parks on June 15, 2016, 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 Department of the Interior's
testimony regarding H.R. 482 and S. 1696, bills to redesignate
Ocmulgee National Monument in the State of Georgia and revise
its boundary, and for other purposes.
The Department supports S. 1696 and would support H.R. 482
if amended in accordance with this testimony. This legislation
has three components: it would redesignate the national
monument, expand the monument's boundaries, and authorize a
special resource study of the Ocmulgee River corridor in
Georgia from Macon to Hawkinsville. With respect to the special
resource study, the Department feels that priority should be
given to the 24 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 Congress.
Ocmulgee National Monument, authorized by Congress in 1934
and established by Presidential proclamation in 1936 after the
purchase of lands by local citizens, encompasses 701 acres in
two separate units. The Main Unit (656 acres), includes seven
prehistoric mounds, a funeral mound, a reconstructed earth
lodge, prehistoric trenches, and numerous archeological
features. This unit also includes the site of a British
colonial trading post dating to 1690 (which the Creek Indians
frequented), the historic Dunlap House, an Art Moderne visitor
center, Civil War earthworks, substantial urban green space,
six miles of hiking trails, and a picnic area. The smaller
Lamar Mounds Unit (45 acres), named for a Late Mississippian
agricultural society, is located about two and one-half miles
southeast of the Main Unit. Both sites are part of a larger
archeological area known as the Ocmulgee Old Fields.
In 1999, the Ocmulgee Old Fields was listed on the National
Register of Historic Places as a ``traditional cultural
property,'' the first location in the eastern United States to
receive this designation. The monument and surrounding area is
the site of one of the largest archeological investigations in
North American history. The investigation and recovery of
artifacts and information in this area was instrumental in the
development of scientific archeology. The traditional cultural
property extends well beyond the current boundaries of the
monument to encompass areas traditionally associated with the
cultural beliefs and practices of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation
and related tribes.
redesignation
H.R. 482 and S. 1696 would redesignate Ocmulgee National
Monument as ``Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park'', a
more appropriate name for the site. For generations, Middle
Georgians have known Ocmulgee National Monument simply as ``the
Indian mounds.'' The addition of the word ``mounds'' to the
name would not only clarify the identity of the site for
residents of the region, it would also give all potential
visitors a better idea of the principal resource of the site.
In addition, the title ``National Historical Park'' recognizes
the complexity of the site and the fact that it is much more
than a collection of Indian mounds. The proposed title also
provides better identification of the site as a unit of the
National Park System.
boundary adjustment
H.R. 482 and S. 1696 would also expand the boundary of the
Ocmulgee National Monument consistent with the preferred
alternative of a boundary study the National Park Service
completed in 2014. The study evaluated lands that were part of
the Ocmulgee Old Fields and found that approximately 2,100
acres of these lands were suitable and feasible for inclusion
in the monument. These additional lands would link Ocmulgee's
Main Unit and the Lamar Unit and create a contiguous park unit
of approximately 2,800 acres.
Of the 2,100 acres proposed for inclusion in the monument,
approximately 707 acres (34% of expansion area) would likely be
acquired by donation. The remaining lands, approximately 1,350
acres (66% of expansion area) would likely be acquired through
purchase from willing sellers. Based on tax assessments, the
value of the private tracts that would be purchased is just
under $2 million, but actual acquisition costs could be higher.
Costs would eventually be incurred to demolish non-historic
structures. Some relatively low-cost improvements for
recreational enhancement are anticipated, such as trailhead
kiosks, maintenance of old roadbeds for biking/hiking trails,
and installation of canoe launching facilities. Funding for
these activities would be subject to the availability of
appropriations.
The proposed boundary expansion enjoys strong community
support. Resolutions in favor of the expansion have been passed
by the Board of Commissioners of Wilkinson County, the Macon-
Bibb County Commission, the Historic Macon Foundation, Inc.,
the Georgia Small Business Lender Board of Directors, and the
Hawkinsville-Pulaski County Chamber of Commerce. Other
organizations and governmental entities have also expressed
support for the expansion, including Altamaha River Keeper, the
Georgia Conservancy, Main Street Macon, New Town Macon, the
Macon Chamber of Commerce, the Middle Georgia Regional
Commission Council, the Macon-Bibb County Convention and
Visitors Bureau, the Mayor and City Council for the City of
Perry, the Georgia River Network, the National Trust for
Historic Preservation, Save our Rivers INC. and the Macon-Bibb
County Urban Development Authority.
special resource study
H.R. 482 and S. 1696 would also authorize the Secretary to
conduct a special resource study of the Ocmulgee River corridor
between Macon and Hawkinsville, a distance of about 50 miles
and an area encompassing approximately 70,000 acres. Although
the study area would be contiguous with Ocmulgee National
Monument, the size of the area and the complexity of resources
warrant the authorization of a special resource study, rather
than another boundary study. The study area would encompass a
patchwork of privately and publicly owned land, including the
Bond Swamp National Wildlife Refuge and two State of Georgia
wildlife management areas. It would also include much of the
Ocmulgee Old Fields Traditional Cultural Property not already
included in the national monument or the proposed expansion of
the monument. We estimate that this study would cost
approximately $350,000 to $500,000. Funding for this proposed
study would need to be allocated from the set amount of funding
that Congress appropriates for all special resource studies.
The Department supports S. 1696 as introduced and would
support H.R. 482 as passed by the House if amended to conform
to the language in S. 1696. As passed by the House, H.R. 482
makes the establishment of the expanded boundary subject to the
written consent of the owners of properties that would be
included within the new boundary. This places landowners,
rather than Congress or the Administration, in the position of
determining the boundary of a federal park, which we believe is
inappropriate. This provision has the potential to create legal
and practical confusion over the boundary since it is possible
that a landowner could give consent, then change his or her
mind and withdraw consent or convey the property to another
owner who withdraws consent. If the intent of this language is
to ensure that no land is included within the park boundary
without the consent of the landowner, we recommend amending the
bill to provide that the park boundary shall not be adjusted
unless and until a specified property is acquired for the park.
By waiting to include land in the boundary until it is acquired
by the federal government, this approach avoids entirely the
potential problems we see with the approach used in the House
bill. Our recommended approach has precedent in other park
laws.
H.R. 482 allows land acquisition by donation or exchange
only, not purchase. At this time, only about one third of the
land in the proposed boundary adjustment area is anticipated to
be donated. We support allowing the purchase from a willing
seller with donated or appropriated funds, as provided by S.
1696. This language would also render unnecessary the
prohibition on condemnation included in H.R. 482.
H.R. 482 also includes language that says that an activity
outside the boundary shall not be precluded because it can be
heard or seen inside the park boundary. The Department has
concerns about this language. It is misleading, as it suggests
that the NPS may have authority to preclude activities outside
the boundaries, which it does not. Of even greater concern,
however, is that the language could discourage park managers
from addressing threats to park resources from external
sources. Even though the NPS does not control what happens
outside of its boundaries, park managers have a responsibility
under the NPS Organic Act and other laws to work with owners of
properties outside of park boundaries to resolve problems that
could negatively impact the resources the NPS is responsible
for protecting.
Finally, we note that S. 1696 as introduced has blank lines
for references for a map that would depict the boundaries of
the expanded and redesignated Ocmulgee Mounds National
Historical Park. The National Park Service has developed a map
to accompany this bill and we would be happy to submit the map
to the bill's sponsor and the committee.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my testimony. I would be happy
to answer any questions that 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, the Committee notes that no
changes in existing law are made by the bill as ordered
reported.
[all]