[House Report 115-210]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
115th Congress } { Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1st Session } { 115-210
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SAINT FRANCIS DAM DISASTER NATIONAL MEMORIAL ACT
_______
July 11, 2017.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Bishop of Utah, from the Committee on Natural Resources, submitted
the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 2156]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred
the bill (H.R. 2156) to provide for the establishment of a
national memorial and national monument to commemorate those
killed by the collapse of the Saint Francis Dam on March 12,
1928, 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. 2156 is to provide for the
establishment of a national memorial and national monument to
commemorate those killed by the collapse of the Saint Francis
Dam on March 12, 1928.
BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION
The Saint Francis Dam was one of several large
infrastructure projects constructed in the early 20th century
to help control the flow of water to southern California. On
March 12th, 1928, the dam breached, resulting in significant
flooding that took more than 400 lives in Los Angeles County,
California.\1\ This failure is considered one of the worst
civil engineering failures in the 20th century and resulted in
the resignation of William Mulholland as head of the Los
Angeles Bureau of Water Works and Water Supply.\2\ Beyond the
loss of life, thousands of residents lost their homes and
experienced significant property damage due to the flood.
Today, the site of the dam collapse and the affected areas are
often subject to theft and vandalism.
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\1\Harrison, Scott. ``California Retrospective St. Francis Dam
Collapse Left a Trail of Death and Destruction.'' The L.A. Times 19
March 2016, http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-stfrancis-
dam-retrospective-20160319-story.html.
\2\Blitz, Matt. ``On Occasions Like This, I Envy the Dead: The St.
Francis Dam Disaster.'' Smithsonian.com 12 March 2015, http://
www.smithsonianmag.com/history/occasions-i-envy-dead-st-francis-dam-
disaster-180954543/?no-ist.
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H.R. 2156 recognizes the devastation of the flood and its
impact on the residents of northern Los Angeles County by
establishing a national memorial as well as a national monument
to preserve the affected area for future generations. The bill
authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to establish the
memorial via donation in consultation with the Santa Clarita
City Council and the public. No taxpayer funds are authorized
for the construction of the memorial.
The bill also authorizes the creation of a 440-acre
monument that will encompass the St. Francis Dam memorial. The
boundaries of the monument were designated in consultation with
interest groups in the community. Motorized access will be
allowed within the monument and grazing will continue to be
allowed on any land where it is already permitted. An identical
bill (H.R. 5244) passed the House of Representatives under
suspension of the rules by voice vote on July 5, 2016.
COMMITTEE ACTION
H.R. 2156 was introduced on April 26, 2017, by Congressman
Stephen Knight (R-CA). The bill was referred to the Committee
on Natural Resources, and within the Committee to the
Subcommittee on Federal Lands. On June 22, 2017, the Natural
Resources Committee met to consider the bill. The Subcommittee
was discharged by unanimous consent. No amendments were
offered, and the bill was ordered favorably reported to the
House of Representatives by unanimous consent on June 27, 2017.
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.
COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII AND CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET ACT
1. Cost of Legislation and the Congressional Budget Act.
With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(2) and (3) of
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and
sections 308(a) and 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of
1974, the Committee has received the following estimate for the
bill from the Director of the Congressional Budget Office:
July 6, 2017.
Hon. Rob Bishop,
Chairman, Committee on Natural Resources,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 2156, the Saint
Francis Dam Disaster National Memorial Act.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Jeff LaFave.
Sincerely,
Keith Hall.
Enclosure.
H.R. 2156--Saint Francis Dam Disaster National Memorial Act
H.R. 2156 would establish a national monument on 440 acres
of land administered by the Forest Service. The bill also would
require the agency to submit recommendations to the Congress
for a memorial to the victims of the Saint Francis Dam failure
and to complete a management plan for the monument. CBO expects
that the construction of the memorial or any other structures
or improvements within the monument would be funded by
donations.
Based on information provided by the Forest Service
regarding the amount of staff time required to carry out the
activities required under the bill, CBO estimates that
implementing the legislation would cost less than $130,000 (the
estimated cost of one year's salary and benefits for a mid- to
senior-level employee of the Forest Service in Los Angeles
County) over the 2018-2022 period; such spending would be
subject to the availability of appropriated funds. If in
accordance with the recommendations provided to the Congress
from the Forest Service any improvements were made within the
monument, including constructing a visitor center, the cost of
managing the monument could exceed $130,000. However, CBO
expects that any costs associated with those improvements would
be incurred after 2022.
Enacting H.R. 2156 could affect direct spending by
increasing donations, which are treated as reductions in direct
spending, and the associated direct spending of those funds to
construct a memorial; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures
apply. However, CBO estimates that any net effect on direct
spending would be negligible. Enacting the bill would not
affect revenues.
CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 2156 would not increase
net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four
consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2028.
H.R. 2156 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 Jeff LaFave. The
estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Assistant
Director for Budget Analysis.
2. 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 provide for the establishment of a
national memorial and national monument to commemorate those
killed by the collapse of the Saint Francis Dam on March 12,
1928.
EARMARK STATEMENT
This bill does not contain any Congressional earmarks,
limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined
under clause 9(e), 9(f), and 9(g) of rule XXI of the Rules of
the House of Representatives.
COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104-4
This bill contains no unfunded mandates.
COMPLIANCE WITH H. RES. 5
Directed Rule Making. This bill does not contain any
directed rule makings.
Duplication of Existing Programs. This bill does not
establish or reauthorize a program of the federal government
known to be duplicative of another program. Such program was
not included in any report from the Government Accountability
Office to Congress pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111-139
or identified in the most recent Catalog of Federal Domestic
Assistance published pursuant to the Federal Program
Information Act (Public Law 95-220, as amended by Public Law
98-169) as relating to other programs.
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.