H. Rept. 114-562 - TO MODIFY THE BOUNDARY OF PETERSBURG NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD IN THE COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES114th Congress (2015-2016)

H. Rept. 114-562 - 114th Congress (2015-2016)

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House Report 114-562 - TO MODIFY THE BOUNDARY OF PETERSBURG NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD IN THE COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

[House Report 114-562]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


114th Congress   }                                  {    Rept. 114-562
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session      }                                  {           Part 1

======================================================================



 
   TO MODIFY THE BOUNDARY OF PETERSBURG NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD IN THE 
            COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

                                _______
                                

 May 11, 2016.-- 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. 1621]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred 
the bill (H.R. 1621) to modify the boundary of Petersburg 
National Battlefield in the Commonwealth of Virginia, and for 
other purposes, having considered the same, report favorably 
thereon with an amendment and recommend that the bill as 
amended do pass.
    The amendment is as follows:
  Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
following:

SECTION 1. PETERSBURG NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD BOUNDARY MODIFICATION.

  (a) In General.--The boundary of the Petersburg National Battlefield 
is modified to include the land and interests in land as generally 
depicted on the map titled ``Petersburg National Battlefield Proposed 
Boundary Expansion'', numbered 325/80,080, and dated March 2016. The 
map shall be on file and available for public inspection in the 
appropriate offices of the National Park Service.
  (b) Acquisition of Properties.--
          (1) Authority.--The Secretary of the Interior (referred to in 
        this section as the ``Secretary'') is authorized to acquire the 
        land and interests in land, described in subsection (a), from 
        willing sellers only, by donation, purchase with donated or 
        appropriated funds, exchange, or transfer.
          (2) Technical amendment.--Section 313(a) of the National 
        Parks and Recreation Act of 1978 is amended by striking 
        ``twenty-one'' and inserting ``twenty-five''.
  (c) Administration.--The Secretary shall administer any land or 
interests in land acquired under subsection (b) as part of the 
Petersburg National Battlefield in accordance with applicable laws and 
regulations.
  (d) Administrative Jurisdiction Transfer.--
          (1) In general.--There is transferred--
                  (A) from the Secretary to the Secretary of the Army 
                administrative jurisdiction over the approximately 
                1.170-acre parcel of land depicted as ``Area to be 
                transferred to Fort Lee Military Reservation'' on the 
                map described in paragraph (2); and
                  (B) from the Secretary of the Army to the Secretary 
                administrative jurisdiction over the approximately 
                1.171-acre parcel of land depicted as ``Area to be 
                transferred to Petersburg National Battlefield'' on the 
                map described in paragraph (2).
          (2) Map.--The land to be exchanged is depicted on the map 
        titled ``Petersburg National Battlefield Proposed Transfer of 
        Administrative Jurisdiction'', numbered 325/80,801A, dated 
        March 2016. The map shall be on file and available for public 
        inspection in the appropriate offices of the National Park 
        Service.
          (3) Conditions of transfer.--The transfer of administrative 
        jurisdiction under paragraph (1) shall be subject to the 
        following conditions:
                  (A) No reimbursement or consideration.--The transfer 
                shall occur without reimbursement or consideration.
                  (B) Management.--The land transferred to the 
                Secretary under paragraph (1) shall be included within 
                the boundary of the Petersburg National Battlefield and 
                administered as part of that park in accordance with 
                applicable laws and regulations, and the land 
                transferred to the Secretary of the Army shall be 
                excluded from the boundary of the Petersburg National 
                Battlefield.

                          PURPOSE OF THE BILL

    The purpose of H.R. 1621 is to modify the boundary of 
Petersburg National Battlefield in the Commonwealth of 
Virginia.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    The Petersburg campaign consisted of 26 major battles 
during which the Union Army attempted to capture the city of 
Petersburg, Virginia, during the Civil War. From June 15, 1864, 
to April 2, 1865, the Union and Confederate armies battled 
across 576 square miles to secure access to five railroads that 
connected Petersburg to the Confederate capital, Richmond. 
Petersburg served as the Confederacy's main supply base and 
control of the railroads meant the Union could isolate Richmond 
and severely weaken the Confederacy. The eventual Union victory 
led General Robert E. Lee to abandon Richmond and head to 
Appomattox Court House where the Confederacy would surrender 
one week later on April 9, 1865.
    H.R. 1621 authorizes the expansion of the Petersburg 
National Battlefield to include 7,238 new acres across 12 
different battle areas. After the site's establishment in 1926, 
the official boundaries only included a small portion of the 
battles fought during the campaign. Residential and commercial 
development near the Battlefield increased National Park 
Service (NPS) concerns that the integrity of many battle sites 
would be compromised in the future. After assessing the 
significance, integrity, and interpretability of several battle 
sites, NPS recommended that 12 new battle sites be included in 
the Battlefield's boundaries. These battles were all either 
decisive or major and had a direct impact on the campaign or 
the Civil War.
    The bill also transfers an equal amount of acreage between 
the Department of the Army and the Department of the Interior 
near the Battlefield. The Department of the Army will acquire 
1.17 acres of land that includes a gated entrance to Fort Lee 
in exchange for transferring 1.17 acres of land historically 
relevant to the Battlefield to NPS. Furthermore, the bill 
modifies a limitation on the amount of acreage NPS can acquire 
at the City Point unit in Hopewell from 21 to 25 acres. This 
would allow NPS to acquire a complete parcel of land and 
potentially facilitate a land exchange that would allow NPS to 
dispose of land that does not add to the Battlefield's mission 
or enhance interpretation of the site.
    A version of this bill passed the House by unanimous 
consent in 2009 during the 111th Congress. A Senate companion 
bill, S. 718, is currently sponsored by both Virginia Senators.

                            COMMITTEE ACTION

    H.R. 1621 was introduced on March 25, 2015, by Congressman 
J. Randy Forbes (R-VA). The bill was referred to the Committee 
on Natural Resources, and within the Committee, to the 
Subcommittee on Federal Lands. The bill was additionally 
referred to the Committee on Armed Services. The Federal Lands 
Subcommittee held a hearing on the bill on February 11, 2016. 
On March 15, 2016, the Natural Resources Committee met to 
consider the bill. The Subcommittee was discharged by unanimous 
consent. Chairman Rob Bishop (R-UT) offered an amendment 
designated #1; it was adopted by unanimous consent. No other 
amendments were offered, and the bill, as amended, was ordered 
favorably reported to the House of Representatives by unanimous 
consent on March 16, 2016.

            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

    1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(1) 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)(2)(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. 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:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                    Washington, DC, April 26, 2016.
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. 1621, a bill to 
modify the boundary of Petersburg National Battlefield in the 
Commonwealth of Virginia, and for other purposes.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Marin 
Burnett.
            Sincerely,
                                                        Keith Hall.
    Enclosure.

H.R. 1621--A bill to modify the boundary of Petersburg National 
        Battlefield in the Commonwealth of Virginia, and for other 
        purposes.

    H.R. 1621 would revise the boundary of the Petersburg 
National Battlefield in Virginia to include 12 additional Civil 
War battlefield areas over approximately 7,200 acres. The bill 
stipulates that the National Park Service (NPS) may acquire the 
additional land through a donation, with donated funds, with 
appropriated amounts, or through a land exchange. The bill also 
would exchange administrative jurisdiction over two small 
parcels of land between the Department of the Army and the 
Department of the Interior and would raise from 21 acres to 25 
acres a limitation on the acreage NPS can acquire from a 
specific parcel.
    Based on recent sales prices of comparable tracts of land 
and information from NPS, CBO estimates that the cost to 
acquire and administer the additional sites would be between 
$15 million and $30 million over the 2017-2021 period. Total 
costs would depend on the average price per acre which, 
according to land transactions data, could range from $2,000 
per acre to $4,000 per acre.
    Because enacting H.R. 1621 would not affect direct spending 
or revenues, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply.
    CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 1621 would not increase 
net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four 
consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2027.
    H.R. 1621 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 Marin Burnett. 
The estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
    2. Section 308(a) of 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. The Congressional 
Budget Office estimates that enactment of the bill will cost 
between $15 million to $30 million over 2017-2021, subject to 
appropriation.
    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 modify the boundary of Petersburg 
National battlefield in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

                           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. The Chairman does not believe that 
this bill directs any executive branch official to conduct any 
specific rule-making proceedings.
    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

    This bill makes no changes to existing law.

    [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]