Nation’s Oldest Port National Heritage Area Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 4542 To establish the Nation’s Oldest Port National Heritage Area in the State of Florida, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES SEPTEMBER 27, 2019 Mr. RUTHERFORD (for himself, Mr. WALTZ, and Mr. LAWSON of Florida) in- troduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Nat- ural Resources A BILL To establish the Nation’s Oldest Port National Heritage Area in the State of Florida, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Nation’s Oldest Port 4 National Heritage Area Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 (1) The Nation’s Oldest Port region of north- 8 east Florida holds a mosaic of cultures and maritime 9 heritage that includes Native Americans, whose her- 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Oct 02, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4542.IH H4542 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 4542 IH itage reaches back some 9,000 years, and the de- 1 scendants of European and American explorers and 2 settlers, who shaped the region, its land, customs, 3 and traditions from 1513 to the present day and 4 have made indelible contributions to American and 5 World history. 6 (2) The Nation’s Oldest Port region expresses 7 a combination of cultures, maritime heritage, Atlan- 8 tic and World history, cultural diversity, traditions, 9 arts, architecture, transportation corridors, and 10 coastal and ocean resources that makes this geo- 11 graphic area a unique and distinctive coastal land- 12 scape in the United States. 13 (3) The area contains the Nation’s Oldest Port, 14 and a series of interconnected waterways that in- 15 clude the St. Mary’s River, the St. Johns River, 16 Tolomato and Matanzas Rivers, Pellicer Creek wa- 17 tershed, and the numerous diverse and spectacular 18 historic, cultural, natural, scenic and recreational re- 19 sources, including the designated national treasures 20 of Timucuan Ecological and Historical Preserve, 21 Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Re- 22 search Reserve, the Castillo de San Marcos National 23 Monument, and Fort Matanzas National Monument. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Oct 02, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4542.IH H4542 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 4542 IH (4) There is broad support expressed as resolu- 1 tions, letters, and in public meetings from local gov- 2 ernments, State parks, and many local planning and 3 community groups, chambers of commerce, business 4 associations, museums, historical societies and asso- 5 ciations, nature conservation groups, agricultural in- 6 terests, private property owners, and other inter- 7 ested individuals to establish a National Heritage 8 Area to coordinate and to assist in the preservation, 9 interpretation, promotion, and enjoyment of these 10 resources. 11 (5) Establishment of a National Heritage Area 12 in northeast Florida would assist local communities, 13 residents, and property owners in preserving these 14 unique and nationally distinctive cultural, historical, 15 and natural resources. 16 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 17 As used in this Act: 18 (1) HERITAGE AREA.—The term ‘‘heritage 19 area’’ means the Nation’s Oldest Port National Her- 20 itage Area. 21 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 22 the Secretary of the Interior. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Oct 02, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4542.IH H4542 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 4542 IH (3) COORDINATING ENTITY.—The term ‘‘co- 1 ordinating entity’’ means the Nation’s Oldest Port 2 Heritage Area Alliance, Inc. 3 SEC. 4. NATION’S OLDEST PORT NATIONAL HERITAGE 4 AREA. 5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is hereby established 6 the Nation’s Oldest Port National Heritage Area in the 7 State of Florida. 8 (b) BOUNDARIES.—The heritage area shall include 9 natural watersheds in Nassau, Duval, St. Johns, and 10 Flagler counties, Florida, as depicted on the map, entitled 11 ‘‘Nation’s Oldest Port National Heritage Area,’’ num- 12 bered ll and dated ll. 13 (c) COORDINATING ENTITY.— 14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Nation’s Oldest Port 15 Heritage Area Alliance, Inc., a nonprofit organiza- 16 tion which is exempt from taxation under section 17 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 18 chartered in the State of Florida, shall serve as the 19 coordinating entity for the heritage area. 20 (2) BOARD OF DIRECTORS.—The board of di- 21 rectors of the coordinating entity shall be— 22 (A) selected in accordance with the bylaws 23 of the coordinating entity, which have been ap- 24 proved by the heritage area working group; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Oct 02, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4542.IH H4542 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 4542 IH (B) responsible for planning, fundraising, 1 staff oversight, and final selection of projects 2 and programs supported by the heritage area. 3 (3) COMMITTEES.—The board of directors may 4 establish committees to— 5 (A) advise and assist the board of directors 6 of the coordinating entity; 7 (B) represent a broad range of local inter- 8 ests, such as municipalities, culture, arts, archi- 9 tecture, agriculture, archaeology, historic pres- 10 ervation, maritime heritage, nature conserva- 11 tion, education, parks, outdoor recreation, tour- 12 ism, economic development, lodging, res- 13 taurants, transportation, private landowners, 14 and water quality; 15 (C) review and suggest projects and pro- 16 grams for funding and other assistance from 17 the heritage area; and 18 (D) identify potential partnerships between 19 the heritage area and government agencies, 20 nonprofits, the private sector, and other local 21 stakeholders to help achieve long-term goals. 22 (d) AUTHORITIES OF LOCAL COORDINATING ENTI- 23 TY.—The local coordinating entity may, for purposes of 24 preparing and implementing the management plan— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Oct 02, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4542.IH H4542 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 4542 IH (1) prepare reports, studies, interpretive exhib- 1 its and programs, historic preservation projects, and 2 other activities recommended in the management 3 plan for the Heritage Area; 4 (2) make grants to the State, political subdivi- 5 sions of the State, nonprofit organizations, and 6 other persons; 7 (3) enter into cooperative agreements with the 8 State, political subdivisions of the State, nonprofit 9 organizations, and other organizations; 10 (4) hire and compensate staff; 11 (5) obtain funds or services from any source, 12 including funds and services provided under any 13 Federal program or law, in which case the Federal 14 share of the cost of any activity assisted using Fed- 15 eral funds provided for National Heritage Areas 16 shall not be more than 50 percent; and 17 (6) contract for goods and services. 18 SEC. 5. AUTHORITY AND DUTIES OF THE COORDINATING 19 ENTITY. 20 (a) MANAGEMENT PLAN.— 21 (1) REQUIREMENT FOR PLAN.—Not later than 22 3 years after the date on which funds are first made 23 available to carry out this Act, the coordinating enti- 24 ty shall develop and forward to the Secretary a man- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Oct 02, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4542.IH H4542 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 4542 IH agement plan for the heritage area. The manage- 1 ment plan shall, at a minimum— 2 (A) provide recommendations for the con- 3 servation, funding, management, and develop- 4 ment of the resources of the heritage area; 5 (B) identify sources of funding for the her- 6 itage area; 7 (C) include an inventory of the cultural, 8 historical, archaeological, natural, and rec- 9 reational resources of the heritage area; 10 (D) provide recommendations for edu- 11 cational and interpretive programs to inform 12 the public about the resources of the heritage 13 area; and 14 (E) include an analysis of ways in which 15 local, State, Federal, and tribal programs may 16 best be coordinated to promote the purposes of 17 this Act. 18 (2) FISCAL AGENT.—The St. Augustine Light- 19 house and Museum has been designated as the fiscal 20 agent for the heritage area. As such, the St. Augus- 21 tine Lighthouse and Museum shall receive 10 per- 22 cent of funding received by the heritage area for the 23 initial 5 years of the existence of the heritage area 24 to partially offset costs incurred by the St Augustine 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Oct 02, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4542.IH H4542 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 4542 IH Lighthouse and Museum during the formation of the 1 heritage area. 2 (3) COOPERATIVE DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLE- 3 MENTATION.—The coordinating entity shall develop 4 and implement the management plan in cooperation 5 with affected communities and local governments 6 and shall provide for public involvement in the devel- 7 opment and implementation of the management 8 plan. 9 (4) EFFECT OF NONCOMPLIANCE.—If the co- 10 ordinating entity fails to submit a management plan 11 to the Secretary as required by paragraph (1), the 12 heritage area shall no longer be eligible to receive 13 Federal funding under this Act until such time as a 14 plan is submitted to the Secretary. 15 (5) TIMELINE FOR APPROVAL OF PLAN.—The 16 Secretary shall approve or disapprove the manage- 17 ment plan not later than 180 days after the date of 18 its submission. If the Secretary disapproves the 19 management plan, the Secretary shall advise the co- 20 ordinating entity in writing of the reasons therefore 21 and shall make recommendations for revisions to the 22 plan. 23 (6) REVISIONS TO PLAN.—The coordinating en- 24 tity shall periodically review the management plan 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Oct 02, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4542.IH H4542 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 4542 IH and submit to the Secretary any recommendations 1 for proposed revisions to the management plan. Any 2 major revisions to the management plan must be ap- 3 proved by the Secretary. 4 (7) APPROVAL OF REVISIONS.—The Secretary 5 shall review and approve or disapprove substantial 6 amendments to the management plan in accordance 7 with paragraph (5). 8 (b) AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE.—The co- 9 ordinating entity may make grants and provide technical 10 assistance to local governments, and other public and pri- 11 vate entities to carry out the management plan. 12 (c) DUTIES.—The coordinating entity shall— 13 (1) give priority in implementing actions set 14 forth in the management plan; 15 (2) coordinate with Tribal and local govern- 16 ments to better enable them to adopt policies con- 17 sistent with the goals of the management plan; 18 (3) encourage, by appropriate means, economic 19 viability in the heritage area consistent with the 20 goals of the management plan; and 21 (4) assist Tribal and local governments, non- 22 profit organizations, and private landowners in— 23 (A) establishing and maintaining interpre- 24 tive exhibits in the heritage area; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Oct 02, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4542.IH H4542 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 4542 IH (B) developing outdoor recreational re- 1 sources in the heritage area; 2 (C) increasing public awareness of, and ap- 3 preciation for, the natural, cultural, historical, 4 archaeological, scenic, and outdoor recreational 5 resources and sites in the heritage area; 6 (D) the preservation and rehabilitation of 7 historic structures, archaeological sites, and 8 natural resources related to the heritage area; 9 (E) promoting cultural, traditional, and 10 nature-themed events and attractions in the 11 heritage area; and 12 (F) carrying out other actions that the co- 13 ordinating entity determines appropriate to ful- 14 fill the purposes of this Act, consistent with the 15 management plan. 16 (d) PROHIBITION ON ACQUIRING REAL PROPERTY.— 17 The coordinating entity may not use Federal funds re- 18 ceived under this Act to acquire real property or an inter- 19 est in real property. 20 (e) PUBLIC MEETINGS.—The coordinating entity 21 shall hold public meetings at least annually regarding the 22 implementation of the management plan. 23 (f) ANNUAL REPORTS AND AUDITS.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Oct 02, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4542.IH H4542 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 4542 IH (1) ANNUAL REPORTS.—For any year in which 1 the management entity receives Federal funds under 2 this Act, the coordinating entity shall submit an an- 3 nual report to the Secretary setting forth accom- 4 plishments, expenses and income, and each entity to 5 which any grant was made by the management enti- 6 ty. 7 (2) AUDIT.—The management entity shall 8 make available to the Secretary for audit all records 9 relating to the expenditure of Federal funds and any 10 matching funds. The management entity shall also 11 require, for all agreements authorizing expenditure 12 of Federal funds by other organizations, that the re- 13 ceiving organization make available to the Secretary 14 for audit all records concerning the expenditure of 15 those funds. 16 SEC. 6. DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY. 17 (a) TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—The 18 Secretary may, upon request of the coordinating entity, 19 provide technical and financial assistance to develop and 20 implement the management plan. 21 (b) PRIORITY.—In providing assistance under sub- 22 section (a), the Secretary shall give priority to actions that 23 facilitate— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Oct 02, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4542.IH H4542 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 4542 IH (1) the conservation and promotion of the sig- 1 nificant natural, cultural, historical, archaeological, 2 scenic, and outdoor recreational resources of the her- 3 itage area; and 4 (2) the provision of educational, interpretive, 5 and recreational opportunities consistent with the re- 6 sources and associated values of the heritage area. 7 SEC. 7. PRIVATE PROPERTY PROTECTION. 8 (a) ACCESS TO PRIVATE PROPERTY.—Nothing in 9 this Act shall be construed to— 10 (1) require any private property owner to per- 11 mit public access, including Federal, State, or local 12 government access, to such private property; or 13 (2) modify any provision of Federal, State, or 14 local law with regard to public access to or use of 15 private lands. 1 [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]