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Calendar No. 206
114th Congress } { Report
SENATE
1st Session } { 114-126
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PRESIDENT STREET STATION STUDY ACT
_______
September 9, 2015.--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 S. 521]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the bill (S. 521) to authorize the Secretary of the
Interior to conduct a special resource study of President
Station in Baltimore, Maryland, and for other purposes, having
considered the same, reports favorably thereon with an
amendment and an amendment to the title and recommends that the
bill, as amended, do pass.
The amendments are as follows:
1. On page 3, strike lines 5 and 6 and insert the
following: subsection (a) shall be conducted in accordance with
section 100507 of title 54, United States Code.
2. Amend the title so as to read: ``To authorize the
Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study
of President Street Station in Baltimore, Maryland, and for
other purposes.''.
PURPOSE
The purpose of S. 521 is to authorize the Secretary of the
Interior to conduct a special resource study of President
Station in Baltimore, Maryland, and for other purposes.
BACKGROUND AND NEED
President Street Station in downtown Baltimore is the
oldest surviving big-city railroad terminal and one of a few
remaining historical structures along Baltimore's Inner Harbor.
In addition to being architecturally significant, President
Street Station has been at the center of several historically
significant events. The property is associated with the
Baltimore riots of 1861. The riot saw the first blood in the
Civil War when Massachusetts troops bound for Washington, D.C.,
were attacked by an angry mob of Southern sympathizers.
President Street Station also played a role in the ``Baltimore
Plot'' to assassinate President-elect Abraham Lincoln as he was
en route to his inauguration. In addition, President Street
Station has ties to the Underground Railroad and helps tell the
stories of the growth of the railroad industry in the 19th
century and the immigrant influx of the early 20th century.
The legislation would authorize the National Park Service
to undertake a special resource study to examine the national
significance of President Street Station, its suitability and
feasibility for potential designation as a unit of the national
park system, and the need for National Park Service management
of the site versus management by other public or private
entities. The study is informational; Congress would still have
to act on separate legislation to create a unit of the National
Park System.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
S. 521 was introduced by Senators Cardin and Mikulski on
February 12, 2015. The Subcommittee on National Parks held a
hearing on the bill on June 10, 2015.
In the 113th Congress a similar bill, S. 770, was
introduced by Senators Cardin and Mikulski on April 18, 2013.
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources met in open
business session on July 30, 2015, and ordered S. 521 favorably
reported, as amended.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in
open business session on July 30, 2015, by a majority voice
vote of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S.
521, if amended as described herein.
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
During its consideration of S. 521, the Committee adopted
an amendment to make a technical correction and an amendment to
the title.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1 contains the short title, the ``President Street
Station Study Act.''
Section 2 contains definitions.
Section 3 directs the Secretary of the Interior to conduct
a special resource study of President Street Station. Section
3(b) requires the study to: evaluate the national significance
of the site; determine the suitability and feasibility of
designating the site as a unit of the National Park System;
include cost estimates for any necessary acquisition,
development, operation and maintenance of the site; consult
with interested government entities, private and non-profit
organizations or other interested individuals; and identify
alternatives for the management, administration and protection
of the site. Section 3(c) requires the study to be conducted in
accordance with section 100507 of title 54, United States Code,
which sets forth criteria for National Park Service special
resource studies. Section 3(d) requires the Secretary to submit
a report that describes the findings and conclusions of the
study and 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:
S. 521--President Street Station Study Act
S. 521 would direct the Secretary of the Interior to study
the suitability and feasibility of designating the President
Street Station in Baltimore, Maryland, as a unit of the
National Park System (NPS). Based on information from NPS, CBO
estimates that carrying out the proposed study would cost about
$200,000; such spending would be subject to the availability of
appropriated funds. Enacting S. 521 would not affect direct
spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do
not apply.
S. 521 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and
would affect the budgets of 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.
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 S. 521. 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 S. 521, as ordered reported.
CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING
S. 521, 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 10, 2015, National Parks Subcommittee hearing on S. 521
follows:
Statement of Victor Knox, Associate Director, Park Planning, Facilities
and Lands, National Park Service, Department of the Interior
Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, thank you for
the opportunity to provide the Department of the Interior's
views on S. 521, to conduct a special resource study of
President Station in Baltimore, Maryland, and for other
purposes.
The Department supports enactment of S. 521 with technical
amendments. However, we believe that priority should be given
to the 33 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 Rivers System that have not yet
been transmitted to Congress.
S. 521 authorizes a special resource study of the President
Street Station in Baltimore, Maryland. This study would
determine whether this site meets the National Park Service's
criteria for inclusion in the National Park System of national
significance, suitability, and feasibility, and need for
National Park Service management. The study would also consider
other alternatives for preservation, protection, and
interpretation of the resources by the Federal government,
State or local government entities, or private and non-profit
entities. Alternatives might include, for example, the
designation of the site as an affiliated area of the National
Park Service, where the National Park Service would provide
technical assistance to the site but not own or manage it. We
estimate the cost of the study to range from $200,000 to
$300,000, based on similar types of studies conducted in recent
years.
The President Street Station was built by the Philadelphia,
Wilmington, and Baltimore Railroad. Opened in 1850, it served
as the company's passenger terminus with connections south to
the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad terminal via horse-drawn track
through the City of Baltimore. Originally consisting of a
headhouse, a 208-feet long barrel vaulted train shed, and a
freight house, only the headhouse remains today. The property
is associated with the Baltimore Riot of 1861, where members of
the Massachusetts militia on their way to Washington were
attacked by a mob as they transited the city, resulting in the
deaths of four soldiers and twelve civilians. That event is
considered the first act in the Civil War in which blood was
shed. The station is also recognized by the National Park
Service's Network to Freedom program for its use by the General
Vigilance Committee Anti-Slavery Society in Philadelphia, as
well as other groups and individuals, to escape or aid others
in escaping slavery.
President Street Station is owned by the City of Baltimore.
It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is
included in the Baltimore National Heritage Area. It houses the
Baltimore Civil War Museum which is operated by a state-
chartered organization, the Friends of President Street
Station, and is open to the public.
We recommend two technical amendments, which are attached
below: one to update the reference to the law that set
requirements for special resource studies; the other to correct
the name of the train station in the title of the bill.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes our prepared statement. I
would be happy to respond to any questions about this matter.
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 S. 521, as ordered
reported.
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