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115th Congress } { Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2d Session } { 115-1062
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OIL REGION NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA REAUTHORIZATION ACT
_______
December 3, 2018.--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. 6507]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred
the bill (H.R. 6507) to amend the Oil Region National Heritage
Area Act to reauthorize the Oil Region National Heritage Area,
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. 6507 is to amend the Oil Region
Heritage Area Act to reauthorize the Oil Region National
Heritage Area.
Background and Need for Legislation
The Oil Region National Heritage Area (ORNHA) was
designated in 2004 and encompasses 34 municipalities in 708
square miles in northwestern Pennsylvania, including all of
Venango County.\1\ The same acreage was designated as a
Pennsylvania Heritage Area in 1994. The ORNHA includes oil
artifacts, scenic communities and farmland, and industrial
landscapes to teach visitors about the beginnings of the
petroleum industry.
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\1\ Public Law 108-447.
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The northwestern region of Pennsylvania is known as the
birthplace of petroleum and as ``The Valley That Changed the
World,'' because it was the location of the world's first
successful commercial oil well.\2\ The developments in the
region encompassed by the ORNHA led to major advancements in
the transportation, communications, and energy industries and
spurred population and economic growth in the area.
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\2\ National Park Service. ``Oil Region National Heritage Area.''
https://www.nps.gov/places/oil-region-national-heritage-area.htm.
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The ORNHA is managed by the Oil Region Alliance of
Business, Industry and Tourism, a nonprofit corporation
dedicated to increase the prosperity and population of the
region.\3\ The corporation took over management when the
original entity, Oil Heritage Inc., merged with other
organizations to form the Alliance in 2005.\4\ Since the
designation, public and private organizations have worked
together to expand trail systems, restored historic downtowns,
and completed other preservation and economic development in
the ORNHA.\5\
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\3\``Oil Region Alliance.'' http://oilheritage.org/oil-region-
alliance/.
\4\ Oil Heritage Region Management Action Plan Update Executive
Summary http://oilheritage.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/
OHRSummary.pdf.
\5\ ``National Heritage Area Management Plan'' http://
oilheritage.org/national-heritage-area-management-plan/.
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Authorization for the expenditure of funds and for
technical assistance from the Department of the Interior for
the ORNHA will sunset in late 2019 or early 2020 (depending on
the interpretation of when funds were first made available).
H.R. 6507 would extend the authorization to fiscal year 2026
and update the name of the management entity. Senator Robert P.
Casey, Jr. (D-PA) has introduced companion legislation, S.
2604, in the Senate. The Senate Energy and Natural Resources
Subcommittee on National Parks held a legislative hearing on
the bill on August 15, 2018.
Committee Action
H.R. 6507 was introduced on July 25, 2018, by Congressman
Glenn Thompson (R-PA). The bill was referred to the Committee
on Natural Resources, and within the Committee to the
Subcommittee on Federal Lands. On November 15, 2018, 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.
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:
--U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, November 29, 2018.
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. 6507, the Oil
Region National Heritage Area Reauthorization Act.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Janani
Shankaran.
Sincerely,
Keith Hall,
Director.
Enclosure.
H.R. 6507--Oil Region National Heritage Area Reauthorization Act
H.R. 6507 would authorize the National Park Service (NPS)
to provide technical and financial assistance for the Oil
Region National Heritage Area, located in northwestern
Pennsylvania, through 2026. Under current law, the NPS's
authority to provide such assistance expires in 2020.
In recent years, the NPS has allocated about $19 million
annually in appropriated funds to provide financial assistance
to 49 national heritage areas. Based on the average amount of
assistance for those areas, CBO estimates that implementing the
bill would cost $400,000 annually and would total about $1
million over the 2021-2023 period; such spending would be
subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
Enacting H.R. 6507 would not affect direct spending or
revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply.
CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 6507 would not increase
net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four
consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2029.
H.R. 6507 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Janani
Shankaran. The estimate was reviewed 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 amend the Oil Region Heritage Area
Act to reauthorize the Oil Region National Heritage Area.
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 Made by the Bill, as Reported
In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new
matter is printed in italic, and existing law in which no
change is proposed is shown in roman):
OIL REGION NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA ACT
* * * * * * *
DIVISION J--OTHER MATTERS
* * * * * * *
TITLE VI--OIL REGION NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA
SEC. 601. SHORT TITLE; DEFINITIONS.
(a) Short Title.--This title may be cited as the ``Oil Region
National Heritage Area Act''.
(b) Table of Contents.--For the purposes of this title, the
following definitions shall apply:
(1) Heritage Area.--The term ``Heritage Area'' means
the Oil Region National Heritage Area established in
section 603(a).
(2) Management Entity.--The term ``management
entity'' means the [Oil Heritage Region, Inc.] Oil
Region Alliance of Business, Industry and Tourism, or
its successor entity.
(3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the
Secretary of the Interior.
* * * * * * *
SEC. 603. OIL REGION NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA.
(a) Establishment.--There is hereby established the Oil
Region National Heritage Area.
(b) Boundaries.--The boundaries of the Heritage Area shall
include all of those lands depicted on a map entitled ``Oil
Region National Heritage Area'', numbered OIRE/20,000 and dated
October 2000. The map shall be on file in the appropriate
offices of the National Park Service. The Secretary of the
Interior shall publish in the Federal Register, as soon as
practical after the date of the enactment of this Act, a
detailed description and map of the boundaries established
under this subsection.
(c) Management Entity.--The management entity for the
Heritage Area shall be the [Oil Heritage Region, Inc.] Oil
Region Alliance of Business, Industry and Tourism, the locally
based private, nonprofit management corporation which shall
oversee the development of a management plan in accordance with
section 605(b).
* * * * * * *
[SEC. 608. SUNSET.
[The Secretary may not make any grant or provide any
assistance under this title after the expiration of the 15-year
period beginning on the date that funds are first made
available for this title.]
SEC. 608. SUNSET.
The authority of the Secretary to grant or provide any
assistance under this title shall terminate on September 30,
2026.
* * * * * * *
[all]
