[House Report 113-328]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
113th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2d Session 113-328
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GREEN MOUNTAIN LOOKOUT HERITAGE PROTECTION ACT
_______
January 23 (legislative day of January 21), 2014.--Committed to the
Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to
be printed
_______
Mr. Hastings of Washington, from the Committee on Natural Resources,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 908]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred
the bill (H.R. 908) to preserve the Green Mountain Lookout in
the Glacier Peak Wilderness of the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie
National Forest, 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. 908 is to preserve the Green Mountain
Lookout in the Glacier Peak Wilderness of the Mount Baker-
Snoqualmie National Forest.
Background and Need For Legislation
The Green Mountain Lookout was constructed in 1933 on the
summit of Green Mountain in Washington state for the purposes
of fire detection. It was also used to look for enemy aircraft
during World War II. While the lookout has not been used for
fire detection for decades, it has become a favorite
destination for day hikers.
Green Mountain Lookout was included within the boundary of
the Glacier Peak Wilderness Area, established by the Washington
State Wilderness Act of 1984, and was also listed, along with
seven other lookouts within the Mt. Baker Snoqualmie National
Forest, in the National Register of Historic Places in 1987. In
June 2002, the U.S. Forest Service discovered that the
lookout's foundation had failed as a result of heavy snowfall
that winter. That August, the Forest Service disassembled and
removed the lookout by helicopter with the intent to replace
the foundation and reassemble the lookout. Due to funding and
other issues, the foundation was not replaced until 2009 and
the lookout was finally reassembled again using helicopters.
In 2010, the advocacy group ``Wilderness Watch'' filed a
lawsuit claiming that the Forest Service's repairs to the
lookout violated both the Wilderness Act and the National
Environmental Policy Act, and sought an injunction that would
require removal of the lookout. In March 2012, the United
States District Court for the Western District of Washington
ruled in favor of Wilderness Watch and instructed the Forest
Service to remove the lookout. On May 2, 2013, the Forest
Service published notice in the Federal Register of its intent
to begin preparing an environmental impact statement in
compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act,
expecting to begin removing the lookout in summer 2014.
H.R. 908 would preserve the Green Mountain Lookout by
amending the Washington State Wilderness Act of 1984 to
retroactively ensure that the wilderness designation does not
``preclude the operation and maintenance of the Green Mountain
Lookout.'' The legislation would also prohibit the Forest
Service from moving the lookout unless the agency determines
that it is necessary ``to preserve the lookout or to ensure the
safety of individuals on or around Green Mountain.''
Committee Action
H.R. 908 was introduced on February 28, 2013, by
Congresswoman Suzan K. DelBene (D-WA). The bill was referred to
the Committee on Natural Resources, and within the Committee to
the Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation.
On July 23, 2013, the Subcommittee held a hearing on the bill.
On July 31, 2013, the Full Natural Resources Committee met to
consider the bill. The Subcommittee on Public Lands and
Environmental Regulation was discharged by unanimous consent.
No amendments were offered, and the bill was then adopted and
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
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:
H.R. 908--Green Mountain Lookout Heritage Protection Act
H.R. 908 would prevent the Forest Service from removing a
building from the Glacier Peak Wilderness Area in Washington
state unless the agency determines that the structure is unsafe
for visitors. Based on information provided by the Forest
Service, CBO estimates that implementing the legislation would
have no significant net impact on the federal budget. Enacting
H.R. 908 would not affect direct spending or revenues;
therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply.
In 2012, a federal court ordered the Forest Service to
remove a lookout structure from Green Mountain, located in the
wilderness area. Under the bill, the agency would be authorized
to remove the structure only if it poses a risk to public
safety. Because the lookout was recently reconstructed, CBO
expects that, under the bill, the agency would allow the
structure to remain on the mountain for several years. As a
result, CBO estimates, the Forest Service would not need to
spend about $200,000 in appropriated funds to remove the
structure; the amounts required to maintain the structure over
the next five years would be minimal.
H.R. 908 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and
would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal
governments.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jeff LaFave. The
estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, 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. Based on
information provided by the Forest Service, CBO estimates that
implementing the legislation would have no significant net
impact on the federal budget.
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 preserve the Green Mountain
Lookout in the Glacier Peak Wilderness of the Mount Baker-
Snoqualmie National Forest.
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 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, existing law in which no change is
proposed is shown in roman):
SECTION 4 OF THE WASHINGTON STATE WILDERNESS ACT OF 1984
Sec. 4. (a) * * *
(b) Subject to valid existing rights, each wilderness area
designated by section 3 of this Act shall be administered by
the Secretary of Agriculture in accordance with the provisions
of the Wilderness Act of 1964 governing areas designated by
that Act as wilderness areas, except that with respect to any
area designated in section 3 of this Act, any reference in such
provisions to the effective date of the Wilderness Act of 1964
shall be deemed to be a reference to the effective date of this
Act)[.], and except that with respect to the lands described in
section 3(5), the designation of such lands as a wilderness
area shall not preclude the operation and maintenance of Green
Mountain Lookout.
* * * * * * *