[Senate Report 117-185]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 536
117th Congress } { Report
SENATE
2d Session } { 117-185
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WILSON'S CREEK NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD ADDITION
_______
October 18, 2022.--Ordered to be printed
Filed, under authority of the order of the Senate of October 14, 2022
_______
Mr. Manchin, from the Committee on Energy and Natural
Resources, submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 3307]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the bill (S. 3307), to modify the boundary of the
Wilson's Creek National Battlefield in the State of Missouri,
and for other purposes, having considered the same, reports
favorably thereon with amendments and recommends that the bill,
as amended, do pass.
Amendments
The amendments are as follows:
1. On page 2, line 14, strike ``624'' and insert ``25''.
2. On page 2, line 18, strike ``September 2021'' and insert
``July 2022''.
Purpose
The purpose of S. 3307, as ordered reported, is to modify
the boundary of the Wilson's Creek National Battlefield in
Missouri to include approximately 25 acres of the Newtonia
Battlefield site.
Background and Need
Wilson's Creek National Battlefield was established in 1960
to commemorate and interpret the 1861 Civil War Battle of
Wilson's Creek, Missouri. In 2008, Congress authorized the
National Park Service to evaluate if the Newtonia Battlefields
in Newtonia, Missouri, met the criteria for addition to the
National Park System as an independent unit of the National
Park System, or as an addition to the Wilson's Creek National
Battlefield.
Newtonia was the site of two Civil War battles. The First
Battle of Newtonia occurred on September 30, 1862, and the
military consequences of the battle were minor. However, the
battle is distinguished by regiments of American Indian
soldiers fighting on both sides. The historic context places
the First Battle of Newtonia in the perspective of the complex
and tragic history of intertribal violence and the affiliation
of the American Indian tribes with the Union or Confederate
armies in the Civil War. The Second Battle of Newtonia on
October 28, 1864, although minor, was the final full-scale
battle of the Civil War in Missouri, and the final battle of
General Sterling Price's Missouri Expedition of 1864. The
historic context places the Second Battle of Newtonia in the
context of that campaign.
Newtonia is a small, predominantly agricultural town that
still strongly resembles the Civil War era in size and land
use. Resources such as the Ritchey Mansion, a prominent home
that was used during the War as a field hospital and troop
headquarters, as well as cemeteries, stone walls, agricultural
fields, and other landscape features remain.
As ordered reported, S. 3307 would include 25 acres of the
Newtonia Battlefield site, including the Ritchey Mansion,
within the boundary of Wilson's Creek National Battlefield.
Legislative History
S. 3307 was introduced by Senators Blunt and Hawley on
December 2, 2021. The Subcommittee on National Parks held a
hearing on S. 3307 on May 11, 2022. A companion bill, H.R. 6130
was introduced in the House by Representative Long on December
2, 2021.
Committee Amendments
During its consideration of S. 3307, the Committee adopted
several clarifying amendments updating the map reference and
reducing the acreage of the Newtonia addition from 624 acres to
25 acres.
Committee Recommendation
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in
open business session on July 21, 2022, by a voice vote of a
quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 3307, if
amended as described herein. Senator Lee asked to be recorded
as voting no.
Section-by-Section Analysis
Section 1. Short title
Section 1 establishes the short title of the Act as
``Wilson's Creek National Battlefield Boundary Revision Act of
2021.''
Sec. 2. Wilson's Creek National Battlefield Boundary modification
Section 2 amends Public Law 86-434 (as amended by Public
Law 108-394), to include approximately 25 acres of land within
the boundaries of the Wilson's Creek National Battlefield, to
allow the Secretary to correct clerical or typographical errors
on the boundary map.
Cost and Budgetary Considerations
The Committee has requested, but has not yet received, the
Congressional Budget Office's estimate of the cost of S. 3307
as ordered reported. When the Congressional Budget Office
completes its cost estimate, it will be posted on the Internet
at www.cbo.gov.
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. 3307. 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. 3307, as ordered reported.
Congressionally Directed Spending
S. 3307, 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 Department of the Interior at
the May 11, 2022, subcommittee hearing on S. 3307 follows:
Statement of Michael A. Caldwell, Acting Associate Director, Park
Planning, Facilities and Lands, National Park Service, U.S. Department
of the Interior
Chairman King, Ranking Member Daines, and members of the
Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to present the
Department of the Interior's views on S. 3307, a bill to modify
the boundary of the Wilson's Creek National Battlefield in the
State of Missouri, and for other purposes.
The Department opposes S. 3307.
The bill would amend the boundary of the Wilson's Creek
National Battlefield to include approximately 624 acres that
include the site of the first and second battles of Newtonia.
The precise location of the boundary revision is identified on
a map numbered 410/117,379 and dated September 2021.
Pursuant to public law 110-229, a special resource study
was conducted to evaluate if the Newtonia Battlefields in
Newtonia, Missouri, met the criteria for addition to the
National Park System as an independent unit of the system or as
an addition to the Wilson's Creek National Battlefield in
Republic, Missouri. The study found that the Newtonia
Battlefields did not meet the significance or suitability
criteria as an independent unit of the system. In evaluating
the boundary of Wilson's Creek National Battlefield, the study
found that the Newtonia Battlefields are only tangentially
related to the existing unit and the boundary modification
would not protect significant resources, enhance opportunities
for public enjoyment, address operational and management issues
for the existing park site, or protect critical park resources.
Given these findings, the Department does not support modifying
the boundary of Wilson's Creek National Battlefield as
described in S. 3307.
Currently the Newtonia Battlefields Protection Association
(Association) owns and maintains 25 plus acres of the
Battlefields. This includes the Ritchey Mansion and the ``Old
Newtonia Cemetery'' or the ``Civil War Cemetery'' as it is
locally known, with an unspecified number of unmarked graves.
Nine markers have been identified as belonging to Union
soldiers, including that of Captain Robert F. Christian, who
was killed during the Second Battle of Newtonia.
The Association was instrumental in having the sites of the
1862 and the 1864 battles listed on the National Register of
Historic Places. The Ritchey Mansion was previously listed on
the National Register, and the Association revised that
application after they purchased the Mansion in 2002 to include
the battlefields. The Association applied for and received
multiple grants from the American Battlefield Protection
Program of the National Park Service to learn more about the
site and improve its management, and can continue to compete
for additional grants in the future if desired.
Chairman King, this concludes my statement. I would be
pleased to answer any questions you or other members of the
Subcommittee may have.
Changes in Existing Law
In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by
the bill S. 3307, as ordered 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):
Public Law 86-434 (as amended by Public Law 108-394)
AN ACT To provide for the establishment of the Wilson Creek Battlefield
National Park in the State of Missouri.
* * * * * * *
SECTION 1. WILSON CREEK NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD: ESTABLISHMENT AND
ACQUISITION OF LANDS.
(a) Establishment, Initial Boundaries.--The Secretary of
the Interior shall acquire, by gift, purchase, condemnation, or
otherwise, the lands (together with any improvements thereon)
comprising the Wilson's Creek Battlefield site near
Springfield, Missouri, and any other lands adjacent to such
site which in his opinion are necessary or desirable to carry
out the purposes of this Act.
(b) Expansion of Boundaries.--
[(1) The boundaries] (1) Additional land.--
(A) In general._The boundaries of the
Wilson's Creek National Battlefield are revised
to include lands and interests therein
consisting of six parcels totaling 615 acres
and identified as parcels ``1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and
6'' on the map entitled ``Wilson's Creek
National Battlefield Proposed Boundary'',
numbered 410/80,037 and dated January 27, 2004.
(B) Newtonia battlefield addition._The
boundary of the Wilson's Creek National
Battlefield is revised to include the
approximately 25 acres of land identified as
``Proposed Addition'' on the map entitled
``Wilson's Creek National Battlefield Proposed
Boundary Modification'', numbered 410/177,379,
and dated July 2022.
[The map] (C) Availability of maps._The maps described in
subparagraphs (A) and (B) shall be on file and available for
public inspection in the appropriate offices of the National
Park Service.
(D) Errors._The Secretary of the Interior may
correct any clerical or typographical error in
a map described in subparagraph (A) or (B).
[(2) The Secretary is authorized to acquire the lands
referred to in paragraph (1)] (2) Method of
acquisition._The Secretary of the Interior may acquire
the land described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of
paragraph (1) by donation, by purchase from willing
sellers with donated or appropriated funds, or by
exchange. The Secretary may acquire by the same methods
personal property associated with, and appropriate for,
interpretation of the [park] Wilson's Creek National
Battlefield.
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[all]