[Senate Report 117-86]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 287
117th Congress } { Report
SENATE
2d Session } { 117-86
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LIBERTY THEATRE ANNEX LAND CONVEYANCE
_______
February 28, 2022.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Manchin, from the Committee on Energy and Natural
Resources, submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 1620]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the bill (S. 1620), to direct the Secretary of the
Interior to convey to the city of Eunice, Louisiana, certain
Federal land in the State of Louisiana, and for other purposes,
having considered the same, reports favorably thereon without
amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.
PURPOSE
The purpose of S. 1620 is to direct the Secretary of the
Interior to convey to the city of Eunice, Louisiana, the
federally-owned annex to the Liberty Theatre, located within
the boundary of the Jean Lafitte National Park and Preserve.
BACKGROUND AND NEED
The Liberty Theatre has been a staple of Eunice, Louisiana,
for nearly 100 years, hosting silent films, live bands, and
other entertainment. For many years, the theatre has been the
site of a popular Saturday evening program of live Cajun music
and dancing, the ``Rendez-Vous des Cajuns.''
The theatre is owned by the city of Eunice and is located
adjacent to the National Park Service's Prairie Acadian
Cultural Center, which is a unit of Jean Lafitte National
Historical Park. Although the city owns the theatre, in 1989
the National Park Service constructed an annex to the theatre
to provide American Disability Act-compliant handicap
accessible ramps and restrooms, and installed a master HVAC
system for the cultural center and theater. The National Park
Service plans to replace the system in the cultural center and
the city of Eunice plans to install a new HVAC system in the
theater. The city is seeking to consolidate ownership of the
theatre annex for greater flexibility and autonomy in
determining the appropriate approach to the theatre's HVAC
needs.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
Senator Kennedy introduced S. 1620 on May 13, 2021. The
Subcommittee on National Parks held a hearing on the bill on
October 6, 2021. An identical bill, H.R. 3197, was introduced
in the House by Representative Johnson (R-LA) on May 13, 2021.
The Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands
held a hearing on this bill on October 14, 2021. The House
Natural Resource Committee held a markup on November 17, 2021,
and ordered the bill to be reported favorably by unanimous
consent.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in
open business session on November 18, 2021, by a majority voice
vote of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S.
1620 without amendment.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1 provides the short title, the ``Save the Liberty
Theatre Act of 2021.''
Section 2 defines key terms used in the bill.
Section 3(a) directs the Secretary of the Interior to
convey to the City of Eunice, Louisiana, by quitclaim deed and
without consideration, all right, title, and interest of the
United States to the parcels of land described in subsection
(b).
Subsection (b) describes the specific parcels to be
conveyed to the city, as generally depicted on the referenced
map.
Subsection (c) requires the map to be on file and available
for public inspection in the appropriate offices of the
National Park Service.
Section 4 adjusts the boundary of the Jean Lafitte National
Historical Park and Preserve to exclude the conveyed lands from
the park boundary.
COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
The following estimate of the costs of this measure has
been provided by the Congressional Budget Office.
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
S. 1620 would direct the Secretary of the Interior to
convey all right, title, and interest of the federal government
in specified areas of the Jean Lafitte National Historical Park
and Preserve to the city of Eunice, Louisiana. That area
includes an annex owned by the National Park Service (NPS) that
is attached to the Liberty Theatre, which is owned by the city.
The NPS would not receive payment from the city for the
conveyed land.
Using information from the NPS, CBO estimates that the
administrative costs associated with conveying the land to the
city and updating maps would not be significant. In addition,
CBO expects that implementing the bill would reduce NPS
maintenance costs for those areas by an insignificant amount.
On net, CBO estimates that enacting S. 1620 would have an
insignificant effect on spending subject to appropriation.
The property that would be conveyed does not generate
income for the federal government; therefore, enacting the bill
would not affect direct spending or revenues.
On February 25, 2022, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for
H.R. 3197, the Save the Liberty Theatre Act of 2021, as ordered
reported by the House Committee on Natural Resources on
November 17, 2021. The two pieces of the legislation are
similar, and CBO's estimates of their budgetary effects are the
same.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Madeleine Fox.
The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy
Director of 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. 1620. 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. 1620, as ordered reported.
CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING
S. 1620, 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 October 6, 2021, hearing on S. 1620 follows:
Statement of Joy Beasley, Associate Director for Cultural Resources,
Partnerships and Science, 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. 1620, a bill to direct
the Secretary of the Interior to convey to the city of Eunice,
Louisiana, certain Federal land in the state of Louisiana, and
for other purposes. The Department supports S. 1620.
S. 1620 would direct the Secretary of the Interior to
convey to the city of Eunice, Louisiana, all right, title, and
interest to the parcels of land generally depicted as
``Proposed Disposal Area'' on the map referenced in the
legislation and comprised of a National Park Service (NPS)
owned annex to a city owned building, the Liberty Theater.
Ownership of the annex would be conveyed to the City and the
NPS would relinquish any interest. The boundary of Jean Lafitte
National Historical Park and Preserve would be revised to
exclude the annex.
Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve (park)
was established to preserve significant examples of the rich
natural and cultural resources of Louisiana's Mississippi Delta
region. The park consists of six physically separate sites. The
sites include cultural centers in Lafayette, Thibodaux, and
Eunice; the Chalmette Battlefield; Barataria Preserve; and the
park's headquarters and visitor center located in New Orleans'
French Quarter. The Lafayette, Thibodaux, and Eunice cultural
centers preserve and interpret examples of the Acadian culture
of the area. The Chalmette Battlefield and National Cemetery
commemorate the site of the 1815 Battle of New Orleans. The
Barataria Preserve interprets the culture of those who settled
the area and the unique ecosystem that sustained them, and
preserves a representative example of the Delta's environment,
containing natural levee forests, bayous, swamps and marshes.
As the park's mission and management responsibilities have
grown in scope and size, the NPS has endeavored to work with
local communities and identify opportunities to share resources
and responsibilities while serving the mission of the agency.
In some instances, arrangements that were useful in the past
have outgrown their utility and the related resources could
better be directed elsewhere in the park.
Public Law 100-250, signed into law in 1988, established
the Prairie Acadian Cultural Center (PACC) in Eunice as a part
of Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve. The
Liberty Theater, a vaudeville and movie and performance venue
constructed in 1924, is next door to the PACC. In 1989, the
park restored and rehabilitated the theater, constructed an
adjoining annex for public health, safety and accessibility and
installed a master HVAC system for the theater, annex and
nearby PACC.
The master HVAC system is now antiquated and beyond repair
and must be replaced. The park plans to replace the system in
the PACC and the city of Eunice plans to install a new HVAC
system in the theater. Transferring ownership of the Liberty
Theater annex to the city of Eunice would allow the city
greater flexibility and autonomy in determining the appropriate
approach to the theater's HVAC needs while providing
significant cost savings to the NPS and clarifying management
responsibilities for both parties. This change in ownership is
supported locally by city officials.
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, the Committee notes that no
changes in existing law are made by the bill as ordered
reported.
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