[Senate Report 118-76]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 160
118th Congress} { Report
SENATE
1st Session } { 118-76
======================================================================
RIM OF THE VALLEY CORRIDOR PRESERVATION
_______
July 25, 2023.--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. 1466]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the bill (S. 1466), to adjust the boundary of the
Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area to include the
Rim of the Valley Corridor, 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. 1466, as ordered reported, is to adjust
the boundary of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation
Area in Southern California to include approximately 119,669
acres of land within the Rim of the Valley Corridor.
Background and Need
Located in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties in southern
California, the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area
(National Recreation Area) was established by Congress in 1978
(Public Law 95-625) to preserve and enhance its scenic,
natural, and historical setting and its public health value as
an airshed for the Los Angeles metropolitan area, while also
providing for recreational and educational needs of the
visiting public. The National Recreation Area provides visitors
with convenient access to a range of outdoor adventures despite
its close proximity to one of the largest urban areas in the
nation, and includes the Malibu beaches, open space, over 500
miles of trails, and numerous historical and cultural sites.
Section 327 of the Consolidated Natural Resources Act of
2008 (Public Law 110-229) directed the National Park Service to
evaluate the suitability and feasibility of expanding the
National Recreation Area to include the area known as the ``Rim
of the Valley Corridor,'' the area generally including the
mountains encircling the San Fernando, La Crescenta, Santa
Clarita, Simi, and Conejo Valleys in southern California.
The National Park Service's completed study covered
approximately 650,000 acres and determined that expanding the
National Recreation Area to include a portion of the Rim of the
Valley Corridor would expand opportunities for public enjoyment
and augment the protection of significant resources. The study
also found that inclusion of the recommended area would provide
the most effective range of tools to maintain habitat
connectivity and preserve significant resources, both of which
are key to maintaining the National Recreation Area's habitat
value and high biodiversity.
S. 1466 modifies the boundary of the National Recreation
Area to include a portion of the Rim of the Valley Corridor.
Legislative History
S. 1466 was introduced by Senators Feinstein and Padilla on
May 4, 2023. Similar legislation, S. 1769, was introduced in
the 117th Congress by Senators Feinstein and Padilla on May 20,
2021. The Subcommittee on National Parks held a hearing on the
bill on June 23, 2021. The Committee ordered S. 1769 reported
favorably with an amendment in the nature of a substitute on
July 21, 2022 (S. Rept. 117-181). A companion bill, H.R. 1075,
was introduced by Representative Schiff and others on March 15,
2021.
The text of H.R. 1075 in the 117th Congress was included in
title VI of H.R. 803, the ``Protecting America's Wilderness and
Public Lands Act,'' which passed the House of Representatives
by a vote of 227-200 on February 26, 2021. Similar text was
also included in subtitle F of title LV of H.R. 4350, the
National Defense Authorization Act of 2022, which passed the
House of Representatives by a vote of 316-113 on September 23,
2021. Similar text was also included in title V of Division I
of H.R. 7900, the National Defense Authorization Act of 2022
(NDAA), which passed the House of Representatives by a vote of
329-101 on July 14, 2022. The provisions relating to the Rim of
the Valley addition were not included in the enacted version of
the NDAA.
In the 116th Congress, similar legislation, S. 774, was
introduced by Senators Feinstein and Harris on March 13, 2019.
The Subcommittee on National Parks held a hearing on S. 774 on
June 19, 2019 (S. Hrg. 116-308), and the bill was reported
favorably by the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on
December 18, 2019. A companion House bill, H.R. 1708 was
introduced by Representative Schiff and others on March 13,
2019. The House Natural Resource Subcommittee on National
Parks, Forests, and Public Lands held a hearing on April 2,
2019. H.R. 1708 was reported by the House Committee on Natural
Resources on February 4, 2020 (H. Rept. 116-386). The text of
H.R. 1708 was included in title V of H.R. 2546, the
``Protecting America's Wilderness and Public Lands Act,'' which
passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 231-183 on
February 12, 2020. The bill was referred to the Senate
Committee on Natural Resources, but no further action was
taken. Similar text was also included in title V of Division O
of H.R. 6395, the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, which passed the House
of Representatives by a vote of 295-125 on July 20, 2021, but
was dropped in the House-Senate conference.
In the 115th Congress, similar legislation, S. 1993, was
introduced by Senator Feinstein on September 19, 2017. The
Subcommittee on National Parks held a hearing on S. 1993 on
August 15, 2018 (S. Hrg. 115-526). Similar legislation, H.R.
4086, was introduced by Representative Schiff and others in the
House of Representatives on September 24, 2017. No further
action was taken on either bill.
In the 114th Congress, Senator Boxer introduced similar
legislation, S. 3514, on December 7, 2016. Companion
legislation, HR. 5467, was introduced in the House of
Representatives on June 14, 2016 by Representative Schiff and
others. No further action was taken on either bill.
Committee Recommendation and Tabulation of Votes
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in
open business session on May 17, 2023, by a majority vote of a
quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 1466.
The roll call vote on reporting the measure was 11 yeas, 8
nays, as follows:
YEAS NAYS
Mr. Manchin Mr. Barrasso
Mr. Wyden Mr. Risch*
Ms. Cantwell Mr. Lee*
Mr. Sanders* Ms. Murkowski
Mr. Heinrich Mr. Hoeven
Ms. Hirono Mr. Cassidy*
Mr. King Mrs. Hyde-Smith
Ms. Cortez Masto Mr. Hawley
Mr. Kelly
Mr. Hickenlooper
Mr. Daines
*Indicates vote by proxy.
Section-by-Section Analysis
Section 1. Short title
Section 1 provides the short title of the bill, the ``Rim
of the Valley Corridor Preservation Act''.
Sec. 2. Boundary adjustment
Section 2 amends section 507(c) of the National Parks and
Recreation Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 460kk(c)) to adjust the
boundary of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area
to include approximately 119,000 acres of the area depicted as
the Rim of the Valley Corridor on the referenced map, and to
make other conforming changes. The lands to be added to the
National Recreation Area are identical to the version in S.
1769 reported by the Committee in the 117th Congress, although
the map has been revised to better identify the proposed
addition.
Sec. 3. Administration
Section 3 provides that any land or interest in land
acquired by the Secretary of the Interior within the Rim of the
Valley Unit shall be administered as part of the Santa Monica
Mountains National Recreation Area, in accordance with the laws
and regulations applicable to the National Recreation Area.
Sec. 4. Utilities and water resource facilities
Section 4 clarifies that the addition of the Rim of the
Valley Unit to the National Recreation Area shall not affect
the operation, maintenance, or modification of water resource
facilities or public utilities, except that any utility or
water resource facility activities within the Rim of the Valley
Unit shall be done in a manner that reasonably avoids or
reduces any impact on park resources of the Rim of the Valley
Unit.
Cost and Budgetary Considerations
The Committee has requested, but has not yet received, the
Congressional Budget Office's estimate of the cost of S. 1466,
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. 1466. 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. 1466, as ordered reported.
Congressionally Directed Spending
S. 1466, 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 June 23, 2021, hearing on S. 1769 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. 1769, a bill to adjust
the boundary of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation
Area (NRA) to include the Rim of the Valley Corridor, and for
other purposes.
The Department supports enactment of S. 1769 with technical
amendments. This legislation largely reflects a special
resource study that found that a proposed expansion of the
Santa Monica Mountains NRA to include Rim of the Valley lands
meets the National Park Service's criteria for addition to the
National Park System.
S. 1769 would expand the boundary of the Santa Monica
Mountains NRA by approximately 191,000 acres of land within the
area known as the Rim of the Valley Corridor, the mountainous
areas that surround the San Fernando, Simi, and Conejo Valleys
northwest of Los Angeles. The proposed Rim of the Valley Unit
would be administered as part of the Santa Monica Mountains
NRA, and an updated management plan for the park would be
required within three years of enactment. Provisions in the
bill ensure that the inclusion of the Rim of the Valley lands
in the Santa Monica Mountains NRA would not interfere with
specified existing uses.
The Santa Monica Mountains NRA was established by Congress
in 1978 to help preserve and protect the natural resources of
the Santa Monica Mountains and the adjacent coastline and
provide outdoor recreational opportunities within the vicinity
of the densely populated Los Angeles and Ventura Counties.
Within a boundary encompassing approximately 154,000 acres, the
National Park Service (NPS) owns a relatively small proportion
of the land--approximately 23,600 acres, or 15 percent.
Altogether, 58 percent of the land within the boundary is in
public ownership, including the NPS lands. The NPS coordinates
actions with State and other public agencies that manage park
lands through a cooperative management agreement, which allows
all partners to realize cost savings and efficiencies. The NPS
also partners with nongovernmental organizations to further the
purposes of the NRA.
P.L. 110-229, enacted in 2008, directed the Secretary of
the Interior to evaluate the suitability and feasibility of
designating all or a portion of the Rim of the Valley Corridor
as a unit of Santa Monica Mountains NRA. The study area
consisted of approximately 650,000 acres of land within the
mountains encircling the San Fernando, La Crescenta, Santa
Clarita, Simi, and Conejo Valleys. The study's preferred
alternative, among four alternatives evaluated, recommended an
expansion of approximately 173,000 acres of lands judged to
have the highest concentration of resource values and
recreational opportunities. The preferred alternative also
recognized a limited role for NPS land ownership, as is the
case within the existing national recreation area, and a
continuation of the existing collaborative partnership-based
management model. The study team conducted extensive public
outreach throughout the study process and throughout the
region, receiving approximately 7,200 comment letters during
the study period; more than 90 percent of comment letters
preferred a much larger alternative than the recommendation
transmitted to Congress in 2016.
S. 1769 differs in a few ways from the study's preferred
alternative. S. 1769 would include 18,000 more acres of land
within the boundary than the preferred alternative proposed.
The additional acreage largely consists of lands to the east of
the City of Santa Clarita and in the western Santa Susana
mountains added for the purpose of regional trail connections.
Additionally, the bill would remove all properties contained in
the 2016 recommendation that are identified by the State of
California as containing oil and gas operations, as well as the
Santa Susana Field Laboratory. Removing these properties would
eliminate any unintentional regulatory burden to oil and gas
development and prevent the transfer of Federal lands at the
Santa Susana Field Laboratory and their associated facilities,
including their clean-up costs, to the NPS.
The Department would like the opportunity to revisit the
proposed boundary for the expansion with the bill's sponsor and
the Committee to account for additional development changes
that have occurred since the study was conducted and the
legislation was first proposed. We also recommend a technical
amendment to show the Rim of the Valley Unit as an addition to
the NRA, not as a substitution of the original NRA boundary.
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. 1466, as ordered reported, are shown below
(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 95-625
AN ACT To authorize additional appropriations for the acquisition of
lands and interests in lands within the Sawtooth National Recreation
Area in Idaho.
* * * * * * *
SHORT TITLE AND TABLE OF CONTENTS
Section 1. This Act may be cited as the ``National Parks
and Recreation Act of 1978''.
* * * * * * *
TITLE V--ESTABLISHMENT OF NEW AREAS AND ADDITIONS TO NATIONAL TRAILS
SYSTEM
Subtitle A--Parks, Seashores, Etc.
* * * * * * *
SANTA MONICA MOUNTAINS NATIONAL
RECREATION AREA
Sec. 507(a). The Congress finds that--
(1) there are significant scenic, recreational,
educational, scientific, natural, archeological, and
public health benefits provided by the Santa Monica
Mountains and adjacent coastline area;
(2) there is a national interest in protecting and
preserving these benefits for the residents of and
visitors to the area; and
(3) the State of California and its local units of
government have authority to prevent or minimize
adverse uses of the Santa Monica Mountains and adjacent
coastline area and can, to a great extent, protect the
health, safety, and general welfare by the use of such
authority.
(b) There is hereby established the Santa Monica Mountains
National Recreation Area (hereinafter referred to as the
``recreation area''). The Secretary shall manage the recreation
area in a manner which will preserve and enhance its scenic,
natural, and historical setting and its public health value as
an airshed for the Southern California metropolitan area while
providing for the recreational and educational need of the
visiting public.
(c)[(1) The recreation area shall consist of the lands and
waters and interests generally depicted as the recreation area
on the map entitled ``Santa Monica Mountains National
Recreation Area and Santa Monica Mountains Zone, California,
Boundary Map'', numbered 80,047--C and dated August 2001, which
shall be on file and available for inspection in the offices of
the National Park Service, Department of the Interior,
Washington, District of Columbia, and in the offices of the
General Services Administration in the Federal Office Building
in West Los Angeles, California, and in the main public library
in Ventura, California. After advising the Committee on
Resources of the United States House of Representatives and the
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the United States
Senate, in writing, the Secretary may make minor revisions of
the boundaries of the recreation area when necessary by
publication of a revised drawing or other boundary description
in the Federal Register.] (1)Boundary._
(A) In general.--The recreation area shall consist
of--
(i) the land, water, and interests in land
and water generally depicted as the recreation
area on the map entitled ``Santa Monica
Mountains National Recreation Area and Santa
Monica Mountains Zone, California, Boundary
Map'', numbered 80,047-C, and dated August
2001; and
(ii) the land, water, and interests in land
and water, as generally depicted as ``Proposed
Addition'' on the map entitled ``Rim of the
Valley Unit--Santa Monica Mountains National
Recreation Area'', numbered 638/147,723, and
dated April 2023.
(B) Availability of maps.--The maps described in
subparagraph (A) shall be on file and available for
public inspection in the appropriate offices of the
National Park Service.
(C) Revisions.--After advising the Committee on
Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the
Committee on Natural Resources of the House of
Representatives, in writing, of the proposed revision,
the Secretary may make minor revisions to the
boundaries of the recreation area by publication of a
revised drawing or other boundary description in the
Federal Register.
* * * * * * *
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