[DOCID: f:sr103.110]
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Calendar No. 233
110th Congress Report
SENATE
1st Session 110-103
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BRIGADIER GENERAL FRANCIS MARION MEMORIAL ACT OF 2007
_______
June 26, 2007.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Bingaman, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 497]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the Act (H.R. 497) to authorize the Marion Park
Project, a committee of the Palmetto Conservation Foundation,
to establish a commemorative work on Federal land in the
District of Columbia, and its environs to honor Brigadier
General Francis Marion, having considered the same, reports
favorably thereon without amendment and recommends that the Act
do pass.
PURPOSE OF THE MEASURE
The purpose of H.R. 497 is to authorize the Marion Park
Project, a committee of the Palmetto Conservation Foundation,
to establish a commemorative work on Federal land in the
District of Columbia and its environs to honor Brigadier
General Francis Marion.
BACKGROUND AND NEED
H.R. 497 would establish a commemorative work on federal
land in or around Washington, DC to honor Brigadier General
Francis Marion (born c. 1732-died 1795), who commanded the
Williamsburg Militia Revolutionary force in South Carolina and
was instrumental in delaying the advance of British forces.
Nicknamed the ``Swamp Fox'' by the British, Marion led
successful efforts to disrupt the British supply lines, and has
been credited for inventing and applying innovative battle
tactics, which were instrumental to the Americans' ultimate
victory in the Revolutionary War.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
H.R. 497, sponsored by Congressman Wilson, passed the House
of Representatives by a vote of 390-0 on March 5, 2007. A
companion measure, S. 312, was introduced by Senators Graham
and DeMint on January 17, 2007. During the 109th Congress, the
House passed a similar measure, H.R. 5057, by a voice vote on
July 24, 2006.
The Subcommittee on National Parks held a hearing on H.R.
497 and S. 312 on April 26, 2007. At its business meeting on
May 23, 2007, the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
ordered H.R. 497 favorably reported, without amendment.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in an
open business session on May 23, 2007, by a unanimous voice
vote of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass H.R.
497.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1 contains the short title, the ``Brigadier General
Francis Marion Memorial Act of 2007.''
Section 2(a) contains Congressional findings.
Subsection (b) authorizes the Marion Park Project, a
committee of the non-profit Palmetto Conservation Foundation,
to establish a commemorative work on Federal land in the
District of Columbia or its environs to honor Brigadier General
Francis Marion.
Subsection (c) requires that the memorial be established in
accordance with the Commemorative Works Act (40 U.S.C. 8901 et
seq.).
Subsection (d) prohibits the use of Federal funds for the
establishment of the memorial. The Marion Park Project is to be
solely responsible for funding the establishment of the
memorial.
Subsection (e) states that if there are excess funds after
payment of all expenses associated with the establishment of
the memorial, the balance shall be transmitted to the Secretary
of the Treasury as provided in the Commemorative Works Act.
Subsection (f) clarifies that the terms ``commemorative
work'' and ``the District of Columbia and its environs'' have
the same meaning as used in the Commemorative Works Act.
COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
The following estimate of the cost of this measure has been
provided by the Congressional Budget Office:
May 31, 2007.
Hon. Jeff Bingaman,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 497, the Brigadier
General Francis Marion Memorial Act of 2007.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Deborah Reis.
Sincerely,
Peter R. Orszag.
Enclosure.
H.R. 497--Brigadier General Francis Marion Memorial Act of 2007
H.R. 497 would authorize a nonprofit organization to
establish a commemorative work honoring Brigadier General
Francis Marion. CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 497 would
have no significant impact on the federal budget. Enacting the
legislation would affect revenues and direct spending, but we
estimate that such effects would not be significant.
The legislation 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.
H.R. 497 would authorize the Palmetto Conservation
Foundation to establish the monument to the Revolutionary War
hero on federal land in Washington, DC, subject to the
requirements of the Commemorative Works Act (CWA) and without
the use of federal funds. Under the CWA, any entity that
receives a permit to construct a memorial in the District of
Columbia or its environs must deposit an amount equal to 10
percent of the memorial's estimated construction cost in the
U.S. Treasury. The funds deposited are then available without
further appropriation for maintenance and preservation of the
structure.
Based on information provided by the National Park Service,
CBO estimates that the federal government would collect a
deposit from the nonprofit organization of less than $100,000
once the memorial has been built. Based on the history of
similar commemorative projects, we expect that the deposit
would not be received for several years, and spending of any
amounts received would be minimal in any fiscal year. The act
also would require the organization to pay the Treasury any
amounts that it collects from contributors in excess of
construction costs, but CBO estimates that no such amounts
would be paid.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis.
This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy
Assistant Director for 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 H.R. 497. The Act 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 H.R. 497, as ordered reported.
EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS
The testimony provided by the National Park Service at the
April 26, 2007 subcommittee hearing on H.R. 497 follows:
Statement of Daniel N. Wenk, Deputy Director, National Park Service,
Department of the Interior
Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, thank you for
the opportunity to appear before you today to present the
Department of the Interior's views on S. 312 and H.R. 497,
bills to authorize the Marion Park Project, a committee of the
Palmetto Conservation Foundation, to establish a commemorative
work on Federal land in the District of Columbia and its
environs to honor Brigadier General Francis Marion.
The Department of the Interior supports enactment of S. 312
and H.R. 497, and we suggest that a technical correction be
made to S. 312 to make it consistent with the House-passed
companion bill, H.R. 497. The Senate bill references ``the
Marion Park Project and Committee of the Palmetto Conservation
Foundation'' as the entities authorized to establish the
commemorative work. We suggest an amendment to change this
reference to ``the Marion Park Project, a committee of the
Palmetto Conservation Foundation.'' The National Capital
Memorial Advisory Commission considered proposals to establish
this memorial on June 27, 2006, and unanimously endorsed the
establishment of a memorial in the Nation's Capital to
Brigadier General Francis Marion.
S. 312 and H.R. 497 would establish a commemorative work on
Federal land to honor Brigadier General Francis Marion in
accordance with the Commemorative Works Act. They would
prohibit Federal funds from being used to pay any expense of
the establishment of the commemorative work, requiring the
Marion Park Project and Committee of the Palmetto Conservation
Foundation to be solely responsible for funding and
establishment. After payment of the expenses for establishing
the commemorative work, which includes the offset for the
maintenance and preservation of the memorial, or upon
expiration of the authority for the commemorative work, S. 312
and H.R. 497 would direct all remaining funds to be transmitted
to the Secretary of the Treasury for deposit in an account
provided for this purpose. S. 312 also would direct any funds
remaining for the commemorative work upon expiration of
legislative authority to be transferred to the same account.
Memorials built in the District of Columbia and its
environs on lands managed by the National Park Service or the
General Services Administration are established in accordance
with the Commemorative Works Act. If a memorial is proposed on
lands managed by the National Park Service, the Commemorative
Works Act requires that within 7 years from the date of
enactment, the sponsor obtain approvals for its location and
design from the Secretary of the Interior, the National Capital
Planning Commission, and the Commission of Fine Arts and
complete its fundraising for the memorial. The National Park
Service issues a permit to begin construction of the memorial
as soon as construction documents are certified and evidence of
sufficient funds to complete the memorial have been provided by
the sponsor. The Commemorative Works Act also requires an
additional 10 percent of the construction cost to be provided
to defray future unbudgeted maintenance costs. Since 1986,
memorials that range from large-scale memorials to memorial
plaques have been established under the terms of the
Commemorative Works Act. These have fully met the requirements
to obtain a permit to begin construction.
Although S. 312 and H.R. 497 do not designate a specific
site for the memorial, they recognize that U.S. Reservation 18
has been named Marion Park since 1878 but lacks a formal
commemoration to Brigadier General Francis Marion. Marion Park
is located between 4th and 6th Streets, SE at the intersection
E Street and South Carolina Avenue, SE in Washington, DC This
site is located in Area II under the Commemorative Works Act,
which requires that the subject be of ``lasting historical
significance to the American people.'' While Marion Park is the
logical place to locate this memorial, we would like the
opportunity to study alternative locations with potential nexus
to Brigadier General Marion under the provisions of the
Commemorative Works Act. Site selection is an important part of
the process established by the Commemorative Works Act. Thus,
recognizing Marion Park in the findings of the bill, rather
than designating it as the site for the commemorative work, is
appropriate.
Brigadier General Francis Marion commanded the Williamsburg
Militia Revolutionary force in South Carolina and was
instrumental in delaying the advance of British forces by
leading his troops in disrupting supply lines. He is credited
for inventing and applying innovative battle tactics in this
effort, keys to an ultimate victory for the American Colonies
in the Revolutionary War. Additionally, Brigadier General
Marion's troops are believed to have been the first racially
integrated force fighting for the United States. In our
judgment he is certainly worthy of being commemorated in our
Nation's Capital.
Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to comment.
This concludes my prepared remarks and I will be happy to
answer any questions you or other subcommittee members might
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 Act H.R. 497, as
ordered reported.
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