New Philadelphia, Illinois, Study Act

(This measure has not been amended since it was reported to the House on September 20, 2013. The summary of that version is repeated here.)

New Philadelphia, Illinois, Study Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study of the New Philadelphia archaeological site and the land surrounding it in Illinois (the study area).

Requires the Secretary to: (1) evaluate the national significance of the study area; (2) determine the suitability and feasibility of designating the study area as a unit of the National Park System (NPS); (3) consider other alternatives for preservation, protection, and interpretation of the study area by federal, state, or local governmental entities, or private and nonprofit organizations; and (4) determine the effect of the designation as an NPS unit on existing commercial and recreational activities as well as the authorization, construction, and operation of energy production and transmission infrastructure, and the effect on the authority of state and local officials to manage those activities.

Directs the Secretary also to identify any authorities, including condemnation, that will compel or permit the Secretary to influence or participate in local land use decisions (such as zoning) or place restrictions on non-federal land if the study area is designated as an NPS unit.

[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 930 Introduced in House (IH)]

113th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 930

    To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special 
 resource study of the archeological site and surrounding land of the 
  New Philadelphia town site in the State of Illinois, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 28, 2013

    Mr. Schock (for himself, Mr. Clay, Mr. Meeks, Mr. Quigley, Mr. 
  Kinzinger of Illinois, Mr. Rodney Davis of Illinois, Mr. Carson of 
  Indiana, and Mr. Thompson of Mississippi) introduced the following 
     bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special 
 resource study of the archeological site and surrounding land of the 
  New Philadelphia town site in the State of Illinois, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``New Philadelphia, Illinois, Study 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) Frank McWorter, an enslaved man, bought his freedom and 
        the freedom of 15 family members by mining for crude niter in 
        Kentucky caves and processing the mined material into 
        saltpeter;
            (2) New Philadelphia, founded in 1836 by Frank McWorter, 
        was the first town planned and legally registered by a free 
        African-American before the Civil War;
            (3) the first railroad constructed in the area of New 
        Philadelphia bypassed New Philadelphia, which led to the 
        decline of New Philadelphia; and
            (4) the New Philadelphia site--
                    (A) is a registered National Historic Landmark;
                    (B) is covered by farmland; and
                    (C) does not contain any original buildings of the 
                town or the McWorter farm and home that are visible 
                above ground.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Interior.
            (2) Study area.--The term ``Study Area'' means the New 
        Philadelphia archeological site and the surrounding land in the 
        State of Illinois.

SEC. 4. SPECIAL RESOURCE STUDY.

    (a) Study.--The Secretary shall conduct a special resource study of 
the Study Area.
    (b) Contents.--In conducting the study under subsection (a), the 
Secretary shall--
            (1) evaluate the national significance of the Study Area;
            (2) determine the suitability and feasibility of 
        designating the Study Area as a unit of the National Park 
        System;
            (3) consider other alternatives for preservation, 
        protection, and interpretation of the Study Area by--
                    (A) Federal, State, or local governmental entities; 
                or
                    (B) private and nonprofit organizations;
            (4) consult with--
                    (A) interested Federal, State, or local 
                governmental entities;
                    (B) private and nonprofit organizations; or
                    (C) any other interested individuals; and
            (5) identify cost estimates for any Federal acquisition, 
        development, interpretation, operation, and maintenance 
        associated with the alternatives considered under paragraph 
        (3).
    (c) Applicable Law.--The study required under subsection (a) shall 
be conducted in accordance with section 8 of Public Law 91-383 (16 
U.S.C. 1a-5).
    (d) Report.--Not later than 3 years after the date on which funds 
are first made available for the study under subsection (a), the 
Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Natural Resources of the 
House of Representatives and the Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources of the Senate a report containing--
            (1) the results of the study; and
            (2) any conclusions and recommendations of the Secretary.
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