Raúl Grijalva

Mr. GRIJALVA

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 523) to require the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain public land located wholly or partially within the boundaries of the Wells Hydroelectric Project of Public Utility District No. 1 of Douglas County, Washington, to the utility district, as amended.

Mr. GRIJALVA

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, soon after the Revolutionary War, Alexander Hamilton selected the area around the Great Falls of the Passaic River as a site for the first planned industrial center in America. Hamilton, then Secretary of the Treasury, invited Pierre L'Enfant to design the city in 1791. The result was the City of Paterson, New Jersey, which became one of the most important manufacturing centers in America during the Industrial Revolution. President Gerald Ford designated the Great Falls Historic District as a national historic landmark in 1976. The 104th Congress established an historic district and authorized the restoration, preservation, and interpretive program for the area. H.R. 189, sponsored by our colleague, Representative Bill Pascrell, the former mayor of Paterson, designates the historic district as a National Historic Park and a unit of the National Park System. This bill contains standard management language for NPS units. This is a unique area and will make an excellent addition to our National Park System. Representative Pascrell is to be commended for his tireless efforts on behalf of the legislation and the city and the people of Paterson. We urge the adoption of this bill by the House today. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 189) to establish the Paterson Great Falls National Park in the State of New Jersey, as amended.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I would say to the gentleman from Georgia, if I am not mistaken, the original designation for the Chattahoochee National Recreation Area was also not supported by National Park Service, and I know that the people of Georgia are glad that this Congress used its legislative prerogative to create that designation. With that, let me yield such additional time as he may consume to the sponsor of the legislation, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell).

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, at this time I yield such time as he may consume to the gentlemen from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell), the sponsor of the legislation.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, let me just in closing say this legislation, H.R. 189, this designation goes beyond a simple designation. It speaks to the strengthening of our independence as this Nation develops. It speaks to a beautiful natural resource that needs to be protected and designated, and it speaks to an historic legacy about people and industrial advancement that needs to be preserved and enhanced and designated for the whole Nation to appreciate. I want to thank the sponsor of the legislation and urge my colleagues to exercise the wisdom of Congress and approve H.R. 189.

Mr. GRIJALVA

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2197 was introduced by the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Space). The legislation would modify the boundaries of the Hopewell Culture National Historical Park in south central Ohio to add two tracts, totaling almost 360 acres. The Hopewell Culture was a pre-European civilization best known for the numerous mounds and earthworks found throughout the Ohio Valley. The current park boundary encompasses five sites totaling 1,174 acres. H.R. 2197 would add two tracts, the 177-acre Spruce Hill Works unit and the 180-acre addition to the existing Seip Earthworks unit. Mr. Speaker, the National Park Service has testified in support of the legislation, and it was approved by the Resources Committee by unanimous consent. This addition to our National Park System will preserve important sites from our Nation's past. I commend the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Space) for his diligence in bringing this bill to the House. Representative Space is on his way back from his district this afternoon, but will submit a statement for the Record. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2197) to modify the boundary of the Hopewell Culture National Historical Park in the State of Ohio, and for other purposes.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. GRIJALVA

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 830) to authorize the exchange of certain lands in Denali National Park in the State of Alaska, as amended.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 830 was introduced by the gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young). The legislation would authorize an exchange of easements on land along the Alaska Railroad track inside the Denali National Park. The exchange would make it possible for the railroad to build a turnaround track near the Denali Park station, helping to accommodate the increasing popularity of rail travel in the park. Mr. Speaker, this is an exchange of easements only. No park land will change hands. The railroad has an existing easement along its entire track, granted as a result of the 1982 Alaska Railroad Transfer Act. But the easement will not accommodate the turnaround. H.R. 830 would allow the Secretary of the Interior to grant a new easement for the turnaround. In exchange, the railroad will relinquish its existing easement on an approximate equal number of acres elsewhere along the current track. Mr. Speaker, we support H.R. 830, as amended, and recommend its adoption by the House today. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GRIJALVA

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 783) to modify the boundary of Mesa Verde National Park, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 783 authorizes a boundary expansion at Mesa Verde National Park in southwestern Colorado of approximately 362 acres. Mesa Verde National Park, established in 1906, contains the most extensive concentration of cliff-dwellings in the United States. H.R. 783 authorizes the acquisition of two parcels of the land that border the park. One parcel is in full view of the park's entrance road and contains important archaeological sites, an ancient forest, and the largest known population of a globally imperiled plant. This parcel is currently zoned for a subdivision, but the owners would prefer to protect the property through inclusion in the park. The second parcel is currently owned by a park partner, the Mesa Verde Foundation. The foundation intends to donate the parcel to the park for the development of a visitor information center and museum collection facility but cannot do so until the park boundary is expanded. Mr. Speaker, the administration has testified in support of this legislation, the Natural Resources Committee approved the legislation with a minor amendment by unanimous consent. I want to acknowledge, at this point, the hard work of the bill's sponsor, Representative John Salazar, in bringing this important legislation forward. We support this bill and urge its adoption by the House today. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the sponsor of this legislation, Representative John Salazar.

Mr. GRIJALVA

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2094) to provide for certain administrative and support services for the Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, there's no doubt that Dwight Eisenhower played a significant role in American history. His service as a military leader, both during war and in peacetime, as our Nation's 34th President and as a statesman and a scholar are deserving of a memorial here in our Nation's capital. Plans to establish such a memorial, a site across the street from the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, are well underway. The commission established to oversee the memorial is now developing a design concept. Once the design is approved, the commission will oversee construction of the memorial. H.R. 2094, sponsored by our colleague from Kansas, Representative Dennis Moore, makes technical changes to the staff organization and administrative authority of the commission. These changes are necessary as the commission transitions from the planning phase to the construction phase. Representative Moore has worked very hard in this very difficult process to help get this memorial established. Thanks to his efforts, and those of the commission, future visitors to Washington will come away with a better understanding of President Eisenhower's place in American history. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.