PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 523.
Congressional Research Service
Version 17 · Reported to House with amendment(s) · Dec 22, 2014
Mountains to Sound Greenway National Heritage Area Act - (Sec. 3) Establishes the Mountains to Sound Greenway National Heritage Area in the state of Washington, consisting of specified land in King and Kittitas counties.
Allows King or Kittitas county to elect at any time to be excluded from the Heritage Area.
Requires the Secretary of the Interior to select the local coordinating entity for the Heritage Area.
Showing the opening paragraphs of the official summary.
(Sec. 4) Requires the coordinating entity to submit a proposed management plan to King and Kittitas counties for approval before submitting the plan to the Secretary.
Requires the plan to include: (1) consideration of the state of Washington's government plans; (2) descriptions of partnership collaborations and actions that governments, private organizations, and individuals have agreed to take to protect the area; and (3) recommendations to coordinate federal, state, and local programs, including the role of the National Park Service (NPS).
Requires the Secretary to approve or disapprove the plan based on specified criteria, including whether the public and federal, state, tribal, and local governments were afforded an opportunity to be involved in the preparation of plan.
Authorizes the Secretary to provide technical assistance to the state, political subdivisions of the state, nonprofit organizations, and other interested parties.
(Sec. 5) Directs the Secretary, within 10 years after enactment of this Act, to submit to Congress a report evaluating the Heritage Area's coordinating entity, private and government investments, management structure, partnerships, and funding. Requires the report to include recommendations for the NPS's future role in the Heritage Area.
(Sec. 6) Directs the coordinating entity to report to the Secretary every five years after the Secretary has approved a management plan. Requires the report to specify the entity's expenses and income, as well as grants or contracts made by the coordinating entity to other entities.
Prohibits the coordinating entity from acquiring real property with federal funds or through condemnation.
(Sec. 7) Encourages federal agencies planning to conduct activities that may impact the Heritage Area to consult and coordinate with the Secretary and the local coordinating entity to the maximum extent practicable.
(Sec. 8) Prohibits this Act from altering the rights of property owners or affecting certain existing federal, state, tribal, or local projects, agreements, or regulatory requirements.
(Sec. 9) Declares that nothing in this Act authorizes the Secretary to allocate or distribute federal funds to the local coordinating entity or to expend federal funds for any purpose other than as specified in this Act.
(Sec. 10) Terminates the Secretary's authority to provide assistance 15 years after enactment of this Act.
People & committees
Rep. Reichert, David G. [R-WA-8] · R–WA
Legislative record
A procedural vote is different from passage. Passage in one chamber does not establish enactment. Explore the glossary.
Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 523.
Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Natural Resources. H. Rept. 113-692.
Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Natural Resources. H. Rept. 113-692.
Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by Voice Vote.
Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation Discharged.
Subcommittee Hearings Held.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation.
Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.
Source last updated: Apr 7, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
AI Conversation Starters
Choose a perspective, copy a prompt, and paste it into your preferred AI. Each prompt includes the bill version and available official source links, and asks for counterarguments as well as supporting evidence.
Analyze H.R.1785 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
Examine H.R.1785 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
Examine H.R.1785 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.
Examine H.R.1785 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.