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[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6798 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 6798
To amend the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and
Recreation Act to designate as a component of the National Heritage
Area System the Calumet National Heritage Area in the States of Indiana
and Illinois, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 17, 2025
Ms. Kelly of Illinois (for herself, Mr. Yakym, Mr. Mrvan, Mr. Davis of
Illinois, Mr. Casten, and Mr. Jackson of Illinois) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural
Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and
Recreation Act to designate as a component of the National Heritage
Area System the Calumet National Heritage Area in the States of Indiana
and 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 ``Calumet National Heritage Area
Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that--
(1) the Calumet region is composed of--
(A) 3 counties in the State of Indiana; and
(B) portions of 2 counties in the State of
Illinois;
(2) taken as a whole, the Calumet region--
(A) possesses exceptional cultural, natural, and
historical resources that form a cohesive and
nationally distinctive landscape;
(B) showcases landscapes that arose from the
unprecedented encounter of United States industrial
urbanization with a richly biodiverse natural region at
the southern end of Lake Michigan; and
(C) offers compelling educational opportunities
relating to--
(i) the manner in which industrial progress
forged dramatic changes to the natural world;
(ii) the importance of environmental
conservation and restoration, innovation, and
change for industries and workers; and
(iii) the range of cultural practices
brought to the Calumet region by the large
numbers of immigrants and migrants who settled
in the Calumet region;
(3) there is a national interest in conserving, restoring,
promoting, and interpreting the benefits of the Calumet
National Heritage Area for--
(A) the residents of the Calumet region; and
(B) visitors to the Calumet National Heritage Area;
(4) the nationally significant historical and cultural
resources located in the Calumet National Heritage Area
represent unique aspects of the heritage of the United States;
(5) the Calumet region--
(A) was previously designated as a natural
botanical preserve; and
(B) was the site of early advances in the science
of ecology;
(6) with respect to the economic development of the United
States--
(A) the post-Civil War industrial boom in the
Calumet region made the Calumet region the largest
industrial district in the world during the first half
of the 20th century;
(B) the Calumet region remains the leading steel
producing region in the United States;
(C) the economic development took place at the
water, rail, and highway transportation crossroads of
the United States; and
(D) industrialists pioneered new methods of housing
employees in industrial towns at Pullman, Marktown, and
Gary;
(7) employees that were drawn to the Calumet region made
the Calumet region a crucible of working class and ethnic
cultures;
(8) new approaches to natural resource management in an
industrial region were developed in the Calumet region;
(9) significant historical and cultural sites in the
Calumet region include--
(A) the ongoing presence of the steel industry in
the United States, including the most recently
constructed integrated steelworks and the largest
operating integrated steelworks;
(B) Pullman National Historical Park;
(C) Indiana Dunes National Park;
(D) a National Historic Landmark;
(E) 4 Historic American Engineering Record sites;
(F) 5 Historic American Buildings Survey sites;
(G) 2 National Scenic Byways;
(H) 2 units of the National Water Trails System;
and
(I) 2 National Underground Railroad Network to
Freedom sites;
(10) nationally significant natural and physical resources
in the Calumet region include spectacular natural, scenic, and
recreational assets, including--
(A) Indiana Dunes National Park, 1 of the most
species-rich units of the National Park System,
including the critical conservation land that buffers
the unit;
(B) outstanding examples of glaciated landscapes
that illustrate ecological succession;
(C) 5 national natural landmarks;
(D) 48,000 acres of land protected outside the
boundary of the Indiana Dunes National Park, a
significant record of urban conservation by land
trusts, local park districts, and forest preserve
districts; and
(E) an active legacy of ecological restoration,
including on the Grand Calumet Area of Concern and at
hundreds of sites benefitting from volunteer
contributions;
(11) local public and private partnerships based on the
visions of the community and region that are working together
to promote the stewardship, enhancement, and interpretation of
the resources of the Calumet National Heritage Area;
(12) to promote the goals described in paragraph (11),
local residents, organizations, and governments support the
establishment of a national heritage area, as indicated in the
Calumet National Heritage Area Feasibility Study approved by
the National Park Service; and
(13) the designation of the Calumet National Heritage Area
would enhance the efforts to promote the cultural, natural,
historical, and recreational resources of the Calumet region
that have been made by--
(A) the States of Indiana and Illinois;
(B) political subdivisions of the States of Indiana
and Illinois;
(C) the Field Museum of Natural History;
(D) Indiana Dunes Tourism;
(E) the South Shore Convention and Visitors
Authority;
(F) volunteer organizations; and
(G) private businesses.
SEC. 3. DESIGNATION OF CALUMET NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA.
(a) Designation.--Section 6001(a) of the John D. Dingell, Jr.
Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act (Public Law 116-9; 133
Stat. 768; 136 Stat. 6163) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(14) Calumet national heritage area.--
``(A) In general.--There is established as a
component of the National Heritage Area System the
Calumet National Heritage Area in the States of Indiana
and Illinois, as depicted on the map on page 25 of the
Calumet National Heritage Area Feasibility Study, dated
April 14, 2018, as subsequently modified, the
boundaries of which start at 71st Street and Lake
Michigan in Chicago and proceed west along 71st Street
to Western Avenue, then south on Western Avenue to 95th
Street, then west on 95th Street to Pulaski Road, then
south on Pulaski Road to I-57, then south on I-57 to
Crete-Monee Road, then east on Crete-Monee Road,
continuing on West New Monee Road to end at State
Street, and then extend to the Indiana State Line, with
Lake, Porter, and LaPorte Counties included.
``(B) Local coordinating entity.--The Calumet
Heritage Partnership shall be the local coordinating
entity for the National Heritage Area designated by
subparagraph (A).''.
(b) Management Plan.--For the purposes of section 6001(c) of the
John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act
(Public Law 116-9; 133 Stat. 772; 136 Stat. 6173), the local
coordinating entity for the Calumet National Heritage Area designated
under the amendment made by subsection (a) shall submit to the
Secretary of the Interior for approval a proposed management plan for
the Calumet National Heritage Area not later than 3 years after the
date of enactment of this Act.
(c) Termination of Authority.--For the purposes of subsection
(g)(4) of section 6001 of the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation,
Management, and Recreation Act (Public Law 116-9; 133 Stat. 776), the
authority of the Secretary of the Interior to provide assistance under
that section for the Calumet National Heritage Area designated under
the amendment made by subsection (a) shall terminate on the date that
is 15 years after the date of enactment of this Act.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
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