Bill Text: VA HB16 | 2014 | Regular Session | Prefiled
Bill Title: Shenandoah National Park, Commission on Reconveyance of; established, report.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-01-31 - Tabled in Rules by voice vote [HB16 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2014-HB16-Prefiled.html
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14100400D Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia: 1. That the Code of Virginia is amended by adding a section numbered 10.1-201.1 and by adding in Title 30 a chapter numbered 55, consisting of sections numbered 30-348 through 30-355, as follows: §10.1-201.1. Acceptance by the Commonwealth of a reconveyance. If the Commission on the Reconveyance of Shenandoah National Park, pursuant to Chapter 55 (§30-348 et seq.) of Title 30, recommends the acceptance of a proposed reconveyance by the United States government, the Governor is authorized, subject to appropriation, to accept in the name of the Commonwealth the conveyance from the United States government or its agencies and instrumentalities of the lands comprising Shenandoah National Park. To this end, the Governor shall have the power to comply with such conditions and execute such agreements as may be necessary, convenient, or desirable. The Governor shall establish the lands so acquired as a state park in the Virginia State Parks system and is authorized to provide for the management, development, and use of any lands so acquired. The Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation is authorized to enforce regulations governing state parks, the care and maintenance thereof, the prevention of trespassing thereon, and such other regulations deemed necessary to carry out the provisions of this section. §30-348. Commission on the Reconveyance of Shenandoah National Park; purpose. The Commission on the Reconveyance of Shenandoah National Park (the Commission) is established in the legislative branch of state government. The purpose of the Commission is to develop recommendations regarding any proposed reconveyance of Shenandoah National Park (the Park) by the United States government to the Commonwealth. §30-349. Membership; terms; vacancies; chairman and vice-chairman. The Commission shall have a total membership of nine members that shall consist of eight legislative members and one nonvoting ex officio member. Members shall be appointed as follows: five members of the House of Delegates, to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates in accordance with the principles of proportional representation contained in the Rules of the House of Delegates; three members of the Senate, to be appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules; and the Secretary of Natural Resources or his designee to serve ex officio with nonvoting privileges. Legislative members and the ex officio member of the Commission shall serve terms coincident with their terms of office. Vacancies shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointments. The Commission shall elect a chairman and vice-chairman from among its membership, who shall be members of the General Assembly. §30-350. Quorum; meetings; voting on recommendations. A majority of the members shall constitute a quorum. The meetings of the Commission shall be held at the call of the chairman or whenever the majority of the members so request. No recommendation of the Commission shall be adopted if a majority of the House members or a majority of the Senate members appointed to the Commission (i) vote against the recommendation and (ii) vote for the recommendation to fail notwithstanding the majority vote of the Commission. §30-351. Compensation; expenses. Legislative members of the Commission shall receive such compensation as provided in §30-19.12. All members shall be reimbursed for reasonable and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties, as provided in §§2.2-2813 and 2.2-2825. However, all such compensation and expenses shall be paid from existing appropriations to the Commission or, if unfunded, shall be approved by the Joint Rules Committee. §30-352. Powers and duties of the Commission. Solely for the purpose of developing recommendations to the Governor and the General Assembly, the Commission shall have the following powers and duties: 1. Determine whether, when, and under what conditions the Commonwealth should accept the reconveyance of the Park; 2. Determine what procedures are to be followed as part of any such reconveyance; 3. Assess any proposal by the United States government for such a reconveyance; 4. Examine any terms and conditions attached by the United States government to such a reconveyance; and 5. Develop such recommendations as may be appropriate for consideration by the Governor in order to encourage the reconveyance of the Park to the Commonwealth. §30-353. Staffing. Administrative staff support shall be provided by the Office of the Clerk of the House of Delegates or the Office of the Clerk of the Senate, as may be appropriate for the house in which the chairman of the Commission serves. The Division of Legislative Services shall provide legal, research, policy analysis, and other services as requested by the Commission. The Department of Conservation and Recreation and such other state agencies as may be considered appropriate by the Commission shall provide staff assistance to the Commission. §30-354. Chairman's executive summary of activity and work of the Commission. The chairman shall submit to the General Assembly and the Governor a report summarizing the findings and recommendations of the Commission no later than the first day of each regular session of the General Assembly. The report shall be submitted as provided in the procedures of the Division of Legislative Automated Systems for the processing of legislative documents and reports and shall be posted on the General Assembly's website. §30-355. Sunset. This chapter shall expire on July 1, 2017. 2. For its first year of existence, if the Commission on the Reconveyance of Shenandoah National Park is not funded by a separate appropriation in the appropriation act, the Commission may be funded from the operating budgets of the Clerk of the House of Delegates and the Clerk of the Senate upon the approval of the Joint Rules Committee. If the Commission is not funded by a separate appropriation in the appropriation act for any year thereafter, this chapter shall expire on July 1 of the fiscal year that the Commission fails to receive such funding. |
