246 



failure of the Committee to restrict the use to which funds for 

 implementation may be used against their use to acquire land 

 and water areas. // funds under this legislation are used for 

 such purpose^ it loould appear to establish a regime for ac- 

 quisition for lands and waters in the coastal zone which would 

 complete ivith, if 7iot conflict loith^ the provisions of the Land 

 and Water Conservation Fund Act. That act, administered 

 by the Department of the Interior, is at present the principal 

 source of funding for acquisition of outdoor recreation lands. 

 Similarly, and for the same reason, I believe the authoriza- 

 tion of fimds for the acquisition of estuarine sanctuaries in 

 this bill is ill-advised. 



The latter provision was improved somewhat by an amend- 

 ment offered by the distinguished ranking minority member 

 of our committee, the senior Senator from New Hampshire, 

 Mr. Cotton, which limits authorization for appropriations for 

 the program to a single year. However, I find no reason to 

 believe that the program will not ultimately be extended 

 to the full scope envisioned in the bill. Thus, we have, in effect, 

 authorized a 5 -year program providing up to $30 million 

 in Federal matching funds for the acquisition of up to 15 

 established sanctuaries. Such funds should, in my opinion, be 

 provided under existing programs and authorities rather than 

 by the operation of an entirely new program for this ad- 

 mittedly worthwhile purpose. [Emphasis supplied.] 



Jk if. ^ ^ ^ * If 



I believe that this is particularly important when considered in 

 light of the provisions of the companion bill to S. 3507, H.R. 14146, 

 now pending before the House Committee on Merchant Marine and 

 Fisheries which has a comparable estuarine sanctuaries provision (i.e., 

 section 312) but which authorizes appropriations for not 1, but 

 3 fiscal years. Moreover, the House bill provides for the establish- 

 ment of marine sanctuaries, in addition to estuarine sanctuaries. This 

 marine sanctuaries provision is comparable to the provision found in 

 the Marine Protection and Research Act. H.R. 9727, now pending in 

 a Committee on Conference between the two Houses. 



In connection with marine sanctuaries, it is important to bear in 

 mind that section 12 of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (16 

 U.S.C. 1341) does provide the President with authority in this area. 

 In fact, this authority was used by President Eisenhower in 1960 

 (Proc. No. 339. March 17, 1960) to create the Key Largo Coral Reef 

 Preserve off the coast of Florida. 



Accordingly, I feel very strongly that the limitation to but a 1- 

 year appropriation authorization for estuarine (not marine) sanctu- 

 aries, pursuant to the provisions of S. 3507, is most important (i.e., 

 see section 316(a) (3)). It should be preserved — ^both with respect to 

 the limitation of 1 year and without extension to authorize marine 

 sanctuaries — in any resulting conference between the two Houses on 

 these measures. 



NoRRis Cotton. 



