Falls heritage area is signed into law
Bill authorizes up to $15 million in federal funding to boost tourism
By Jerry Zremski
Updated: 05/09/08 6:54 AM
WASHINGTON— President Bush on Thursday signed a bill creating a national heritage area in Niagara Falls, capping a prolonged effort by Rep. Louise M. Slaughter and other local lawmakers to bring some federal help to the region’s tourism promotion efforts.
The bill authorizes up to $15 million in federal funding to set aside the national heritage area in Niagara Falls and to set up a commission to oversee it, with the money coming at a rate of no more than $1 million a year. The commission would promote the American side of the falls as a tourist destination.
“Millions of families travel to Niagara Falls every year to take in the awe-inspiring natural phenomenon that is right in our own backyards,” said Slaughter, D-Fairport, who introduced the original legislation creating the heritage area. “The Niagara Falls National Heritage Area Act gives the Falls the prominent distinction that one of the seven wonders of the world deserves.”
It is unclear, though, exactly when the commission would be formed or when it would start its work. Under the two-step congressional funding process, money will have to be appropriated for that task, and Slaughter plans to try to get that funding included in a spending bill for Department of the Interior programs in the 2009 fiscal year, which starts Oct. 1.
The commission that will be set up under the bill will publicize the Niagara Falls region, work to preserve its natural and historic resources and improve coordination among existing programs at the falls, Slaughter said.
The heritage area will stretch along the Niagara River from the western boundary of Wheatfield to Lake Ontario and include the City of Niagara Falls, the villages of Youngstown and Lewiston, and all land and water lying within these boundaries.
The bill took a long and winding road to the president’s desk.
Slaughter and Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N. Y., introduced the bill last year, but the Bush administration initially opposed it, saying Congress should first come up with new rules governing what qualifies as a national heritage area.
But then the House combined the Niagara Falls proposal and two other new heritage areas into a larger bill that expands several national parks and authorizes funding for water projects.
That bill passed the House and Senate earlier this year, and the White House voiced no objection to the larger measure.
