S1288-119

Reported

Finger Lakes National Heritage Area Act

119th Congress Introduced Apr 3, 2025

Summary

What This Bill Does

The Finger Lakes National Heritage Area Act adds the Finger Lakes National Heritage Area to the National Heritage Area System. The designation covers Cayuga, Chemung, Cortland, Livingston, Monroe, Onondaga, Ontario, Schuyler, Seneca, Steuben, Tioga, Tompkins, Wayne, and Yates Counties in New York. The bill names the Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance as the local coordinating entity.

The local coordinating entity must submit a proposed management plan to the Secretary of the Interior within 3 years after enactment. The Secretary of the Interior's authority to provide assistance for the Finger Lakes National Heritage Area ends 15 years after enactment.

Who Benefits and How

The Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance gains formal coordinating authority for the heritage area and potential access to federal assistance tied to the National Heritage Area System. Tourism businesses and historic-preservation organizations in the Finger Lakes region benefit from a federal designation that can support planning, interpretation, and promotion of regional cultural and natural resources. County governments and local communities in the 14 named New York counties benefit from a recognized framework for heritage-area planning.

Who Bears the Burden and How

The Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance must prepare and submit a management plan to the Secretary of the Interior within 3 years. The Secretary of the Interior and National Park Service heritage-area staff must review the plan and administer any federal assistance during the 15-year assistance period. Federal taxpayers bear the cost of any assistance provided under the existing National Heritage Area authority.

Key Provisions

  • Establishes the Finger Lakes National Heritage Area as part of the National Heritage Area System in 14 named New York counties.
  • Names the Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance as the local coordinating entity for the heritage area.
  • Requires the local coordinating entity to submit a proposed management plan to the Secretary of the Interior within 3 years.
  • Limits the Secretary of the Interior's assistance authority for the Finger Lakes National Heritage Area to 15 years after enactment.

Evidence Chain:

This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.

At a Glance

What This Bill Does

The bill designates the Finger Lakes National Heritage Area in 14 New York counties, names the Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance as the local coordinating entity, requires a management plan within 3 years, and limits federal assistance authority to 15 years.

Key Policy Areas

Public Lands, Tourism, Historic Preservation

Primary Purpose

The bill designates the Finger Lakes National Heritage Area in 14 New York counties, names the Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance as the local coordinating entity, requires a management plan within 3 years, and limits federal assistance authority to 15 years.

Policy Domains

Public Lands Tourism Historic Preservation

Section 2 - Finger Lakes National Heritage Area designation

Identified Gains
  • Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance
  • Tourism businesses in the Finger Lakes region
  • Historic-preservation organizations in New York
  • County governments in the Finger Lakes region
Model: codex-gpt-5 | Version: bill_summary_v2 | Source: is
Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance:
County governments in the Finger Lakes region:
Tourism businesses in the Finger Lakes region:
Historic-preservation organizations in New York:
Identified Costs
  • Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance staff
  • Secretary of the Interior and National Park Service staff
  • Federal taxpayers
Model: codex-gpt-5 | Version: bill_summary_v2 | Source: is
Federal taxpayers:
Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance staff:
Secretary of the Interior and National Park Service staff:

Legislative Progress

Reported
Introduced Committee Passed
Jun 10, 2026

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported …

Apr 3, 2025

Mrs. Gillibrand introduced the following bill; which was read twice …

Apr 3, 2025

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and …

Apr 3, 2025

Introduced in Senate

Stakeholder Effects

cui bono?

How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.

Government
3 mentions across 1 clause
+1 positive -2 negative

County governments in the Finger Lakes region, Secretary of the Interior heritage-area staff, Taxpayers

Positive-direction: County governments in the Finger Lakes region

Negative-direction: Secretary of the Interior heritage-area staff, Taxpayers

Travel And Tourism
2 mentions across 1 clause
+2 positive

Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance, Tourism businesses in the Finger Lakes region

1/2
sections analyzed
Full impact breakdown

Bill Structure & Actor Mappings

Who is "The Secretary" in each section?

Domains
Public Lands Tourism Historic Preservation
Actor Mappings
"Secretary"
→ Secretary of the Interior
"local coordinating entity"
→ Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance

Key Definitions

Terms defined in this bill

1 term
"Finger Lakes National Heritage Area" §2-area

A National Heritage Area in 14 named New York counties.

We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.

Learn more about our methodology