Congress needs to pass Petersburg battlefield bill

Earlier this month, U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, both Virginia Democrats, introduced legislation that would more than triple the size of Petersburg National Battlefield as the state and nation marks the 150th anniversary of the battles fought in the Siege of Petersburg.

Warner and Kaine’s legislation looks to protect some of the most endangered Civil War battlefields in the country by authorizing the National Park Service to acquire more than 7,000 acres to add to the battlefield, which currently protects more than 2,500 acres of battlefields and historic buildings that were involved in Gen. Ulysses S. Grant’s 10-month Siege of Petersburg from June 1864 to April 1865.

The effort to expand the battlefield as been a bipartisan endeavor among Virginia's congressional delegation for years. Lawmakers have introduced this bill a number of times during the last decade in both the House and Senate. U.S. Rep. Randy Forbes, R-4th; then-U.S. Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., and Warner have all introduced similar legislation in the last six years, however, it has never made it out of either governing body.

But now is the time for Congress to act while the Civil War sesquicentennial draws to a close.

The legislation looks to give the Park Service the authority to go forward with its Final General Management Plan of 2005. The land identified for inclusion was the site of 18 major battles during the Civil War and are currently in danger of being lost to development. These sites are not currently protected and have been identified by the Civil War Trust as one of the most endangered group of historic battlefields in the country.

If passed, Petersburg National Battlefield would become the largest Civil War historic battlefield in the nation. The acquired parcels would be mostly less than 100 acres in size. Three are more than 1,000 acres each and include land near the Five Forks, Hatcher's Run and White Oak Road units.

The proposed legislation also does not spend any money and only authorizes the acquisition of land. It also authorizes one small land transfer between Fort Lee and the battlefield.

Preserving this hallowed ground where Americans died in battle is the morally right thing to do. It is also the smart thing to do - the preserved land acts as natural space for recreational purposes and helps attract visitors to the region.

A 2013 report by the Civil War Trust found that tourism at Civil War sites creates a windfall for local economies and governments. The report said Civil War visitors in Virginia stay twice as long and spend double the money of the average tourist.

Expanding Petersburg National Battlefield is not only the right thing to do, it is the smart thing to do. Now if only Congress could pass a bill that does not cost the federal government a dime of taxpayer money.

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