All lands and easements heretofore and hereafter conveyed to the United States by the States of Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee for the right-of-way for the projected parkway between Natchez, Mississippi, and Nashville, Tennessee, together with sites acquired or to be acquired for recreational areas in connection therewith, and a right-of-way for said parkway of a width sufficient to include the highway and all bridges, ditches, cuts, and fills appurtenant thereto, but not exceeding a maximum of two hundred feet through Government-owned lands (except that where small parcels of Government-owned lands would otherwise be isolated, or where topographic conditions or scenic requirements are such that bridges, ditches, cuts, fills, parking overlooks, and landscape development could not reasonably be confined to a width of two hundred feet, the said maximum may be increased to such width as may be necessary, with the written approval of the department or agency having jurisdiction over such lands) as designated on maps heretofore or hereafter approved by the Secretary of the Interior, shall be known as the Natchez Trace Parkway and shall be administered and maintained by the Secretary of the Interior through the National Park Service, subject to the provisions of the Act of Congress approved August 25, 1916 (39 Stat. 535), entitled “An Act to establish a National Park Service, and for other purposes”,1

To facilitate the administration of two areas of the national park system, known as Ackia Battleground National Monument, Mississippi, and Meriwether Lewis National Monument, Tennessee, those areas are included in the Natchez Trace Parkway, which they adjoin; and they shall be administered as a part of the parkway. In order to provide continued recognition of the significance of these portions of the parkway, the Secretary of the Interior shall provide them with appropriate designations in accordance with the historical events which occurred on them.

In the administration of the Natchez Trace Parkway, the Secretary of the Interior may issue revocable licenses or permits for rights-of-way over, across, and upon parkway lands, or for the use of parkway lands by the owners or lessees of adjacent lands, for such purposes and under such nondiscriminatory terms, regulations, and conditions as he may determine to be not inconsistent with the use of such lands for parkway purposes.

The Secretary of the Interior is authorized, in his discretion, to approve and accept, on behalf of the United States, title to any lands and interests in land heretofore or hereafter conveyed to the United States for the purposes of the Blue Ridge or the Natchez Trace Parkways, or for recreational areas in connection therewith.

All lands and easements heretofore or hereafter conveyed to the United States by the States of Virginia and North Carolina for the right-of-way for the projected parkway between the Shenandoah and Great Smoky Mountains National Parks, together with sites acquired or to be acquired for recreational areas in connection therewith, and a right-of-way for said parkway of a width sufficient to include the highway and all bridges, ditches, cuts, and fills appurtenant thereto, but not exceeding a maximum of two hundred feet through Government-owned lands (except that where small parcels of Government-owned lands would otherwise be isolated, or where topographic conditions or scenic requirements are such that bridges, ditches, cuts, fills, parking overlooks, landscape development, recreational and other facilities requisite to public use of said parkway could not reasonably be confined to a width of two hundred feet, the said maximum may be increased to such width as may be necessary, with the written approval of the department or agency having jurisdiction over such lands) as designated on maps heretofore or hereafter approved by the Secretary of the Interior, shall be known as the Blue Ridge Parkway and shall be administered and maintained by the Secretary of the Interior through the National Park Service, subject to the provisions of the Act of Congress approved August 25, 1916 (39 Stat. 535), entitled “An Act to establish a National Park Service, and for other purposes”,1

In the administration of the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Secretary of the Interior may issue revocable licenses or permits for rights-of-way over, across, and upon parkway lands, or for the use of parkway lands by the owners or lessees of adjacent lands, for such purposes and under such nondiscriminatory terms, regulations, and conditions as he may determine to be not inconsistent with the use of such lands for parkway purposes.

When in his judgment the public interest will be served thereby, the Secretary of the Interior is authorized, upon concurrence of the Secretary of Agriculture, to transfer to the jurisdiction of the Secretary of Agriculture for national forest purposes lands or interests in lands acquired for or in connection with the Blue Ridge Parkway. Lands transferred under this section shall become national forest lands subject to all laws, rules, and regulations applicable to lands acquired pursuant to the Weeks Law of March 1, 1911 (36 Stat. 961), as amended.

In order to consolidate, on the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Natchez Trace Parkway, the land forming each such parkway, to adjust ownership lines, and to eliminate hazardous crossings of and accesses to these parkways, the Secretary of the Interior is authorized to acquire, by purchase or exchange, land and interests in land contiguous to the parkways. In consummating exchanges under this section, the Secretary may transfer parkway land, interests therein, and easements: Provided, That the property rights so exchanged shall be approximately equal in value.

The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to accept, on behalf of the United States, donations of land and interests in land in the States of North Carolina and Georgia, to construct thereon an extension of the Blue Ridge Parkway from the vicinity of Beech Gap, North Carolina, to the vicinity of Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park north of Atlanta and Marietta, Georgia, and to provide public use, administration, and maintenance areas in connection therewith. The lands accepted for the parkway extension may vary in width but shall average not more than one hundred and twenty-five acres per mile in fee simple plus not more than twenty-five acres per mile in scenic easements. The survey location and width of any portion of the parkway extension that crosses national forest land shall be jointly determined by the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture. Where the parkway extension designated by the Secretary of the Interior traverses Federal lands, the head of the department or agency having jurisdiction over such lands is authorized to transfer to the Secretary of the Interior the part of the Federal lands mutually agreed upon as necessary for the construction, maintenance and administration of the parkway extension and public use thereof, without transfer of funds. Any such transfer within a national forest shall not preclude any national forest use that is compatible with parkway use and that is agreed upon by the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture.

The Secretary of the Interior may issue revocable licenses or permits for rights-of-way over, across, and upon parkway lands, or for the use of parkway lands by the owners or lessees of adjacent lands, or for such purposes and under such terms and conditions as he may determine to be consistent with the use of such lands for parkway purposes.

The parkway extension herein authorized shall be a part of the Blue Ridge Parkway and shall be administered and maintained by the Secretary of the Interior in accordance with the laws and regulations applicable thereto, including section 460a–4 of this title.

With the concurrence of the Secretary of Agriculture the Secretary of the Interior may transfer to the Secretary of Agriculture for national forest purposes lands or interests in lands within national forests acquired for, or in connection with, the parkway extension.

There is hereby authorized to be appropriated, for construction of the Blue Ridge Parkway extension, not more than $87,536,000, plus or minus such amounts, if any, as may be justified by reason of fluctuations in construction costs as indicated by engineering cost indices applicable to the type of construction involved herein.