American Heritage Corridor Study Act of 1996 - Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to provide technical and financial assistance to State and local partners (a cooperative working group comprised of Vermont and New York State and local officials and other interested persons) in developing and conducting a study of the area of the Champlain Valley, upper Hudson River Valley, and Lake George in Vermont and New York (Corridor) to: (1) determine the important conflicts that occurred in the Corridor between 1609 and 1865; (2) identify the cultural and natural resources associated with these conflicts; (3) determine which resources best illustrate such conflicts; (4) assess the suitability and feasibility for incorporation of those resources into the Corridor; (5) conduct an economic analysis of the effects that incorporation would have on the immediate area that contains the resources; and (6) identify potential management entities to coordinate resources included in the Corridor.
Directs the Secretary to facilitate consultation among the Secretary, the State and local partners, and officials of Canada and the Province of Quebec to determine means of linking historic sites along the Richelieu River and related U.S. sites in the Corridor.
Provides that after completion of the study, the Secretary is: (1) authorized to provide assistance to the State and local partners in preparation of a general management plan for the Corridor; and (2) required to make recommendations to the Congress on the areas within the Corridor that should be included in a congressionally designated American Heritage Corridor. Prohibits inclusion of private property within such recommendations without the owner's consent.
Authorizes appropriations.