Bill Details
S.730 - 119th Congress
Status
Latest action
2025-12-09 - Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on National Parks. Hearings held.
Introduced Date
2025-02-25
Policy Area
Public Lands and Natural Resources
Committees
View committees (1)
Cosponsors
View cosponsors (1)
6
0
0
AI Summary This summary was generated by AI from the bill text. AI can get information wrong.
This bill would ask the Secretary of the Interior to study whether it would make sense to create a new museum and educational center at the African Burial Ground National Monument in New York City. The proposed center would honor enslaved Africans buried there, teach visitors about African cultural traditions and the history of slavery, and provide space for exhibits, artifacts, and research. The study would also look at whether the museum could work with other major museums and organizations, how it could be managed, where it could be located, and how much it might cost. The bill does not create the museum right away; it only requires a report before any final decision is made.
- The study must be done with input from state and local historic groups, tourism offices, and other related organizations.
- It would examine whether the museum could serve as a lasting memorial to the people buried at the African Burial Ground and to other Africans enslaved around the world.
- The review would look at possible collections, including historical items and, if appropriate, DNA samples from remains that could help trace ancestral roots in Africa.
- Within 3 years after funding starts, the Secretary must send Congress a report with the study results, possible locations, expected costs, and recommendations.
Official Summaries
No summaries available
Current Full Text
[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 730 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 730
To direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study to assess
the suitability and feasibility of establishing the African Burial
Ground International Memorial Museum and Educational Center at the
African Burial Ground National Monument, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 25, 2025
Mrs. Gillibrand introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study to assess
the suitability and feasibility of establishing the African Burial
Ground International Memorial Museum and Educational Center at the
African Burial Ground National Monument, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``African Burial Ground International
Memorial Museum and Educational Center Study Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Museum.--The term ``Museum'' means the African Burial
Ground International Memorial Museum and Educational Center.
(2) National monument.--The term ``National Monument''
means the African Burial Ground National Monument in the city
of New York, New York.
(3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of the Interior, acting through the Director of the National
Park Service.
(4) State.--The term ``State'' means the State of New York.
SEC. 3. AFRICAN BURIAL GROUND INTERNATIONAL MEMORIAL MUSEUM AND
EDUCATIONAL CENTER STUDY.
(a) Study.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary, in consultation with State
and local historic preservation officers, State and local
historical societies, State and local tourism offices, and
other appropriate organizations and government agencies, shall
conduct a study to assess the suitability and feasibility of
establishing a museum and educational center at the National
Monument, to be known as the ``African Burial Ground
International Memorial Museum and Educational Center''--
(A) to serve as a permanent living memorial and
special tribute--
(i) to the enslaved who are buried at the
African Burial Ground; and
(ii) to other Africans who were enslaved in
the United States and other parts of the world;
(B) to reflect on the significance of the African
Burial Ground;
(C) to examine the African cultural traditions
brought to the United States by the enslaved;
(D) to explore in-depth the institution of slavery
in the United States and other parts of the world;
(E) to provide a space for--
(i) permanent and temporary exhibits; and
(ii) the collection and study of artifacts
and documents;
(F) to encourage collaboration between the Museum
and the National Museum of African American History and
Culture, other museums, historically Black colleges and
universities, historical societies, educational
institutions, and other appropriate entities and
organizations, such as the African Burial Ground
Memorial Foundation, including collaboration with
respect to--
(i) the development of cooperative programs
and exhibitions, including through digital,
electronic, and interactive technologies;
(ii) the identification, management, and
care of Museum collections; and
(iii) the training of Museum and National
Park Service professionals and other persons
concerned with heritage preservation; and
(G) in addition to any collaboration encouraged
under subparagraph (F), to be associated with the
National Museum of African American History and
Culture, in a manner to be determined by the Secretary,
in consultation with the Board of Regents of the
Smithsonian Institution.
(2) Requirements.--The study conducted under paragraph (1)
shall include analysis, documentation, and determinations
regarding whether--
(A) there is an assemblage of collections to be
acquired and housed in the Museum that--
(i) represent distinctive aspects of
African cultural traditions brought to the
United States by the enslaved;
(ii) are worthy of recognition,
conservation, and interpretation;
(iii) are important to any identified
themes of the Museum;
(iv) include DNA samples of well-preserved
human remains that would enable researchers to
trace home ``roots'' in Africa of those
individuals buried at the African Burial
Ground; and
(v) are unlike any other anthropological
collection in other symbolic sites;
(B) the Museum provides outstanding opportunities--
(i) to understand how the international
slave trade contributed to the African
diaspora;
(ii) to explore in-depth the institution of
slavery, as practiced in other parts of the
world and in urban, rural, northern, and
southern parts of the United States; and
(iii) to help the people of the United
States understand the past and honor the
history of all people in the United States;
(C) residents, business interests, State and local
governments, and nonprofit organizations, such as the
African Burial Ground Memorial Foundation--
(i) are involved in the planning of the
Museum;
(ii) have developed a conceptual financial
plan that outlines the roles of all
participants in the Museum, including the
Federal Government; and
(iii) have demonstrated support for the
designation of the Museum;
(D) the Secretary of the Interior, the
Administrator of the General Services Administration,
or other potential management entities would be best
suited to operate the Museum; and
(E) the public supports the proposed location for
the Museum at--
(i) 22 Reade Street, which is adjacent to
the National Monument; or
(ii) any area within the National Monument
other than the area described in clause (i).
(b) Report.--Not later than 3 years after the date on which funds
are first made available to carry out this Act, the Secretary shall
submit to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate
and the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives
a report that describes--
(1) the results of the study under subsection (a),
including a description of--
(A) the availability and cost of collections to be
acquired and housed in the Museum;
(B) criteria for evaluating possible locations for
the Museum in the State; and
(C) the costs of acquiring property for,
constructing, operating, and maintaining the Museum;
and
(2) any conclusions and recommendations of the Secretary.
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