H. R. 1442

One Hundred Eighth Congress

of the

United States of America

AT THE FIRST SESSION

Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,

the seventh day of January, two thousand and three

An Act

To authorize the design and construction of a visitor center for the Vietnam Veterans

Memorial.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of

the United States of America in Congress assembled,

TITLE I—VIETNAM VETERANS

MEMORIAL VISITOR CENTER

SEC. 101. VISITOR CENTER.

Public Law 96–297 (16 U.S.C. 431 note) is amended by adding

at the end the following:

‘‘SEC. 6. VISITOR CENTER.

‘‘(a) AUTHORIZATION.—

‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund,

Inc., is authorized to construct a visitor center at or near

the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on Federal land in the District

of Columbia, or its environs, subject to the provisions of this

section, in order to better inform and educate the public about

the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the Vietnam War.

‘‘(2) LOCATION.—The visitor center shall be located underground.

‘‘(3) CONSULTATION ON DESIGN PHASE.—The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Inc., shall consult with educators, veterans groups, and the National Park Service in developing

the proposed design of the visitor center.

‘‘(b) COMPLIANCE WITH STANDARDS APPLICABLE TO COMMEMORATIVE WORKS.—Chapter 89 of title 40, United States Code, shall

apply, including provisions related to the siting, design, construction, and maintenance of the visitor center, and the visitor center

shall be considered a commemorative work for the purposes of

that Act, except that—

‘‘(1) final approval of the visitor center shall not be withheld;

‘‘(2) the provisions of subsections (b) and (c) of section

8908 of title 40, United States Code, requiring further approval

by law for the location of a commemorative work within Area

I and prohibiting the siting of a visitor center within the

Reserve shall not apply;

‘‘(3) the size of the visitor center shall be limited to the

minimum necessary—
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‘‘(A) to provide for appropriate educational and

interpretive functions; and

‘‘(B) to prevent interference or encroachment on the

Vietnam Veterans Memorial and to protect open space

and visual sightlines on the Mall; and

‘‘(4) the visitor center shall be constructed and landscaped

in a manner harmonious with the site of the Vietnam Veterans

Memorial, consistent with the special nature and sanctity of

the Mall.

‘‘(c) OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE.—

‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior shall—

‘‘(A) operate and maintain the visitor center, except

that the Secretary shall enter into a written agreement

with the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Inc., for specified maintenance needs of the visitor center, as determined

by the Secretary; and

‘‘(B) as soon as practicable, in consultation with educators and veterans groups, develop a written interpretive

plan for the visitor center in accordance with National

Park Service policy.

‘‘(2) DONATION FOR PERPETUAL MAINTENANCE AND

PRESERVATION.—Paragraph (1)(A) does not waive the requirements of section 8906(b) of title 40, United States Code, with

respect to the visitor center.

‘‘(d) FUNDING.—The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Inc.,

shall be solely responsible for acceptance of contributions for, and

payment of expenses of, the establishment of the visitor center.

No Federal funds shall be used to pay any expense of the establishment of the visitor center.’’.

TITLE II—COMMEMORATIVE WORKS

SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE.

This title may be cited as the ‘‘Commemorative Works Clarification and Revision Act of 2003’’.

SEC. 202. ESTABLISHMENT OF RESERVE.

(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—

(1) the great cross-axis of the Mall in the District of

Columbia, which generally extends from the United States

Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial, and from the White House

to the Jefferson Memorial, is a substantially completed work

of civic art; and

(2) to preserve the integrity of the Mall, a reserve area

should be designated within the core of the great cross-axis

of the Mall where the siting of new commemorative works

is prohibited.

(b) RESERVE.—Section 8908 of title 40, United States Code,

is amended by adding at the end the following:

‘‘(c) RESERVE.—After the date of enactment of the Commemorative Works Clarification and Revision Act of 2003, no commemorative work or visitor center shall be located within the Reserve.’’.

SEC. 203. CLARIFYING AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

(a) PURPOSES.—Section 8901(2) of title 40, United States Code,

is amended by striking ‘‘Columbia;’’ and inserting ‘‘Columbia and
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its environs, and to encourage the location of commemorative works

within the urban fabric of the District of Columbia;’’.

(b) DEFINITIONS.—Section 8902 of title 40, United States Code,

is amended by striking subsection (a) and inserting the following:

‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this chapter:

‘‘(1) COMMEMORATIVE WORK.—The term ‘commemorative

work’ means any statue, monument, sculpture, memorial,

plaque, inscription, or other structure or landscape feature,

including a garden or memorial grove, designed to perpetuate

in a permanent manner the memory of an individual, group,

event or other significant element of American history, except

that the term does not include any such item which is located

within the interior of a structure or a structure which is primarily used for other purposes.

‘‘(2) THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA AND ITS ENVIRONS.—The

term ‘the District of Columbia and its environs’ means those

lands and properties administered by the National Park Service

and the General Services Administration located in the Reserve,

Area I, and Area II as depicted on the map entitled ‘Commemorative Areas Washington, DC and Environs’, numbered 869/

86501 B, and dated June 24, 2003.

‘‘(3) RESERVE.—The term ‘Reserve’ means the great crossaxis of the Mall, which generally extends from the United

States Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial, and from the White

House to the Jefferson Memorial, as depicted on the map referenced in paragraph (2).

‘‘(4) SPONSOR.—The term ‘sponsor’ means a public agency,

or an individual, group or organization that is described in

section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and

exempt from tax under section 501(a) of such Code, and which

is authorized by Congress to establish a commemorative work

in the District of Columbia and its environs.’’.

(c) AUTHORIZATION.—Section 8903 of title 40, United States

Code, is amended—

(1) in subsection (b)—

(A) by striking ‘‘work commemorating a lesser conflict’’

and inserting ‘‘work solely commemorating a limited military engagement’’; and

(B) by striking ‘‘the event’’ and inserting ‘‘such war

or conflict’’;

(2) in subsection (d)—

(A) by striking ‘‘CONSULTATION WITH NATIONAL CAPITAL MEMORIAL COMMISSION.—’’ and inserting ‘‘CONSULTATION WITH NATIONAL CAPITAL MEMORIAL ADVISORY

COMMISSION.—’’;

(B) by striking ‘‘House Administration’’ and inserting

‘‘Resources’’; and

(C) by inserting ‘‘Advisory’’ before ‘‘Commission’’; and

(3) by striking subsection (e) and inserting the following:

‘‘(e) EXPIRATION OF LEGISLATIVE AUTHORITY.—Any legislative

authority for a commemorative work shall expire at the end of

the seven-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of

such authority, or at the end of the seven-year period beginning

on the date of the enactment of legislative authority to locate

the commemorative work within Area I, if such additional authority

has been granted, unless—
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‘‘(1) the Secretary of the Interior or the Administrator

of General Services (as appropriate) has issued a construction

permit for the commemorative work during that period; or

‘‘(2) the Secretary or the Administrator (as appropriate),

in consultation with the National Capital Memorial Advisory

Commission, has made a determination that—

‘‘(A) final design approvals have been obtained from

the National Capital Planning Commission and the

Commission of Fine Arts; and

‘‘(B) 75 percent of the amount estimated to be required

to complete the commemorative work has been raised.

If these two conditions have been met, the Secretary or the Administrator (as appropriate) may extend the seven-year legislative

authority for a period not to exceed three additional years. Upon

expiration of the legislative authority, any previous site and design

approvals shall also expire.’’.

(d) NATIONAL CAPITAL MEMORIAL ADVISORY COMMISSION.—Section 8904 of title 40, United States Code, is amended—

(1) in the heading, by inserting ‘‘Advisory’’ before

‘‘Commission’’;

(2) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘There is a National’’

and all that follows through ‘‘consists of’’ and inserting the

following: ‘‘There is established the National Capital Memorial

Advisory Commission, which shall be composed of’’;

(3) in subsection (c)—

(A) by inserting ‘‘Advisory’’ before ‘‘Commission shall’’;

and

(B) by striking ‘‘Services’’ and inserting ‘‘Services (as

appropriate)’’; and

(4) in subsection (d) by inserting ‘‘Advisory’’ before

‘‘Commission’’.

(e) SITE AND DESIGN APPROVAL.—Section 8905 of title 40,

United States Code, is amended—

(1) in subsection (a)—

(A) by striking ‘‘person’’ each place it appears and

inserting ‘‘sponsor’’; and

(B) in paragraph (1)—

(i) by inserting ‘‘Advisory’’ before ‘‘Commission’’;

and

(ii) by striking ‘‘designs’’ and inserting ‘‘design concepts’’; and

(2) in subsection (b)—

(A) by striking ‘‘Secretary, and Administrator’’ and

inserting ‘‘and the Secretary or Administrator (as appropriate)’’; and

(B) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking, ‘‘open space and

existing public use.’’ and inserting ‘‘open space, existing

public use, and cultural and natural resources.’’.

(f) CRITERIA FOR ISSUANCE OF CONSTRUCTION PERMIT.—Section

8906 of title 40, United States Code, is amended—

(1) in subsection (a)(3) and (a)(4) by striking ‘‘person’’ and

inserting ‘‘sponsor’’; and

(2) by striking subsection (b) and inserting the following: ‘‘(b) DONATION FOR PERPETUAL MAINTENANCE AND PRESERVATION.—

‘‘(1) In addition to the criteria described above in subsection

(a), no construction permit shall be issued unless the sponsor
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authorized to construct the commemorative work has donated

an amount equal to 10 percent of the total estimated cost

of construction to offset the costs of perpetual maintenance

and preservation of the commemorative work. All such amounts

shall be available for those purposes pursuant to the provisions

of this subsection. The provisions of this subsection shall not

apply in instances when the commemorative work is constructed by a Department or agency of the Federal Government

and less than 50 percent of the funding for such work is

provided by private sources.

‘‘(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, money

on deposit in the Treasury on the date of enactment of the

Commemorative Works Clarification and Revision Act of 2003

provided by a sponsor for maintenance pursuant to this subsection shall be credited to a separate account in the Treasury.

‘‘(3) Money provided by a sponsor pursuant to the provisions

of this subsection after the date of enactment of the Commemorative Works Clarification and Revision Act of 2003 shall be

credited to a separate account with the National Park Foundation.

‘‘(4) Upon request of the Secretary or Administrator (as

appropriate), the Secretary of the Treasury or the National

Park Foundation shall make all or a portion of such moneys

available to the Secretary or the Administrator (as appropriate)

for the maintenance of a commemorative work. Under no circumstances may the Secretary or Administrator request funds

from a separate account exceeding the total money in the

account established under paragraph (2) or (3). The Secretary

and the Administrator shall maintain an inventory of funds

available for such purposes. Funds provided under this paragraph shall be available without further appropriation and

shall remain available until expended.’’.

(g) AREAS I AND II.—Section 8908(a) of title 40, United States

Code, is amended—

(1) by striking ‘‘Secretary of the Interior and Administrator

of General Services’’ and inserting ‘‘Secretary of the Interior

or the Administrator of General Services (as appropriate)’’;

and

(2) by striking ‘‘numbered 869/86581, and dated May 1,

1986’’ and inserting ‘‘entitled ‘Commemorative Areas Washington, DC and Environs’, numbered 869/86501 B, and dated

June 24, 2003’’.

SEC. 204. SITE AND DESIGN CRITERIA.

Section 8905(b) of title 40, United States Code (as amended

by section 203(e)), is amended by adding at the end the following:

‘‘(5) MUSEUMS.—No commemorative work primarily

designed as a museum may be located on lands under the

jurisdiction of the Secretary in Area I or in East Potomac

Park as depicted on the map referenced in section 8902(2).

‘‘(6) SITE-SPECIFIC GUIDELINES.—The National Capital Planning Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts may develop

such criteria or guidelines specific to each site that are mutually

agreed upon to ensure that the design of the commemorative

work carries out the purposes of this chapter.
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‘‘(7) DONOR CONTRIBUTIONS.—Donor contributions to

commemorative works shall not be acknowledged in any

manner as part of the commemorative work or its site.’’.

SEC. 205. NO EFFECT ON PREVIOUSLY APPROVED SITES.

Except for the provision in the amendment made by section

202(b) prohibiting a visitor center from being located in the Reserve

(as defined in section 8902 of title 40, United States Code), nothing

in this title shall apply to a commemorative work for which a

site was approved in accordance with chapter 89 of title 40, United

States Code, prior to the date of enactment of this title.

SEC. 206. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE REPORTS.

Within 6 months after the date of enactment of this title,

the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the National

Capital Planning Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts,

shall submit to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

of the United States Senate, and to the Committee on Resources

of the United States House of Representatives reports setting forth

plans for the following:

(1) To relocate, as soon as practicable after the date of

enactment of this Act, the National Park Service’s stable and

maintenance facilities that are within the Reserve (as defined

in section 8902 of title 40, United States Code).

(2) To relocate, redesign or otherwise alter the concession

facilities that are within the Reserve to the extent necessary

to make them compatible with the Reserve’s character.

(3) To limit the sale or distribution of permitted merchandise to those areas where such activities are less intrusive

upon the Reserve, and to relocate any existing sale or distribution structures that would otherwise be inconsistent with the

plan.

(4) To make other appropriate changes, if any, to protect

the character of the Reserve.

Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Vice President of the United States and

President of the Senate.