II 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 527 

To establish the African Burial Ground International Memorial Museum and 

Educational Center in New York, New York, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 27, 2023 

Mrs. GILLIBRAND introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To establish the African Burial Ground International Memorial Museum and Educational Center in New York, New 

York, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘African Burial Ground 

5 International Memorial Museum and Educational Center 

6 Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

8 Congress finds that— 

9 (1) the African Burial Ground National His10 toric Landmark in New York, New York, holds the 


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1 remains of up to 20,000 enslaved Africans and 

2 early-generation African Americans from the colonial 

3 era; 

4 (2) the Africans and African Americans that 

5 suffered under slavery show us the strength of the 

6 human character and provide us with a model of 

7 courage, commitment, and perseverance; 

8 (3) as President George W. Bush stated on 

9 July 8, 2003, during his remarks at Goree Island, 

10 Senegal: ‘‘For 250 years the captives endured an as11 sault on their culture and their dignity. The spirit 

12 of Africans in America did not break. . . . All the 

13 generations of oppression under the laws of man 

14 could not crush the hope of freedom and defeat the 

15 purposes of God.’’; 

16 (4) on February 27, 2006, President George W. 

17 Bush established the National Monument, which was 

18 comprised of the approximately 15,000-square foot 

19 parcel of the National Historic Landmark that was 

20 bounded by Duane and Elk Streets in Lower Man21 hattan; 

22 (5) an international memorial museum facility 

23 dedicated to those individuals who suffered the grave 

24 injustice of slavery in the United States, while at the 

25 same time helping to build the country, would— 


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1 (A) reflect the significance of the African 

2 Burial Ground; and 

3 (B) help the people of the United States 

4 understand the past and honor the history of all 

5 people in the United States; 

6 (6) in 1998, the Secretary of the Smithsonian 

7 Institution— 

8 (A) stated that the African Burial Ground 

9 affords the perfect opportunity to gain insight 

10 into— 

11 (i) the institution of slavery, as prac12 ticed in urban, rural, northern, and south13 ern parts of the United States; and 

14 (ii) the international slave trade; and 

15 (B) proposed that a partnership be formed 

16 among the Smithsonian, the National Park 

17 Service, and the General Services Administra18 tion to further develop the African Burial 

19 Ground; 

20 (7) the National Museum of African American 

21 History and Culture Act (20 U.S.C. 80r et seq.), 

22 which authorized construction of a museum in 

23 Washington, DC, identified the period of slavery as 

24 one of the periods of the African-American diaspora 

25 that would be encompassed by the museum; 


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1 (8) the African Burial Ground— 

2 (A) is unlike any other anthropological and 

3 symbolic site in the United States or the world; 

4 (B) includes DNA samples from the re5 markably well-preserved human remains that 

6 will enable researchers to trace the home 

7 ‘‘roots’’ in Africa of those individuals buried at 

8 the African Burial Ground; and 

9 (C) provides a fitting location for a na10 tional memorial facility, relating to the National 

11 Museum of African American History and Cul12 ture that would— 

13 (i) pay special tribute to— 

14 (I) the thousands of enslaved in15 dividuals who are buried at the Afri16 can Burial Ground; and 

17 (II) all of the individuals who 

18 were enslaved during the history of 

19 the United States; 

20 (ii) examine the African cultural tra21 ditions brought to the United States by the 

22 enslaved; and 

23 (iii) explore in-depth the institution of 

24 slavery; 


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1 (9) a memorial museum at the site of the Afri2 can Burial Ground— 

3 (A) was first recommended by a Federal 

4 steering committee in 1992; and 

5 (B) in conjunction with the World Trade 

6 Center memorial and other nearby sites, would 

7 attract millions of visitors from the United 

8 States and abroad, making a substantial con9 tribution to the development and revitalization 

10 of Lower Manhattan in response to the attacks 

11 on the World Trade Center of September 11, 

12 2001; 

13 (10) Public Law 99–511 (100 Stat. 2080) en14 couraged support for the establishment of a com15 memorative structure within the National Park Sys16 tem or on other Federal land that is dedicated to the 

17 promotion of understanding, knowledge, opportunity, 

18 and equality for all people; 

19 (11) similar to the National Museum of the Na20 tive American that was established by section 3(a) of 

21 the National Museum of the American Indian Act 

22 (20 U.S.C. 80q–1(a)), a memorial museum at the 

23 site of the African Burial Ground would benefit from 

24 a partnership among— 

25 (A) the Federal Government; 


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1 (B) the State of New York; 

2 (C) the city of New York; and 

3 (D) members of the private sector; 

4 (12) the African Burial Ground— 

5 (A) has been determined to be nationally 

6 significant as— 

7 (i) a National Historic Landmark; 

8 and 

9 (ii) a National Monument; and 

10 (B) provides an important opportunity for 

11 interpretation, understanding, partnership, and 

12 pride; and 

13 (13) the National Park Service— 

14 (A) has played an important role in the de15 velopment of the African Burial Ground (in16 cluding the designation of the African Burial 

17 Ground as a National Monument); 

18 (B) successfully operates other national fa19 cilities in the city of New York that symbolize 

20 freedom and the quest for freedom in America, 

21 including— 

22 (i) the Statue of Liberty National 

23 Monument; and 

24 (ii) the Ellis Island National Monu25 ment; 


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1 (C) provided key support to the Presi2 dential Study Commission for the National Mu3 seum of African American History and Culture; 

4 and 

5 (D) is well-suited to assume a leadership 

6 role with respect to the creation of the Museum. 

7 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

8 In this Act: 

9 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis10 trator’’ means the Administrator of the General 

11 Services Administration. 

12 (2) ADVISORY COUNCIL.—The term ‘‘Advisory 

13 Council’’ means the African Burial Ground Advisory 

14 Council established by section 7(a). 

15 (3) CITY.—The term ‘‘City’’ means the city of 

16 New York, New York. 

17 (4) EXPANSION PROPERTY.—The term ‘‘expan18 sion property’’ means the property that is acquired 

19 by the Secretary under section 5(a). 

20 (5) MUSEUM.—The term ‘‘Museum’’ means the 

21 African Burial Ground International Memorial Mu22 seum and Educational Center established by section 

23 4(a). 


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1 (6) NATIONAL LANDMARK.—The term ‘‘Na2 tional Landmark’’ means the African Burial Ground 

3 National Historic Landmark in the City. 

4 (7) NATIONAL MONUMENT.—The term ‘‘Na5 tional Monument’’ means the African Burial Ground 

6 National Monument in the City. 

7 (8) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

8 the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Di9 rector of the National Park Service. 

10 (9) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State 

11 of New York. 

12 SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF MUSEUM. 

13 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established at the 

14 National Monument a memorial museum and educational 

15 center, to be known as the ‘‘African Burial Ground Inter16 national Memorial Museum and Educational Center’’. 

17 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the Museum are— 

18 (1) to serve as a permanent living memorial— 

19 (A) to the enslaved who are buried at the 

20 African Burial Ground; and 

21 (B) to other Africans and African Ameri22 cans who were enslaved; 

23 (2) to examine the African cultural traditions 

24 brought to the United States by the enslaved; 


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1 (3) to explore in-depth the institution of slavery 

2 in the United States and other parts of the world; 

3 (4) to provide a space for— 

4 (A) permanent and temporary exhibits; 

5 and 

6 (B) the collection and study of artifacts 

7 and documents; and 

8 (5) to encourage collaboration between the Mu9 seum and the National Museum of African American 

10 History and Culture, other museums, historically 

11 Black colleges and universities, historical societies, 

12 educational institutions, and other appropriate enti13 ties and organizations, including collaboration with 

14 respect to— 

15 (A) the development of cooperative pro16 grams and exhibitions, including through dig17 ital, electronic, and interactive technologies; 

18 (B) the identification, management, and 

19 care of Museum collections; and 

20 (C) the training of Museum and National 

21 Park Service professionals and other persons 

22 concerned with heritage preservation. 

23 (c) ASSOCIATION WITH NATIONAL MUSEUM.—The 

24 Museum shall become associated with the National Mu25 seum of African American History and Culture, in a manVerDate Sep 11 2014 06:22 Mar 07, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S527.IS S527

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1 ner to be determined by the Secretary, in consultation with 

2 the Advisory Council and the Board of Regents of the 

3 Smithsonian Institution. 

4 SEC. 5. SITE ACQUISITION AND DEVELOPMENT. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consultation 

6 with the Administrator, the Secretary of the Smithsonian 

7 Institution, the City, the State, and the Advisory Council, 

8 shall— 

9 (1) acquire for the Museum property that is lo10 cated— 

11 (A) adjacent to the National Monument; or 

12 (B) in any other area of the National 

13 Landmark other than the location described in 

14 subparagraph (A); and 

15 (2) plan, design, and construct the Museum on 

16 the property acquired under paragraph (1). 

(b) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Secretary shall pay 2 17 ⁄3

18 of the total costs of— 

19 (1) acquiring property for the Museum; and 

20 (2) planning, designing, constructing, recon21 structing, and renovating, as applicable, the Mu22 seum. 

23 (c) CONTRACTING AUTHORITY.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the Ad25 ministrator may enter into any agreements with 


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1 each other, the City, the State, and other parties 

2 that are necessary for the acquisition, by donation or 

3 other means, of property for— 

4 (A) establishing the Museum; and 

5 (B) planning, designing, constructing, re6 constructing, and renovating, as applicable, the 

7 Museum. 

8 (2) SITE ACQUISITION.—The Secretary may ac9 quire property under subsection (a)(1) by purchase, 

10 long-term lease, or any other appropriate means of 

11 acquisition, as determined by the Secretary. 

12 (d) EXPANSION OF NATIONAL MONUMENT.—The ex13 pansion property is incorporated in, and shall be managed 

14 as part of, the National Monument. 

15 SEC. 6. OPERATION OF THE MUSEUM. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consultation 

17 with the Advisory Council, shall operate the Museum. 

18 (b) AUTHORITIES.—The Secretary, in consultation 

19 with the Advisory Council, may— 

20 (1) purchase, accept, borrow, and otherwise ac21 quire artifacts for the collections of the Museum; 

22 (2) loan, exchange, sell, and otherwise dispose 

23 of any part of the collections of the Museum, if the 

24 proceeds of the disposition are used for additions to 

25 the collections of the Museum; 


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1 (3) specify criteria with respect to the use of 

2 the collections and resources of the Museum, includ3 ing policies on programming, education, exhibitions, 

4 and research; 

5 (4) provide for preservation, restoration, and 

6 maintenance of the collections of the Museum; 

7 (5) solicit, accept, use, and dispose of gifts, be8 quests, and devises of real and personal property for 

9 the purpose of facilitating the work of the Museum; 

10 (6) contract with such parties as may be nec11 essary to facilitate the operation of the Museum; 

12 (7) administer the National Monument as a 

13 unit of the National Park System in accordance 

14 with— 

15 (A) this Act; and 

16 (B) the laws generally applicable to units 

17 of the National Park System, including applica18 ble provisions of division A of subtitle I of title 

19 54, United States Code; and 

20 (8) conduct any other activities that are nec21 essary to carry out the purposes of this Act. 

22 SEC. 7. ADVISORY COUNCIL. 

23 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established within 

24 the Department of the Interior an advisory council to be 

25 known as the ‘‘African Burial Ground Advisory Council’’. 


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1 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

2 (1) COMPOSITION.—The Advisory Council shall 

3 be composed of the following members or their des4 ignees: 

5 (A) The Secretary, who shall serve as 

6 Chairperson of the Advisory Council. 

7 (B) The Director of the National Park 

8 Service. 

9 (C) The Secretary of the Smithsonian In10 stitution. 

11 (D) The Administrator. 

12 (E) The Governor of the State. 

13 (F) The Mayor of the City. 

14 (G) The President of the Borough of Man15 hattan. 

16 (H) Fourteen members, to be appointed by 

17 the Secretary, taking into consideration— 

18 (i) recommendations from organiza19 tions and entities that are committed to 

20 the legacy of the African Burial Ground; 

21 and 

22 (ii) recommendations from the mem23 bers of the Advisory Council. 


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1 (2) NONVOTING MEMBERS.—The Secretary 

2 may appoint as nonvoting members of the Advisory 

3 Council— 

4 (A) members of the United States Senate; 

5 (B) members of the House of Representa6 tives; 

7 (C) officials representing the City; 

8 (D) officials representing the State; and 

9 (E) any other individuals that the Sec10 retary, in consultation with the members of the 

11 Advisory Council, determines to be appropriate. 

12 (3) DATE OF APPOINTMENTS.—The initial ap13 pointment of a member under paragraph (1) shall be 

14 made not later than 180 days after the date of en15 actment of this Act. 

16 (c) TERMS.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para18 graph (2), each member of the Advisory Council 

19 shall be appointed for a term of 3 years. 

20 (2) INITIAL APPOINTEES.—Of the members 

21 first appointed under subsection (b)(1)(H)— 

22 (A) 5 members shall be appointed for a 

23 term of 1 year; 

24 (B) 5 members shall be appointed for a 

25 term of 2 years; and 


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1 (C) 4 members shall be appointed for a 

2 terms of 3 years. 

3 (3) REAPPOINTMENT.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—A member of the Advi5 sory Council may be reappointed, except that no 

6 individual may serve on the Advisory Council 

7 for a total of more than 2 terms. 

8 (B) VACANCY APPOINTMENTS.—For pur9 poses of subparagraph (A), the number of 

10 terms an individual serves on the Advisory 

11 Council shall not include any portion of a term 

12 for which an individual is appointed to fill a va13 cancy under paragraph (4)(B). 

14 (4) VACANCIES.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—A vacancy on the Advi16 sory Council— 

17 (i) shall not affect the powers of the 

18 Advisory Council; and 

19 (ii) shall be filled in the same manner 

20 as the original appointment was made. 

21 (B) TERM.—Any member of the Advisory 

22 Council appointed to fill a vacancy occurring 

23 before the expiration of the term for which the 

24 member’s predecessor was appointed shall be 

25 appointed for the remainder of that term. 


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1 (d) DUTIES.—The Advisory Council shall— 

2 (1) make recommendations to the Secretary on 

3 the planning, design, and construction of the Mu4 seum; 

5 (2) advise and assist the Secretary on all mat6 ters relating to the administration, operation, main7 tenance, and preservation of the Museum; 

8 (3) provide significant opportunities for public 

9 input with respect to carrying out the duties under 

10 paragraphs (1) and (2); and 

11 (4) adopt bylaws for the operation of the Advi12 sory Council. 

13 (e) COMPENSATION.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para15 graph (2), a member of the Advisory Council shall 

16 serve without compensation. 

17 (2) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—A member of the 

18 Council shall be allowed travel expenses, including 

19 per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized 

20 for an employee of an agency under subchapter I of 

21 chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, while 

22 away from the home or regular place of business of 

23 the member in the performance of the duties of the 

24 Advisory Council. 

25 (f) MEETINGS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Advisory Council shall 

2 meet at the call of the chairperson or on the written 

3 request of a majority of the members of the Advi4 sory Council, but not fewer than 2 times each year. 

5 (2) INITIAL MEETINGS.—During the 1-year pe6 riod beginning on the date of the first meeting of the 

7 Advisory Council, the Advisory Council shall meet 

8 not fewer than 4 times for the purpose of carrying 

9 out the duties of the Advisory Council. 

10 (g) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of the Ad11 visory Council shall constitute a quorum for the purpose 

12 of conducting business, but a lesser number may receive 

13 information on behalf of the Advisory Council. 

14 SEC. 8. DIRECTOR AND STAFF. 

15 (a) DIRECTOR.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall appoint 

17 a Director for the Museum, taking into consider18 ation recommendations by the Advisory Council. 

19 (2) DUTIES.—The Director of the Museum 

20 shall manage the Museum, in accordance with any 

21 policies established by the Secretary, in consultation 

22 with the Advisory Council. 

23 (b) STAFF.— 

24 (1) APPOINTMENT.—The Secretary may, with25 out regard to the civil service laws, appoint 2 emVerDate Sep 11 2014 06:22 Mar 07, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S527.IS S527

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1 ployees to assist the Director of the Museum in car2 rying out the duties of the Director. 

3 (2) COMPENSATION.—The employees appointed 

4 under subsection (b) may be paid without regard to 

5 the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of 

6 chapter 53 of title 5, United States Code. 

7 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

9 (b), there are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec10 retary to carry out this Act— 

11 (1) $15,000,000 for fiscal year 2024; and 

12 (2) such sums as are necessary for each fiscal 

13 year thereafter. 

14 (b) ACQUISITION OF MUSEUM SITE.—There are au15 thorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary 

16 to carry out section 5. 

17 (c) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts made available under 

18 subsections (a) and (b) shall remain available, without fis19 cal year limitation, until expended. 

20 (d) USE OF FUNDS FOR FUND-RAISING.—Amounts 

21 made available under this section may be used to raise 

22 funds from private sources to support and promote the 

23 Museum. 

Æ 


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