49–006 

114TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 1st Session 114–275 

PRISM ACT 

SEPTEMBER 30, 2015.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 

State of the Union and ordered to be printed 

Mr. BISHOP of Utah, from the Committee on Natural Resources, 

submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany H.R. 1541] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred the 

bill (H.R. 1541) to amend title 54, United States Code, to make 

Hispanic-serving institutions eligible for technical and financial assistance for the establishment of preservation training and degree 

programs, having considered the same, report favorably thereon 

with an amendment and recommend that the bill as amended do 

pass. 

The amendment is as follows: 

Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the following: 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Preservation Research at Institutions Serving Minorities Act’’ or the ‘‘PRISM Act’’. 

SEC. 2. ELIGIBILITY OF HISPANIC-SERVING INSTITUTIONS AND ASIAN AMERICAN AND NATIVE AMERICAN PACIFIC ISLANDER-SERVING INSTITUTIONS FOR ASSISTANCE 

FOR PRESERVATION EDUCATION AND TRAINING PROGRAMS. 

Section 303903(3) of title 54, United States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘to Hispanic-serving institutions (as defined in section 502(a) of the Higher Education Act 

of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1101a(a))) and Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institutions (as defined in section 320(b) of the Higher Education Act 

of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1059g(b))),’’ after ‘‘universities,’’. 

PURPOSE OF THE BILL

The purpose of H.R. 1541 is to amend title 54, United States 

Code, to make Hispanic-serving institutions eligible for technical 

and financial assistance for the establishment of preservation 

training and degree programs. 


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BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

H.R. 1541, as amended, changes the Historic Preservation Act of 

1966 (54 U.S.C. 300101 et seq.) by making Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) and Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs) eligible for technical and 

financial assistance from the Secretary of the Interior to establish 

preservation training and degree programs. This would allow students attending HSIs and AANAPISIs to engage in projects with 

the purpose of preserving their cultural and national heritage. This 

grant program is already available for Historically Black Colleges 

and Universities, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and non-tribal 

colleges with a high enrollment of Native Americans or Native Hawaiians. The bill utilizes the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

U.S.C. 1059g) definitions of both HSIs and AANAPISIs. 

COMMITTEE ACTION

H.R. 2130 was introduced on March 23, 2015, by Congressman 

Rau ́l M. Grijalva (D–AZ). The bill was referred to the Committee 

on Natural Resources, and within the Committee to the Subcommittee on Federal Lands. On September 9, 2015, the Natural 

Resources Committee met to consider the bill. The Subcommittee 

was discharged by unanimous consent. Congresswoman Madeleine 

Bordallo (D–GU) offered an amendment designated 001. The 

amendment was adopted by voice vote. No further amendments 

were offered and on September 10, 2015, the bill, as amended, was 

ordered favorably reported to the House of Representatives by voice 

vote. 

COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII 

of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee on 

Natural Resources’ oversight findings and recommendations are reflected in the body of this report. 

COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII 

1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of 

the House of Representatives requires an estimate and a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(2)(B) of that rule provides 

that this requirement does not apply when the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974. Under clause 

3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and 

section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate for this bill from the 

Director of the Congressional Budget Office: 

H.R. 1541—PRISM Act 

H.R 1541 would amend the National Historic Preservation Act by 

expanding eligibility for an existing grant program that encourages 

student involvement in historic and cultural preservation projects 


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to include Hispanic-Serving, Asian American, and Native American 

Pacific Islander-serving institutions. 

In recent years, the Historic Preservation Fund has spent about $2 million a year for grant administration. According to information from the National Park Service, none of those funds were allocated for the grant affected by the legislation; funds have not been 

allocated for that program since 2009. Few institutions have used 

the program and very little money has been available for that purpose. Therefore, CBO estimates that increasing eligibility for the 

grants would not have a significant effect on spending subject to 

appropriation over the 2016–2020 period. Enacting the bill would 

not affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. 

H.R. 1541 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would 

impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. The bill 

would benefit public institutions of higher education that serve African American, Hispanic American, Asian American, and Native 

American Pacific Islander students who participate in training and 

degree programs that focus on historic preservation. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Marin Burnett. The estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Assistant 

Director for Budget Analysis. 

2. Section 308(a) of Congressional Budget Act. As required by 

clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, 

this bill does not contain any new budget authority, spending authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in revenues or 

tax expenditures. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that 

implementing the legislation would ‘‘not have a significant effect on 

spending subject to appropriation over the 2016–2020 period.’’ 

3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by 

clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goal or objective 

of this bill is to amend title 54, United States Code, to make Hispanic-serving institutions eligible for technical and financial assistance for the establishment of preservation training and degree programs. 

EARMARK STATEMENT

This bill does not contain any Congressional earmarks, limited 

tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined under clause 9(e), 

9(f), and 9(g) of rule XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives. 

COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104–4 

This bill contains no unfunded mandates. 

COMPLIANCE WITH H. RES. 5 

Directed Rule Making. The Chairman does not believe that this 

bill directs any executive branch official to conduct any specific 

rule-making proceedings. 

Duplication of Existing Programs. This bill does not establish or 

reauthorize a program of the federal government known to be duplicative of another program. Such program was not included in 


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any report from the Government Accountability Office to Congress 

pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111–139 or identified in the 

most recent Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance published pursuant to the Federal Program Information Act (Public Law 95–220, 

as amended by Public Law 98–169) as relating to other programs. 

PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL OR TRIBAL LAW

This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or tribal law. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 

House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by the bill, 

as reported, are shown as follows (new matter is printed in italic 

and existing law in which no change is proposed is shown in 

roman): 

SECTION 303903 OF TITLE 54, UNITED STATES CODE 

§ 303903. Preservation education and training program 

The Secretary, in consultation with the Council and other appropriate Federal, tribal, Native Hawaiian, and non-Federal organizations, shall develop and implement a comprehensive preservation 

education and training program. The program shall include— 

(1) standards and increased preservation training opportunities for Federal workers involved in preservation-related functions; 

(2) preservation training opportunities for other Federal, 

State, tribal and local government workers, and students; 

(3) technical or financial assistance, or both, to historically 

black colleges and universities, to Hispanic-serving institutions 

(as defined in section 502(a) of the Higher Education Act of 

1965 (20 U.S.C. 1101a(a))) and Asian American and Native 

American Pacific Islander-serving institutions (as defined in 

section 320(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

1059g(b))), to tribal colleges, and to colleges with a high enrollment of Native Americans or Native Hawaiians, to establish 

preservation training and degree programs; and 

(4) where appropriate, coordination with the National Center 

for Preservation Technology and Training of— 

(A) distribution of information on preservation technologies; 

(B) provision of training and skill development in trades, 

crafts, and disciplines related to historic preservation in 

Federal training and development programs; and 

(C) support for research, analysis, conservation, 

curation, interpretation, and display related to preservation. 

Æ 


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