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[Senate Report 110-336]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

                                                       Calendar No. 739
110th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 2d Session                                                     110-336

======================================================================

 
    SUPPORT FOR THE MUSEUM OF THE HISTORY OF POLISH JEWS ACT OF 2007

                                _______
                                

                  May 19, 2008.--Ordered to be printed

          Mr. Biden, from the Committee on Foreign Relations,
                        submitted the following

                                 REPORT

                        [To accompany H.R. 3320]

    The Committee on Foreign Relations, having had under 
consideration the bill H.R. 3320 to provide assistance for the 
Museum of the History of Polish Jews in Warsaw, Poland, reports 
favorably thereon with an amendment and recommends that the 
bill, as amended, do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page

  I. Purpose..........................................................1
 II. Committee Action.................................................1
III. Discussion.......................................................2
 IV. Cost Estimate....................................................2
  V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact..................................3
 VI. Changes in Existing Law..........................................3

                               I. Purpose

    The purpose of the Support for the Museum of the History of 
Polish Jews Act of 2007 is to facilitate preservation of the 
cultural heritage of Americans who trace their ancestry to 
Poland's Jewish community.

                          II. Committee Action

    H.R. 3320 was introduced on August 2, 2007 by Rep. Chris 
Smith. The House of Representatives approved the bill on 
November 14, 2007 by a vote of 407-13. On February 28, 2008, 
Senator Menendez introduced a counterpart bill, S. 2679. At a 
business meeting on April 22, 2008, the committee ordered H.R. 
3320 reported favorably, after approving an amendment by 
Senator Biden to revise section 3 of the bill.

                            III. Discussion

    The genocide carried out by the Third Reich during the 
Second World War threatened to bury a thousand-year history 
during which Jews were a vibrant part of national life in 
Poland. The Museum of the History of Polish Jews will stand as 
a living monument to the community's richness, resilience and 
continuing contributions to humanity.
    According to the United States Census conducted in 2000, 
almost 9 million Americans are of Polish extraction. As a 
result of this large Diaspora, the story of Poles and Polish 
Jews constitutes an important chapter in the history of the 
United States. Safeguarding and sharing this history will 
benefit current and future generations of Americans.
    The City of Warsaw and the Government of Poland have made 
significant contributions of land and resources in order to 
help bring the Museum into being. Many other nations have also 
been touched by the dispersal of Poland's Jews. The effort to 
design, fund, and build the Museum is, accordingly, a 
thoroughly international undertaking. The Act will allow the 
United States to join with other governments, organizations, 
and private donors to help bring this important project to 
fruition.
    The committee revised the bill in section 3 to clarify and 
broaden the authority to provide U.S. assistance to the Museum.

                           IV. Cost Estimate

    In accordance with Rule XXVI, paragraph 11(a) of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the committee provides this 
estimate of the costs of this legislation prepared by the 
Congressional Budget Office.

                            United States Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                    Washington, DC, April 24, 2008.

Hon. Joseph R. Biden Jr.,
Chairman, Committee on Foreign Relations,
United States Senate, Washington, DC.

    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 3320, the Support 
for the Museum of the History of Polish Jews Act of 2007.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Sunita 
D'Monte.
            Sincerely,
                                   Peter R. Orszag,

Enclosure.

                                ------                                

               Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate

                                                    April 24, 2008.
    H.R. 3320 would authorize the appropriation of $5 million 
to develop and maintain a permanent collection at the Museum of 
the History of Polish Jews in Warsaw, Poland. The museum 
contains multimedia exhibits detailing the history and culture 
of Jewish people in Poland over the past 1,000 years.
    Based on historical spending patterns for similar grants 
for cultural programs, CBO estimates that implementing this 
legislation would cost $3 million in 2009 and $5 million over 
the 2009-2013 period, subject to the appropriation of the 
authorized amounts. Implementing the act would have no effect 
on direct spending or revenues.
    H.R. 3320 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal 
governments.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Sunita D'Monte.
    This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.

                   V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact

    Pursuant to Rule XXVI, paragraph 11(b) of the Standing 
Rules of the Senate, the committee has determined that there is 
no regulatory impact as a result of this legislation.

                      VI. Changes in Existing Law

    In compliance with paragraph 12 of Rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the committee notes that no 
changes to existing law are made by this bill.

                                  
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