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82–544 2013

COLLECTIONS STEWARDSHIP AT THE 

SMITHSONIAN 

HEARING 

BEFORE THE 

COMMITTEE ON HOUSE 

ADMINISTRATION 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

ONE HUNDRED THIRTEENTH CONGRESS 

FIRST SESSION 

Held in Washington, DC, July 17, 2013 

Printed for the use of the Committee on House Administration 

( 

Available on the Internet 

www.fdsys.gov 


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COMMITTEE ON HOUSE ADMINISTRATION 

CANDICE S. MILLER, Michigan, Chairman 

GREGG HARPER, Mississippi 

PHIL GINGREY, M.D., Georgia 

AARON SCHOCK, Illinois 

TODD ROKITA, Indiana 

RICHARD B. NUGENT, Florida 

ROBERT A. BRADY, Pennsylvania, Ranking 

Minority Member 

ZOE LOFGREN, California 

JUAN VARGAS, California 

PROFESSIONAL STAFF

KELLY CRAVEN, Staff Director 

KYLE ANDERSON, Minority Staff Director 


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COLLECTIONS STEWARDSHIP AT THE 

SMITHSONIAN 

WEDNESDAY, JULY 17, 2013 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, COMMITTEE ON HOUSE ADMINISTRATION, Washington, DC. 

The committee met, pursuant to call, at 10:28 a.m., in Room 

1310, Longworth House Office Building, Hon. Candice S. Miller 

(chairman of the committee) presiding. 

Present: Representatives Miller, Brady and Vargas. 

Staff Present: Kelly Craven, Staff Director; Peter Schalestock, 

Deputy General Counsel; Yael Barash, Legislative Clerk; Salley 

Wood, Communications Director and Deputy Staff Director; Bob 

Sensenbrenner, Senior Counsel; Mary Sue Englund, Director of Administration; Kyle Anderson, Minority Staff Director; Matt Pinkus, 

Minority Senior Policy Analyst; Matt Defreitas, Minority Professional Staff; Khalil Abboud, Minority Elections Staff; Thomas 

Hicks, Minority Elections Counsel; Mike Harrison, Minority Professional Staff; Greg Abbott, Minority Professional Staff; and Eddie 

Flaherty, Minority Professional Staff. 

The CHAIRMAN. I am going to call to order the Committee on 

House Administration’s hearing regarding Collection Stewardship 

at the Smithsonian Institution. In the hearing record, first of all, 

for members, will remain open for 5 legislative days so members 

might submit any materials they wish to be included therein. 

Today we are holding a hearing on collection stewardship at the 

Smithsonian. The Smithsonian’s vast collection, with more than 

130 million items, which I think is an extraordinary number, holds 

so many objects of great significance to our Nation’s scientific efforts as well as priceless objects of immense historical and cultural 

value. 

However, given the size and the scope and diversity of the collection, from insect specimens to artwork to live animals over at the 

zoo, it has proven to be a significant challenge to manage, and a 

challenge that I certainly commend the Smithsonian for taking on 

with such great vigor and determination and commitment. 

The Smithsonian has not testified actually before this committee 

since 2009. And so we decided to invite the Smithsonian certainly 

to fulfill our duty of oversight, of the oversight committee. And I 

think it is not often that you find bipartisan, bicameral agreement 

in Washington these days, but the fact that everyone loves the 

Smithsonian is something that we can all agree on. It certainly is 

truly one of the treasures of our Nation’s Capital, of our Nation, 

of the world, really. And I would hope that the Smithsonian takes 


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this hearing as an opportunity not only to answer important questions about the collections, stewardship, and the progress that they 

have made over recent years, which has been remarkable, I think, 

but also to spread the word about the good work that the Smithsonian Institution does each and every day. 

Since its establishment in 1846, the Smithsonian has provided 

America with free access—free access—to a treasure trove of American history. And at its core, the Smithsonian’s mission, the increase and diffusion of knowledge, depends on its collections. Without its collections, the Smithsonian certainly cannot accomplish 

much of its scientific research nor can it help other agencies—the 

United States, international, accomplish theirs. Without its collection, the millions of tourists who visit Washington would not be 

able to see the famous ruby slippers, the Hope Diamond, or the 

original Star Spangled Banner. And, thankfully, since its safe return, they can also visit Rusty, the red panda, as well. 

Collections are fundamental to the Smithsonian’s mission, and 

its strategic plan recognizes that as well as the responsibility, as 

they say, to preserve them for future generations. In 2005, the 

Smithsonian’s Office of Policy and Analysis recognized the Smithsonian had challenges in maintaining its collection. Its report, ‘‘Concern At the Core,’’ detailed how the Smithsonian had systematic 

weaknesses in its collections care practices, and the report detailed 

how the Smithsonian had fallen behind on its collections care and 

expressed concern about the Smithsonian’s ability to track and 

maintain its collection. Subsequent IG audits of the Smithsonian 

museums, such as the National Air and Space Museum, the National Museum of American History, and the National Museum of 

Natural History, from 2005 to 2011, further outlined issues related 

to preservation, to inventory record, to storage conditions and security of collections. 

In recognizing these challenges, the Smithsonian, to its great 

credit, realigned efforts to improve collection care practices. In 

2010, in its 2010 to 2015 strategic plan, the Smithsonian specifically recognized strengthening collections as one of the 

Smithsonian’s top priorities. In 2011, the Smithsonian appointed 

Mr. Scott—Dr. Scott Miller, who joins us today, the Deputy Undersecretary for Collections and Interdisciplinary Support. The Smithsonian then had a point person in addressing the care of its varying collections, which ranges, I say, from small insects mounted on 

boards to large historical and industrial and military equipment. 

The Smithsonian has also embarked on three different initiatives 

to improve collections care; an institution-wide collections condition 

assessment, allowing the Smithsonian to find out the state of its 

collection; increased digitization of its collections; and implementing collections space planning. And while these are the overreaching plan at the Smithsonian, each of the Smithsonian’s museums have also undertaken their own initiatives to improve collections care. 

However, the work there is not done. In its ‘‘Top Management 

Challenges for 2012,’’ the Smithsonian Inspector General identified 

collections stewardship as one of the most pressing issues for the 

Smithsonian’s management. And as chairman of the Committee on 

House Admin, I certainly feel responsibility for ensuring that the 


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Smithsonian, a rare institution that everyone in Washington values, keeps its collections available for future generations. And that 

is really one of the purposes of our hearings today. 

And I certainly want to thank the witnesses for attending today, 

and I will formally introduce you in just a moment. 

But at this time, I would like to recognize my colleague, Mr. 

Brady, our ranking member, for his opening statement. 

Mr. BRADY. Thank you, Madam Chairman. 

Madam Chairman, thank you for holding this hearing. As always, I am happy to work with you on this issue, and I expect we 

will get into other important issues as well. And I would like unanimous consent to be able to submit my opening remarks for the 

record because they mirror yours, rather than be redundant. We do 

have a fondness for the Smithsonian. We do know that you do some 

extraordinary things. You are a wealth of information and artifacts 

and memorabilia, and the whole country uses it and uses it well. 

So, with that, I would just like to submit these for the record and 

look forward to hearing from our witnesses. 

[The statement of Mr. Brady follows:] 


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Robert A. Brady 

Opening statement- (7/15/13) 

Madam Chairman, thank you for holding this hearing on oversight of collections 

management at the Smithsonian Institution. As always, I am happy to work with 

you on this issue and I expect we will get into other important issues as well. 

Millions of visitors to Washington throughout the year make Smithsonian 

museums prime tourist attractions. This is one of the main reasons why I have been 

strongly committed to keeping these museums free of charge. 

While the objects and items on display represent historical and cultural treasures, 

there are millions of objects that are stored at Smithsonian facilities and not shown 

regularly on exhibition. Significant effort and expense are required to maintain the 

Smithsonian's treasures for future generations. If objects are damaged or 

deteriorate, they may be very difficult, if not impossible, to restore and may be lost 

forever. It is a major ongoing effort just to keep track of what the Smithsonian 

actually has, where specific items are stored, what condition they are in, and the 

condition of the buildings that contain them. 

In addition, sequestration currently poses a serious challenge for any agency 

receiving Federal funding such as the Smithsonian, which receives two-thirds of its 

funds from the Federal treasury. I am very interested to learn how they have coped 

with the current budget crisis.l have been strongly supportive ofthe Smithsonian's 

funding needs in the past, including during the period from 2007 to 2011 when I 

was chairman of this committee. But under sequestration we have faced the 

prospect of going backwards in addressing so many of our nation's needs. At the 

Smithsonian, the museums may still be open, but not every exhibit will be visible 

every day. There are fewer museum attendants. Desirable projects may be 

postponed. And it will only get worse next year. I hope we can do something to 

help. 

I welcome our witnesses and look forward to hearing from the Secretary, the 

Inspector General and the Deputy Under Secretary about the range of issues we 

will touch on today. Thank you. 
5 

The CHAIRMAN. Very well. 

Without objection, Mr. Brady’s opening statement submitted for 

the record. 

I would like to now introduce our witnesses. Before his appointment as the 12th Secretary of the Smithsonian in July 2008, Secretary Wayne Clough was President of the Georgia Institute of 

Technology for 14 years, received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in civil engineering from Georgia Tech in 1964 and in 1965, 

and then received a doctorate in 1969 in civil engineering from the 

University of California, Berkeley. 

Secretary Clough was a member of the faculty at Duke University, Stanford University, and Virginia Tech. And as secretary, he 

is responsible for operating the world’s largest museum and research complex, with 19 museums, the National Zoo, and numerous 

research centers. He oversees an annual budget of $1 billion, with 

about 6,000 employees and an equal number of volunteers. He 

spearheaded the development and successful execution of a comprehensive strategic plan for the Smithsonian and has overseen the 

opening of major permanent exhibitions, including the Star Spangled Banner at the National Museum of American History, the Hall 

of Human Origins at the National Museum of Natural History, the 

new wing at the National Air and Space Museum’s Udvar-Hazy 

Center, as well as the Asia Trails at the National Zoo. 

Our next witness would be Dr. Scott Miller, who is the Deputy 

for Under Secretary of Collections and Interdisciplinary Support, 

responsible for central planning and development of the 

Smithsonian’s vast collections of 137 million objects. Dr. Miller received a bachelor’s degree from the University of California and a 

doctorate degree in biology from Harvard. He previously served as 

Deputy Under Secretary for Science, helping to oversee the 

Smithsonian’s science museums and research facilities and as well 

was an Associate Director for Science at the National Zoo from 

2004 to 2006. 

And before coming to the Smithsonian in 2000, Dr. Miller designed and implemented an International Biodiversity and Conservation Program for the International Center of Insect Physiology 

and Ecology in Kenya. 

Scott Dahl is the Inspector General for the Smithsonian Institution. He graduated in 1988 from the University of Texas Law 

School, worked at the Washington law firm of Arnold & Porter 

from 1989 to 1992. He previously served as Deputy IG at the U.S. 

Department of Commerce, Deputy IG for the Office of Director of 

National Intelligence, and senior counsel for the IG at the Department of Justice. And for the past 20 years, Mr. Dahl has been an 

adjunct professor at Georgetown University Law Center, teaching 

classes on professional responsibility and public corruption. The Office of the IG in the Smithsonian Institution reports directly to the 

Board of Regents and Congress as well. He was appointed by the 

Board of Regents. His office conducts audits and investigations related to Smithsonian programs and operations, promotes efficiency 

and effectiveness within the institution, prevents and detects cases 

of fraud, waste, and abuse, and makes recommendations regarding 

existing policy and regulations at the Smithsonian as well. And, of 

course, keeps Congress informed of his audits and investigations. 


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STATEMENTS OF SECRETARY G. WAYNE CLOUGH, PH.D., SECRETARY, SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION; SCOTT MILLER, PH.D., 

DEPUTY UNDER SECRETARY FOR COLLECTIONS AND INTERDISCIPLINARY SUPPORT, SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION; 

SCOTT S. DAHL, INSPECTOR GENERAL, SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION 

The CHAIRMAN. So I certainly want to thank all of the witnesses 

for being here. We had heard that last year alone, there were over 

30 million visitors to the Smithsonian. Again, just an incredible, 

sort of a difficult number to even get your mind around. But it is 

a wonderful, wonderful, as I say, national treasure. And we look 

forward to your testimony today. And I would—the chair now recognizes Secretary Clough. 

STATEMENT OF SECRETARY G. WAYNE CLOUGH, PH.D. 

Mr. CLOUGH. Thank you, Madam Chair, and members of the 

committee for this opportunity to testify. The Smithsonian appreciates the support of the administration, Congress, and the American People, especially regarding collections stewardship. 

Our collections reflect our broad mission, and include objects 

from history, art, culture, and science. They represent our collective 

memory of who we are as a people as well as our knowledge of the 

natural world and our universe. We take our role as stewards of 

the Nation’s collection seriously, and I am here today to assure the 

American people that their collections are safe. 

We do have challenges that are complicated by the size and complexity of our collection, the scope of the work needed for some of 

our older facilities that house collections, and some uncertainties 

about the Federal budget. We are stewards, as you mentioned, of 

137 million objects and treasures, including 2,000 live animals; 127 

million of the collections are indeed scientific specimens. In addition, there are more than 163,000 cubic feet of archives, including 

paper records, images, audio-visual and digital media, and 1.8 million library volumes, including rare books. We have a giant squid, 

the desk upon which Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence, Harriet Tubman’s shawl, the jacket of labor leader Cesar 

Chavez, the Congressional Gold Medals awarded to the JapaneseAmerican Veterans of World War II, the Wright flyer, Amelia 

Earhart’s plane, and the Space Shuttle Discovery. We use them all 

to inspire visitors, spark discovery, and create new knowledge. 

And guided by our new strategic plan that you referred to, we 

are focusing on our investments, measuring everything we do and 

striving to continuously improve. And this applies to both collections as well as our operations. There are great opportunities 

ahead. But as I recently told Congress, sequestration will affect the 

funding for the basics, such as maintenance and collection care, 

and funding for capital that is needed to address issues with older 

facilities. 

Our 2010 strategic plan called for us to renew our focus on collections care, and this was reinforced by the inspector general’s report 

in 2011. Three years ago, I elevated the responsibility for collections by creating a new position, deputy under secretary for collections and interdisciplinary support, that provides an integrated 

view for the institution. We appointed the highly respected sciVerDate Mar 15 2010 21:48 Sep 03, 2013 Jkt 082544 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\A544.XXX A544

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entist with long experience in the field, Dr. Scott Miller, who is 

here today. He will discuss in detail what we consider our three 

pillars of our policy; pan-institutional collections assessment and 

planning, focus on digitization to improve collections preservation, 

management, information content, and lengthening their lifespans 

and collection space planning. 

Let me offer a few highlights. Our cumulative investment in col- lections from fiscal years 2006 to 2012 includes $462 million for collections management and $390 million in major facilities capital 

projects directly affecting collections care. We created new state of 

the art collections care facilities as follows: We opened a new collection center at the Hazy Center of the National Air and Space Museum at Dulles. We added a new collection support center in Landover, Maryland. We built Pod 5 at the Museum Support Center, 

also in Maryland, for scientific collections, and we renovated Pod 

3 at that same facility for three art museums, natural history collections, and cryo, our frozen collection. We renovated an offsite 

storage facility for our New York-based Cooper-Hewitt National 

Design Museum, and we added new greenhouses for our horticultural collections. We have supported research into best practices 

at our Museum Conservation Institute, which is located in 

Suitland, Maryland, and recently hosted the National Summit on 

Sustainable Preservation Environment Strategies. 

To reduce duplications over the past decade, we have 

deaccessioned numerous items, including stamps, aircraft, and scientific specimens. We also work collaboratively with four Federal 

agencies that base 100 people in our natural history collections to 

fulfill their agency missions. And, through our Museum of Natural 

History, we provide technical support for the Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Defense on aircraft bird strikes 

using our collections. 

It is my honor to lead a dedicated staff of 6,400 employees plus 

6,200 volunteers, all passionate about the Smithsonian and serving 

the American people. With the help of our Board of Regents, which 

includes six members of Congress, the chief justice, and the vice 

president, we are seeking to create a more responsive and relevant 

Smithsonian. And as noted, last year, we opened 100 exhibitions 

and hosted more than 30 million visitors, the largest number in a 

decade. We are expanding our reach through digital access, with 

more than 100 million unique visitors to our Web sites and more 

than 2,000 lesson plans that meet State standards which are delivered to all 50 States. 

A scholar in American history once said the Smithsonian is in 

the ‘‘forever business,’’ meaning our collections have to be preserved for all future generations. Recently, we created a new stateof-the-art home for the grand Star Spangled Banner at our American History Museum. As the flag was being moved into its new 

home, all the construction workers on the site stopped, stood, took 

off their hardhats, and, in many cases, with tears in their eyes, 

held their hands to their hearts as the flags passed. That is the 

power of inspiring objects. With the help of Congress and American 

people, we will preserve, protect, and present them for future generations to come. Thank you. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Secretary. 


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[The statement of Mr. Clough follows:] 


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Smithsonian Institution 

Statement of Secretary G. Wayne Clough 

Hearing on Collections Stewardship 

Committee on House Administration 

U.S. House of Representatives 

July 17, 2013 

Thank you for the opportunity to testify on this important issue of Collections Stewardship. 

In August 1846, the U.S. Congress passed legislation that founded the Smithsonian Institution as 

an establishment dedicated to the "increase and diffusion of knowledge." The 1846 organic act 

established the Smithsonian as a repository for the US Government's collections of "all objects of 

art and of foreigu and curious research, and all objects of natural history, plants, and geological 

and mineralogical specimens ... " [20 USC § 50.] Tbis wording with regard to our function as the 

"national museum" was strengthened in 1879 [20 U.S.C. § 59]. 

The first objects donated to the Smithsonian were scientific apparatus. Soon art, books and other 

works were added. Starting in 1858, Congress provided the first annual appropriation to the 

Smithsonian for the care of the national collections. The second secretary of the Smithsonian, 

Spencer Fullerton Baird, sought a comprehensive collection of natural resources. That tradition 

continues with collections of the National Museum of Natural History forming the largest 

portion, 93 percent of our total collection. 

Today the Smithsonian is the world's largest museum and research complex with 19 museums 

and galleries, 20 libraries, the National Zoo and nine research centers. Smithsonian collections 

total 137 million objects and specimens, including 127.5 million scientific specimens and more 

than 2,000 live animals at the National Zoo, over 8.7 million historical artifacts, and more than 

340,000 works of art as well as 1.8 million library volumes and 164,000 cubic feet of archival 

material. 

We are the guardians of artifacts that tell powerful stories of who we are as Americans: Morse's 

telegraph; Edison's light bulb; the Salk vaccine; the 1865 telescope designed by Maria Mitchell, 

America's first woman astronomer who discovered a comet; the Wright Flyer; Amelia Earhart's 

plane; Louis Armstrong's trumpet; the jacket oflabor leader Cesar Chavez; the Lansdowne 

portrait of George Washington; the Congressional Gold Medal awarded to Japanese American 

World War II veterans; the Hopi ceramic pot carried into space by Chickasaw astronaut John 

Herrington, the first Native American to orbit the Earth; the camera John Glenn purchased at a 

drug store and used on his historic voyage into space; Asian, African and American art; the 

Apollo II Command Module, Columbia; and the space shuttle Discovery. As well as, of course, 

James Smithson's handwritten draft Will and Testament preserved by the Smithsonian Institution 

Archives. 

Our collections serve multiple purposes, beginning with their role in the nearly 100 exhibitions 

that we mount in our museums and galleries, as well as our traveling exhibitions that tour the 
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county. We have an extensive loan program with our 179 affiliate museums across the country. 

In addition, our collections offer a vast and varied source of knowledge for the thousands of 

scientists, scholars, and enthusiasts who come in person, and increasingly via digital access, to 

research and learn from them. They also form the basis for the thousands of educational 

resources tied to state standards that we make available for free to students and teachers in all 50 

states. They spark learning, discovery and an ongoing dialogue amongst learners of all ages. That 

is why we continue to work to protect them and digitize them to make them more accessible. The 

federal role is crucial and irreplaceable in this effort, because philanthropic support is difficult to 

attract in this area, and we greatly appreciate the continued support of the administration and the 

Congress. 

That support has enabled us to invest $462 million on collections management and $390 million 

on major Facilities Capital Projects affecting collections care since fiscal year 2006. We have 

created a plan to prioritize our future actions. But in this sequester budget environment, and 

given the unique nature of our collections, we have concerns going forward. 

Since I arrived at the Smithsonian in 2008, I have been committed to preparing this remarkable 

and venerable Institution for a vibrant role in the 21 st century. To this end, with the support and 

help of our Board of Regents, we have taken steps over the last few years to make the 

Smithsonian more entrepreneurial, self-reliant, responsive and relevant. 

In 2010, the Smithsonian began implementing its new strategic plan, one developed with a new, 

inclusive approach, the first of its kind in our 167-year history. It calls for us to develop a new 

cross-disciplinary approach to the way we do our work and to focus our efforts on four grand 

challenges: Unlocking the Mysteries of the Universe; Understanding and Sustaining a Biodiverse 

Planet; Valuing World Cultures; and Understanding the American Experience. The plan includes 

a major element on strengthening collections, and calls for a greater use of technology to 

increase efficiency, to allow us to deliver educational materials across the nation, and to provide 

greater public access to our collections, scientists and scholars. There is an emphasis on 

collaboration and partnerships to extend our knowledge and talents. The strategic plan also 

emphasizes cultivation of private funds so we can support talented young people on internships, 

fellowships and post-doctoral positions. Finally, the strategic plan guides us in excellence at all 

levels of our mission-enabling units. It has served us well, both in clarifying our focus and 

bringing coherence to our work. 

Today, we see results. Visitation to our museums and galleries is up by five million, excceding 

30 million for the first time in a decade. This is not an accident, but the result of hard work by 

dedicated professionals to mount nearly 100 new educational exhibitions a year. If you can't 

come to the nation's capital, we are coming to you through loans of iconic national treasures to 

our network of 179 affiliate museums in 42 states, and our Smithsonian Institution Traveling 

Exhibition Service, which reaches nearly five million Americans every year in communities 

around the nation. More than 20 million people subscribe to the Smithsonian Channel, which this 

year won both Emmy and Peabody Awards. And nearly seven million people read Smithsonian 

Magazine. 

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Digital tec1mology is allowing the Smithsonian to reach new, diverse audiences and more people 

than ever before. More than 270 Smithsonian websites last year attracted more than 100 million 

unique visitors; and more than three million social media followers; and more than 40 mobile 

apps allow us to engage the public as never before. We are committed to open access to our 

collections. Today more than eight million records and one million images are available to the 

public through our main website's Collections Search Center. Well over 60 percent of the 

collections of our art museums are online. 

Our collections are used by the young and expert alike. For example, the National Museum of 

Natural History collections are used to support invasive species identification, and National Zoo 

collections are used to support research on wildlife health and epizootic disease. The Natural 

History building on the Mall permanently hosts personnel from four federal agencies, especially 

the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), who provide identification and research in support 

of invasive species. The next invasive pest can be anything from anywhere in the world, so a 

comprehensive global collection and library are vital to rapid identification, thus empowering 

informed and effective management. The USDA shares the costs of development and curation of 

the Natural History insect collection, and both our staff use the robust collection to identify 

something over 15,000 lots of insects annually in support of border protection and agriculture 

research. To cite one example, the Emerald Ash Borer, a green beetle, is one of the most 

damaging invasive species in the United States (and Canada). Based at our National Museum of 

Natural History and using our collections, a USDA biocontrol program is working on the 

taxonomy of parasitic wasps that might serve as biocontrol agents, The Emerald Ash Borer 

(EAB) Program works to prevent the spread ofEAB and mitigate the damage it causes to 

America's ash trees. The native range of the emerald ash borer includes China, Mongolia, North 

Korea, South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and the Russian Far East. The EAB was unknown in North 

America until its discovery in southeast Michigan in 2002. Today, EAB infestations have been 

detected in 20 states; Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, 

Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, 

Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tcnnessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. 

Four federal agencies (U.S. Geological Survey, Department of Defense, U.S. Department of 

Agriculture and Department of Interior) spend roughly $6 million annually to base 100 people in 

our natural history collections to fulfill their agency missions. In addition, the Federal Aviation 

Administration and Departmcnt of Defense work closely with our National Museum of Natural 

History to carry out bird-strike identifications using collections based studies. 

New technologies in genomics and biochemistry allow new layers of information to be extracted 

from old museum specimens, but they also raise new challenges regarding storage that we are 

addressing through our cryo-preservation initiative. 

We have longstanding partncrships with a myriad offederal agencies, including the National 

Aeronautics and Space Administration, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 

the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the Department of 

Defense, the Department of Educatioll, the Department of the Interior, the State Department, the 

National Park Service, the National Archives, the Library of Congress, and the Office of Science 

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and Technology Policy. These partnerships are economically efficient and very productive. 

That's why continued federal support for our collections is so important. 

We have collaborations with dozens of universities across the country. In October 2012, we 

unveiled a state-of-the-art new academic facility with our partner George Mason University. The 

Smithsonian-Mason School of Conservation located at the National Zoo's Smithsonian 

Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, Virginia began in a small conference facility that 

could accommodate 15 students. Today's new capacity is six times greater. The facility includes 

teaching laboratories, classrooms, offices, and dining facility for undergraduate, graduate and 

professional students. Architecturally, the facilities themselves embody the spirit of conservation 

that drives this program that highlights the importance of animals in our collections. We have 

ongoing collaborations with the University of Maryland regarding collections at our National 

Museum of Natural History and our National Zoo, and with George Washington University 

regarding museum studies and anthropology. 

These kinds of partnerships are key to advancing our goals and mission. In the last several years, 

we have more than doubled the level of annual private funds raised by the Smithsonian, 

supporting key initiatives outlined in our strategic plan. The private funds complement and 

extend the impact of our federal funding. 

Nowhere is the importance of the public/private partnership more evident than in the ongoing 

work to build the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC). 

When Congress and the Administration asked the Smithsonian to take on the responsibility for 

this $500 million construction project, it was stipulated that the federal govemment would 

provide half of the cost while the Smithsonian would raise the other half. This effort is ongoing, 

and while significant progress has been made, more work needs to be done to complete the task. 

As construction continues, so does the process of collecting items to tell this story vital to all 

Americans. Among other items, we have: Harriet Tubman's Shawl; a slave cabin from Edisto 

Island, South Carolina; Chuck Berry's red Cadillac; George Clinton's Mothership; an African 

American soldier's revolutionary war powder hom; and the Spirit a/Tuskegee airplane, used to 

train Tuskegee Airmen during World War II. 

While construction moves ahead on NMAAHC, there is a continued requirement to address the 

needs of our older and most visited museums-the National Museum of Natural History, the 

National Museum of Ameriean History and the National Air and Space Museum in particular. 

A series of Smithsonian Inspector General's (IG) audit reports focused on these three museums 

to assess the state of collections and their security. Those reports have been useful to us aswe 

address specific issues and in clarifying strategies for strengthening collections. A combined 64 

audit recommendations have been satisfied at the National Museum of Natural History, the 

National Air and Space Museum, the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, and the National 

Museum of American History. Only three audit recommendations remain open as of the close of 

the second quarter this fiscal year, and are on target for closure by end of thc calendar year. 

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The volume, characteristics, complexity, and age of Smithsonian collections, as well as the 

variety of discipline-specific standards that apply to their care, make their management, storage, 

and digitization as complex as the collections themselves. 

Our preservation environmental strategies must be guided by proven data-driven standards based 

on scientific research and first-hand experience, and collaborative decision-making between 

architects, collections managers, building engineers, and conservators. 

We have made significant progress in improving collections care through major facilities capital 

revitalization and constmction projects, including completion of: 

• Completion of the Udvar-Hazy facility 

• Constmction of Pod 5 at the Museum Support Center (MSC) for alcohol collections 

• Renovation of Pod 3 at MSC for three art museum collections, Natural History 

collections, and cryo-collections 

• Lease and development of the Pennsy Drive Collections and Support Center 

• Constmction of an off-site storage facility in New Jersey for collections from the CooperHewitt Museum. 

Created in fiscal year 2010, the Smithsonian's Digitization Program Office is leading the effort 

to document and increase the quantity and quality of digital inventory records and digital images, 

advancing each of the four major goals of our Strategic Plan, as well as broadening access, 

revitalizing education, and strengthening collections. Objects to be digitized range from small 

botany collections at the Natural History Museum to very large collection projects like high 

resolution 3D images of aircraft at the National Air and Space Museum. Digitization supports 

collections care by strengthening inventory control through electronic record keeping, and by 

providing visual documentation of collection items. Digitization also increases access to our 

collections for those audiences unable to visit our museums and collections in person, and 

prolongs the life of a collection object by minimizing handling. Digitization extends access to 

collections items in storagc. We are exploring creative and efficient ways to integrate digitization 

into the core functions of the Smithsonian. To anchor the direction of the central strategy, all 

Smithsonian collecting units have created unit digitization plans, detailing priorities and goals at 

a more granular level. Priorities include inventory control, compelling research interest, 

education, and preservation as the primary drivers of the digitization program. 

Our priorities for digitization are guided by new pan-Institutional directives approved by the 

Under Secretaries that highlight inventory control, compelling research interest, education, and 

preservation as the primary drivers. Additionally, the investment of the Digitization Program 

Office funding itself is guided by a detailed set of criteria aimed at leveraging existing panInstitutional infrastructure invcstments, increasing unit collaboration and expertise sharing, 

increasing digitization throughput and the creation of high-resolution content, as well as 

encouraging industry partnerships. The impact of these digitization priorities, as well as the 

progress on digitization, is being measured side-by-side with metrics about the physical 

condition of collections from the National Collections Program and will allow the Smithsonian 

to tell one comprehensive story across physical and digital stewardship of collections. 

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Three years ago, I created a new position and appointed my colleague, Dr. Scott Miller as 

Deputy Under Secretary for Collections and Interdisciplinary Support. This new position was 

created to give a higher visibility to collections and collections care and to provide a central point 

for sharing best practices and keep comprehensive data on the condition of collections and 

collections facilities. He is here with me today to relate the specific details about some of our 

important pan-Institutional initiatives. 

Scott has made siguificant strides in developing, for the first time in the Institution's history, rich 

datasets that combine condition and significance of the collections themselves, with their 

stewardship context and user accessibility. We are focused on three pan-Institutional initiatives 

that inform our collections stewardship efforts: 

• Institution-wide collections condition assessment 

• Focus on digitization 

• Collections space planning initiative (surveyed more than two million square feet of 

Smithsonian space) 

I am intrigued by what Scott's team has been able to accomplish in a relatively brief amount of 

time. But I know that even with many of these initiatives still in progress, early indications show 

us the need for more resources and more investment to address deficiencies. 

Our long-range plan is based on a public-private partnership approach, which has been 

successful to date, but this conccpt faces increased challenges as federal budgets decline. Should 

they remain in effect, the sequestration reductions will inevitably reduce the funding we can 

commit to collections care and stewardship responsibilities. Over the past five years, we have 

worked hard to build our capacity in this important mission area and it will be highly problematic 

if the progress we have made is eroded. We have already lost staff in this area. 

I trust we can work together to continue the effective management and development of this great 

Institution. I have such a deep appreciation for the work my colleagues perform each day at the 

Smithsonian. Each day that I come to work at the Smithsonian Castle on the National Mall, I 

learn something new, meet a remarkable curator or scientist, and feel proud of the invaluable 

service we provide the American public. 

One of our curators at American History once said that the Smithsonian is in the "forever 

business." Forever is a long time, and that is one of the challenges we face with our collections. 

The Star-Spangled Banner, one of our nation's greatest treasures, illustrates the issues. 

More than a century ago, "best practices" suggested that the flag be reinforced with a linen 

backing-meticulously sewn on with 1.7 million stitches. A century later, thanks to substantial 

philanthropic support, we launched a 21 st century conservation effort to preserve the flag for 

future generations of visitors. And we painstakingly removed everyone of the 1.7 million 

stitches-by hand. Today, it is in its new state-of-the art home at our American History museum. 

A few years ago, as the Star-Spangled Banner was being moved into its new home, all the 

construction workers on site stopped. They stood, took off their hard hats, and held their hands to 

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their hearts until the flag passed. That is the power of inspiring objects. You find them at the 

Smithsonian. And, with the help of Congress and the American people, we will preserve, protect 

and present them for generations to come. 

### 

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15 

The CHAIRMAN. That is a very great story there about the Star 

Spangled Banner. That speaks to what you are about there, certainly. 

The chair now recognizes Dr. Miller for his testimony. 

And we have a 5-minute light on. But if you need to go over a 

little bit, we are—just take your time and go through it. Thank 

you. 

STATEMENT OF SCOTT MILLER, PH.D. 

Mr. MILLER. Thank you for this opportunity to testify. 

As Secretary Clough described, I have oversight responsibilities 

for the collections at the Smithsonian, and it is a great privilege 

to do so. But as an entomologist with 30 years of experience doing 

collections-based research, I also have a very personal appreciation 

for the value of the collections and how they can be used. I, too, 

want to assure the American people that their treasures are safe. 

Our holdings are a global resource accessed by millions of visitors and researchers each year in subjects from aeronautics to zoology. With Federal support, we are working diligently to ensure that 

our collections in art, science, history, and culture are there for 

generations to come to educate, to inspire, and to enlighten. 

Collection stewardship is among the Smithsonian’s highest priorities and, in some cases, our greatest challenge. The volume, characteristics, and age of Smithsonian collections as—well as the variety of standards that apply to their care—make their management, 

preservation, and digitization as complex as the collections themselves. Yet we have been making great progress in many areas. 

Specifically, we have satisfied all but a few of the inspector general recommendations, and those will be addressed by the end of 

the year. As the secretary noted, we have focused on three initiatives for a holistic view of the collection. Specifically, those are the 

assessment of collections care conditions, strategic focus on the digital Smithsonian, and collection space planning. These three initiatives encompass the concerns noted in the IG reports, specifically, 

inventory control, security standards, and preservation. The creation of my office itself has raised the profile of collections issues 

within the Smithsonian and, in some cases, served as a catalyst for 

our recent progress. 

Most people think of the Smithsonian as the iconic museums on 

the National Mall in front of the Capitol. We are a destination, but 

we are also so much more, with collections prominently at the 

heart of the Smithsonian. In fact, most of our scientific collections 

are acquired and maintained solely for the purpose of research. 

They enable experts to address significant challenges facing society, such as the spread of invasive species. Just one example is the 

emerald ash borer, a beetle currently ravaging ash trees from 

Maryland to Michigan. 

In addition to our own experts, last year we had more than 

45,000 research visitor days to the collections. But we also have 

some research visitors who simply stay and call the Smithsonian 

home. Four Federal agencies base 100 people in our natural history 

collections to fulfill their agency missions and to serve the American people. We work together in interagency partnership with 

them. In the last few years, we have begun serious industry-leadVerDate Mar 15 2010 21:48 Sep 03, 2013 Jkt 082544 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\A544.XXX A544

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16 

ing assessments of collections. We are using those data to drive 

pan-institutional prioritization of resources. In that process, we 

look at many factors, including the importance to the 

Smithsonian’s mission and strategic plan, the urgency of preservation needs and the current or potential use for research, education, 

or exhibition. This big picture has capitalized on economies of scale 

and enabled comprehensive care improvements that benefit the 

greatest number of items in an efficient, practical, and cost-efficient 

manner. 

We also have initiatives that involve collaboration across different collecting units for similar kinds of materials, such as improving the management and accessibility of frozen biological materials, developing and implementing best practices in the preservation of digital art and time-based media, and developing an interdisciplinary approach to emergency preparedness and response for 

the collections. 

We are stewards of the Smithsonian collections but we affect collections globally. We set industry standards for collections care. We 

also continuously evaluate those standards for their utility and viability, often revising standards over time as our scientific research 

on collections conservation provides new information and guidance. 

We share that knowledge in multiple ways. For example, I have 

the privilege of being the co-chair of the Interagency Working 

Group on Scientific Collections, which is enhancing collections policy across Federal collections in response to the America COMPETES Act. 

In some cases, final assessment data from those initiatives that 

I mentioned are still pending, but we do know that we will need 

more resources to address insufficiencies. We know that targeted 

funding helps us to remediate conditions and deficiencies that have 

existed for many years, and we are grateful to Congress for that 

support, yet sequestration is an issue for us at the Smithsonian. 

We have incredible challenges to address at the same time that our 

budget is stretched thin, and this can adversely impact the recent 

progress that we have made. 

We have shown what can be accomplished with targeted investment. We will continue to seek alternative funding models. But private donors often see collections-related activity as primarily a Federal responsibility. Thus, we continue to need the support and financial help of Congress to continue to preserve America’s treasures. 

Thank you. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you very much, Dr. Miller. 

[The statement of Mr. Miller follows:] 


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Smithsonian Institution 

Statement of Deputy Under Secretary Scott Miller 

Hearing on Collections Stewardship 

Committee on House Administration 

U.S. House of Representatives 

July 17, 2013 

It is challenging to visualize the size and diversity of Smithsonian collections-13 7 

million objects and specimens, 1.8 million library volumes, and more than 164,000 cubic 

feet of archival material. These holdings are a global resource accessed by millions of 

visitors and researchers each year who wish to explore subjects from aeronautics to 

zoology. Among the vast collections are irreplaceable national icons, historical artifacts, 

and natural science material vital to the study of the world's scientific and cultural 

heritage, with a scope and breadth that no other institution in the world can match. 

Smithsonian collections are so vast that even with 19 museums and art galleries, libraries, 

the National Zoo and nine research facilities, only a fraction of our collections can be 

exhibited within the museums and galleries at any given time. 

To most people, the Smithsonian conjures a place on the National Mall. We are a 

destination but we are also so much more. Most of our scientific collections are acquired 

and maintained solely for the purpose of research, enabling experts to address such 

significant challenges facing society as the effects of climate change, the spread of 

invasive species, and the loss of biological diversity and its impact on the global 

ecosystem. Last year we had more than 45,000 research visitor days to our collection 

holdings. No matter how collections are utilized, collections must be properly preserved 

and rcmain accessible for current and future generations to enjoy and study in order to 

increase our knowledge of the arts, history, culture and sciences. 

Assembled over 167 years, Smithsonian collections are fundamental to carrying out the 

Institution's mission and strategic plan, serving as the intellectual base for scholarship, 

discovery, exhibition, and education. Collections stewardship is among the Smithsonian's 

highest priorities and in some cases, our greatest challenge. The volume, characteristics, 

complexity, and age of Smithsonian collections, as well as the variety of disciplinespecific standards that apply to their care, make their management, preservation, and 

digitization as unprecedented, challenging, and complex as the collections themselves. 

With targeted funding, the Smithsonian has made significant strides in improving the 

management, care, and accessibility of collections. The Smithsonian approaches 

collections pragmatically and strategically through assessments, long-term planning, and 

prioritization, measuring many factors, including: the greatest importance in supporting 

the Smithsonian's mission and strategic plan; the most urgent collections preservation 

needs; and the highest current or potential use for research, education, and exhibition. 

Fundamentally we are one Institution, but the management of Smithsonian collections 
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has been decentralized and delegated to our individual museums, art galleries, and 

collecting units. Since I took office in December 20 I 0, my team has been engaged in this 

cross-disciplinary approach to collections-related challengcs and opportunities. Engaging 

in holistic collections-level management has capitalized on economies of scale and 

enabled comprehensive care improvements that benefit the greatest number of items in an 

efficient, practical, and cost-effective manner. 

The series of Smithsonian Inspector General's (IG) audit reports on the state of 

collections and their security illustrate that stewardship is not a single process, but a 

series of components that are interwoven, interdependent, and ongoing. The reports 

delineate the challenges facing the Smithsonian and most museums and galleries 

museums today, and will help guide strategies for tomorrow. 

While we've just been informed of a new audit on the horizon, the IG's collectionsrelated reports to date have focused on specific museums, most recently the National 

Museum of American History. Smithsonian response to these challenges however, has 

been best addressed through a coordinated, Institution-wide approach. The update and 

tour of our collections and facilities I provided last July to Committee staff touched on 

several important strategic initiatives still currently underway. These three efforts directly 

support the Smithsonian's Strategic Plan and will greatly improve collections care and 

accessibility, including: 

• Implementation of an Institution-wide collections condition assessment to guide 

long-term plans for collections care, identifying areas where improvements are 

needed, establishing priorities, measuring progress, and providing a practical 

framework for the allocation of resources; 

• Focus on digitization to guide electronic capture of collections and research 

holdings to document these collections in a format that saves and shares them in 

perpetuity. The plan includes central policy guidance including the exploration of 

Digital Smithsonian as a unifying concept, but also development of unit-based 

digitization and asset management plans and development of useful metrics to 

track and document progress in the digitization of our collections; and 

• Implementation of collections space planning to survey the current condition of 

Smithsonian collections space and to develop a framework plan for addressing 

current and projected Smithsonian-wide collections space requirements, including 

future collections growth. Currently, our museum collections grow at an annual 

rate of 0.3% which includes new acquisitions and the refinement and 

deaccessioning of existing collections. The acquisition of collections is 

fundamental and critical to the vitality of the Smithsonian in order to preserve the 

evolution of human knowledge and document our cultural and scientific heritage 

for future generations. 

In fiscal year 2010, the Smithsonian's National Collections Program, a central office 

under my direction, conducted an Institution-wide collections condition assessment. The 

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physical condition assessment allows us to identify areas of need, to establish priorities, 

and to track progress on improving the physical condition and accessibility of collections 

ultimately to ensure long-term preservation and availability for research and exhibition. 

As part of the assessment, Smithsonian collecting units grouped and evaluated their 

collections holdings by defined pragmatic subsets, based on their management and use, 

and characterizing the quality of collections storage equipment, objects housing 

materials, preservation, physical accessibility, and collections space. 

In fiscal year 2012, collections significance was added to the collections assessmcnt 

methodology. To appropriately capture the scope and diversity of our collections, from 

insects and meteorites to locomotives and aircraft, collections are assessed at a 

collections-level-such as military uniforms rather than a single object- or item-level, or 

one uniform. Bascd on the collections assessment results, we continue to target and 

improve substandard aspects of collections care by providing essential resources, by 

correcting specific deficiencies identified in the Smithsonian's Inspector General audit 

recommendations, and by addressing the Institution's highest priority collections 

management needs. Using targeted resources, we have made substantial improvements in 

preservation and accessibility of collections ranging from national icons to biomaterials 

in thc most efficient and cost-effective manner possible. 

Crcated in fiscal year 2010, the Smithsonian's Digitization Program Office is leading the 

effort to document and increase the quantity and quality of digit~l inventory records and 

digital images, which advances each of the four major goals of our Strategic Plan, and is 

a basic requirement for broadening access, revitalizing education, and strengthening 

collections. Digitization supports collections care by strengthening inventory control 

through electronic record keeping, and by providing visual documentation of collection 

items. Digitization also increases access to our collections for those audiences unable to 

visit our museums and collections in person, and prolongs the life of a collection object 

by minimizing handling. And again, with less than one percent of Smithsonian 

collections on display at any given time, digitization extends that access to collections 

itcms in storage. We are exploring creative and cfficicnt ways to integrate digitization 

into the core functions ofthe Smithsonian. To anchor the direction of the central strategy, 

all Smithsonian collecting units have created unit digitization plans, detailing priorities 

and goals at a more granular level. 

An annual assessment tracks our progrcss to date, and will allow us to quantify the 

impact further invcstment will have. The unparalleled size of the Smithsonian collections 

is a unique challenge. We chart our own course as we move from paper-based inventory 

to electronic inventory control. We maintain paper-based records for 85% of our 137 

million objects and specimens, and electronic records for just 15% percent. Wc are trying 

to move the dial but this volume is unprecedented, and the variety of sizes, shapes and 

relative fragility of our collections poses significant challenges. In fiscal year 2012, we 

added 170,000 standard electronic records for inventory control, 

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Ultimately, not every item requires a digital record. As I mentioned, many of our 

collections are acquired for the sole purpose of scientific study and many ofthese items 

can be described digitally by groupings. We see this method in Natural History 

collections most often. For example, fish specimens collected to characterize the 

population and variability that exists at one place in time are frequently stored in one jar. 

We track and manage the jar simply in one digital record. As we better understand and 

document the Smithsonian collections, we are able to prioritize a subset of objects and 

specimens for digitization. 

Priorities include inventory control, compelling research interest, education, and 

preservation as the primary drivers of the digitization program. Overall, 12 million 

objects and specimens (or 9% of our collection) have been targeted. Currently, we have 

standard digital images that represent 12% of this priority collection and our current 

progress is almost 3% annually. But there is so much more to achieve and we are 

engaged in creative exploration of meeting these needs cost effectively. We 

commissioned a study by the Smithsonian's Office of Policy and Analysis that will 

provide cost-efficient operational models for digitizing collections systematically at scale. 

Establishing standard rapid digitization for common collections materials ensures 

maximum return on investment for digitization funding, and will improve the access of 

digital assets for scientific inquiry and public engagement. 

In fiscal year 2010, the Smithsonian launched a space planning initiative to document, 

analyze, and plan for addressing the Smithsonian's current and future collections space 

needs in a pragmatic, strategic, and integrated manner. With these goals in mind, the 

Smithsonian established an interdisciplinary Collections Space Steering Committee, led 

by the National Collections Program and the Office of Planning and Project 

Management, a subset of our central Office of Facilities Engineering and Operations, to 

assess current collections space conditions and needs and to develop a framework plan 

with near, intennediate, and long-tenn recommendations for addressing current and 

projected pan-Institutional collections space requirements. 

As part of this initiative, the Smithsonian completed a survey of existing collections 

space-representing more than 2.1 million square feet of space, or 17.5% of total 

Smithsonian building space. The survey provides a snapshot of current collections space 

conditions and characterizes the quality of collections space, storage equipment, 

accessibility, environmental conditions, security, and fire safety. 

Preliminary data highlighted that some collections were at immediate risk of damage or 

loss. At the Garber Facility in Suitland, Maryland, for example, temporary buildings 

constructed in the 1950s and 1960s have long passed their useful lifespan, are structurally 

compromised or failing, and represent substandard conditions or have been rendered 

inadequate for housing collections. The heavy snowfall which collapsed Garber Building 

21 in February 201 O-which housed 2,200 objects from the National Air and Space 

Museum-fortunately caused little to no damage to the collections, but reinforced the 

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need to develop and implement short and long-term plans to replace substandard facilities 

and to improve collections space conditions across the Institution. As a result, a fiscal 

year 2012 Facilities Capital project currently underway begins to address the severe 

collections space deficiencies in Buildings 15, 16, and 18 at the Garber Facility, 

supporting the decontamination, stabilization and move of American History and Postal 

Museum collections currently stored in the buildings to a soon-to-be constructed 

temporary swing space. Completion of this remediation project and the continued move 

of Air and Space Museum collections to the Udvar-Hazy Center are the first steps in a 

phased redevelopment plan for the Garber Facility. 

With the assistance of an architecture and engineering firm, our collections space 

planning efforts are nearing completion. The framework plan will provide an 

understanding of where and what our greatest collections space needs are, strategies for 

addressing them, and three prototype building designs on which to model future projects. 

These models create efficiencies through commonalities while still addressing unique 

needs, and include strategies for the decompression of collections to make them more 

physically accessible, accomodation for future collections growth, and the replacement of 

existing leased facilities through the strategic renovation of existing buildings. The plan 

outlines construction of Pod 6 at the Museum Support Center and new development of 

the Suitland and Dulles campuses. In the end, the plan creates a clear yet flexible 

roadmap to inform Smithsonian management decisions and to guide our budget requests 

and resource allocation for addressing the Institution's near and long-term collections 

space requirements. 

Existing collections space that needs to be renovated will continue to be addressed 

through unit-level master planning and individual Facilities Capital projects. Master plans 

and updates currently underway or included in our Facilities Capital Five-Year Plan will 

address collections space needs at the Anacostia Museum, Hirshhom Museum and 

Sculpture Garden, National Museum of African Art, Freer and Sackler Galleries, 

National Museum of American History, National Air and Space Museum, National Postal 

Museum, National Museum of Natural History, and the National Museum ofthe 

American Indian. 

While we are stewards of Smithsonian collections, we affect collections globally. We set 

industry standards for collections care and continuously evaluate their utility and 

viability, often revising standards over time as our scientific research on collections 

conservation provides new information and guidance. For example, as part of our 

ongoing collections space planning efforts, we hosted a national summit in March on 

sustainable environmental best practices and strategies. As a leader in the museum 

profession, the Smithsonian is committed to furthering our understanding of the 

environment controls in collections storage and exhibition spaces and to fostering the 

required collaboration among critical stakeholders who share this responsibility for 

designing, establishing, and maintaining collections environments. Our leadership 

established temperature and humidity standards in use across the world. As citizens of 

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this planet we are all compelled to evaluate our energy impact. During the summit, 

stakeholders evaluated that standard for a less energy-intensive approach. A direct 

outcome of the summit is further'refinement of our environmental climate needs for 

collections which will ultimately assist the Institution (and others) with future major 

energy savings in renovations and new construction of collections spaces. We will again 

set the standard for an industry. The Smithsonian will lead by example, preserving the 

collections entrusted in our care, being energy and cost efficient, and educating the public 

about the effects of global change and our options to adjust to such change. Together we 

ensure a sustainable strategy for the future of the world's cultural and scientific heritage 

and the global environment. 

The Smithsonian also works with federal partners to examine the current state of Federal 

scientific collections and to make recommendations for their management and use. I have 

oversight responsibilities for collections at the Smithsonian, but I am also an 

entomologist with 30 years experience doing collections-based research. It is especially 

rewarding to serve as co-chair, along with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, of the 

Interagency Working Group on Scientific Collections. 

We issued a report in 2009 as a first step in ensuring that our shared vital research 

infrastructure is preserved and strengthened for the benefit of both our country and the 

global scientific research enterprise. We continue a vital interagency collaboration to 

ensure a systematic approach to safeguarding scientific collections under the stewardship 

of the federal government. As recognized by the America COMPETES Act of 20 1 0, the 

proper management, documentation, preservation, and accessibility of collections are 

critical to the nation's research and education infrastructure. The preservation and 

management of Federal scientific collections is recognized as part of the long-term 

infrastructure needs and responsibilities of Federal scientific agencies. The Smithsonian 

serves as a leader in the Federal community by the excellent progress we have made and 

the professional standards we establish in collections management. 

To ensure all scientific, cultural and historical Smithsonian collections are preserved and 

remain accessible for current and future generations, the Institution must improve its 

collections space-with Congressional assistance-which ultimately strengthens 

Smithsonian collections stewardship. In addition, the Smithsonian is currently exploring 

alternative means of funding collections space through the use of public-private 

partnerships, and other vehicles that would allow the Institution to implement the 

recommendations of our collections space planning on a more expedited basis. 

In addition to these three pan-Institutional programs, the Smithsonian is also engaged in a 

number of initiatives that involve collaboration among similar collections across the 

Smithsonian that are strengthening collections stewardship. First, the Smithsonian CryoInitiative is greatly improving the management, storage, and accessibility of frozen 

biomaterials held by the National Zoological Park, National Museum of Natural History, 

and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. Smithsonian cryo-collections total 

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nearly 1 million samples of frozen tissue products, germ-plasma, embryos, DNA and 

animal and plant products from more than 18,500 species. By leveraging the shared 

expertise and resources dispersed across the Institution, this initiative supports an 

integrated and efficient approach to curation, management, and data sharing of these 

important biomaterials to ensure their accessibility for scientific research worldwide. 

Secondly, the Smithsonian-working closely with colleagues in the museum 

profession-is developing and implementing interdisciplinary best practices in the 

acquisition, care, exhibition, and long-term preservation of digital art and time-based 

media, a growing and fragile collection material. Lastly, we are in the process of 

developing an interdisciplinary, pan-Institutional support team to strengthen and improve 

Smithsonian emergency management, planning, preparedness and response for 

collections. 

For the first time in the Institution's history, these rich datasets combine condition and 

significance of the collections themselves, with their stewardship context and user 

accessibility. The Collections Condition Assessment and Collections Space Survey and 

Planning bring into to focus the current state of collections stewardship and quality of 

existing collections space, and how to prioritize improvements in both quality and 

efficiency of collections care and space in the future. When combined with the 

Digitization Assessment and Planning, this information helps to establish an 

organizational strategy to ensure improved preservation and accessibility of our physical 

and digital collections assets. 

For many of these efforts, final data are still pending. But we know the indications of 

these studies point to the need for more resources to address insufficiencies. We know 

that targeted funding helps us remediate conditions and deficiencies that have existed for 

many years. 

Increases in Federal appropriations from fiscal year 2006 through 2012 totals $10 

million, cnabling significant improvemcnts in collections management, such as: 

• Addressing OIG audit recommendations regarding deficiencies in collections 

inventory; 

• Stabilizing, re-housing, and inventorying millions of collections items for longterm preservation and accessibility; 

• Purchasing space-efficient storage units and replacing substandard cabinetry; and 

• Conducting collections and preservation assessments to establish prioritics and 

action plans for the allocation of collections care resources. 

Additionally, there are many expenses characterized in other ways, such as exhibitions or 

maintenance, which directly support and enhance stewardship ofthe collections. 

The current budget state, sequestration especially, comes as a particular challenge for us 

at the Smithsonian. Our central collections care funding was cut by 60 percent this year 

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because of sequestration. TIlat is a modest estimate given the significant trimming of 

museum budgets and other activities which directly impact but are not specifically 

characterized as collections. We have incredible challenges to address and yet our budget 

is stretched thin, which will adversely impact the recent progress we have made. The 

level of current funding jeopardizes the Smithsonian's ability to meet its collections 

stewardship responsibilities and places collections at risk ofloss or damage. 

In FY 2014, fue Smithsonian will continue to build on these important planning 

initiatives and follow an action plan for strategically addressing the critical preservation, 

storage, and digitization needs of our collections, based on the results of the Institutionwide collections condition assessment, digitization assessment, and collections space 

framework plan. The Institution will continue to take a strategic multifaceted approachboth localized and pan-Institutional efforts-by prioritizing and systematically addressing 

critical collections needs based on current care methodologies, sound assessment data, 

economies of scale, and project-driven activities (including collection moves). We will 

continue to address IG audit recommendations. The Smithsonian will continue to seek 

additional private funding, as well as external partnerships, to improve collections 

management while leveraging available resources to support Institution-wide initiatives 

that strategically address fue most critical collections needs. 

We have shown what can be accomplished with targeted investment. While each of the 

three initiatives I've mentioned is critical in sound management of the collections, and 

requires funding, they are not resourced in the same way. The spaee planning initiative is 

a nearly three million dollar investment on top of an already rigorous process for capital 

investment. In contrast, while our National Collections Program is moving into a more 

proactive planning and policy role from the more passive coordination role it had for 

many years, it remains a two-person office. With digitization and collections care, we are 

building centralized process and oversight where it had been previously decentralized. 

We recognize there are issues that are too small for capital planning and yet too large to 

be tackled uniformly with limited resources. Funding for collections storage equipment, 

the cabinetry itself, is just one example we have yet to sufficiently address. 

And yet, thanks to strong leadership and collaboration, our internal directives are the best 

in the industry. Our internal directives outline, at the unit level, a rigorous process, 

accountability and planning, but they are not yet integrated at the level of a strategic plan. 

These pan-Institutional efforts provide us key tools and insight for improving the 

management, care, and accessibility of collections, but we must sufficiently resource 

these efforts. Because of sequestration, we have already reduced our central collections 

care resources by more than half, and face more problems next year if sequestration 

continues. 

There are more projects we must undertake, more collections that require improved 

preservation and greater accessibility in more ways for scholars, visitors and students. 

Bccause collections stewardship is fundamental to the Smithsonian's mission, there is a 

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critical need for new resources to accomplish basic collections management activities for 

accountability, preservation, storage, digitization, and accessibility of our collections. We 

will continue to solicit private support and grants for collections care, storage, and 

digitization. But we need your help and financial commitment to share and maintain 

America's treasures. 

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26 

The CHAIRMAN. The chair now recognizes Mr. Dahl for his testimony. 

STATEMENT OF SCOTT S. DAHL 

Mr. DAHL. Good morning. Thank you for the opportunity to testify about the Smithsonian’s collections care challenges. All of us 

here agree that collections care is critical to the Smithsonian’s mission and that management plays an essential role. 

The Office of the Inspector General also serves an important 

oversight function in collections stewardship. Over the last several 

years, we have conducted collections care—collections management 

audits on three of the largest museums on the National Mall that 

combined house nearly 99 percent of the Smithsonian’s collections. 

In our audit of the American History Museum, we found that 

many collections were stored in substandard conditions and that 

storage equipment and buildings were deteriorating and contained 

hazardous materials. Particularly troubling were the storage conditions at the Garber facility in Suitland, Maryland. Objects stored 

there were at significant risk of damage. 

We also found that required cyclical inventories were not being 

done, and inventory records were often incomplete and inaccurate, 

leaving conditions or collections objects vulnerable to loss and theft. 

In fact, during our sample inventories of collections, the museum 

could not locate 10 percent of the objects in our sample, including 

some items of great value and significance. 

Management concurred with our recommendations and has completed almost all of the recommendations that we have made. We 

have evaluated management’s submissions to us to determine 

whether they adequately address our recommendations. 

In reviewing our prior collections audits, we found that many of 

the same issues occurred across several museums. Rather than 

conducting an audit of another museum, we decided to approach 

our oversight of collections care from a pan-institutional perspective. We also highlighted these systemic patterns of collections care 

challenges in our 2012 report, which the Chairman mentioned, the 

‘‘Top Management Challenges,’’ which identifies the most critical 

problems that the Smithsonian faces. In that report, we once again 

emphasized the need for the Smithsonian to address the collections 

care challenges pan-institutionally. Management generally agrees 

with our pan-institutional emphasis, and Scott Miller and his office 

have moved forward on the three strategic initiatives for collections 

stewardship that Dr. Miller and Dr. Clough referred to earlier. 

The three strategic initiatives partially overlap with the collections care areas that we identified in our top management challenges. We are assessing the impact that these initiatives are having on collections care in our recently announced review. In addition, we have been evaluating plans that management has submitted in response to our recommendations. While plans are a very 

important first step, they need to be implemented in order to have 

an impact on collections care problems. The implementation of 

many of these plans is at risk because implementation is largely 

contingent on increased funding levels. In fact, management has 

cited resource constraints as an impediment to addressing collections care problems. We acknowledge the decline in funding for colVerDate Mar 15 2010 21:48 Sep 03, 2013 Jkt 082544 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\A544.XXX A544

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lections care, and we expect that trend will continue. Smithsonian’s 

own policy shop advised management in 2005 to seek other avenues for additional funding for collections care, including from private resources. Dr. Miller mentioned that they are exploring those 

alternatives now. 

Another impediment to full implementation is the Smithsonian’s 

decentralized approach to collections management. The collecting 

units are still largely free to set their own standards and allocate 

resources for collections care as they see fit. Scott Miller does not 

have the authority to make most of those resource allocation decisions. Going forward, we will continue to monitor the 

Smithsonian’s implementation of our previous audit recommendations, and we have initiated a review of these three pan-institutional collections care initiatives. 

We remain concerned about the substandard and hazardous conditions at Garber and will continue to monitor progress there. By 

strengthening the Smithsonian’s cross-unit collaboration and implementing a more risk-based, prioritized plan throughout the entire 

institution, we believe collections care will be improved. 

That concludes my statement. I am happy to respond to any 

questions. Thank you. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you very much. 

[The statement of Mr. Dahl follows:] 


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TESTIMONY OF SCOTT S. DAHL 

INSPECTOR GENERAL, SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION 

ON COLLECTIONS STEWARDSHIP AT THE SMITHSONIAN 

COMMITTEE ON HOUSE ADMINISTRATION 

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 17, 2013 

Chairman Miller, Ranking Member Brady, and Committee Members: 

Thank you for the opportunity to testify about the Smithsonian Institution's 

collections care challenges. Collections are at the core of the Smithsonian's 

mission, and their care is an essential and critical part of management's 

responsibilities and the OIG's oversight function. I will focus my attention on 

systemic issues involving collections care at the Smithsonian that we identified in 

prior work and our oversight plans to ensure improved stewardship of the nation's 

treasured artifacts. 

Importance of Collections Care at SI 

The Smithsonian Institution is the world's largest museum and research complex, 

including 19 museums and galleries, 9 research facilities, and the National 

Zoological Park. The total number of artifacts, works of art and specimens in 

Smithsonian is currently estimated at more than 137 million, the bulk of which is 

housed at the National Museum of Natural History. Most artifacts are donated by 

individuals, collectors, and federal agencies to form the Smithsonian's permanent 

collections, held in trust for the American public. 

Among these collections are irreplaceable national icons and specimens vital to the 

study. of the world's scientific and cultural heritage, ranging from insects and 

dinosaur bones, to President Abraham Lincoln's top hat and the Space Shuttle 

Discovery. Less than 2 percent of the Smithsonian's collections are on display in 

the museums at any given time. Smithsonian collections serve as resources for 

answering significant scientific questions or educating the public. As such, the 

collections playa vital role in advancing scientific knowledge, addressing societal 

issues, and increasing the historical literacy of the nation. 

Collections care and preservation are important to reduce the loss of the 

educational, research, and exhibit value of the objects. Collections continue to 

grow, standards in preservation evolve, and new technologies are introduced, all 

creating increased demands on the collections, making their care essential. 

Therefore, collections care should be viewed and managed as a critical part of the 

Smithsonian's mission. 

OIG Oversight 

Over the last several years, we conducted collections management audits on the 

three largest and most visible museums on the National Mall (National Museum of 

Natural History, National Air and Space Museum, and National Museum of American 

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History), as well as the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum in New York. 

Through these audits, we identified a pattern of issues concerning collections care, 

such as inadequate preservation practices, insufficient inventory controls, and 

security of collections areas not meeting Smithsonian standards. 

Inadequate Preservation Practices 

During our audit of National Museum of American History (NMAH), we found that 

many collections were stored in substandard conditions not conducive to long-term 

preservation. Some storage equipment and buildings were deteriorating and 

contained potentially damaging or hazardous materials, such as lead, asbestos or 

arsenic, that posed risks to both staff and collections. In some cases, pipes and 

conduits were exposed, resulting in frequent leaks that also threatened collections. 

Furthermore, NMAH did not have a comprehensive preservation program to 

mitigate the deterioration of objects. 

We were particularly troubled by the collections storage conditions at the Paul E. 

Garber Facility in Suitland, Maryland. Approximately 400,000 objects stored at this 

facility were especially at risk of damage. Built in the 1950s and 1960s, these 

buildings have exceeded their intended useful lives as temporary storage. Some 

are contaminated with hazardous substances, and many are inadequate to 

withstand natural disasters. With the collapse of one of the buildings from snow 

and wind in February 2010, and damage to other buildings from the earthquake in 

August 2011, the risk to the collections has been clearly demonstrated. 

As a result of these findings, we made recommendations to Smithsonian 

management that addressed these deficiencies, including: developing a prioritized 

plan for addressing pan-Institutional collections storage needs; exploring 

opportunities to increase or maximize existing storage space; replacing substandard 

storage equipment; developing and implementing a plan to remove and 

decontaminate objects from storage facilities containing hazardous materials; and 

establishing and implementing a preservation program at NMAH. 

Smithsonian management concurred with all of our recommendations. In response, 

management has developed a prioritized, project-specific plan to replace 

substandard storage equipment and housing materials in collection storage areas. 

Management has implemented this plan in three specific collecting divisions at the 

museum. In addition, management has drafted a Collections Space Framework 

Plan with recommendations for addressing current and projected Smithsonian-wide 

space requirements. Management also has commenced work to address some of 

the collections space deficiencies at the Garber Facility. 

Insufficient Inventory Controls 

In our audit of NMAH on inventory issues, we found that collecting units had not 

developed or consistently followed inventory plans. Cyclical inventories, including 

those of highly sensitive objects, were lacking, and inventory records were often 

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incomplete and inaccurate. The lack of inventory controls leaves collections objects 

vulnerable to loss or theft, diminishes accountability, and reduces the scholarly 

value of the objects. 

For example, during our sample inventories of collections, the museum could not 

locate 10% of the objects in our sample. The missing items included ancient 

Greek, Roman, and Arabic coins; silver and bronze medals; gold timepieces and 

watches; and items from a large collection of coins and tokens featured on national 

television. 

We made recommendations for management to fix these problems, such as to 

develop and implement a prioritized plan to conduct and document inventories in 

accordance with Smithsonian policy. We further recommended that management 

develop and implement criteria to identify all of its highly sensitive objects, as well 

as standards for tracking these objects within the collections information system. 

In response to our recommendations, management has developed a collections 

stewardship plan which addresses management's methodology for implementing 

several of our inventory recommendations, including procedures for conducting and 

documenting inventories, reconciling the results, and ensuring that all objects have 

complete and accurate collections records. Management has also developed and 

implemented criteria to identify highly sensitive objects and track these objects in 

the museum's collection information system. 

In addition, the museum management continues to implement its collections 

stewardship plan through a prioritized, project-specific approach. NMAH is 

currently assessing staffing needs in order to make accurate and informed budget 

requests. 

Addressing these inventory issues is important for safeguarding the collections. In 

additional to the items that could not be located during our audit sample 

inventories, insufficient inventory controls have also impeded our investigative 

inquiries into missing objects at the Smithsonian. Often, due to lack of sound 

inventory practices, we could not determine if the items were lost, misplaced, 

disposed of, broken, or stolen. 

Inadequate Collections Security Controls 

In our collections audits, we found that several collections storage areas had 

inoperable or malfunctioning security devices. Additionally, some museums 

permitted improper access to their collections and collections records. This included 

unsupervised access to collection storage areas by researchers and volunteers, 

inadequate screening of individuals with access, and poor controls over keys to 

collections storage areas. These security deficiencies increased the risk of theft, 

loss, or damage to objects. 

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We recommended that the Smithsonian implement security policies and procedures 

to improve security controls in collections storage areas. At NMAH, Smithsonian 

management prioritized security device upgrades, improved controls over keys to 

collection storage areas, and refined and implemented stricter access to collections 

storage areas. 

Similarly, in our investigations, we have looked into thefts of objects that may have 

occurred due to insufficient security measures identified in our audit work. In one 

instance, during our investigation of stolen objects, we found malfunctioning 

security devices on a door, poor key control, and inadequate screening of 

volunteers. These problems were factors that allowed the theft to occur. 

Process for Evaluating Recommendation Implementation 

Management has completed most of the recommended actions in our collections 

audits. As part of our process for ensuring completion, we reviewed the requested 

plans and evaluated the implementation measures where applicable. The work 

involved to fully implement several of these recommendations is ongoing, and we 

continue to monitor management's progress. 

Pan-Institutional Approach 

In reviewing our prior collections audits, we found many of the same issues relating 

to inventory controls and security across several museums. See charts below. 

NMAI Move Oct. 2001 

NASM 

CooperHewitt 

Mar. 2010 

Sept. 2011 

x 

x 

x 

x x 

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lliilUSlEUM 

NMAI Move 

NASM 

NMAH 

Phase II 

Oct. 2001 

Mar. 2010 

Sept. 2011 

Ml$slhg 

X X X 

X 

X X X X 

To better address these patterns, we decided to approach collection care issues 

from a pan-Institutional perspective. Rather than conduct an audit of another 

museum just to find the same types of issues, we instead urged management to 

use our previous audit recommendations, including those directed to specific 

museums, for addressing the problems across the Institution. 

For example, on inventory controls, we recommended in one audit that 

management "establish and implement a plan to conduct a full inventory of the 

museum's collections" that includes a prioritized list of the inventory needs. In 

addition, we recommended that management "strengthen and standardize 

collections management elements in performance plans" for museum management 

that includes requirements to conduct cyclical inventories. These recommendations 

have clear pan-Institutional application. 

Likewise, on collections security standards, we recommended in the same audit that 

management "develop and implement a prioritized plan" to bring the museum's 

collections storage areas into compliance with Smithsonian space security 

standards. This recommendation also could be applied across the Institution. 

We also found pan-Institutional applications for several of our recommendations 

involving preservation issues identified in our most recent audit of NMAH. In one 

recommendation, we asked Smithsonian management to develop a prioritized plan 

for addressing storage needs. Furthermore, we recommended that management 

"establish and implement a Preservation Program," as required by Smithsonian 

Directive 600 "Collections Management," including prioritized plans for conducting 

staffing and preservation assessments, as well as preservation and curatorial staff 

training. 

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Moreover, we highlighted these systemic patterns of collections care problems in 

our 2012 report on "Top Management Challenges," which identified the most critical 

issues that the Smithsonian faces. In that report, we emphasized the need for the 

Smithsonian to address collections care pan-institutionally. Consistent with our 

audit findings, the three primary challenges we listed are: (1) improving 

preservation practices; (2) strengthening inventory controls; and (3) meeting 

collections security standards. 

Management agreed in general with our pan-Institutional emphasis on collections 

care. Rather than applying our audit recommendations Institution-wide, the 

Deputy Under Secretary for Collections and Interdisciplinary Support (DUSCIS) had 

already moved forward on strategic initiatives for collections stewardship in the 

following three areas: digitization, physical condition of collections, and collections 

space planning. 

Management's three strategic initiatives partially overlap with the collections care 

areas we identified in the Top Management Challenges. We are presently 

evaluating the impact that management's initiatives are having on collections care 

challenges in our recently announced review. 

In the meantime, we have evaluated plans from both museum and Smithsonian 

management addressing our inventory, preservation, and security 

recommendations. These plans are an important first step, and management has 

begun implementation of these plans. However, the full implementation of many of 

these plans is at risk because implementation is largely contingent on increased 

funding levels, rather than assuming existing resources. 

In fact, in response to many of our recommendations, management cites resource 

constraints as an impediment to full and timely implementation. We acknowledge 

the decline in funding for collections care, and in the current federal budget 

environment, we do not expect that trend to change. This fiscal constraint was 

previously articulated by my predecessor, A. Sprightley Ryan, in her December 

2009 testimony before the House Committee on Appropriations (Subcommittee on 

Interior, Environment and Related Agencies): 

We understand the resource constraints that prevent more comprehensive 

collections stewardship, from accurate and complete inventories to sound 

preservation, but we believe that the Institution could do more panInstitutional planning and prioritizing to use whatever resources are 

available. 

This funding challenge also was identified in 2005 by management's own consulting 

arm, the Office of Policy and Analysis (OP&A), in its lengthy report entitled 

"Concern at the Core: Managing Smithsonian Collections." In that report, OP&A 

predicted: 

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It is unlikely that the Congress will provide all the funds required to bring 

ongoing collections management up to desired levels. Indeed, the Congress 

may not even provide sufficient funds for priority projects such as the 

completion of basic inventories and collection profiles .... 

OP&A therefore recommended that Smithsonian seek other avenues for additional 

funding for collections care activities, including fundraising from private sources. 

OP&A pointed out that "[n]either the central administration nor the individual 

collecting units have engaged in major efforts to solicit philanthropic funds for 

collections management, other than for acquisitions." 

In addition, OP&A identified another impediment to effective collections 

management. Despite a Smithsonian-wide collections management policy, 

collecting units "are free to set their own standards and allocate resources." In this 

decentralized approach to collection management, "the level of attention devoted to 

collections care largely comes down to the priorities of unit directors." OP&A 

recommended that a centralized authority work with museums to clearly define 

standards of care for compliance with Smithsonian policy - including conducting 

inventories and significance assessments - and then monitor whether museums 

are adhering to those standards. 

While management has made some progress in establishing these standards, the 

DUSCIS does not have authority to enforce compliance or make material resource 

allocation decisions concerning collections care. That authority, involving resource 

management of collection care, still resides primarily with the museum directors. 

Going Forward 

We will continue to monitor Smithsonian's implementation of our previous audit 

recommendations. In addition, we have launched two reviews that further examine 

collections care challenges. 

In June 2013, we initiated a review of Smithsonian's pan-Institutional collections 

care initiatives discussed above. This review will continue our ongoing monitoring 

and assessment of the Smithsonian's progress towards improved collections 

stewardship. Our objectives are to evaluate the impact that Smithsonian initiatives 

have on collections care, assess management's plans for using the data collected to 

date in addressing collection care issues Smithsonian-wide, and examine future 

funding and contingency plans for collections care. 

Earlier in 2013, we initiated an audit of high-value object transportation security. 

For this audit, we will review the security protocol and standards for transporting 

high-value and high-risk value objects. However, management currently has in 

process a draft policy that would address many of the issues we intended to review. 

To allow management time to implement the changes, we suspended this audit but 

will resume the review of this important area next fiscal year once the policy is in 

place. 

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As SI management moves forward on its pan-Institutional initiatives, we urge 

management to continue to make it a high priority to further mitigate the 

significant risks posed by the substandard storage conditions at the Garber Facility. 

Through ongoing monitoring of implementation and future audits, we will continue 

to emphasize the need for the Smithsonian to address collections care issues 

Institution-wide. Collections are at the core of the Smithsonian, and the challenges 

increase due to growing collections and tighter budgets. By more effectively' 

addressing these perennial challenges, Smithsonian will ensure that its invaluable 

collections will be available for generations to come. 

8 
36 

The CHAIRMAN. And we thank all the gentlemen for their testimony. Very interesting, I think. 

And as we sort of focus here on collections care, all of you mentioned the same thing, really, or are certainly cognizant of the fact 

that the decline in funding. And no end in sight, let’s face it, for 

anybody really within the Federal structure, as we are about to be 

voting in the fall on a—raising the debt ceiling, et cetera. We have 

enormous fiscal constraints in our Nation for all kinds of things. 

But as we think about some of the priority collections in the storage, et cetera, I was trying to listen closely, the secretary was mentioning—I started making some notes and then stopped about 

some—Udvar-Hazy and Landover, Maryland, New York, some of 

the things you have done at the greenhouses, et cetera. I guess my 

question would be, as far as the current capacity for storage for 

all—for your entire collection, and is there anything in imminent 

threat? Mr. Dahl mentioned Garber. I am not sure where Garber 

is. I guess that would be part of my question. Where is Garber, and 

what is actually in it? You raised some concerns about that particular storage facility. But is there anything that is really an imminent threat that needs to be addressed? And also, I guess, it is 

sort of like the short term, but long term, as you continue to collect 

with your collections, are you collecting things that you have a concern that you might not be able to store or have the capacity for? 

And I am sure that goes into your strategic plan as well. And 

maybe you could enlighten us a bit on that also. 

Mr. CLOUGH. Thanks. And I will try to give an explanation of 

that. Garber is part of a facility in Suitland, Maryland, which now 

has a high-end, sophisticated center for our collections. But initially, it was more of a warehouse. And so the early stage construction there was deemed to be temporary. And so a lot of metal buildings were put up with relatively rudimentary ability to control environment and things of that sort. And as you imagine with the old 

buildings, there were some asbestos problems and other things 

there. 

The intention in the long run, as I understand it, was to get rid 

of those buildings as new facilities were built. I referred to something called the Pod 5 and Pod 3. There is a set of buildings that 

actually has five pods now, which are very sophisticated collections 

buildings, state of the art, absolutely the best in the world. In addition, we have collections there for the American Indian Museum in 

their particular center, which is also a state of the art facility. 

Over time, the Smithsonian found it was not able to get rid of 

the older buildings as the collections grew because it needed the 

space. So, with time, as we build these new facilities, we are trying 

to move things out of those buildings, which, in some cases, you 

would prefer not to use. 

Now, we did have a building that collapsed—you mentioned a 

concern—in the large snow event that we had a few years ago. And 

as a result of that, we did a structural reevaluation of each and 

every one of those buildings. And we have addressed most of the 

problems that were identified as most critical. We still have three 

buildings that we have concerns about that we would like to get 

out of. But gradually, as we built the Landover facility and UdvarHazy facility, we have moved collections out into those new faciliVerDate Mar 15 2010 21:48 Sep 03, 2013 Jkt 082544 PO 00000 Frm 00038 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\A544.XXX A544

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ties. And that is been a big improvement for us. And we got rid 

of the building, obviously, that collapsed. So that is probably the 

area that we have the greatest concerns for. We would like to get 

out of that. And it will just take some time to build new facilities 

and take the collection out of those areas. I think otherwise we feel 

positive about where we are. American History also remains a bit 

of a challenge because it has a very old collection. It is a building 

that was built in the 1960s. It needs renovation. That is a process 

that will take place in stages. We don’t want to shut the whole museum down, so we do it in stages. So American History, as was 

identified by the inspector general correctly, is an area where we 

have concerns. But other than that, we have done, I think, a good 

job of bringing the facilities up and addressing some of the most 

serious problems. 

The CHAIRMAN. So that is sort of the short item. As you look long 

term perhaps I would—first of all, Mr. Dahl, whether or not you 

agree with that assessment and, Mr. Miller, what you see long 

term. Some of the newer collections that you are going to be—I 

mean, the T. Rex, for instance, I—various things that you are collecting and how you are going to be storing those, et cetera. 

Mr. DAHL. Chairman Miller, we—we remain concerned about the 

conditions at Garber for the reasons that the Secretary has mentioned. Some of those buildings are in decline, and the collections 

need to be moved out of there. They are making—we have been 

monitoring this progress, as the Secretary noted, through structural supports and moving some of the more valued items to other 

storage centers. But we, as the Secretary, remain concerned about 

the conditions there. 

The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Miller. 

Mr. MILLER. Let me first just add to the secretary’s remarks 

about the three buildings of specific concern at Garber, we have the 

plans now in place for the replacement of those buildings and the 

decontamination of those collections, and that new construction will 

start in the beginning of the next fiscal year. 

Regarding the longer-term issues, that really goes to the space 

planning study that we have done where we have looked very carefully at every space across the Smithsonian that relates to collections uses, and that’s 2.1 million square feet of space. And we have 

identified which of those need replacement or renovation. We have 

also identified what we need to deal with incoming collections, according to our projections. We have done three pilot studies looking 

at how we can better use space in the downtown museum buildings, how might we better use the Suitland facility that the secretary mentioned, and also, how might we build a facility for large 

objects at the Dulles campus where the Udvar-Hazy Center is. And 

we are proceeding with that planning. It is clear that in the long 

term, to deal with the challenges at the American History Museum, 

we need new offsite storage. There is just no expansion space in 

that building to allow us to decompress those collections and deal 

with that in place. 

Mr. CLOUGH. I had a quick comment. 

The CHAIRMAN. Certainly. 

Mr. CLOUGH. One of the things that we are working hard on is 

looking at ways to use a public-private partnership aspect of the 


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Smithsonian to best effect to address these problems. The UdvarHazy Center was built entirely with private money, and it has a 

marvelous archival system in it. In some cases, we are able to get 

donor support for digitizing collections and particularly for what I 

would call enthusiast areas. The Archives of American Art, for example, has a large following of folks. And we were able to get a 

foundation to give us $6 million to undertake a serious effort at 

digitizing their collections. That gives the public more access to 

them, that gives scholars more access to them. In addition, it 

means less movement of collections, less damage to collections over 

time. It protects the collections, and better inventory control when 

we can undertake these activities. 

And, in addition, we are looking at simply more productivity. The 

more we can use digital assets and move digital assets around, the 

less we need an actual, physical person to move these things 

around. And so we are tying to increase our productivity as well 

as look at donor support and other ways in which we can address 

these challenges. 

The CHAIRMAN. I think I will just follow up on that. You are talking about digitizing, digitizing all of your various collections, et 

cetera. I am not a great—I am not great on technology, although, 

believe it or not, our committee actually has everything on our 

iPads here for this. It is the first time we have done this at our 

hearing. I have all my opening statements and various things on 

there. So we are trying. But that is an effort, right? 

But, you know, when we think about the fantastic collection that 

you have, and, as I say, such a national treasure and how we can 

allow every American to access the fantastic treasure trove of information and collections that you have at the Smithsonian, I am not 

really clear on how the digitization is working. Actually, I have 

been trying to go on the Internet to find out exactly what I can see 

there in an asymmetrical 3–D type of way to your collections, et 

cetera. And I think when we think about a major component of revitalizing education—and, of course, today’s kids are used to accessing almost everything electronically. How is that—how can that 

help a school district in my district, for instance? How could I go 

a teacher or principal and say, look, do you even realize what the 

Smithsonian has available for your students? And how they could 

access all of this. 

Mr. CLOUGH. I think there are really three aspects of that. One 

part of it is the physical digitization of an artifact. And that is a 

physical act that has to take place, which is time consuming and 

labor consuming. We are actually looking at robotics as a way to 

find a more automatic way, because of the scale of our collection. 

But that is a challenge for us because of the size of the collection. 

So that is one aspect of it. 

Now, we are working hard to find other ways to do this. It is not 

just a question of incidentally making an image of an object. We 

would like today to make a 3-dimensional image of the object that 

you can put on your pad or tablet, and rotate. A student can do 

that and understand it. But the second part of that is what we call 

the metadata, and that is describing what the object is. It doesn’t 

do you any good just to see an image if you don’t know what the 

object is. So our objective really is to put metadata against this obVerDate Mar 15 2010 21:48 Sep 03, 2013 Jkt 082544 PO 00000 Frm 00040 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\A544.XXX A544

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ject so you know what it is, where it came from, how it was made, 

all those kind of things, and what date and so forth that it was 

made. 

So we are looking at using volunteers, digital volunteers, to help 

us with that. The National Postal Museum has done a great job of 

vetting about 160 people who are philatelists, who love stamps— 

and many Members of Congress, incidentally, love stamps, it turns 

out. They can actually help us add metadata, which we would vet, 

but they would do some of the work for us, if you will, in terms 

of that. So we are looking at ways to get volunteers—volunteers 

want to help the Smithsonian. And we have 6,200 physical volunteers; why not have digital volunteers to help us? So we are creating a volunteer page where we will offer tasks to people if they 

would like to help us. If you are into coins or you are into First 

Ladies’ gowns, we can let you help us in that regard. 

The second part is then access. Once you digitize something, how 

can we make it easy for you to access it? And so we are working 

on our search engines, which, frankly, aren’t where they need to 

be. We were very fortunate to compete for President’s Innovation 

Fellows. There are 40 or so of those that were put up for bids this 

year. We competed and won three of them. And so we have three 

folks working with us who are from industry who are uniquely talented in this area. One is a specialist in search engines. We are 

going to work with this particular person to help lift our search engines to another level to make it easier for people to use these. 

And then, finally, you need to put these things into contexts that 

are useful for teachers and for students, enthusiasts, for that matter. That means you go to lesson plans. We know that teachers 

want adaptable lesson plans. We need to give them raw material; 

they will create the lesson plan. But also focus it on State standards. We are working hard with the Department of Education on 

trying to make sure all of our aspects meet State standards. We 

have a group of about 500 teachers who are focus groups for us to 

help us as we are doing this work and to create things that they 

really want. 

Another challenge is to make sure we are putting something up 

that people want to see. Because in our vast collections, not everybody wants to see everything. We are trying to get smarter about 

what people want from us so that we can use our resources, which 

will be stretched, no matter what, in a more effective way. 

The CHAIRMAN. Very good. 

And before I turn to my ranking member, I think I am going to 

ask you to assist our staff, actually, on something that we have 

been working on, a piece of legislation that passed this committee 

and passed the full House. Congress for years has had this artistic 

discovery with the art you see in the tunnel when you are going 

in—all of our different districts have a competition for art. But 

this—we are putting together our staff here and House of professional staff is putting together a new competition for STEM for an 

app for the kids. Right? They got an app for this, for the STEM 

kinds of things. And we think that that could be a fantastic competition. And kids need to be recognized, not just for their expertise 

in sports but in the sciences and engineering, et cetera, et cetera. 

And we may be calling you to assist us a bit as we put together 


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the parameters for that type of competition. And the Smithsonian 

would be a great—— 

Mr. CLOUGH. One other small aspect about this is digital 

badging, which has become very important. Once the teacher or the 

student has access to the materials, how do they prove they got 

something from it? So we have a digital badge, sort of like the 

scout badge, that a student can earn when they show that they 

have completed a task and actually finished it to the satisfaction 

of our experts. We have about 120 of these badges now. Many are 

the area of STEM education. It gives a student a chance to be certified that they actually did the work. 

The CHAIRMAN. Very good. 

Chair recognizes ranking member, gentlemen from Pennsylvania. 

Mr. BRADY. Thank you, Madam Chairman. 

Mr. Secretary, Smithsonian doesn’t charge any entrance fees. 

With the sequestration, would you think that may have any change 

to that? 

Mr. CLOUGH. So far, we have avoided charging admission fees to 

our museums. My philosophy on it has been affected by my daily 

observations of visitors to our museum. The American people, as I 

see it, have helped pay for our buildings. They have helped pay for 

the collections and the maintenance of collections. It seems kind of 

a shame to charge them again to see something they own. Really, 

I always tell people when I give talks, you own our collections and 

you should take advantage of them. So that is the philosophy. 

The second thing is if you charge admissions, the challenge will 

be that it costs money to collect those admission fees. And so you 

can’t charge a small amount; you have to charge a relatively large 

amount. And, in addition, because we have visitors who like to be 

able to visit multiple museums, then you would probably deter 

their ability to visit the multiple museums that they come to see. 

We are a little different than most museums that, and our zoo, 

of course, in that we have a lot of folks who don’t have a lot of 

money coming to visit. They don’t have enough money to buy 

things in our stores. And they sit outside, and they make their own 

lunches and so forth. And, to me, it is very moving to see people 

be able to really enjoy something that they paid for and they own. 

Mr. BRADY. I appreciate that, sir. 

For the record, I am against charging for admission. 

So I am in agreement with you. 

The African American Museum, will that make the deadline in 

2015? The opening? African American Museum. 

Mr. CLOUGH. We are still shooting for an opening in 2015. Our 

plan originally was November of 2015. That is sort of tied to the 

end of the Civil War as an anniversary. We have worked hard to 

maintain that schedule and stay on budget. We have had some 

challenges; construction encountered some difficulties at the end of 

last year and early this year. As you know, I am an engineer. And 

the site is on 14th and Constitution. That happens to be a location 

where the Tiber River used to be. So the river used to run through 

that area and actually was used to deliver construction materials 

to the Capitol building. And so they had a deep excavation well 

under the water table into some gravelly, open materials. And so 

they had some water problems that actually challenged them. 


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Clark Construction, I think, did a great job of recovering from that, 

but it cost some time. We had a little schedule slippage. We still 

are within the contingency that we set for the project. So we still 

hope to open in November of 15. That is still our plan. 

I am sorry. 

Mr. BRADY. Thank you. 

One other quick thing. I understand that there will be some submissions with the restaurant employees and the McDonald workers 

that they are not getting a living wage. I appreciate what you said 

about people outside making their lunches, and you sympathize 

with them. I wish that you would sympathize with the people that 

are inside making lunches for the people that are coming in when 

you do your contract and make sure that they may be able to get— 

or listen to them, anyway. They have been to see me. Told them 

I would bring the question up. I think they may make a little bit 

less than we even pay on our side of the—with our concessions 

here in the House and the Senate. And that is the McDonald workers and the restaurant associations. And I think their contract may 

be coming up in 2015, also, if you would take a look at that. And 

I may have to talk to you a little bit further with that if you don’t 

mind. 

Mr. CLOUGH. Sure. We are certainly aware of their concerns. And 

they have presented petitions to us, which we have read very carefully and brought to our Regents. Basically, the food service workers are employed by our contractors. We were encouraged by Congress, and we thought it was a good idea some time back to 

outsource that business, both for our retail stores and for food service and for some of our other activities. And we follow the standard 

and local processes. So we follow all laws and all policies that are 

set by local government and by the Federal Government in working 

with those contractors, that the contractors have to provide and 

meet all laws and policies of Federal government and the local government as far as that is concerned. And so we also try to make 

sure that everybody has avenues for their grievances, that they are 

not denied access to their grievances process. That is something we 

are very concerned about. 

Mr. BRADY. I appreciate that. Thank you, Mr. Secretary, Mr. Miller, and Mr. Dahl. 

And thank you, Madam Chairman. 

Mr. CLOUGH. Thank you. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, gentleman. 

The chair now recognizes the gentleman from California, Mr. 

Vargas. 

Mr. VARGAS. Madam Chair, thank you very much for this opportunity, and also for this hearing. The ranking member also. 

I want to thank the witnesses for being here. I do want to ask, 

the first question, about the collection itself. I have had the opportunity to go both to the Hermitage in St. Petersburg as well at the 

Louvre. And one of the things I think that hits most of us when 

we get there is they are not always air conditioned. And you wonder about the collection there and some of the incredible works of 

art. Could you comment a little bit about that? Because I know we 

are talking about collections here and the maintenance of them. 

Could you talk a little about our own system here? 


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Mr. CLOUGH. And I will defer to Dr. Miller because he is a bit 

more of an expert on this than I am. But the collections, obviously, 

require humidity, temperature, and lighting control. These are important aspects. Some collections are more sensitive to that than 

others, clearly. But that is part of our challenge, for example, in 

energy conservation in the Smithsonian. We are trying to save 

money everywhere we can, and yet this is a challenge for us because you can’t shut the temperature and air conditioning controls 

off on weekends or when someone is not visiting the collections. 

And so this is a big challenge for us. It is just a continual challenge. Collections are a day-in, day-out responsibility; you can 

never let up on collections. Works of art, particularly, are sensitive 

to temperature and humidity and lighting. My office, for example, 

has works of art from a number of our museums, and the curators 

from those museums come by because the Castle Building is not 

well air conditioned or temperature controlled. They change paintings out, out of my office, because they don’t want to leave them 

there too long. So I know it is something they are very sensitive 

to. 

The Smithsonian has helped set the standards for these, and it 

is something that we are very concerned about, particularly in 

some of the older buildings. 

But Dr. Miller may want to comment on that. 

Mr. MILLER. Well, I will just add that we do have one of our 

units, the Museum Conservation Institute, where they really have 

the expertise on the physics and chemistry of degradation of materials. And then the corollary of that is, how do you slow down those 

degradation processes? And so they help set the standard for temperature and relative humidity in museum collections some 30 

years ago. And we actually, as I mentioned in my remarks, just 

had a national and in fact international summit, where we brought 

in the best experts, not only internally but externally as well, to 

relook at that question of the balance of temperature and relative 

humidity of standards for collections with the specific view of now 

green buildings. How can you balance energy consumption with 

long-term stability of physical objects? We will be recommending 

some small changes in that that we hope will help with energy conservation in our own buildings and museums around the world. 

Mr. CLOUGH. I might add to that, one of the things we do as we 

see ourselves as a leader, as part of our responsibility, we have 

about 180 museums that are called affiliates. And we share collections practices with them. Every year we have an annual meeting 

here, which we just held. And three of those museums, for example, are in San Diego. So our objective is, as we learn these things, 

is that we share them, particularly with our affiliate museums and 

others. 

Mr. VARGAS. You have to tell me, then, which three museums are 

they in San Diego? Since I am from San Diego. 

Mr. CLOUGH. The Marine Museum; the Museum of Man, which 

is your natural history museum; and your Air and Space Museum. 

Mr. VARGAS. Okay. 

Mr. CLOUGH. And we are working also with the development in 

Balboa Park to give advice and consultation. And there is a new 

exhibition coming up in 2015, marking 100 years since you celeVerDate Mar 15 2010 21:48 Sep 03, 2013 Jkt 082544 PO 00000 Frm 00044 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\A544.XXX A544

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brated the Panama Canal in 1915. We have been asked to share 

some of our collection objects from the Panama Canal days. The 

Smithsonian, as you may know, was invited during the construction of the canal to do the bioassay around the canal, because you 

are going to change the ecosystem there with the canal. So, 

through that effort, we now have the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, which is the best in the world, and it is located 

in Panama. We have a great relationship with the Panamanian 

government and the Canal Authority. We will be loaning objects so 

they can, in essence, create a way for viewers, museum goers, to 

go to one museum and then go to the next museum and go to the 

next museum and have a continuity. And we are excited about 

that. 

Mr. VARGAS. Madam Chair, that is no fair. They are playing to 

the crowd on me on that one because they know how important 

that is. It is hard for me to ask tough questions when they talk 

about San Diego, and especially how excited we are about the hundred years of Panama Canal exhibits there. 

But thank you. I do appreciate that. But I do want to continue 

this line of questioning just because, again, we collect old furniture, 

Stickley furniture, that is American furniture from Gustav and the 

brothers. And one of the things that is very sensitive, of course, is 

the changing of both the humidity, the heat and light exposure. 

And so my concern when I went to the Hermitage and when I went 

to the Louvre was to see, wow, they really don’t, except for where 

the Mona Lisa is, they seem to be quite good about controlling. I 

think they even have an individual control for the painting itself. 

But other than that, there does seem to be a laxness. And certainly 

at the Hermitage, with these incredible works, I went there in the 

winter, unfortunately, and it was surprised at how cold the old palace was. So, again, my concern is that these—you know, these incredible works that we have will be damaged because of this lack 

of control. 

And the reason I was going to ask that is I—I do see, Mr. Secretary, on your testimony, page number 7, the amount of money— 

and if I could just read it to you—‘‘the current budget state sequestration especially comes at a particular challenge for us at the 

Smithsonian. Our central collections care funding was cut by 60 

percent this year because of sequestration.’’ Now, that is a very significant cut. If you could comment on that just a little further. Because that does concern me. 

Mr. CLOUGH. Sure. And that was not something we wanted to do, 

obviously. But the collections care pool is a special pool that we created. It was created just before I came. It was about a million dollars when I came, we got up to $5 million now, thanks to the help 

of Congress, which has added budget lines in that area for us. That 

is a strategic pool to address critical problems. And so when we 

find that there is a particular problem the IG might identify or we 

would identify, we use those funds to rush in and try to address 

it—so we don’t want to let a problem fester, if you will. We put in 

roughly each year about $60 million, actually, in the collection. So 

what you are referring to was just the pool. And that was a 1-year 

stoppage or shortcut because we wanted to avoid cutting people, because there are about 450 people at the Smithsonian who are inVerDate Mar 15 2010 21:48 Sep 03, 2013 Jkt 082544 PO 00000 Frm 00045 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\A544.XXX A544

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volved in collections care. And if we cut back there, that would be 

a permanent cut in collections care. So our choice was to cut back 

on the small area of pool funds for 1 year while we could think 

through how we would address any additional cuts that we might 

be facing and absorb them in a more logical way permanently. So 

it has just a short term type of thing. 

Mr. VARGAS. Thank you very much. 

I know my time has expired, Madam Chair. Thank you very 

much. And really appreciate the work that they do. I think it is an 

incredible museum and one that we are very, very proud of. 

Thank you, Madam Chair. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank the gentleman. 

I am going to ask just a couple more questions, since I am the 

chairman, I have a little time, and we can have a second round as 

well. 

But I think I will just follow up on this about the—you mentioned you had—I just wrote 450 people in collections care. And I 

thought it was interesting that the IG actually pointed out in your 

‘‘Concern at the Core,’’ you identified some need for some additional 

training, new training. You identified that a number of senior personnel, sort of the institutional memory. We are all getting older, 

and it has always about the people. No matter what business you 

are in, it is always about the people. Really. And making sure that 

you have good training and good back—background, the farm team 

that is coming up that has the kind of expertise and the passion 

to be doing this kind of a thing in collections care. And I am wondering, apparently you have got a lot of senior staff that are going 

to be retiring here sort of in a group, in a clump here in the next 

several years. I am just wondering if the IG or the secretary or Dr. 

Miller have any comment on the—your workforce and how you are 

preparing for that very critical element of your mission. 

Mr. CLOUGH. Well, it has been—it was interesting to me when 

I came to the Smithsonian to try to understand the larger trends. 

The budget situation has been challenging, but the people who 

work at the Smithsonian love it so much, they tend not to want to 

leave. I noted that certainly one thing that was going up at the 

Smithsonian was the average age of the employees. That was something that was troubling. And it is not only the institutional memory we stand to lose when one person has been there for 50 years 

leaves, but in addition, it is bringing in new folks who have new 

ideas. And, for example, in this digitization area, that might take 

a younger person, if you will, or person who is more versed in new 

technologies to do those kind of things. So it is kind of a two-edged 

sword for us. So we address this second challenge working with donors to try to give us additional funds base for post docs. And we 

have done a good job. We want to do more. We are trying to raise 

more funds in that area. We have upwards now of 350 or so post 

docs who work at the Smithsonian. These are young people who 

won’t stay with us forever, but in many cases, we find those are 

the people who come back when there is a job opening. So it is a 

great chance for them to get to know the Smithsonian and then to 

hopefully want to come back and work with us. And the interns are 

a younger group of people, but they can help as well. The institutional memory challenge for us, in part, not entirely, can be adVerDate Mar 15 2010 21:48 Sep 03, 2013 Jkt 082544 PO 00000 Frm 00046 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\A544.XXX A544

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dressed by digital technologies. Because the more we digitize things 

and the more we put the records and the metadata against the objects in digital format, then we have a way to save that as best we 

can. We are getting much, much better at collecting oral histories 

as well, and we are creating platforms for that. So if there are 

things and special needs in collections, we can save those and document those as well. 

But eventually somebody is going to retire. And in any case, we 

can lose people. We try to stack and stagger things so if there is 

an older person getting ready to leave, we have got a younger person in the queue who is picking up behind them to continue the 

work. 

The CHAIRMAN. Dr. Miller. 

Mr. MILLER. Let me just add to that. Succession planning is a 

challenge because of the uncertainties of the budget as well as not 

having a mandatory retirement age and it being hard to plan. But 

I think our Natural History Museum has done really an excellent 

job of what the secretary described in succession planning and encouraging bringing in the next generation of people. And I am 

pleased to say actually that one of the people who was instrumental in that process is now the head of administration at the 

American History Museum and is leading that kind of a planning 

process there as part of their strategic plan. And they are specifically looking at collections management activities, among other 

things. And then one other kind of internal training program that 

we have recently instituted is called the Palmer Leadership Development Program. It is an endowed program where we take about 

20 of our mid-level staff each year and put them through of leadership development course. And a number of those people have been 

in the collections area. 

Mr. CLOUGH. I would just add quickly that Congressman Brady 

will be proud to know, Russ Palmer is from Philadelphia. He is a 

great donor to the Smithsonian. He is a big believer in training and 

investment in people. This cross-training allows someone from collections care, for example, to work in another organization and another part of the Smithsonian and learn how that works and then 

bring that knowledge back into collections care. We have now had 

four classes. We are in our fourth class and something I am very 

excited about. It really will help to institutionally build the expertise across the Smithsonian for our staff. 

Mr. DAHL. Chairman Miller, we had a recommendation that was 

directed toward the American History Museum on your very point 

on the need to develop a succession plan to address the potential 

staff turnover with the aging staff, and we are still awaiting a response from management on this. They have issued a questionnaire to the staff at the American History Museum to determine 

what their retirement plans are. We think with this recommendation, like many of our others, has pan-institutional application, and 

we would encourage the management to use that recommendation 

to look at other museums that might have similar problems. But 

we are awaiting the response to that recommendation. 

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you. 

I think this is an area where the IG, sometimes you look at the 

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ening the scope I think perhaps of IG looking at the succession 

plan, et cetera. I think that was an excellent point. 

My last question would be, and I have to ask this question since 

I got up reading my Washington Post this morning and saw this 

article on the front page of the Style Section, ‘‘Beyond the Bubble,’’ 

which really, as you look at this picture in particular, anybody can 

understand what the impetus was to have the bubble because it 

really was I think a very visionary thing. But it didn’t turn out as 

well as everybody had hoped initially I guess. 

I am just wondering if you could bring us up to speed on what 

has happened at that particular facility? I know you raised quite 

a bit of money, and where is the money going? 

Mr. CLOUGH. The bubble was an idea from the director at the 

time, Richard Koshalek, and I think when he described it to us and 

we thought about it, we thought it was a very clever idea and one 

that would really add a lot of vitality to that space. He was an expert in the use of public space and had a number of ideas, that 

being one of those ideas, so that you add vitality to that part of our 

campus, as we would call it, and also to a building, which tends 

to be kind of intimidating unto itself and make more people attracted to this public space around the building and use it in a way 

that you could draw people in, particularly from the diplomatic 

community and so forth, to have discussions about international 

issues. 

I thought it was quite whimsical. I thought it would add a lot 

of vitality. I was in fact one of the early supporters of it and made 

commitments of some of our trust funds in order to help the 

project. We could not put it on the regular Federal capital list because it was a temporary structure. 

It was new and a new concept, because there are a lot of inflatable structures out there. But this one would go up and come down 

and go up and come down in a year, and it would have to go up 

and come down twice because it did not have air conditioning or 

heating in it so you can only use it during the temperate parts of 

the year. 

So as we got further down the line, two things emerged. First, 

it turns out it had to be donor supported. It turns out that donors 

really weren’t interested in something that was temporary, that 

might last 8 years or might last 10 years and would only be used 

for a very small part of the year. So it turned out to be a tougher 

nut to crack as we would say in terms of fundraising than we 

thought. 

Also, practically, it turned out to be more difficult. This was a 

unique structure in all the world, so as we brought more expertise 

against the problem, we began to realize that there were serious 

practical challenges, because it is not just a matter of blowing the 

structure up and taking it down because it is a very sophisticated 

structure, but all the infrastructure you put in it, all those chairs 

and seats and the IT had to be pulled out each time and then put 

back each time. So it turned out to have its practical challenges, 

as much as many of us thought it is an interesting intriguing idea 

and again one way to increase vitality on the mall. 

The museum’s board was also initially supportive of it, but the 

board became more and more, if you will, split over the idea and 


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eventually did not support the idea. It was unfortunate that we 

couldn’t go forward. I liked the idea that at the Smithsonian, we 

are trying some new things and trying new ways to engage the 

public, and my feeling on that is, it is okay if some of them don’t 

work out. I lived in California for quite a while and there was an 

spirit in California where you try something, if it doesn’t work, 

don’t repeat it again, but at least be willing to take a bit of a risk, 

and I thought this one was worth taking the risk. It just did not 

work out in its time. 

We are doing a master plan for the south campus now with a 

very creative firm, and they are taking some of the ideas that floated around what the bubble would be for and looking at how we can 

use the whole campus. So it comes back to the pan-institutional approach again of how do we revitalize that whole area, not just the 

Hirshhorn, but the new Arts and Industry Building, which we will 

reopen next year, the Castle, the Freer, Sackler and the African 

Art Museum, how do we make all that work together for our visitors to enhance their experience. 

So we will use some of the ideas that came out of the fermentation for that project, but it just didn’t work as a project itself. We 

did have some donor support for it. I mentioned it was a challenge 

to raise, but we did have some. The Bloomberg Foundation was a 

significant donor, and the Annenberg Foundation. We have strong 

relationships with those foundations. We had informed them that 

we were meeting challenges and resistance, and I personally visited with them myself and others of my staff did to have discussions with them. And in the end, it didn’t work and we are returning the moneys to those foundations. 

The CHAIRMAN. Very well. Thank you, gentleman. 

The ranking member. 

Mr. BRADY. Thank you, Madam Chairman. I just have one question. 

How does one go about getting an intern? 

Mr. CLOUGH. The intern thing is close to my heart. I am an educator, and I believe that these experiences that we can offer young 

people are life-expanding experiences and that the Smithsonian is 

a remarkable opportunity for a young person to learn because we 

have history, art, culture and science. So we really give them a 

large breadth, and we are on the Nation’s Mall for many of them. 

Now, not all of them are here. Some may work in Panama. Some 

may work out at the zoo. Many do work out at the zoo in our conservation biology program. 

But we have a program, and it is on our Web site for internships. 

So you just click on that, and it gives you a detailed process for application. We take interns any time of the year, but most of them 

come in the summer. We decided to stir our pot differently because 

in the old days, it was mainly local universities, and now we have 

expanded it, and we have a new head of our internship program, 

who is very creative. So we can give you advice if you would like 

to have any of the folks in Pennsylvania know about it. 

Mr. BRADY. I know this is a public hearing, but I am still a little 

bold. Who do I call to get an intern? I will talk to you after the 

hearing. 

Mr. CLOUGH. We will make sure you get that number. 


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Mr. BRADY. Because I pride myself with these young men and 

women and have a lot in my office. The problem with it, and my 

staff will tell you we have a lot here, is we run out of space, our 

space isn’t that adequate. And I just think it is a great experience 

for them to be on the committee as an intern and in our own personal office as a intern, and it would be a great experience, and it 

is a good idea that you do it. And I am glad that they are close 

to your heart because they are to mine, too, that you can have an 

intern over at the Smithsonian. It must be a great experience for 

them. So I appreciate it, and I will talk to you. 

Mr. CLOUGH. Thank you. 

The CHAIRMAN. Any other questions? The gentleman from California? 

I think you can see from all of our questions here what a high 

regard certainly this committee and Congress and the American 

People hold the Smithsonian in. As I said and keep saying, it is 

such a national treasure. I think the testimony was very good, and 

I think the question and answer period was a great way for you 

to tell more of your story in a very forthright way. So we appreciate 

your candidness this morning. 

I would also mention for the record that any members that would 

like to submit additional questions to the witnesses will have 5 legislative days in which to submit those questions as well. There may 

be some questions that we would ask you and ask you to respond 

to. 

With that, certainly on behalf of this committee, both sides of the 

aisle, I know that I speak for the ranking member as well, this 

committee looks forward to continuing to work with you and to do 

everything we can to ensure that this fantastic treasure does survive and improve for future generations. The largest room is always the room for improvement, no matter what business you are 

in, right? 

So thank you very much. We appreciate the witnesses today. 

This hearing is adjourned. 

[Whereupon, at 11:38 a.m., the committee was adjourned.] 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with HEARING
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Committee on House Administration 

Hearing on 

Collections Stewardship at the Smithsonian 

July 17,2013 

Opening Statement 

Mr. Harper: 

Much of the activity of the Committee on House 

Administration focuses on internal workings of the House, 

election law and disputed elections. One of the great pleasures 

of serving on this committee, from my perspective, is the 

opportunity to learn more about institutions such as the National 

Archives, the Library of Congress - and the Smithsonian, as 

oversight of all of these falls within our committee jurisdiction. 

Members of this committee have the special opportunity to gain 

a behind the scenes or back of the house knowledge of these 

institutions - as well as to help strengthen and protect them for 

future generations. 
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This morning, our focus is on collections stewardship. We 

exercise this oversight responsibility of the Smithsonian on 

behalf of the American people. Congressional oversight may 

often involve criticism, but it also entails listening to your needs 

and helping you fulfill your institution's mission when we can. 

The Smithsonian is the largest museum and research 

complex in the world, with 19 museums plus the National Zoo 

and nine research centers. There are 137 million artifacts, works 

of art and specimens in the Smithsonian's collections with 

136,194 cubic feet of archival material in the Smithsonian 

Archives. Proper stewardship of such collections is a 

tremendous responsibility and no doubt a science unto itself. 

I appreciate the work that each of you do in preserving and 

exhibiting this vast collection. Thank you for being here and I 

look forward to hearing from each of you this morning. 
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Rep. Phil Gingrey 

Statement for House Admin Hearing - Smithsonian Oversight Hearing 

House Administration Committee 

2013 

Madam Chair, I want to thank you for calling this hearing today on oversight of the Smithsonian 

collections. 

I would also like to welcome our three witnesses: Dr. Scott Miller, Deputy Under Secretary for 

Collections and Interdisciplinary Support, Mr. Scott Dahl, Smithsonian Inspector General, and 

finally Dr. Wayne Clough, the Secretary of the Smithsonian and a fellow graduate and former 

president of my alma mater-Georgia Tech. 

The Smithsonian Institution is the world's largest museum, with more than 137 million items in 

its collections, including works of art, specimens, and live animals. Typically, when one thinks 

of the Smithsonian, images of iconic American artifacts such as Abraham Lincoln's top hat and 

Dorothy's ruby slippers come to mind. However, the Smithsonian is also a first-class research 

facility. Preservation of its collections is important not just to the millions of people who visit the 

exhibits every year, but also for the more than 98 percent of artifacts that are not on display. 

Several Inspector General reports and an internal Smithsonian report indicated that collections 

care was inadequate and that objects of historical and scientific significance were under threat of 

deteriorating or being destroyed. Audits revealed World War I era American flags deteriorating 

due to substandard storage conditions and thousands of unsecured military swords hanging off of 

open shelves. Inventories were found to be lacking, resulting in an inability to determine if 

1 
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objects had been lost, misplaced, or stolen. Additionally, collections audits detailed insufficient 

security measures, including the distribution of keys to unauthorized holders and unsupervised 

access to collection storage. Disturbingly, several of these issues were not limited to one facility, 

indicating the possibility of a systemic, Institution-wide problem. 

Fortunately, efforts to change several of the more pressing and egregious issues have been 

underway in recent years. The position currently held by Dr. Miller was created to centralize 

collections care, and management has begun implementation of several of the Inspector General 

recommendations. However, much work remains to be done in order to preserve the collections 

for future generations. 

I am grateful for the chance to hear from our expert witnesses today on efforts to correct the 

problems uncovered by the Inspector General and other reports, as well as prevent future issues. 

Thank you Madam Chair. I yield back. 

2 
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CANDICE S. MILLER. MICHIGAN 

CHAIRMAN (ongress of tbe lintteb j,tates Jilou~e of 3S.eprt~tntatibt~ 

COMMITTEE ON HOUSE 

ADMINISTRATION 

ROBERT A. BRADY, PENNSYLVANIA 

RANKING MINORITY MEMBER 

GREGG HARPER, MISSISSIPPI 

PHIL GINGREY, GEORGIA 

AARON SCHOCK, ILUNOIS 

TODD ROKITA, INDIANA 

ZOE LOFGREN, CALIFORNIA 

JUAN VARGAS, CAUFORNIA 

ONE HUNDRED THIRTEENTH 

RICH NUGENT, FLORIDA CONGRESS 

KELLY CRAVEN, STAFF D!RECTOR 1309 Longworth House Office Building 

Washington, D,C, 20515-6157 

(202) 225-8281 

http://cha,house,gov 

KYLE ANDERSON, MINORITY STAFF 

DIRECTOR 

The Honorable G, Wayne Clough, Ph,D, 

Secretary 

Smithsoniau Institution 

1000 Jefferson Drive, SW 

Washington, DC 20560 

Dear Secretary Clough, 

August 2, 2013 

Thank you for testifying during the July 17, 2013 Committee on House Administration Hearing 

on "Collections Stewardship at the Smithsoniau." The Committee requests you respond to 

additional questions that will be made part of the hearing record. Please provide your responses 

to the following questions to the Committee by August 19, 2013. 

1. The 2005 report Concern at the Core concluded there was significant potential for private 

sector fundraising in the area of collections care despite a "widely-held myth to the 

contrary." What steps will the Smithsonian take to enhance fundraising efforts in this 

area? 

2. The Smithsoniau is in the process of developing a Campus Master PIau. How will this 

plan address any collections storage or preservation needs? 

3. Has the Smithsoniau established staudards for collections care? How has the 

Smithsonian ensured that unit directors are held accountable for meeting those standards? 

4. It has recently been brought to my attention that the Smithsoniau has partnered with 

Ivymount to implement Project Search - an internship program that provides young 

adults with intellectual disabilities the work experience they need to get full-time, paying 

jobs. This is au importaut issue close to my own heart, which is why we started the 

Congressional Internship Program for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities. With the 

same objective, we launched the program in the fall of2010 with six House offices aud 

three interns. To date, we've had over 70 offices - House and Senate, Republicau aud 

Democrat - that have participated. Knowing the difference these opportunities make to 

our interns aud offices, I am delighted to hear of this partnership. What cau you share 

with us about your involvement and expectations? 
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5. Assuming Project Search is successful for your organization, would you be receptive to 

working with our partner, George Mason University's Mason LIFE Program, as well as 

Project Search, to place developmentally disabled individuals into internships and even 

permanent employment? 

If you have any questions concerning this matter, please feel free to contact Yael Barash on the 

Committee staff at (202) 225-8281. Thank you again for your testimony, we look forward to 

hearing from you. 

Sincerely Yours, 

c~/'7I!~ Candice S. Miller 

Chairman 
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Smithsonian Institution 

Questions for the Record 

July 17, 2013 

Hearing on Collections Stewardshp 

Questions for Secretary G. Wayne Clough 

1. The 2005 report Concern at the Core concluded there was significant potential for private sector 

fundraising in the area of collections care despite a "widely-held myth to the contrary. " What 

steps will the Smithsonian take to enhance fundraising efforts in this area? 

The 2005 report, Concern at the Core, issued by the Smithsonian's Office of Policy and Analysis 

(OP&A) was trans formative in bringing awareness to Institution-wide collections management 

issues, and in catalyzing a management and cultural shift about the resources and structure 

needed to remedy longstanding issues. 

OP&A identified that accountability for collections management was previously weak in part 

because no single entity at the central level oversaw this area. The creation of the position of 

Deputy Under Secretary for Collections and Interdisciplinary Support and a support team which 

includes a former member of the OP&A study team have enabled centrally-driven, panInstitutional priorities that have contributed to significant progress in collections management 

since the 2005 report. 

The report foreshadowed in 2005 that an environment of constrained resources was likely to 

continue, and urged Smithsonian management to pursue less traditional approaches such as 

shared collecting and stewardship responsibilities. OP&A also debated a perception within the 

professional culture that "no one will give money for collections management." To the contrary 

they stated, "donors will support collections management when an effective case is made." 

Smithsonian concurs, and has had some success in fundraising for collections management 

activities and will continue to pursue creative solutions to a primarily resource-driven concern. 

But as mentioned in testimony, experience has shown that donors see core collections 

management as a Federal responsibility. Congress itself has taken this position within the 

America COMPETES Act of2010, Section 104, which reinforces the Federal responsibility for 

caring for the national collections. 

Although collections care and management is a Federal responsibility, the Smithsonian has 

supplemented Federal funding of collections through grants and corporate or private 

philanthropy. For example: 

o In 2006, the National Museum of American History completed a multi-year 

conservation treatment of the Star-Spangled Banner with the support of publicprivate funding. The project (a $30 million project, induding preservation and 

exhibition) was made possible by private support, including a $10 million donation 

from Polo Ralph Lauren and additional gifts from The Pew Charitable Trusts, the 

John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, and American Express. The conservation 

project was part of "Save America's Treasures," a federal program which required 

dollar-for-dollar matching funds. Numerous other conservation and preservation 

projects at the Smithsonian have been recipients of SAT funding. 

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o The Archives of American Art has received two multi-million dollar grants from the 

Terra Foundation to support the digitization of a substantial cross-section of the 

Archive's most important holdings. These include the papers of a diverse range of 

artists and arts-related figures, from the 18th century to the present. Since 2005, over 

one hundred archival collections have been scanned and posted online in their 

entirety. In addition, more than 12,000 documents have been individually catalogued 

and are accessible through the Archive's huage Gallery. 

o At the Lunder Conservation Center, visitors have the unique opportunity to see 

conservators at work in five different laboratories and studios and view all aspects of 

conversation work, activities that are traditionally done behind-the-scenes at other 

museums and conservation centers. The Lunder Center is shared by the Smithsonian 

American Art Museum and the National Portrait Gallery. The Lunder Foundation 

offered a challenge grant, which was met by private donations, to construct and 

endow the Center. 

o The Luce Foundation Center for American Art is an open / visible art storage facility 

displaying more than 3,000 works from the collections of the Smithsonian American 

Art Museum. The Center occupies three floors of the Museum's west wing. The 

dense display of painting, sculptures, folk art, and contemporary craft objects tells 

compelling stories and encourages visitors to make associations between works from 

different periods and in different media. The Luce Foundation Center was made 

possible through a gift of the Henry Luce Foundation, including an endowment for its 

ongoing staffing and operation. 

o The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, named for its major donor who contributed $65 

million for the project, provides visitors an opportunity to visit displays of the most 

important collections of the National Air and Space Museum, including some 170 

aircraft. 

o Numerous Smithsonian museums and collecting units have "adopt an object" 

programs where online visitors can donate to support the preservation, conservation 

and digitization of their collections. 

2. The Smithsonian is in the process of developing a Campus Master Plan. How will this plan 

address any collections storage or preservation needs? 

To clarify, we mentioned two separate, independent space-plauning projects during our hearing 

testimony. In FY 2010, the Smithsonian launched a pan-Institutional collections space planning 

initiative to document, analyze, and plan for addressing our current and future collections space 

needs in a pragmatic, strategic and integrated manner. With these goals in mind, the Smithsonian 

has assessed current collections space conditions and needs, and is currently finalizing a 

framework plan with near, intermediate, and long-term recommendations for addressing current 

and projected pan-Institutional collections space requirements. The framework plan will provide 

an understanding of what our greatest collections space needs are, strategies for addressing them, 

and prototype designs on which to model future facilities capital projects. Through this 

collections space planning initiative, we are developing strategies for the decompression of 

collections to make them more physically accessible, accommodation for future collections 

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growth, renovation of collections space within existing buildings, and new development of our 

Suitland and Dulles campuses. The plan creates a clear yet flexible roadmap to inform 

Smithsonian management decisions and guide our budget requests and resource allocations for 

addressing the Smithsonian's near and long-term collections space requirements. 

More recently, we initiated a Master Planning project for the South Mall Campus. The focus of 

the South Mall Campus Master Plan is the future development of visitor services, programs, 

buildings and outdoor areas between 7th and 12th Streets, SW, and between Independence 

Avenue and Jefferson Drive. Although this area includes the Smithsonian Castle, the Freer and 

Sackler Galleries, the National Museum of African Art, and the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture 

Garden, we do not anticipate any significant impact on their collections. As the plan is 

implemented over the next five to fifteen years, it is likely that some collections may need to be 

temporarily relocated to accommodate required building construction and renovation. 

The future use of the Arts and Industries Building is not currently within the scope of the South 

Mall Campus Master Plan, but if it becomes a new museum it is very likely that new collections 

will be acquired and will need to be preserved, stored, and exhibited. 

3. Has the Smithsonian established standards for collections care? How does the Smithsonian 

ensure that unit directors are held accountable for meeting those standards? 

The Smithsonian establishes pan-Institutional collections management policies and guidance 

through Smithsonian Directive 600, Collections Management regarding the development, 

acquisition, preservation, documentation, use and disposition of Smithsonian collections. In 

accordance with SD 600, each Smithsonian collecting unit is required to develop, implement and 

adhere to written collections management policies, procedures, and standards tailored to the 

specific nature, scope, and purpose of its collections. Unit collections management policies are 

reviewed and approved by senior Smithsonian management. Together, these policies ensure that 

our collections are maintained according to Smithsonian policy, discipline-specific standards, and 

legal obligations. 

Collecting unit directors are responsible for unit policy guidance, program direction and planning, 

and budget support to carry out the collections management requirements of SD 600 and for unit 

compliance with Smithsonian and unit collections management policy requirements. The Under 

and Deputy Under Secretaries ensure that Smithsonian collections are managed in compliance 

with Smithsonian collections management policies through oversight of collecting unit directors. 

4. It has recently been brought to my attention that the Smithsonian has partnered with Ivymount to 

implement Project Search - an internship program that provides young adults with intellectual 

disabilities the work experience they need to get full-time, paying jobs. This is an important issue 

close to my own heart, which is why we started the Congressional Internship Program for 

Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities. With the same objective, we launched the program in 

the fall of20IO with six House offices and three interns. To date, we've had over 70 officesHouse and Senate, Republican and Democrat - that have participated. Knowing the difference 

these opportunities make to our interns and offices, I am delighted to hear of this partnership. 

What can you share with us about your involvement and expectations? 

We are very excited that our first class of eleven interns will arrive on September 3 to begin their 

10-month internship at the Smithsonian. Over a year ago, we began to explore ways to increase 

3 
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the hiring of persons with disability at the Smithsonian, and our inquiries led to Proj eet SEARCH, 

a proven business-driven model with over 200 programs currently in 40 states and four countries. 

The Smithsonian is most fortunate to be able to model its Project SEARCH program on the very 

successful program at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), now in its fourth year. Like NIH, 

the Smithsonian is partnering with The Ivymount School, which will supply an on-site educator 

to provide daily instruction, and with another service provider that will supply job coaches and 

worksite development. With these experienced external partners and with guidance and 

assistance from the NIH staff, we are confident that we have a strong foundation on which to base 

our own implementation of Project SEARCH. Our planning team also received on-site training 

from one of the original founders of the Project SEARCH program in Cincinnati, Ohio. 

We are also fortunate in the commitment of Smithsonian senior management. Our three Under 

Secretaries, together with the Assistant Secretary for Education and Access, have been engaged 

since November 2012 when Project SEARCH at the Smithsonian was ftrst formally proposed. 

Under Secretaries and other senior managers participated in our offtcial kick-off in February 2013 

and have been supportive in providing staff time for the planning and implementation of the 

program. Managers have also supported the creation of worksites in various Smithsonian 

locations. 

Our expectations are high. We are hopeful that many of our interns will complete the 10-month 

program "employment ready" and that we will be able to transition them into our work force. We 

recognize that this maybe a tall order in FY 2014, when there are numerous ftscal challenges, but 

we are committed to achieving the overarching goal of Project SEARCH: transitioning young 

adults with disabilities into the workplace. We welcome your interest and would be happy to 

provide additional information and updates as the ftrst year of our program progresses. 

5. Assuming Project Search is successful for your organization, would you be receptive to working 

with our partner, George Mason University's Mason LIFE Program, as well as Project Search, to 

place developmentally disabled individuals into internships and even permanent employment? 

The Smithsonian Institution is presently working with the George Mason LIFE Program. The 

National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) hosted two interns and their GMU student job 

assistants in summer 2012. An additional LIFE student began his internship in fall 2012 and will 

complete it in December 2013. The internships are through NMNH's Education and Outreach 

Office whose staff is eager to continue their on-going relationship with the George Mason LIFE 

Program. 

The Smithsonian currently has four programs that welcome young people with cognitive and 

other disabilities into the Institution as interns. In addition to Project SEARCH and the George 

Mason LIFE Program, students may obtain an internship through the ALL ACCESS Digital Arts 

Program Camp and the Access to Opportunities Internship Program: 

ALL ACCESS Digital Arts Program Camp is an opportunity for up to 20 high school students 

with cognitive disabilities in the Washington, D.C.-area to participate in a two-week multi-media 

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camp at the Smithsonian Institution. Students explore areas of interest at different Smithsonian 

museums in a way that is tailored to meet their individual needs while documenting their 

experiences using digital recording devices. Students then compile their digital media, create a 

digital movie, and share their digital work using social media with their camp peers and friends. 

The camp culminates with a student movie premiere. The camp is free to students and made 

possible by the generosity of a Smithsonian Youth Access Grant. Camp alumni have the 

opportunity to participate in monthly Club activities to further develop their digital media skills 

and sustain friendships. One camp alumnus is selected each summer to intern with the camp 

administrators. 

The Smithsonian, in partnership with The HSC Foundation, manages the Access to Opportunities 

Internship Program specifically designed for people with disabilities. Access to Opportunities is 

a competitive stipend award program, primarily for college students. The program seeks to 

empower participants' sense of independence and enhance their quality of life as they look 

towards their futures with optimism. Exposure to the real world of work, research, and academics 

within a supportive and engaging environment provides interns with the ability and confidence to 

transfer the skills they developed in the classroom to the world of work. The number of student 

participants varies yearly. 

5 
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CANDICE S. MILLER, MICHIGAN 

CHAIRMAN (ongtt55 of tbt Ilntttb j,tatt5 "'ou~e of 3S.epr~entatibe~ 

COMMITTEE ON HOUSE 

ADMINISTRATION 

ROBERT A. BRADY, PENNSYLVANIA 

RANKING MINORITY MEMBER 

GREGG HARPER. MISSISSIPPI 

PHIL G!NGREY, GEORGIA 

AARON SCHOCK, ILLINOIS 

TODD ROKITA. !NDIANA 

ZOE LOFGREN, CALIFORNIA 

JUAN VARGAS, CALIFORNIA 

ONE HUNDRED THIRTEENTH 

RICH NUGENT, FLORIDA CONGRESS 

KEllY CRAVEN, STAFF DIRECTOR 1309 Longworth House Office Building 

Washington, D.C. 20515-6157 

(202) 225-8281 

http://cha.house.gov 

KYLE ANDERSON, MINORITY STAFF 

DIRECTOR 

August 2,2013 

Dr. Scott Miller, Ph.D. 

Deputy Under Secretay for Collections and Interdisciplinary Support 

Smithsonian Institution 

1000 Jefferson Drive, SW 

Washington, DC 20560 

Dear Dr. Miller, 

Thank you for testifying during the July 17, 2013 Committee on House Administration Hearing 

on "Collections Stewardship at the Smithsonian." The Committee requests you respond to 

additional questions that will be made part of the hearing record. Please provide your responses 

to the following questions to the Committee by August 19, 2013. 

I. Has the collections assessment identified any priority collections at imminent risk due to 

lack of adequate care Or storage facilities? Do you have short-tenn plans to address these 

immediate problems? 

2. Can the pace of digitizing the collections keep up with the pace of accessioning? With 

the pace of technological change in the digitization field? 

3. How do management's three priorities regarding collections care compare to the IG's 

major recommendations? 

4. What is the annual funding amount for collections support for each of the years 2003-

2013? Please indicate the amount offederal and trust funding each year. 

5. The Inspector General's testimony notes that collecting units "are free to set their owu 

standards and allocate resources" for collections management. What impact does this 

decentralized approach have on your ability to successfully address collections 

stewardship at the Institution? Do you have sufficient tools to effectively manage a panInstitutional program to improve collections stewardship? 

6. Have you pursued any less traditional approaches to collections care such as sharing 

stewardship responsibilities with other organizations? Are there risks with this type of 

partnership? 
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7. Does the Smithsonian look to other museums and institutions to identifY existing 

collections and specialties to avoid duplication among collections? 

If you have any questions concerning this matter, please feel free to contact Yael Barash on the 

Committee staff at (202) 225-8281. Thank you again for your testimony, we look forward to 

hearing from you. 

Sincerely Yours, 

?,~/.7Jf~ Candice S. Miller 

Chairman 
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Smithsonian Institution 

Questions for the Record 

July 17, 2013 

Hearing on Collections Stewardship 

Questions for Deputy Under Secretary Scott Miller 

1. Has the collections assessment identified any priority collections at imminent risk due to lack of 

adequate care or storage facilities? Do you have short-term plans to address these immediate 

problems? 

The Smithsonian is engaged in two efforts to identify areas of risk - the collections space 

planning initiative and the conditions assessment. Both efforts have enabled the Smithsonian to 

identify areas of risk, and to establish priorities and action plans for systematically improving the 

preservation and accessibility of collections. 

The collections space survey provided a snapshot of current collections space conditions and 

characterizes the quality of collections space, storage equipment, accessibility, environmental 

conditions, security, and fire safety. 

Preliminary data from that collections space survey highlighted that some collections were at risk 

of damage or loss at the Garber Facility in Suitland, Maryland where buildings constructed in the 

1950s and 1960s have surpassed their useful lifespan. As a result, a fiscal year 2012 Facilities 

Capital project currently underway begins to address the severe collections space deficiencies in 

Buildings 15, 16, and 18 at the Garber Facility, supporting the decontamination, stabilization and 

move of American History and Postal Museum collections currently stored in the buildings to a 

soon-to-be constructed temporary swing space. Completion of this remediation project and the 

continued move of Air and Space Museum collections to the Udvar-Hazy Center are the first 

steps in a phased redevelopment plan for the Garber Facility. 

Assessments help to identify risks at the facility level, but also within individual storage spaces. 

Collections are also evaluated on a more fine scale as part of the conditions assessment. The 

collections physical condition assessment includes an evaluation of the quality of collections 

storage equipment, object housing materials, preservation, physical accessibility, and collections 

space. 

Although collections by their nature and use are subject to deterioration, some collections are 

more susceptible to further deterioration, damage, or possible loss due to their fragility, current 

state of preservation, or storage condition. The assessment process determines and documents the 

physical condition and any possible variance in that state from year-to-year. 

The Smithsonian uses the centralized Collections Care and Preservation Fund to address priority 

collection needs and to achieve targeted improvements in preservation and accessibility of 

collections in an efficient and cost-effective manner. Using that funding model, the Smithsonian 

will continue to target specific collections and to improve substandard aspects of collections care, 

preservation, and storage to an acceptable level based on the assessment results and unit 

collections management priorities. 
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2. Can the pace of digitizing the collections keep up with the pace of accessioning? 

Collections accessioning follows standard guidelines. The guidelines require detailed 

documentation of all new acquisitions. Modern accessioning creates digital inventory records in a 

collecting unit's electronic collections information system. 

Digitization, however, most commonly refers to the creation of high-quality images of the 

collection for public access. Digitization can occur for new or existing collections, but imaging 

will not occur for all collections. Priorities of the digitization program include compelling 

research interest, education, and preservation. 

Overall, 12 million Smithsonian objects and specimens (or 9% of our collection) have been 

targeted for imaging. Currently, we have standard digital images that represent 12% of this 

priority collection and our current progress is almost 3% annually. Some objects get imaged as 

soon as they are accessioned, but others are more efficiently imaged later as groups with other 

material (allowing "industrial scale" work flows), some get only representative images of groups 

of similar objects (many biological specimens), and others are low priority for imaging (such as 

marine worms acquired for research). Thus a direct comparison between accession statistics and 

imaging statistics is not meaningful. 

As Deputy Under Secretary Scott Miller pointed out in his hearing testimony, the Smithsonian is 

actively investigating technologies to scale up digitization for both new accessions and existing 

collections, and ways to fund these efforts. The Smithsonian is working with the industry and the 

museum community to defme digitization standards, and to drive technological improvements. 

In FY 2012, Smithsonian collecting units reported a net gain of335,000 digital images, which 

highlights that we are making progress, even in the face of evolving technologies, standards and 

expectations. 

The Smithsonian is deeply committed to the long-term stewardship of physical collection items, 

and also applies this commitment to the stewardship of digitized collections. We capture our 

digital images according to the highest standards of the professional museum community, safely 

storing and making them accessible through our pan-Institutional digital asset management 

system. This ensures that a digital image created today can be put to many effective uses that may 

later emerge as technology advances. 

However, the march of technology is relentless, and some of the assets created today may not 

meet our audience's expectations, or our own evolving professional standards, in the future. 

Digitization of Smithsonian collections, just like collections care, is not a one-time project, but an 

ongoing programmatic activity. We take advantage of tried-and-true technology to assure the 

longevity of our digital collection assets, and stay abreast of the latest developments, such as our 

3D digitization efforts mentioned by Secretary Wayne Clough during the hearing, to assure that 

our digitization activities parallel evolving technologies. 

3. How do management's three priorities regarding collections care compare to the IG's major 

recommendations? 

The Smithsonian has focused on three initiatives for a holistic view of collections. 

• Assessment of collections physical conditions, 

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Strategic focus on the digital Smithsonian, and 

• Collections space planning. 

These three initiatives encompass the concerns noted in the IG's reports. Specifically: 

• Inventory control, 

• Security standards, and 

• Preservation. 

In all cases, the three holistic initiatives extend well beyond the Inspector General's concerns. For 

example, the collections space conditions initiative not only examines security standards but 

also characterizes the quality of collections space, storage equipment, accessibility, 

environmental conditions, and fire safety. The collections conditions assessment is conducted in 

parallel with a digitization assessment-together these assessments measure not only inventory 

control and preservation, but also the quality of collections storage equipment, objects housing 

materials, and physical accessibility. The assessment also identifies priorities and targets for 

collections care and digitization. 

For the first time in the Institution's history, these rich datasets combine condition and 

significance of the collections themselves, with their stewardship context and user accessibility. 

The Collections Condition Assessment and Collections Space Survey and Planning bring into to 

focus the current state of collections stewardship and quality of existing collections space, and 

how to prioritize improvements in both quality and efficiency of collections care and space in the 

future. When combined with the Digitization Assessment and Planning, this information helps to 

establish an organizational strategy to ensure improved preservation and accessibility of our 

physical and digital collections assets. 

4. What is the annual funding amount for collections support for each of the years 2003-2013? 

Please indicate the amount of federal and trust funding each year. 

The following information is provided from FY 2006-2013, as the Institution's accounting 

structure and methodology for tracking collections stewardship was changed in FY 2006. 

Smithsonian's cumulative investment (Federal and Trust) in collections from fiscal year 2006-

2013 includes $594.2 million for collections management and $390.1 million in m1\ior Facilities 

Capital Projects directly impacting collections care. 

Of course, there are significant limitations in these figures. Coding costs as "collections" misses 

complementary or supporting activities such as maintenance, security, and information 

technology, which have direct impact upon the collections. In addition, many complementary 

expenditures, recorded as research or exhibits, support collections management or digitization. 

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Collections Funding Information 

Investment in Collections FY 2006 - 2013 

(SOOO) 

FisealYear Federal Trust 

2006 57,135 15,397 

2007 56,051 19,950 

2008 58,457 15,822 

2009 60,696 15,988 

2010 56,491 1l,699 

201l 58,658 15,594 

2012 57,819 17,754 

2013 estimate 56,965 17,754 

Cumulative Total $462,272 $131,959 

Cumulative Combined $594,231 Total 

At a minimum, collections stewardship is 9% of total Federal appropriation 

Major Facilities Capital Projects Impacting Collections Care 

FY 2006 - 2013 

Year of Completion I Current Progress Total Pro·ect Cost 

Federal Trust 

2007 

· Garber Building 25 1,900 

· MSC Pod 5 42,200 

· Capital Gallerv (partial collections space 20,000 6,000 

· NZP Infrastructure J Asia Trail I and II 81,000 19,000 

2008 

· Pennsy Drive Collections and Support Center 6,000 44,000 

2010 

· MSC Pod 3 38,000 

2011 

· NASM HazvlI 64,600 

· CHNDM, Crozier Facility, Newark 6,000 

2012 

· NMAH Humidity Control 1,500 

· NMNH West Wing Ground 6,000 

2013 

· NZP American Trail 42,000 900 

· Garber Swing Soace, Building 37 3,000 

· NMNH West WinKt 2Dd Floor 8,000 

Cumulative Total $255600 $134,500 

Cumulative Combined Total $390,100 

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5. The Inspector General's testimony notes that collecting units "are free to set their own standards 

and allocate resources" for collections management. What impact does this decentralized 

approach have on your ability to successfully address collections stewardship at the Institution? 

Do you have sufficient tools to effectively manage a pan-Institutional program to improve 

collections stewardship? 

The units are not "free to set their own standards." Such standards are set within the context of 

Smithsonian Directives (SD), for example SD 600, our institutional policy on collections. 

Fundamentally we are one Institution, but the management of Smithsonian collections and other 

Smithsonian activities such as research, exhibition, and education, has been traditionally 

decentralized and delegated to our individual museums, art galleries, and collecting units in 

accordance with Smithsonian policy with oversight from senior Smithsonian management. 

This flexibility is essential. The Smithsonian is world's largest museum and research complex, 

consisting of 19 museums and galleries, the National Zoological Park, and nine research 

facilities--discipline-specific standards vary widely from one Smithsonian museum to the next. 

Management and advisory committees help facilitate the balance between flexibility for diverse 

museums and adherence to Smithsonian-wide policy. For example, the Smithsonian Collections 

Advisory Committee was created in 2005, and the Collections Care and Preservation Fund in FY 

2006 have helped to drive significant improvements in collections management. 

The creation of a new position in 2010, the Deputy Under Secretary for Collections and 

Interdisciplinary Support, has raised the profile of collections stewardship within the 

Smithsonian, including the important work of central offices such as the National Collections 

Program and the Digitization Program Office. This office has helped catalyze a cross-disciplinary 

approach to collections-related challenges and opportunities. Engaging in holistic collectionslevel management has capitalized on economies of scale and enabled comprehensive care 

improvements that benefit the greatest number of items in an efficient, practical, and costeffective manner. 

Centralized collections care funding has helped facilitate recent progress in collections 

management. The Smithsonian's capital planning and budget planning processes increasingly 

focus on pan-Institutional collections priorities. 

These pan-Institutional initiatives provide critical tools, direction, and planning for improving the 

management, care, and accessibility of collections, but to successfully support Smithsonian 

collections stewardship we must sufficiently resource their implementation. 

6. Have you pursued any less traditional approaches to collections care such as sharing 

stewardship responsibilities with other organizations? Are there risks with this type of 

partners hip? 

The Smithsonian has numerous partnerships with other Federal agencies regarding the 

management of collections. For example, the National Museum of Natural History hosts 

personnel from four Federal agencies-U.S. Department of Agriculture, Department of Defense, 

Department of Interior, and U.S. Geological Survey-which spend roughly $6 million annually to 

base approximately 100 staff in NMNH' s collections to fulfill their agency missions and share in 

the development and curation of the Museum's collections. We also have ongoing collaborations 

5 
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with a number of local and national universities regarding Smithsonian collections, including offsite enhancement programs where Smithsonian collections are maintained and curated at other 

repositories. In addition, the Smithsonian has a network of affiliate museums and educational 

organizations that maintain and exhibit collections on long-term loan. Ensuring proper 

stewardship of Smithsonian collections is always the underlying principle of any partnership 

involving museum collections. Objects on long-term loan also run the risk of being returned prior 

to the fulfillment or extension of the loan agreement, possibly necessitating unexpected storage 

space and additional staff requirements. 

7. Does the Smithsonian look to other museums and institutions to identify existing collections and 

specialties to avoid duplication among collections? 

The Smithsonian requires responsible, disciplined acquisition of collections based on stringent 

acquisition evaluation criteria. In order to provide responsible management of the collections, 

potential acquisitions undergo a rigorous selection and review process. Potential acquisitions are 

reviewed for consistency and relevancy with the collecting unit's mission, programmatic goals, 

and collections plan; object quality, physical condition, intellectual value and significance; 

documentation of legal title and provenance; ability and costs to provide appropriate 

management, care and use; and potential for use in exhibition, education, and research. Because 

of this rigorous selection process, the Smithsonian acquires only a small percentage of what is 

offered to the Institution. 

As part of professional collections planning and acquisition selection, the Smithsonian-like most 

museums-acknowledges areas of specialties and collection strengths within specific 

professional communities and disciplines. Smithsonian collecting units place their collections in 

the context of other similar or complementary collections, regionally, nationally, or 

internationally. In some disciplines, redundancy or duplication is standard because of the nature, 

purpose and intended use of the collections. 

The Smithsonian recognizes the need for cooperation and consultation between museums with 

similar or overlapping interests and collecting areas, and often consults with other institutions 

both on specific acquisitions and, more generally, on defining areas of collecting specialization 

and developing a cooperative approach to planning and sharing collections. 

In some cases, the Smithsonian has chosen not to collect in particular subjects because other 

collections serve the national needs in that discipline. For example, the national collection of 

fungus is maintained by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in Beltsville, Maryland, and 

therefore the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History does not collect fungus (other 

than lichens, which USDA does not cover), but collaborates as needed with the USDA experts 

and collections. 

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CANDICE S. MILLER. MICHIGAN 

CHAIRMAN 

GREGG HARPER, MISSISSIPPI 

PHIL GINGREY, GEORGIA 

AARON SCHOCK, ILUNOIS 

TODD ROKIT A, INDIANA 

RICH NUGENT, FLORIDA 

KELLY CRAVEN, STAFF DIRECTOR 

Mr. Scott S. Dahl 

Inspector General 

Smithsonian Institution 

MRC 524 PO Box 37012 

Washington, DC 20013 

Dear Mr. Dahl, 

(ongreS'S' of tbe mntttb j,tattS' J)OU~t of J.tpr~tntatib~ 

COMMITTEE ON HOUSE 

ADMINISTRATION 1309 Longworth House Office Building 

Washington. D.C. 20515-6157 

(202) 225-8281 

http://cha.house.gov 

August 2, 2013 

ROBERT A. BRADY, PENNSYLVANIA 

RANKING MINORITY MeMBER 

ZOE LOFGREN, CAUFORNIA 

JUAN VARGAS, CALIFORNIA 

ONE HUNDRED THIRTEENTH 

CONGRESS 

KYLE ANDERSON, MINORITY STAFF 

DIRECTOR 

Thank you for testifying during the July 17, 2013 Committee on House Administration Hearing 

on "Collections Stewardship at the Smithsonian." The Committee requests you respond to 

additional questions that will be made part of the hearing record. Please provide your responses 

to the following questions to the Committee by August 19, 2013. 

I. Collections stewardship involves multiple elements including development, preservation, 

and access (including digitization.) In your assessment, should the Smithsonian place 

priority emphasis on any component? 

2, How would you characterize management's response to your audit recommendations? 

3. What is your process for evaluating management's actions on your audit 

recommendations? 

If you have any questions concerning this matter, please feel free to contact Yael Barash on the 

Committee staff at (202) 225-8281. Thank you again for your testimony, we look forward to 

hearing from you. 

Sincerely Yours~ 

c~,17J/~ Candice S. Miller 

Chairman 
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o Smithsonian Institution 

Office of the Inspector General 

August 16, 2013 

The Honorable Candice S. Miller 

Chairman 

Committee on House Administration 

1309 Longworth House Office Building 

Washington, DC 20515-6157 

Dear Chairman Miller: 

Thank you for your letter of August 2, 2013, containing additional 

questions for the record relating to the July 17, 2013 hearing on 

"Collections Stewardship at the Smithsonian." I am pleased to submit 

the enclosed responses. 

Please do not hesitate to contact me at (202) 633-7050 if you have 

any questions. 

Sincerely, 

Scott 

~ S. Dahl 

Inspector General 

cc: The Honorable Robert Brady, Ranking Member 

Enclosure 

MRC524 

PO Box 37012 

Washington DC 20013-7012 

202.633.7050 Telephone 

202.633.7079 Fax 
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Smithsonian Office of the Inspector General 

Responses to Questions for the Record Relating to 

:July 17, 2013 Hearing on Collections Stewardship at the Smithsonian 

1. Collections stewardship involves multiple elements including 

development, preservation, and access (including digitization). In 

your assessment, should the Smithsonian place priority emphasis on 

any component? 

Collections stewardship at the Smithsonian is a growing challenge with many 

different facets. Based on our audit work, we identified the following three 

components as systemic collections care challenges that must be emphasized 

and addressed on a pan-institutional level: preservation practices, inventory 

control, and security of collections. These three components are intertwined 

and of comparable importance. 

Other elements, including development and access, indirectly support 

collections stewardship. Development activities can help to fund some 

collections care, although the Smithsonian relies primarily on appropriated 

funds in this area. One way to allow greater access to the collections is 

through digitization. Digitization also reduces the need for handling the 

collections and provides opportunities for inventorying items. Therefore, 

Smithsonian's digitization program will address issues related to the three 

components that we have identified, but this approach alone will not address 

all of the ongoing collections stewardship problems, such as space storage 

needs and deteriorating buildings. 

2. How would you characterize management's response to your audit 

recommendations? 

In general, management has been responsive to our recommendations. 

Many of our recommendations called for management to provide us with 

plans to address collections care issues, and we have received and reviewed 

most of these plans. While plans are a necessary and important first step, 

they need to be implemented to have any effect on collections care. In many 

instances, the implementation of the plans is contingent on additional 

funding levels. Management must identify future funding or develop 

contingency plans for collections care that are not dependent on increased 

appropriations. 

Another impediment is the Smithsonian's decentralized approach to 

collections care. For the most part, collecting units are free to set their own 

standards and allocate resources for collections care as they see fit. 

We will continue to monitor management's implementation of our previous 

audit recommendations. Additionally, we have recently initiated a review to 

evaluate the impact of Smithsonian's pan-institutional collections care 
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Initiatives and to examine the future funding and contingency plans for 

collections care. 

3. What is your process for evaluating management's actions on your 

audit recommendations? 

Our process for determining If management's actions meet the intent of the 

recommendation is as follows: 

We monitor and track management's progress in responding to our 

recommendations. 

Generally I by the due date that management sets for responding to 

the recommendation, we receive either a request to close the 

recommendation or sometimes a request to extend the date. 

We request and review documentation supporting management's 

response to the recommendation. 

On occasion, as necessary, we interview key personnel to gain 

additional information on management's approach to resolve the 

recommendation. 

• Also, when appropriate, we perform tests to verify that the 

represented work has been completed. 

Page 2 of2 

Smithsonian Office of the Inspector General 

Questions for the Record Relating to July 17, 2013 Hearing