I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1839 

To amend title 36, United States Code, to grant a Federal charter to the 

National Lighthouse Museum. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 11, 2021 

Ms. MALLIOTAKIS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To amend title 36, United States Code, to grant a Federal 

charter to the National Lighthouse Museum. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Lighthouse 

5 Museum Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. NATIONAL LIGHTHOUSE MUSEUM. 

7 Part B of subtitle II of title 36, United States Code, 

8 is amended by inserting after chapter 1519 the following 

9 new chapter: 


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1 ‘‘CHAPTER 1520—NATIONAL LIGHTHOUSE 

2 MUSEUM 

‘‘Sec. 

‘‘152001. Organization. 

‘‘152002. Purposes. 

‘‘152003. Operation of museum. 

‘‘152004. Membership. 

‘‘152005. Governing body. 

‘‘152006. Powers. 

‘‘152007. Restrictions. 

‘‘152008. Duty to maintain corporate and tax-exempt status. 

‘‘152009. Records and inspection. 

‘‘152010. Service of process. 

‘‘152011. Liability for acts of officers and agents. 

‘‘152012. Annual report. 

‘‘152013. Definitions. 

3 ‘‘§ 152001. Organization 

4 ‘‘(a) FEDERAL CHARTER.—The National Lighthouse 

5 Museum, incorporated in New York, is a federally char6 tered corporation. 

7 ‘‘(b) EXPIRATION OF CHARTER.—If the corporation 

8 does not comply with any provision of this chapter, the 

9 charter granted by this chapter expires. 

10 ‘‘§ 152002. Purposes 

11 ‘‘The purposes of the corporation are as provided in 

12 its constitution and bylaws and include the following pur13 poses: 

14 ‘‘(1) To collect, preserve, and interpret objects 

15 related to the history and technology of lighthouses 

16 and lightships located, in the past or present, at 

17 sites throughout the United States. 


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1 ‘‘(2) To research, document, and disseminate 

2 information on the history and technology of Amer3 ican lighthouses. 

4 ‘‘(3) To create and maintain an archive of arti5 facts and materials related to American lighthouses. 

6 ‘‘(4) To foster research of American lighthouse 

7 history. 

8 ‘‘(5) To serve as a contact point for public in9 quiry and assistance with respect to American light10 house history, research, education, collections, and 

11 programs. 

12 ‘‘(6) To celebrate America’s lighthouse heritage 

13 through educational programs, publications, films, 

14 festivals, living history, lighthouse trails, con15 ferences, and other such offerings. 

16 ‘‘(7) To support other existing and future light17 house museums, organizations, and sites. 

18 ‘‘(8) To establish partnerships with other orga19 nizations to attain the above goals. 

20 ‘‘(9) To engage in any lawful act or activity 

21 necessary to further the purposes of the corporation 

22 under this section. 

23 ‘‘§ 152003. Operation of museum 

24 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The corporation shall operate a 

25 museum to be known as the National Lighthouse Museum 


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1 at the site of the former United States Lighthouse Service 

2 General Depot located at what is now known as St. 

3 George, Staten Island, New York. 

4 ‘‘(b) STORAGE FACILITY.—The corporation shall op5 erate a storage facility located at or near the site described 

6 in subsection (a) for the care, conservation, and mainte7 nance of artifacts in the collection of the corporation. 

8 ‘‘(c) SUPPORT TO OTHER MUSEUMS.—The corpora9 tion shall provide support to other museums that interpret 

10 the history of aids to navigation in the United States. 

11 ‘‘(d) DESIGNATION OF COLLECTION.—The collection 

12 of artifacts of the National Lighthouse Museum shall be 

13 known as the National Lighthouse Collection. 

14 ‘‘(e) EXCLUSIVE RIGHT.—The corporation shall have 

15 the sole and exclusive right to use, in carrying out its pur16 poses, the name ‘National Lighthouse Museum’ and the 

17 sole and exclusive right to the use of its corporate seal, 

18 emblems, and badges as adopted by the corporation. 

19 ‘‘§ 152004. Membership 

20 ‘‘Eligibility for membership in the corporation and 

21 the rights and privileges of members are as provided in 

22 the constitution and bylaws of the corporation. 

23 ‘‘§ 152005. Governing body 

24 ‘‘(a) BOARD OF TRUSTEES.—The board of trustees 

25 of the corporation and the responsibilities of the board are 


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1 as provided in the constitution and bylaws of the corpora2 tion. 

3 ‘‘(b) OFFICERS.—The officers and the election of offi4 cers of the corporation are as provided in the bylaws of 

5 the corporation. 

6 ‘‘§ 152006. Powers 

7 ‘‘The corporation has only the powers provided in its 

8 constitution, bylaws, and charter as granted by the Board 

9 of Regents of the State of New York and in the certificate 

10 of authority in any other State in which the corporation 

11 is, or shall be, qualified to do business. 

12 ‘‘§ 152007. Restrictions 

13 ‘‘(a) STOCK AND DIVIDENDS.—The corporation may 

14 not issue stock or declare or pay a dividend. 

15 ‘‘(b) POLITICAL ACTIVITIES.—The corporation or a 

16 trustee or officer, acting as such trustee or officer, may 

17 not contribute to, support, or participate in any political 

18 activity or in any manner attempt to influence legislation. 

19 ‘‘(c) DISTRIBUTION OF INCOME OR ASSETS.—The in20 come or assets of the corporation may not inure to the 

21 benefit of, or be distributed to, a trustee, officer, or mem22 ber during the life of the charter granted by this chapter. 

23 This subsection does not prevent the payment of reason24 able compensation to an officer or reimbursement for acVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:30 May 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1839.IH H1839

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1 tual necessary expenses in amounts approved by the board 

2 of trustees. 

3 ‘‘(d) LOANS.—The corporation may not make a loan 

4 to a trustee, officer, or employee. 

5 ‘‘(e) CLAIM OF GOVERNMENTAL APPROVAL OR AU6 THORIZATION.—The corporation may not claim congres7 sional approval or the authority of the United States Gov8 ernment for any of its activities. 

9 ‘‘§ 152008. Duty to maintain corporate and tax-ex10 empt status 

11 ‘‘(a) CORPORATE STATUS.—The corporation shall 

12 maintain its corporate status as a corporation incor13 porated under the laws of the State of New York. 

14 ‘‘(b) TAX-EXEMPT STATUS.—The corporation shall 

15 maintain its status as an organization exempt from tax16 ation under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 

17 1 et seq.). 

18 ‘‘§ 152009. Records and inspection 

19 ‘‘(a) RECORDS.—The corporation shall keep— 

20 ‘‘(1) correct and complete records of account; 

21 ‘‘(2) minutes of the proceedings of its members, 

22 board of trustees, and committees; and 

23 ‘‘(3) at its principal office, a record of the 

24 names and addresses of its members entitled to vote, 

25 if any. 


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1 ‘‘(b) INSPECTION.—Any officer or trustee, or any 

2 member entitled to vote (if any), or an agent or attorney 

3 of such officer, trustee, or member, may inspect the 

4 records of the corporation for any proper purpose at any 

5 reasonable time. 

6 ‘‘§ 152010. Service of process 

7 ‘‘The corporation shall comply with the law on service 

8 of process of the State of New York and in each State 

9 in which it carries on activities. 

10 ‘‘§ 152011. Liability for acts of officers and agents 

11 ‘‘The corporation is liable for the acts of its officers 

12 and agents acting within the scope of their authority. 

13 ‘‘§ 152012. Annual report 

14 ‘‘The corporation shall submit an annual report to 

15 Congress on the activities of the corporation during the 

16 prior fiscal year. The report shall be submitted at the 

17 same time as the report of the audit required by section 

18 10101 of this title. The report may not be printed as a 

19 public document. 

20 ‘‘§ 152013. Definitions 

21 ‘‘For purposes of this chapter— 

22 ‘‘(1) the term ‘corporation’ means the National 

23 Lighthouse Museum, Inc., incorporated in New 

24 York; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) the term ‘State’ includes the District of 

2 Columbia and the territories and possessions of the 

3 United States.’’. 

4 SEC. 3. CLERICAL AMENDMENT. 

5 The table of chapters at the beginning of subtitle II 

6 of title 36, United States Code, is amended by inserting 

7 after the item relating to chapter 1519 the following new 

8 item: 

‘‘1520. National Lighthouse Museum ......................................... 152001.’’. 

Æ 


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