II

104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2169

To promote the survival of significant cultural resources that have been

identified as endangered and that represent important economic, social,

and educational assets of the United States and the world, to permit

United States professionals to participate in the planning and implementation of projects worldwide to protect the resources, and to educate

the public concerning the importance of cultural heritage to the fabric

of life in the United States and throughout the world, and for other

purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

SEPTEMBER 30, 1996

Mr. PELL introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to

the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

A BILL

To promote the survival of significant cultural resources that

have been identified as endangered and that represent

important economic, social, and educational assets of the

United States and the world, to permit United States

professionals to participate in the planning and implementation of projects worldwide to protect the resources,

and to educate the public concerning the importance

of cultural heritage to the fabric of life in the United

States and throughout the world, and for other purposes.

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

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Endangered Cultural

3 Heritage Act of 1996’’.

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

5 Congress finds that—

6 (1) the cultural heritage of mankind—

7 (A) is of the utmost importance to the

8 United States and the world;

9 (B) contains evidence of mankind’s com10 mon human past; and

11 (C) is part of the economic, social, and

12 educational foundation of society;

13 (2) with a growth of research concerning the

14 vital quality of the cultural heritage of mankind has

15 come the realization that many of the most signifi16 cant cultural resources in the world are seriously en17 dangered by a growing range of threats, including

18 natural catastrophes, environmental deterioration,

19 destructive acts of man, and the complex political

20 and societal changes occurring in the world;

21 (3) a timely response is critical to prevent the

22 loss of cultural heritage that is imminently endan23 gered;

24 (4) sustained funding is needed to stabilize and

25 strengthen the ability to protect cultural resources
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1 on a national and international scale, consistently

2 and on a long-term basis;

3 (5) funding will support a program through

4 which professionals in the field of historic preserva5 tion can obtain support on a short-term basis to ad6 dress situations of immediate peril affecting impor7 tant works that are in danger of loss in order to

8 gain time to plan for long-term conservation of the

9 works;

10 (6) the inauguration of the World Monuments

11 Watch List of 100 Most Endangered Sites in 1996

12 has made apparent the great need for additional

13 support and protection for threatened cultural herit14 age worldwide;

15 (7) conservation work funded as a result of this

16 Act will result in both direct and indirect benefits to

17 many communities by creating jobs, offering oppor18 tunities for training in skilled trades, protecting re19 sources that generate economic activity through

20 tourism, and opening direct access to enriched edu21 cational experiences;

22 (8) the American people share the responsibility

23 of ensuring the survival of key cultural resources

24 worldwide, since the resources, whether in the Unit-
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1 ed States or abroad, represent a trust held in com2 mon by all peoples in all communities; and

3 (9) participation in the preservation of cultural

4 heritage, which is of common human concern, is an

5 international act of good will.

6 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

7 In this Act:

8 (1) ADMINISTRATIVE AGENCY.—The term ‘‘ad9 ministrative agency’’ means the agency designated

10 or established by the Secretary under section 6(a).

11 (2) ENDANGERED SITE.—The term ‘‘endan12 gered site’’ refers to a structure, a group of build13 ings, a historic district, an archaeological zone, pub14 lic art, or a cultural landscape that is in significant

15 peril of being lost or seriously compromised as a re16 sult of irreversible human or natural destruction.

17 (3) FUND.—The term ‘‘Fund’’ means the En18 dangered Cultural Heritage Trust fund established

19 by section 4.

20 (4) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The

21 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the

22 meaning given in section 1201(a) of the Higher

23 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1141(a)).

24 (5) MATCHING BASIS.—The term ‘‘matching

25 basis’’ means the condition to a grant award that
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1 the award be supplemented by the recipient with

2 equivalent financial support from other sources prior

3 to release of funds by the Secretary.

4 (6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means

5 the Secretary of the Treasury.

6 SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE ENDANGERED CULTURAL

7 HERITAGE FUND.

8 There is established in the Treasury of the United

9 States a trust fund to be known as the ‘‘Endangered Cul10 tural Heritage Fund’’ that shall consist of—

11 (1) amounts appropriated pursuant to section

12 5; and

13 (2) interest and proceeds credited pursuant to

14 section 8(c).

15 SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

16 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Fund

17 such sums as are necessary to carry out this Act.

18 SEC. 6. PAYMENTS FROM THE FUND AND USES OF PAY19 MENTS.

20 (a) DESIGNATION OF ADMINISTRATIVE AGENCY.—

21 The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of State

22 and the Secretary of the Interior, shall designate or estab23 lish a Federal agency to administer the Fund.

24 (b) AVAILABILITY FOR ADMINISTRATIVE AGENCY.—

25 The interest on any obligations held in the Fund shall be
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1 available, as provided in advance by an appropriations Act,

2 for payment to the administrative agency for use in ac3 cordance with this section.

4 (c) USE BY ADMINISTRATIVE AGENCY.—The admin5 istrative agency shall administer funds provided under

6 subsection (b) and direct the funds to the following to sup7 port activities carried out by qualified United States and

8 international organizations that have as a common pur9 pose the preservation and protection of cultural resources

10 that are significantly at risk:

11 (1) ENDANGERED CULTURAL RESOURCES IN

12 THE UNITED STATES.—

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—The administrative

14 agency shall provide funding awards, released

15 incrementally and on a matching basis, to sup16 port stabilization and conservation measures for

17 endangered cultural resources in the United

18 States.

19 (B) QUALIFICATIONS FOR AWARD.—An

20 award under subparagraph (A) shall be made

21 on a competitive basis to a governmental or

22 nongovernmental entity that has demonstrated

23 an ability to implement a conservation program

24 in accordance with prescribed United States

25 standards for conservation and rehabilitation,
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1 as specified by the Secretary of the Interior in

2 accordance with the National Historic Preserva3 tion Act (16 U.S.C. 470 et seq.).

4 (C) QUALIFIED SITES.—A site that has

5 been listed as endangered by the National

6 Trust for Historic Preservation, the United

7 States National Park Service, or the World

8 Monuments Fund shall be qualified to receive

9 an award under subparagraph (A).

10 (2) ENDANGERED CULTURAL RESOURCES OUT11 SIDE THE UNITED STATES.—

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—The administrative

13 agency shall provide funding awards, released

14 on a matching basis, to support stabilization

15 and conservation measures for endangered cul16 tural resources outside the United States.

17 (B) QUALIFICATIONS FOR AWARD.—An

18 award under subparagraph (A) shall be made

19 on a competitive basis to a governmental or

20 nongovernmental entity responsible for a site

21 that has demonstrated an ability to implement

22 a conservation program that will significantly

23 advance the state of conservation of the endan24 gered site.
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1 (C) QUALIFIED SITES.—A site that has

2 been listed as endangered by the World Monu3 ments Fund or the World Heritage Center shall

4 be qualified to receive an award under subpara5 graph (A).

6 (3) GRANTS AND FELLOWSHIPS.—The adminis7 trative agency shall provide grants or fellowships

8 that engage—

9 (A) United States professionals in historic

10 preservation; and

11 (B) United States and foreign graduate12 level students in—

13 (i) onsite conservation programs sup14 ported under this Act; and

15 (ii) the development of plans to pro16 tect endangered cultural resources.

17 (4) PUBLIC EDUCATION.—The administrative

18 agency shall support programs to educate and en19 gage the public, including citizens, students, and

20 school children, in a concern for the preservation of

21 endangered cultural resources.

22 (5) SEMINARS AND CONFERENCES.—The ad23 ministrative agency shall provide grants to qualified

24 organizations to conduct seminars, conferences, and

25 other similar workshops designed to facilitate col-
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1 laboration and cooperation between the United

2 States and foreign institutions, private specialists,

3 and site managers in the conservation of endangered

4 cultural resources.

5 (d) OTHER EXPENDITURES.—Not more than 10 per6 cent of the funds made available under subsection (b) for

7 any fiscal year may be used by the administrative agency

8 to—

9 (1) award contracts for projects chosen for sup10 port under subsection (c);

11 (2) disseminate information about the Fund

12 and solicit proposals (which shall include cost-shar13 ing provisions) from site mangers, United States in14 stitutions of higher education, and other qualified

15 entities and persons to participate in the conserva16 tion of qualifying sites and related programs; and

17 (3) prepare documentation about projects sup18 ported under subsection (c) and disseminate the doc19 umentation through publications and electronic

20 media.

21 (e) EXPERT ADVISORS.—A project shall be selected

22 for support under subsection (c) by a panel of expert advi23 sors, including a representative of—

24 (1) the United States Committee of the Inter25 national Council on Monuments and Sites;
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1 (2) the National Park Service;

2 (3) the National Trust for Historic Preserva3 tion;

4 (4) the College Art Association; and

5 (5) the Advisory Council for Historic Preserva6 tion.

7 (f) PAYMENTS.—

8 (1) TIME.—The administrative agency shall

9 make an award authorized under this section as

10 soon as practicable after approval of an application,

11 pending the acquisition of any matching funds by

12 the recipient of the award.

13 (2) FORM.—The administrative agency may

14 make an award authorized under this section in in15 stallments, in advance, or by way of reimbursement,

16 and may make necessary adjustments on account of

17 any overpayment or underpayment.

18 SEC. 7. APPLICATIONS.

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—The administrative agency shall

20 prepare and submit an application to the Secretary once

21 each fiscal year that—

22 (1) provides a description of the purposes for

23 which any grant award will be used; and

24 (2) provides such fiscal control and such ac25 counting procedures as are necessary—
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1 (A) to ensure a proper accounting of grant

2 awards paid to the applicant under this Act;

3 and

4 (B) to ensure the verification of the costs

5 of the continuing education program furnished

6 by the grant recipient.

7 (b) EXPEDITIOUS APPROVAL.—The Secretary shall

8 expeditiously approve any application that meets the re9 quirements of this section.

10 SEC. 8. MANAGEMENT OF THE FUND.

11 (a) INVESTMENTS.—

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall invest

13 such portion of the Fund as is not, in the judgment

14 of the Secretary, required to meet current withdraw15 als.

16 (2) TYPES OF INVESTMENT.—Investments may

17 be made only in interest-bearing obligations of the

18 United States or in obligations guaranteed as to

19 both principal and interest by the United States.

20 (3) ACQUISITION OF INVESTMENTS.—Obliga21 tions may be acquired only—

22 (A) on original issue at the issue price; or

23 (B) by purchase of outstanding obligations

24 at the market price.

25 (4) SPECIAL OBLIGATIONS.—
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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding chap2 ter 31 of title 31, United States Code, the Sec3 retary may issue special obligations at par ex4 clusively to the Fund.

5 (B) INTEREST.—A special obligations shall

6 bear interest at a rate equal to the average rate

7 of interest, computed as of the end of the cal8 endar month next preceding the date of the ob9 ligation, borne by all marketable interest-bear10 ing obligations of the United States then form11 ing a part of the public debt, except that if the

average rate is not a multiple of 1 12 ⁄8 percent, the

13 rate of interest of the special obligation shall be

the multiple of 1 14 ⁄8 percent next lower than the

15 average rate.

16 (C) PUBLIC INTEREST.—Special obliga17 tions shall be issued only if the Secretary deter18 mines that the purchase of other interest-bear19 ing obligations of the United States, or of obli20 gations guaranteed as to both principal and in21 terest by the United States on original issue or

22 at the market price, is not in the public inter23 est.

24 (b) SALE AND REDEMPTION.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—An obligation acquired by

2 the Fund (except a special obligation issued under

3 subsection (a)(4)) may be sold by the Secretary at

4 market price.

5 (2) SPECIAL OBLIGATIONS.—A special obliga6 tion issued under subsection (a)(4) may be redeemed

7 at par plus accrued interest.

8 (c) PROCEEDS AND INTEREST.—The interest on, and

9 the proceeds from the sale or redemption of, any obligation

10 held in the Fund shall be credited to and form a part of

11 the Fund.

12 SEC. 9. REPORT.

13 The administrative agency shall prepare and submit

14 to the President and Congress at the end of every other

15 fiscal year in which the administrative agency receives as16 sistance under this Act a report on the activities of the

17 administrative agency and such recommendations as the

18 administrative agency considers advisable.

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