I

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 1586

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

APRIL 13, 1994

Referred to the Committee on Natural Resources

AN ACT

To establish the New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park

in the State of Louisiana; 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,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘New Orleans Jazz Na5 tional Historical Park Act of 1994’’.
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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

2 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that:

3 (1) Jazz is the United States’ most widely rec4 ognized indigenous music and art form. Congress

5 previously recognized jazz in 1987 through Senate

6 Concurrent Resolution 57 as a rare and valuable na7 tional treasure of international importance.

8 (2) The city of New Orleans is widely recog9 nized as the birthplace of jazz. In and around this

10 city, cultural and musical elements blended to form

11 the unique American music that is known as New

12 Orleans jazz, which is an expression of the cultural

13 diversity of the lower Mississippi Delta Region.

14 (3) Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and

15 Preserve was established to commemorate the cul16 tural diversity of the lower Mississippi Delta Region

17 including a range of cultural expressions like jazz.

18 (b) PURPOSE.—In furtherance of the need to recog19 nize the value and importance of jazz, it is the purpose

20 of this Act to establish a New Orleans Jazz National His21 torical Park to preserve the origins, early history, develop22 ment and progression of jazz; provide visitors with oppor23 tunities to experience the sights, sounds, and places where

24 jazz evolved; and implement innovative ways of establish25 ing jazz educational partnerships that will help to ensure
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1 that jazz continues as a vital element of the culture of

2 New Orleans and our Nation.

3 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT.

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—In order to assist in the preserva5 tion, education, and interpretation of jazz as it has evolved

6 in New Orleans, and to provide technical assistance to a

7 broad range of organizations involved with jazz music and

8 its history, there is hereby established the New Orleans

9 Jazz National Historical Park (hereinafter referred to as

10 the ‘‘historical park’’). The historical park shall be admin11 istered in conjunction with the Jean Lafitte National His12 torical Park and Preserve, which was established to pre13 serve and interpret the cultural and natural resources of

14 the lower Mississippi Delta Region.

15 (b) AREA INCLUDED.—The historical park shall con16 sist of lands and interests therein as follows:

17 (1) Lands which the Secretary of the Interior

18 (hereinafter referred to as ‘‘the Secretary’’) may

19 designate for an interpretive visitor center complex.

20 (2) Sites that are the subject of cooperative

21 agreements with the National Park Service for the

22 purposes of interpretive demonstrations and pro23 grams associated with the purposes of this Act.

24 (3)(A) Sites designated by the Secretary as pro25 vided in subparagraph (B).
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1 (B)(i) No later than 18 months after the date

2 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary is directed

3 to complete a national historic landmark evaluation

4 of sites associated with jazz in and around New Or5 leans as identified in the document entitled ‘‘New

6 Orleans Jazz Special Resource Study’’, prepared by

7 the National Park Service pursuant to Public Law

8 101–499. In undertaking the evaluation, the Sec9 retary shall, to the extent practicable, utilize existing

10 information relating to such sites.

11 (ii) If any of the sites evaluated are found to

12 meet the standards of the National Historic Land13 mark program and National Park Service tests of

14 suitability and feasibility, and offer outstanding op15 portunities to further the purposes of this Act, the

16 Secretary may designate such sites as part of the

17 historical park, following consultation with the own18 ers of such sites, the city of New Orleans, the

19 Smithsonian Institution, and the New Orleans Jazz

20 Commission, and notification to the Committee on

21 Energy and Natural Resources of the United States

22 Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources of

23 the United States House of Representatives.
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1 SEC. 4. ADMINISTRATION.

2 (a)(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall administer

3 the historical park in accordance with this Act and with

4 provisions of law generally applicable to units of the Na5 tional Park System, including the Act entitled ‘‘An Act

6 to establish a National Park Service, and for other pur7 poses’’, approved August 25, 1916 (39 Stat. 535; 16

8 U.S.C. 1, 2–4); and the Act of August 21, 1935 (49 Stat.

9 666; 16 U.S.C. 461–467). The Secretary shall manage the

10 historical park in such a manner as will preserve and per11 petuate knowledge and understanding of the history of

12 jazz and its continued evolution as a true American art

13 form.

14 (2) To minimize operational costs associated with the

15 management and administration of the historical park and

16 to avoid duplication of effort, the Secretary shall, to the

17 maximum extent practicable, utilize the facilities, adminis18 trative staff and other services of the Jean Lafitte Na19 tional Historical Park and Preserve.

20 (b) DONATIONS.—The Secretary may accept and re21 tain donations of funds, property, or services from individ22 uals, foundations, corporations, or other public entities for

23 the purposes of providing services, programs, and facilities

24 that further the purposes of this Act.

25 (c) INTERPRETIVE CENTER.—The Secretary is au26 thorized to construct, operate, and maintain an interpre-
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1 tive center in the historical park on lands identified by

2 the Secretary pursuant to section 3(b)(1). Programs at

3 the center shall include, but need not be limited to, live

4 jazz interpretive and educational programs, and shall pro5 vide visitors with information about jazz-related programs,

6 performances, and opportunities.

7 (d) JAZZ HERITAGE DISTRICTS.—The Secretary may

8 provide technical assistance to the city of New Orleans and

9 other appropriate entities for the designation of certain

10 areas in and around New Orleans as jazz heritage dis11 tricts. Such districts shall include those areas with an ex12 ceptional concentration of jazz historical sites and estab13 lished community traditions of jazz street parades.

14 (e) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS, GRANTS AND

15 TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—In furtherance of the purposes

16 of this Act—

17 (1) the Secretary, after consultation with the

18 New Orleans Jazz Commission established pursuant

19 to section 7, is authorized to enter into cooperative

20 agreements with owners of properties that are des21 ignated pursuant to section 3(b)(3) which provide

22 outstanding educational and interpretive opportuni23 ties relating to the evolution of jazz in New Orleans.

24 The Secretary may assist in rehabilitating, restoring,

25 marking, and interpreting and may provide technical
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1 assistance for the preservation and interpretation of

2 such properties. Such agreements shall contain, but

3 need not be limited to, provisions that the National

4 Park Service will have reasonable rights of access

5 for operational and visitor use needs, that rehabilita6 tion and restoration will meet the Secretary’s stand7 ards for rehabilitation of historic buildings, and that

8 specify the roles and responsibilities of the Secretary

9 for each site or structure;

10 (2) the Secretary is authorized to enter into co11 operative agreements with the city of New Orleans,

12 the State of Louisiana, and other appropriate public

13 and private organizations under which the other par14 ties to the agreement may contribute to the acquisi15 tion, construction, operation, and maintenance of the

16 interpretive center and to the operation of edu17 cational and interpretive programs to further the

18 purposes of this Act; and

19 (3) the Secretary, in consultation with the New

20 Orleans Jazz Commission, is authorized to provide

21 grants or technical assistance to public and private

22 organizations.

23 (f) JAZZ EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS.—The Secretary

24 shall, in the administration of the historical park, promote

25 a broad range of educational activities relating to jazz and
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1 its history. The Secretary shall cooperate with schools,

2 universities, and organizations supporting jazz education

3 to develop educational programs that provide expanded

4 public understanding of jazz and enhanced opportunities

5 for public appreciation. The Secretary may assist appro6 priate entities in the development of an information base

7 including archival material, audiovisual records, and ob8 jects that relate to the history of jazz.

9 SEC. 5. ACQUISITION OF PROPERTY.

10 (a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—The Secretary may ac11 quire lands and interests therein within the sites des12 ignated pursuant to section 3(b)(1) and (3) by donation

13 or purchase with donated or appropriated funds or long

14 term lease: Provided, That sites designated pursuant to

15 section 3(b)(3) shall only be acquired with the consent of

16 the owner thereof.

17 (b) STATE AND LOCAL PROPERTIES.—Lands and in18 terests in lands which are owned by the State of Louisi19 ana, or any political subdivision thereof, may be acquired

20 only by donation.

21 SEC. 6. GENERAL MANAGEMENT PLAN.

22 Within 3 years after the date funds are made avail23 able therefor and concurrent with the national landmark

24 study referenced in section 3(b)(3), the Secretary, in con25 sultation with the New Orleans Jazz Commission, shall
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1 prepare a general management plan for the historical

2 park. The plan shall include, but need not be limited to—

3 (1) a visitor use plan indicating programs and

4 facilities associated with park programs that will be

5 made available to the public;

6 (2) preservation and use plans for any struc7 tures and sites that are identified through the his8 toric landmark study for inclusion within the histori9 cal park;

10 (3) the location and associated cost of public fa11 cilities that are proposed for inclusion within the his12 torical park, including a visitor center;

13 (4) identification of programs that the Sec14 retary will implement or be associated with through

15 cooperative agreements with other groups and orga16 nizations;

17 (5) a transportation plan that addresses visitor

18 use access needs to sites, facilities, and programs

19 central to the purpose of the historical park;

20 (6) plans for the implementation of an archival

21 system for materials, objects, and items of impor22 tance relating to the history of jazz; and

23 (7) guidelines for the application of cooperative

24 agreements that will be used to assist in the man25 agement of historical park facilities and programs.
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1 SEC. 7. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE NEW ORLEANS JAZZ

2 COMMISSION.

3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—To assist in implementing the

4 purposes of this Act and the document entitled ‘‘New Or5 leans Jazz Special Resource Study’’, there is established

6 the New Orleans Jazz Commission (hereinafter referred

7 to as the ‘‘Commission’’).

8 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Commission shall consist of

9 17 members to be appointed no later than 6 months after

10 the date of enactment of this Act. The Commission shall

11 be appointed by the Secretary as follows:

12 (1) One member from recommendations submit13 ted by the Mayor of New Orleans.

14 (2) Two members who have recognized exper15 tise in music education programs that emphasize

16 jazz.

17 (3) One member, with experience in and knowl18 edge of tourism in the greater New Orleans area,

19 from recommendations submitted by local busi20 nesses.

21 (4) One member from recommendations submit22 ted by the Board of the New Orleans Jazz and Her23 itage Foundation.

24 (5) One member, with experience in and knowl25 edge of historic preservation within the New Orleans

26 area.
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1 (6) Two members, one from recommendations

2 submitted by the Secretary of the Smithsonian Insti3 tution and one member from recommendations sub4 mitted by the Chairman of the National Endowment

5 of the Arts, who are recognized musicians with

6 knowledge and experience in the development of jazz

7 in New Orleans.

8 (7) Two members, one from recommendations

9 submitted by the Secretary of the Smithsonian Insti10 tution and one member from recommendations sub11 mitted by the Director of the Louisiana State Mu12 seum with recognized expertise in the interpretation

13 of jazz history or traditions related to jazz in New

14 Orleans.

15 (8) Two members who represent local neighbor16 hood groups or other local associations; from rec17 ommendations submitted by the Mayor of New

18 Orleans.

19 (9) One member representing local mutual aid

20 and benevolent societies as well as local social and

21 pleasure clubs, from recommendations submitted by

22 the Board of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage

23 Foundation.

24 (10) One member from recommendations sub25 mitted by the Governor of the State of Louisiana,
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1 who shall be a member of the Louisiana State Music

2 Commission.

3 (11) One member representing the New Orleans

4 Jazz Club from recommendations submitted by the

5 club.

6 (12) One member who is a recognized local ex7 pert on the history, development and progression of

8 jazz in New Orleans and is familiar with existing ar9 chival materials from recommendations submitted by

10 the Librarian of Congress.

11 (13) The Director of the National Park Service,

12 or the Director’s designee, ex officio.

13 (c) DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION.—The Commission

14 shall—

15 (1) advise the Secretary in the preparation of

16 the general management plan for the historical park;

17 assist in public discussions of planning proposals;

18 and assist the National Park Service in working

19 with individuals, groups, and organizations including

20 economic and business interests in determining pro21 grams in which the Secretary should participate

22 through cooperative agreement;

23 (2) in consultation and cooperation with the

24 Secretary, develop partnerships with educational
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1 groups, schools, universities, and other groups to

2 furtherance of the purposes of this Act;

3 (3) in consultation and cooperation with the

4 Secretary, develop partnerships with city-wide orga5 nizations, and raise and disperse funds for programs

6 that assist mutual aid and benevolent societies, so7 cial and pleasure clubs and other traditional groups

8 in encouraging the continuation of and enhancement

9 of jazz cultural traditions;

10 (4) acquire or lease property for jazz education,

11 and advise on hiring brass bands and musical groups

12 to participate in education programs and help train

13 young musicians;

14 (5) in consultation and cooperation with the

15 Secretary, provide recommendations for the location

16 of the visitor center and other interpretive sites;

17 (6) assist the Secretary in providing funds to

18 support research on the origins and early history of

19 jazz in New Orleans; and

20 (7) notwithstanding any other provision of law,

21 seek and accept donations of funds, property, or

22 services from individuals, foundations, corporations,

23 or other public or private entities and expend and

24 use the same for the purposes of providing services,

25 programs, and facilities for jazz education, or assist-
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1 ing in the rehabilitation and restoration of struc2 tures identified in the national historic landmark

3 study referenced in section 3(b)(3) as having out4 standing significance to the history of jazz in New

5 Orleans.

6 (d) APPOINTMENT.—Members of the Commission

7 shall be appointed for staggered terms of 3 years, as des8 ignated by the Secretary at the time of the initial appoint9 ment.

10 (e) CHAIRMAN.—The Commission shall elect a chair11 man from among its members. The term of the chairman

12 shall be for 3 years.

13 (f) TERMS.—Any member of the Commission ap14 pointed by the Secretary for a 3-year term may serve after

15 the expiration of his or her term until a successor is ap16 pointed. Any vacancy shall be filled in the same manner

17 in which the original appointment was made. Any member

18 appointed to fill a vacancy shall serve for the remainder

19 of the term for which the predecessor was appointed.

20 (g) PER DIEM EXPENSES.—Members of the Commis21 sion shall serve without compensation. Members shall be

22 entitled to travel expenses under section 5703, title 5,

23 United States Code, when engaged in Commission busi24 ness, including per diem in lieu of subsistence in the same

25 manner as persons employed intermittently.
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1 (h) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT.—The Secretary shall

2 provide the Commission with assistance in obtaining such

3 personnel, equipment, and facilities as may be needed by

4 the Commission to carry out its duties.

5 (i) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Commission shall submit

6 an annual report to the Secretary identifying its expenses

7 and income and the entities to which any grants or tech8 nical assistance were made during the year for which the

9 report is made.

10 SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

11 There is authorized to be appropriated such sums as

12 may be necessary to carry out this Act.

Passed the Senate April 12 (legislative day, April

11), 1994.

Attest: WALTER J. STEWART,

Secretary.