I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2420 

To establish within the Smithsonian Institution the National Museum of 

the American Latino, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 30, 2019 

Mr. SERRANO (for himself, Mr. HURD of Texas, Mr. CA ́RDENAS, Ms. HERRERA BEUTLER, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, Mr. CASTRO of Texas, Miss 

GONZA ́LEZ-COLO ́N of Puerto Rico, Mr. CORREA, Mr. KING of New York, 

Mr. SOTO, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. DUFFY, Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ, Ms. LEE of 

California, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. GONZALEZ of Ohio, Ms. SA ́NCHEZ, and 

Mr. NEWHOUSE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on House Administration, and in addition to the Committees 

on Natural Resources, and Transportation and Infrastructure, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To establish within the Smithsonian Institution the National 

Museum of the American Latino, 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 ‘‘National Museum of 

5 the American Latino Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) The United States is a symbol of democ4 racy, freedom, and economic opportunity around the 

5 world, and the legacy of Latinos is deeply rooted in 

6 the very fabric of the history, democracy, freedom, 

7 and economic opportunity of the United States. 

8 (2) There exists no national museum within the 

9 Smithsonian Institution that is devoted to the docu10 mentation and explication of Latino life, art, history, 

11 and culture. 

12 (3) The establishment of the National Museum 

13 of the American Latino will be consistent with the 

14 purposes of the Smithsonian Institution, created by 

15 Congress in 1846, ‘‘for the increase and diffusion of 

16 knowledge’’. 

17 (4) The National Museum of the American 

18 Latino— 

19 (A) will be the keystone for people in the 

20 United States and other Smithsonian Institu21 tion visitors to learn about Latino contributions 

22 to life, art, history, and culture in the United 

23 States at its signature location on the National 

24 Mall; and 

25 (B) will serve as a gateway for visitors to 

26 view other Latino exhibitions, collections, and 


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1 programming at other Smithsonian Institution 

2 facilities and museums throughout the United 

3 States and the territories of the United States. 

4 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

5 In this Act: 

6 (1) BOARD OF REGENTS.—The term ‘‘Board of 

7 Regents’’ means the Board of Regents of the Smith8 sonian Institution. 

9 (2) BOARD OF TRUSTEES.—The term ‘‘Board 

10 of Trustees’’ means the Board of Trustees of the 

11 National Museum of the American Latino as estab12 lished by section 5. 

13 (3) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

14 the Director of the National Museum of the Amer15 ican Latino. 

16 (4) MUSEUM.—The term ‘‘Museum’’ means the 

17 National Museum of the American Latino estab18 lished by section 4. 

19 (5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

20 the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. 

21 SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF MUSEUM. 

22 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established within 

23 the Smithsonian Institution a museum to be known as the 

24 ‘‘National Museum of the American Latino’’. 

25 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the Museum are— 


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1 (1) to illuminate the story of the United States 

2 for the benefit of all by featuring Latino contribu3 tions; and 

4 (2) to provide for— 

5 (A) the collection, study, research, publica6 tion, and establishment of exhibitions and pro7 grams relating to Latino life, art, history, and 

8 culture that encompass— 

9 (i) Latino contributions to the early 

10 history of what now encompasses the 

11 United States of America and its terri12 tories; 

13 (ii) Latino contributions in the armed 

14 services from the earliest days of the 

15 American Revolution to current military 

16 activities in defense of our freedoms; 

17 (iii) Latino contributions to the free18 dom, well-being, and economic prosperity 

19 of all people in the United States through 

20 historical movements; 

21 (iv) entrepreneurial and charitable ac22 tivities of Latinos; 

23 (v) contributions by Latinos to— 

24 (I) the social, natural, and phys25 ical sciences; and 


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1 (II) art, history, and culture, in2 cluding food, music, dance, film, the3 ater, sports, and other forms of pop4 ular culture in the United States; and 

5 (B) collaboration between the Museum, 

6 other museums and research centers of the 

7 Smithsonian Institution, and other museums 

8 and educational institutions throughout the 

9 United States and abroad, to promote the study 

10 and appreciation of Latino life, art, history, cul11 ture, and its impact on society in the United 

12 States, including collaboration concerning joint 

13 research projects, programs, exhibitions, collec14 tion management, and training of museum 

15 staff. 

16 SEC. 5. BOARD OF TRUSTEES. 

17 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established within 

18 the Smithsonian Institution a Board of Trustees of the 

19 Museum with the duties, powers, and authority specified 

20 in this section. 

21 (b) DUTIES.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board of Trustees— 

23 (A) shall— 

24 (i) make recommendations to the 

25 Board of Regents concerning the location, 


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1 planning, design, and construction of the 

2 Museum; 

3 (ii) recommend annual operating 

4 budgets for the Museum to the Board of 

5 Regents; 

6 (iii) adopt bylaws for the Board of 

7 Trustees; 

8 (iv) report annually to the Board of 

9 Regents on the acquisition, disposition, 

10 and display of Latino collections, objects 

11 and artifacts, and on other appropriate 

12 matters; and 

13 (v) advise and assist the Board of Re14 gents on all matters relating to the admin15 istration, operation, maintenance, and 

16 preservation of the Museum, including 

17 long-term maintenance; and 

18 (B) may delegate the duties described in 

19 clauses (i) through (iv) of subparagraph (A) to 

20 the Director. 

21 (2) PRINCIPAL RESPONSIBILITIES.—Subject to 

22 the general policies of the Board of Regents, the 

23 Board of Trustees shall have the sole authority to— 


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1 (A) purchase, accept, borrow, or otherwise 

2 acquire artifacts and other objects for addition 

3 to the collections of the Museum; 

4 (B) loan, exchange, sell, or otherwise dis5 pose of any part of the collections of the Mu6 seum, with the proceeds of such transactions to 

7 be used for additions to the collections of the 

8 Museum; and 

9 (C) specify criteria with respect to the use 

10 of the collections and resources of the Museum, 

11 including policies on programming, education, 

12 exhibitions, and research with respect to— 

13 (i) the life, art, history, culture, and 

14 other aspects of Latinos in the United 

15 States and the territories of the United 

16 States; 

17 (ii) the role of Latinos in the history 

18 of the United States from the arrival of 

19 the first explorers to the Americas to the 

20 present; 

21 (iii) the contributions of Latinos to 

22 society and culture in the United States, 

23 and exploring what it means to be an 

24 American; and 


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1 (iv) sharing how values in the United 

2 States such as resiliency, optimism, and 

3 spirituality are reflected in Latino history 

4 and culture. 

5 (3) OTHER RESPONSIBILITIES.—Subject to the 

6 general policies of the Board of Regents, the Board 

7 of Trustees shall have authority to— 

8 (A) provide for preservation, restoration, 

9 and maintenance of the collections of the Mu10 seum; and 

11 (B) solicit, accept, use, and dispose of 

12 gifts, bequests, and devises of personal and real 

13 property for the purpose of aiding and facili14 tating the work of the Museum. 

15 (c) COMPOSITION AND APPOINTMENT.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board of Trustees shall 

17 be composed of not more than 19 voting members 

18 as provided under paragraph (2). 

19 (2) VOTING MEMBERS.—The Board of Trustees 

20 shall include the following voting members: 

21 (A) The Secretary of the Smithsonian In22 stitution. 

23 (B) The Under Secretary of Museums and 

24 Research of the Smithsonian Institution. 


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1 (C) The chair of the Smithsonian National 

2 Latino Board. 

3 (D) One member of the Board of Regents, 

4 appointed by the Board of Regents. 

5 (E) Two Members of Congress, 1 from 

6 each political party, designated by the Congres7 sional Hispanic Caucus and the Congressional 

8 Hispanic Conference. 

9 (F) Thirteen individuals who shall be ap10 pointed by the Board of Regents after taking 

11 into consideration— 

12 (i) efforts to have a politically and 

13 geographically diverse representation on 

14 the Board of Trustees reflecting States 

15 and territories with significant Latino pop16 ulations; 

17 (ii) individuals recommended by mem18 bers of the Board of Trustees; and 

19 (iii) individuals recommended by orga20 nizations and entities that are committed 

21 to the advancement of knowledge of Latino 

22 life, art, history, and culture. 

23 (3) INITIAL APPOINTMENTS.—The Board of 

24 Regents shall make initial appointments to the 

25 Board of Trustees under paragraph (2) not later 


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1 than 180 days after the date of enactment of this 

2 Act. 

3 (d) TERMS OF SERVICE.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in this 

5 subsection, each appointed member of the Board of 

6 Trustees shall be appointed for a term of 3 years. 

7 (2) INITIAL APPOINTEES.—As designated by 

8 the Board of Regents at the time of appointment, of 

9 the voting members first appointed under subpara10 graph (F) of subsection (c)(2)— 

11 (A) Five members shall be appointed for a 

12 term of 1 year; 

13 (B) Four members shall be appointed for 

14 a term of 2 years; and 

15 (C) Four members shall be appointed for 

16 a term of 3 years. 

17 (3) REAPPOINTMENT.—A member of the Board 

18 of Trustees may be reappointed, except that no indi19 vidual may serve on the Board of Trustees for a 

20 total of more than 2 full terms. For purposes of this 

21 paragraph, the number of terms an individual serves 

22 on the Board of Trustees shall not include any por23 tion of a term for which an individual is appointed 

24 to fill a vacancy under paragraph (4)(B). 

25 (4) VACANCIES.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—A vacancy on the 

2 Board of Trustees— 

3 (i) shall not affect the powers of the 

4 Board of Trustees; and 

5 (ii) shall be filled in the same manner 

6 as the original appointment was made. 

7 (B) TERM.—Any member of the Board of 

8 Trustees appointed to fill a vacancy occurring 

9 before the expiration of the term for which the 

10 member’s predecessor was appointed shall be 

11 appointed for the remainder of that term. 

12 (e) COMPENSATION.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para14 graph (2), a member of the Board of Trustees shall 

15 serve without pay. 

16 (2) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—A member of the 

17 Board of Trustees shall be allowed travel expenses, 

18 including per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates 

19 authorized for an employee of an agency under sub20 chapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States 

21 Code, while away from the home or regular place of 

22 business of the member in the performance of the 

23 duties of the Board of Trustees. 


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1 (f) CHAIRPERSON.—By a majority vote of its voting 

2 members, the Board of Trustees shall elect a chairperson 

3 from its members. 

4 (g) MEETINGS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board of Trustees shall 

6 meet at the call of the chairperson or on the written 

7 request of a majority of the voting members of the 

8 Board of Trustees, but not fewer than twice each 

9 year. 

10 (2) MEETING FORMAT.—Regularly scheduled 

11 meetings and special meetings may be conducted in12 person, telephonically, electronically, or by any 

13 means appropriate as determined by the chairperson. 

14 (h) QUORUM.—A majority of the voting members of 

15 the Board of Trustees holding office shall constitute a 

16 quorum for the purpose of conducting business, but a less17 er number may receive information on behalf of the Board 

18 of Trustees. 

19 SEC. 6. DIRECTOR AND STAFF OF MUSEUM. 

20 (a) DIRECTOR.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Museum shall have a 

22 Director who shall be appointed by the Secretary in 

23 consultation with Board of Trustees. The Secretary 

24 may appoint an interim Director to oversee the iniVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:22 May 03, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2420.IH H2420

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1 tial activity of establishing the Museum until a per2 manent Director is selected. 

3 (2) DUTIES.—The Director shall manage the 

4 Museum subject to the policies of the Board of Re5 gents and the Board of Trustees. 

6 (b) STAFF.—The Secretary may appoint 2 additional 

7 employees to serve under the Director, except that such 

8 additional employees may be appointed without regard to 

9 the provisions of title 5, United States Code, governing 

10 appointments in the competitive service. 

11 (c) PAY.—The employees appointed by the Secretary 

12 under subsection (b) may be paid without regard to the 

13 provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 

14 of title 5, United States Code, relating to classification 

15 of positions and General Schedule pay rates. 

16 SEC. 7. EDUCATIONAL AND LIAISON PROGRAMS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

18 (1) PROGRAMS AUTHORIZED.—The Director of 

19 the Museum may carry out educational and liaison 

20 programs in support of the goals of the Museum. 

21 (2) SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES.—In carrying out this 

22 section, the Director shall— 

23 (A) carry out educational programs relat24 ing to Latino life, art, history, and culture, in25 cluding— 


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1 (i) programs using digital, electronic, 

2 and interactive technologies; and 

3 (ii) programs carried out in collabora4 tion with elementary schools, secondary 

5 schools, and postsecondary schools; and 

6 (B) consult with the Director of the Insti7 tute of Museum and Library Services con8 cerning the grant programs carried out under 

9 subsection (b). 

10 (b) GRANT PROGRAMS.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Institute 

12 of Museum and Library Services, in consultation 

13 with the Board of Trustees and the Director of the 

14 Museum, shall establish and carry out— 

15 (A) a grant program with the purpose of 

16 improving operations, care of collections, cul17 turally appropriate public outreach, and devel18 opment of professional management at Amer19 ican Latino museums; 

20 (B) a grant program with the purpose of 

21 providing internship and fellowship opportuni22 ties at American Latino museums; 

23 (C) a scholarship program, in partnership 

24 with Hispanic-serving institutions, minority25 serving institutions, historically black colleges 


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1 and universities, and other institutions of high2 er education, with the purpose of assisting indi3 viduals who are pursuing careers or carrying 

4 out studies in the arts, humanities, and sciences 

5 in the study of American Latino life, art, his6 tory, and culture; 

7 (D) in cooperation with other museums, 

8 historical societies, and educational institutions, 

9 a grant program with the purpose of promoting 

10 the understanding of the Latin American dias11 pora in the United States; and 

12 (E) a grant program under which an 

13 American Latino museum (including a non14 profit education organization the primary mis15 sion of which is to promote the study of the 

16 Latin American diaspora in the United States) 

17 may use funds provided under the grant to in18 crease an endowment fund established by the 

19 museum (or organization) as of October 1, 

20 2019, for the purposes of enhancing educational 

21 programming, and maintaining and operating 

22 traveling educational exhibits. 

23 (2) CLARIFICATION OF TREATMENT OF MU24 SEUM.—In this subsection, the term ‘‘American 

25 Latino museum’’ does not include the Museum. 


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1 (3) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

2 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Insti3 tute of Museum and Library Services to carry out 

4 this subsection— 

5 (A) $15,000,000 for fiscal year 2020; and 

6 (B) such sums as may be necessary for fis7 cal year 2021 and each succeeding fiscal year. 

8 SEC. 8. NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN LATINO 

9 BUILDING AND SUPPORT FACILITIES. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

11 (1) LOCATION.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 24 

13 months after the date of the enactment of this 

14 Act, the Board of Regents shall designate a site 

15 for the Museum. 

16 (B) SITES FOR CONSIDERATION.—In des17 ignating a site under subparagraph (A), the 

18 Board of Regents shall select from among the 

19 following sites in the District of Columbia: 

20 (i) The Arts and Industries Building 

21 of the Smithsonian Institution, located on 

22 the National Mall at 900 Jefferson Drive, 

23 Southwest, Washington, District of Colum24 bia. 


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1 (ii) A vacant area bounded by Inde2 pendence Avenue, Jefferson Drive, Raoul 

3 Wallenberg Place, and 14th Street South4 west, currently under the jurisdiction of 

5 the National Park Service. 

6 (iii) The area bounded by 3rd Street 

7 and 1st Street, Northwest and Constitu8 tion Avenue and Pennsylvania Avenue, 

9 Northwest, as measured from curb to curb, 

10 currently under the jurisdiction of the Ar11 chitect of the Capitol. 

12 (iv) The facility and grounds on the 

13 National Mall between 12th and 14th 

14 Streets, Southwest, and Jefferson Drive 

15 and Independence Avenue, Southwest, cur16 rently under the jurisdiction of the Depart17 ment of Agriculture. 

18 (v) Any other appropriate location as 

19 identified by the Board of Trustees or 

20 Board of Regents. 

21 (C) TRANSFER TO SMITHSONIAN INSTITU22 TION.—Except with respect to a site described 

23 in clause (i) of subparagraph (B), if the site 

24 designated for the Museum is in an area that 

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1 other Federal entity, as soon as practicable 

2 after the date on which the designation is made, 

3 the head of the Federal entity shall transfer to 

4 the Smithsonian Institution administrative ju5 risdiction over the area selected for the site of 

6 the Museum. 

7 (D) CONSULTATION.—The Board of Re8 gents shall carry out its duties under this para9 graph in consultation with the following: 

10 (i) The Chair of the National Capital 

11 Planning Commission. 

12 (ii) The Chair of the Commission of 

13 Fine Arts. 

14 (iii) The Chair and Vice Chair of the 

15 Commission referred to in section 9. 

16 (iv) The Chair of the Building and 

17 Site Subcommittee of the Commission re18 ferred to in section 9. 

19 (v) The Chair and ranking minority 

20 member of each of the following Commit21 tees: 

22 (I) The Committee on Rules and 

23 Administration of the Senate. 


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1 (II) The Committee on House 

2 Administration of the House of Rep3 resentatives. 

4 (III) The Committee on Trans5 portation and Infrastructure of the 

6 House of Representatives. 

7 (IV) The Committee on Appro8 priations of the House of Representa9 tives. 

10 (V) The Committee on Appro11 priations of the Senate. 

12 (vi) The Architect of the Capitol. 

13 (2) SIZE OF BUILDING.—The building con14 structed or modified to serve as the Museum shall 

15 occupy no less than the recommended square footage 

16 set forth in the report submitted by the Commission 

17 to Study the Potential Creation of a National Mu18 seum of the American Latino established under sec19 tion 333 of the Consolidated Natural Resources Act 

20 of 2008 (Public Law 110–229; 122 Stat. 784). 

21 (3) CONSTRUCTION OF BUILDING.—The Board 

22 of Regents, in consultation with the Board of Trust23 ees and other appropriate Federal and local agencies 

24 is authorized to prepare plans, design, and construct 

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1 seum, which shall be located at the site selected by 

2 the Board of Regents under this subsection. 

3 (4) NONAPPLICABILITY OF PROVISIONS RELAT4 ING TO MONUMENTS, COMMEMORATIVE, AND OTHER

5 WORKS ON THE NATIONAL MALL.—Chapter 89 of 

6 title 40, United States Code, shall not apply with re7 spect to the Museum. 

8 (b) COST SHARING.—The Board of Regents shall 

9 pay— 

10 (1) 50 percent of the costs of carrying out this 

11 section from Federal funds; and 

12 (2) 50 percent of the costs of carrying out this 

13 section from non-Federal sources. 

14 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

15 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are nec16 essary to carry out this section. 

17 SEC. 9. CONSIDERATION OF RECOMMENDATIONS OF COM18 MISSION. 

19 In carrying out their duties under this Act, the Board 

20 of Trustees and the Board of Regents shall take into con21 sideration the reports and plans submitted by the Commis22 sion to Study the Potential Creation of a National Mu23 seum of the American Latino established under section 

24 333 of the Consolidated Natural Resources Act of 2008 

25 (Public Law 110–229; 122 Stat. 784). 


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1 SEC. 10. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET ACT COMPLIANCE. 

2 Authority under this Act to enter into contracts or 

3 to make payments shall be effective in any fiscal year only 

4 to the extent provided in advance in an appropriations 

5 Act. 

6 SEC. 11. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro8 priated to the Smithsonian Institution to carry out this 

9 Act, other than sections 7(b) and 8— 

10 (1) $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2020; and 

11 (2) such sums as are necessary for each fiscal 

12 year thereafter. 

13 (b) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts appropriated pursuant 

14 to the authorization of appropriations under subsection (a) 

15 shall remain available until expended. 

16 (c) USE OF FUNDS FOR FUNDRAISING.—Amounts 

17 appropriated pursuant to the authorization under this sec18 tion may be used to conduct fundraising in support of the 

19 Museum from private sources. 

Æ 


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