II 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1267 

To establish within the Smithsonian Institution the National Museum of 

the American Latino, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 1, 2019 

Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Mr. CORNYN, Ms. CORTEZ MASTO, Mrs. CAPITO, 

Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. RUBIO, Ms. HARRIS, Mr. PORTMAN, Mr. BOOKER, 

and Ms. MCSALLY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice 

and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration 

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’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) The United States is a symbol of democ9 racy, freedom, and economic opportunity around the 


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

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

3 and economic opportunity of the United States. 

4 (2) There exists no national museum within the 

5 Smithsonian Institution that is devoted to the docu6 mentation and explication of Latino life, art, history, 

7 and culture. 

8 (3) The establishment of the National Museum 

9 of the American Latino will be consistent with the 

10 purposes of the Smithsonian Institution, created by 

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

12 knowledge’’. 

13 (4) The National Museum of the American 

14 Latino— 

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

16 United States and other Smithsonian Institu17 tion visitors to learn about Latino contributions 

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

19 States at its signature location on the National 

20 Mall; and 

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

22 view other Latino exhibitions, collections, and 

23 programming at other Smithsonian Institution 

24 facilities and museums throughout the United 

25 States and the territories of the United States. 


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1 (5) The National Museum of the American 

2 Latino will be unique among the museums of the 

3 Smithsonian Institution in that a significant number 

4 of the museum’s staff will have joint positions 

5 throughout the various other museums and research 

6 centers of the Smithsonian Institution— 

7 (A) resulting in a decreased need for re8 sources for the National Museum of the Amer9 ican Latino on the National Mall; and 

10 (B) contributing to an integrated approach 

11 in telling the story of the United States in ex12 hibits and collections throughout the Smithso13 nian Institution. 

14 (6) By sharing resources (including funding 

15 and staff) that are provided by direct appropriation 

16 to the National Museum of the American Latino and 

17 resources that are provided to other units of the 

18 Smithsonian Institution, the National Museum of 

19 the American Latino will serve as a key agent in 

20 stimulating and increasing Smithsonian Institution 

21 activities dedicated to the collection, preservation, re22 search, and exhibition of Latino historical and cul23 tural material reflecting the breadth and depth of 

24 the experiences of Latino history and culture 

25 throughout the Smithsonian Institution. 


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1 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

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

4 Regents’’ means the Board of Regents of the Smith5 sonian Institution. 

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

7 of Trustees’’ means the Board of Trustees of the 

8 National Museum of the American Latino as estab9 lished by section 5. 

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

11 the Director of the National Museum of the Amer12 ican Latino. 

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

14 National Museum of the American Latino estab15 lished by section 4. 

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

17 the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. 

18 SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF MUSEUM. 

19 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established within 

20 the Smithsonian Institution a museum to be known as the 

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

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

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

24 for the benefit of all by featuring Latino contribu25 tions; and 

26 (2) to provide for— 


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1 (A) the collection, study, research, publica2 tion, and establishment of exhibitions and pro3 grams relating to Latino life, art, history, and 

4 culture that encompass— 

5 (i) Latino contributions to the early 

6 history of what now encompasses the 

7 United States of America and its terri8 tories; 

9 (ii) Latino contributions in the armed 

10 services from the earliest days of the 

11 American Revolution to current military 

12 activities in defense of our freedoms; 

13 (iii) Latino contributions to the free14 dom, well-being, and economic prosperity 

15 of all people in the United States through 

16 historical movements; 

17 (iv) entrepreneurial and charitable ac18 tivities of Latinos; 

19 (v) contributions by Latinos to— 

20 (I) the social, natural, and phys21 ical sciences; and 

22 (II) art, history, and culture, in23 cluding food, music, dance, film, the24 ater, sports, and other forms of pop25 ular culture in the United States; and 


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1 (B) collaboration between the Museum, 

2 other museums and research centers of the 

3 Smithsonian Institution, and other museums 

4 and educational institutions throughout the 

5 United States and abroad, to promote the study 

6 and appreciation of Latino life, art, history, cul7 ture, and its impact on society in the United 

8 States, including collaboration concerning joint 

9 research projects, programs, exhibitions, collec10 tion management, and training of museum 

11 staff. 

12 SEC. 5. BOARD OF TRUSTEES. 

13 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established within 

14 the Smithsonian Institution a Board of Trustees of the 

15 Museum with the duties, powers, and authority specified 

16 in this section. 

17 (b) DUTIES.— 

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

19 (A) shall— 

20 (i) make recommendations to the 

21 Board of Regents concerning the location, 

22 planning, design, and construction of the 

23 Museum; 


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1 (ii) recommend annual operating 

2 budgets for the Museum to the Board of 

3 Regents; 

4 (iii) adopt bylaws for the Board of 

5 Trustees; 

6 (iv) report annually to the Board of 

7 Regents on the acquisition, disposition, 

8 and display of Latino collections, objects 

9 and artifacts, and on other appropriate 

10 matters; and 

11 (v) advise and assist the Board of Re12 gents on all matters relating to the admin13 istration, operation, maintenance, and 

14 preservation of the Museum; and 

15 (B) may delegate the duties described in 

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

17 the Director. 

18 (2) PRINCIPAL RESPONSIBILITIES.—Subject to 

19 the general policies of the Board of Regents, the 

20 Board of Trustees shall have the sole authority to— 

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

22 acquire artifacts and other objects for addition 

23 to the collections of the Museum; 

24 (B) loan, exchange, sell, or otherwise dis25 pose of any part of the collections of the MuVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:33 May 03, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1267.IS S1267

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1 seum, with the proceeds of such transactions to 

2 be used for additions to the collections of the 

3 Museum; and 

4 (C) specify criteria with respect to the use 

5 of the collections and resources of the Museum, 

6 including policies on programming, education, 

7 exhibitions, and research with respect to— 

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

9 other aspects of Latinos in the United 

10 States and the territories of the United 

11 States; 

12 (ii) the role of Latinos in the history 

13 of the United States from the arrival of 

14 the first explorers to the Americas to the 

15 present; 

16 (iii) the contributions of Latinos to 

17 society and culture in the United States, 

18 and exploring what it means to be an 

19 American; and 

20 (iv) sharing how values in the United 

21 States such as resiliency, optimism, and 

22 spirituality are reflected in Latino history 

23 and culture. 


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1 (3) OTHER RESPONSIBILITIES.—Subject to the 

2 general policies of the Board of Regents, the Board 

3 of Trustees shall have authority to— 

4 (A) provide for preservation, restoration, 

5 and maintenance of the collections of the Mu6 seum; and 

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

8 gifts, bequests, and devises of personal and real 

9 property for the purpose of aiding and facili10 tating the work of the Museum. 

11 (c) COMPOSITION AND APPOINTMENT.— 

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

13 be composed of not more than 19 voting members 

14 as provided under paragraph (2). 

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

16 shall include the following voting members: 

17 (A) The Secretary of the Smithsonian In18 stitution. 

19 (B) The Under Secretary of Museums and 

20 Research of the Smithsonian Institution. 

21 (C) One member of the Board of Regents, 

22 appointed by the Board of Regents. 

23 (D) Two Members of Congress, 1 from 

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1 sional Hispanic Caucus and the Congressional 

2 Hispanic Conference. 

3 (E) Fourteen individuals who shall be ap4 pointed by the Board of Regents after taking 

5 into consideration— 

6 (i) efforts to have a politically and 

7 geographically diverse representation on 

8 the Board of Trustees reflecting States 

9 and territories with significant Latino pop10 ulations; 

11 (ii) individuals recommended by mem12 bers of the Board of Trustees; and 

13 (iii) individuals recommended by orga14 nizations and entities that are committed 

15 to the advancement of knowledge of Latino 

16 life, art, history, and culture. 

17 (3) INITIAL APPOINTMENTS.—The Board of 

18 Regents shall make initial appointments to the 

19 Board of Trustees under paragraph (2) not later 

20 than 180 days after the date of enactment of this 

21 Act. 

22 (d) TERMS OF SERVICE.— 

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

24 subsection, each appointed member of the Board of 

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


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1 (2) INITIAL APPOINTEES.—As designated by 

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

3 the voting members first appointed under subpara4 graph (E) of subsection (c)(2)— 

5 (A) Five members shall be appointed for a 

6 term of 1 year; 

7 (B) Five members shall be appointed for a 

8 term of 2 years; and 

9 (C) Four members shall be appointed for 

10 a term of 3 years. 

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

12 of Trustees may be reappointed, except that no indi13 vidual may serve on the Board of Trustees for a 

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

15 paragraph, the number of terms an individual serves 

16 on the Board of Trustees shall not include any por17 tion of a term for which an individual is appointed 

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

19 (4) VACANCIES.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—A vacancy on the 

21 Board of Trustees— 

22 (i) shall not affect the powers of the 

23 Board of Trustees; and 

24 (ii) shall be filled in the same manner 

25 as the original appointment was made. 


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

2 Trustees appointed to fill a vacancy occurring 

3 before the expiration of the term for which the 

4 member’s predecessor was appointed shall be 

5 appointed for the remainder of that term. 

6 (e) COMPENSATION.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para8 graph (2), a member of the Board of Trustees shall 

9 serve without pay. 

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

11 Board of Trustees shall be allowed travel expenses, 

12 including per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates 

13 authorized for an employee of an agency under sub14 chapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States 

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

16 business of the member in the performance of the 

17 duties of the Board of Trustees. 

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

19 members, the Board of Trustees shall elect a chairperson 

20 from its members. 

21 (g) MEETINGS.— 

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

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

24 request of a majority of the voting members of the 


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1 Board of Trustees, but not fewer than twice each 

2 year. 

3 (2) MEETING FORMAT.—Regularly scheduled 

4 meetings and special meetings may be conducted in5 person, telephonically, electronically, or by any 

6 means appropriate as determined by the chairperson. 

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

8 the Board of Trustees holding office shall constitute a 

9 quorum for the purpose of conducting business, but a less10 er number may receive information on behalf of the Board 

11 of Trustees. 

12 SEC. 6. DIRECTOR AND STAFF OF MUSEUM. 

13 (a) DIRECTOR.— 

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

15 Director who shall be appointed by the Secretary in 

16 consultation with the Board of Trustees. The Sec17 retary may appoint an interim Director to oversee 

18 the initial activity of establishing the Museum until 

19 a permanent Director is selected. 

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

21 Museum subject to the policies of the Board of Re22 gents and the Board of Trustees. 

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

24 employees to serve under the Director, except that such 

25 additional employees may be appointed without regard to 


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

2 appointments in the competitive service. 

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

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

5 provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 

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

7 of positions and General Schedule pay rates. 

8 SEC. 7. EDUCATIONAL AND LIAISON PROGRAMS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

10 (1) PROGRAMS AUTHORIZED.—The Director of 

11 the Museum may carry out educational and liaison 

12 programs in support of the goals of the Museum. 

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

14 section, the Director shall— 

15 (A) carry out educational programs relat16 ing to Latino life, art, history, and culture, in17 cluding— 

18 (i) programs using digital, electronic, 

19 and interactive technologies; and 

20 (ii) programs carried out in collabora21 tion with elementary schools, secondary 

22 schools, and postsecondary schools; and 

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1 cerning the grant programs carried out under 

2 subsection (b). 

3 (b) GRANT PROGRAMS.—Notwithstanding any other 

4 provision of law, the Director of the Institute of Museum 

5 and Library Services, in consultation with the Museum 

6 Director, is authorized to use funds from the appropria7 tions account appropriated under the heading ‘‘OFFICE OF

8 MUSEUM AND LIBRARY SERVICES: GRANTS AND ADMINIS9 TRATION’’ under the heading ‘‘INSTITUTE OF MUSEUM

10 AND LIBRARY SERVICES’’ to award grants in accordance 

11 with the purposes described in section 4(b). 

12 SEC. 8. NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN LATINO 

13 BUILDING AND SUPPORT FACILITIES. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

15 (1) LOCATION.— 

16 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 24 

17 months after the date of the enactment of this 

18 Act, the Board of Regents shall designate a site 

19 for the Museum. 

20 (B) SITES FOR CONSIDERATION.—In des21 ignating a site under subparagraph (A), the 

22 Board of Regents shall select from among the 

23 following sites in the District of Columbia: 

24 (i) The Arts and Industries Building 

25 of the Smithsonian Institution, located on 


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1 the National Mall at 900 Jefferson Drive, 

2 Southwest, Washington, District of Colum3 bia. 

4 (ii) A vacant area bounded by Inde5 pendence Avenue, Jefferson Drive, Raoul 

6 Wallenberg Place, and 14th Street South7 west, currently under the jurisdiction of 

8 the National Park Service. 

9 (iii) The area bounded by 3rd Street 

10 and 1st Street, Northwest and Constitu11 tion Avenue and Pennsylvania Avenue, 

12 Northwest, as measured from curb to curb, 

13 currently under the jurisdiction of the Ar14 chitect of the Capitol. 

15 (iv) The facility and grounds on the 

16 National Mall between 12th and 14th 

17 Streets, Southwest, and Jefferson Drive 

18 and Independence Avenue, Southwest, cur19 rently under the jurisdiction of the Depart20 ment of Agriculture. 

21 (v) Any other appropriate location as 

22 identified by the Board of Trustees or 

23 Board of Regents. 

24 (C) TRANSFER TO SMITHSONIAN INSTITU25 TION.—Except with respect to a site described 


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

2 designated for the Museum is in an area that 

3 is under the administrative jurisdiction of an4 other Federal entity, as soon as practicable 

5 after the date on which the designation is made, 

6 the head of the Federal entity shall transfer to 

7 the Smithsonian Institution administrative ju8 risdiction over the area selected for the site of 

9 the Museum. 

10 (D) CONSULTATION.—The Board of Re11 gents shall carry out its duties under this para12 graph in consultation with the following: 

13 (i) The Chair of the National Capital 

14 Planning Commission. 

15 (ii) The Chair of the Commission of 

16 Fine Arts. 

17 (iii) The Chair and Vice Chair of the 

18 Commission referred to in section 9. 

19 (iv) The Chair of the Building and 

20 Site Subcommittee of the Commission re21 ferred to in section 9. 

22 (v) The Chair and ranking minority 

23 member of each of the following Commit24 tees: 


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1 (I) The Committee on Rules and 

2 Administration of the Senate. 

3 (II) The Committee on House 

4 Administration of the House of Rep5 resentatives. 

6 (III) The Committee on Trans7 portation and Infrastructure of the 

8 House of Representatives. 

9 (IV) The Committee on Appro10 priations of the House of Representa11 tives. 

12 (V) The Committee on Appro13 priations of the Senate. 

14 (vi) The Architect of the Capitol. 

15 (2) CONSTRUCTION OF BUILDING.—The Board 

16 of Regents, in consultation with the Board of Trust17 ees, the National Park Service, the Architect of the 

18 Capitol, the Capitol Police, the Commission of Fine 

19 Arts, the National Capitol Planning Commission, 

20 and with other appropriate Federal and local agen21 cies is authorized to prepare plans, design, and con22 struct a building or modify an existing building for 

23 the Museum, which shall be located at the site se24 lected by the Board of Regents under this sub25 section. 


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1 (3) NONAPPLICABILITY OF PROVISIONS RELAT2 ING TO MONUMENTS, COMMEMORATIVE, AND OTHER

3 WORKS ON THE NATIONAL MALL.—Chapter 89 of 

4 title 40, United States Code, shall not apply with re5 spect to the Museum. 

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

7 pay— 

8 (1) 50 percent of the costs of carrying out this 

9 section from Federal funds; and 

10 (2) 50 percent of the costs of carrying out this 

11 section from non-Federal sources. 

12 SEC. 9. CONSIDERATION OF RECOMMENDATIONS OF COM13 MISSION. 

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

15 of Trustees and the Board of Regents shall take into con16 sideration the reports and plans submitted by the Commis17 sion to Study the Potential Creation of a National Mu18 seum of the American Latino established under section 

19 333 of the Consolidated Natural Resources Act of 2008 

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

21 SEC. 10. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET ACT COMPLIANCE. 

22 Authority under this Act to enter into contracts or 

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

24 to the extent provided in advance in an appropriations 

25 Act. 


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1 SEC. 11. AUTHORIZATION OF FUNDING. 

2 (a) MUSEUM CONSTRUCTION.—Notwithstanding any 

3 other provision of law, the Board of Regents is authorized 

4 to allocate funds from the appropriations account appro5 priated under the heading ‘‘FACILITIES CAPITAL’’ under 

6 the heading ‘‘SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION’’ for design, 

7 planning, and construction of the Museum established by 

8 this Act. 

9 (b) MUSEUM OPERATION.—Notwithstanding any 

10 other provision of law, the Board of Regents is authorized 

11 to allocate funds from the appropriations account appro12 priated under the heading ‘‘SALARIES AND EXPENSES’’ 

13 under the heading ‘‘SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION’’ for the 

14 operation of the Museum established by this Act. 

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

16 appropriated pursuant to the authorization under this sec17 tion may be used to conduct fundraising in support of the 

18 Museum from private sources. 

Æ 


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