I 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1179 
To amend title 54, United States Code, to establish within the National 
Park Service the African-American Burial Grounds Network, and for 
other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 13, 2019 
Ms. ADAMS (for herself and Mr. MCEACHIN) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 
A BILL 
To amend title 54, United States Code, to establish within 
the National Park Service the African-American Burial 
Grounds Network, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘African-American Bur-
ial Grounds Network Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds as follows: 
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(1) From 1619 until 1865, millions of African 
Americans throughout the United States were 
enslaved. 
(2) Slaveholders often controlled where and how 
the dead were buried, and prohibited burials on valu-
able land. As a result, slave burial grounds were 
often confined to remote areas or marginal property. 
(3) Such burial grounds were rarely docu-
mented, and they infrequently appear on historical 
maps. A lack of accurate information is typical of 
African-American cemeteries from before the Civil 
War. 
(4) Following the end of slavery, many African- 
American families continued to face restrictions on 
where they could bury their dead. Across much of 
the United States, local laws segregated burial sites 
by race. African-American burial grounds often 
failed to receive the type of maintenance and record- 
keeping that predominantly White burial grounds 
enjoyed. 
(5) Many African-American burial grounds 
from both before and after the Civil War are in a 
state of disrepair or inaccessibility due to overgrowth 
of vegetation, crumbling physical structures, and 
other challenges. 
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(6) There is no official national record or data-
base for African-American burial ground locations, 
and the location of many sites is unknown. As a re-
sult, the family members and descendants of those 
interred are unable to visit these sites to honor and 
remember their ancestors. 
(7) 
Abandoned 
African-American 
burial 
grounds are often discovered when construction 
projects inadvertently disturb human remains, slow-
ing or halting completion of those projects. 
(8) The presence and location of historic Afri-
can-American burial grounds should be recorded, 
and there should be coordinated national, State, 
local, and Tribal efforts to preserve and restore 
these sites. 
(9) African-American burial grounds are an in-
tegral component of the heritage of the United 
States. 
(10) Creating and maintaining a network of 
previously abandoned, underserved, and other Afri-
can-American burial grounds will help communities 
identify and record burial grounds and preserve local 
history while better informing development decisions 
and community planning. 
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SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 
The purposes of this Act are to authorize the Na-
tional Park Service to coordinate and facilitate Federal 
and non-Federal activities to identify, interpret, preserve, 
and record unmarked, previously abandoned, underserved, 
and other African-American burial grounds. 
SEC. 4. U.S. AFRICAN-AMERICAN BURIAL GROUNDS NET-
WORK PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subdivision 1 of division B of sub-
title III of title 54, United States Code, is amended by 
inserting after chapter 3085 the following: 
‘‘CHAPTER 3086—U.S. AFRICAN-AMERICAN 
BURIAL GROUNDS NETWORK 
‘‘§ 308601. Definitions 
‘‘In this chapter: 
‘‘(1) NETWORK.—The term ‘Network’ means 
the African-American Burial Grounds Network es-
tablished under section 308602(a). 
‘‘(2) BURIAL
GROUND(S).—The term ‘burial 
ground’ means any natural or prepared physical lo-
cation, whether originally below, on, or above the 
surface of the earth, into which as a part of the 
death rite or ceremony of a culture, human remains 
are deposited. 
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‘‘(3) HISTORIC.—The term ‘historic’ means 
properties that can reasonably be considered to date 
back at least 50 years. 
‘‘§ 308602. U.S. African-American Burial Grounds Net-
work 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consultation 
with the National Parks Service, shall establish, within the 
Service, a program in accordance with this chapter to be 
known as the ‘U.S. African-American Burial Grounds 
Network’. The Network shall include burial grounds deter-
mined by the Secretary to relate to the historic African- 
American experience from among applications for inclu-
sion submitted by an individual, private or non-profit or-
ganization, State, local, or Tribal government, or other en-
tity. 
‘‘(b) DUTIES OF SECRETARY.—In carrying out the 
Network, the Secretary shall have the following duties: 
‘‘(1) Review existing and new studies and re-
ports to inform consideration of sites for the Net-
work. 
‘‘(2) Provide technical assistance to and work in 
partnership with the public, Federal, State, local, 
and Tribal governments, other public entities, edu-
cational institutions, and private nonprofit organiza-
tions in identifying, documenting, preserving, re-
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searching, evaluating, and interpreting African- 
American burial grounds. 
‘‘(3) Engage in consultation and public engage-
ment with descendant, local, and other communities 
historically associated with identified burial grounds 
by geography, genetics, or culture. 
‘‘(4) In accordance with section 304, provide 
technical assistance and support to ensure that the 
locations of unmarked and unrecorded African- 
American burial grounds are documented. The Sec-
retary is directed to make this information available 
in a public database, except in such circumstances in 
which the Secretary determines that the privacy and 
safety of the burial ground warrants the information 
being protected. 
‘‘(5) Develop a program to train States, units 
of local government, regional governmental bodies, 
organizations, educational institutions, and private 
entities to carry out the purposes of this Act. 
‘‘(6) Produce and disseminate appropriate edu-
cational and training materials relating to African- 
American burial ground identification methods and 
best practices for caring for artifacts, developing in-
terpretive tours and exhibits, preserving burial 
ground landscapes, heritage tourism initiatives and 
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sources for grants, such as handbooks, maps, inter-
pretive guides, or electronic information. 
‘‘(7) Produce and disseminate appropriate edu-
cational materials about African-American burial 
grounds through curriculum-based experiences, les-
son plans, and primary materials. 
‘‘(8)(A) Create and adopt an official, uniform 
symbol or device for the Network; and 
‘‘(B) issue regulations for the use of the symbol 
or device adopted under subparagraph (A). 
‘‘(c) DONATIONS.—The Secretary may accept mone-
tary donations to further the purposes of this chapter. 
‘‘(d) CONSENT OF PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNER RE-
QUIRED.—Burial grounds shall only be considered for ad-
dition to the Network with— 
‘‘(1) the consent of the property owner; and 
‘‘(2) at the request of an individual, landowner, 
private or nonprofit organization, State, or local gov-
ernment, or another entity. 
‘‘§ 308603. Authority to make grants 
‘‘The Secretary may make grants to public, Federal, 
State, local, and Tribal governments, other public entities, 
educational institutions, and private non-profit organiza-
tions in accordance with this section for— 
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‘‘(1) the identification of African-American bur-
ial grounds that may qualify for the Network; 
‘‘(2) the preservation and restoration of Afri-
can-American burial grounds that have been in-
cluded in the Network; 
‘‘(3) interpretation of African-American burial 
grounds; and 
‘‘(4) related research and documentation for 
sites that have been included in the Network. 
‘‘§ 308604. Cooperative agreements and memoranda 
of understanding 
‘‘The Secretary may enter into cooperative agree-
ments and memoranda of understanding with, and provide 
technical assistance to, the heads of other Federal agen-
cies, States, units of local government, Tribal govern-
ments, regional governmental bodies, organizations, edu-
cational institutions, and private entities to achieve the 
purposes of this chapter and ensure effective coordination 
of the Federal and non-Federal elements of the Network 
described in section 308602 with System units and pro-
grams of the Service. 
‘‘§ 308605. Private property protection 
‘‘Nothing in this chapter shall be construed— 
‘‘(1) to authorize the Secretary to require or af-
fect management or use of private property without 
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the written consent of the owners of the affected pri-
vate property; or 
‘‘(2) to prohibit the Secretary from providing 
land management guidance or requirements related 
to private property as a condition of grants or other 
assistance provided to the owners of that private 
property under this chapter.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of chapters 
for title 54, United States Code, is amended by inserting 
after the item relating to chapter 3085 the following: 
‘‘3086 U.S. African-American Burial Ground Network .......................... 30861’’. 
Æ 
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