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108TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 2201
To authorize the establishment of a national database for purposes of identi-
fying, locating, and cataloging the many memorials and permanent trib-
utes to America’s veterans.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MAY 21, 2003
Mr. UDALL of Colorado introduced the following bill; which was referred to
the Committee on Resources, and in addition to the Committee on Vet-
erans’ Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker,
in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the juris-
diction of the committee concerned
A BILL
To authorize the establishment of a national database for
purposes of identifying, locating, and cataloging the
many memorials and permanent tributes to America’s
veterans.
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 ‘‘National War Perma-
nent Tribute Historical Database Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that—
(1) on November 13, 2000, Congress agreed to
a resolution expressing the sense of Congress re-
garding the need for cataloging and maintaining
public memorials;
(2) there are many thousands of public memo-
rials and permanent tributes throughout the United
States and abroad that commemorate military con-
flicts of the United States and the service of individ-
uals in the Armed Forces;
(3) many of these memorials suffer from ne-
glect and disrepair, and many have been relocated or
stored in facilities where the memorials are unavail-
able to the public and subject to further neglect and
damage; and
(4) there exists a need to collect and centralize
information regarding the identification, location,
and description of these memorials, as no such cata-
log is available to the public from either the Federal
Government or any nongovernmental entity.
SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF DATABASE.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—In order to locate, identify,
and catalog the many thousands of permanent tributes
that commemorate the military conflicts of the United
States, and the service and sacrifice of individuals in the
Armed Forces of the United States, and to make such in-
formation readily available for the educational benefit of
the public, the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation
with the Secretary of Veterans’ Affairs, may establish and
maintain a database known as the National War Perma-
nent Tribute Historical Database.
(b) CONTENT.—The database shall contain informa-
tion on—
(1) the location, history, and background of the
permanent tributes;
(2) photographs and other information to en-
hance the understanding of the permanent tributes;
(3) information about the veterans in whose
honor the permanent tributes are dedicated; and
(4) any other information the Secretary con-
siders appropriate and necessary.
(c) PUBLIC ACCESS.—The database shall be made ac-
cessible to the public, through the Internet or by other
means, in a format that permits the public to submit infor-
mation on permanent tributes for the purpose of updating
and expanding the database.
(d) ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary of the Interior may
seek the assistance of other Federal agencies and the
States and their political subdivisions, tribal governments,
public or private educational institutions, non-profit orga-
nizations, and individuals or other entities that the Sec-
retary considers appropriate in carrying out this Act, and
may enter into contracts and cooperative agreements to
obtain information or services that assist in the develop-
ment and implementation of the database.
(e) DEFINITION.—As used in this section, the term
‘‘permanent tribute’’ means any statue, structure, or other
monument on public property commemorating the service
of any person or persons in the Armed Forces.
SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
retary of the Interior such sums as may be necessary to
carry out this Act.
SEC. 5. REPORT.
Within 3 years after the date of enactment of this
Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall transmit to the
Congress a report assessing the efficacy and desirability
of establishing a permanent fund within the Treasury for
the repair, restoration, and maintenance of the memorials
identified and catalogued under section 3. The report shall
include recommended criteria regarding appropriate re-
cipients of expenditures from such a fund as well as pro-
posed funding mechanisms and any other information con-
sidered by the Secretary to be relevant.
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