I
107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 2162
To authorize a national museum, including a research center and related
visitor facilities, in the city of El Paso, Texas, to commemorate migration
at the United States southern border.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JUNE 13, 2001
Mr. REYES introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee
on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committee on
the Judiciary, 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 a national museum, including a research center
and related visitor facilities, in the city of El Paso,
Texas, to commemorate migration at the United States
southern border.
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 ‘‘Paso al Norte National
Museum of Immigration History Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that—
(1) more than 20,000,000 people currently liv-
ing in the United States trace their roots to Mexico,
and Mexican-Americans represent one of the fastest
growing population groups in this country;
(2) people of Hispanic descent have made sig-
nificant contributions in all areas of American life;
(3) Hispanic-Americans, their ancestors, and
other cultural groups on both sides of the border
have a rich history that must be preserved and told
for the benefit of current and future generations of
Americans;
(4) the histories of the many individuals and
families, who came from many different backgrounds
and who faced hardship and adversity as they mi-
grated in search of better lives for themselves and
their descendants, need to be better documented and
incorporated into the larger history of the United
States;
(5) the histories of these courageous people re-
flect the strong relationship between the people of
the United States and the people of Mexico;
(6) there is no museum dedicated to the history
of migration at the United States southern border;
(7) historically, El Paso, Texas, has been the
largest port of entry for people immigrating to the
United States from Mexico;
(8) El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro (the
Royal Road of the Interior) passes through El Paso
and served as the primary route between the colonial
Spanish capital of Mexico City and the Spanish Pro-
vincial capitals San Juan de los Caballeros, San Ga-
briel, and Santa Fe, all part of the present day
United States;
(9) El Paso and its sister city, Ciudad Juarez,
Mexico, together form the largest international bor-
der city;
(10) the University of Texas at El Paso, a ma-
jority of whose students are Mexican-American, is
coordinating a national effort to create in El Paso
a national museum dedicated to preserving the his-
tory of people who, for many centuries, have moved
between Mexico and territories that are now part of
the United States; and
(11) the City of El Paso has made the estab-
lishment of the Paso al Norte National Museum of
Immigration History a priority in an effort to draw
large numbers of visitors as part of its plan for revi-
talization and development.
SEC. 3. PASO AL NORTE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF IMMIGRA-
TION HISTORY.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—If land is made available to
or by the University of Texas at El Paso as described in
subsection (b), the Secretary of the Interior shall make
a grant under section 4 for the establishment of the Paso
al Norte National Museum of Immigration History (re-
ferred to in this Act as ‘‘the museum’’), a museum and
research center for the interpretation and commemoration
of migration at the United States southern border.
(b) LAND.—The land referred to in subsection (a) is
land within the boundary of the city of El Paso, Texas,
either made available by the University of Texas at El
Paso, or, if the university agrees to the location, by the
city of El Paso or by any other entity.
SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT GRANT.
(a) GRANT.—The Secretary of the Interior shall,
within 90 days after receiving a proposal meeting the re-
quirements of subsection (b), award a grant to the Univer-
sity of Texas at El Paso for the establishment of the mu-
seum, including planning, design, construction, furnishing,
and startup expenses.
(b) GRANT PROPOSAL.—In order to receive a grant
under this section the University of Texas at El Paso, in
agreement with the city of El Paso, shall by September
30, 2003, transmit to the Secretary of the Interior a pro-
posal that includes—
(1) a designation of land made available for the
museum as described in section 3(b);
(2) plans detailing the location and function of
each museum facility;
(3) plans for design and construction that will
meet all applicable Federal, State, and local building
codes and laws, and that are in accordance with pro-
fessional museum standards;
(4) a timetable for completion of construction
and opening of the museum before October 1, 2007;
(5) detailed plans concerning the operation and
maintenance of the museum;
(6) a description of proposed museum collec-
tions and educational programming; and
(7) a plan for the design of exhibits, including
collections to be exhibited, preservation, protection,
environmental controls, security, and presentations
in accordance with professional museum standards.
SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
retary of the Interior $15,000,000 for fiscal year 2002,
and such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years
2003 through 2006, to carry out this Act. All sums au-
thorized to be appropriated shall remain available for ex-
penditure through fiscal year 2006.
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