IB
Union Calendar No. 315
105TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 1635
[Report No. 105–559]
To establish within the United States National Park Service the National
Underground Railroad Network to Freedom program, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MAY 15, 1997
Mr. STOKES (for himself, Mr. PORTMAN, Mr. BARRETT of Wisconsin, Mr.
BISHOP, Mr. BOEHNER, Ms. BROWN of Florida, Mr. BROWN of Ohio, Mr.
CARDIN, Ms. CARSON, Mr. CHABOT, Mr. CLAY, Mrs. CLAYTON, Mr. CLY-
BURN, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Mr.
DEFAZIO, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. DELLUMS, Mr. DICKS, Mr. DIXON, Mr.
EVANS, Mr. FILNER, Mr. FLAKE, Mr. FORD, Mr. FRANK of Massachu-
setts, Mr. FROST, Mr. GINGRICH, Mr. GUTIERREZ, Mr. HILLIARD, Mr.
HOBSON, Mr. JACKSON of Illinois, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Mr. JEF-
FERSON, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. KASICH, Ms. KIL-
PATRICK, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mr. MCGOVERN, Ms. MCKINNEY, Mrs.
MALONEY of New York, Mrs. MEEK of Florida, Ms. MILLENDER-
MCDONALD, Mr. MILLER of California, Mr. MORAN of Virginia, Mrs.
MORELLA, Mr. NEAL of Massachusetts, Mr. NEY, Ms. NORTON, Mr.
OWENS, Mr. OXLEY, Ms. PELOSI, Mr. POSHARD, Mr. RANGEL, Mr.
RUSH, Mr. SAWYER, Mr. DAN SCHAEFER of Colorado, Mr. SCOTT, Mr.
SISISKY, Mr. STRICKLAND, Mr. THOMPSON, Mr. TRAFICANT, Ms. WA-
TERS, Mr. WATT of North Carolina, Mr. WATTS of Oklahoma, Mr.
WYNN, Mr. GONZALEZ, Ms. CHRISTIAN-GREEN, Mr. PAYNE, Mr.
FATTAH, Mr. HASTINGS of Florida, and Mr. TOWNS) introduced the fol-
lowing bill; which was referred to the Committee on Resources
JUNE 3, 1998
Additional sponsors: Mr. HALL of Ohio, Mr. LAZIO of New York, Mr. BOEH-
LERT, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, Mr. PASTOR, Mr. QUINN, Ms.
FURSE, Mr. HOUGHTON, Mr. REGULA, Mr. GILMAN, Mr. BUNNING, Mrs.
CUBIN, Mr. DUNCAN, Mr. FOGLIETTA, Mr. HOYER, Mr. HYDE, Mr.
KUCINICH, Mr. LEWIS of California, Ms. PRYCE of Ohio, Mr. BONIOR,
Mr. VISCLOSKY, Mr. ACKERMAN, Mr. BERMAN, Mr. COYNE, Mr. FARR
of California, Mr. GORDON, Ms. KAPTUR, Mr. KING, Mr. REYES, Ms.
RIVERS, Mr. SHIMKUS, Mr. TIERNEY, Mr. SNYDER, Mr. SERRANO, Mr.
VENTO, Mr. ENSIGN, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. SMITH of Michigan, Mr. ALLEN,
Mr. BAESLER, Mr. SAXTON, Mr. LEACH, Mr. COSTELLO, Mrs. LOWEY,
Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. ROMERO-BARCELO´, Mr. HORN, Mr. WAXMAN, Mr.
SKAGGS, Mr. DELAHUNT, Mr. LATOURETTE, Mr. CRAMER, Ms. MCCAR-
THY of Missouri, Mr. MCDADE, Mr. LAFALCE, Mr. PORTER, Mr.
GILCHREST, Mr. WOLF, Mr. GEPHARDT, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. MARKEY, Mr.
BALDACCI, Mr. KENNEDY of Massachusetts, Mr. SOUDER, Mr. WALSH,
Mr. BROWN of California, Mr. MANZULLO, Mr. PITTS, Mr. BOSWELL,
Mr. MCHALE, Mr. SHAYS, Mr. OLVER, Mr. LANTOS, Mr. ENGLISH of
Pennsylvania, Mr. GEJDENSON, Ms. WOOLSEY, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. CAS-
TLE, and Mr. MOAKLEY
JUNE 3, 1998
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic]
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on May 15, 1997]
A BILL
To establish within the United States National Park Service
the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom
program, 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 ‘‘National Underground
Railroad Network to Freedom Act of 1998’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following:
(1) The Underground Railroad, which flourished
from the end of the 18th century to the end of the
Civil War, was one of the most significant expressions
of the American civil rights movement during its evo-
lution over more than 3 centuries.
(2) The Underground Railroad bridged the di-
vides of race, religion, sectional differences, and na-
tionality; spanned State lines and international bor-
ders; and joined the American ideals of liberty and
freedom expressed in the Declaration of Independence
and the Constitution to the extraordinary actions of
ordinary men and women working in common pur-
pose to free a people.
(3) Pursuant to title VI of Public Law 101–628
(16 U.S.C. 1a–5 note; 104 Stat. 4495), the Under-
ground Railroad Advisory Committee conducted a
study of the appropriate means of establishing an en-
during national commemorative Underground Rail-
road program of education, example, reflection, and
reconciliation.
(4) The Underground Railroad Advisory Com-
mittee found that—
(A) although a few elements of the Under-
ground Railroad story are represented in exist-
ing National Park Service units and other sites,
many sites are in imminent danger of being lost
or destroyed, and many important resource types
are not adequately represented and protected;
(B) there are many important sites which
have high potential for preservation and visitor
use in 29 States, the District of Columbia, and
the Virgin Islands;
(C) no single site or route completely re-
flects and characterizes the Underground Rail-
road, since its story and associated resources in-
volve networks and regions of the country rather
than individual sites and trails; and
(D) establishment of a variety of partner-
ships between the Federal Government and other
levels of government and the private sector would
be most appropriate for the protection and inter-
pretation of the Underground Railroad.
(5) The National Park Service can play a vital
role in facilitating the national commemoration of the
Underground Railroad.
(6) The story and significance of the Under-
ground Railroad can best engage the American people
through a national program of the National Park
Service that links historic buildings, structures, and
sites; routes, geographic areas, and corridors; inter-
pretive centers, museums, and institutions; and pro-
grams, activities, community projects, exhibits, and
multimedia materials, in a manner that is both uni-
fied and flexible.
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are the fol-
lowing:
(1) To recognize the importance of the Under-
ground Railroad, the sacrifices made by those who
used the Underground Railroad in search of freedom
from tyranny and oppression, and the sacrifices made
by the people who helped them.
(2) To authorize the National Park Service to co-
ordinate and facilitate Federal and non-Federal ac-
tivities to commemorate, honor, and interpret the his-
tory of the Underground Railroad, its significance as
a crucial element in the evolution of the national civil
rights movement, and its relevance in fostering the
spirit of racial harmony and national reconciliation.
SEC. 3. NATIONAL UNDERGROUND RAILROAD NETWORK TO
FREEDOM PROGRAM.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior (in
this Act referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall establish in
the National Park Service a program to be known as the
‘‘National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom’’ (in
this Act referred to as the ‘‘national network’’). Under the
program, the Secretary shall—
(1) produce and disseminate appropriate edu-
cational materials, such as handbooks, maps, inter-
pretive guides, or electronic information;
(2) enter into appropriate cooperative agree-
ments and memoranda of understanding to provide
technical assistance under subsection (c); and
(3) create and adopt an official, uniform symbol
or device for the national network and issue regula-
tions for its use.
(b) ELEMENTS.—The national network shall encom-
pass the following elements:
(1) All units and programs of the National Park
Service determined by the Secretary to pertain to the
Underground Railroad.
(2) Other Federal, State, local, and privately
owned properties pertaining to the Underground
Railroad that have a verifiable connection to the Un-
derground Railroad and that are included on, or de-
termined by the Secretary to be eligible for inclusion
on, the National Register of Historic Places.
(3) Other governmental and nongovernmental fa-
cilities and programs of an educational, research, or
interpretive nature that are directly related to the
Underground Railroad.
(c) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS AND MEMORANDA OF
UNDERSTANDING.—To achieve the purposes of this Act and
to ensure effective coordination of the Federal and non-Fed-
eral elements of the national network referred to in sub-
section (b) with National Park Service units and programs,
the Secretary may enter into cooperative agreements and
memoranda of understanding with, and provide technical
assistance to—
(1) the heads of other Federal agencies, States,
localities, regional governmental bodies, and private
entities; and
(2) in cooperation with the Secretary of State,
the governments of Canada, Mexico, and any appro-
priate country in the Caribbean.
(d) APPROPRIATIONS.—There are authorized to be ap-
propriated to carry out this Act not more than $500,000
for each fiscal year. No amounts may be appropriated for
the purposes of this Act except to the Secretary for carrying
out the responsibilities of the Secretary as set forth in sec-
tion 3(a).
Union Calendar No. 315
105TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 1635
[Report No. 105–559]
A BILL
To establish within the United States National
Park Service the National Underground Railroad
Network to Freedom program, and for other pur-
poses.
JUNE 3, 1998
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Commit-
tee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and
ordered to be printed