Title: Brown v. Board of Education National Historical Park Expansion and Redesignation Act
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources

Summary:
Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site Expansion Act
This bill expands the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site currently located in Topeka, Kansas, to include additional sites in Clarendon County, South Carolina, and establishes as affiliated areas specified sites in Farmville, Virginia; Wilmington and Hockessin, Delaware; and the District of Columbia.


[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 270 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 270

To amend the Act entitled ``Act to provide for the establishment of the 
  Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site in the State of 
Kansas, and for other purposes'' to provide for inclusion of additional 
   related sites in the National Park System, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            February 8, 2021

  Mr. Coons (for himself, Mr. Graham, Mr. Warner, Mr. Scott of South 
    Carolina, Mr. Carper, Mr. Moran, and Mr. Kaine) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                      Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Act entitled ``Act to provide for the establishment of the 
  Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site in the State of 
Kansas, and for other purposes'' to provide for inclusion of additional 
   related sites in the National Park System, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Brown v. Board of Education National 
Historic Site Expansion Act''.

SEC. 2. EXPANSION OF THE BROWN V. BOARD OF EDUCATION NATIONAL HISTORIC 
              SITE.

    In order to honor the civil rights stories of struggle, 
perseverance, and activism in the pursuit of education equity, the Act 
entitled ``Act to provide for the establishment of the Brown v. Board 
of Education National Historic Site in the State of Kansas, and for 
other purposes'' approved October 26, 1992 (Public Law 102-525; 106 
Stat. 3438 et seq.), is amended as follows:
            (1) In section 101, by adding at the end the following new 
        paragraph:
            ``(3) The terms `affiliated area' and `affiliated areas' 
        mean one or more of the locations associated with the four 
        court cases included in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka 
        described in section 102(a)(8), (9), and (10).''.
            (2) In section 102(a)--
                    (A) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as 
                paragraphs (5) and (6), respectively;
                    (B) by inserting after paragraph (2), the 
                following:
            ``(3) The Brown case was joined by four other cases related 
        to school segregation pending before the Supreme Court (Briggs 
        v. Elliott, filed in South Carolina; Davis v. County School 
        Board of Prince Edward County, Spottswood Thomas Bolling, et 
        al., Petitioners, v. C. Melvin Sharpe, President of the 
        District of Columbia Board of Education, et al., filed in 
        Virginia; Gebhart v. Belton, filed in Delaware; and Bolling v. 
        Sharpe, filed in the District of Columbia) and consolidated 
        into one case named Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka.
            ``(4) A 1999 historic resources study examined the five 
        cases included in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka and 
        found each to be nationally significant and to contribute 
        unique stories to the case for educational equity.''; and
                    (C) by inserting after paragraph (6) (as so 
                redesignated by this section), the following:
            ``(7) Summerton High School in South Carolina, the all-
        White school that refused to admit the plaintiffs in Briggs v. 
        Elliott, has been listed on the National Register of Historic 
        Places in recognition of its national significance and is used 
        as administrative offices for Clarendon School District 1. 
        Other sites include former Scott's Branch High School, an 
        `equalization school' constructed for African-American students 
        in 1951 to provide facilities comparable to those of White 
        students and that is now the Community Resource Center owned by 
        Clarendon School District 1.
            ``(8) Robert Russa Moton School, the all-Black school in 
        Farmville, Virginia, which was the location of a student-led 
        strike leading to Davis v. County School Board of Prince Edward 
        County, Spottswood Thomas Bolling, et al., Petitioners, v. C. 
        Melvin Sharpe, President of the District of Columbia Board of 
        Education, et al., has been designated a National Historic 
        Landmark in recognition of its national significance. The 
        school, now the Robert Russa Moton Museum, is governed by the 
        Moton Museum, Inc., and affiliated with Longwood University.
            ``(9) Howard High School in Wilmington, Delaware, an all-
        Black school to which plaintiffs in Belton v. Gebhart were 
        forced to travel, has been designated a National Historic 
        Landmark in recognition of its national significance. Now the 
        Howard High School of Technology, it is an active school 
        administered by the New Castle County Vocational-Technical 
        School District. The all-White Claymont High School, which 
        denied plaintiffs admission, is now the Claymont Community 
        Center administered by the Brandywine Community Resource 
        Council, Inc. The Hockessin School #107C (Hockessin Colored 
        School) is the all-Black school in Hockessin, Delaware that one 
        of the plaintiffs in Belton v. Gebhart was required to attend 
        with no public transportation provided. The former Hockessin 
        School building is utilized by Friends of Hockessin Colored 
        School #107, Inc. as a community facility.
            ``(10) John Philip Sousa Junior High School in the District 
        of Columbia, the all-White school that refused to admit 
        plaintiffs in Bolling v. Sharpe, has been designated a National 
        Historic Landmark in recognition of its national significance. 
        John Philip Sousa Junior High School, now John Philip Sousa 
        Middle School, is owned by the District of Columbia Department 
        of General Services and administered by the District of 
        Columbia Public Schools.''.
            (3) In section 102(b)(3)--
                    (A) by inserting ``, protection,'' after 
                ``preservation'';
                    (B) by inserting ``, Kansas; Summerton, South 
                Carolina; Farmville, Virginia; Wilmington and 
                Hockessin, Delaware; and the District of Columbia'' 
                after ``Topeka''; and
                    (C) by inserting ``and the context of Brown v. 
                Board of Education'' after ``civil rights movement''.
            (4) In section 103, by inserting after subsection (b) the 
        following:
    ``(c) Boundary Adjustment.--
            ``(1) In general.--In addition to land described in 
        subsection (b), the historic site shall consist of land and 
        interests in land identified as Summerton High School and 
        Scott's Branch High School located in Clarendon County, South 
        Carolina, after such land, or interests in land, is acquired by 
        the Secretary and the determination is made under paragraph 
        (2).
            ``(2) Determination by secretary.--The historic site shall 
        not be expanded until the date on which the Secretary 
        determines that a sufficient quantity of land, or interests in 
        land, has been acquired to constitute a manageable park unit.
            ``(3) Notice.--Not later than 30 days after the date on 
        which the Secretary makes a determination under paragraph (2), 
        the Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register notice of 
        the expansion of the historic site.
            ``(4) Map.--After the determination in subsection (2), the 
        Secretary shall publish a new map of the historic site to 
        include land or interests in land acquired under this 
        subsection.''.
            (5) In section 104--
                    (A) by striking ``section 103(b)'' and inserting 
                ``subsections (b) and (c) of section 103'';
                    (B) by striking ``: Provided, however, That the'' 
                and inserting ``. The''; and
                    (C) by adding before the final period the 
                following: ``nor by condemnation of any land or 
                interest in land within the boundaries of the historic 
                site''.
            (6) In section 105(c), by inserting before the final period 
        the following: ``in Topeka, Kansas. After the boundary 
        adjustment under section 103(c), the Secretary shall prepare 
        and submit to the Committee on Natural Resources of the House 
        of Representatives and the Committee on Energy and Natural 
        Resources of the Senate a general management plan for the 
        historic site locations in Clarendon County, South Carolina''.
            (7) By inserting after section 105, the following:

``SEC. 106. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE BROWN V. BOARD OF EDUCATION AFFILIATED 
              AREAS.

    ``(a) In General.--The locations associated with the three court 
cases included in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka described in 
sections 102(a)(8), (9), and (10) are established as affiliated areas 
of the National Park System.
    ``(b) Administration.--The affiliated areas shall be managed in 
accordance with--
            ``(1) this section; and
            ``(2) any law generally applicable to units of the National 
        Park System.
    ``(c) General Management Plan.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than two years after the date 
        of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in consultation 
        with the management entity of each affiliated area, shall 
        develop a general management plan for each of the affiliated 
        areas in accordance with section 100502 of title 54, United 
        States Code. The general management plan shall--
                    ``(A) be prepared in consultation and coordination 
                with the interested State, county, and local 
                governments, management entities, organizations, and 
                interested members of the public associated with the 
                affiliated area;
                    ``(B) identify, as appropriate, the roles and 
                responsibilities of the National Park Service and 
                management entity in administering and interpreting the 
                affiliated area in such a manner that it does not 
                interfere with existing operations and continued use of 
                existing facilities; and
                    ``(C) require the Secretary to coordinate the 
                preparation and implementation of the management plan 
                and interpretation of the affiliated area with the 
                Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site.
            ``(2) Public comment.--The Secretary shall--
                    ``(A) hold not less than one public meeting in the 
                general proximity of each affiliated area on the 
                proposed general management plan, including 
                opportunities for public comment; and
                    ``(B) publish the draft general management plan on 
                the internet and provide an opportunity for public 
                comment.
            ``(3) Transmittal.--Not later than 3 years after the date 
        on which funds are made available to carry out this section, 
        the Secretary shall transmit the general management plan for 
        each affiliated area developed under subparagraph (1) to the 
        Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives 
        and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the 
        Senate.
    ``(d) Management Entity.--The organizations described in paragraphs 
(8), (9), and (10) of section 102(a) shall be the management entity for 
its respective affiliated area.
    ``(e) Cooperative Agreements.--The Secretary may provide technical 
assistance and grants and enter into cooperative agreements with the 
management entity for each affiliated area to provide financial 
assistance for the marketing, marking, interpretation, and preservation 
of the respective affiliated area.
    ``(f) Land Use.--Nothing in this section affects land use rights of 
private property owners within or adjacent to the affiliated areas, 
including activities or uses on private land that can be seen or heard 
within the affiliated areas and the authorities for management entities 
to operate and administer the affiliated areas.
    ``(g) Limited Role of the Secretary.--Nothing in this section 
authorizes the Secretary to acquire property in an affiliated area or 
to assume overall financial responsibility for the operation, 
maintenance, or management of an affiliated area. Each affiliated area 
shall continue to be owned, operated, and managed by its respective 
public and private owners.''.
            (8) By redesignating section 106 as section 107.
            (9) In section 107 (as so redesignated by this subsection), 
        by inserting before the period the following: ``at the historic 
        site, and there is authorized to be appropriated such sums as 
        are necessary to carry out sections 103(c) and 106''.
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