Colonel Charles Young Home Study Act

Bill: 113-s-331
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Brown, Sherrod [D-OH]
Introduced: 2013-02-14
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
Subjects: Historic sites and heritage areas

Military history

Ohio

Racial and ethnic relations
Latest action: action_date: 2013-02-14
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

Summaries:
action_date: 2013-02-14
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p>Colonel Charles Young Home Study Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study of the Colonel Charles Young Home, a National Historic Landmark in Xenia, Ohio, to determine the feasibility of designating the Home as a unit of the National Park System. (Colonel Charles Young was a distinguished African-American officer in the U.S. Army, a pioneer of techniques in military intelligence, as well as a commander of troops in combat in the Spanish-American War and the Mexican expedition against Pancho Villa.) </p>

tv_txt: II 113th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 331 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES February 14, 2013 Mr. Brown (for himself and Mr. Portman ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources A BILL To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study to determine the suitability and feasibility of designating the Colonel Charles Young Home in Xenia, Ohio, as a unit of the National Park System, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Colonel Charles Young Home Study Act . 2. Findings Congress finds that— (1) Colonel Charles Young was— (A) a distinguished African-American officer in the United States Army; (B) the third African-American to graduate from West Point; (C) a commander of troops in combat in— (i) the Spanish-American War; and (ii) the Mexican expedition against Pancho Villa; (D) 1 of the first military attachés in the United States; and (E) a pioneer of techniques in military intelligence; (2) the experience of Colonel Young in the Army between 1884 and 1922 illustrates the changing nature of race relations in the United States during a period spanning from the end of the Civil War to the beginning of the Civil Rights movement; (3) Colonel Young was a friend and associate of other distinguished African-Americans of the period, including poet Paul Laurence Dunbar from nearby Dayton, Ohio; (4) as the commander of an Army unit assigned to protect and develop Sequoia National Park and General Grant National Park in the State of California, Colonel Young is recognized as the first African-American to be the Superintendent of a National Park; and (5) the home of Colonel Young located near Xenia, Ohio, is— (A) a National Historic Landmark; and (B) closely associated with— (i) Wilberforce University, a historically Black university at which Colonel Young served as Professor of Military Science; and (ii) Central State University, which is— (I) a historically Black university; and (II) the location of the National Afro-American Museum and Cultural Center. 3. Special resource study (a) Study The Secretary of the Interior (referred to in this Act as the Secretary ), in consultation with the Secretary of the Army, shall conduct a special resource study of the Colonel Charles Young Home, a National Historic Landmark in Xenia, Ohio (referred to in this Act as the Home ). (b) Contents In conducting the study under subsection (a), the Secretary shall— (1) evaluate any architectural and archeological resources of the Home; (2) determine the suitability and feasibility of designating the Home as a unit of the National Park System; (3) consider other alternatives for preservation, protection, and interpretation of the Home by Federal, State, or local governmental entities or private and nonprofit organizations, including the use of shared management agreements with the Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park or specific units of that Park, such as the Paul Laurence Dunbar Home; (4) consult with the Ohio Historical Society, Central State University, Wilberforce University, and other interested Federal, State, or local governmental entities, private and nonprofit organizations, or individuals; and (5) identify cost estimates for any Federal acquisition, development, interpretation, operation, and maintenance associated with the alternatives considered under the study. (c) Applicable law The study required under subsection (a) shall be conducted in accordance with section 8 of Public Law 91–383 ( 16 U.S.C. 1a–5 ). (d) Report Not later than 3 years after the date on which funds are first made available for the study under subsection (a), the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate a report that contains— (1) the results of the study under subsection (a); and (2) any conclusions and recommendations of the Secretary.