A bill to establish the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site in the State of Georgia, and for other purposes.
PL 96-428 (H.R.7218), enacted 10/10/1980

PUBLIC LAW 96-428—OCT. 10, 1980 
94 STAT. 1839 
Public Law 96-428 
96th Congress 
An Act 
To establish the Martin Luther King, Junior, National Historic Site in the State of 
Georgia, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled. That (a) in order to 
protect and interpret for the benefit, inspiration, and education of 
present £Uid future generations the places where Martin Luther 
King, Junior, was bom, where he Hved, worked, and worshipped, and 
where he is buried, there is hereby established the Martin Luther 
King, Junior, National Historic Site in the State of Georgia. The 
national historic site shall consist of that real property in the city of 
Atlanta, Georgia, within the boundary generally depicted on the map 
entitled "Martin Luther King, Junior, National Historic Site Bound-
ary Map", numbered NASM/SERO/20,109-C, and dated May 1980, 
together with the property known as 234 Sunset Avenue, Northwest. 
The map referred to in this subsection shall be on file and available 
for public inspection in the local and Washington, District of Colum-
bia offices of the National Park Service, Department of the Interior. 
0?) In furtherance of the purposes of this Act, there is hereby 
established the Martin Luther King, Junior, Preservation District, 
which shall consist of the area identified as "Preservation District" in 
the map referred to in subsection (a) of this section. 
SEC. 2. (a) The Secretary of the Interior (hereinafter referred to as 
"the Secretary") shall administer the Martin Luther King, Junior, 
National Historic Site and Preservation District in accordance with 
the provisions of this Act, and the provisions of law generally 
applicable to national historic sites, including the Act of August 25, 
1916 (39 Stat. 535; 16 U.S.C. 1, 2-4) and the Act of August 21,1935 (49 
Stat. 666; 16 U.S.C. 461-7). 
(b)(1) Within the national historic site the Secretary is authorized 
to acquire by donation, purchase with donated or appropriated funds, 
transfer, or exchange, lands and interests therein, except that prop-
erty owned by the State of Georgia or any political subdivision 
thereof may be acquired only by donation. 
(2) Notwithstanding the acquisition authority contained in para-
graph (1), any lands or interests therein which are owned wholly or in 
part, by the widow of Martin Luther King, Junior, or by the Martin 
Luther King, Junior, Center for Social Change, shall be acquired only 
with the consent of the owner thereof, except that— 
(A) the Secretary may acquire such property in accordance 
with the provisions of this section if he determines that the 
property is undergoing or is about to undergo a change in use 
which is inconsistent with the purposes of this Act, and 
(B) with respect to properties owned by the Center for Social 
Change, the Secretary shall have the first right of refusal to 
purchase such property for a purchase price not exceeding the 
fair market value of such property on the date it is offered for 
sale. 
Oct. 10, 1980 
[H.R. 7218] 
Martin Luther 
King, Junior, 
National 
Historic Site. 
Establishment. 
16 u s e 461 note. 
Preservation 
District. 
Administration. 
16 u s e 461-467. 
Lands and 
interests, 
acquisition. 
Exceptions. 
79-194 O—81—pt. 2 
36 : QL3 
94 STAT. 1840 
PUBLIC LAW 96-428—OCT. 10, 1980 
Parcel A 
property, 
conveyance to 
Interior Dept. 
Freehold or 
leasehold 
property 
interest, 
conveyance. 
Cooperative 
agreements with 
property owners. 
Property 
improvement 
and restoration, 
funds. 
Appropriate 
mementos, 
concession 
contract. 
(3) Property may be acquired pursuant to this section subject to 
such conditions and reservations as in the judgment of the Secretary 
are not inconsistent with the purposes of this Act and the administra-
tion of the national historic site, including, in the event that the 
burial site of Martin Luther King, Junior, is acquired, the condition 
that his widow may be interred therein. 
(4) Any and all legal or equitable title, interests, or encumbrances, 
if any, held by the Department of Housing and Urban Development 
in the property designated "Parcel A" on the map referenced in 
section one are hereby conveyed to the Secretary to be administered 
in accordance with the purposes of this Act. 
(5) Structural space requirements of the National Park Service to 
meet its administrative, operational, and interpretive functions for 
the national historic site and preservation district shall, to the 
maximum extent feasible without displacing residents, be met within 
the district through the adaptive use of existing structures. 
SEC. 3. (a) Within the national historic site, the Secretary may 
convey a freehold or leasehold interest in any property, for such sums 
as he deems appropriate, and subject to such terms and conditions 
and reservations as will assure the use of the property in a manner 
which is, in the judgment of the Secretary, consistent with the 
purposes of this Act and the administration of the national historic 
site. The Secretary shall offer the last owner or tenant of record a 
reasonable opportunity to purchase or lease, as appropriate, the 
property proposed to be conveyed prior to any conveyance under this 
subsection, and in the case of a lease to such tenant of record, the 
initial rental charge shall not be substantially more than the last 
rent paid by the tenant for that property, with any future increases 
not to exceed the general escalation of rental rates in the surrounding 
area. 
(b) The Secretary may enter into cooperative agreements with the 
owners of properties of historical or cultural significance as deter-
mined by the Secretary, pursuant to which the Secretary may mark, 
interpret, improve, restore, and provide technical assistance with 
respect to the preservation and interpretation of such properties. 
Such agreements shall contain, but need not be limited to, provisions 
that the Secretary shall have the right of access at reasonable times 
to public portions of the property for interpretive and other purposes, 
and that no changes or alterations shall be made in the property 
except by mutual agreement. The authorities in this subsection shall 
also be available to the Secreta^ with respect to properties within 
the Martin Luther King, Junior, Preservation District. 
(c) The Secretary may, in carrying out his authorities with respect 
to the interpretation of properties within the national historic site 
and the preservation district, accept the services and assistance, with 
or without reimbursement therefor, of qualified persons and entities 
to the extent he deems necessary and appropriate. Funds appropri-
ated for the purposes of this Act may be expended for the improve-
ment, restoration, and maintenance of properties in which the 
Secretary has acquired a leasehold interest. 
(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary shall 
give first preference to the Martin Luther King, Junior, Center for 
Social Change with respect to any contract for a concession to sell 
books, postcards, tapes, or similar types of appropriate mementos 
related to the purposes of this Act, on facilities operated and main-
tained by the Secretary within the historic site: Provided, That 
agreement can be reached on terms and conditions acceptable to the 
Secretary. 
PUBLIC LAW 96-428—OCT. 10, 1980 
94 STAT. 1841 
(e) The Secretary is authorized to take only such actions within and 
upon the grounds of the Ebenezer Baptist Church as will directly 
support appropriate public visitation to £ind within the church in 
accordance with the purposes of this Act, or which will assist in the 
maintenance or preservation of those portions of said church which 
are directly related to the purposes of this Act. 
SEC. 4. (a) There is hereby established the Martin Luther King, 
Junior, National Historic Site Advisory Commission (hereinafter 
referred to in this section as the "Commission"). The Commission 
shall consist of thirteen members, eleven of whom shall be appointed 
by the Secretary as follows: 
(1) three members appointed for terms of three years from 
recommendations submitted by the governing body of the Martin 
Luther King, Junior, Center for Social Change; 
(2) two members appointed for terms of four years from 
recommendations submitted by the Governor of the State of 
Georgia, one of whom shall have professional expertise in his-
toric preservation matters; 
(3) two members appointed for terms of five years from 
recommendations submitted by the mayor of the city of Atlanta, 
Georgia, one of whom shall represent the economic and cultural 
interests of the Sweet Auburn Historic District; 
(4) one member appointed for a term of five years from 
recommendations submitted by the governing body of the Ebe-
nezer Baptist Church; 
(5) the Chairman of the Atlanta Urban Design Commission and 
one additional member from the Commission to be chosen by the 
Commission; and 
(6) one member, appointed for a term of five years by the 
Secretary, who shall chair the Commission. In addition to the 
foregoing members, Mrs. Coretta Scott King, or such other 
appropriate family member as may be designated by the immedi-
ate family of Martin Luther King, Junior, and the Director of 
the National Park Service shall be ex officio members of the 
Commission. 
(b) Any vacancy in the membership of the Commission shall be 
filled in the same manner in which the original appointment was 
made. Members of the Commission shall serve without compensation 
as such, but the Secretary may pay expenses of Commission members 
reasonably incurred by them in carrjdng out their responsibilities 
under this section upon presentation of vouchers signed by the chair 
of the Commission. Necessary administrative services and expenses 
shall be provided to the Commission by the Department of the 
Interior. 
(c) The function of the Commission shall be to: 
(1) advise the Secretary with respect to the formulation and 
execution of plans for and the overall administration of the 
national historic site and the preservation district, including 
advice with respect to the consummation of cooperative agree-
ments, and interpretation of properties, and the use and appre-
ciation of the national historic site and the preservation district 
by the public; 
(2) prepare a generalized impact area plan for a one-mile 
radius outside the District which shall examine overall commu-
nity development goals, plans, and efforts within that area, 
including historic preservation, transportation, parking, hous-
ing, urban revitalization, and parks and recreation functions, in 
Ebenezer Baptist 
Church, 
maintenance 
and 
preservation. 
Martin Luther 
King, Junior, 
National 
Historic Site 
Advisory 
Commission. 
Establishment. 
Membership, 
terms. 
Compensation. 
Administrative 
services and 
expenses. 
Function. 
Generalized 
impact area plan. 
94 STAT. 1842 
PUBLIC LAW 96-428—OCT. 10, 1980 
Detailed 
development 
plan. 
Staff and 
technical 
assistance, 
funds. 
Termination 
date. 
Admission fees. 
Effective date. 
Land use change, 
review and 
comment. 
order to maximize beneficial relationships between these goals, 
plans, and efforts and the district herein established; and 
(3) prepare, on the basis of the findings and recommendations 
of the impact area plan required by the preceding paragraph, a 
detailed development plan for the neighborhoods and outlying 
commercial areas immediately outside the district for such 
development, conservation, preservation, rehabilitation activi-
ties and transportation, parking, and land use planning as would 
complement and enhance the District and the purposes for which 
the District is established. 
(d) The Secretary is directed to provide the appropriate planning 
agency of the city of Atlanta an amount of the local planning funds 
authorized by section 6 sufficient for that agency to provide such staff 
and technical assistance to the Advisory Commission as are required 
for it to develop the plans required by subsection (c) of this section. 
Such plans, prepared in full coordination with and opportunities for 
participation by, all relevant public agencies and private groups, 
shall be delivered to the Secretary in a timely fashion for use in 
preparing the general management plan for the district. 
(e) The Commission shall terminate ten years from the effective 
date of 
this Act. 
SEC. 5. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no fees shall be 
charged for entrance or admission to the national historic site or the 
preservation district established by this Act. 
SEC. 6. Effective October 1, 1980, there are authorized to be 
appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out the 
provisions of this Act, but not to exceed $1,000,000 for development, 
$100,000 for local planning, and $3,500,000 for the acquisition of lands 
and interests therein. Notwithstanding any other provision of this 
Act, authority to enter into contracts, to incur obligations, or to make 
pajnnents under this Act shall be effective only to the extent, and in 
such amounts, as are provided in advance in appropriation Acts. 
SEC. 7. (a) In order to better integrate the east and west portions of 
the Martin Luther King, Junior, Preservation District, the Federal 
Highway Administration, in cooperation with the Georgia Depart-
ment of Transportation, is hereby directed to insure that any design 
and reconstruction of the North Interstate 85 and Interstate 75 
Expressway over Auburn and Edgewood Avenues in the city of 
Atlanta, Georgia, and the interchange at Edgewood Avenue, shall 
minimize the adverse impacts on the preservation district. 
(jo) In carrying out the provisions of this subsection, the Federal 
Highway Administration shall require that, where feasible, any 
major change required for the Auburn Avenue overpass results in a 
design which permits a wider distance between overpass support 
structures and the disposition of understructure development rights 
for appropriate business or recreation uses. 
(c) Plans for the construction, exterior renovation, or demolition of 
any structure or change in land use within the preservation district 
by the National Park Service or any Federal agency must be 
submitted to the Atlanta Urban Design Commission in a timely 
fashion for its review and comment. 
PUBLIC LAW 96-428—OCT. 10, 1980 
94 STAT. 1843 
SEC. 8. Within three complete 
fiscal 
years from the effective date of Management 
tlus Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Interior and transmittal to 
Insular Affairs of 
the United States House of 
Representatives and the congressional 
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the United States committees. 
Senate, a comprehensive general management plan for the historic 
site and the preservation district consistent with the provisions of 
this Act and pursuant to the provisions of section 12(b) of the Act of 
August 18,1970 (84 Stat. 825), as amended (16 U.S.C. la-1 et seq.). 
Approved October 10, 1980. 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: 
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 126 (1980): 
Sept. 9, considered and passed House. 
Sept. 26, considered and passed Senate. 
WEEKLY COMPILATION OF PRESIDENTIAL DOCUMENTS, Vol. 16, No. 42: 
Oct. 11, Presidential statement.