Date: 2015-07-07
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Chairman. again. let me offer my appreciation to the gentlewoman from Minnesota. the gentleman from California. and their staff who have worked with us. Let me remind my colleagues that just a few days ago. I offered this amendment dealing with museums and dealing with my concern for the funding and the Smithsonian. to provide for the Nations museum. Let me also say to my colleagues that I have offered this amendment in the past because I have a particular interest in the museums of America and their ability to do outreach. I imagine I am not alone standing here amongst appropriators to again say and call for the end of sequestration to be able to provide the appropriators and to provide the people of America the full funding to address these quality of life issues from the various lands and Federal parks and. as well. the historic trails. of which I will talk about. but museums. urban reforestation. all elements of the beauty of this Nation. And I frankly believe that museums. likewise. are that form of beauty. My amendment specifically says: "None of the funds made available in this Act may be used to limit outreach programs administered by the Smithsonian Institution." In order to fulfill the Smithsonians mission. the increase and diffusion of knowledge. the Smithsonian seeks to serve an even greater audience by bringing the Smithsonian to enclaves of communities who otherwise would be deprived of the vast amounts of cultural history offered by the Smithsonian. Our museums of the Nation are in trouble. The Smithsonian has a beautiful array of museums that are here that millions of Americans have the opportunity to visit. But the outreach program serves millions of Americans. thousands of communities. and hundreds of institutions in all 50 States through loans of objects. traveling exhibitions. and sharing of educational resources via publications. lectures and presentations. training programs. and Web sites. Allow me to mention just a few in my own district: The Holocaust Museum. unique in its presentation of a horrible time in history. but it also serves as a very unifying entity in our community. The Childrens Museum. as one of the original board members and founders. now the Childrens Museum is one of the major childrens museums in the Nation. But again. it needs the impact of the outreach of the Smithsonian. And then. of course. the Museum of African American Culture. headed by a dear friend. but also a champion of holding this museum together. and that is John Guess. He needs a fuller embrace by the Smithsonian. including its expertise. its experts. its Ph.D.s. traveling efforts. and again. its encouragement of corporate communities to recognize the value of participating in museums. The Smithsonians outreach activities include the Smithsonian Institution traveling exhibition. the Smithsonian Center for Education and Museum Studies. National Science Resources Center. the Smithsonian Institution Press. the Office of Fellowships. and the Smithsonian Associates. Who are we if we do not value preserving those items that tell the varied and diverse history of America. the good history of America. the history that is unifying and purposeful in citing us as a country that recognizes our wonderful diversity? So I ask my colleagues to support this amendment that deals specifically with allowing the outreach to the kinds of museums that really need the help of the Smithsonian. The Smithsonian. in concluding. Mr. Chairman. is very important to urban areas and rural areas alike. and its ability or its affiliation is to build a strong national network of museums and educational organizations in order to establish active and engaging relationships with communities throughout the country. Again. allow me to salute. in particular. John Guess. with the Museum of African American Culture in Houston. He has literally put that museum together. along with his board members. The SmithsonianI hope they are hearing me as I am talking on the floor of the Housewe need your help in Houston. Texas. We probably need your help in Washington State. in California. Minnesota. New York. and beyond to preserve and help these small museums throughout the Nation. I ask my colleagues to support not only this amendment. but the museums of this Nation. And I say to Mr. CALVERT. we had discussed this before. This amendment now is a placeholder. hopefully. for our discussion going forward dealing with the preservation of our museums. Let me thank Mr. CALVERT. Mr. SIMPSON. and Ms. MCCOLLUM. I yield back the balance of my time. Mr. Chair. thank you for this opportunity to speak in support of my amendment to H.R. 2822. the "Interior and Environment Appropriations Act of 2016." Let me also thank Chairman CALVERT and Ranking Member MCCOLLUM for their leadership in shepherding this bill to the floor. Among other agencies. this legislation funds the Smithsonian Institution. which operates our national museums. including the Air and Space Museum. the Museum of African Art. the Museum of the American Indian. and the National Portrait Gallery. The Smithsonian also operates another national treasure: the National Zoo. Mr. Chair. my amendment is simple but it sends a very important message from the Congress of the United States. The Jackson Lee Amendment simply provides that: "Sec. . None of the funds made available in this Act may be used to limit outreach programs administered by the Smithsonian Institution." This amendment is identical to an amendment I offered to the Interior and Environment Appropriations Act for FY2008 that was approved by voice vote on June 26. Mr. Chair. the Smithsonians outreach programs bring Smithsonian scholars in art. history and science out of "the nations attic" and into their own backyard. Each year. millions of Americans visit the Smithsonian in Washington. D.C. But in order to fulfill the Smithsonians mission. "the increase and diffusion of knowledge." the Smithsonian seeks to serve an even greater audience by bringing the Smithsonian to enclaves of communities who otherwise would be deprived of the vast amount of cultural history offered by the Smithsonian. The Smithsonians outreach programs serve millions of Americans. thousands of communities. and hundreds of institutions in all 50 states. through loans of objects. traveling exhibitions. and sharing of educational resources via publications. lectures and presentations. training programs. and websites. Smithsonian outreach programs work in close cooperation with Smithsonian museums and research centers. as well as with 144 affiliate institutions and others across the nation. The Smithsonians outreach activities support communitybased cultural and educational organizations around the country. They ensure a vital. recurring. and highimpact Smithsonian presence in all 50 states through the provision of traveling exhibitions and a network of affiliations. Smithsonian outreach programs increase connections between the Institution and targeted audiences (African American. Asian American. Latino. Native American. and new American) and provide kindergarten through collegeage museum education and outreach opportunities. These outreach programs enhance K12 science education programs. facilitate the Smithsonians scholarly interactions with students and scholars at universities. museums. and other research institutions. and disseminate results related to the research and collections strengths of the Institution. The programs that provide the critical mass of Smithsonian outreach activity are: 1. the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Services (SITES). 2. the Smithsonian Affiliations. the Smithsonian Center for Education and Museum Studies (SCEMS). 3. National Science Resources Center (NSRC). 4. the Smithsonian Institution Press (SIP). 5. the Office of Fellowships (OF). and 6. the Smithsonian Associates (TSA). which receives no federal funding. To achieve the goal of increasing pubic engagement. SITES directs some of its federal resources to develop Smithsonian Across America: A Celebration of National Pride. This "mobile museum." which will feature Smithsonian artifacts from the most iconic (presidential portraits. historical American flags. Civil War records. astronaut uniforms. etc.) to the simplest items of everday life (family quilts. prairie schoolhouse furnishings. historical lunch boxes. multilingual store front and street signs. etc.). has been a longstanding organizational priority of the Smithsonian. SITES "mobile museum" is the only traveling exhibit format able to guarantee audience growth and expanded geographic distribution during sustained periods of economic retrenchment. but also because it is imperative for the many exhibitors nationwide who are struggling financially yet eager to participate in Smithsonian outreach. For communities still struggling to fully recover from the economic downturn. the ability of museums to present temporary exhibitions. the "mobile museum" promises to answer an evergrowing demand for Smithsonian shows in the field. A single. conventional SITES exhibit can reach a maximum of 12 locations over a twoto threeyear period. In contrast. a "mobile museum" exhibit can visit up to three venues per week in the course of only one year. at no cost to the host institution or community. The net result is an increase by 150 in the number of outreach locations to which SITES shows can travel annually. And in addition to its flexibility in making shortterm stops in cities and towns from coasttocoast. a "mobile museum" has the advantage of being able to frequent the very locations where people live. work. and take part in leisure time activities. By establishing an exhibit presence in settings like these. SITES will not only increase its annual visitor participation by 1 million. but also advance a key Smithsonian performance objective: to develop exhibit approaches that address diverse audiences. including population groups not always affiliated with mainstream cultural institutions. SITES also will be the public exhibitions face of the Smithsonians National Museum of African American History and Culture. as that new Museum comes online. Providing national access to projects that will introduce the American public to the Museums mission. SITES in FY 2008 will tour such stirring exhibitions as NASA ART: 50 Years of Exploration. 381 Days: The Montgomery Bus Boycott Story. Beyond: Visions of Planetary Landscapes. The Way We Worked: Photographs from the National Archives. and More Than Words: Illustrated Letters from the Smithsonians Archives of American Art. To meet the growing demand among smaller community and ethnic museums for an exhibition celebrating the Latino experience. SITES provided a scaleddown version of the National Museum of American Historys 4.000squarefoot exhibition about legendary entertainer Celia Cruz. Two 1.500squarefoot exhibitions. one about Crow Indian history and the other on basket traditions. will give Smithsonian visitors beyond Washington a taste of the Institutions critically acclaimed National Museum of the American Indian. Two more exhibits. "In Plane View" and "Earth from Space." provided visitors an opportunity to experience the Smithsonians recently opened. expansive National Air and Space Museum UdvarHazy Center. For almost 30 years. The Smithsonian Associatesthe highly regarded educational arm of the Smithsonian Institutionhas arranged Scholars in the Schools programs. Through this tremendously successful and wellreceived educational outreach program. the Smithsonian shares its staffhundreds of experts in art. history and sciencewith the national community at a local level. The mission of Smithsonian Affiliations is to build a strong national network of museums and educational organizations in order to establish active and engaging relationships with communities throughout the country. There are currently 138 affiliates located in the United States. Puerto Rico. and Panama. By working with museums of diverse subject areas and scholarly disciplines. both emerging and wellestablished. Smithsonian Affiliations is building partnerships through which audiences and visitors everywhere will be able to share in the great wealth of the Smithsonian while building capacity and expertise in local communities. The National Science Resources Center (NSRC) strives to increase the number of ethnically diverse students participating in effective science programs based on NSRC products and services. The Center develops and implements a national outreach strategy that will increase the number of school districts (currently more than 800) that are implementing NSRC K8 programs. The NSRC is striving to further enhance its program activity with a newly developed scientific outreach program introducing communities and school districts to science through literacy initiatives. In addition. through the building of the multicultural Alliance Initiative. the Smithsonians outreach programs seek to develop new approaches to enable the public to gain access to Smithsonian collections. research. education. and public programs that reflect the diversity of the American people. including underserved audiences of ethnic populations and persons with disabilities. For all these reasons. Mr. Chair. I urge adoption of my amendment and thank Chairman CALVERT and Ranking Member MCCOLLUM for their courtesies. consideration. and very fine work in putting together this excellent legislation. The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentlewoman from Texas .