Home > 108th Congressional Bills > H.R. 1442 (eh) To authorize the design and construction of a visitor center for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. [Engrossed in House] ...H.R. 1442 (eh) To authorize the design and construction of a visitor center for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. [Engrossed in House] ...
In the Senate of the United States,
November 5, 2003.
Resolved, That the bill from the House of Representatives (H.R.
1442) entitled ``An Act to authorize the design and construction of a
visitor center for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.'', do pass with the
following
AMENDMENT:
Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert:
TITLE I--VIETNAM VETERANS MEMORIAL VISITOR CENTER
SEC. 101. VISITOR CENTER
Public Law 96-297 (16 U.S.C. 431 note) is amended by adding at the
end the following:
``SEC. 6. VISITOR CENTER.
``(a) Authorization.--
``(1) In general.--The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund,
Inc., is authorized to construct a visitor center at or near
the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on Federal land in the District
of Columbia, or its environs, subject to the provisions of this
section, in order to better inform and educate the public about
the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the Vietnam War.
``(2) Location.--The visitor center shall be located
underground.
``(3) Consultation on design phase.--The Vietnam Veterans
Memorial Fund, Inc. shall consult with educators, veterans
groups, and the National Park Service in developing the
proposed design of the visitor center.
``(b) Compliance With Standards Applicable to Commemorative
Works.--Chapter 89 of title 40, United States Code, shall apply,
including provisions related to the siting, design, construction, and
maintenance of the visitor center, and the visitor center shall be
considered a commemorative work for the purposes of that Act, except
that--
``(1) final approval of the visitor center shall not be
withheld;
``(2) the provisions of subsections (b) and (c) of section
8908 of title 40, United States Code, requiring further
approval by law for the location of a commemorative work within
Area I and prohibiting the siting of a visitor center within
the Reserve shall not apply;
``(3) the size of the visitor center shall be limited to
the minimum necessary--
``(A) to provide for appropriate educational and
interpretive functions; and
``(B) to prevent interference or encroachment on
the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and to protect open space
and visual sightlines on the Mall; and
``(4) the visitor center shall be constructed and
landscaped in a manner harmonious with the site of the Vietnam
Veterans Memorial, consistent with the special nature and
sanctity of the Mall.
``(c) Operation and Maintenance.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary of the Interior shall--
``(A) operate and maintain the visitor center,
except that the Secretary shall enter into a written
agreement with the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Inc.
for specified maintenance needs of the visitor center,
as determined by the Secretary; and
``(B) as soon as practicable, in consultation with
educators and veterans groups, develop a written
interpretive plan for the visitor center in accordance
with National Park Service policy.
``(2) Donation for perpetual maintenance and
preservation.--Paragraph (1)(A) does not waive the requirements
of section 8906(b) of title 40, United States Code, with
respect to the visitor center.
``(d) Funding.--The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Inc. shall be
solely responsible for acceptance of contributions for, and payment of
expenses of, the establishment of the visitor center. No Federal funds
shall be used to pay any expense of the establishment of the visitor
center.''.
TITLE II--COMMEMORATIVE WORKS
SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE.
This title may be cited as the ``Commemorative Works Clarification
and Revision Act of 2003''.
SEC. 202. ESTABLISHMENT OF RESERVE.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
(1) the great cross-axis of the Mall in the District of
Columbia, which generally extends from the United States
Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial, and from the White House to
the Jefferson Memorial, is a substantially completed work of
civic art; and
(2) to preserve the integrity of the Mall, a reserve area
should be designated within the core of the great cross-axis of
the Mall where the siting of new commemorative works is
prohibited.
(b) Reserve.--Section 8908 of title 40, United States Code, is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(c) Reserve.--After the date of enactment of the Commemorative
Works Clarification and Revision Act of 2003, no commemorative work or
visitor center shall be located within the Reserve.''.
SEC. 203. CLARIFYING AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.
(a) Purposes.--Section 8901(2) of title 40, United States Code, is
amended by striking ``Columbia;'' and inserting ``Columbia and its
environs, and to encourage the location of commemorative works within
the urban fabric of the District of Columbia;''.
(b) Definitions.--Section 8902 of title 40, United States Code, is
amended by striking subsection (a) and inserting the following:
``(a) Definitions.--In this chapter:
``(1) Commemorative work.--The term `commemorative work'
means any statue, monument, sculpture, memorial, plaque,
inscription, or other structure or landscape feature, including
a garden or memorial grove, designed to perpetuate in a
permanent manner the memory of an individual, group, event or
other significant element of American history, except that the
term does not include any such item which is located within the
interior of a structure or a structure which is primarily used
for other purposes.
``(2) The district of columbia and its environs.--The term
`the District of Columbia and its environs' means those lands
and properties administered by the National Park Service and
the General Services Administration located in the Reserve,
Area I, and Area II as depicted on the map entitled
`Commemorative Areas Washington, DC and Environs', numbered
869/86501 B, and dated June 24, 2003.
``(3) Reserve.--The term `Reserve' means the great cross-
axis of the Mall, which generally extends from the United
States Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial, and from the White
House to the Jefferson Memorial, as depicted on the map
referenced in paragraph (2).
``(4) Sponsor.--The term `sponsor' means a public agency,
or an individual, group or organization that is described in
section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and
exempt from tax under section 501(a) of such Code, and which is
authorized by Congress to establish a commemorative work in the
District of Columbia and its environs.''.
(c) Authorization.--Section 8903 of title 40, United States Code,
is amended--
(1) in subsection (b)--
(A) by striking ``work commemorating a lesser
conflict'' and inserting ``work solely commemorating a
limited military engagement''; and
(B) by striking ``the event'' and inserting ``such
war or conflict'';
(2) in subsection (d)--
(A) by striking ``Consultation with National
Capital Memorial Commission.--'' and inserting
``Consultation with National Capital Memorial Advisory
Commission.--'';
(B) by striking ``House Administration'' and
inserting ``Resources''; and
(C) by inserting ``Advisory'' before
``Commission''; and
(3) by striking subsection (e) and inserting the following:
``(e) Expiration of Legislative Authority.--Any legislative
authority for a commemorative work shall expire at the end of the
seven-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of such
authority, or at the end of the seven-year period beginning on the date
of the enactment of legislative authority to locate the commemorative
work within Area I, if such additional authority has been granted,
unless--
``(1) the Secretary of the Interior or the Administrator of
General Services (as appropriate) has issued a construction
permit for the commemorative work during that period; or
``(2) the Secretary or the Administrator (as appropriate),
in consultation with the National Capital Memorial Advisory
Commission, has made a determination that--
``(A) final design approvals have been obtained
from the National Capital Planning Commission and the
Commission of Fine Arts; and
``(B) 75 percent of the amount estimated to be
required to complete the commemorative work has been
raised.
If these two conditions have been met, the Secretary or the
Administrator (as appropriate) may extend the seven-year legislative
authority for a period not to exceed three additional years. Upon
expiration of the legislative authority, any previous site and design
approvals shall also expire.''.
(d) National Capital Memorial Advisory Commission.--Section 8904 of
title 40, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in the heading, by inserting ``Advisory'' before
``Commission'';
(2) in subsection (a), by striking ``There is a National''
and all that follows through ``consists of'' and inserting the
following: ``There is established the National Capital Memorial
Advisory Commission, which shall be composed of'';
(3) in subsection (c)--
(A) by inserting ``Advisory'' before ``Commission
shall''; and
(B) by striking ``Services'' and inserting
``Services (as appropriate)''; and
(4) in subsection (d) by inserting ``Advisory'' before
``Commission''.
(e) Site and Design Approval.--Section 8905 of title 40, United
States Code, is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) by striking ``person'' each place it appears
and inserting ``sponsor''; and
(B) in paragraph (1)--
(i) by inserting ``Advisory'' before
``Commission''; and
(ii) by striking ``designs'' and inserting
``design concepts''; and
(2) in subsection (b)--
(A) by striking ``Secretary, and Administrator''
and inserting ``and the Secretary or Administrator (as
appropriate)''; and
(B) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking, ``open space
and existing public use.'' and inserting ``open space,
existing public use, and cultural and natural
resources.''.
(f) Criteria for Issuance of Construction Permit.--Section 8906 of
title 40, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)(3) and (a)(4) by striking ``person''
and inserting ``sponsor''; and
(2) by striking subsection (b) and inserting the following:
``(b) Donation for Perpetual Maintenance and Preservation.--
``(1) In addition to the criteria described above in
subsection (a), no construction permit shall be issued unless
the sponsor authorized to construct the commemorative work has
donated an amount equal to 10 percent of the total estimated
cost of construction to offset the costs of perpetual
maintenance and preservation of the commemorative work. All
such amounts shall be available for those purposes pursuant to
the provisions of this subsection. The provisions of this
subsection shall not apply in instances when the commemorative
work is constructed by a Department or agency of the Federal
Government and less than 50 percent of the funding for such
work is provided by private sources.
``(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, money on
deposit in the Treasury on the date of enactment of the
Commemorative Works Clarification and Revision Act of 2003
provided by a sponsor for maintenance pursuant to this
subsection shall be credited to a separate account in the
Treasury.
``(3) Money provided by a sponsor pursuant to the
provisions of this subsection after the date of enactment of
the Commemorative Works Clarification and Revision Act of 2003
shall be credited to a separate account with the National Park
Foundation.
``(4) Upon request of the Secretary or Administrator (as
appropriate), the Secretary of the Treasury or the National
Park Foundation shall make all or a portion of such moneys
available to the Secretary or the Administrator (as
appropriate) for the maintenance of a commemorative work. Under
no circumstances may the Secretary or Administrator request
funds from a separate account exceeding the total money in the
account established under paragraph (2) or (3). The Secretary
and the Administrator shall maintain an inventory of funds
available for such purposes. Funds provided under this
paragraph shall be available without further appropriation and
shall remain available until expended.''.
(g) Areas I and II.--Section 8908(a) of title 40, United States
Code, is amended--
(1) by striking ``Secretary of the Interior and
Administrator of General Services'' and inserting ``Secretary
of the Interior or the Administrator of General Services (as
appropriate)''; and
(2) by striking ``numbered 869/86581, and dated May 1,
1986'' and inserting ``entitled `Commemorative Areas
Washington, DC and Environs', numbered 869/86501 B, and dated
June 24, 2003''.
SEC. 204. SITE AND DESIGN CRITERIA.
Section 8905(b) of title 40, United States Code (as amended by
section 203(e)), is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(5) Museums.--No commemorative work primarily designed as
a museum may be located on lands under the jurisdiction of the
Secretary in Area I or in East Potomac Park as depicted on the
map referenced in section 8902(2).
``(6) Site-specific guidelines.--The National Capital
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