110 HR 6693 IH: Harriet Tubman National Historical
U.S. House of Representatives
2008-07-31
text/xml
EN
Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.
1.This Act may be cited as the
Harriet Tubman National Historical
Park and Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park
Act
.
2.
(a)Congress
finds that—
(1)Harriet Tubman
(born Araminta Minty
Ross)—
(A)was born into
slavery in Maryland around 1822;
(B)married John
Tubman at age 25;
(C)endured through
her youth and young adulthood the hardships of enslaved African-Americans;
and
(D)boldly emancipated
herself from bondage in 1849;
(2)not satisfied with
attaining her own freedom, Harriet Tubman—
(A)returned
repeatedly for more than 10 years to the places of her enslavement in
Dorchester and Caroline Counties, Maryland; and
(B)under the most
adverse circumstances led away many family members and acquaintances to freedom
in the northern region of the United States and Canada;
(3)Harriet Tubman
was—
(A)called
Moses
by African-Americans and white abolitionists; and
(B)acknowledged as 1
of the most prominent conductors
of the resistance that came to
be known as the Underground Railroad
;
(4)in 1868, Frederick
Douglass wrote that, with the exception of John Brown, Douglass knew of
no one who has willingly encountered more perils and hardships to serve
our enslaved people
than Harriet Tubman;
(5)during the Civil
War, Harriet Tubman—
(A)was recruited to
assist Union troops as a nurse, a scout, and a spy; and
(B)served in
Virginia, Florida, and South Carolina, where she is credited with facilitating
the rescue of hundreds of enslaved people;
(6)Harriet Tubman
established in Auburn, New York, 1 of the first incorporated homes for aged
African-Americans in the United States, which, 10 years before her death, she
bequeathed to the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church;
(7)there are
nationally significant resources comprised of relatively unchanged landscapes
associated with the early life of Harriet Tubman in Caroline, Dorchester, and
Talbot Counties, Maryland;
(8)there are
nationally significant resources relating to Harriet Tubman in Auburn, New
York, including—
(A)the residence of
Harriet Tubman;
(B)the Tubman Home
for the Aged;
(C)the Thompson
Memorial AME Zion Church; and
(D)the final resting
place of Harriet Tubman in Fort Hill Cemetery;
(9)in developing
interpretive programs, the National Park Service would benefit from increased
scholarship of the African-American experience during the decades preceding the
Civil War and throughout the remainder of the 19th century; and
(10)it is fitting and
proper that the nationally significant resources relating to Harriet Tubman be
preserved for future generations as units of the National Park System so that
people may understand and appreciate the contributions of Harriet Tubman to the
history and culture of the United States.
(b)The
purposes of this Act are—
(1)to preserve and
promote stewardship of the resources in Auburn, New York, and Caroline,
Dorchester, and Talbot Counties, Maryland, relating to the life and
contributions of Harriet Tubman;
(2)to
provide for partnerships with the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, the
States of New York and Maryland, political subdivisions of the States, the
Federal Government, local governments, nonprofit organizations, and private
property owners for resource protection, research, interpretation, education,
and public understanding and appreciation of the life and contributions of
Harriet Tubman;
(3)to sustain
agricultural and forestry land uses in Caroline, Dorchester, and Talbot
Counties, Maryland, that remain evocative of the landscape during the life of
Harriet Tubman; and
(4)to
establish a competitive grants program for scholars of African-American history
relating to Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad.
3.In this Act:
(1)The
term Church
means the Thompson Memorial AME Zion Church located
in Auburn, New York.
(2)Historically
Black college or universityThe term historically Black
college or university
has the meaning given the term part B
institution
in section 322 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.
1061)).
(3)Predominantly
black institutionThe term Predominantly Black
Institution
has the meaning given the term in section 499A(c) of the
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1099e(c)).
(4)The
term Secretary
means the Secretary of the Interior.
(5)The term Visitor Center
means the Harriet
Tubman Underground Railroad State Park Visitor Center to be constructed under
section 5(d).
4.Establishment of
harriet tubman national historical park
(a)On
the execution of easements with the Church, the Secretary shall—
(1)establish the
Harriet Tubman National Historical Park (referred to in this section as the
Historical Park
) in the City of Auburn, New York, as a unit of
the National Park System; and
(2)publish notice of
the establishment of the Historical Park in the Federal Register.
(b)
(1)The Historical Park shall be comprised of structures and
properties associated with the Harriet Tubman home, the Tubman Home for the
Aged, the Church, and the Rectory, as generally depicted on the map entitled
Harriet Tubman National Historical Park—Proposed Boundary
,
numbered ____, and dated ___.
(2)The map described in paragraph (1) shall be available for
public inspection in the appropriate offices of the National Park
Service.
(c)The Secretary may acquire from willing sellers, by donation,
purchase with donated or appropriated funds, or exchange, land or interests in
land within the boundary of the Historical Park.
(d)The Secretary may provide grants to, and enter into
cooperative agreements with—
(1)the Church
for—
(A)historic
preservation of, rehabilitation of, research on, and maintenance of properties
within the boundary of the Historical Park; and
(B)interpretation of
the Historical Park;
(2)the Fort Hill
Cemetery Association for maintenance and interpretation of the gravesite of
Harriet Tubman; and
(3)the State of New
York, any political subdivisions of the State, the City of Auburn, and
nonprofit organizations for—
(A)preservation and
interpretation of resources relating to Harriet Tubman in the City of Auburn,
New York;
(B)conducting
research, including archaeological research; and
(C)providing for
stewardship programs, education, public access, signage, and other interpretive
devices at the Historical Park for interpretive purposes.
(e)The
Secretary may provide interpretive tours to sites located outside the
boundaries of the Historical Park in Auburn, New York, that include resources
relating to Harriet Tubman.
(f)
(1)Not later than 3 years after the date on which funds are
made available to carry out this subsection, the Secretary, in cooperation with
the Church, shall complete a general management plan for the Historical Park in
accordance with section 12(b) of Public Law 91–383 (16 U.S.C. 1a–7(b)).
(2)The
Secretary shall coordinate the preparation and implementation of the general
management plan for the Harriet Tubman National Historical Park with—
(A)the Harriet Tubman
Underground Railroad National Historical Park in Maryland; and
(B)the National
Underground Railroad: Network to Freedom.
5.Establishment of
the harriet tubman underground railroad national historical park
(a)There
is established as a unit of the National Park System the Harriet Tubman
Underground Railroad National Historical Park (referred to in this section as
the Historical Park
) in Caroline, Dorchester, and Talbot
Counties, Maryland.
(b)
(1)The boundary of the Historical Park shall consist of
certain landscapes and associated resources relating to the early life and
enslavement of Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad, as generally
depicted on the map entitled Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad
National Historical Park—Proposed Boundary
, numbered ____, and dated
_____.
(2)The Secretary, after consultation with landowners, the
State of Maryland, and units of local government, may modify the boundary of
the Historical Park to include additional resources relating to Harriet Tubman
that—
(A)are located within
the vicinity of the Historical Park; and
(B)are identified in
the general management plan prepared under subsection (g) as appropriate for
interpreting the life of Harriet Tubman.
(3)On modification of the boundary of the Historical Park under
paragraph (2), the Secretary shall make available for public inspection in the
appropriate offices of the National Park Service a revised map of the
Historical Park.
(c)The Secretary may acquire from willing sellers, by donation,
purchase with donated or appropriated funds, or exchange, land or an interest
in land within the boundaries of the Historical Park.
(d)In
accordance with section 7(b)(2), the Secretary may provide grants—
(1)to the State of
Maryland, political subdivisions of the State, and nonprofit organizations for
the acquisition of less than fee title (including easements) or fee title to
land in Caroline, Dorchester, and Talbot Counties, Maryland, within the
boundary of the Historical Park; and
(2)on execution of a
memorandum of understanding between the State of Maryland and the Director of
the National Park Service, to the State of Maryland for the construction of the
Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad State Park Visitor Center on land owned by
the State of Maryland in Dorchester County, Maryland, subject to the condition
that the State of Maryland provide the Director of the National Park Service,
at no additional cost, sufficient office space and exhibition areas in the
Visitor Center to carry out the purposes of the Historical Park.
(e)The Secretary may
provide grants to, and enter into cooperative agreements with, the State of
Maryland, political subdivisions of the State, nonprofit organizations,
colleges and universities, and private property owners for—
(1)the restoration or
rehabilitation, public use, and interpretation of sites and resources relating
to Harriet Tubman;
(2)the
conduct of research, including archaeological research;
(3)providing
stewardship programs, education, signage, and other interpretive devices at the
sites and resources for interpretive purposes; and
(4)(A)the design and
construction of the Visitor Center; and
(B)the operation and maintenance of the
Visitor Center.
(f)The
Secretary may provide interpretive tours to sites and resources located outside
the boundary of the Historical Park in Caroline, Dorchester, and Talbot
Counties, Maryland, relating to the life of Harriet Tubman and the Underground
Railroad.
(g)
(1)Not later than 3 years after the date on which funds are
made available to carry out this subsection, the Secretary, in coordination
with the State of Maryland, political subdivisions of the State, and the United
States Fish and Wildlife Service, shall complete a general management plan for
the Historical Park in accordance with section 12(b) of Public Law 91–383 (16
U.S.C. 1a–7(b)).
(2)The
Secretary shall coordinate the preparation and implementation of the general
management plan for the Historical Park with—
(A)the Harriet Tubman
National Historical Park in Auburn, New York;
(B)the National
Underground Railroad: Network to Freedom;
(C)the Maryland
Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad State Park; and
(D)the Harriet Tubman
Underground Railroad Byway in Dorchester and Caroline Counties,
Maryland.
(3)The general management plan for the Historical Park
shall give priority to the adequate protection of, interpretation of, public
appreciation for, archaeological investigation of, and research on Stewart's
Canal, the Jacob Jackson home site, the Brodess Farm, the Ben Ross and Anthony
Thompson properties on Harrisville Road, and the James Cook site, all of which
are privately owned potential future properties in the Blackwater National
Wildlife Refuge.
(h)Blackwater
National Wildlife Refuge
(1)The Secretary shall ensure that, not later than 1 year
after the date of enactment of this Act, the National Park Service and the
United States Fish and Wildlife Service enter into an interagency agreement
that—
(A)promotes and
mutually supports the compatible stewardship and interpretation of Harriet
Tubman resources at the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge; and
(B)provides for the
maximum level of cooperation between those Federal agencies to further the
purposes of this Act.
(2)Nothing in this Act modifies, alters, or amends the
authorities of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service in the
administration and management of the Blackwater National Wildlife
Refuge.
6.
(a)The Secretary shall administer the Harriet Tubman
National Historical Park and the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National
Historical Park in accordance with this Act and the laws generally applicable
to units of the National Park System including—
(1)the National Park
Service Organic Act (16 U.S.C. 1 et seq.); and
(2)the Act of August
21, 1935 (16 U.S.C. 461 et seq.).
(b)Notwithstanding subsection (a), regulations and
policies applicable to units of the National Park System shall apply only to
Federal land administrated by the National Park Service that is located within
the boundary of the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical
Park.
7.Authorization of
appropriations
(a)There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are
necessary to carry out this Act (other than subsection (b)), including the
provision of National Park Service personnel and National Park Service
management funds for the Harriet Tubman National Historical Park and the
Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park.
(b)There
are authorized to be appropriated not more than—
(1)$7,500,000 to
provide grants to the Church for—
(A)historic
preservation, rehabilitation, and restoration of resources within the boundary
of the Harriet Tubman National Historical Park; and
(B)the costs of
design, construction, installation, and maintenance of exhibits and other
interpretive devices authorized under section 4(d)(1)(B);
(2)$11,000,000 for
grants to the State of Maryland for activities authorized under subsections
(d)(1) and (e)(4)(A) of section 5; and
(3)$200,000 for
fiscal year 2009 and each fiscal year thereafter for competitive grants to
historically Black colleges and universities, Predominately Black Institutions,
and minority serving institutions for research into the life of Harriet Tubman
and the African-American experience during the years that coincide with the
life of Harriet Tubman.
(c)
(1)Church and
visitor center grantsThe Federal share of the cost of activities
provided grants under paragraph (1) or (2) of subsection (b) and any
maintenance, construction, or utility costs incurred pursuant to a cooperative
agreement entered into under section 4(d)(1)(A) or section 5(e) shall not be
more than 50 percent.
(2)Historically
black colleges and universitiesThe Federal share of the cost of
activities provided assistance under subsection (b)(3) shall be not more than
75 percent.
(3)Form of
non-Federal shareThe non-Federal share required under this
subsection may be in the form of in-kind contributions of goods or services
fairly valued.