[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9689 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 9689
To protect publicly commissioned art, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 14, 2026
Ms. Titus (for herself and Mr. Doggett) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee on Oversight and
Government Reform, for a period to be subsequently determined by the
Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall
within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To protect publicly commissioned art, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Protecting Resources and Ensuring
Stewardship of Enduring Records of Visual Expression Act'' or the
``PRESERVE Act''.
SEC. 2. PROTECTING PUBLICLY COMMISSIONED ART.
(a) Covered Art Designation.--
(1) Determination required by gsa.--Not later than 30 days
after the date on which the Administrator determines excess
property that is Federal real property is surplus property, the
Administrator shall determine whether the surplus property
contains covered art.
(2) Notification required.--Not later than 60 days after
the Administrator determines that surplus property is covered
surplus property, the Administrator shall notify the
appropriate congressional committees and each Member of
Congress that represents the area where the surplus property is
located of such designation.
(b) Preservation Committee.--
(1) Establishment.--Not later than 90 days before the
initiation of the first demolition, transfer, or disposal of a
covered surplus property, the Administrator shall establish a
Preservation Committee for such covered surplus property.
(2) Member.--There shall be at least 3 and not more than 6
members of the Preservation Committee as follows:
(A) At least one member shall be a GSA Fine Arts
Program employee who is a career employee in the civil
service.
(B) At least two members from different categories
as follows:
(i) An expert in art conservation or art
history in either the time period or medium of
the covered art.
(ii) Any GSA employee that is responsible
for preserving the artwork in the Federal
building, such as an Historic Preservation
Program employee.
(iii) Any other individual the
Administrator determines has important
historical knowledge about the creation or
preservation of the covered artwork.
(3) GSA plan or alternatives required to be submitted.--On
the date on which the Preservation Committee is established,
the Administrator shall provide the Preservation Committee
with--
(A) a proposed plan of action for the sale,
transfer, or demolition of the property; or
(B) a range of alternatives the Administrator is
considering for the covered surplus property.
(4) Preservation plan.--
(A) Submission of plan.--Not later than 90 days
after the date on which the Preservation Committee is
established, the Preservation Committee shall submit to
the Administrator, the appropriate congressional
committees, and each Member of Congress that represents
the area where the surplus property is located a
preservation plan for covered art within the surplus
properties to preserve the covered artwork to the
maximum extent possible, including through a
preservation covenant in an outlease agreement and sale
terms, or moving covered artwork to another facility or
museum.
(B) Availability of preservation plan on gsa
website.--Not later than 30 days after the date on
which the Administrator receives the preservation plan
pursuant to subparagraph (A), the Administrator shall
make the plan publicly available on the GSA website for
not less than 90 days.
(C) Report required for missed deadline.--If the
Preservation Committee does not meet the deadline under
subparagraph (A), the Committee shall submit to
Congress and the Administrator a report explaining why
the deadline was missed.
(5) Transfer of property.--At the recommendation of the
Preservation Committee, the Administrator may place the covered
art on long-term loan to a museum or nonprofit organization, if
the agreement to transfer includes the requirements described
in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (4).
(6) Condition for real property disposal.--The
Administrator may not dispose of, demolish, or outlease any
covered surplus property unless--
(A) the Administrator has established a
Preservation Committee for such covered surplus
property and the Preservation Committee has finished
the preservation plan for any covered art in the
property, in accordance with paragraph (4); and
(B) the Administrator certifies to the appropriate
congressional committees that the GSA is implementing
such preservation plan and the covered artwork in such
covered surplus property will remain publicly
accessible under any future owners or tenants of the
property.
(c) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the
Administrator of General Services.
(2) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure of the House of Representatives;
(B) the Committee on Oversight and Government
Reform of the House of Representatives; and
(C) the Committee on Environment and Public Works
of the Senate.
(3) Civil service.--The term ``civil service'' has the
meaning given that term in section 2101 of title 5, United
States Code.
(4) Covered art.--The term ``covered art'' means artwork
that--
(A) is owned by the Federal Government; and
(B) is or was, within the preceding 5 years,
managed by the General Services Administration Fine
Arts Program, including any work commissioned using
taxpayer funds under a Federal program established as
part of the New Deal of President Franklin D. Roosevelt
or commissioned through the GSA Art in Architecture
program.
(5) Covered surplus property.--The term ``covered surplus
property'' means surplus property the Administrator determines
contains covered art under subsection (a).
(6) Excess property; surplus property.--The terms ``excess
property'' and ``surplus property'' have the meaning given
those terms in section 102 of title 40, United States Code.
(7) GSA.--The term ``GSA'' means the General Services
Administration.
(8) Nonprofit organization.--The term ``nonprofit
organization'' means an organization that is described in
section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and
exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of such Code.
(9) Publicly accessible.--The term ``publicly accessible''
means accessible to the general public on a regular and
predictable basis.
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