[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 159 (Wednesday, November 12, 1997)]
[House]
[Pages H10638-H10640]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    AUTHORIZING ACQUISITION OF CERTAIN REAL PROPERTY FOR LIBRARY OF 
                                CONGRESS

  Mr. THOMAS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 2979) to authorize acquisition of certain real property for 
the Library of Congress, and for other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 2979

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. ACQUISITION OF FACILITY IN CULPEPER, VIRGINIA.

       (a) Acquisition.--The Architect of the Capitol may acquire 
     on behalf of the United States Government by transfer of 
     title, without reimbursement or transfer of funds, the 
     following property:
       (1) Three parcels totaling approximately 41 acres, more or 
     less, located in Culpeper County, Virginia, and identified as 
     Culpeper County Tax Parcel Numbers 51-80B, 51-80C, and 51-
     80D, further described as real estate (consisting of 15.949 
     acres) conveyed to Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond by deed 
     from Russell H. Inskeep and Jean H. Inskeep, his wife, dated 
     October 1, 1964, and recorded October 7, 1964, in the Clerk's 
     Office, Circuit Court of Culpeper County, Virginia, in Deed 
     Book 177, page 431, and real estate (consisting of 20.498 
     acres and consisting of 4.502 acres) conveyed to Federal 
     Reserve Bank of Richmond by deed from Russell H. Inskeep and 
     Jean H. Inskeep, his wife, dated November 11, 1974, and 
     recorded November 12, 1974, in the Clerk's Office, Circuit 
     Court of Culpeper County, Virginia, in Deed Book 247, page 
     246.
       (2) Improvements to such real property.
       (b) Uses.--Effective on the date on which the Architect of 
     the Capitol acquires the property under subsection (a) such 
     property shall be available to the Librarian of Congress for 
     use as a national audiovisual conservation center.

     SEC. 2 LIBRARY BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS.

       Section 11 of the Act entitled ``An Act relating the 
     policing of the buildings of the Library of Congress'' 
     approved August 4, 1950 (2 U.S.C. 167(j)), is amended by 
     adding at the end the following new subsection:
       ``(d) For the purposes of this Act, the term `Library of 
     Congress buildings and grounds' shall include the following 
     property:
       ``(1) Three parcels totaling approximately 41 acres, more 
     or less, located in Culpeper County, Virginia, and identified 
     as Culpeper County Tax Parcel Numbers 51-80B, 51-80C, and 51-
     80D, further described as real estate (consisting of 15.949 
     acres) conveyed to Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond by deed 
     from Russell H. Inskeep and Jean H. Inskeep, his wife, dated 
     October 1, 1964, and recorded October 7, 1964, the the 
     Clerk's Office, Circuit Court of Culpeper County, Virginia, 
     in Deed Book 177, page 431; and real estate (consisting of 
     20.498 acres and consisting of 4.502 acres) conveyed to 
     Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond by deed from Russell H. 
     Inskeep and Jean H. Inskeep, his wife, dated November 11, 
     1974, and recorded November 12, 1974, in the Clerk's Office, 
     Circuit Court of Culpeper County, Virginia, in Deed Book 247, 
     page 246.
       ``(2) Improvements to such real property.''.

     SEC. 3. ACCEPTANCE OF TRANSFERRED GIFT OR TRUST FUNDS.

       Gifts or trust funds given to the Library or the Library of 
     Congress Trust Fund Board for the structural and mechanical 
     work and refurbishment of Library buildings and grounds 
     specified in section 1 shall be transferred to the Architect 
     of the Capitol to be spent in accordance with the provisions 
     of the first section of the Act of June 29, 1922 (2 U.S.C. 
     141).

     SEC. 4. FUND FOR TRANSFERRED FUNDS

       There is established in the Treasury of the United States a 
     fund consisting of those gift or trust funds transferred to 
     the Architect of the Capitol under section 3. Upon prior 
     approval of the Committee on House Oversight of the House of 
     Representatives and Committee on Rules and Administration of 
     the Senate, amounts in the fund shall be available to the 
     Architect of the Capitol, subject to appropriation, to remain 
     available until expended, for the structural and mechanical 
     work and refurbishment of Library buildings and grounds. Such 
     funds shall be available for expenditure in fiscal year 1998, 
     subject to the prior approval of the Committee on House 
     Oversight of the House of Representatives and the Committee 
     on Rules and Administration of the Senate.

     SEC. 5. EFFECTIVE DATE.

       (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (b), the 
     provisions of this Act shall take effect on the date of the 
     enactment of this Act.
       (b) Special Rule for Inclusion of Property Within Library 
     Buildings and Grounds.--The amendment made by section 2 shall 
     take effect upon the acquisition by the Architect of the 
     Capitol of the property described in section 1.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California [Mr. Thomas] and the gentlewoman from Michigan [Ms. 
Kilpatrick] each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California [Mr. Thomas].
  Mr. THOMAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2979 is an attempt at the end of this Congress, in 
working with the Senate, and the Senate has a bill they are attempting 
to move on the other side which would authorize the Architect of the 
Capitol to acquire on behalf of the United States Government a gift of 
property located in Culpeper, Virginia.
  This property is unique in terms of the uses that the Librarian will 
make of it. As my colleagues may know, in the early 20th century, the 
then new technology captured the American experience on film and in 
various forms of audio retention.

                              {time}  2015

  Unfortunately, in the late 19th and early 20th century, the 
technology produced a product which, over time, can become highly 
volatile. Many of these early film archives are currently preserved on 
military bases, much as you would munitions.
  Our goal was to seek a facility which would allow the Librarian not 
only to preserve these artifacts but, in the process of preserving 
them, make them available for those who might wish to utilize the 
Library's resources, as they do with books and other artifacts that the 
Library of Congress now holds.
  Since, for example, the acetate film is located on military bases, 
pretty obviously we cannot just use any building. We are very, very 
fortunate in having in Culpeper, Virginia, a facility which has been 
made available which, with relatively minor changes beyond the already 
wonderful facility that it is, will allow us to accomplish this long-
desired goal of the Librarian.
  In addition to that, the funds for this facility are a gift. We have 
some benefactors who are willing to provide the funds that will not 
only allow us to purchase the Culpeper facility, but funds that will 
allow us to begin to do the kinds of things that we need to do to it to 
make it an even more enhanced repository.
  So what this bill does is allow us to acquire the property. It 
provides for the transfer of gifts to the Library trust fund controlled 
by the authorizing committees, the Committee on House Oversight and the 
Committee on Rules in the Senate, for appropriated funds controlled by 
the appropriations committees.
  We have incorporated in the bill an amendment that was requested on 
the Senate side by the minority, agreed to

[[Page H10639]]

by the chairman of the Committee on Rules, the distinguished gentleman 
from Virginia, Senator Warner, and I would ask that all Members support 
this marvelous acquisition for the retention of these films and audio 
artifacts.
  In addition, Mr. Speaker, I will place in the Record a letter from 
the chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
clearly indicating that, notwithstanding the jurisdiction of that 
committee, and we certainly acknowledge the jurisdiction of that 
committee, in the interest of the time line which we need to make this 
decision, that the committee would not exercise its jurisdiction in 
this matter but certainly retains its jurisdiction over this subject 
matter.
  The letter referred to is as follows:
         Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Congress 
           of the United States, House of Representatives,
                                Washington, DC, November 12, 1997.
     Hon. William M. Thomas,
     Chairman, Committee on House Oversight,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Bill: I am writing in reference to H.R. 2979, a bill 
     authorizing the acquisition of certain real property for the 
     Library of Congress, which was initially referred to the 
     Committee on House Oversight.
       As you know, pursuant to clause 1(q)(11) of Rule X of the 
     Rules of the House, the Committee on Transportation and 
     Infrastructure has jurisdiction over measures relating to the 
     construction, reconstruction, maintenance and care of the 
     buildings and grounds of the Library Congress. H.R. 2979 
     would expand the Library of Congress's real property 
     inventory, and thus expand this Committee's jurisdictional 
     responsibilities with regard to any form of building repair 
     or improvements.
       It is clear that the Committee on Transportation and 
     Infrastructure has a jurisdictional interest in H.R. 2979. 
     However, as I do not wish to prevent or prolong consideration 
     of the measure, I will not request a sequential referral of 
     this bill. Nonetheless, this decision should not be deemed a 
     waiver of this Committee's jurisdiction over the subject 
     matter contained in the bill, jurisdictional prerogatives of 
     similar provisions in the future, or the right to be 
     conferees should the bill go to conference.
       I would appreciate your response to this letter confirming 
     this understanding with respect to H.R. 2979, and ask that a 
     copy of my letter on this matter be placed in the 
     Congressional Record during consideration of the bill on the 
     Floor.
       I am pleased to support the concept of the legislation, and 
     I look forward to working with you on future matters related 
     to the Library of Congress.
       With warm, personal regards, I remain
           Sincerely,
                                                      Bud Shuster,
                                                         Chairman.

  Mr. THOMAS. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Mr. Speaker, if I could, the minority side is not 
represented at the moment, and I would ask to claim the time on the 
minority side, since we are not represented.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Without objection, the Chair recognizes the 
gentleman from Oregon [Mr. DeFazio].
  There was no objection.
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I am not particularly aware of the merits of this bill, 
but I would like to go to the procedure before us.
  The House is being kept here because Republicans are unable to get 
the Committee on Rules to meet and bring forward the appropriations 
bills. We could bring those bills forward tomorrow in the regular 
order. There is no reason the House, which was kept in session until 
midnight or later 3 or 4 nights last weekend while they tried to force 
the votes on fast track, there is no reason to keep the House here 
again tonight.
  So I would like to suggest, Mr. Speaker, that the other side consider 
where we are going. The gentleman from New York [Mr. Solomon] is here, 
and perhaps he has some news about the appropriations bill.
  Mr. SOLOMON. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
  Mr. DeFAZIO. I yield to the gentleman from New York.
  Mr. SOLOMON. Mr. Speaker, I most certainly do. Let me say, I may be 
the most optimistic Member of this body, but let me say I think we are 
getting out of here tomorrow afternoon. The reason is that the 
Committee on Rules was scheduled to meet about 45 minutes ago with the 
minority members, but the gentleman from Massachusetts [Mr. Moakley], a 
very respected and outstanding Member of this body, asked for another 
hour to look at two conference reports, one the D.C. appropriations 
conference report, the other the foreign operations conference report. 
They are completed. We will meet at 10 minutes of 9:00. Because the 
gentleman wants me to, I will be down here at 9 o'clock with both of 
them.
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Reclaiming my time, Mr. Speaker, if I could ask the 
gentleman, he will be out here at 9 o'clock with both the bills. Is 
that as good a promise as the moving target on fast track last week, 
which was going to be on the hour or the half-hour for 5 hours?
  Mr. SOLOMON. Give or take a few minutes one way or the other.
  Mr. DeFAZIO. I thank the gentleman. I accept that rather strong 
assurance from the chairman that within 40 minutes we will be 
completing the real business before the House, as opposed to the 
legislation before us.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of the time to the gentlewoman 
from Michigan [Ms. Kilpatrick].
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Without objection, the gentlewoman from 
Michigan [Ms. Kilpatrick] is recognized to control the time.
  There was no objection.
  Mr. THOMAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I am sorry the gentleman from Oregon characterizes this 
as not the real legislation before the House. Quite frankly, it is in 
the best tradition. There are private individuals who are contributing 
more than $10 million so that all Americans can have access to 
historical artifacts.
  Frankly, the gentleman does a disservice to the House and those 
individuals who continue to contribute major sums so that the American 
people can enjoy these kinds of artifacts in a preserved fashion, not 
just at the time they are produced through the 20th century but for all 
times.
  If the gentleman believes this trivializes the House, then I really 
wish the gentleman would not claim time if he has no understanding 
whatsoever of the material in front of him.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman 
from Virginia [Mr. Bliley].
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Mr. Speaker, I rise to a point of personal privilege.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Calvert). The gentleman will state the 
point of personal privilege.
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Having been demeaned by the gentleman, Mr. Speaker, I 
would like the opportunity to respond.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Does the gentleman demand that words spoken 
in debate be taken down?
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Mr. Speaker, would the gentlewoman from Michigan [Ms. 
Kilpatrick] yield me 1 minute?
  Ms. KILPATRICK. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from 
Oregon.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. It is not in order for the gentleman to have 
time yielded at this point.
  Mr. THOMAS. Mr. Speaker, I control the time.
  Mr. DeFAZIO. I will wait for 1 minute later to respond.
  Mr. THOMAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Virginia [Mr. Bliley], in whose district this facility 
resides, and whose help was instrumental in acquiring this property for 
a very attractive price, which allows us to stretch this gift far 
beyond just the purchase of the property, but to add improvements to 
the property as well.
  Mr. BLILEY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding time to 
me.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this legislation, which will 
allow the Library of Congress to accept a gift of the Federal Reserve 
facility located at Mount Pony in Culpeper County, VA. I also rise 
today to recognize and thank the gentleman from California, Mr. Bill 
Thomas and the gentleman from New York, Mr. Jim Walsh, for their hard 
work on this important legislation.
  The Library of Congress has had statutory responsibility for 
collecting and preserving audiovisual materials for nearly 100 years. 
The Library presently holds the most comprehensive collection in the 
world in all audiovisual formats, from nitrate to digitalized 
materials. The Library presently stores these materials at scattered 
locations throughout the United States, including a facility in 
Suitland, MD.
  The General Services Administration has, however, ordered the Library 
to

[[Page H10640]]

vacate its 27 nitrate vaults in Suitland by May 1998 in order that they 
may be torn down. This leaves the Library in a precarious position. 
They need a place to store the film. They want it to be local, and they 
want to establish a permanent facility for this material so that they 
do not have to constantly look for short-term storage solutions.
  Located in Culpeper County, VA, which is just a short drive from the 
Capitol, is a Federal Reserve facility which was created as a high 
security facility for currency and gold reserve storage.
  However, the Federal Reserve back in Richmond has been attempting to 
sell the property for the past 7 years because it no longer needs it. 
The Richmond Fed has placed an end-of-the-year deadline on the sale of 
this facility. If the facility is not sold, they are going to transfer 
it to the Bureau of Printing and Engraving.
  The Library views the Federal Reserve facility in Culpeper as the 
most cost-effective solution to their problem. It is large enough to 
accommodate their needs, it is close enough to Washington, and it has 
the climate controls necessary for storing the material. Essentially, 
the facility is perfect for the creation of a single, centralized 
national audiovisual and digital master conservation center. In this 
center the Library will store, preserve, process, and make accessible 
the entire national audiovisual collection.
  The important thing about this legislation is that it will enable the 
Library to do what it needs to in order to preserve the material, but 
it will not cost the American taxpayers any money. The cost of 
purchasing the facility has been donated generously by the David and 
Lucille Packard Foundation.
  Moreover, the Packard Foundation will provide funds, as the gentleman 
from California [Mr. Thomas], the chairman of the committee, has said, 
will provide funds not only for the purchase of the facility, but they 
are providing millions of dollars for the restoration and refurbishment 
of the facility.
  This is a good bill and it is a necessary bill, because if we do not 
act before adjournment, the Richmond Federal Reserve Bank will proceed 
with the transfer of the Culpeper facility to the BPE. The Library will 
miss a golden opportunity if we do not act now, so I urge all my 
colleagues to support this legislation.
  I thank the gentleman from California for all of his work.
  Ms. KILPATRICK. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to 
the gentleman from Oregon [Mr. DeFazio].
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding me the 
time. I am glad we are back in the regular order and that the ranking 
member representing the minority is now on the floor of the House.
  I am sorry that the majority felt that they had to proceed out of the 
regular order with this legislation and, in fact, that they felt that 
they had to hold the House here late in the evening for legislation 
which could have been dispatched tomorrow during regular business 
hours.
  Mr. Speaker, the legislation, as described by the gentleman from 
Virginia, whom I do hold in high regard, obviously has merit, and we 
appreciate the gift. I wish that the Library of Congress did not have 
to go begging for gifts and that the Republican majority would better 
fund the Library of Congress, but given the fact that they do not have 
adequate funds, these sorts of gifts are absolutely vital to maintain 
our national heritage.
  To the gentleman from California [Mr. Thomas], whom I hold in 
minimally high regard, I do not appreciate his words, and I would say 
that they are generally characteristic of his performance on the floor. 
That is why he is held in minimal high regard by so many Members of 
this body.
  Mr. THOMAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  The gentleman from Oregon [Mr. DeFazio] does not understand what is 
going on around here, notwithstanding his ability to come to the 
microphone and make pronouncements.
  We proceeded in regular order tonight. This was scheduled sometime 
ago by the Committee on Rules. If Members from the minority are not 
able to be here, I am sure there are good reasons. I said I would wait. 
I was instructed by the minority to go forward, so the gentleman from 
Oregon is simply misinformed.
  As a matter of fact, we tried to do this last Monday night, but in 
terms of their unwillingness to move needed legislation, the objections 
that were heard on his side of the aisle required us to wait until 
Wednesday to conclude this.
  Notwithstanding his involvement in this process and his clear 
statement on the record that this is not real work, or his attempts to 
make light of Americans wishing to assist through their ability to 
contribute to the Library of Congress and to the Smithsonian, this is 
important legislation, timely legislation, and necessary legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. KILPATRICK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume. I, too, believe that this is valuable legislation before us. 
Any time a citizen of America would want to donate to the better good 
of this country, we all would welcome that. Certainly we do in this 
instance.
  Mr. WALSH. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this legislation which 
authorizes the acquisition, without cost to the Government, of an 
existing facility to be used by the Library of Congress. The Library 
plans to convert a vacant building now owned by the Federal Reserve 
Bank of Richmond to an audio-visual preservation center.
  The building is located in Culpeper, VA. It will be acquired through 
a most generous donation by the David and Lucille Packard Foundation. 
The Packard Foundation will also contribute $4.5 million above the 
purchase price of $5.5 million to equip and maintain the building.
  The Librarian of Congress says he needs this building and its 40 acre 
site to consolidate the extensive film, video tape, and sound recording 
materials now stored in five separate locations. This facility will 
become the national center for the storage and processing of these 
collections. The Library will then be able to vacate outdated 
facilities at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, underground vaults in 
Boyers, PA, three warehouses in the Washington suburbs, and in the main 
Library itself.
  The Library's intent will be to establish a modern audio-visual 
collections center which will contain the necessary climate controls to 
process and store nitrate and acetate film and movies, and a variety of 
multimedia video and sound recordings. It will also be possible to 
connect the Culpeper facility to the main Library with fiber optic 
links to make accessible the entire national audio-visual collection.
  We have not yet seen the complete scope of the project nor do we yet 
have a complete cost analysis based on construction design and 
estimates. The Library, however, has provided estimates prepared by an 
accounting firm that indicates placing the center at Culpeper will cost 
less than the additional investments that would otherwise be necessary 
to update current storage and processing facilities or to build new 
facilities elsewhere.
  The Library and the Architect of the Capitol will prepare the 
requisite estimates for the normal appropriations cycle. They will be 
reviewed by the Committee on Appropriations in regular order. It is my 
hope that most of all of the funds can be derived from additional 
philanthropic support to minimize the need for taxpayer funding of this 
new operation. That is the intent of the Librarian, as I understand it.
  I support this authorization. The Librarian has made the case for it 
and I commend the chairman of the Committee on House Oversight, Bill 
Thomas, for bringing this legislation to the House.
  Ms. KILPATRICK. Mr. Speaker, with that, I have no further requests 
for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. THOMAS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from California [Mr. Thomas] that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 2979, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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