[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 137 (Monday, September 12, 2016)]
[House]
[Pages H5286-H5287]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
REAUTHORIZING THE HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES HISTORIC
PRESERVATION PROGRAM
Mrs. RADEWAGEN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 295) to reauthorize the Historically Black Colleges and
Universities Historic Preservation program, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 295
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES
HISTORIC PRESERVATION PROGRAM REAUTHORIZED.
Section 507(d)(2) of the Omnibus Parks and Public Lands
Management Act of 1996 (54 U.S.C. 302101 note) is amended by
striking the period at the end and inserting ``and each of
fiscal years 2017 through 2023.''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from
American Samoa (Mrs. Radewagen) and the gentleman from the Northern
Mariana Islands (Mr. Sablan) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from American Samoa.
General Leave
Mrs. RADEWAGEN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from American Samoa?
There was no objection.
Mrs. RADEWAGEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
H.R. 295, introduced by Congressman Clyburn of South Carolina,
reauthorizes the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Historic
Preservation program. Since 1988, this program has allowed historically
Black colleges and universities to document, preserve, and stabilize
historic structures on their campuses. Over $60 million has been
awarded to these colleges and universities for this program, ensuring
that their rich history remains preserved for future generations.
I urge my colleagues to adopt this important measure.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SABLAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the
gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Clyburn), the sponsor of the bill.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 295, my bill to
reauthorize the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Historic
Preservation program. This bill has been cosponsored by my colleagues
in the Congressional Black Caucus and is broadly supported by all of
our colleagues. It received a unanimous vote in the House Natural
Resources Committee earlier this year, and I thank Mrs. Radewagen and
Mr. Sablan and all of our colleagues for their support.
As a former high school history teacher, I have worked during my
tenure in Congress to preserve and protect our Nation's historic
treasures. Historically Black colleges and universities, commonly
called HBCUs, are some of the most important historic educational
institutions in our country. Many of them have buildings and sites on
their campuses that have existed for over a century. Unfortunately,
many of the historic buildings and sites on these campuses have
deteriorated over the years and are at risk of being lost completely if
not preserved and protected.
In 1998, at the request of the Congressional Black Caucus, the United
States Government Accountability Office surveyed 103 HBCU campuses to
identify the historically significant sites on these campuses and
project the cost of restoring and preserving these properties. The GAO
identified 712 historic buildings and sites and projected a cost of
$755 million to restore and preserve them. Each of these sites has
national significance to American history, and I believe we have an
obligation to be stewards of these cultural treasures.
Congress first authorized grants to HBCUs for historic preservation
in 1996. In 2003, working with our former colleague, the gentleman from
Utah, Jim Hansen, and our current colleague, and my friend, the
gentleman from Tennessee, Jimmy Duncan, Congress expanded the program
that was originally championed by our former colleague, the gentleman
from Tennessee, Bob Clement. Ten million dollars was authorized
annually for 5 years.
The bill before us today extends that authorization at the same level
for an additional 7 years. I have seen the transformative effect of
these historic preservation grants on HBCU campuses in my district and
across the country.
Arnette Hall at Allen University in Columbia, South Carolina, was
designed by an African American architect and constructed by the
university students themselves in 1891. Before being restored to the
Secretary of the Interior's standards, Arnette Hall had been boarded up
for nearly 40 years.
Testifying before the Committee on Natural Resources earlier this
year, Claflin University's president, Dr. Henry Tisdale, spoke of the
tremendous impact the restorations of Ministers and Tingley Halls have
had on his institution.
Last June, I spoke at the rededication of historic Chappelle
Auditorium, on the campus of Allen University, which was painstakingly
restored thanks to funding from this program.
[[Page H5287]]
Originally built in 1925, this building was central to the cultural
life of African Americans in South Carolina for generations.
In 1947, Reverend Joseph A. DeLaine attended a NAACP event at
Chappelle Auditorium that inspired him to organize Black families in
Clarendon County to petition their school district to provide buses for
Black students who, at the time, were forced to make a daily walk of
9.4 miles to school. This case, Briggs v. Elliot, precipitated the
frontal attack on segregation in the country and was later combined
with four other cases that became Brown v. Board of Education of
Topeka, Kansas, at the United States Supreme Court. Overturning the
``separate but equal'' fallacy, Brown ended legal segregation in this
country.
Historic buildings and sites at 59 HBCUs in 20 States have benefited
from this program. Their stories are similar to those in my district
that I have just shared.
There are many more buildings and sites on these campuses that are in
dire need of restoration and preservation. H.R. 295 will renew our
commitment to the stewardship of this critical aspect of American
history.
Although it will not provide all of the funding the GAO estimated is
needed to preserve every threatened site, H.R. 295 will continue the
progress Congress has made in preserving these unique treasures.
I thank Chairman Bishop, subcommittee Chairman McClintock, and
Ranking Members Grijalva and Tsongas for their support of this
important legislation, and I urge all of my colleagues to support it.
Mrs. RADEWAGEN. Mr. Speaker, I would advise the gentleman that I have
no additional speakers, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SABLAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
H.R. 295 is a great bill. I would like to thank the gentleman from
South Carolina (Mr. Clyburn), my esteemed colleague, for all of his
hard work.
I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this bill.
I yield back the balance of my time.
Mrs. RADEWAGEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentlewoman from American Samoa (Mrs. Radewagen) that the House suspend
the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 295, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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