[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 44 (Tuesday, March 9, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E216]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           INTRODUCTION OF THE NATIONAL CHILDREN'S MUSEUM ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, March 9, 2021

  Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, today, I rise to introduce the National 
Children's Museum Act, which would require the General Services 
Administration (GSA) to enter into a cooperative agreement with the 
National Children's Museum (NCM), a congressionally designated museum, 
to allow the museum to remain in the Ronald Reagan Building and 
International Trade Center, a federally owned building in the nation's 
capital, without charge for the duration of its existing lease. The 
National Building Museum operates under such an agreement. Last 
Congress, on November 17, 2020, the House passed this bill by voice 
vote.
  This bill would allow the NCM, the nation's first combination 
children's museum and science center, to remain centrally located in 
the nation's capital for the benefit of the millions who visit and live 
in the District and the national capital region (NCR). Originally named 
the Capital Children's Museum, the NCM was a staple in D.C. for 
decades. The institution opened in 1974 in a former convent on H Street 
Northeast.
  In 2003, Congress recognized the immense value in having a children's 
museum in D.C. and officially designated the museum as the NCM. Now, 
the museum is bringing new and innovative science, technology, 
engineering, arts and math (STEAM) exhibits to the nation's capital, 
building on more than 30 years of educating D.C. children and families. 
Despite the many benefits it brings to the nation's capital, the NCM is 
an outlier. It is the only congressionally designated museum expected 
to pay rent in a federal building.
  Importantly, this bill would relieve concerns about the ability of 
the NCM to survive the coronavirus pandemic. When the museum reopened 
last year in the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, 
it immediately attracted many visitors from throughout the NCR and the 
nation, but was forced by the coronavirus pandemic to close 18 days 
later. At this time, the museum remains closed until further notice. 
Still, the museum has continued to offer valuable STEAM resources to 
our children as they navigate these new challenging learning 
circumstances, including over 75 at-home experiment and project video 
programs, monthly podcasts, virtual field trips and a Climate Action 
Heroes Digital Exhibit, among other resources.
  This bill would allow the NCM to remain centrally located in the 
nation's capital for the benefit of the millions who visit and live in 
the District and the NCR.
  I strongly urge my colleagues to support this bill.

                          ____________________