2015 US Code
Title 16 - Conservation (Sections 1 - 7507)
Chapter 1 - National Parks, Military Parks, Monuments, and Seashores (Sections 1 - 460aaaa)
Subchapter LI-A - Subchapter LI-A-National Constitution Center (Sections 407aa - 407ee)

Congress finds that:

(1) 1987 was the bicentennial of the signing of the United States Constitution;

(2) commemoration of the Constitution's bicentennial included various events conducted by the Federal Commission on the Bicentennial of the United States Constitution, and State and local bicentennial commissions;

(3) bicentennial activities included important educational and instructional programs to heighten public awareness of the Constitution and the democratic process;

(4) educational programs for the Constitution should continue after the bicentennial to document its profound impact on the political, economic and social development of this Nation, and in order to recognize those Americans instrumental in the history of the Constitution; and

(5) units of the National Park System preserve and interpret key historic sites that document the history of the origins, subsequent development, and effects of the United States Constitution on this Nation.

It is therefore the policy of the Congress to provide each of the following:

(1) the necessary resources to develop a national resource center to undertake, on an ongoing basis, educational programs on the Constitution;

(2) exhibits of, and an archives for, programs on or related to the recent bicentennial of the United States Constitution; and

(3) interpretation of the United States Constitution at those units of the National Park System particularly relevant to its history.

(Pub. L. 100–433, §2, Sept. 16, 1988, 102 Stat. 1640.)

Pub. L. 100–433, §1, Sept. 16, 1988, 102 Stat. 1640, provided that: "This Act [enacting this subchapter] may be cited as the 'Constitution Heritage Act of 1988'."

The Secretary of the Interior (hereafter in this subchapter referred to as the "Secretary") shall establish The National Constitution Center (hereafter in this subchapter referred to as the "Center") within or in close proximity to the Independence National Historical Park. The Center shall disseminate information about the United States Constitution on a nonpartisan basis in order to increase the awareness and understanding of the Constitution among the American people.

The functions of the Center shall include—

(1) serving as a center of exhibits and related materials on the history and contemporary significance of the Constitution;

(2) directing a national program of public education on the Constitution; issuing traveling exhibits, commissioning radio and television programs, furnishing materials for the schools, and providing other education services;

(3) functioning as an intellectual center, drawing both academics and practitioners to debate and refine constitutional issues and, at the same time, providing intellectual support for the Center's exhibits and public education program; and

(4) creating archives for programs on the bicentennial of the United States Constitution.

(Pub. L. 100–433, §3, Sept. 16, 1988, 102 Stat. 1640.)

The Secretary through the General Services Administration, is authorized to provide, upon adequate reimbursement, a site, including necessary structures, for the Center by—

(1) using an existing structure or modifying an existing structure for use; or

(2) constructing a new structure to house the Center. The Secretary may acquire such land as is necessary to provide a site for the Center.

The Secretary is authorized to make grants to, and enter into cooperative agreements, contracts or leases with the National Constitution Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which shall operate the Center as provided in this subchapter in order to carry out the purposes of this subchapter. Funds authorized to be appropriated under this subchapter may be made available to the National Constitution Center only to the extent that they are matched by such entity with funds from nonfederal sources.

(Pub. L. 100–433, §4, Sept. 16, 1988, 102 Stat. 1641.)

The Secretary shall interpret the origins, subsequent development, and effects of the United States Constitution on this country at Independence National Historical Park and at such other units of the National Park System as are closely associated with the Constitution. The Secretary shall select not less than 12 units of the National Park System for such interpretation, including Independence National Historical Park.

The Secretary is authorized to establish and maintain at Independence National Historical Park an appropriate memorial to the United States Constitution as a key document in our Nation's history.

In coordination with the National Constitution Center, the Secretary shall develop and make available to the public interpretive and educational materials related to sites within the National Park System as referred to in subsection (a).

The Secretary may enter into cooperative agreements with the owners or administrators of historic sites closely associated with the Constitution, pursuant to which the Secretary may provide technical assistance in the preservation and interpretation of such sites.

The Secretary shall contract with the National Constitution Center and other qualified institutions of higher learning for research and other activities including the distribution of interpretive and educational materials as appropriate in order to carry out the provisions of this subchapter.

Nothing in this section may be construed to alter or waive the requirement that the Secretary maintain the historic integrity of units of the National Park System, including compliance with section 306108 of title 54.

(Pub. L. 100–433, §5, Sept. 16, 1988, 102 Stat. 1641.)

In subsec. (f), "section 306108 of title 54" substituted for "section 106 of the Historic Preservation Act (90 Stat. 1320) as amended" on authority of Pub. L. 113–287, §6(e), Dec. 19, 2014, 128 Stat. 3272, which Act enacted Title 54, National Park Service and Related Programs.

There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this subchapter.

(Pub. L. 100–433, §6, Sept. 16, 1988, 102 Stat. 1642.)