National Lighthouse Center and Museum Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 4845 To amend title 36, United States Code, to grant a Federal charter to the National Lighthouse Center and Museum. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OCTOBER 23, 2019 Mr. ROSE of New York introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary A BILL To amend title 36, United States Code, to grant a Federal charter to the National Lighthouse Center and Museum. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Lighthouse 4 Center and Museum Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. NATIONAL LIGHTHOUSE CENTER AND MUSEUM. 6 Part B of subtitle II of title 36, United States Code, 7 is amended by inserting after chapter 1519 the following 8 new chapter: 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:26 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4845.IH H4845 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 4845 IH ‘‘CHAPTER 1520—NATIONAL LIGHTHOUSE 1 CENTER AND MUSEUM 2 ‘‘Sec. ‘‘152001. Organization. ‘‘152002. Purposes. ‘‘152003. Operation of museum. ‘‘152004. Membership. ‘‘152005. Governing body. ‘‘152006. Powers. ‘‘152007. Restrictions. ‘‘152008. Duty to maintain corporate and tax-exempt status. ‘‘152009. Records and inspection. ‘‘152010. Service of process. ‘‘152011. Liability for acts of officers and agents. ‘‘152012. Annual report. ‘‘152013. Definitions. ‘‘§ 152001. Organization 3 ‘‘(a) FEDERAL CHARTER.—The National Lighthouse 4 Center and Museum, incorporated in New York, is a feder- 5 ally chartered corporation. 6 ‘‘(b) EXPIRATION OF CHARTER.—If the corporation 7 does not comply with any provision of this chapter, the 8 charter granted by this chapter expires. 9 ‘‘§ 152002. Purposes 10 ‘‘The purposes of the corporation are as provided in 11 its constitution and bylaws and include the following pur- 12 poses: 13 ‘‘(1) To collect, preserve, and interpret objects 14 related to the history and technology of lighthouses 15 located, in the past or present, at sites throughout 16 the United States. 17 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:26 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4845.IH H4845 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 4845 IH ‘‘(2) To research, document, and disseminate 1 information on the history and technology of Amer- 2 ican lighthouses. 3 ‘‘(3) To create and maintain an archive of arti- 4 facts and materials related to American lighthouses. 5 ‘‘(4) To foster research of American lighthouse 6 history. 7 ‘‘(5) To serve as a contact point for public in- 8 quiry and assistance with respect to American light- 9 house history, research, education, collections, and 10 programs. 11 ‘‘(6) To celebrate America’s lighthouse heritage 12 through educational programs, publications, films, 13 festivals, living history, lighthouse trails, con- 14 ferences, and other such offerings. 15 ‘‘(7) To support other existing and future light- 16 house museums, organizations, and sites. 17 ‘‘(8) To establish partnerships with other orga- 18 nizations to attain the above goals. 19 ‘‘(9) To engage in any lawful act or activity 20 necessary to further the purposes of the corporation 21 under this section. 22 ‘‘§ 152003. Operation of museum 23 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The corporation shall operate a 24 museum to be known as the National Lighthouse Center 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:26 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4845.IH H4845 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 4845 IH and Museum at the site of the former United States 1 Lighthouse Depot located at what is now known as St. 2 George, Staten Island, New York. 3 ‘‘(b) STORAGE FACILITY.—The corporation shall op- 4 erate a storage facility located at or near the site described 5 in subsection (a) for the care, conservation, and mainte- 6 nance of artifacts in the collection of the corporation. 7 ‘‘(c) SUPPORT TO OTHER MUSEUMS.—The corpora- 8 tion shall provide support to other museums that interpret 9 the history of aids to navigation in the United States. 10 ‘‘(d) DESIGNATION OF COLLECTION.—The collection 11 of artifacts of the National Lighthouse Center and Mu- 12 seum shall be known as the National Lighthouse Collec- 13 tion. 14 ‘‘(e) EXCLUSIVE RIGHT.—The corporation shall have 15 the sole and exclusive right to use, in carrying out its pur- 16 poses, the name ‘National Lighthouse Center and Mu- 17 seum’ and the sole and exclusive right to the use of its 18 corporate seal, emblems, and badges as adopted by the 19 corporation. 20 ‘‘§ 152004. Membership 21 ‘‘Eligibility for membership in the corporation and 22 the rights and privileges of members are as provided in 23 the constitution and bylaws of the corporation. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:26 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4845.IH H4845 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HR 4845 IH ‘‘§ 152005. Governing body 1 ‘‘(a) BOARD OF TRUSTEES.—The board of trustees 2 of the corporation and the responsibilities of the board are 3 as provided in the constitution and bylaws of the corpora- 4 tion. 5 ‘‘(b) OFFICERS.—The officers and the election of offi- 6 cers of the corporation are as provided in the bylaws of 7 the corporation. 8 ‘‘§ 152006. Powers 9 ‘‘The corporation has only the powers provided in its 10 constitution, bylaws, and charter as granted by the Board 11 of Regents of the State of New York and in the certificate 12 of authority in any other State in which the corporation 13 is, or shall be, qualified to do business. 14 ‘‘§ 152007. Restrictions 15 ‘‘(a) STOCK AND DIVIDENDS.—The corporation may 16 not issue stock or declare or pay a dividend. 17 ‘‘(b) POLITICAL ACTIVITIES.—The corporation or a 18 trustee or officer, acting as such trustee or officer, may 19 not contribute to, support, or participate in any political 20 activity or in any manner attempt to influence legislation. 21 ‘‘(c) DISTRIBUTION OF INCOME OR ASSETS.—The in- 22 come or assets of the corporation may not inure to the 23 benefit of, or be distributed to, a trustee, officer, or mem- 24 ber during the life of the charter granted by this chapter. 25 This subsection does not prevent the payment of reason- 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:26 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4845.IH H4845 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HR 4845 IH able compensation to an officer or reimbursement for ac- 1 tual necessary expenses in amounts approved by the board 2 of trustees. 3 ‘‘(d) LOANS.—The corporation may not make a loan 4 to a trustee, officer, or employee. 5 ‘‘(e) CLAIM OF GOVERNMENTAL APPROVAL OR AU- 6 THORIZATION.—The corporation may not claim congres- 7 sional approval or the authority of the United States Gov- 8 ernment for any of its activities. 9 ‘‘§ 152008. Duty to maintain corporate and tax-ex- 10 empt status 11 ‘‘(a) CORPORATE STATUS.—The corporation shall 12 maintain its corporate status as a corporation incor- 13 porated under the laws of the State of New York. 14 ‘‘(b) TAX-EXEMPT STATUS.—The corporation shall 15 maintain its status as an organization exempt from tax- 16 ation under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 17 1 et seq.). 18 ‘‘§ 152009. Records and inspection 19 ‘‘(a) RECORDS.—The corporation shall keep— 20 ‘‘(1) correct and complete records of account; 21 ‘‘(2) minutes of the proceedings of its members, 22 board of trustees, and committees; and 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:33 Oct 30, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4845.IH H4845 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •HR 4845 IH ‘‘(3) at its principal office, a record of the 1 names and addresses of its members entitled to vote, 2 if any. 3 ‘‘(b) INSPECTION.—Any officer or trustee, or any 4 member entitled to vote (if any), or an agent or attorney 5 of such officer, trustee, or member, may inspect the 6 records of the corporation for any proper purpose at any 7 reasonable time. 8 ‘‘§ 152010. Service of process 9 ‘‘The corporation shall comply with the law on service 10 of process of the State of New York and in each State 11 in which it carries on activities. 12 ‘‘§ 152011. Liability for acts of officers and agents 13 ‘‘The corporation is liable for the acts of its officers 14 and agents acting within the scope of their authority. 15 ‘‘§ 152012. Annual report 16 ‘‘The corporation shall submit an annual report to 17 Congress on the activities of the corporation during the 18 prior fiscal year. The report shall be submitted at the 19 same time as the report of the audit required by section 20 10101 of this title. The report may not be printed as a 21 public document. 22 ‘‘§ 152013. Definitions 23 ‘‘For purposes of this chapter— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:26 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4845.IH H4845 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •HR 4845 IH ‘‘(1) the term ‘corporation’ means the National 1 Lighthouse Center and Museum, Inc., incorporated 2 in New York; and 3 ‘‘(2) the term ‘State’ includes the District of 4 Columbia and the territories and possessions of the 5 United States.’’. 6 SEC. 3. CLERICAL AMENDMENT. 7 The table of chapters at the beginning of subtitle II 8 of title 36, United States Code, is amended by inserting 9 after the item relating to chapter 1519 the following new 10 item: 11 ‘‘1520. National Lighthouse Center and Museum .................152001.’’ Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:33 Oct 30, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H4845.IH H4845 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS