Japanese American Confinement Education Act

Japanese American Confinement Education Act

This bill establishes a museum program on the historical importance of Japanese American confinement during World War II and permanently reauthorizes the Japanese American Confinement Sites preservation program.

The bill directs the Department of the Interior to establish a program of grants to a Japanese American museum to educate individuals in the United States on the historical importance of such confinement and the commitment of the United States to equal justice.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8637 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8637

 To provide competitive grants for the promotion of Japanese American 
   confinement education as a means to understand the importance of 
 democratic principles, use and abuse of power, and to raise awareness 
 about the importance of cultural tolerance toward Japanese Americans, 
                        and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 20, 2020

 Ms. Matsui (for herself, Mr. Bishop of Utah, Mr. Takano, Ms. Cheney, 
 Ms. Judy Chu of California, Mr. Young, Ms. Meng, Mr. Buck, Mr. Case, 
  Mr. Khanna, Mr. Suozzi, Ms. Lee of California, Ms. Norton, and Mr. 
Smith of Washington) introduced the following bill; which was referred 
                 to the Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To provide competitive grants for the promotion of Japanese American 
   confinement education as a means to understand the importance of 
 democratic principles, use and abuse of power, and to raise awareness 
 about the importance of cultural tolerance toward Japanese Americans, 
                        and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Japanese American Confinement 
Education Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Japanese american museum.--The term ``Japanese American 
        museum'' means a museum located in the United States 
        established to promote the understanding and appreciation of 
        the ethnic and cultural diversity of the United States by 
        illustrating the Japanese American experience throughout the 
        history of the United States.
            (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Interior.

SEC. 3. COMPETITIVE GRANTS FOR JAPANESE AMERICAN CONFINEMENT EDUCATION.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall establish a program to award 
competitive grants to a Japanese American museum to educate individuals 
in the United States on the historical importance of Japanese American 
confinement during World War II so that present and future generations 
may learn from Japanese American confinement and the commitment of the 
United States to equal justice under the law.
    (b) Use of Funds.--A grant awarded under subsection (a)--
            (1) shall be used--
                    (A) for the research and education relating to the 
                Japanese American confinement in World War II; and
                    (B) for the disbursement of accurate, relevant, and 
                accessible resources to promote understanding about how 
                and why the Japanese American confinement in World War 
                II happened, which--
                            (i) shall include digital resources; and
                            (ii) may include other types of resources, 
                        including print resources and exhibitions; and
            (2) shall not be used at a Japanese American museum that 
        does not provide--
                    (A) free admission to individuals who were placed 
                within a Japanese American confinement camp; and
                    (B) dedicated free admission hours for the general 
                public not less than once per month.
    (c) Application.--To be eligible to receive a grant under this 
section, a Japanese American museum shall submit to the Secretary an 
application at such time, in such manner, and containing such 
information as the Secretary may require.
    (d) Deadline for Award.--Not later than 120 days after the date on 
which the Secretary receives an application from a Japanese American 
museum for a grant that is approved by the Secretary under this 
section, the Secretary shall award a grant to the Japanese American 
museum.
    (e) Priority Considerations.--In awarding a grant under this 
section, the Secretary shall give priority using the following 
considerations:
            (1) The needs of the Japanese American museum.
            (2) The proximity of the project for which the grant funds 
        will be used to cities with populations that include not less 
        than 100,000 Japanese Americans, as certified by the most 
        recent census.
            (3) The ability and commitment of the Japanese American 
        museum to use grant funds--
                    (A) to educate future generations of individuals in 
                the United States; and
                    (B) to locate Japanese American confinement 
                survivors.
            (4) The existing relationship the Japanese American museum 
        has with Japanese American cultural and advocacy organizations.
    (f) Report.--Not later than 90 days after the end of each fiscal 
year for which a Japanese American museum obligates or expends amounts 
made available under a grant under this section, the Japanese American 
museum shall submit to the Secretary and the appropriate committees of 
Congress a report that--
            (1) specifies the amount of grant funds obligated or 
        expended for the preceding fiscal year;
            (2) specifies any purposes for which the funds were 
        obligated or expended; and
            (3) includes any other information that the Secretary may 
        require to more effectively administer the grant program.
    (g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this Act $2,000,000 for each 
of fiscal years 2022 through 2026.

SEC. 4. PRESERVATION OF HISTORIC CONFINEMENT SITES.

    (a) Sunset.--Section 1 of Public Law 109-441 (120 Stat. 3288) is 
amended by striking subsection (e).
    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 4 of Public Law 109-
441 (120 Stat. 3290) is amended, in the first sentence--
            (1) by striking ``are authorized'' and inserting ``is 
        authorized''; and
            (2) by inserting ``for fiscal year 2021 and each fiscal 
        year thereafter'' after ``this Act''.
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