§ 959. — Administrative provisions.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 20USC959]
TITLE 20--EDUCATION
CHAPTER 26--SUPPORT AND SCHOLARSHIP IN HUMANITIES AND ARTS; MUSEUM
SERVICES
SUBCHAPTER I--NATIONAL FOUNDATION ON THE ARTS AND THE HUMANITIES
Sec. 959. Administrative provisions
(a) General authority of Chairpersons
In addition to any authorities vested in them by other provisions of
this subchapter, the Chairperson of the National Endowment for the Arts
and the Chairperson of the National Endowment for the Humanities, in
carrying out their respective functions, shall each have authority--
(1) to prescribe such regulations as the Chairperson deems
necessary governing the manner in which the Chairperson's functions
shall be carried out;
(2) in the discretion of the Chairperson of an Endowment, after
receiving the recommendation of the National Council of that
Endowment, to receive money and other property donated, bequeathed,
or devised to that Endowment with or without a condition or
restriction, including a condition that the Chairperson use other
funds of that Endowment for the purposes of the gift, except that a
Chairperson may receive a gift without a recommendation from the
Council to provide support for any application or project which can
be approved without Council recommendation under the provisions of
sections 955(f) and 957(f) of this title, and may receive a gift of
$15,000, or less, without Council recommendation in the event the
Council fails to provide such recommendation within a reasonable
period of time, and to use, sell, or otherwise dispose of such
property for the purpose of carrying out sections 954(c) and 956(c)
of this title;
(3) to appoint employees, subject to the civil service laws, as
necessary to carry out the Chairperson's functions, define their
duties, and supervise and direct their activities;
(4) to utilize experts and consultants, including panels of
experts, who may be employed as authorized by section 3109 of title
5;
(5) to accept and utilize the services of voluntary and
uncompensated personnel and reimburse them for travel expenses,
including per diem, as authorized by section 5703 of title 5 for
persons in the Government service employed without compensation;
(6) to make advance, progress, and other payments without regard
to section 3324 of title 31;
(7) to rent office space in the District of Columbia; and
(8) to make other necessary expenditures.
(b) Rules for distribution of donations, bequests, and devises; gifts
with or without conditions; transfers for tax purposes
(1) In any case in which any money or other property is donated,
bequeathed, or devised to the Foundation without designation of the
Endowment for the benefit of which such property is intended, and
without condition or restriction other than that it be used for the
purposes of the Foundation, such property shall be deemed to have been
donated, bequeathed, or devised in equal shares to each Endowment and
each Chairperson of an Endowment shall have authority to receive such
property.
(2) In any case in which any money or other property is donated,
bequeathed, or devised to the Foundation with a condition or
restriction, such property shall be deemed to have been donated,
bequeathed, or devised to that Endowment whose function it is to carry
out the purpose or purposes described or referred to by the terms of
such condition or restriction, and each Chairperson of an Endowment
shall have authority to receive such property.
(3) For the purposes of the preceding sentence, if one or more of
the purposes of such a condition or restriction is covered by the
functions of both Endowments, or if some of the purposes of such a
condition or restriction are covered by the functions of one Endowment
and other of the purposes of such a condition or restriction are covered
by the functions of the other Endowment, the Federal Council on the Arts
and the Humanities shall determine an equitable manner for distribution
between each of the Endowments of the property so donated, bequeathed,
or devised.
(4) For the purposes of the income tax, gift tax, and estate tax
laws of the United States, any money or other property donated,
bequeathed, or devised to the Foundation or one of its Endowments and
received by the Chairperson of an Endowment pursuant to authority
derived under this subsection shall be deemed to have been donated,
bequeathed, or devised to or for the use of the United States.
(c) Advisory panels; membership; procedures
The Chairperson of the National Endowment for the Arts shall utilize
advisory panels to review applications, and to make recommendations to
the National Council on the Arts in all cases except cases in which the
Chairperson exercises authority delegated under section 955(f) of this
title. When reviewing applications, such panels shall recommend
applications for projects, productions, and workshops solely on the
basis of artistic excellence and artistic merit. The Chairperson shall
issue regulations and establish procedures--
(1) to ensure that all panels are composed, to the extent
practicable, of individuals reflecting a wide geographic, ethnic,
and minority representation as well as individuals reflecting
diverse artistic and cultural points of view;
(2) to ensure that all panels include representation of lay
individuals who are knowledgeable about the arts but who are not
engaged in the arts as a profession and are not members of either
artists' organizations or arts organizations;
(3) to ensure that, when feasible, the procedures used by panels
to carry out their responsibilities are standardized;
(4) to require panels--
(A) to create written records summarizing--
(i) all meetings and discussions of such panel; and
(ii) the recommendations made by such panel to the
Council; and
(B) to make such records available to the public in a manner
that protects the privacy of individual applicants and panel
members;
(5) to require, when necessary and feasible, the use of site
visitations to view the work of the applicant and deliver a written
report on the work being reviewed, in order to assist panelists in
making their recommendations; and
(6) to require that the membership of each panel change
substantially from year to year and to provide that each individual
is ineligible to serve on a panel for more than 3 consecutive years.
In making appointments to panels, the Chairperson shall ensure that an
individual who has a pending application for financial assistance under
this subchapter, or who is an employee or agent of an organization with
a pending application, does not serve as a member of any panel before
which such application is pending. The prohibition described in the
preceding sentence shall commence with respect to such individual
beginning on the date such application is submitted and shall continue
for so long as such application is pending.
(d) Endowment activities reports
The Chairperson of the National Endowment for the Arts and the
Chairperson of the National Endowment for the Humanities shall each
submit an annual report to the President for transmittal to the Congress
on or before the 15th day of April of each year. The report shall
summarize the activities of the Endowment for the preceding year, and
may include such recommendations as the Chairperson deems appropriate.
(e) Council activities reports
The National Council on the Arts and the National Council on the
Humanities, respectively, may each submit an annual report to the
President for transmittal to the Congress on or before the 15th day of
April of each year setting forth a summary of its activities during the
preceding year or its recommendations for any measures which it
considers necessary or desirable.
(f) Post-award evaluation of assisted projects, productions, and
programs; reports; extension of time for compliance; failure to
satisfy purposes of assistance
(1) The Chairperson of the National Endowment for the Arts and the
Chairperson of the National Endowment for the Humanities shall conduct a
post-award evaluation of projects, productions, and programs for which
financial assistance is provided by their respective Endowments under
sections 954(c) and 956(c) of this title. Such evaluation may include an
audit to determine the accuracy of the reports required to be submitted
by recipients under clauses (i) and (ii) of paragraph (2)(A). As a
condition of receiving such financial assistance, a recipient shall
comply with the requirements specified in paragraph (2) that are
applicable to the project, production, or program for which such
financial assistance is received.
(2)(A) The recipient of financial assistance provided by either of
the Endowments shall submit to the Chairperson of the Endowment
involved--
(i) a financial report containing such information as the
Chairperson deems necessary to ensure that such financial assistance
is expended in accordance with the terms and conditions under which
it is provided;
(ii) a report describing the project, production, or program
carried out with such financial assistance; and
(iii) if practicable, as determined by the Chairperson, a copy
of such project, production, or program.
(B) Such recipient shall comply with the requirements of this
paragraph not later than 90 days after the end of the period for which
such financial assistance is provided. The Chairperson may extend the
90-day period only if the recipient shows good cause why such an
extension should be granted.
(3) If such recipient substantially fails to satisfy the purposes
for which such financial assistance is provided and the criteria
specified in subsection (c)(3)(A) \1\ of this section, as determined by
the Chairperson of the Endowment that provided such financial
assistance, then such Chairperson may--
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\1\ So in original. Subsec. (c)(3) of this section does not contain
a subpar. (A).
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(A) for purposes of determining whether to provide any
subsequent financial assistance, take into consideration the results
of the post-award evaluation conducted under this subsection;
(B) prohibit the recipient of such financial assistance to use
the name of, or in any way associate such project, production, or
program with the Endowment that provided such financial assistance;
and
(C) if such project, production, or program is published,
require that the publication contain the following statement: ``The
opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed
herein do not reflect the views of the National Endowment for the
Arts or the National Endowment for the Humanities.''
(Pub. L. 89-209, Sec. 10, Sept. 29, 1965, 79 Stat. 852; Pub. L. 90-348,
Sec. 5, June 18, 1968, 82 Stat. 186; Pub. L. 91-346, Secs. 5(a)(3), 10,
11, July 20, 1970, 84 Stat. 443, 446; Pub. L. 93-133, Sec. 2(a)(9),
(10), Oct. 19, 1973, 87 Stat. 465; Pub. L. 96-496, title I, Sec. 107,
Dec. 4, 1980, 94 Stat. 2588; renumbered title I, Sec. 10, Pub. L. 98-
306, Sec. 2, May 31, 1984, 98 Stat. 223; renumbered Sec. 10 and amended
Pub. L. 99-194, title I, Secs. 101(1), 110, Dec. 20, 1985, 99 Stat.
1332, 1339; Pub. L. 101-512, title III, Sec. 318 [title I, Sec. 109],
Nov. 5, 1990, 104 Stat. 1960, 1970.)
References in Text
The civil service laws, referred to in subsec. (a)(3), are set forth
in Title 5, Government Organization and Employees. See, particularly,
section 3301 et seq. of Title 5.
The income tax, gift tax, and estate tax laws of the United States,
referred to in subsec. (b)(4), are classified generally to Title 26,
Internal Revenue Code.
Codification
In subsec. (a)(5), reference to ``section 5703 of title 5''
substituted for ``law (5 U.S.C. 73b-2)'' on authority of Pub. L. 89-554,
Sec. 7(b), Sept. 6, 1966, 80 Stat. 631, the first section of which
enacted Title 5, Government Organization and Employees.
Amendments
1990--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 101-512, Sec. 318 [title I,
Sec. 109(5)(A)], redesignated concluding provisions of subsec. (a) as
subsec. (b).
Subsec. (a)(4). Pub. L. 101-512, Sec. 318 [title I, Sec. 109(1)(A)],
struck out ``from time to time, as appropriate,'' after ``to utilize''.
Subsec. (a)(6). Pub. L. 101-512, Sec. 318 [title I, Sec. 109(1)(B)],
substituted ``section 3324 of title 31'' for ``the provisions of section
3648 of the Revised Statutes (31 U.S.C. 529)''.
Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 101-512, Sec. 318 [title I, Sec. 109(9)], which
directed amendment of this section by striking the sixth sentence and
all that follows through ``pending.'' was executed by striking all that
follows through ``pending.'' the second place it appeared to reflect the
probable intent of Congress. The provisions struck out read as follows:
``In selecting panels of experts under clause (4) to review and make
recommendations with respect to the approval of applications for
financial assistance under this subchapter, each Chairperson shall
appoint individuals who have exhibited expertise and leadership in the
field under review, who broadly represent diverse characteristics in
terms of aesthetic or humanistic perspective, and geographical factors,
and who broadly represent cultural diversity. Each Chairperson shall
assure that the membership of panels changes substantially from year to
year, and that no more than 20 per centum of the annual appointments
shall be for service beyond the limit of three consecutive years on a
subpanel. In making appointments, each Chairperson shall give due regard
to the need for experienced as well as new members on each panel. Panels
of experts appointed to review or make recommendations with respect to
the approval of applications or projects for funding by the National
Endowment for the Arts shall, when reviewing such applications and
projects, recommend for funding only applications and projects that in
the context in which they are presented, in the experts' view, foster
excellence, are reflective of exceptional talent, and have significant
literary, scholarly, cultural, or artistic merit. Whenever there is
pending an application submitted by an individual for financial
assistance under section 954(c) of this title, such individual may not
serve as a member of any subpanel (or panel where a subpanel does not
exist) before which such application is pending. The prohibition
described in the previous sentence shall commence on the date the
application is submitted and continue for so long as the application is
pending.''
Pub. L. 101-512, Sec. 318 [title I, Sec. 109(8)], which directed
amendment of the fifth sentence of this section by making the
substitution for ``For the purpose'', was executed by substituting ``(4)
For the purposes'' for ``For the purposes'' to reflect the probable
intent of Congress.
Pub. L. 101-512, Sec. 318 [title I, Sec. 109(4)-(7)], redesignated
concluding provisions of subsec. (a) as subsec. (b), inserted pars. (1),
(2), and (3) designations, and struck out ``(A)'' before ``without
designation'' and ``(B)'' before ``without condition''. Former subsec.
(b) redesignated (d).
Subsecs. (c) to (e). Pub. L. 101-512, Sec. 318 [title I,
Sec. 109(3), (4), (9)], added subsec. (c), redesignated former subsecs.
(b) and (c) as (d) and (e), respectively, and struck out former subsec.
(e) which related to studies and reports on the state and quality of
arts and humanities education in public elementary and secondary
schools. Former subsec. (d) redesignated (f).
Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 101-512, Sec. 318 [title I, Sec. 109(2)-(4)],
redesignated subsec. (d) as (f) and, in par. (3), substituted
``subsection (c)(3)(A) of this section'' for ``the last sentence of
subsection (a) of this section'', and struck out former subsec. (f)
which related to report to Congress on selection of experts for
appointment to panels, and procedures for recommendations on financial
assistance applications.
1985--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 99-194, Sec. 110(1), substituted
``Chairperson'' for ``Chairman'' in two places in provisions preceding
cl. (1); in cl. (1) substituted ``the chairperson'' and ``the
chairperson's'' for ``he'' and ``his'', respectively; in cl. (2)
substituted ``Chairperson'' for ``Chairman'' wherever appearing; in cl.
(3) substituted ``the Chairperson's'' for ``his''; in cl. (4)
substituted ``section 3109 of title 5'' for ``section 15 of the
Administrative Expenses Act of 1946, as amended (5 U.S.C. 55a)'' and
struck out proviso that any advisory panel appointed to review or make
recommendations with respect to the approval of applications or projects
for funding was to have broad geographic and culturally diverse
representation; and in provisions following par. (8) substituted
``Chairperson'' for ``Chairman'' wherever appearing and inserted
provisions relating to the selection of a panel of experts to review
financial assistance applications and the considerations to be made in
the review of such applications.
Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 99-194, Sec. 110(2), substituted
``Chairperson'' for ``Chairman'' wherever appearing.
Subsecs. (d) to (f). Pub. L. 99-194, Sec. 110(3), added subsecs. (d)
to (f). Former subsec. (d), relating to studies and reports to the
President and the Congress on endowment uses of donations, bequests, and
devises, was struck out.
1980--Subsec. (a)(4). Pub. L. 96-496, Sec. 107(a), inserted ``and
culturally diverse''.
Subsecs. (b), (c). Pub. L. 96-496, Sec. 107(b), (c), substituted
``April'' for ``January''.
Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 96-496, Sec. 107(d), added subsec. (d).
1973--Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 93-133, Sec. 2(a)(9), added exception
that a Chairman may receive a gift without a recommendation from the
Council to provide support for any application or project which can be
approved without Council recommendation under the provisions of sections
955(f) and 957(f) of this title, and may receive a gift of $15,000 or
less without Council recommendation when the Council fails to recommend
within a reasonable period of time.
Subsec. (a)(4). Pub. L. 93-133, Sec. 2(a)(10), inserted proviso that
any advisory panel appointed to review or make recommendations with
respect to the approval of applications or projects for funding shall
have broad geographic representation.
1970--Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 91-346, Sec. 5(a)(3), struck out
reference to the functions transferred by section 955(a) of this title.
Subsec. (a)(3) to (5). Pub. L. 91-346, Sec. 11(1)-(3), inserted
``to'' at beginning of cls. (3) to (5).
Subsec. (a)(6) to (8). Pub. L. 91-346, Secs. 10, 11(4), (5),
redesignated cls. (6) and (7), and all references thereto, as cls. (7)
and (8), added new cl. (6), and inserted ``to'' at beginning of cls. (7)
and (8).
1968--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 90-348 combined provisions of cls. (2)
and (3) into cl. (2), and, in cl. (2) as thus combined, extended the
area for the exercise of discretion of the Chairman of an Endowment,
after receiving the recommendation of the National Council of that
Endowment, in the disposition of gifts to include both gifts made with
condition and gifts made without condition, redesignated cls. (4) to (8)
as (3) to (7), and in provisions following cl. (7), struck out
references to cls. (2) and (3) wherever appearing.
Effective Date of 1990 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 101-512 effective Oct. 1, 1990, see section 318
[title IV, Sec. 403(a)] of Pub. L. 101-512, set out as a note under
section 951 of this title.
Effective Date of 1973 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 93-133 effective on and after July 1, 1973, see
section 2(b) of Pub. L. 93-133, set out as a note under section 951 of
this title.
Effective Date of 1970 Amendment
Amendment by section 5(a)(3) of Pub. L. 91-346 effective after June
30, 1970, see section 5(d)(3)(A) of Pub. L. 91-346, set out as a note
under section 955 of this title.
Termination of Reporting Requirements
For termination, effective May 15, 2000, of provisions in subsec.
(d) of this section relating to transmitting annual reports to Congress,
see section 3003 of Pub. L. 104-66, as amended, set out as a note under
section 1113 of Title 31, Money and Finance, and page 183 of House
Document No. 103-7.
Section Referred to in Other Sections
This section is referred to in sections 954, 955, 956, 960 of this
title.
