Winston-Salem Journal - Claims to Art Stolen by Nazis at Center of Bipartisan US Senate Bill

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By Bertrand Gutierrez

Victims of the Holocaust who try to reclaim works of art stolen from them or their families by Nazis have the backing of U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis and other members of the U.S. Senate.

Tillis, R-N.C, supports a bipartisan bill that would change federal statute-of-limitation laws to make it easier for Holocaust victims and their heirs to reclaim artwork.

"It's unfair for the current holders of Nazi-looted artwork to claim that the statute of limitations began during World War II, which in many instances is a blatant attempt to deny the return of the artwork to their original and rightful owners," Tillis told the Winston-Salem Journal in an email last week.

The bill was introduced by U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas; John Cornyn, R-Texas; Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.; and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn. Last week, the bill, known as the Holocaust Expropriated Art Recovery Act, or HEAR Act, was discussed during a meeting of two Senate judiciary subcommittees, one of which Tillis is a member.

… A question asked by Tillis during the meeting led to testimony by Lauder about the volume of artwork that remains separated from original owners.
"Can you give an idea of how many -- do we have any rough idea of how many pieces are still outstanding, the number of people that are still waiting to take action?" Tillis asked Lauder.

… "This commonsense, bipartisan legislation will ensure that the victims of the Holocaust and their family members have a fair opportunity to recoup artwork that was stolen from them by the Nazis," Tillis said.

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