Smithsonian Free Admission Act of 2013

Floor Speech

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, today I introduce the Smithsonian Free Admission Act of 2013 to reinforce 170 years of consistent Smithsonian Institution policy of admitting the public to all permanent exhibits without charge. This policy has served the nation well. Families come to Washington, D.C. to learn about their country through its public monuments and sites. While the private amenities here can be costly for the average family, Americans have looked forward to the free museums and other official offerings for generations. The Smithsonian's free admission policy reflects the intent of its founder, John Smithson, whose gift to the federal government carried the condition that the Smithsonian be established to increase the knowledge of the public, free of charge. The bill establishing the Smithsonian, introduced by Senator William C. Preston on February 17, 1841, stated explicitly that the Smithsonian would ``preserve and exhibit with no fee'' all works of art and science. This intent and tradition was interrupted by the Smithsonian's Board of Regents, which, without notice to Congress, said casually that it would charge an admission fee for a permanent exhibit for the first time in its history, and on January 29, 2007, the Smithsonian instituted a fee for admission to the National Museum of Natural History's Butterfly Pavilion. Congress, of course, not the Board of Regents, should decide so basic a policy, especially when it departs from long-standing public policy. This admission fee sets a harmful precedent for future permanent exhibits, making it difficult to deny the other Smithsonian entities that right and may encourage other Smithsonian entities to structure their exhibits to fit the Butterfly Pavilion model.

The Butterfly Pavilion opened on February 14, 2008. Although the Smithsonian had previously charged fees for films and shows, such as IMAX films, the National Air and Space Museum's Planetarium, and the National Zoo's Christmas Lights special, the $6 admission fee for the Butterfly Pavilion marked the first time an admission fee was charged for a permanent exhibit. My bill requires a report to Congress in advance of any proposed fees and requires the Secretary of the Smithsonian to submit a plan for funding the Butterfly Pavilion without an admission fee.

The Smithsonian Modernization Act, which I am also introducing today, addresses the Smithsonian's fundraising capacity by restructuring and expanding the Smithsonian's Board of Regents, from a board almost half of whose members are public officials to a board consisting solely of private citizens, who have greater experience and fundraising capacity than public officials. The fundraising ability of the Smithsonian was clear in the opening of the National Portrait Gallery, for example, where, according to a Congressional Research Service (CRS) report (RL 33560), donors contributed funds for the new auditorium and roof over the courtyard of the National Portrait Gallery. This private fundraising capability would be enhanced by my bill.

The Smithsonian Modernization Act and similar measures, not admission fees, provide the most realistic vehicles to raise funds for the Smithsonian without cost to the government or to the public. Admission fees can bring in only token amounts. According to CRS, the Smithsonian has long prided itself on ``free access.'' Admission fees are not the answer for taxpayers, who have already paid through the federal government's 70 percent contribution to this public institution's annual budget. Federal taxpayers do not expect to pay again through an admission fee to a federally financed institution.

I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

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