SB 881

            
2020 SESSION

20102885D

SENATE BILL NO. 881 

Senate Amendments in [ ] � January 27, 2020

A BILL to amend and reenact �� 10.1-2202 and 10.1-2211.2 of
the Code of Virginia and to amend the Code of Virginia by adding a section numbered
10.1-2211.3, relating to historical African American cemeteries and graves;
fund.

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Patron Prior to Engrossment--Senator Locke 

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Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology 

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Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That �� 10.1-2202 and 10.1-2211.2 of the Code of Virginia
are amended and reenacted and that the Code of Virginia is amended by adding a
section numbered 10.1-2211.3 as follows:

� 10.1-2202. Powers and duties of the Director.

In addition to the powers and duties conferred upon the
Director elsewhere and in order to encourage, stimulate, and support the
identification, evaluation, protection, preservation, and rehabilitation of the
Commonwealths significant historic, architectural, archaeological, and
cultural resources; in order to establish and maintain a permanent record of
those resources; and in order to foster a greater appreciation of these
resources among the citizens of the Commonwealth, the Director shall have the
following powers and duties which may be delegated by the Director:

1. To employ such personnel as may be required to carry out
those duties conferred by law;

2. To make and enter into all contracts and agreements
necessary or incidental to the performance of his duties and the execution of
his powers, including but not limited to contracts with private nonprofit
organizations, the United States, other state agencies and political
subdivisions of the Commonwealth;

3. To apply for and accept bequests, grants and gifts of real
and personal property as well as endowments, funds, and grants from the United
States government, its agencies and instrumentalities, and any other source.
The Director shall have the authority to comply with such conditions and
execute such agreements as may be necessary, convenient or desirable;

4. To perform acts necessary or convenient to carry out the
duties conferred by law;

5. To promulgate regulations, in accordance with the Virginia
Administrative Process Act (� 2.2-4000 et seq.) and not inconsistent with the
National Historic Preservation Act (P.L. 89-665) and its attendant regulations,
as are necessary to carry out all responsibilities incumbent upon the State
Historic Preservation Officer, including at a minimum criteria and procedures
for submitting nominations of properties to the National Park Service for
inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places or for designation as
National Historic Landmarks;

6. To conduct a broad survey and to maintain an inventory of
buildings, structures, districts, objects, and sites of historic,
architectural, archaeological, or cultural interest which constitute the
tangible remains of the Commonwealths cultural, political, economic, military,
or social history;

7. To publish lists of properties, including buildings,
structures, districts, objects, and sites, designated as landmarks by the
Board, to inspect designated properties from time to time, and periodically
publish a complete register of designated properties setting forth appropriate
information concerning those properties;

8. With the consent of the landowners, to provide
appropriately designed markers for designated buildings, structures, districts,
objects and sites;

9. To acquire and to administer battlefield properties and
designated landmarks, or easements or interests therein;

10. To aid and to encourage counties, cities and towns to
establish historic zoning districts for designated landmarks and to adopt
regulations for the preservation of historical, architectural, archaeological,
or cultural values;

11. To provide technical advice and assistance to individuals,
groups and governments conducting historic preservation programs and regularly
to seek advice from the same on the effectiveness of Department programs;

12. To prepare and place, in cooperation with the Department
of Transportation, highway historical markers approved by the Board of Historic
Resources on or along the highway or street closest to the location which is
intended to be identified by the marker;

13. To develop a procedure for the certification of historic
districts and structures within the historic districts for federal income tax
purposes;

14. To aid and to encourage counties, cities, and towns in the
establishment of educational programs and materials for school use on the
importance of Virginias historic, architectural, archaeological, and cultural
resources;

15. To conduct a program of archaeological research with the
assistance of the State Archaeologist which includes excavation of significant sites,
acquisition and maintenance of artifact collections for the purposes of study
and display, and dissemination of data and information derived from the study
of sites and collections;

16. To manage and administer the Historic Resources Fund as
provided in � 10.1-2202.1; and

17. [Expired.] To manage and administer the
Historical African American Cemeteries and Graves Fund as provided in �
10.1-2211.3.

� 10.1-2211.2. Disbursement of funds appropriated for caring for
historical African American cemeteries and graves.

A. For purposes of this section:

"Fund" means the Historical African American
Cemeteries and Graves Fund created pursuant to � 10.1-2211.3.

"Historical African American cemetery" means a
cemetery that was established prior to January 1, 1900, for interments of
African Americans.

"Qualified organization" means a charitable
corporation, charitable association, or charitable trust that has been granted
tax-exempt status under � 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and whose
primary purpose is the preservation of historical cemeteries and graves or any
person or locality that owns a historical African American cemetery.

B. At the direction of the Director, the Comptroller of the
Commonwealth shall draw an annual warrant upon the State Treasurer from any sum
that may be provided to the Department in the general appropriation act
in favor of the treasurer of a qualified organization caring for any cemetery
set forth in this subsection. Any representative of a qualified
organization desiring to receive funding from such appropriation for the
maintenance of qualifying cemeteries and graves pursuant to this section shall
submit an application to the Department on or before May 30 each year. Such
appropriations shall be allocated on the basis of the number of graves,
monuments, and markers in a cemetery of African Americans who lived at any time
between January 1, 1800, and January 1, 1900, the dates to be determined by
reference to grave markers or, at the discretion of the Director, other
historical records. Such number of graves, monuments, and markers, as set
forth opposite the cemetery name or as documented by the qualified
organization, shall be multiplied by the rate of $5 or the average actual cost
of routine maintenance of a grave, monument, or marker, whichever is greater,
to determine the amount of the allocation. The Department shall determine the
average actual cost of routine maintenance of a grave, monument, or marker in a
biennial survey of at least four properly maintained cemeteries, each located
in a different geographical region of the Commonwealth. The Director shall
deposit any appropriated funds that are not disbursed during the same fiscal
year into the Fund.


  

  

  

  
IN THE COUNTY OF:
  
  

  
NUMBER:
  
 
 

  

  

  
Henrico
  
  

  
 
  
 
 

  

  

  
East End Cemetery
  
  

  
4,875
  
 
 

  

  

  
Loudoun
  
  

  
 
  
 
 

  

  

  
African-American Burial Ground for the Enslaved at Belmont
  
  

  
44
  
 
 

  

  

  
Pulaski
  
  

  
 
  
 
 

  

  

  
New River Cemetery
  
  

  
33
  
 
 

  

  

  
West Dublin Cemetery
  
  

  
44
  
 
 

  

  

  
IN THE CITY OF:
  
  

  
 
  
 
 

  

  

  
Alexandria
  
  

  
 
  
 
 

  

  

  
Baptist Cemetery of the African American Heritage Park
  
  

  
28
  
 
 

  

  

  
Contrabands and Freedmen Cemetery
  
  

  
631
  
 
 

  

  

  
Douglass Cemetery
  
  

  
83
  
 
 

  

  

  
Lebanon Union Cemetery
  
  

  
53
  
 
 

  

  

  
Methodist Protestant Cemetery
  
  

  
1,134
  
 
 

  

  

  
Penny Hill Cemetery
  
  

  
14
  
 
 

  

  

  
Charlottesville
  
  

  
 
  
 
 

  

  

  
Daughters of Zion Cemetery
  
  

  
192
  
 
 

  

  

  
Hampton
  
  

  
 
  
 
 

  

  

  
Bassettes Cemetery
  
  

  
212
  
 
 

  

  

  
Elmerton Cemetery
  
  

  
339
  
 
 

  

  

  
Good Samaritan Cemetery
  
  

  
37
  
 
 

  

  

  
Pleasant Shade Cemetery
  
  

  
29
  
 
 

  

  

  
Queen Street Cemetery
  
  

  
14
  
 
 

  

  

  
Tucker Family Cemetery
  
  

  
15
  
 
 

  

  

  
Union Street Cemetery
  
  

  
125
  
 
 

  

  

  
Martinsville
  
  

  
 
  
 
 

  

  

  
Matthews Cemetery
  
  

  
8
  
 
 

  

  

  
The Peoples Cemetery
  
  

  
178
  
 
 

  

  

  
Smith Street Cemetery
  
  

  
9
  
 
 

  

  

  
Portsmouth
  
  

  
 
  
 
 

  

  

  
Mt. Calvary Cemetery
  
  

  
266
  
 
 

  

  

  
Richmond
  
  

  
 
  
 
 

  

  

  
Evergreen Cemetery
  
  

  
2,100
  
 
 

  

  

  
Suffolk
  
  

  
 
  
 
 

  

  

  
Oak Lawn Cemetery
  
  

  
468
  
 


C. In addition to any sum provided to a qualified
organization as set forth in subsection B, the Director may disburse funds to
any qualified organization to fund maintenance and care of additional
historical African American graves in the Commonwealth that have been certified
by the Department and documented in the Departments cultural resources
database. Funds disbursed under this subsection shall be disbursed at the rate
set forth in subsection B.

D. �[ �An ] �[ A qualified
] organization receiving funds shall expend the funds for the routine
maintenance of its historical African American cemetery �[ and its �]
�[ , associated ] graves �[ ,
and graves certified by the Department and documented in the Departments
cultural resources database ] and the erection of and caring
for markers, memorials, and monuments to the memory of such African Americans.

D. E. Each qualified organization, through its
proper officer, shall after July 1 of each year submit to the Director a
certified statement that the funds appropriated to the organization during the
preceding fiscal year were or will be expended for the purposes set forth in
subsection C D. No organization that fails to comply with any of
the requirements of this section shall receive moneys allocated under this
section for any subsequent fiscal year until the organization fully complies
with the requirements.

E. F. In addition to funds that may be provided
pursuant to subsection B or C, any organization set forth in
that receives funds pursuant to subsection B or C may apply to the
Director for a grant to perform extraordinary maintenance, renovation, repair,
or reconstruction of any of its historical African American cemeteries and
graves. Such a grant shall be made from any appropriation made available by the
General Assembly for such purpose or from the Fund.

F. G. Any locality may receive and hold funds
drawn pursuant to subsection B or C on behalf of any qualified
organization until such time as the organization is able to receive or utilize
such funds. No local matching funds shall be required for any grants made
pursuant to this section.

G. H. The owner of a historical African American
cemetery shall reasonably cooperate with a qualified organization that receives
funds pursuant to subsection B or C.

� 10.1-2211.3. Historical African American Cemeteries and
Graves Fund.

There is hereby created in the state treasury a special
nonreverting fund to be known as the Historical African American Cemeteries and
Graves Fund, referred to in this section as "the Fund." The Fund
shall be established on the books of the Comptroller. All funds appropriated
for such purpose, all funds deposited in the Fund pursuant to subsection B or C
of � 10.1-2211.2, and any gifts, donations, grants, bequests, and other funds
received on its behalf shall be paid into the state treasury and credited to
the Fund. Interest earned on moneys in the Fund shall remain in the Fund and be
credited to it. Any moneys remaining in the Fund, including interest thereon,
at the end of each fiscal year shall not revert to the general fund but shall
remain in the Fund. Moneys in the Fund shall be used solely for the purposes
set out in subsections B and C of � 10.1-2211.2. Expenditures and disbursements
from the Fund shall be made by the State Treasurer on warrants issued by the
Comptroller upon written request signed by the Director.