Adams Files Amendment to Fund African-American Burial Grounds Preservation Program
Bipartisan Amendment Would Fund Program for Full $3 Million
WASHINGTON, D.C. (October 2, 2023) – Today, Congresswoman Alma S. Adams, Ph.D. (NC-12) filed a bipartisan amendment to the spending bill that funds the Department of the Interior, Environment, and related agencies that expresses support for $3 million in funding for the African-American Burial Grounds Preservation Program.
“Burial grounds and cemeteries where our ancestors lay are too often ignored and forgotten,” said Congresswoman Adams. “This amendment can help ensure that the African-American Burial Grounds Preservation Program gets funded, shine a light on the Program’s potential, and meet the demand for the Program’s offerings expressed by constituents and stakeholders.”
The African American Burial Grounds Preservation Act of 2023, led by Congresswoman Adams, Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01), and the late Rep. A. Donald McEachin (formerly VA-04), was passed into law via last year’s Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023. The Act establishes the African-American Burial Grounds Preservation Program, whose main function is to offer grants for identification, preservation, restoration, interpretation, and research and documentation of African-American burial grounds. The Act was supported by Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Mitt Romney (R-UT), and subsequent funding requests were supported by Senators Brown and Bob Casey (D-PA). While getting this program authorized was a success, the program, housed within the National Park Service, remains dormant because of a lack of funding.
The amendment to H.R. 4821 submitted by Congresswoman Adams signals that the program should receive its maximum amount of funding. The amendment is currently cosponsored by a bipartisan group of representatives that includes Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01), Jamie Raskin (MD-08), Earl Blumenauer (OR-03), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC-00), and Jennifer McClellan (VA-04), many of whom cosponsored the Program’s originating legislation.
Constituents and stakeholders interested in keeping apprised of the status of the African-American Burial Grounds Preservation Program are encouraged to reach out to the Office of Congresswoman Alma S. Adams, Ph.D. by phone at (202) 225-1510.
Congresswoman Alma S. Adams, Ph.D. represents North Carolina’s 12th Congressional District (Charlotte, Mecklenburg County, Cabarrus County) and serves as a Senior Member of the House Committee on Agriculture. Additionally, she serves on the House Committee on Education & the Workforce, where she serves as Ranking Member of the Workforce Protections Subcommittee.
###