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[underlined] NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN [/underlined]

Various documents below were presented in advance of this meeting to members of the Board of Regents for their consideration. These include the draft Memorandum of Understanding between the Heye Foundation and the Smithsonian, signed by Julie Johnson Kidd on behalf of the Heye Foundation on March 16, 1989; draft legislation which would implement the Memorandum of Understanding; and various other documentation which is ancillary to or analytical of these drafts.

Initiating their discussion, the Secretary reported to the Regents that their expressions of concern over the draft Memorandum of Understanding in response to his letter of April 7 have been addressed -- in his belief, in a generally satisfactory way. He emphasized that for the most part the responsibilities of the Board of Trustees of the National Museum of the American Indian will be determined by the sphere of action and the general policies laid down by the Board of Regents, and to that end the Regents can anticipate that a specific set of recommendations will be proposed for their consideration within a year.

Mr. Adams added that he had recently met with Senator Inouye who had impressed upon him not only the urgency of submitting legislation in the Senate in the next few days but also the special nature of the National Museum of the American Indian. The Secretary was convinced that the widespread enthusiasm for the new museum stemmed from a common belief that what is needed is an expression in the nation's Capital which would speak to the American Indians' cultural contributions of both the past and the present.

The Secretary mentioned that Congressman Charles Rangel had raised legitimate concerns over the Memorandum of Understanding because neither it nor the draft legislation made any arrangements for substitute museum