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139

[[underlined]] MEMORANDUM [[/underlined]]

PLACE OF MEETINGS OF THE BOARD OF REGENTS

The question has been raised whether Section 42 of the Smithsonian's organic legislation deprives the Board of Regents of the discretion to hold meetings outside the city of Washington. This section provides, in part, "The business of the Institution shall be conducted at the city of Washington by a Board of Regents,...." 20 U.S.C. Sect. 42, Act of August 10, 1846, ch. 178, §3, 9 Stat. 103. This general requirement that "the business" of the Institution be conducted "at the city of Washington" is clearly a reflection of the basic provision of the bequest of James Smithson, recited in the preamble of the Act of August 10, 1846, "to found, at Washington, under the name of the 'Smithsonian Institution' an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men." The principal place of business of the Institution has been located in Washington since 1846.

Section 41 establishes the Institution "with the powers, limitations, and restrictions hereinafter contained, and no other." In Section 42, this plenary authority is vested in a Board of Regents composed of the Chief Justice of the United States, who traditionally serves as Chancellor of the Board, the Vice President, three members of the Senate, three members of the House of Representatives, and nine private citizens. Harlan Fiske Stone (later Chief Justice), while serving as Attorney General of the United States, stated:

"The Board of Regents is charged with the duty, as trustee, of administering the trust and furthering the purpose of the endowment for the 'diffusion of knowledge among men.' The methods of achieving that purpose is left largely to the discretion of the Board."
34 Op. Atty. Gen. 338 (1924).

In the exercise of this discretion the Regents determine when and where they will meet. The only specific mention of the place of