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meetings is found in Section 44, which appears to require that the Board shall meet in Washington when choosing a Chancellor or Secretary:

"The Board of Regents shall meet in the city of Washington and elect one of their number as chancellor, who shall be the presiding officer of the Board of Regents, and called the chancellor of the Smithsonian Institution, and a suitable person as secretary of the institution, who shall also be the secretary of the Board of Regents."

However, the language of the original Act from which Section 44 derives is as follows:

"And the said regents shall meet in the city of Washington, [[underlined]] on the first Monday of September next after the passage of this act [[/underlined]], and organize by the election of one of their number as chancellor, who shall be the presiding officer of said board of regents, by the name of the Chancellor of the 'Smithsonian Institution," and a suitable person as secretary of said institution, who shall also be the secretary of said board of regents." (Emphasis added).
9 Stat. 103.

It is clear that the limitation to Washington applies to the organizational meeting of the Board of Regents.

There is no evidence that Congress intended to limit the discretion of the Board of Regents to hold meetings thereafter wherever "they shall deem best suited for the promotion of the purpose of the testator." 9 Stat. 106, 20 U.S.C. §56.

March 7, 1974

Peter G. Powers
General Counsel