113th CONGRESS 1st Session To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study of alternatives for commemorating the 1657 signing of the Flushing Remonstrance in Queens, NY, including a determination of the suitability and feasibility of designating parts of the study area as a unit of the National Park System, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES A BILL To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study of alternatives for commemorating the 1657 signing of the Flushing Remonstrance in Queens, NY, including a determination of the suitability and feasibility of designating parts of the study area as a unit of the National Park System, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ‘Flushing Remonstrance History Act’. SEC. 2. FINDINGS. The Congress finds the following: (1) Dutch involvement in North America started with Henry Hudson’s 1609 voyage on the ship, Half Moon employed by the Dutch East India Company. (2) After 1640 New Netherland gradually began to transform from a chain of trading posts into a settlement colony. (3) As Dutch and English settlers moved closer to one another, they began to assimilate in what would later become Queens County. (4) The Dutch and English settlements had not been without conflict. Although the Dutch Republic was well known for its toleration of other faiths, Director General Peter Stuyvesant and his council thought that liberty of worship should not be granted to Quakers. (5) When Quakers began to arrive in Flushing, the colonial government issued an ordinance that forbade anyone from entertaining them. (6) On December 27, 1657, thirty inhabitants of the village signed what was later called the Flushing Remonstrance, objecting to this order. (7) Dutch colonial authorities proceeded to punish the signers. A few years later, Quaker John Bowne was also punished for showing contempt for secular authority, Bowne was subsequently fined and banished to the Dutch Republic. Bowne was later exonerated after appealing to the guarantees of religious liberty and returned to Flushing in 1664. (8) The Flushing Remonstrance is now considered by many to be instrumental in the development of religious liberty in America and a precursor to the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. (9) In 1957 the U.S. Postal Service released a 3 cent postage stamp commemorating the 300th Anniversary of the signing of the Flushing Remonstrance which read, ‘Religious Freedom in America’. (10). Queens remained rural and agricultural through the 18th and 19th centuries. Although its Dutch identity diminished, the tolerance of diversity that has harbored Quaker sand other religious sects in the Dutch Colonial period has continued to this day. SEC. 3. SPECIAL RESOURCE STUDY. (a) Study- The Secretary of the Interior shall conduct a special resource study of the study area. (b) Contents- In conducting the study under subsection (a), the Secretary shall-- (1) evaluate the national significance of the study area based on an assessment and relationship to the signing of the Flushing Remonstrance ; (2) determine the suitability and feasibility of designating parts of the study area as a unit of the National Park System commemorating Queens Dutch History and the signing of the Flushing Remonstrance; (3) consider other alternatives for preservation, protection, and interpretation of the study area by Federal, State, or local governmental entities, or private and nonprofit organizations; (4) identify properties related to Long Island’s aviation history that could meet criteria for listing in the National Register of Historic Places or criteria for designation as National Historic Landmarks; (5) consult with interested Federal, State, or local governmental entities, private and nonprofit organizations, or any other interested individuals; (6) consider the appropriate management options needed to ensure the protection, preservation, and interpretation of the study area; (7) evaluate appropriate ways to enhance historical research, education, interpretation, and public awareness of Long Island’s aviation history; and (8) identify cost estimates for any Federal acquisition, development, interpretation, operation, and maintenance associated with the alternatives. (c) Study Area- The term ‘study area’ means Flushing with a particular focus on the John Bowne House located on 3701 Bowne Street and the Friends Meeting House located at 137-16 Northern Boulevard. (d) Applicable Law- The study required under subsection (a) shall be conducted in accordance with section 8 of National Park Service General Authorities Act (16 U.S.C. 1a-5). (e) Report- Not later than 3 years after the date on which funds are first made available for the study under subsection (a), the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate a report containing the results of the study and any conclusions and recommendations of the Secretary. MY BILL COMMEMORATING THE FLUSHING REMONSTRANCE
Posted on: Thu, 11 Jul 2013 17:31:09 +0000
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