H.R. 10475 — Protecting Our History Act of 2026

This section states congressional findings on the Smithsonian Institution's establishment in 1846 and its mission to increase and diffuse knowledge, the National Museum of African American History and Culture's role since its 2016 opening in documenting African American contributions, and the importance of other federally supported museums in preserving inclusive American history. It finds that political interference in exhibit content undermines academic freedom and that Congress has a duty to protect such institutions from such interference.

This section states the purposes of the division as reaffirming the Smithsonian Institution's independence from political or executive interference in curatorial and scholarly decisions, protecting federally supported cultural institutions from restrictions on evidence-based historical scholarship, promoting national unity by preserving access to the history of all American communities, and providing legal remedies for institutions and employees affected by unlawful executive action.

This section prohibits any executive order, presidential directive, or other executive branch action from restricting research or development, directing exhibit or program content, or conditioning federal funding on political or ideological requirements at the Smithsonian Institution and other specified institutions. It vests exclusive authority over such content decisions with the Smithsonian Board of Regents and the governing bodies of other institutions, and requires the Board to adopt written policies prohibiting retaliation against museum directors, scholars, curators, archivists, or researchers and establishing procedures to address violations.

This section affirms the policy of the United States that the Smithsonian Institution and other federally supported cultural institutions have the right and responsibility to present factual, evidence-based, and inclusive history. It authorizes such institutions to research, curate, and present exhibitions on the history of racism, sexism, and structural inequality; the contributions of African Americans, women, Indigenous peoples, immigrants, and other underrepresented groups; intersections of art, science, culture, and democracy; and contemporary challenges to liberty, equality, and justice.

This section prohibits the denial, reduction, or conditioning of federal funds to institutions based on the subject matter of exhibits or programming. It bars the Office of Management and Budget from withholding, restricting, reprogramming, or impounding such funds on the basis of exhibit content or curatorial independence. It authorizes appropriations as necessary to support the independence and operations of federally supported cultural institutions.

This section authorizes any Institution or its employees, contractors, officers, or advisory bodies to file civil actions in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia seeking declaratory relief, injunctive relief, mandamus, or other appropriate remedies against retaliation for protected scholarly, curatorial, or educational activities. It creates a rebuttable presumption of irreparable harm from credible showings that executive actions threaten institutional content or operations, extends federal whistleblower protections to museum directors, curators, archivists, researchers, and advisory council members, requires the Smithsonian Inspector General to conduct annual audits of improper influence attempts and report results to the House and Senate Appropriations and Judiciary Committees, and subjects federal officers or employees found to have violated the division to administrative discipline up to removal.

This section establishes a rule of construction providing that the division may not be interpreted to authorize censorship of the Smithsonian Institution, African American museums, or other cultural institutions; to prevent those institutions from developing or curating exhibits in consultation with scholars, communities, and stakeholders; or to limit congressional oversight of appropriations or the fiduciary responsibilities of governing boards.

This section defines terms for the division. It defines "Institution" as the Smithsonian Institution or any museum, cultural center, or heritage institution that receives federal funding, recognition, or partnership support. It defines "exhibit or program" as any research, exhibition, museum, educational initiative, cultural preservation project, or heritage program undertaken by an Institution.

This section states congressional findings on the establishment of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, the intended authority of its Council over collections and programming, the museum’s role in documenting African American history as American history, and the national interest in protecting its nonpartisan scholarly integrity from external interference.

This section designates the National Museum of African American History and Culture as the primary national institution for collecting and preserving artifacts documenting the African American experience, conducting research on African American history and culture, educating the public through exhibitions and programming, and promoting evidence-based understanding of African American contributions to the United States. It supplements the National Museum of African American History and Culture Act without superseding it, with conflicts resolved to protect the museum’s independence.

This section designates the NMAAHC Council as a mission fiduciary of the United States for the National Museum of African American History and Culture. It requires the Council to safeguard historical accuracy and scholarly integrity of exhibitions, collections, and programs; ensure African American leadership and accountability; report to Congress on improper influence; and authorizes the Council, by majority vote, to sue federal officers or agencies in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia for directing content, withholding appropriations based on exhibits, retaliation, or frustrating its duties. The section establishes a rebuttable presumption of irreparable harm and authorizes declaratory, injunctive, mandamus, and attorney’s fees relief.

This section grants the National Museum of African American History and Culture exclusive authority over its scholarly, curatorial, research, and exhibition activities and prohibits any federal officer or employee from directing, requiring, or prohibiting the content of those activities. It limits federal oversight to violations of federal law unrelated to content and requires the Board of Regents to implement written anti-retaliation policies, defend against executive actions that alter or condition NMAAHC programming or appropriations, and transmit any relevant executive communications to the NMAAHC Council within 5 business days.

This section directs the Smithsonian Institution to maintain and strengthen its commitment to the preservation, research, and presentation of African American history across all relevant museums, archives, and programs. It prohibits any federal officer or political appointee from restricting, reducing, altering, removing, or impeding the NMAAHC or other Smithsonian units from displaying, interpreting, or disseminating historically documented information on African American history. It also requires the Smithsonian, upon a determination of imminent threat to NMAAHC collections or programming, to (1) coordinate temporary custody of at-risk collections with historically Black colleges and universities and other partner institutions, (2) archive digital records and educational content with multiple partners, and (3) document retaliation claims and coordinate legal response with the NMAAHC Council.

This section requires the Secretary of the Smithsonian and the NMAAHC Council to submit annual reports to the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations and Judiciary. The Secretary’s report must describe attempts to improperly influence NMAAHC content, programming, collections, or appropriations, actions taken to address them, and the status of related litigation. The Council’s report must describe its exercise of mission fiduciary duties, instances of executive action that frustrated those duties, and any civil actions under section 204(c).

This section authorizes appropriations to the Smithsonian Institution for the National Museum of African American History and Culture of $40 million for collections expansion, $15 million for digitization and public access, $10 million for research and scholarship, $12 million for education and community engagement, $8 million for security and preservation, and $5 million for independence protections, for fiscal year 2026 and each fiscal year thereafter.

This section provides severability for divisions A and B of the Act. It ensures that if any provision of division A or division B is held invalid, the remainder of that division remains in effect, and that invalidity in one division does not affect the validity or enforceability of the other.

This section preserves rights and remedies under title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, sections 1981, 1982, 1985, and 1986 of title 42, the Impoundment Control Act of 1974, the Administrative Procedure Act, and other federal laws protecting civil rights, curatorial independence, or separation of powers. It establishes that remedies and standing under this Act are supplementary to existing law and exempts civil actions under division A, section 107, and division B, section 204(c) from administrative exhaustion requirements.