§2302 Functions of the Council; Membership

Summary

The United States Holocaust Memorial Council is the museum’s board of trustees and must run the museum. It sets policy and strategy, watches over operations, and handles finances. The Council must have an Executive Committee to handle governance when the full Council is not meeting. The Council has 65 voting members mainly appointed by the President, plus three nonvoting ex officio members named by the Secretaries of the Interior, State, and Education. Most members serve 5-year terms. Five House members and five Senators appointed during a Congress have terms that end with that Congress. People appointed to fill a vacancy only serve the rest of the term. The President picks a Chair and Vice Chair from the Council for 5-year terms; they may be reappointed. The Council must adopt bylaws. The Chair can waive a bylaw but must send written notice to all voting members; the waiver becomes final after 30 days unless a majority objects in writing first. One-third of members is a quorum. Vacancies do not stop the Council from acting. The Chair may add nonmembers to committees; those people serve without cost to the Federal Government.