Bill developing plan transferring Weitzman Museum to Smithsonian awaits awaits Biden sign-off

A bill aimed at studying the potential transfer of the museum to the Smithsonian Institution unanimously passed the Senate and now awaits President Biden's signature. 

By HANNAH SARISOHN DECEMBER 5, 2024 00:33

Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History, March 16, 2024 (photo credit: FLICKR)

The Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History is one step closer to becoming the only museum within  the Smithsonian Institution dedicated to the stories Jewish Americans. 

On Tuesday night, a bill aimed at studying the potential transfer of the museum to the Smithsonian Institution unanimously passed the Senate and now awaits President Biden's signature. 

The bipartisan legislation, introduced in Congress by US Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Mike Turner (R-OH), Brendan Boyle (D-PA) and Max Miller (R-OH), passed the House in September. 

"Education about the Jewish American community is a critical tool in the fight against hate, and there is no better place for that learning than the Weitzman," Wasserman Shultz said in a statement on Wednesday. "I am proud to champion this legislation and am thrilled to see it reach the President’s desk.”

'Vital role in educating next generation'

Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA), who led the bill in the Senate, said in a statement that the Weitzman Museum is "playing a vital role in educating the next generation about the contributions Jewish Americans have made to our Nation and stemming the tide of hate."

Washington DC, USA - July 1, 2015: The Smithsonian American Art Museum and National Portrait Gallery are both housed in the historic Old Patent Office Building. (credit: SHUTTERSTOCK)

Integrating the Weitzman with the Smithsonian will cement the museum's place as one of America's essential institutions, Casey added. 

If signed, the bill will create an eight member commission which will write a report to Congress with a recommendation on whether the Weitzman should be transferred to the Smithsonian Institution. 

Details of the report will include collections of the museum and the museum's impact on educational and governmental efforts to study and counter antisemitism. 

According to the statement from Wasserman Shultz's office, the commission will not receive any federal funding and will accept private contributions to pay for its expenses. 

In a statement from September when the bill passed the House, Philip Darivoff, Weitzman's chair emeritus, said the museum's trustees "stand ready to transfer the institution to the American People as an official museum of the Smithsonian Institution."

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In the statement, Weitzman's president and CEO Dr. Misha Galperin said that a Smithsonain museum representing the American Jewish experience would "serve as a resounding public endorsement that Jews belong in and are embraced by this nation."