S. 2490 · 117th Congress

Blackwell School National Historic Site Act

Introduced on Jul 27, 2021 by John Cornyn (R-TX). One cosponsor. Became Public Law 117-206.

Stage
Became law
Public Law 117-206
Introduced
Jul 27, 2021
Cosponsors
1
1 from the other party
Policy area
Public Lands and Natural Resources
Open in the Congress explorerCongress.govAlert me

Progress

The furthest stage the measure reached. Simple and concurrent resolutions do not go to the President.

  1. Introduced
  2. Reported by committee
  3. Passed one chamber
  4. Passed both chambers
  5. Sent to the President
  6. Became law

Official title

A bill to establish the Blackwell School National Historic Site in Marfa, Texas, and for other purposes.

Subjects

  • Educational facilities and institutions
  • Historic sites and heritage areas
  • Latin America
  • Mexico
  • Parks, recreation areas, trails
  • Racial and ethnic relations
  • Texas
  • U.S. history

Summary

By the Congressional Research Service (Public Law, Oct 17, 2022). Public domain.

Blackwell School National Historic Site Act

This bill establishes the Blackwell School National Historic Site in Texas as a unit of the National Park System.

The purpose of the site is to preserve, protect, and interpret for the benefit of present and future generations the Blackwell School, including (1) the role of the Blackwell School, which educated children of Mexican descent, as an academic and cultural cornerstone in Marfa, Texas; and (2) the function of the Blackwell School within a segregated system of education in Texas and the United States from the period of 1885 through 1965.

The historic site shall not be established until the date on which the Department of the Interior has (1) entered into a written agreement with the Marfa Unified School District providing that the Blackwell School shall be donated to or placed by agreement into comanagement with the United States for inclusion in a national historic site to be managed consistently with the purposes of such a site, and (2) acquired sufficient land or interests in land within the boundaries of the historic site to constitute a manageable unit.

Interior may only acquire by donation, purchase with donated funds, or exchange any land or interest in land located within the boundary of the historic site.

The bill prohibits any private property or nonfederal public property from being included within the boundaries of the historic site or managed as part of such site without the written consent of the owner.

Interior shall prepare a general management plan for the historic site.

Sponsor and cosponsors

Cosponsors by party as of the day they signed on. Original cosponsors signed on the day of introduction.

John CornynR-TXSponsor

Democrats · 1

Roll calls

Recorded votes on the measure. Most measures move by voice vote or unanimous consent, which record no individual positions.

  1. On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Pass
    Sep 20, 2022· House· Passage· Passed 414–12

History

Every action as published, oldest first. Roll calls link to how each member voted.

  1. Jul 27, 2021Introduced in Senate
  2. Jul 27, 2021 · SenateRead twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
  3. Oct 6, 2021 · SenateCommittee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on National Parks. Hearings held.
  4. Nov 18, 2021 · SenateCommittee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.
  5. Mar 2, 2022Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Reported by Senator Manchin without amendment. With written report No. 117-92.
  6. Mar 2, 2022 · SenateCommittee on Energy and Natural Resources. Reported by Senator Manchin without amendment. With written report No. 117-92.
  7. Mar 2, 2022 · SenatePlaced on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 300.
  8. May 19, 2022 · SenateMeasure laid before Senate by unanimous consent. (consideration: CR S2605-2606)
  9. May 19, 2022Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate with amendments by Unanimous Consent.
  10. May 19, 2022 · SenatePassed Senate with amendments by Unanimous Consent. (text: CR S2606)
  11. May 19, 2022 · SenateMessage on Senate action sent to the House.
  12. May 19, 2022 · HouseReceived in the House.
  13. May 19, 2022 · HouseHeld at the desk.
  14. Sep 19, 2022 · HouseMr. Grijalva moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
  15. Sep 19, 2022 · HouseConsidered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H7936-7937)
  16. Sep 19, 2022 · HouseDEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on S. 2490.
  17. Sep 19, 2022 · HouseAt the conclusion of debate, the Yeas and Nays were demanded and ordered. Pursuant to the provisions of clause 8, rule XX, the Chair announced that further proceedings on the motion would be postponed.
  18. Sep 20, 2022 · HouseConsidered as unfinished business. (consideration: CR H7992-7993)
  19. Sep 20, 2022Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 414 - 12 (Roll no. 444).House · Roll call 444
  20. Sep 20, 2022 · HouseOn motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 414 - 12 (Roll no. 444). (text: 9/19/2022 CR H7936)House · Roll call 444
  21. Sep 20, 2022 · HouseMotion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
  22. Oct 17, 2022Presented to President.
  23. Oct 17, 2022 · HousePresented to President.
  24. Oct 17, 2022Signed by President.
  25. Oct 17, 2022Signed by President.
  26. Oct 17, 2022Became Public Law No: 117-206.
  27. Oct 17, 2022Became Public Law No: 117-206.

Committees

Committees and subcommittees the measure was referred to.

Agencies in its committees' jurisdiction

Analisa's mapping of committee jurisdiction to federal agencies; the bill may touch others, or none of these.

Sources and method

Every figure on this page traces to these records.

  • Bill status: bills and resolutions, sponsors, actions, subjects and CRS summaries (U.S. Government Publishing Office (GovInfo), from Congress.gov (Library of Congress))GovInfo Bill Status bulk data (Congress.gov; summaries by the Congressional Research Service) · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Members of Congress, their terms, committees and identifiers (The @unitedstates project (from the Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress, the House and the Senate))unitedstates/congress-legislators: legislators, committees and current committee membership · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: CC0 1.0 (public domain dedication)
  • House roll-call votes (Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives)Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives, roll-call vote records · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Senate roll-call votes and DW-NOMINATE scores (Voteview (UCLA Department of Political Science))Lewis, Jeffrey B., Keith Poole, Howard Rosenthal, Adam Boche, Aaron Rudkin, and Luke Sonnet (2026). Voteview: Congressional Roll-Call Votes Database. https://voteview.com/ · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Free to use with the required citation
  • Lobbying disclosures (LD-1 registrations, LD-2 quarterly reports, LD-203 contribution reports) (Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives)Clerk of the House, Lobbying Disclosure Act filings (organizations only; lobbyists' names are not loaded) · data current to Oct 6, 2026 · loaded Oct 6, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Positions are shown only where a roll call recorded them; voice votes and unanimous consent record none.