20 U.S.C. § 80q–3 — Board of Trustees of National Museum of the American Indian

(a) In general: The National Museum operates under a Board of Trustees, with the duties, powers, and authority set out in this section. (b) General duties and powers: The Board of Trustees must: (1) recommend the National Museum's annual operating budgets to the Board of Regents; (2) advise and help the Board of Regents on everything relating to running, operating, maintaining, and preserving the National Museum; (3) adopt its own bylaws; (4) pick a chairman and other officers from among its members; and (5) report yearly to the Board of Regents on acquiring, disposing of, and displaying Native American objects and artifacts, and on other relevant matters. (c) Sole authority: Subject to the Board of Regents' general policies, only the Board of Trustees may: (1) lend, exchange, sell, or otherwise dispose of any part of the National Museum's collections, using the proceeds to add to the collections or to the Museum's endowment; (2) purchase, accept, borrow, or otherwise acquire artifacts and objects for the collections; and (3) set the criteria for how the collections may be used, including for research, evaluation, education, and display. (d) Other authority: Subject to the Board of Regents' general policies, the Board of Trustees also may: (1) arrange for restoring, preserving, and maintaining the collections; (2) raise funds for the National Museum and decide how those funds are used; and (3) approve spending from the Museum's endowment for any Museum purpose. (e) Initial appointments: (1) Membership: The first Board of Trustees consists of (A) the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution; (B) an Assistant Secretary appointed by the Board of Regents; (C) 8 people appointed by the Board of Regents; and (D) 15 people, each already a trustee of the Heye Museum, appointed by the Board of Regents from a list the Heye Museum's trustees recommend. (2) Special rule: At least 7 of the 23 members appointed under (C) and (D) must be Indians. (3) Terms: The trustee appointed under (1)(B) serves at the Board of Regents' pleasure. Trustees appointed under (1)(C) or (1)(D) serve 3-year terms starting on the date the Heye Foundation's assets transfer to the Smithsonian. (4) Vacancies: A vacancy is filled only for the rest of that term. A vacancy filled under (1)(D) does not have to come from the Heye Museum's recommended list, but it still must follow the rule in (2) about Indian representation. (f) Later appointments: Once the terms under (e) expire, the Board of Trustees consists of: (1) Membership: (A) the Secretary of the Smithsonian; (B) a senior Smithsonian official appointed by the Board of Regents; and (C) 23 people appointed by the Board of Regents from a list the Board of Trustees itself recommends. (2) Special rule: At least 12 of the 23 members appointed under (1)(C) must be Indians. (3) Terms: The trustee under (1)(B) serves at the Board of Regents' pleasure. Members appointed under (1)(C) normally serve 3-year terms, except for the very first group appointed under (1)(C): (A) 7 members, 4 of whom must be Indians, serve 1-year terms; and (B) 8 members, 4 of whom must be Indians, serve 2-year terms — as designated when appointed. (4) Vacancies: A vacancy is filled only for the rest of the term involved. (g) Quorum: A majority of the Board of Trustees' current members makes a quorum. (h) Expenses: Board members get per diem, travel, and transportation expenses — the same as government employees who work intermittently — for each day, including travel days, spent doing Board duties.