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CRS REPORTS & ANALYSIS
CRS Insights
Obama Library Likely Headed to
Chicago's South Side
Daniel J. Richardson, Research Assistant
(drichardson@crs.loc.gov, 72389)
Wendy Ginsberg, Analyst in American National Government
(wginsberg@crs.loc.gov, 73933)
May 13, 2015 (IN10270)
On May 12, 2015, the private foundation providing significant funding for the establishment
of President Barack Obama's forthcoming presidential library
announced they intend to
site the building in the South Side of Chicago. The bid to locate the library on Chicago's
South Side was submitted by the University of Chicago, which was competing with
proposals from the University of Illinois at Chicago, Columbia University in New York City,
and the University of Hawaii in Honolulu.
Presidential libraries are managed by the National Archives and Records Administration
(NARA). This proposed presidential library would be the official depository for the
presidential records from the Obama Administration. Although the library will likely be
owned and administered by the federal government, the review of proposals for the
library's location and design was facilitated by the
Barack Obama Foundation, a private,
taxexempt charity established in January 2014. This foundation is comparable to the
private organizations involved with the design and construction of other presidential
libraries. Like other presidential foundations, the Barack Obama Foundation is responsible
for partnering with NARA and providing a substantial part of the funding for any future
library structures. Unlike the other foundations, however, the Barack Obama Foundation
will be the first to support a presidential library established since the enactment of the
Presidential Historical Records Preservation Act of 2008, which requires higher levels of
private financing.
Congressional Review
Although the President has selected the site for his future library, his decision does not
become final until the Archivist of the United States has approved the plan and Congress
has been provided an opportunity to express any disapproval. Under the Presidential
Libraries Act (PLA, P.L. 84373), passed in 1955 and subsequently amended in 1986, 2003,
and 2008, Congress is provided 60 days of continuous session in which it can review and,
if necessary, take action to stop the proposal.
Construction and Financing for the Library
The Presidential Libraries Act of 1986 (P.L. 99323) amended the PLA to require significant
private financing for future libraries and limit the size of library facilities. As part of these
changes, private endowments were required to fund 20% of total construction, acquisition,
and improvement costs for the site. Subsequent amendments in 2003 and 2008, however,
increased this endowment requirement to 40% and then 60%, respectively. The Barack
Obama Foundation will be the first private foundation required to meet the 60%
endowment threshold.
According to the Chicago Tribune, by the end of 2014 the foundation
had raised between $2.9 million and $6.2 million of the projected $500 million that will be
required.
The 1986 amendments also established limits on public financing for library facilities that
exceeded 70,000 square feet. Any construction beyond that square footage cap requires
gradual increases in the endowment percentage. This squarefootage restriction has
applied to all presidents since George H. W. Bush.
The Presidential Library System Nationwide
The Barack Obama Presidential Library and Museum would become the 14t
h presidential
library maintained by NARA, and the 5t
h associated with a university. As a consequence,
the location of the library in Chicago would continue a recent trend in the establishment of
presidential libraries. The first four presidential libraries—Roosevelt, Truman, Hoover, and
Eisenhower—were located in the Presidents' hometowns or principle residences. Since that
time, many Presidents have chosen to locate their libraries elsewhere, often with an
affiliated university. Additional information on these trends is provided in CRS Report
R41513,
The Presidential Libraries Act and the Establishment of Presidential Libraries, by
Wendy Ginsberg, Erika K. Lunder, and Daniel J. Richardson.
Table 1 lists the other 13
presidential libraries currently under NARA's administration and indicates those with
university affiliations. In recent years, these libraries have drawn close to 2 million
combined annual visitors. In a
study commissioned by the University of Chicago to
accompany its presidential library proposal, an economic research firm suggested that the
proposed Obama Library could draw 800,000 annual visitors and provide an economic
effect of $220 million per year. According to NARA, in FY2012, the most visited
presidential library (the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum) experienced
380,570 visitors. In 2011,
the Archivist of the United States testified that local Chambers
of Commerce and State Tourism Boards estimate that each visitor to a presidential library
spends an additional $100$200 at local restaurants and hotels.
Additional information on the presidential library system and recent issues surrounding the
establishment of these libraries can be found in CRS Report R41513, The Presidential
Libraries Act and the Establishment of Presidential Libraries, by Wendy Ginsberg, Erika K.
Lunder, and Daniel J. Richardson.
Table 1. Presidential Library Facilities and Locations
Facility Name
Location
Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum West Branch, Iowa
Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and
Hyde Park, New York
Museum
Harry S. Truman Library and Museum
Independence, Missouri
Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and
Abilene, Kansas
Museum
John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and
Boston, Massachusetts
Museum
Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum*
Austin, Texas
Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum
Yorba Linda, California
Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Museum*
Jimmy Carter Library and Museum
Atlanta, Georgia
Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum
Simi Valley, California
George Bush Presidential Library and Museum*
College Station, Texas
William J. Clinton Presidential Library and
Little Rock, Arkansas
Museum
George W. Bush Presidential Library*
Dallas, Texas
Source: Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum,
http://www.hoover.archives.gov/; Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential
Library and Museum,
http://www.fdrlibrary.marist.edu/; Harry S. Truman
Library and Museum,
http://www.trumanlibrary.org/; Dwight D.
Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum,
http://www.eisenhower.archives.gov/; John F. Kennedy Presidential
Library and Museum,
http://www.jfklibrary.org/; Lyndon Baines Johnson
Library and Museum,
http://www.lbjlibrary.org/; Nixon Presidential
Library and Museum,
http://www.nixonlibrary.gov/index.php; Gerald R.
Ford Presidential Library and Museum,
http://www.fordlibrarymuseum.gov/; Jimmy Carter Library and Museum,
http://www.jimmycarterlibrary.gov/; Ronald Reagan Presidential Library
and Museum,
http://www.reaganfoundation.org//; George Bush
Presidential Library and Museum,
http://bushlibrary.tamu.edu/; William
J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum,
http://www.clintonlibrary.gov/; and George W. Bush Presidential Library,
http://www.georgewbushlibrary.gov/.
Notes: Asterisks indicate facilities affiliated with universities.
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