A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to appropriate funds for the renovation and restoration of the historic peoples bank into the cultural heritage museum.
Whereas, the historic Peoples Bank, founded in 1924 by African‑Americans, became the first financial institution in the Town of Kinston to be owned and managed by people of color; and
Whereas, the Peoples Bank is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is the location of the proposed Cultural Heritage Museum; and
Whereas, the museum will feature educational displays and technological presentations on the contributions of African‑Americans and pay tribute to the 9,000 North Carolinians who were members of the 200,000‑member United States Colored Troops during the Civil War, which will complement the activities and themes of the many Civil War attractions and battlegrounds throughout North Carolina and the South; and
Whereas, one of the primary goals for the Cultural Heritage Museum Project is to generate jobs, promote economic expansion opportunities, and create a unified community vision for progress; Now, therefore,
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Black Heritage Society, Inc., a nonprofit organization, the sum of nine hundred thousand dollars ($900,000) for the 2007‑2008 fiscal year for the renovation and restoration of the historic Peoples Bank building for use as a cultural heritage museum that educates youth, visitors, and others on the contributions of African‑Americans to American society.
SECTION 2.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2007.