AAM Government Affairs has been following the "looted art" issue
closely.  For sake of clarification, the relevant section of S. 1564,
"The Holocaust Victims Redress Act" which passed the Senate in November
and just passed the House this week reads "It is the sense of the
Congress that consistent with the 1907 Hague Convention, all governments
should undertake good faith efforts to facilitate the return of private
and public property, such as works of art, to the rightful owners in
cases where assets were confiscated from the claimant during the period
of Nazi rule and there is reasonable proof that the claimant is the
rightful owner."

"Sense of the Congress" is legislative language which offers the opinion
of the Congress, but does not make law.  This provision DOES NOT change
current law and creates no new obligations for museums other than
current law and ethical standards provide.  We covered this story in
December's AVISO (see below).
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From December 1997 AVISO:

Congress Following "Nazi Loot" Story

Media accounts around the country appear to be prompting Congress to pay
some attention to claims for return of property, including artworks,
that may have been looted by the Nazis or sold or transferred under
questionable circumstances. Television reports and articles have
appeared in Boston, New York, Chicago, Washington, and Seattle. Most
coverage has been fairly balanced, acknowledging both the difficulty in
tracing provenance and the new presence of archival information that was
not available during and after World War II.  In October, Rep. Jim
Leach, R-Iowa, introduced a bill stating that all governments should
"facilitate the return of private and public property, such as works of
art, to the rightful owners in cases where . . . there is reasonable
proof that the claimant is the rightful owner." U.S. law is hospitable
to such claims, whereas many other nations protect for those who
purchase stolen property in good faith. The bill appears to be an
exhortation to other governments, rather than a proposal to change U.S.
law.

AAM has prepared a statement on this issue that may be of use to those
who are approached by the press.  To obtain a copy, go to AAM's Web site
at www.aam-us.org, or contact Jason Hall, AAM Government Affairs,
202/289-9125.
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Barry G. Szczesny, Esq.
Government Affairs Counsel
AAM Government and Public Affairs
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