According to this sense of  Congress, such committee should  1.  be chaired by a Department of State employee of Assistant Secretary  rank or higher, concurrent with that employee’s other duties;  2.  include representatives of the Smithsonian and federal agencies with  responsibility for the preservation and protection of international  cultural property;  3.  consult with governmental and nongovernmental organizations,  including the United States Committee of the Blue Shield, museums,  educational institutions, and research institutions, and participants in  the international art and cultural property market on efforts to protect  and preserve international cultural property; and  4.  coordinate core U.S. interests in—(A) protecting and preserving  international cultural property; (B) preventing and disrupting looting  and illegal trade and trafficking in international cultural property,  particularly exchanges that provide revenue to terrorist and criminal  organizations; (C) protecting sites of cultural and archaeological  significance; and (D) providing for the lawful exchange of international  cultural property. The CHCC has also established three working groups, as follows:  1. DHS and DOJ Take a Number of Actions to Enforce Laws and Regulations Related to Restricted Iraqi and Syrian Cultural Property

DHS and DOJ take actions in five key areas to enforce laws and  regulations related to restricted Iraqi and Syrian cultural property: (1)  monitoring of shipments; (2) detention, seizure, and taking forfeiture  actions on items; (3) investigation of objects; (4) repatriation of cultural  property; and (5) prosecution of criminal violations to enforce laws and  regulations related to restricted Iraqi and Syrian cultural property. CBP and the U.S. Immigration and Customs  Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) detain,  seize, and obtain forfeiture of suspected items; and ICE-HSI conducts  investigations, pursues prosecutions through state and federal courts,  and repatriates cultural property to rightful owners. DHS actions to detain, seize, and pursue forfeiture of items that are  suspected to be in violation of U.S. cultural property laws have led to the  rescue and return of cultural property to Iraq. Investigation of objects. For example, ICE-HSI opened an investigation in  January 2011 after receiving a tip about an Iraqi ceremonial sword for  sale at an auction in the United States (see fig. DOJ considers prosecution for  criminal violations relating to investigations involving Iraqi and Syrian  cultural property. The FBI obtained  forfeiture of the items and repatriated them to Iraq in 2013. In Its First Year, the Cultural Heritage Coordinating Committee Has Followed Several Key Collaboration Practices but Has Not Fully Demonstrated Others

The CHCC’s activities during its first year of formation reflected several  key practices that can enhance and strengthen collaboration but did not  demonstrate others. CHCC participants have demonstrated progress in  the key areas of identifying leadership; including relevant participants;  bridging organizational cultures, including developing ways to operate  across agency boundaries and agreeing on common terminology; and  addressing issues related to resources, including funding, staffing, and  technology. However, CHCC participants could enhance their  collaboration by implementing other key collaboration practices, such as  developing goals, clarifying participants’ roles and responsibilities, and  documenting agreements within the CHCC and its working groups. Furthermore, most participants reported that the committee was a helpful  forum for collaborating on international cultural property protection efforts. Without such clarity, CHCC participants could encounter  barriers in organizing their joint and individual efforts on the committee  and its working groups as the CHCC continues to operate beyond its first  year of formation. Participants have not documented  their agreement regarding how the CHCC will be collaborating, including  the short-term and long-term goals of the committee and its working  groups, as well as members’ roles and responsibilities on the committee  and its working groups. To protect cultural property from Iraq  and Syria at risk of looting and smuggling, the U.S. government has  imposed import restrictions, and DHS and DOJ have taken a number of  actions to enforce the laws and regulations on restricted cultural property  from these countries. Further, a law passed to protect and preserve  international cultural property included a sense of Congress that the  President should establish an interagency coordinating committee to  coordinate the efforts of the executive branch. (Recommendation 2)
The Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs  should work with other U.S. federal entities participating in the CHCC to  document agreement about how the CHCC and its working groups will  collaborate, such as their goals and participants’ roles and  responsibilities.
Why GAO Did This Study

The conflicts in Iraq and Syria that began in 2003 and 2011, respectively, have led to the destruction, looting, and trafficking of cultural property by Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and others. The United Nations called these events the worst cultural heritage crisis since World War II and reported that ISIS has used the sale of looted Iraqi and Syrian cultural property to support its terrorist activities. Congress authorized and the President imposed import restrictions on archaeological or ethnological material of Iraq in 2008 and Syria in 2016. The act directing Syrian restrictions also includes a sense of Congress that the President should establish an interagency committee to coordinate executive branch efforts on international cultural property protection.
GAO was asked to review U.S. efforts to protect Iraqi and Syrian cultural property. This report examines (1) actions DHS and DOJ have taken to enforce U.S. laws and regulations involving restrictions on such property and (2) the extent to which CHCC participants collaborate to protect cultural property. GAO reviewed documents related to 17 DHS- or DOJ-led cultural property investigations, interviewed officials, and assessed the extent of CHCC collaboration using GAO's key practices.

What GAO Found

GAO's examination of 17 cultural property investigations shows that the Departments of Homeland Security (DHS) and Justice (DOJ) have taken a number of actions to enforce laws and regulations related to restricted Iraqi and Syrian cultural property. DHS's Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has taken actions such as monitoring shipments and detaining and seizing suspected items of restricted cultural property. CBP coordinates with DHS's Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which investigates objects; detains, seizes, and obtains forfeiture of items found to be in violation of U.S. law; and repatriates cultural property to its rightful owner. For example, ICE conducted an investigation into an Iraqi ceremonial sword for sale at an auction in the United States and then seized, obtained forfeiture of, and repatriated it to Iraq in July 2013 (see fig.). DOJ actions to address restricted Iraqi and Syrian cultural property include activities by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and DOJ attorneys to investigate and prosecute criminal violations, as well as actions related to the forfeiture and repatriation of cultural property items.
Ceremonial Sword Repatriated to Iraq by Department of Homeland Security in 2013
The Cultural Heritage Coordinating Committee (CHCC), established in November 2016 with nine participating federal entities and led by the Department of State (State), has followed several of the key collaboration practices identified by GAO but has not demonstrated others. GAO has previously identified key practices for organizations to enhance and sustain their collaborative efforts. The CHCC has followed key practices of identifying leadership; including relevant participants; bridging organizational cultures, such as agreeing on common terminology; and addressing resource issues. Most participants also reported that the CHCC was a helpful forum for sharing information. However, the CHCC has not fully demonstrated other key practices for enhancing collaboration. First, the CHCC and two of its three working groups have not developed short- and long-term goals. Moreover, the CHCC has not clarified participants' roles and responsibilities on the committee or its working groups. Finally, CHCC participants have not documented agreements related to collaboration, such as developing written materials to articulate common objectives. Incorporating these practices could help participants work collectively, focus on common goals, and organize joint and individual efforts to protect cultural property as the CHCC continues its efforts beyond its first year.

What GAO Recommends

GAO recommends that State work with other CHCC participants to (1) develop goals, (2) clarify participants' roles and responsibilities, and (3) document collaborative agreement in the CHCC and its working groups. State concurs with GAO's recommendations.