19–010 

Calendar No. 288 

112TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 2d Session 112–127 

AUTHORIZATION OF PEACE CORPS TO ESTABLISH 

COMMEMORATIVE WORK 

JANUARY 13, 2012.—Ordered to be printed 

Filed, under authority of the order of the Senate of December 17, 2011 

Mr. BINGAMAN, from the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 1421] 

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 

referred the bill (S. 1421) to authorize the Peace Corps Commemorative Foundation to establish a commemorative work in the District of Columbia and its environs, and for other purposes, having 

considered the same, reports favorably thereon without amendment 

and recommends that the bill do pass. 

PURPOSE

The purpose of S. 1421 is to authorize the Peace Corps Commemorative Foundation, a non-profit organization established by 

the National Peace Corps Association, to establish a commemorative work in the District of Columbia and its environs, to commemorate the mission of the Peace Corps and the ideals on which 

the Peace Corps was founded. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED

The Peace Corps traces its roots and mission to 1960, when thenSenator John F. Kennedy, during a speech to students at the University of Michigan, challenged those young adults to give two 

years of service to help people in developing countries. Five months 

later, President Kennedy signed an executive order establishing the 

Peace Corps as a federal agency devoted to world peace and friendship, and appointed R. Sargent Shriver to organize and direct the 

Corps. 


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Since that time, nearly 200,000 Peace Corps volunteers have 

served in 139 host countries to train local people in technologies 

and issues including agricultural production, water quality improvement, basic education, health and AIDS education, information technology, and environmental protection. 

S. 1421 would authorize the Peace Corps Commemorative Foundation to establish a memorial to commemorate the Peace Corps 

and the ideals on which it was founded. 

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

S. 1421 was introduced by Senators Portman and Udall of Colorado on July 26, 2011. There are 12 cosponsors. The Subcommittee 

on National Parks held a hearing on S. 1421 on October 19, 2011. 

At its business meeting on November 10, 2011, the Committee on 

Energy and Natural Resources ordered S. 1421 favorably reported. 

S. 1421 is similar to H.R. 4195, sponsored by Representative 

Farr in the 111th Congress, which was passed by the House of 

Representatives by voice vote on September 22, 2010. However, the 

Senate took no further action on the bill. 

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in 

open business session on November 10, 2011, by a voice vote of a 

quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 1421. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1(a) authorizes the establishment of a memorial on federal land in the District of Columbia and its environs to commemorate the mission of the Peace Corps and the ideals on which it was 

founded. 

Subsection (b) directs that the memorial be established according 

to the Commemorative Works Act (40 U.S.C. 9801 et seq.). 

Subsection (c) prohibits use of federal funds to pay for the establishment of the memorial and directs the Peace Corps Commemorative Foundation to be solely responsible for accepting contributions 

for and paying expenses of the memorial. 

Subsection (d) requires the Peace Corps Commemorative Foundation to transmit any excess funds, upon completion of the memorial 

and the establishment of a perpetual maintenance and preservation fund for the memorial, to the Secretary of the Interior for deposit into an account with the National Park Foundation. 

Section 2 contains language clarifying how budgetary effects of 

the bill, if any, will be determined. 

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

The following estimate of costs of this measure has been provided 

by the Congressional Budget Office: 

S. 1421—A bill to authorize the Peace Corps Commemorative Foundation to establish a commemorative work in the District of Columbia and its environs, and for other purposes 

S. 1421 would authorize a nonprofit organization to establish a 

commemorative work on federal lands in the District of Columbia. 

The bill would affect direct spending; therefore, pay-as-you-go proVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:59 Jan 18, 2012 Jkt 019010 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR127.XXX SR127

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cedures apply. However, CBO estimates that the net effect on the 

budget of enacting the legislation would be insignificant in any 

year. Enacting the bill would have no effect on revenues. 

The legislation would authorize the Peace Corps Commemorative 

Foundation to establish a memorial to honor the Peace Corps. The 

memorial project, which would be completed without the use of federal funds, would be subject to the requirements of the Commemorative Works Act. Under that act, any entity that receives a permit 

to construct a memorial in the District of Columbia or its environs 

must donate to the National Park Foundation (a nonprofit organization) an amount equal to 10 percent of the memorial’s estimated 

construction cost. That amount, as well as any project funds remaining after construction of the memorial, would be available in 

future years for maintenance of the memorial. 

Based on the experience of similar commemorative projects, CBO 

expects that any amounts collected by the federal government 

would not be received for several years and would be offset by a 

transfer to the National Park Foundation (a nonfederal entity) soon 

thereafter. 

S. 1421 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would 

not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Martin von Gnechten. 

The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis. 

REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION

In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following evaluation 

of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in carrying out 

S. 1421. 

The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of imposing 

Government-established standards or significant economic responsibilities on private individuals and businesses. 

No personal information would be collected in administering the 

program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal privacy. 

Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the enactment of S. 1421, as ordered reported. 

CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING

S. 1421, as ordered reported, does not contain any congressionally directed spending items, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff 

benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the Standing Rules of the Senate. 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

The testimony provided by the National Park Service at the October 19, 2011, Subcommittee on National Parks hearing on S. 

1421 follows. 


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STATEMENT OF WILLIAM D. SHADDOX, ACTING ASSOCIATE

DIRECTOR FOR PARK PLANNING, FACILITIES AND LANDS, 

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to appear 

before your committee to present the views of the Department of the Interior on S. 1421, a bill to authorize the 

Peace Corps Commemorative Foundation to establish a 

commemorative work in the District of Columbia and environs, and for other purposes. 

The Department supports S. 1421, which would authorize a memorial commemorating the formation of the Peace 

Corps and the ideals of world peace and friendship upon 

which the Peace Corps was founded. This proposal provides that no federal funds be used for establishing the 

memorial. 

Although this proposal does not seek any exceptions to 

the Commemorative Works Act (CWA), it should be noted 

that this proposal to honor the ideals upon which the 

Peace Corps was founded does not fit the typical mold for 

commemoration. The concept of establishing a memorial to 

‘‘ideals’’ is not explicitly described in the CWA. When testifying on H.R. 4195, a similar bill introduced in the 111th 

Congress, we identified our concerns that a bill such as 

that could set an unwelcome precedent for any and all future concepts identified only as ‘‘ideals,’’ resulting in an 

untenable influx of memorial proposals. However, there is 

precedent for such commemoration: specifically, the National Peace Garden, which Congress authorized in 1987, 

and the Memorial to Japanese American Patriotism in 

World War II, which was authorized in 1992. 

Our support for this proposal is based upon our understanding that this memorial will recognize the establishment of the Peace Corps and the significance of the ideals 

it exemplifies, not the organization’s members. The CWA 

precludes a memorial to members of the Peace Corps as 

the commemoration of groups may not be authorized until 

after the 25th anniversary of the death of the last surviving member of a group. 

The Department notes that S. 1421 reflects suggestions 

made to strengthen the language in this proposal as recommended in our testimony on H.R. 4195 in the 111th 

Congress, and by the National Capital Memorial Advisory 

Commission (NCMAC) at its meeting on April 21, 2010. 

The National Capital Memorial Advisory Commission has 

not reviewed S. 1421, but in their June 23, 2011 review of 

the companion bill H.R. 854, which is almost identical to 

this bill, they expressed support for the concept of a memorial to the ideals of the Peace Corps. NCMAC found that 

the provisions of H.R. 854 connect the ideals to the exceptional aspects of American character that are exhibited in 

the ideals of the Peace Corps. We share the Commission’s 

support for the idea of commemorating volunteerism and 

international cooperation as worthy ideals and practice of 

the Peace Corps. 


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Finally, S. 1421 provides that unspent funds raised for 

the construction of the memorial be provided to the National Park Foundation for deposit in an interest-bearing 

account as stated in 40 U.S.C. Section 8906(b)(3), as recommended in our testimony on H.R. 4195 in the 111th 

Congress. We appreciate the inclusion of this provision, 

and would like to work with the committee on an additional technical amendment to the language. 

That concludes my testimony, Mr. Chairman. I would be 

pleased to respond to any questions from you and members 

of the committee 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no changes in existing law are made by the bill S. 1421, as ordered reported. 

Æ 


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