59–010 

Calendar No. 233 

110TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 1st Session 110–103 

BRIGADIER GENERAL FRANCIS MARION MEMORIAL ACT 

OF 2007 

JUNE 26, 2007.—Ordered to be printed 

Mr. BINGAMAN, from the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources, submitted the following

R E P O R T 

[To accompany H.R. 497] 

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 

referred the Act (H.R. 497) to authorize the Marion Park Project, 

a committee of the Palmetto Conservation Foundation, to establish 

a commemorative work on Federal land in the District of Columbia, 

and its environs to honor Brigadier General Francis Marion, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon without amendment and recommends that the Act do pass. 

PURPOSE OF THE MEASURE

The purpose of H.R. 497 is to authorize the Marion Park Project, 

a committee of the Palmetto Conservation Foundation, to establish 

a commemorative work on Federal land in the District of Columbia 

and its environs to honor Brigadier General Francis Marion. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED

H.R. 497 would establish a commemorative work on federal land 

in or around Washington, DC to honor Brigadier General Francis 

Marion (born c. 1732–died 1795), who commanded the Williamsburg Militia Revolutionary force in South Carolina and was instrumental in delaying the advance of British forces. Nicknamed the 

‘‘Swamp Fox’’ by the British, Marion led successful efforts to disrupt the British supply lines, and has been credited for inventing 

and applying innovative battle tactics, which were instrumental to 

the Americans’ ultimate victory in the Revolutionary War. 


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LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

H.R. 497, sponsored by Congressman Wilson, passed the House 

of Representatives by a vote of 390–0 on March 5, 2007. A companion measure, S. 312, was introduced by Senators Graham and 

DeMint on January 17, 2007. During the 109th Congress, the 

House passed a similar measure, H.R. 5057, by a voice vote on July 

24, 2006. 

The Subcommittee on National Parks held a hearing on H.R. 497 

and S. 312 on April 26, 2007. At its business meeting on May 23, 

2007, the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources ordered 

H.R. 497 favorably reported, without amendment. 

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in an 

open business session on May 23, 2007, by a unanimous voice vote 

of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass H.R. 497. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1 contains the short title, the ‘‘Brigadier General Francis 

Marion Memorial Act of 2007.’’ Section 2(a) contains Congressional findings. 

Subsection (b) authorizes the Marion Park Project, a committee 

of the non-profit Palmetto Conservation Foundation, to establish a 

commemorative work on Federal land in the District of Columbia 

or its environs to honor Brigadier General Francis Marion. 

Subsection (c) requires that the memorial be established in accordance with the Commemorative Works Act (40 U.S.C. 8901 et 

seq.). 

Subsection (d) prohibits the use of Federal funds for the establishment of the memorial. The Marion Park Project is to be solely 

responsible for funding the establishment of the memorial. 

Subsection (e) states that if there are excess funds after payment 

of all expenses associated with the establishment of the memorial, 

the balance shall be transmitted to the Secretary of the Treasury 

as provided in the Commemorative Works Act. 

Subsection (f) clarifies that the terms ‘‘commemorative work’’ and ‘‘the District of Columbia and its environs’’ have the same meaning 

as used in the Commemorative Works Act. 

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

The following estimate of the cost of this measure has been provided by the Congressional Budget Office: 

MAY 31, 2007. 

Hon. JEFF BINGAMAN, Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 

U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 497, the Brigadier General Francis Marion Memorial Act of 2007. 

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Deborah Reis. 

Sincerely, 

PETER R. ORSZAG. 


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Enclosure. 

H.R. 497—Brigadier General Francis Marion Memorial Act of 2007 

H.R. 497 would authorize a nonprofit organization to establish a 

commemorative work honoring Brigadier General Francis Marion. 

CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 497 would have no significant impact on the federal budget. Enacting the legislation would 

affect revenues and direct spending, but we estimate that such effects would not be significant. 

The legislation 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. 

H.R. 497 would authorize the Palmetto Conservation Foundation 

to establish the monument to the Revolutionary War hero on federal land in Washington, DC, subject to the requirements of the 

Commemorative Works Act (CWA) and without the use of federal 

funds. Under the CWA, any entity that receives a permit to construct a memorial in the District of Columbia or its environs must 

deposit an amount equal to 10 percent of the memorial’s estimated 

construction cost in the U.S. Treasury. The funds deposited are 

then available without further appropriation for maintenance and 

preservation of the structure. 

Based on information provided by the National Park Service, 

CBO estimates that the federal government would collect a deposit 

from the nonprofit organization of less than $100,000 once the memorial has been built. Based on the history of similar commemorative projects, we expect that the deposit would not be received for 

several years, and spending of any amounts received would be 

minimal in any fiscal year. The act also would require the organization to pay the Treasury any amounts that it collects from contributors in excess of construction costs, but CBO estimates that no 

such amounts would be paid. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis. This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, 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 

H.R. 497. The Act 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 H.R. 497, as ordered reported. 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

The testimony provided by the National Park Service at the April 

26, 2007 subcommittee hearing on H.R. 497 follows: 


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STATEMENT OF DANIEL N. WENK, DEPUTY DIRECTOR, 

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, thank 

you for the opportunity to appear before you today to 

present the Department of the Interior’s views on S. 312 

and H.R. 497, bills to authorize the Marion Park Project, 

a committee of the Palmetto Conservation Foundation, to 

establish a commemorative work on Federal land in the 

District of Columbia and its environs to honor Brigadier 

General Francis Marion. 

The Department of the Interior supports enactment of S. 

312 and H.R. 497, and we suggest that a technical correction be made to S. 312 to make it consistent with the 

House-passed companion bill, H.R. 497. The Senate bill 

references ‘‘the Marion Park Project and Committee of the 

Palmetto Conservation Foundation’’ as the entities authorized to establish the commemorative work. We suggest an 

amendment to change this reference to ‘‘the Marion Park 

Project, a committee of the Palmetto Conservation Foundation.’’ The National Capital Memorial Advisory Commission considered proposals to establish this memorial on 

June 27, 2006, and unanimously endorsed the establishment of a memorial in the Nation’s Capital to Brigadier 

General Francis Marion. 

S. 312 and H.R. 497 would establish a commemorative 

work on Federal land to honor Brigadier General Francis 

Marion in accordance with the Commemorative Works Act. 

They would prohibit Federal funds from being used to pay 

any expense of the establishment of the commemorative 

work, requiring the Marion Park Project and Committee of 

the Palmetto Conservation Foundation to be solely responsible for funding and establishment. After payment of the 

expenses for establishing the commemorative work, which 

includes the offset for the maintenance and preservation of 

the memorial, or upon expiration of the authority for the 

commemorative work, S. 312 and H.R. 497 would direct all 

remaining funds to be transmitted to the Secretary of the 

Treasury for deposit in an account provided for this purpose. S. 312 also would direct any funds remaining for the 

commemorative work upon expiration of legislative authority to be transferred to the same account. 

Memorials built in the District of Columbia and its environs on lands managed by the National Park Service or 

the General Services Administration are established in accordance with the Commemorative Works Act. If a memorial is proposed on lands managed by the National Park 

Service, the Commemorative Works Act requires that 

within 7 years from the date of enactment, the sponsor obtain approvals for its location and design from the Secretary of the Interior, the National Capital Planning Commission, and the Commission of Fine Arts and complete its 

fundraising for the memorial. The National Park Service 

issues a permit to begin construction of the memorial as 

soon as construction documents are certified and evidence 


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of sufficient funds to complete the memorial have been 

provided by the sponsor. The Commemorative Works Act 

also requires an additional 10 percent of the construction 

cost to be provided to defray future unbudgeted maintenance costs. Since 1986, memorials that range from largescale memorials to memorial plaques have been established under the terms of the Commemorative Works Act. 

These have fully met the requirements to obtain a permit 

to begin construction. 

Although S. 312 and H.R. 497 do not designate a specific 

site for the memorial, they recognize that U.S. Reservation 

18 has been named Marion Park since 1878 but lacks a 

formal commemoration to Brigadier General Francis Marion. Marion Park is located between 4th and 6th Streets, 

SE at the intersection E Street and South Carolina Avenue, SE in Washington, DC This site is located in Area II 

under the Commemorative Works Act, which requires that 

the subject be of ‘‘lasting historical significance to the 

American people.’’ While Marion Park is the logical place 

to locate this memorial, we would like the opportunity to 

study alternative locations with potential nexus to Brigadier General Marion under the provisions of the Commemorative Works Act. Site selection is an important part 

of the process established by the Commemorative Works 

Act. Thus, recognizing Marion Park in the findings of the 

bill, rather than designating it as the site for the commemorative work, is appropriate. 

Brigadier General Francis Marion commanded the Williamsburg Militia Revolutionary force in South Carolina 

and was instrumental in delaying the advance of British 

forces by leading his troops in disrupting supply lines. He 

is credited for inventing and applying innovative battle 

tactics in this effort, keys to an ultimate victory for the 

American Colonies in the Revolutionary War. Additionally, 

Brigadier General Marion’s troops are believed to have 

been the first racially integrated force fighting for the 

United States. In our judgment he is certainly worthy of 

being commemorated in our Nation’s Capital. 

Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to comment. This concludes my prepared remarks and I will be 

happy to answer any questions you or other subcommittee 

members might have. 

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 Act H.R. 497, as ordered reported. 

Æ 


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