I 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1887 

To establish a Presidential Commission on Women, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 2, 2009 

Ms. SPEIER (for herself, Mrs. CAPPS, Ms. CLARKE, Mrs. DAHLKEMPER, Ms. 

DEGETTE, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Ms. SHEA-PORTER, Ms. TSONGAS, Ms. 

EDWARDS of Maryland, Mrs. HALVORSON, Ms. KAPTUR, Ms. KILROY, 

Ms. LEE of California, Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of California, Mrs. LOWEY, 

Ms. MARKEY of Colorado, Ms. WATERS, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Ms. PINGREE

of Maine, Ms. RICHARDSON, Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California, Ms. 

WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Ms. SCHWARTZ, Ms. TITUS, Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ, 

Ms. WOOLSEY, and Ms. ESHOO) introduced the following bill; which was 

referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform 

A BILL 

To establish a Presidential Commission on Women, and for 

other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Presidential Commis5 sion on Women Act of 2009’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT. 

2 There is established a commission to be known as the 

3 ‘‘Presidential Commission on Women’’ (hereinafter in this 

4 Act referred to as the ‘‘Commission’’). 

5 SEC. 3. FINDINGS AND POLICY. 

6 Congress makes the following findings and statement 

7 of policy: 

8 (1) It is the role of Government to examine the 

9 circumstances that contribute to discrimination, in10 equality, and economic hardship faced by women 

11 throughout the country. 

12 (2) It is the role of Government to establish ini13 tiatives and programs that promote equality for 

14 women, and protect against discrimination of 

15 women, in all areas of public and private life. 

16 (3) Women in our country continue to face in17 equalities and discrimination in many areas of public 

18 and private life, including but not limited to these 

19 examples: 

20 (A) The United States ranks 71st in the 

21 world in the number of women in elected office. 

22 In 2009, women make up 17 percent of Con23 gress and 24 percent of State legislative office24 holders. Women of color make up 4 percent of 

25 Congress and 2 percent of State legislative of26 fice-holders. 


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1 (B) Women earn 77 cents on the dollar 

2 compared to men. African-American women 

3 earn 69 cents on the dollar compared to men. 

4 Latinas earn 59 cents compared to men. 

5 (C) Of workers earning minimum wage, 68 

6 percent are women. Of workers earning less 

7 than the minimum wage, 69 percent are 

8 women. Nineteen percent of women, as com9 pared to 10 percent of men, have annual family 

10 incomes of less than $19,000. Of Fortune 500 

11 CEOs, 2 percent are women. 

12 (D) With only 76 percent of women in the 

13 labor force, the United States ranks sixth from 

14 the bottom among industrialized nations. 

15 Among college-educated women, the United 

16 States ranks last among industrialized nations. 

17 (E) While 57 percent of men are employed 

18 full-time, only 38 percent of women are em19 ployed full-time. Eight out of ten single-parent 

20 families are headed by women; 28 percent of 

21 people living in female-headed households are 

22 living below the poverty line. 

23 (F) There is a continuing decline in moth24 ers’ employment largely due to a lack of sup25 port for working parents, such as sufficient 


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1 paid time off, subsidized child care, or flexible 

2 working arrangements. There is also discrimi3 nation in the labor market specifically against 

4 mothers as well as weakness on the demand 

5 side of the labor market in areas that have tra6 ditionally employed large numbers of women. 

7 (G) One in every four women will experi8 ence domestic violence in her lifetime. Eighty9 five percent of domestic violence victims are 

10 women. The cost of intimate partner violence 

11 exceeds $5.8 billion each year, $4.1 billion of 

12 which is for direct medical and mental health 

13 services. 

14 (H) Eighteen percent of women in the 

15 United States do not have health insurance; 36 

16 percent of American Indian/Native Alaskan 

17 women are uninsured; 38 percent of Hispanic 

18 women do not have health insurance. 

19 (I) Women of color are disproportionately 

20 affected by the inequalities women face. 

21 (J) Gender bias and discrimination remain 

22 pervasive in almost all aspects of our culture, 

23 including but not limited to the media, family 

24 life, the workplace, sports, education, health 


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1 care, the military, entertainment, and financial 

2 matters. 

3 SEC. 4. DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION. 

4 (a) REVIEW REQUIRED.—The Commission shall hold 

5 meetings and hearings to— 

6 (1) review the status of women nationwide, and 

7 the progress made since the establishment of the 

8 President’s Commission on the Status of Women in 

9 1961; 

10 (2) review the role of the Federal Government 

11 in aid to, and the promotion of women; and 

12 (3) review data collection procedures with re13 gard to women Federal initiatives and procurement, 

14 with a view toward recommending improvements. 

15 (b) CONFERENCE.—The Commission shall, in coordi16 nation with the White House Council on Women and 

17 Girls, hold a conference (hereinafter in this Act referred 

18 to as the Conference) to assist in the review required by 

19 subsection (a). 

20 (c) RECOMMENDATIONS REQUIRED.—Based on the 

21 review required by subsection (a), the Commission shall 

22 make recommendations to the President and Congress and 

23 conduct oversight of implementation. 


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1 SEC. 5. MEMBERSHIP. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall be com3 posed of 15 members appointed as follows: 

4 (1) Four members appointed by the President. 

5 (2) Three members appointed by the Speaker of 

6 the House of Representatives and two members ap7 pointed by the minority leader. 

8 (3) Three members appointed by the majority 

9 leader of the Senate and two members appointed by 

10 the minority leader. 

11 (4) The director of the White House Council on 

12 Women and Girls, who shall serve ex officio. 

13 (b) QUALIFICATIONS.—Appointments under sub14 section paragraphs (1) through (3) of subsection (a) shall 

15 be made from individuals who are specially qualified to 

16 serve on the Commission by virtue of their education, 

17 training, or experience, and who are not officers or em18 ployees of the Government or Members of Congress. 

19 (c) REQUIREMENT FOR APPOINTMENT OF YOUNG

20 WOMEN.—Of the individuals appointed by President 

21 under paragraph (1), the Speaker of the House of Rep22 resentatives under paragraph (2), and the majority leader 

23 of the Senate under paragraph (3) of subsection (a), at 

24 least one member appointed under each paragraph shall 

25 be a young woman between the ages of 18–24. 


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1 (d) GEOGRAPHICAL BALANCE.—In making the ap2 pointments under subsection (a), the appointing authori3 ties should give consideration to achieving a geographical 

4 balance. 

5 (e) TERM.—Members shall be appointed for 5 years 

6 of the Commission, except that, if any member of the 

7 Commission becomes an officer or employee of the Federal 

8 Government or a Member of Congress, such individual 

9 may continue as a member of the Commission for not 

10 longer than the 30-day period beginning on the date such 

11 individual becomes such an officer or employee or Member 

12 of Congress. 

13 (f) VACANCIES.—A vacancy in the Commission shall 

14 be filled in the manner in which the original appointment 

15 was made. 

16 (g) PAY.—Members of the Commission shall serve 

17 without pay, except members of the Commission shall be 

18 entitled to reimbursement for travel, subsistence, and 

19 other necessary expenses incurred by them in carrying out 

20 the functions of the Commission, in the same manner as 

21 persons employed intermittently in the Federal Govern22 ment are allowed expenses under section 5703 of title 5, 

23 United States Code. 


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1 (h) QUORUM.—Eight members of the Commission 

2 shall constitute a quorum but a lesser number may hold 

3 hearings. 

4 (i) CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON.—The 

5 Chairperson and Vice Chairperson of the Commission 

6 shall be designated by the President. The term of office 

7 of the Chairperson and Vice Chairperson shall be 5 years 

8 of the Commission. 

9 (j) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall meet not less 

10 than 4 times nor more than 6 times each year. Meetings 

11 shall be at the call of a majority of its members. 

12 SEC. 6. DIRECTOR AND STAFF OF THE COMMISSION. 

13 (a) DIRECTOR AND STAFF.—(1) The Commission 

14 shall have a Director who shall be appointed by the Com15 mission. The Commission, with the recommendation of the 

16 Director, may appoint and fix the pay of 4 additional per17 sonnel. 

18 (2) The Director and staff of the Commission may 

19 be appointed without regard to section 5311(b) of title 5, 

20 United States Code, and without regard to the provisions 

21 of such title governing appointments in the competitive 

22 service, and may be paid without regard to the provisions 

23 of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of such 

24 title relating to classification and General Schedule pay 

25 rates, except that no individual so appointed may receive 


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1 pay in excess of the annual rate of basic pay payable for 

2 GS–18 of the General Schedule. 

3 (b) SERVICES.—The Commission may procure tem4 porary and intermittent services under section 3109(b) of 

5 title 5 of the Unites States Code, but at rates for individ6 uals not to exceed the daily equivalent of the maximum 

7 annual rate of basic pay payable for GS–18 of the General 

8 Schedule. 

9 (c) DETAILS.—Upon request of the Commission, the 

10 head of any department or agency may detail, on a reim11 bursable basis, any of the personnel of such agency to the 

12 Commission to assist the Commission in carrying out its 

13 duties under this Act. 

14 SEC. 7. POWERS OF THE COMMISSION. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission may, for the 

16 purpose of carrying out this Act, hold such hearings, sit 

17 and act at such times and places, take such testimony, 

18 and receive such evidence, as the Commission considers 

19 appropriate. 

20 (b) DELEGATION.—Any member or agent of the 

21 Commission may, if so authorized by the Commission, 

22 take any action which the Commission is authorized to 

23 take by this section. 

24 (c) ACCESS TO INFORMATION.—The Commission 

25 may secure directly from any department or agency of the 


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1 United States information necessary to enable it to carry 

2 out this Act. Upon request of the Chairperson of the Com3 mission, the head of such department or agency shall fur4 nish such information to the Commission. 

5 (d) USE OF MAILS.—The Commission may use the 

6 United States mails in the same manner and under the 

7 same conditions as other departments and agencies of the 

8 United States. 

9 (e) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT.—The Administrator 

10 of General Services shall provide to the Commission on 

11 a reimbursable basis such administrative support services 

12 as the Commission may request. 

13 SEC. 8. CONFERENCE AND CONFERENCE DELEGATES. 

14 The Commission in coordination with the White 

15 House Council on Women and Girls shall convene a con16 ference of delegates invited by the Commission, who shall 

17 be fairly balanced and diverse in terms of geography and 

18 ethnicity without regard to political affiliation or past par19 tisan activity, who shall include— 

20 (1) the directors of commissions for women of 

21 the States and local levels of government; 

22 (2) elected officials of State and local govern23 ments; 

24 (3) advocates for women at colleges and univer25 sities; and 


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1 (4) representatives of nonprofit organizations 

2 and community-based organizations. 

3 SEC. 9. CONFERENCE ADMINISTRATION. 

4 (a) ADMINISTRATION.—In conducting and planning 

5 the Conference, the Commission and the White House 

6 Council on Women and Girls shall— 

7 (1) request the cooperation and assistance of 

8 the heads of such other Federal entities as may be 

9 appropriate, including the detailing of personnel; 

10 (2) prepare and make available appropriate 

11 background materials for the use of delegates to the 

12 Conference; 

13 (3) employ such personnel, in addition to those 

14 appointed under section 6 and without regard to 

15 provisions of title 5, United States Code, governing 

16 appointments in the competitive service, and without 

17 regard to chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 

18 53 of such title, relating to classification and Gen19 eral Schedule pay rates; 

20 (4) ensure that the proposed agenda for the 

21 Conference is— 

22 (A) published in the Federal Register not 

23 less than 180 days before the Conference is 

24 convened; and 


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1 (B) made available for public comment for 

2 a period of not less than 60 days; 

3 (5) ensure that the final agenda for the Con4 ference, prepared after the Commission and the 

5 White House Council on Women and Girls takes 

6 into consideration comments received under para7 graph (4), is published in the Federal Register, and 

8 transmitted to the chief executive officers of the 

9 States, not later than 30 days after the close of the 

10 public comment period required by that paragraph; 

11 (6) ensure that the personnel employed are fair12 ly balanced in terms of their points of view with re13 spect to women and are appointed without regard to 

14 political affiliation or past partisan activity; 

15 (7) the recommendations of the Conference are 

16 not inappropriately influenced by any public official 

17 or special interest, but instead are the result of the 

18 independent and collective judgment of the delegates 

19 of the Conference; and 

20 (8) ensure that before the Conference is con21 vened— 

22 (A) current and adequate statistical data 

23 (including decennial census data) and other in24 formation on the well-being of Women in the 

25 United States; and 


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1 (B) such information as may be necessary 

2 to evaluate Federal programs and policies relat3 ing to Women; which the Commission may ob4 tain by making grants to or entering into agree5 ments with, public agencies or nonprofit organi6 zations, are readily available in advance of the 

7 Conference to the delegates. 

8 SEC. 10. REPORTS. 

9 The Commission shall transmit to the President and 

10 to Congress a first report no later than 2 years after the 

11 date of the Commission’s first meeting. That report shall 

12 include a statement of the Commission’s objectives and 

13 goals for the remainder of the Commission’s work. There14 after the Commission shall report annually. Each of those 

15 annual reports shall contain a statement of any findings 

16 and conclusions of the Commission, together with its rec17 ommendations for such legislation and administrative ac18 tions as it considers appropriate. 

19 SEC. 11. DEFINITION. 

20 In this Act, the term ‘‘State’’ means any of the sev21 eral States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth 

22 of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United 

23 States Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the 

24 Northern Mariana Islands. 


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1 SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro3 priated $2,000,000.00 to carry out this Act in each of fis4 cal years 2011 through 2015. 

5 (b) LIMITATION ON APPROPRIATIONS.—Authority 

6 provided in this Act to make expenditures or to enter into 

7 contracts under which the United States is obligated to 

8 make outlays shall be effective only to the extent that 

9 amounts are provided, and only to the extent of the 

10 amounts provided, in advance in appropriations Acts. 

Æ 


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