H. Res. 1451 

In the House of Representatives, U. S., 

September 24, 2008. 

Resolved, 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

This resolution may be cited as the ‘‘Tom Lantos 

Human Rights Commission Establishment Resolution’’. 

SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF TOM LANTOS HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION. 

(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

House of Representatives the Tom Lantos Human Rights 

Commission (hereafter in this resolution referred to as the 

‘‘Commission’’), which shall promote and advocate in a nonpartisan manner, both within and outside of Congress, internationally recognized human rights norms as enshrined in the 

Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other relevant 

international human rights instruments by carrying out the 

following activities: 

(1) Developing congressional strategies to promote, 

defend, and advocate internationally recognized human 
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rights norms reflecting the role and responsibilities of 

the Congress. 

(2) Raising greater awareness among Members of 

the House of Representatives, their staffs, and the public 

regarding international human rights violations and developments. 

(3) Providing Members and staff with expert 

human rights advice and information and by supporting 

entities of Congress in their work on human rights 

issues. 

(4) Advocating on behalf of individuals and entities 

whose internationally recognized human rights have been 

violated or are in danger of being violated. 

(5) Collaborating closely with other professional 

staff members of the Committee on Foreign Affairs. 

(6) Collaborating closely with the President, other 

officials of the executive branch, and recognized national 

and international human rights entities and nongovernmental organizations in promoting human rights initiatives within Congress. 

(7) Encouraging and supporting Members, especially Members who have been recently elected to the 

House, to become active in supporting human rights 

issues so that the United States will continue to be rec-
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ognized throughout the world as a leader in the defense 

of internationally recognized human rights norms. 

(b) ELIGIBILITY.—Any Member of the House of Representatives may join the Commission by submitting a written 

statement to that effect to the co-chairs of the Commission. 

(c) RELATIONSHIP WITH SENATE.—In carrying out its 

activities, the Commission is encouraged to establish a cooperative working relationship with Members and other entities 

of the Senate, and to invite Members and other entities of the 

Senate to work cooperatively with the Commission to promote 

human rights. 

(d) DEFINITION.—In this resolution, the term ‘‘Member 

of the House of Representatives’’ includes a Delegate or Resident Commissioner to the Congress. 

SEC. 3. CO-CHAIRS OF THE COMMISSION. 

(a) APPOINTMENT.—Two members of the Commission 

shall be appointed to serve as co-chairs of the Commission as 

follows: 

(1) One member shall be appointed by the Speaker 

of the House of Representatives after consultation with 

the Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs. 

(2) One member shall be appointed by the minority 

leader of the House of Representatives after consultation 

with the ranking minority member of the Committee on 

Foreign Affairs. 
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(b) TERM OF SERVICE.—A member’s term as co-chair of 

the Commission shall continue throughout the Congress during which the member is appointed as a co-chair under this 

section until the member leaves the Commission, resigns from 

the position of co-chair, or is removed pursuant to subsection 

(c). 

(c) REMOVAL.—The co-chair appointed pursuant to subsection (a)(1) may be removed by the Speaker after consultation with the Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, 

and the co-chair appointed pursuant to subsection (a)(2) may 

be removed by the minority leader after consultation with the 

ranking minority member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs. 

(d) VACANCY.—A vacancy in the position of any of the 

co-chairs of the Commission shall be filled in the same manner in which the original appointment was made. 

(e) DUTIES.—The co-chairs shall be responsible for setting the general agenda of the Commission. 

SEC. 4. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall have an Executive Committee which shall consist of 8 members of the 

Commission equally divided between members of the majority 

and minority parties selected jointly by the co-chairs of the 

Commission with the approval of the Speaker of the House 
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of Representatives and the minority leader of the House of 

Representatives. 

(b) VACANCY.—A vacancy in the membership of the Executive Committee shall be filled in the same manner in 

which the original selection was made. 

SEC. 5. ROLE OF THE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS. 

(a) USE OF COMMITTEE STAFF AND RESOURCES.—Subject to subsection (b), the Commission shall carry out its duties using the staff and resources of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, including the use of consultants or temporary 

employees, such as individuals with expertise in human rights 

issues, related legislative matters, and technology systems 

management, as appropriate. 

(b) REQUIREMENTS FOR STAFF.— 

(1) APPOINTMENT.—The staff of the Committee on 

Foreign Affairs who may be used by the Commission 

under subsection (a) to carry out its duties shall be professional staff members of the Committtee who are appointed for this purpose by the Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, of whom half of the full-time 

equivalent positions shall be appointed from among a list 

of individuals presented to the Chairman of the Committee by the co-chair appointed pursuant to section 

3(a)(1) and half of the full-time equivalent positions 

shall be appointed from among a list of individuals pre-
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sented to the Chairman of the Committee by the co-chair 

appointed pursuant to section 3(a)(2). 

(2) SPECIAL RULE FOR DETERMINATION OF NUMBER OF COMMITTEE STAFF MEMBERS.—Any professional 

staff member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs who 

is used by the Commission to carry out its duties on a 

full-time basis shall not be included in determining the 

number of professional staff members of the Committee 

under subparagraphs (1) and (2) of clause 9(a) of rule 

X of the Rules of the House of Representatives. 

SEC. 6. OTHER POWERS AND DUTIES. 

(a) BYLAWS.—The Commission shall adopt and publish 

such bylaws to govern its organization and operation (including the duties of the Executive Committee) as it considers appropriate, subject to the applicable Rules of the House of 

Representatives. 

(b) NO LEGISLATIVE AUTHORITY.—The Commission 

shall not have legislative jurisdiction and shall have no authority to take legislative action on any bill or resolution. 

SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

In addition to any other amounts made available for salaries and expenses of the Committee on Foreign Affairs of 

the House of Representatives during a Congress, there are 

authorized to be appropriated from the applicable accounts of 

the House of Representatives such sums as may be necessary 
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for the Committee to provide staff and resources for the 

Commission pursuant to section 5. 

SEC. 8. TRANSITION FOR CURRENT MEMBERS OF CONGRESSIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS CAUCUS. 

For purposes of this resolution— 

(1) each Member of the House of Representatives 

who is a member of the Congressional Human Rights 

Caucus as of the date of the adoption of this resolution 

shall be deemed to have joined the Commission; and 

(2) the 2 Members of the House of Representatives 

who are the co-chairs of the Congressional Human 

Rights Caucus as of the date of the adoption of this resolution shall be deemed to have been appointed as cochairs of the Commission. 

Attest: 

Clerk.