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[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2316 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2316

  To designate the Salt Pond Visitor Center at the Cape Cod National 
 Seashore as the ``Thomas P. O'Neill, Jr. Salt Pond Visitor Center'', 
                        and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 19, 2012

 Mr. Kerry (for himself and Mr. Brown of Massachusetts) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                      Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
  To designate the Salt Pond Visitor Center at the Cape Cod National 
 Seashore as the ``Thomas P. O'Neill, Jr. Salt Pond Visitor Center'', 
                        and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. DESIGNATION OF SALT POND VISITOR CENTER AT THE CAPE COD 
              NATIONAL SEASHORE.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
            (1) Thomas Phillip (``Tip'') O'Neill, Jr. was born on 
        December 9, 1912, in a middle-class Irish neighborhood of North 
        Cambridge, Massachusetts, to Thomas Phillip O'Neill, Sr. and 
        Rose Ann O'Neill;
            (2) nicknamed ``Tip'' during his childhood, Tip O'Neill was 
        educated in Roman Catholic schools, graduating from St. John's 
        High School in 1931, where he was captain of the basketball 
        team;
            (3) Tip O'Neill attended Boston College, where he ran for a 
        Cambridge City Council seat during his senior year, his first 
        attempt at running for office and only electoral defeat;
            (4) following his graduation from Boston College in 1936, 
        Tip O'Neill was elected to the Massachusetts House of 
        Representatives that same year as a New Deal Democrat whose 
        political philosophy was shaped by his experience growing up in 
        working-class Boston and his strong Catholic faith, which led 
        him to view government as a means for helping the disadvantaged 
        in society;
            (5) in 1949, Tip O'Neill became the first Democratic 
        Speaker in the history of the Massachusetts State Legislature, 
        serving as Speaker until 1952, when he ran successfully for the 
        United States House of Representatives to fill the seat vacated 
        by Senator-elect John F. Kennedy;
            (6) in 1958, inspired by the establishment of the Cape 
        Hatteras National Seashore, a seashore park in the State of 
        North Carolina, Representative Tip O'Neill, along with his 
        close friend and colleague Representative Edward Boland, 
        introduced legislation to protect land on Cape Cod as a 
        national seashore;
            (7) in describing the area on Cape Cod referred to in 
        paragraph (6), Henry David Thoreau wrote that ``[a] man may 
        stand there and put all America behind him'', as the pristine 
        sandy beach, marshes, ponds, and uplands supporting diverse 
        species represent a unique, cherished jewel of nature;
            (8) the legislation referred to in paragraph (6) 
        established a 40-mile National Park along the outer beach of 
        Cape Cod, from the city of Chatham through the cities of 
        Orleans, Eastham, Wellfleet, Truro, and Provincetown, including 
        lighthouses, cultural landscapes, and wild cranberry bogs that 
        offer a glimpse of the past and continuing ways of life of Cape 
        Cod;
            (9) after introducing the legislation referred to in 
        paragraph (6) in the 85th Congress, Tip O'Neill continued to 
        advocate strongly for the establishment of the Cape Cod 
        National Seashore, cosponsoring bills in the 86th and 87th 
        Congresses, testifying at hearings, and working to advance the 
        legislation through Congress;
            (10) the legislation to establish the Cape Cod National 
        Seashore was intended to preserve one of the great natural 
        marvels of the United States, including the unbroken beach and 
        moors, marshes, forests, and freshwater ponds that are home to 
        many species of birds, fish, animals, and plants;
            (11) on August 7, 1961, President Kennedy signed into law 
        Public Law 87-126, which authorized the establishment the Cape 
        Cod National Seashore;
            (12) in 1966, the Cape Cod National Seashore was formally 
        established, and Representative O'Neill attended the May 30, 
        1966, ceremony inaugurating the Salt Pond Visitor Center;
            (13) the Cape Cod National Seashore has become a national 
        treasure, with millions of Americans and visitors from around 
        the world enjoying the beauty and remarkable biodiversity of 
        the Cape Cod National Seashore;
            (14) Tip O'Neill and his family maintained a home on Cape 
        Cod in Harwich Port, and he was a frequent visitor to the 
        National Seashore throughout his service in Congress and his 
        retirement;
            (15) while a Member of Congress, Tip O'Neill rose quickly 
        through the leadership ranks due to his extraordinary political 
        skills, mastery of the legislative process, and sharp wit, 
        serving first as Majority Whip in the House of Representatives 
        beginning in 1971 and then, in 1973, as House Majority Leader;
            (16) one of Tip O'Neill's greatest accomplishments as 
        Speaker was the crafting of a peace accord between warring 
        factions in Northern Ireland, during which he worked with 
        fellow Irish-American politicians, including Senator Edward M. 
        Kennedy, to develop the ``St. Patrick's Day declaration'', 
        which denounced violence in Northern Ireland and culminated 
        with the Irish aid package on the signing of the Anglo-Irish 
        Agreement in 1985;
            (17) on January 3, 1987, Tip O'Neill retired from Congress, 
        having served in public life for 50 years, including 34 years 
        as a Member of Congress and 10 years as Speaker of the House, 
        the longest continuous term of any Speaker since the first 
        Congress met in 1789;
            (18) Tip O'Neill's extraordinary record of public service 
        to the United States and tremendous accomplishments and 
        unmatched attention to the needs of his constituents led 
        President George H.W. Bush in 1991 to present Tip O'Neill with 
        the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award 
        in the United States; and
            (19) it is fitting to recognize the support of Tip O'Neill 
        for the protection of the natural, historic, and cultural 
        resources of the National Parks of the State of Massachusetts.
    (b) Designation.--The Salt Pond Visitor Center at Cape Cod National 
Seashore in Eastham, Massachusetts, is designated as the ``Thomas P. 
O'Neill, Jr. Salt Pond Visitor Center''.
    (c) References.--Any reference to the Salt Pond Visitor Center at 
Cape Cod National Seashore in any law, regulation, map, document, 
record, or other paper of the United States shall be considered to be a 
reference to the ``Thomas P. O'Neill, Jr. Salt Pond Visitor Center''.
    (d) Signage.--The Secretary of the Interior may post an 
interpretive sign at the visitor center described in this section 
that--
            (1) includes information on Thomas P. O'Neill, Jr. and his 
        contributions as a Member of the United States House of 
        Representatives;
            (2) includes an image of Thomas P. O'Neill, Jr.; and
            (3) refers to the efforts of Thomas P. O'Neill, Jr. to aid 
        in the preservation of the Cape Cod National Seashore and other 
        National Parks in the State of Massachusetts.
                                 <all>
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