I 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 7643 

To set forth the policy of the United States regarding vandalism, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 16, 2020 

Mrs. LESKO (for herself, Mr. HICE of Georgia, Mr. FULCHER, Mr. BIGGS, Mr. 

HARRIS, Mr. NORMAN, Mr. DUNCAN, Mr. DESJARLAIS, Mr. DAVIDSON

of Ohio, Mr. ROY, Mr. CLOUD, Mr. WRIGHT, Mr. MARSHALL, Mr. YOHO, 

Mr. BUDD, Mr. GOSAR, Mr. GIBBS, Mr. STEUBE, and Mr. GUEST) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Oversight and Reform, and 

Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To set forth the policy of the United States regarding 

vandalism, 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. PURPOSE. 

4 The purpose of this Act is as follows: 

5 (1) The first duty of government is to ensure 

6 domestic tranquility and defend the life, property, 

7 and rights of its citizens. Recently, there has been 


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1 a sustained assault on the life and property of civil2 ians, law enforcement officers, government property, 

3 and revered American monuments such as the Lin4 coln Memorial. Many of the rioters, arsonists, and 

5 extremists who have carried out and supported these 

6 acts have explicitly identified themselves with 

7 ideologies—such as Marxism—that call for the de8 struction of the United States system of govern9 ment. 

10 (2) Anarchists and extremists have sought to 

11 advance a fringe ideology that paints the United 

12 States of America as fundamentally unjust and have 

13 sought to impose that ideology on Americans 

14 through violence and mob intimidation. They have 

15 led riots in the streets, burned police vehicles, killed 

16 and assaulted government officers as well as busi17 ness owners defending their property, and even 

18 seized an area within one city where law and order 

19 gave way to anarchy. During the unrest, innocent 

20 citizens also have been harmed and killed. 

21 (3) These criminal acts are frequently planned 

22 and supported by agitators who have traveled across 

23 State lines to promote their own violent agenda. 

24 These radicals shamelessly attack the legitimacy of 

25 our institutions and the very rule of law itself. 


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1 (4) Key targets in the violent extremists’ cam2 paign against our country are public monuments, 

3 memorials, and statues. Their selection of targets re4 veals a deep ignorance of our history, and is indic5 ative of a desire to indiscriminately destroy anything 

6 that honors our past and to erase from the public 

7 mind any suggestion that our past may be worth 

8 honoring, cherishing, remembering, or under9 standing. For example, vandals toppled a statue of 

10 President Ulysses S. Grant in San Francisco. To 

11 them, it made no difference that President Grant led 

12 the Union Army to victory over the Confederacy in 

13 the Civil War, enforced Reconstruction, fought the 

14 Ku Klux Klan, and advocated for the Fifteenth 

15 Amendment, which guaranteed freed slaves the right 

16 to vote. In Charlotte, North Carolina, the names of 

17 507 veterans memorialized on a World War II 

18 monument were painted over with a symbol of com19 munism. In Boston, a memorial commemorating an 

20 African-American regiment that fought in the Civil 

21 War was defaced with graffiti. In Madison, Wis22 consin, rioters knocked over the statue of an aboli23 tionist immigrant who fought for the Union during 

24 the Civil War. Christian figures are now in the 

25 crosshairs, too. Recently, an influential activist for 


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1 one movement that has been prominent in setting 

2 the agenda for demonstrations in recent weeks de3 clared that many existing religious depictions of 

4 Jesus and the Holy Family should be purged from 

5 our places of worship. 

6 (5) Individuals and organizations have the right 

7 to peacefully advocate for either the removal or the 

8 construction of any monument. But no individual or 

9 group has the right to damage, deface, or remove 

10 any monument by use of force. 

11 (6) In the midst of these attacks, many State 

12 and local governments appear to have lost the ability 

13 to distinguish between the lawful exercise of rights 

14 to free speech and assembly and unvarnished van15 dalism. They have surrendered to mob rule, imper16 iling community safety, allowing for the wholesale 

17 violation of our laws, and privileging the violent im18 pulses of the mob over the rights of law-abiding citi19 zens. Worse, they apparently have lost the will or 

20 the desire to stand up to the radical fringe and de21 fend the fundamental truth that America is good, 

22 her people are virtuous, and that justice prevails in 

23 this country to a far greater extent than anywhere 

24 else in the world. Some particularly misguided public 

25 officials even appear to have accepted the idea that 


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1 violence can be virtuous and have prevented their 

2 police from enforcing the law and protecting public 

3 monuments, memorials, and statues from the mob’s 

4 ropes and graffiti. 

5 SEC. 2. POLICY. 

6 (a) It is the policy of the United States to prosecute 

7 to the fullest extent permitted under Federal law, and as 

8 appropriate, any person or any entity that destroys, dam9 ages, vandalizes, or desecrates a monument, memorial, or 

10 statue within the United States or otherwise vandalizes 

11 government property. The desire of the Congress to pro12 tect Federal property is clearly reflected in section 1361 

13 of title 18, United States Code, which authorizes a penalty 

14 of up to 10 years’ imprisonment for the willful injury of 

15 Federal property. More recently, under the Veterans’ Me16 morial Preservation and Recognition Act of 2003, section 

17 1369 of title 18, United States Code, the Congress pun18 ished with the same penalties the destruction of Federal 

19 and in some cases State-maintained monuments that 

20 honor military veterans. Other criminal statutes, such as 

21 the Travel Act, section 1952 of title 18, United States 

22 Code, permit prosecutions of arson damaging monuments, 

23 memorials, and statues on State grounds in some cases. 

24 Civil statutes like the Public System Resource Protection 

25 Act, section 100722 of title 54, United States Code, also 


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1 hold those who destroy certain Federal property account2 able for their offenses. The Federal Government will not 

3 tolerate violations of these and other laws. 

4 (b) It is the policy of the United States to prosecute 

5 to the fullest extent permitted under Federal law, and as 

6 appropriate, any person or any entity that participates in 

7 efforts to incite violence or other illegal activity in connec8 tion with the riots and acts of vandalism described in sec9 tion 1. Numerous Federal laws, including section 2101 of 

10 title 18, United States Code, prohibit the violence that has 

11 typified the past few weeks in some cities. Other statutes 

12 punish those who participate in or assist the agitators who 

13 have coordinated these lawless acts. Such laws include sec14 tion 371 of title 18, United States Code, which criminal15 izes certain conspiracies to violate Federal law, section 2 

16 of title 18, United States Code, which punishes those who 

17 aid or abet the commission of Federal crimes, and section 

18 2339A of title 18, United States Code, which prohibits 

19 as material support to terrorism efforts to support a de20 fined set of Federal crimes. Those who have joined in re21 cent violent acts around the United States will be held 

22 accountable. 

23 (c) It is the policy of the United States to prosecute 

24 to the fullest extent permitted under Federal law, and as 

25 appropriate, any person or any entity that damages, deVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:45 Aug 05, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7643.IH H7643

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1 faces, or destroys religious property, including by attack2 ing, removing, or defacing depictions of Jesus or other re3 ligious figures or religious art work. Federal laws prohibit, 

4 under certain circumstances, damage or defacement of re5 ligious property, including the Church Arson Prevention 

6 Act of 1996, section 247 of title 18, United States Code, 

7 and section 371 of title 18, United States Code. The Fed8 eral Government will not tolerate violations of these laws 

9 designed to protect the free exercise of religion. 

10 (d) It is the policy of the United States, as appro11 priate and consistent with applicable law, to withhold Fed12 eral support tied to public spaces from State and local gov13 ernments that have failed to protect public monuments, 

14 memorials, and statues from destruction or vandalism. 

15 These jurisdictions’ recent abandonment of their law en16 forcement responsibilities with respect to public monu17 ments, memorials, and statues casts doubt on their will18 ingness to protect other public spaces and maintain the 

19 peace within them. These jurisdictions are not appropriate 

20 candidates for limited Federal funds that support public 

21 spaces. 

22 (e) It is the policy of the United States, as appro23 priate and consistent with applicable law, to withhold Fed24 eral support from State and local law enforcement agen25 cies that have failed to protect public monuments, memoVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:45 Aug 05, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7643.IH H7643

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1 rials, and statues from destruction or vandalism. Unwill2 ingness to enforce State and local laws in the face of at3 tacks on our history, whether because of sympathy for the 

4 extremists behind this violence or some other improper 

5 reason, casts doubt on the management of these law en6 forcement agencies. These law enforcement agencies are 

7 not appropriate candidates for limited Federal funds that 

8 support State and local police. 

9 SEC. 3. ENFORCING LAWS PROHIBITING THE DESECRA10 TION OF PUBLIC MONUMENTS, THE VAN11 DALISM OF GOVERNMENT PROPERTY, AND 

12 RECENT ACTS OF VIOLENCE. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General shall 

14 prioritize within the Department of Justice the investiga15 tion and prosecution of matters described in subsections 

16 (a), (b), and (c) of section 2. The Attorney General shall 

17 take all appropriate enforcement action against individuals 

18 and organizations found to have violated Federal law 

19 through these investigations. 

20 (b) COORDINATION WITH STATES AND LOCAL21 ITIES.—The Attorney General shall, as appropriate and 

22 consistent with applicable law, work with State and local 

23 law enforcement authorities and Federal agencies to en24 sure the Federal Government appropriately provides infor25 mation and assistance to State and local law enforcement 


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1 authorities in connection with their investigations or pros2 ecutions for the desecration of monuments, memorials, 

3 and statues, regardless of whether such structures are sit4 uated on Federal property. 

5 SEC. 4. LIMITING FEDERAL GRANTS FOR JURISDICTIONS 

6 AND LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES THAT 

7 PERMIT THE DESECRATION OF MONUMENTS, 

8 MEMORIALS, OR STATUES. 

9 The heads of all executive departments and agencies 

10 shall examine their respective grant programs and apply 

11 the policies established by subsections (d) and (e) of sec12 tion 2 to all such programs to the extent that such applica13 tion is both appropriate and consistent with applicable 

14 law. 

15 SEC. 5. PROVIDING ASSISTANCE FOR THE PROTECTION OF 

16 FEDERAL MONUMENTS, MEMORIALS, STAT17 UES, AND PROPERTY. 

18 Upon the request of the Secretary of the Interior, the 

19 Secretary of Homeland Security, or the Administrator of 

20 General Services, the Secretary of Defense, the Attorney 

21 General, and the Secretary of Homeland Security shall 

22 provide, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law, 

23 personnel to assist with the protection of Federal monu24 ments, memorials, statues, or property. This section shall 


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1 terminate 6 months from the date of this Act unless ex2 tended by Congress. 

3 SEC. 6. GENERAL PROVISIONS. 

4 (a) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this Act 

5 shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect— 

6 (1) the authority granted by law to an executive 

7 department or agency, or the head thereof; or 

8 (2) the functions of the Director of the Office 

9 of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, 

10 administrative, or legislative proposals. 

11 (b) CONSISTENCY WITH EXISTING LAW.—This Act 

12 shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and 

13 subject to the availability of appropriations. 

14 (c) NO RIGHTS CREATED.—This Act is not intended 

15 to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive 

16 or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party 

17 against the United States, its departments, agencies, or 

18 entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other 

19 person. 

20 (d) PROSECUTORIAL DISCRETION.—This Act is not 

21 intended to, and does not, affect the prosecutorial discre22 tion of the Department of Justice with respect to indi23 vidual cases. 

Æ 


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