I

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 40

To acknowledge the fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality, and inhumanity

of slavery in the United States and the 13 American colonies between

1619 and 1865 and to establish a commission to examine the institution

of slavery, subsequent de jure and de facto racial and economic discrimination against African Americans, and the impact of these forces on

living African Americans, to make recommendations to the Congress

on appropriate remedies, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JANUARY 5, 1993

Mr. CONYERS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the

Committee on the Judiciary

MARCH 14, 1994

Additional sponsors: Mr. DELLUMS, Miss COLLINS of Michigan, Mr. OWENS,

Mr. FLAKE, Mrs. COLLINS of Illinois, Mr. ABERCROMBIE, Mr. JEFFERSON, Mr. STOKES, Mr. WHEAT, Mr. TOWNS, Mr. HILLIARD, and Mr.

LANTOS

A BILL

To acknowledge the fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality,

and inhumanity of slavery in the United States and

the 13 American colonies between 1619 and 1865 and

to establish a commission to examine the institution of

slavery, subsequent de jure and de facto racial and economic discrimination against African Americans, and the

impact of these forces on living African Americans, to

make recommendations to the Congress on appropriate

remedies, and for other purposes.
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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 ‘‘Commission to Study

5 Reparation Proposals for African Americans Act’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

7 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—

8 (1) approximately 4,000,000 Africans and their

9 descendants were enslaved in the United States and

10 the colonies that became the United States from

11 1619 to 1865;

12 (2) the institution of slavery was constitu13 tionally and statutorily sanctioned by the Govern14 ment of the United States from 1789 through 1865;

15 (3) the slavery that flourished in the United

16 States constituted an immoral and inhumane depri17 vation of Africans’ life, liberty, African citizenship

18 rights, and cultural heritage, and denied them the

19 fruits of their own labor; and

20 (4) sufficient inquiry has not been made into

21 the effects of the institution of slavery on living Afri22 can Americans and society in the United States.

23 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to estab24 lish a commission to—
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1 (1) examine the institution of slavery which ex2 isted from 1619 through 1865 within the United

3 States and the colonies that became the United

4 States, including the extent to which the Federal

5 and State governments constitutionally and statu6 torily supported the institution of slavery;

7 (2) examine de jure and de facto discrimination

8 against freed slaves and their descendants from the

9 end of the Civil War to the present, including eco10 nomic, political, and social discrimination;

11 (3) examine the lingering negative effects of the

12 institution of slavery and the discrimination de13 scribed in paragraph (2) on living African Ameri14 cans and on society in the United States;

15 (4) recommend appropriate ways to educate the

16 American public of the Commission’s findings;

17 (5) recommend appropriate remedies in consid18 eration of the Commission’s findings on the matters

19 described in paragraphs (1) and (2); and

20 (6) submit to the Congress the results of such

21 examination, together with such recommendations.

22 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT AND DUTIES.

23 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the Com24 mission to Study Reparation Proposals for African Ameri-
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1 cans (hereinafter in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Commis2 sion’’).

3 (b) DUTIES.—The Commission shall perform the fol4 lowing duties:

5 (1) Examine the institution of slavery which ex6 isted within the United States and the colonies that

7 became the United States from 1619 through 1865.

8 The Commission’s examination shall include an ex9 amination of—

10 (A) the capture and procurement of Afri11 cans;

12 (B) the transport of Africans to the United

13 States and the colonies that became the United

14 States for the purpose of enslavement, including

15 their treatment during transport;

16 (C) the sale and acquisition of Africans as

17 chattel property in interstate and intrastate

18 commerce; and

19 (D) the treatment of African slaves in the

20 colonies and the United States, including the

21 deprivation of their freedom, exploitation of

22 their labor, and destruction of their culture,

23 language, religion, and families.

24 (2) Examine the extent to which the Federal

25 and State governments of the United States sup-
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1 ported the institution of slavery in constitutional and

2 statutory provisions, including the extent to which

3 such governments prevented, opposed, or restricted

4 efforts of freed African slaves to repatriate to their

5 home land.

6 (3) Examine Federal and State laws that dis7 criminated against freed African slaves and their de8 scendants during the period between the end of the

9 civil war and the present.

10 (4) Examine other forms of discrimination in

11 the public and private sectors against freed African

12 slaves and their descendants during the period be13 tween the end of the civil war and the present.

14 (5) Examine the lingering negative effects of

15 the institution of slavery and the matters described

16 in paragraphs (1), (2), (3), and (4) on living African

17 Americans and on society in the United States.

18 (6) Recommend appropriate ways to educate

19 the American public of the Commission’s findings.

20 (7) Recommend appropriate remedies in consid21 eration of the Commission’s findings on the matters

22 described in paragraphs (1), (2), (3), and (4). In

23 making such recommendations, the Commission

24 shall address, among other issues, the following

25 questions:
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1 (A) Whether the Government of the United

2 States should offer a formal apology on behalf

3 of the people of the United States for the per4 petration of gross human rights violations on

5 African slaves and their descendants.

6 (B) Whether African Americans still suffer

7 from the lingering affects of the matters de8 scribed in paragraphs (1), (2), (3), and (4).

9 (C) Whether, in consideration of the Com10 mission’s findings, any form of compensation to

11 the descendants of African slaves is warranted.

12 (D) If the Commission finds that such

13 compensation is warranted, what should be the

14 amount of compensation, what form of com15 pensation should be awarded, and who should

16 be eligible for such compensation.

17 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—The Commission shall

18 submit a written report of its findings and recommenda19 tions to the Congress not later than the date which is one

20 year after the date of the first meeting of the Commission

21 held pursuant to section 4(c).

22 SEC. 4. MEMBERSHIP.

23 (a) NUMBER AND APPOINTMENT.—(1) The Commis24 sion shall be composed of 7 members, who shall be ap-
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1 pointed, within 90 days after the date of enactment of this

2 Act, as follows:

3 (A) Three members shall be appointed by the

4 President.

5 (B) Three members shall be appointed by the

6 Speaker of the House of Representatives.

7 (C) One member shall be appointed by the

8 President pro tempore of the Senate.

9 (2) All members of the Commission shall be persons

10 who are especially qualified to serve on the Commission

11 by virtue of their education, training, or experience, par12 ticularly in the field of African American studies.

13 (b) TERMS.—The term of office for members shall

14 be for the life of the Commission. A vacancy in the Com15 mission shall not affect the powers of the Commission, and

16 shall be filled in the same manner in which the original

17 appointment was made.

18 (c) FIRST MEETING.—The President shall call the

19 first meeting of the Commission within 120 days after the

20 date of the enactment of this Act, or within 30 days after

21 the date on which legislation is enacted making appropria22 tions to carry out this Act, whichever date is later.

23 (d) QUORUM.—Four members of the Commission

24 shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number may hold

25 hearings.
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1 (e) CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR.—The Commission shall

2 elect a Chair and Vice Chair from among its members.

3 The term of office of each shall be for the life of the Com4 mission.

5 (f) COMPENSATION.—(1) Except as provided in para6 graph (2), each member of the Commission shall receive

7 compensation at the daily equivalent of the annual rate

8 of basic pay payable for GS–18 of the General Schedule

9 under section 5332 of title 5, United States Code, for each

10 day, including travel time, during which he or she is en11 gaged in the actual performance of duties vested in the

12 Commission.

13 (2) A member of the Commission who is a full-time

14 officer or employee of the United States or a Member of

15 Congress shall receive no additional pay, allowances, or

16 benefits by reason of his or her service on the Commission.

17 (3) All members of the Commission shall be reim18 bursed for travel, subsistence, and other necessary ex19 penses incurred by them in the performance of their duties

20 to the extent authorized by chapter 57 of title 5, United

21 States Code.

22 SEC. 5. POWERS OF THE COMMISSION.

23 (a) HEARINGS AND SESSIONS.—The Commission

24 may, for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this

25 Act, hold such hearings and sit and act at such times and
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1 at such places in the United States, and request the at2 tendance and testimony of such witnesses and the produc3 tion of such books, records, correspondence, memoranda,

4 papers, and documents, as the Commission considers ap5 propriate. The Commission may request the Attorney Gen6 eral to invoke the aid of an appropriate United States dis7 trict court to require, by subpoena or otherwise, such at8 tendance, testimony, or production.

9 (b) POWERS OF SUBCOMMITTEES AND MEMBERS.—

10 Any subcommittee or member of the Commission may, if

11 authorized by the Commission, take any action which the

12 Commission is authorized to take by this section.

13 (c) OBTAINING OFFICIAL DATA.—The Commission

14 may acquire directly from the head of any department,

15 agency, or instrumentality of the executive branch of the

16 Government, available information which the Commission

17 considers useful in the discharge of its duties. All depart18 ments, agencies, and instrumentalities of the executive

19 branch of the Government shall cooperate with the Com20 mission with respect to such information and shall furnish

21 all information requested by the Commission to the extent

22 permitted by law.

23 SEC. 6. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS.

24 (a) STAFF.—The Commission may, without regard to

25 section 5311(b) of title 5, United States Code, appoint and
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1 fix the compensation of such personnel as the Commission

2 considers appropriate.

3 (b) APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN CIVIL SERVICE

4 LAWS.—The staff of the Commission may be appointed

5 without regard to the provisions of title 5, United States

6 Code, governing appointments in the competitive service,

7 and without regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and

8 subchapter III of chapter 53 of such title relating to classi9 fication and General Schedule pay rates, except that the

10 compensation of any employee of the Commission may not

11 exceed a rate equal to the annual rate of basic pay payable

12 for GS–18 of the General Schedule under section 5332

13 of title 5, United States Code.

14 (c) EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.—The Commission

15 may procure the services of experts and consultants in ac16 cordance with the provisions of section 3109(b) of title 5,

17 United States Code, but at rates for individuals not to

18 exceed the daily equivalent of the highest rate payable

19 under section 5332 of such title.

20 (d) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT SERVICES.—The

21 Commission may enter into agreements with the Adminis22 trator of General Services for procurement of financial

23 and administrative services necessary for the discharge of

24 the duties of the Commission. Payment for such services

25 shall be made by reimbursement from funds of the Com-
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1 mission in such amounts as may be agreed upon by the

2 Chairman of the Commission and the Administrator.

3 (e) CONTRACTS.—The Commission may—

4 (1) procure supplies, services, and property by

5 contract in accordance with applicable laws and reg6 ulations and to the extent or in such amounts as are

7 provided in appropriations Acts; and

8 (2) enter into contracts with departments,

9 agencies, and instrumentalities of the Federal Gov10 ernment, State agencies, and private firms, institu11 tions, and agencies, for the conduct of research or

12 surveys, the preparation of reports, and other activi13 ties necessary for the discharge of the duties of the

14 Commission, to the extent or in such amounts as are

15 provided in appropriations Acts.

16 SEC. 7. TERMINATION.

17 The Commission shall terminate 90 days after the

18 date on which the Commission submits its report to the

19 Congress under section 3(c).

20 SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

21 To carry out the provisions of this Act, there are au22 thorized to be appropriated $8,000,000.

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